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Squig

2022-06-30T23:21:39Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Rat Squig */

[[File:Squig.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Squigs. Making [[Tyranids]] feel insecure in the eating department.]]

[[File:MilkSquig.jpeg|thumb|Sadly noncanon, at least not yet...]]
A Squig, short for squiggly beast, is any one of a variety of bizarre organisms that exist semi-symbiotically with [[Orcs & Goblins]] and [[Orks]] alike. [[Fungus]]-based animals, their most iconic form resembles a large round ball that opens up a huge maw full of teeth, propelled by two strong legs that let it run, scramble and jump all over the place.

Night Goblins in particular like to herd huge swarms of these things onto the battlefield, as they are violently unpredictable and surprisingly dangerous.

In the 41st millennium, on the other hand, they play a somewhat different role. Some ork [[Warboss]]es will keep such squigs as personal attack animals, [[Oddboys|slavers]] always have trusty squig-hounds to help tame [[grot]]s, and [[Tankbustas]] favor a breed that they cram full of bombs and coax to charge towards (hopefully) the enemy before blowing up.

According to the [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] splat, "Old World Bestiary", squig-meat is perfectly edible by humans and actually very tasty. Spit-roasted squig is described as resembling smoked ham with the consistency of young chicken.

[[Age of Sigmar]] introduces a mythological aspect to their origins with the introduction of Boingob, the godbeast progenitor of all Squigs. This massive creature barreled through the realms in a frenzied pursuit of the light of Hysh (basically the sun), until it finally jumped up and was roasted alive. Now its colossal skeleton serves as a holy place/impenetrable lurk lair to the Moonclan Grots.

Squigs can be bred into a vast variety of forms and functions. The most famous of these is arguably the monstrous [[Squiggoth]] which provide a similar sort of heavy infantry to a war elephant. Other, more obscure types include (but by no means limited to) Bag Squigs, Bomb Squigs, Eating Squig, Gas Squigs, Hair Squigs, Oily Squigs, Paint Squigs, Squig Sharks, Squig Hawks, and Squigeons all of which can be further explained below. Squigs are basically the apps of Ork society: if you can think of a function, there's a squig for that.

==Squig Varieties==
As mentioned. Squigs come in all sizes and flavors. Here are the documented species of Squigs officially recognized by the Imperium/whatever-institutio-exists-in-AoS.

===Attack Squig===
[[File:AttackSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Attack Squig.]]
The most common and identifiable type of Squig. Whenever someone says Squig, this is the one that pops in everyone's head. The Attack Squig (''Orkus ferocitas''), also known as the Cave Squig, looks like it's trying to compete with the [[Tyranids]] for sheer 'OMNOMNOMNOMNOM' ability, consisting of nothing more than a bouncing ball of claws and razor-sharp teeth. These Squigs, as their name implies, are often used as attack animals, weapons, or pets. They can be given to the [[Grots]] as a food source (if the Squig doesn't eat them first) or even war mounts if said Grot is feeling particularly brave that day.

Sometimes an Attack Squig is transformed into a '''Bomb Squig''' via jamming as much explosive materials into the Squigs mouth as possible before setting it loose to fuck up some tanks. These specialized Attack Squigs are often utilized by either Ork Flashgitz or Tankbustas.

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File:BombSquig.png|Bomb Squig.
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===Bitey Squig===
[[File:Bitey Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bitey Squig]]
Bitey Squigs are a sub-species of Attack Squigs that have sufficient jaws, claws, and stingers to savage the target and anything close by. This breed is squig is frequently fired from Squig Launchas and Heavy Squig Launchas. Launched gnashing and snarling into the enemy, they latch onto the first thing they hit and do not stop chewing until they are killed. A bit like the Face-Eating Squig to be honest.

Legends states that the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]] was created due to a [[Just As Planned|'mishap']] when a Bitey Squig or some form of Attack Squig was accidentally stuffed into
the launcha and fired into a ''very'' unfortunate Ork’s face and thus, the legend was born.

It seems that the Bitey Squig can be differentiated by the normal Attack Squig with a stronger jaw, this can be seen with its more pronounced jawline which could only be supported with powerful jaw muscles. There is also the aforementioned stingers, which would most likely be located at the tail, unfortunately there isn't any indication that the tail has something ''alluding'' to a stinger tail. Bitey Squigs are also much smaller than the Attack Squig in order to fit inside a Squig Launcha, seeing as how an Attack Squig is often the size of sheep, it makes sense for the Orks to utilize a much more smaller and mobile version to be used as ammunition.

===Bile Squig===
[[File:Bile_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bile Squig]]

The Bile Squigs come in a variety of breeds and are capable of spraying, squirting, or vomiting harmful fluids from their orifices. This breed of squig is frequently fired from Squig Launchas and Heavy Squig Launchas.

Typically launched by the handful, these creatures squeal and thrash while jetting acid, lubricants, poisons, and flammable fluids in every direction. The effects can sometimes be harmless, but other times can cause their victims to burst into flames, explode, or dissolve. Essentially, they are the Orky version of the [[Flamers of Tzeentch]], you never know what you're gonna get.

Bile Squigs seem to have an enlarged earhole or an orifice for which they shoot out their concoction of liquids, it is identified by its very [[Derp|derpy appearance]] and its long tongue which maybe used to lick off any excess liquid it shoots out.
===Bat Squig===
[[File:Bat_squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bat Squig]]

A squig that has bat wings..... That's it..... Look it's just a squig that has bat wings alright it has the typical squig mentality, lives in a cave and can fly the only difference is that IT JUST HAS BAT WINGS. These Bat Squigs descend upon their victims in a flurry of gnashing jaws and spattering guano. It's not got some depressing story in which it lost its parents and now hunts down all everything that isn't greenskin, NO IT'S JUST A SQUIG WITH BAT WINGS, also no legs.

Might share a genetic lineage with a certain human performer with an equally surly disposition and big mouth, but that’s just speculation.

On tabletop, at the start of your shooting phase, you can pick 1 enemy unit within 18" of this model and roll a dice. On a 5+ that enemy unit suffers 1 mortal wound. This ability cannot be used if the Bat Squig minion has been removed.

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File:Bat_squig_in_a_shellnut.JPG
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===Boom Squig===
[[File:Boom_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Boom Squig]]

A special sub-species of the 'Splodin Squig.

This breed is squig is frequently fired from [[Squig Launcha]]s and [[Heavy Squig Launcha]]s. Boom Squigs, also known as Mine Squigs due to their shape, are infamous for their defense mechanism of violently exploding at the slightest provocation, typically due to direct physical contact or a loud noise ([[FAIL|or sometimes even their own bouts of indigestion]]).

They detonate with such force that they kill or maim anything unlucky enough to be in the vicinity. These creatures thus make the perfect living ammunition for Orks and are also sometimes used as landmines. They are also favored by Orks as the tools of [[Lulz|practical jokes,]] as nothing will amuse a Speed Freek more than hiding a [[Just As Planned|Boom Squig under the seat of a Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy driver like an explosive whoopee cushion.]]

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File:Boom_Squif_Top.JPG
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===Bowel-Torrent Squig===
[[File:Bowel_Squig?.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bowel-Torrent Squig]]

A mysterious Squig referred to only as one of the most "revolting" and "panic-inducing". [[Shitstorm|Given its name it should be very easy to understand why.]] They are one of the numerous forms of living ammunition from the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]].

Unfortunately, despite being important enough to be mentioned in fluff, they still didn't really get that much screen time...or an identifiable model for that specific matter in the first place.

Fortunately for us in /tg/, the Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy model holds so many Squigs in its trunk and around the vehicle that we can sort of guess which Squig might best describe the Bowel-Torrent Squig the best.

Due to the Squig's....[[Bullshit|unique way of expelling its munitions]], we believe that the small albeit grumpy looking Squig with the long tail ''may be'' the elusive Bowel-Torrent Squig. Ya know...'cause it looks similar to that of a pigeon and this thing can 'fly' once it exits out the Squig Launcha. We would let your figure out the rest.

===Bag Squig===
[[File:Bag_Squig_2.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Bag Squig.]]

This type of Squig has a large, gaping mouth and a bag-like body that is almost entirely composed of stomach and nothing else. The stomach coincidentally functions secondarily as a pouch that allows the Squig to survive by slowly digesting food it stores up inside its body similar to that of modern Earth animals that hibernate by eating a lot of food during the summer. If the Squig is dried out, it can be made into a flask for drinks. If it is tanned like leather, it makes a useful bag or belt pouch.

By far one of the most practical form of Squigs used by the Orks.

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Image:Bag_Squig.PNG
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===Burna' Squig===
[[File:Burna_Squig_2.PNG|150px|right|thumb|Burna Squig.]]

The Burna' Squig is similar to the 'Sploding Squig. However while the 'Sploding Squig is a biological grenade the Burna' Squig is a biological molotov cocktail. Inside a Burna' Squig consists of multiple chemicals that when mixed, burst into flames rather than exploding. Orks sometime shake their Burna' Squigs to further enhance their fiery potential (Or force them to swallow even MOAR flammable materials such as Promethium) after being thrown if it doesn't explode in their face of course.

If the Ork is feeling a bit picky and don't really want to risk having his head blown off by enemy snipers, he can just let the Squig go off to its intended target. Of course, these may not result in the desired outcome as the Squig may be shot before it gets the chance to explode or the Squig wouldn't even explode in the first place and just growls at the target harmlessly.

The effects of Burna Squigs are equivalent to other flammable explosives found in the Imperium.

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File:Burna_Squig.PNG
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===Buzzer Squig===
[[File:Buzzer.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Buzzer Squig.]]
Buzzer Squigs are an insect-like like variation of the Squig typically used by Orks and Gretchins in a [[Squig Catapult|Squig Katapult,]] as they are very vicious and a swarm can strip the flesh off a man-sized creature within seconds. They are essentially flying piranhas but without the cowardly aspects of a piranha.

Buzzer Squigs are found among Ork fungus groves and are trapped in pots by Gretchin. The special pots are made from sun-baked mud, drilled with tiny holes to allow the Squigs inside to breathe. The top of the vessel is corked shut and sealed with more mud once a good number of Squigs has been put inside. Normally the Squigs feed by burrowing into other larger Squigs or small animals such as rats, so when they are captured they soon begin to get very hungry. They can be kept without food in the pot for many weeks, getting angrier and more savage all the time. If the Gretchin is unfortunate in capturing these hornets of doom or accidentally breaks a pot full of these things, then he may end up as their lunch.

Gretchin can tell which pots contain the angriest Squigs from the high pitch of the droning and the vibrations of the pot as the Squigs try to burrow out (the walls of the pot must be made thick and hard). These pots, each containing a small swarm of enraged Buzzer Squigs, are the missiles fired by the Squig Katapult. The pot cracks open on impact, releasing the swarm of enraged Buzzer Squigs, who attack anyone nearby. They are great against Imperial Guards, Tau, Kroot, and low level Tyranid forces (cue irony of the [[Lulz|Tyranids getting out-NOMMED in their own game]]). Unfortunately they are quite useless when it comes to MEQs as those claws and fangs aren't going to do much against ceramite and reinforced wraithbone.

Buzzer Squigs can also be found on the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]], although they're far more limited in role due to the presence of other Squig species.

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File:Buzzer_Squig_Model.JPG
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===Buzzing Squig===
[[File:Buzzing.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Buzzing Squig.]]
Not to be confused with Buzz''er'' Squigs, Buzz''ing'' Squigs have tiny, propeller-like wings on their tails: miniature airscrews that allow them to fly like a biological helicopter. When they contact flesh (which they can smell), they bores in and eat their way straight through the unfortunate target. Upon emerging from the victim, they immediately dive back and bore through again, or set upon another victim. Orks have learned to use these deadly nuisances as weapons.

Gretchin are set to work trapping them for dispersal as swarms around the battlefield. Buzzing Squigs may also be kept in pots and thrown from makeshift catapults like the [[Squig Catapult|Squig Katapult.]] When the pot containing the Buzzing Squigs cracks, it releases a swirling swarm of these flesh-eating monsters.

In all honesty though, by function there is very little difference between the Buzzer and Buzzing Squigs as they both fulfill the same niche. They only look different enough to warrant their own species.

===Coffin Crawler===
[[File:CoffinCrawlerSquig.png|right|thumb|150px|Coffin Crawler]]
Coffin-Crawlers were an Old-School Tyranid Squig who would consume fresh corpses and grow in bulk until they were ready to return to the Norn-Queen, carrying their swollen bodies back to feed the [[Norn Queen]].

Genetic material in the form of captive creatures and corpse scavengers called Coffin-Crawlers is fed into the great maws located at the top of the Norn-Queen and synthesised by its genetic shredder organs. The dissembled DNA structures form a gene-bank which provides the raw material from which new creatures called bio-constructs are created.Once a type of bio-construct has been designed more identical creatures can be cloned by the Norn-Queens.

Much like the Grabber-Slasher Squig, when Squigs were separated from Tyranids, they were reduced to the status of just being a variety of Big Squig. That, and their role has been replaced by [[Rippers]].

===Gob Squig===
[[File:Gob.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Gob Squig.]]
Gob Squigs are small enough to be put into an Ork's mouth and left there for the rest of the day (or the next few days, if the Ork forgets about it). The Squig cleans the Ork's mouth out by rooting round the teeth and eating the juicy bits of food that are stuck between them. They look like your typical fantasy [[Slime]] with a funny face although your local Commissar would suggest not petting one as they are known to bite. They are essentially an Ork's version of a toothbrush but more effective and cost-productive

The '''Chewin' Squig''' is another variant of the Gob Squig. An Ork can pop this sort of Squig into his mouth and chew on it while he sits and thinks (or sits and enjoys not thinking). The Ork version of a chewing gum, how the Squig could survive being munched by an Ork is a feat unknown by Imperial Xenologists.

===Great Cave Squig===
[[File:99800209017_GoblinWarbossCaveSquigNEW01.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Great Cave Squig]]
Think a regular Attack Squig given steroids. A Great Cave Squig is simply a larger variant of the more common Cave Squig that has grown to such a magnificent size that it has become as large as an Imperial warhorse. This Squig sub-species is the second largest of the non-Squiggoth family, with only the Colossal Squig surpassing it in both size and weight. Its large mouth is filled with teeth the size of swords and sabres and their appetite as ravenous as their smaller counterparts. These things are solitary predators that like to [[Get shit done|get shit done by itself.]]

Because of their large size, the Great Cave Squig makes for excellent cavalry for Night Goblins. However, their aggressive behavior makes it difficult for one to tame them effectively. The process of [[Rape|breaking in]] a Great Cave Squig would cost the lives of many Night Goblin, but once the beast learns to accept a rider, they serve as a more stable mount than the smaller and more unruly Cave Squig. Although they are costly to maintain, eating over twice their own body weight daily, a Night Goblin Warboss would do almost anything to keep such a magnificent asset in the hands of his tribe.

Since they're so difficult to tame, often times Goblins don't even bother doing so, instead just chaining two Great Cave Squigs together, pointing them vaguely in the direction of the enemy and setting them loose, resulting in the infamous Mangler Squigs. The Squigs drag and pull each-other across the battlefield, resulting in them essentially becoming living wrecking balls. In Age of Sigmar, some particularly insane Loonbosses use a pair of Mangler Squigs as a mount, usually if they're leading a Squigalanche warband.

On the even rarer occasions when a Great Cave Squig continuous to grow exponentially, they would grow to such a monstrous size that they are once again categorized into another even larger variant called simple as the Colossal Squig (As seen below).

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Image:GreatCave Squig.png|NYUM YUM YUM YUM YUM!
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===Colossal Squig===
[[File:CollossalSquig.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Colossal Squig.]]
Think an Great Cave Squig on steroids and having a mouth and stomach that could rival a [[Haruspex]] and the [[Mawloc|Mawloc]] in a eating competition. The Colossal Squigs are the largest variants of Squigs known to exist short of Squiggoths.

These cyclopean or six-eyed monsters boast an insatiable appetite, and are in essence no more than an impossibly vast fleshy maw studded with row upon row of scimitar-bladed teeth. The only way they get into battle is by finding some Orks and just moving in with them.

The Colossal Squig is often used as a giant living battering ram, bashing and splintering anything smaller than the Squig into a fine paste. Of course the presence of the Squiggoth kind of placed the status of the Colossal Squig in question. Nevertheless, they still have the capability of eating entire Space Marines whole let alone normal Guardsmen, granting some laughs by the local Boyz if the Squig doesn't eat them first.

Of special note is a small change to this subtype of Squig in [[Age of Sigmar]] - When a Colossal Squig dies, it blows up into a bunch of smaller Cave Squigs! ... Nature running its course?...

===Cape Squig===
[[File:GloomspiteGitzDesignersNotes-Dec27-Capesquigs10vh-1.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Cape Squig]]

These cute little Squigs are there to make you feel just a tad bit more important.

A Squig found only in [[Age of Sigmar]]. A presumably regal and dignified breed of squig, these little beasties help Skragrott keep his magnificent cape off the floor. Or maybe they’re trying to eat it. Probably both…

Anyways, these Squigs are quite sought after since they have a... distinct head shape of the Greenskin's moon, which makes it downright flash. Why their heads are shaped like that is anyone's guess (selective breeding?). Skragrott, the Loonking himself, is the self-styled overlord of the Gloomspite Gitz (AKA Night Goblins, copyright edition). His sinister presence upon the field of battle ensures his fellow grots fight with greater spite and cunning than ever.

On tabletop, these little beasties are there for decorative purposes in order to make Skragrott look more important than he really is. Seriously you think they would provide anything of substance in the actual game?

===Dice Squig===
[[File:DiceSquigs.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Dice Squig]]
Famed for their bounciness, the rare and elusive Dice Squigs have been known to be used by particularly kunnin’ Grot Loonbosses in games of tactics and chance. They are usually given out in an event of a mass brawl, with [[Grot]]s assembling bets on would emerge the victor.

These small, eyeless, limbless blobs of flesh have very little use other than your usual Ork gamblin', however, a wise Greenskin must still be cautious when handling these things as they still have a mouth that may bite your fingers off.

Currently, most Dice Squigs have different yellow splotches on each side save for the face, which is an obvious analogue to the actual numbers system of an actual dice. Also represented as an actual limited edition squig-dice for sale by Games Workshop.

{{Clear}}

===Eating Squig===
[[File:EatingSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Eating Squig.]]
An Eating Squig (also known as Grubs or ''Orkus consumit'') is a limbless blob used as the primary Ork food source. It resembles an elongated, squarish slug with two eyes and a small pug mouth (like a cross between a blob fish and uncanned SPAM). Orks usually prefer them cooked, but they can be eaten raw as well. Gretchin are quite adept in cooking them and have a number of methods including kebabing, marinating in fungus wine, stuffed with fungus and herbs, roasted on a spit, deep fried with fungus chips, or griddled over a campfire. Who knew the Ork race have such a fine taste at culinary skills? Again Commissars would suggest not petting one no matter how pug-cute it looks, although suggesting to eat one for emergency rationing is fine for them.

With the fast reproduction on all Orkoid lifeforms, it is unknown why the [[Imperium of Man]] still haven't decided on capturing one of these Squigs and then mass producing them which would stop Galactic world hunger that plagues some of the Imperial Worlds (and no, [[Grox|not because of heresy]]). Maybe they are already looking into it, but with how slow the IoM usually is it may take decades to even centuries for it to be finalized and distributed in the entire Galaxy. Or it might have something to do with the fact that they're creature from the orkoid genus, so they release spores everywhere that can grow into the more dangerous parts of the genus including actual orks.

If the Eating Squig is the Duck/Chicken of an Ork culinary experience, then the '''Juicy Squig''' is the foie gras of Ork cuisine. The Juicy Squig is a very rare and delicious type of Eating Squig that may perhaps be the only known Ork delicacy. This Squig lives at the very bottom of an Ork fungal drop, and are not only rare, but difficult to find and bring up from the depths. Since these Squigs are seldom caught by the Gretchin and Snotlings, they often grow quite large and become even tastier as they get older.

In Age of Sigmar, there is also type of swamp-dwelling squig in the Mortal Realms called the '''Slobbersquig''', mentioned in the second edition Orruk Warclans Battletome as being part of the regular diet consumed by the Kruleboyz, alongside bog toads, swamp hoppers, cold crawfish, spine-ridged mud worms, and human flesh. Compared to the rest of the food on this list, it could be conjectured the Slobbersquig is a sluglike, unappealing Eatin' Squig that drools constantly and lives in swamp muck instead of the bottom of the greenskin drops.
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File:OCG-grot-trader.jpg|Lovely indeed.
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===Guard Squig===
[[File:Guard_Squig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Guard Squig.]]
Ork Kaptins have been breeding a form of Squig known as a Guard Squig, or Squig Hound to some. Think of them as Guard Dogs. These creatures have all the ferocity of an Attack Squig, but are bred to be utterly loyal to their masters. When alone or not in battle, Squig Hounds are usually seen sleeping on their post or lying on their master's lap. Guard Squigs are often seen as a step up above the normal Attack Squig due to their aforementioned loyalty.

Guard Squigs are not to be confused with the Herd Squig whose nickname also bears the name Squighound or the [[Derp|actual Squighound themselves.]] Why GeeDubs thought repeating the name of three different species is a good idea is a mystery. Is it though? These are orks we’re talking about. Considering the rather direct (and often short) manner with which orks approach life, it’s hardly a surprise they’d have one name for several breeds of squigs. One ork may name a particular breed of squig a bitey squig for biting a lot, only to have his head bit off by said squig, prompting the next ork to confirm that it is indeed a bitey squig, while somewhere else in the mob the same little drama is occurring with an entirely different breed of biting squig with identical results. Orks are pragmatic...in their way.

===Targeting Squig===
[[File:Targeting-squig-art.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Targeting Squig.]]
A unusual type of Squig, Targeting Squigs (''Orkus scopum'') are weird creatures with a single targeting eye that serve as biological equivalents of Gitfindas used by Flash Gitz. Sometimes their pupils are even shaped into a cross-hair.

How the Squig could communicate with the Flash Gitz is unknown. Although certain unique sounds or barks could be help the Ork to signal that there may be ample prey around. That or it could flash different colors or release certain pheromones that only Orkoid species can detect.

On tabletop there is very little difference between the Squig and regular Gitfindas other then the cosmetic change. And they are cool looking model.

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File:Last-wall-squig.jpg
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===Face-Eater Squig===
[[File:Face Eater.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Face-Eater Squig.]]
Like how Humans have binge eating contests, the Orks have their own variety. Of course in this case the food has the potential of eating your face off. Here is where the Face-Eater Squigs come into play. The Face-Eater Squig is a toothed variety of Squig used both as a weapon and in the infamous Ork face-eating contests.

These Squigs, also known as "Gnashers" or "Gnasher Squigs," are a vicious mass of sharp teeth and claws. In their active state they appear to be just a gnashing mouth and very little else, though they look much like any other Eatin' Squig when they are at rest. Because of their violent nature, Gnashers provide the Orks with endless entertainment, and Squig-eating is one of the Orks' favorite pastimes. The Ork and the Squig both open their mouths and bite, in a parody of a kiss. If the Ork eats the Squig, he wins. If he keels over backwards, he loses.

Some Painboys made attempts to use Gnashers to amputate a patients limbs, but these attempts weren't very successful as they tend to bite off orderlies' arms or even Dok's fingers. Face-Eaters are often used as an attack squig. This organism is known to Imperium biologists as Orkus ravenati.

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File:GnasherSquig.jpg|Nasty little fuckers.
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===Flesheater Squig===
[[File:Flesheater.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Flesheater Squig.]]
In order to increase their wealth, some Orks breed large, ferocious beasts known as Flesheaters. The Flesheater has a great, gaping mouth like a crocodile, full of rows of sharp fangs that are similar to an Ork's canine teeth. They look like furry Orky crocodiles. Flesheaters continually shed and replace their teeth, and all the Orks have to do to collect this wealth is send a Gretchin to collect the teeth, who, of course, aren't overly keen on this duty.

Like Ork teeth, Flesheater teeth also deteriorate after a few years. Flesheaters are extremely long-lived, but rarely breed in captivity, making them even more valuable. Most Orks who own Flesheaters are either already Nobz, or become Nobz on account of the wealth derived from owning these Squigs. Not surprisingly, impoverished Orks sometimes attempt to steal a Flesheater, or even raid rival settlements to capture them.

They are literally a mobile money-making machine - who says money can't grow on <s>trees</s> animals?

===Gas Squig===
[[File:GasSquigs.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Gas Squig.]]

It is a Squig that literally has a [[Lulz|killer fart.]]

The Gas Squig produces a gas so toxic that Orks with gas masks throw this Squig in combat, using the Squig itself as a chemical weapon. They're essentially living gas bombs. Despite their use as a one time explosive however, the Ork can just let the Squig run loose in the battlefield, spreading as much chaos as possible as these nasty little runts can cover an entire field in a bath of toxic miasma and corrosive chemicals.

It is unknown what type of chemicals is needed for the Gas Squig to unleash a untold volume of lethal farts. High levels of methane or magic/warp-related bullshit is the only potential answer.

They are seen as one of the summoning Squigs in Warhammer Online.

According to the illustration of Warhammer Online, Gas Squigs look like normal Attack Squigs but with hole-like projections that constantly spew out the toxic materials like chimneys.

===Grabber-Slasher Squig===
[[File:Grabberslasher.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Grabber-Slasher/Big Squig]]

These guys originated way back in older editions of Warhammer, when Squigs were the result of Tyranids consuming Orkoid biomass instead of always being around. The Grabber-Slasher is a form of large ambush Squig, that prefers to lurk in ducts and either grab prey with its massive arm and drag it away to devour, or hump-slash it with its big crotch-spike.

As one can imagine from things ''that'' early on, they look like fucking abominations and something out of a Cronenberg film than a product of 40k. Seriously, that giant clawed hand on top of its head does not help. They also apparently have a chameleonic ability to change their skin colour and texture to hide better in crevices and ducts. But again, with that giant hand and [[/d/|horned dick,]] such idea of it being chameleonic should be taken with some salt. Even worse is the fact that the Tyranid Hive Mind used it as a prototype to the Lictor in early editions, using it to assassinate those who threatened the plans of the Tyranids, imagine the shame and humiliation of being killed by something as fugly as THAT!

When Squigs were later retconned into being always a part of the Orkoid Fungus Biosphere, the Grabber-Slasher was retconned into being just a [[Derp|"Big Squig"]], which is honestly, quite disappointingly generic.

===Hair Squig===
[[File:Hairy.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Hair Squig.]]
Do you want to know how and where the Orks get their hairy ponytails from? Well the answer is obviously simple: they use Squigs to do the job, due to Orks being naturally hairless. Hair Squigs are a parasitic variety of Squig which possess small bodies, no legs, no eyes, and a pair of pincers in place of a mouth.

They have long hair running from their tiny bodies that Orks like to customize and dye after clamping the Squig's pincers onto their own hairless heads, though this customization has no effect on the Squig's health.

One particular variety of Hair Squig is known as '''Chin Squig'''. These creatures feature a long thin body with claws and hair all over it and serve as the equivalent of a beard. They are also known to be a sign of age and status among Orks.

<gallery>
File:Hair Squig.jpg
File:Chin_Squig.jpg|Chin Squig.
</gallery>

===Limpin Squig===
[[File:AoSSquigs-Jan8-SquigBall1jvrh.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Limpin Squig or a turkey drumstick, you make the call.]]

[[Lolwut|A Squig football/handegg. Yeah its weird but it makes sense in context.]]

Technically, this squig is from [[Blood Bowl]] rather than the [[Age of Sigmar|Mortal Realms (AKA Age of Sigmar)]], but its existence is so hilariously dumb it might as well be part of the Squig family. Also known as the Squigball, Orc teams are known for using squigs as balls, shearing one leg off so it can’t run away. Sometimes, they just find a particularly bulbous Squig and then literally kick its ass.

These Squigs must be extremely durable, squishy and bouncy. The best Limpin' Squigs have flesh that is extremely flexible, sturdy bones to survive repeated impacts and kicks, a skin firm enough to be held onto for long periods of time, an attitude that makes sure it doesn't ends up biting its holder in the middle of some intense Blood Bowl, and just the right enough shape to bounce to its trajectory.

It is not known is they exist in 40k or AoS, although seeing as how Orks/Orcs are stereotypical British hooligans, we wouldn't be surprised if they did.

===Mendin' Squig===
[[File:Squig-hairy-medical.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Mendin' Squig.]]
Mendin' Squigs or more commonly (and annoyingly) called the Hairy Squigs (Again not to be confused with Hair Squigs much to the Xenobiologist's constant frustration) is a type of medicinal Squig. Hairy/Mendin' Squigs are used by Painboyz as over glorified stitches. The Painboy simply applies it to the open wound, which it holds closed with its tiny, needle-like teeth. The Painboy then twists its tail off, leaving the head embedded in the flesh, repeating the process until the wound is "riveted up." The Mendin' Squig then feeds off blood oozing from the wound, thus keeping it clean and free from infection. By the time it shrivels and drops off, the wound has usually healed.

This form of medical technique is actually quite closer to reality than make believe. Some South American and African tribes use particularly large bulldog ants to act as crude stitching. They just grab the ants and allow the powerful jaws to snap shut on the wound and like the Mendin' Squigs they then twist its body off, leaving only the head which is still in contact with the wound until it shrivels and falls off once fully healed.

===Herd Squig===
[[File:HerdSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Herd Squig.]]
Herd Squigs have been specially bred and developed by Runtherds for the purpose of herding and controlling the herds of Runtz. They are related to the many varieties of pet Squigs, but have been selectively bred for their speed, intelligence, ferocity and endurance.

Their long, sensitive snouts and keen ears enable them to track down errant Snotlings and Gretchin wherever they might hide. Herd Squigs are excellent tracking beasts, and can follow trails which are days old.

They are also called Squighounds, which as you already know, [[Herp|should not be confused with the Guard Squig who already bears that nickname or the actual Squighounds themselves.]]

They are like pigs but more Orky.

===Hoppa Fungus===
[[File:DKI3T3c3fv3xNy92.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Hoppa Fungus]]
A Hoppa Fungus or Fun-Hoppas, are a type of Squig that skirts the line between Orkoid Mushroom and Squig, from the Snotling Blood Bowl set. They are small, round, lumpy "mushrooms" with a cartoony, squiggy face on their front. There are two sizes of them, one for throwing like a living rock and another for riding like a moon hopper, even more so than normal squigs as these ones lack legs.

How they managed to hop around without a leg, we are not too sure, although more technical elegan/tg/entelmen had assumed that they use their entire body mass as one giant muscle like a snake, to propel themselves for locomotion.

They seem overall, pretty harmless as far as Squigs go, given that they don't seem to routinely eat their riders or throwers. But boy do these giant grey meatballs look like they came out of a Loony Tunes cartoon.

<Gallery>
Hopper_Fungus.JPG
</gallery>

===Horned Squig===
[[File:HornedSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Horned Squig.]]
<s>A Squig that's [[/d/|''so Horny!'']]</s> {{Blam}}

The Horned Squig is a Squig which is gifted with long, sharp horns stretching from its head that Orks often jam into barricades to serve as living obstacles or act as a moving and mobile battering ram for siege warfare. They act like bulls and if used against troops, often ram its horns into the poor unfortunate sod in a relentless, charging stampede. They have a brighter red color scheme than Cave Squigs.

If the Horned Squig is disabled, then the Ork can simply just strap the Squig on its forearm and use it as a living weapon. The Orks are anything but wasteful and is capable of using everything, even other living organisms to its 'full' potential.

Like the Gas Squigs they are seen as one of the summoning Squigs in Warhammer Online.

===Mimic===
[[File:Squig_Mimic.PNG|150px|right|thumb|Mimic.]]

<span style='color:green;font-size:100%'>CA-CAW! OI GITZ GET MOVIN UNLESS YOU WANT ME TO TELL DA BOSS ON WHO IS MUCKIN' ABOUT!</span>

A particularly popular type of pet Squig is known as the Mimic. As you imagine, they are Ork parrots. This Squig has a large and toothy beak-like mouth and is vaguely parrot-like in both appearance and function.

Mimics can be seen perched on the shoulders of many an old and haggard Ork usually from the [[Freebooterz ]]to keep the pirate theme, casting expletives and insults at Greenskin passersby. Kaptins have a endearing affection to these little creatures and their ability to shout and swear at larger and more opposing Orks is often seen as a humorous delight to the Kaptin. Although woe to any Ork who accidentally swat these creatures out of annoyance. [[FATAL|The chance of getting your head wired to a Big Lobba by a pissed off Kaptin? Too high.]]

===Oily Squig===
[[File:Grot_Oiler.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Oily Squig.]]
The Oily Squig is a variety of Squig bred by Ork Meks to create fuel for the Orks' ramshackle vehicles. They create the fuel, an organically-synthesized version of Promethium, in their rotund bellies, and it can be squeezed out of their anteater-like trunks. These Squigs have no mouths, other than their trunk, and are not combat-oriented like their far more aggressive counterparts.

The most efficient way of extracting the oil from the creatures is to use a large pressing machine, although more primitive methods, such as having gretchin to jump up and down on them are also widely used. Orks prepare the barrels of the squig oil in advance and take those with them when they go on campaigns.

There exist two varieties of Oily Squigs, one with arms and a distinct head, and one that resembles an Attack Squig with a trunk for dispensing their fuel oil.

<gallery>
File:Squig-oily.jpg
File:7e-grotoiler.jpg
</gallery>

===Paint Squig===
[[File:PaintSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Paint Squig.]]
Orks can be creative artists too! This small, vividly colored Squig excretes powerful dyes that are used as warpaint. These paints are also used by Gretchin artists as pigments for wall paintings and decorative banners.

Many Paint Squigs have tufts of hair on their trails, which allows the artist to use the Squig as both a brush and tube of paint simultaneously. The shells of Edible Squigs are also used by Gretchin artists as paint pots and palettes.

===Parasite-Hunting Squig===
[[File:Parasite-Hunter.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Parasite-Hunting Squig.]]
Parasite-Hunting Squigs are tiny but voracious feeders used to clear an Ork's body and clothes of parasites. An Ork simply drops a handful of these Squigs into his clothing and lets them crawl around. They look like Orkified spiders which can give arachnophobes nightmares but the Orks don't give a zog.

The Squigs prey on lice, ticks or leeches the Ork may have acquired in the course of his many unsavoury habits. When the engorged Parasite-Hunting squigs drop out of the Ork's clothing, the Ork simply gathers them up and pops them into his mouth for a juicy chomp.

===Rat Squig===
[[File:RatSquig.jpg]]
[[File:Rat_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Rat Squig]]
A unholy abomination spawned from [[Skaven]] science (Is anybody surprise?).

The Rat Squig is a species of Squig created by Clan Moulder by fusing rat or skaven meat with Squigs, creating a form of furry, rat-faced squig with scaly patches of leathery skin, and the ability of regeneration. They apparently also have bloodlust, even in comparison to normal squigs.

They commonly do not have flat backs like Skarl, the Rat Squig in the illustration above, who is also outfitted with a specially made saddle able to carry his Grey Seer master, Farquan, also in the illustration. It is unknown if Farquan is the member of Clan Moulder responsible for creating the original Rat Squigs, or just his mount Skarl. Now whether they breed via spores like a normal Squig, we have no idea as the fluff doesn't really go that much into it.

There is a mod in Total War: Warhammer called [https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2746640530 Elon's Rat Squigs] where these creatures were implemented in. Most of the images came from this mod.

<gallery>
Rat_Squig_Mod.JPG
</gallery>

===Screech Squig===
[[File:Screech_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Screech Squig]]

A mysterious Squig referred to as having [[Sonic Weaponry|oversized lungs that allow it to make an extremely loud screech.]] Screech Squigs disorient, incapacitate and make the enemy's ear drums burst in one of the most horrid sounds possible (We in /tg/ imagines it as mixing the cries of an infant that has sand paper in its throat with that of fingernails scratching the surface of a chalkboard). They are one of the numerous forms of living ammunition from the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]].

Unfortunately, despite being important enough to be mentioned in fluff, they still didn't really get that much screen time...or an identifiable model for that specific matter in the first place.

Fortunately for us in /tg/, the Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy model holds so many Squigs in its trunk and around the vehicle that we can sort of guess which Squig might best describe the Screech Squig the best. Due to the fact that it is nothing more than a weaponized Mimic or a living Sonic Weapon, the Screech Squig needs both a big mouth and a wide barrelled body to encompass its huge lungs. Unfortunately, most Squigs have a big mouth and a wide body. Likewise, we hypothesize that the Screech Squig might be in fact, the big Squig we see inside of the Heavy Squig Launcha. This is alluded to the fact that its mouth is close relatively shut and will only open once fired from the Launcha. You wouldn't want your Boyz to go all bleeding in their noggins because they failed to pacify that thing right?

A similarly themed and named Squig exists in Age of Sigmar called the '''Syari Screamersquig'''. A rare albino beast that loathes any form of light, and reacts to it with ear shattering screams. Unfortunately for it, it’s native to the Syari region of the Realm of Light. It’s been hunted to near extinction by the Lumineth Realm-Lords and is prized by many Grot Loonbosses for its screaming powers.

===Snufflesquig===
[[File:Snufflesquig.PNG|150px|right|thumb|Snufflesquig]]

Squig truffle pigs but more [[Derp|derpy in appearances.]]

Snufflesquigs are little more than massive noses and snapping mouths with wiry little legs that can be trained by Sneaky Snufflers to identify Looncaps, a type of mushroom that grows from the light of the Bad Moon, from others that induce effects such as vomit slime, break out in luminous yellow spots, babble uncontrollably or even burst into flames. When the Bad Moon approaches these unique squigs begin to howl with raised snouts.

Like truffle pigs, Snufflesquigs have a tendency to eat these shrooms if not carefully attended.

May be a reference to Snuffler Orcs, a breed of Orc from Middle Earth described as small, black, and huge nosed, used for tracking victims.

===Smasha Squig===
[[File:LAEMX6Acaz90SDmn.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Smasha Squig]]
A cousin to the [[Squighog]], the Smasha Squig is basically an orkified [[Dinosaur|Pachycephalosaurus]].

Smashas are usually ridden by [[Nob]]s from the [[Beast Snagga]] sub-kulture, where they are often found leading mobs of [[Squighog Boy]]z into battle. The Smasha Squig itself is bipedal, running on two legs rather than four. It is also larger, tougher, and even more ferocious than your regular old [[squighog|Squig Bacon]]. Any Nob who has managed to beat a Smasha Squig into submission is ''not'' an Ork to be trifled with.

Once "tamed," a heavy armor plate is bolted to the Smasha Squig's skull. This is not done to protect the squig, for among its kind it is already noted for having an exceptionally thick skull encasing an exceptionally tiny (and shock-resistant) brain. Rather, the plate enhances the beast's natural head-butting tendencies so that the Smasha truly becomes a living, snarling wrecking ball.

On the tabletop, the Smasha Squig complements the Nob rider who is already a beast (pun intended) in close combat. Crunchwise, this oversized fungal dinosaur grants additional attacks with its jaws and its Smasha 'Ead has a chance to deal up to [[rape|five mortal wounds]] after a charge or heroic intervention. Finally, the rider is equipped with a Big Choppa and a slugga, and with T6 and 5 wounds the model is just as hard to kill as you'd expect.
{{Clear}}

===Spiky Squig===
[[File:Spiky.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Spiky Squig.]]
Spiky Squigs look like a living ball covered with spines which, when agitated, as an instinctive reaction, can shoot out at any threatening creature rather like a porcupine (except porcupines can't actually do that) .

These spines inflict a poisonous sting on anyone struck by them, though the effect of the poison on Orkish flesh is not as drastic as it is on other races due to the similar biology of all Orkoid races. Squigs of this kind are used in some bionik arms fitted with cages and a quick release system, so they can be used as a close combat weapon as a living, breathing Morning Star.

Spiky Squigs move via rolling around like a ball, however when it comes to hunting food, it would propel itself at high speed before launching into the unsuspecting prey. Launching its poisonous spines and letting it run its course. This unusual hunting method has been seen by xenobiologists as bizarre and weird.

===Spiteshroom===
[[Image: Spiteshroom.png|150px|right|thumb|Spiteshroom]]

A creature that blurs the line between Squig and Fungus, much like Hoppa Fungus. Spiteshrooms are fungal creatures that inhabit the dark and damp caves favoured by Dankhold Troggoths. They emit an incessant high-pitched shrieks and shrill idiot ditties that distracts even the most veteran warriors. The fungal clouds they release can rot flesh from bone. They are favored as familiars of Madcap Shamans.

Due to the fact that they seemed locked into ground like actual mushrooms, Spiteshrooms are immobile like the larger Stalagsquig.

<gallery>
Spiteshroom_and_Stalagsquig.JPG|With a Stalagsquig in a ''literal'' face off.
</gallery>

==='Sploding Squig===
[[File:Splodin_Squig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|'Sploding Squig.]]
A biological grenade used by the Orks if they run out of stikkbombs. 'Sploding Squigs possess multiple stomachs, each containing a thick broth of unstable digestive chemicals. Some 'Sploding Squigs may be covered in spines which may act as fragmentation when it explodes.

When agitated, usually though violent shaking, the 'Sploding Squig's digestive juices combine into a combustible liquid, causing the Squig to explode in a shower of meat, teeth, and bone fragments. While typically thrown in combat, 'Sploding Squigs are also often buried and used as mines. Orks are known to force-feed 'Sploding Squigs a meal of scrap metal before battle in an effort to enhance their lethality.

If the Ork is feeling a bit picky and doesn't really want to risk having his head blown off by enemy snipers he can just let the Squig go off to its intended target. Of course this may not result in the desired outcome as the Squig may be shot before it gets the chance to explode or the Squig wouldn't even explode in the first place and just growls at the target harmlessly.

However, the widespread use of regular Bomb Squigs has lessened the value of 'Sploding Squigs as Bomb Squigs are just regular Attack Squig fitted with explosives. No need to wait around for a specialized and uncommon Squig to mature when the most common type of Squig already fills in their purpose.

===Spore Squig===
[[File:AoSSquigs-Jan8-SporeSquig3mteg.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Spore Squig]]

[[Drug|A Squig to huff some shrooms and get high.]]

A walking LSD projector. These little squigs are used defensively by Fungoid Cave-Shamans, who need but stamp on one to release an obscuring cloud of spores. The Fungoid Cave-Shamans themselves are the lepers of Goblin kind. Found only in [[Age of Sigmar]], the mushroom-gobbling grot maniacs known as Cave-Shamans are obviously not right in the head.

To these greenskinned nutters, to get lost in a brain-mangling vision is to grow closer to the side of Gorkamorka that epitomises cunning and trickiness over brute strength, which is the side that all grots like the best.

The Spore Squig is nothing more than a living, breathing hookah for the greenskin to sniff some grade-A meth and can, on command, release said spores towards its enemies to make them just as high as the Squig's personnel caretakers.

Moral of the story, don't do drugs kiddos, especially on the battlefield.

===Squigadon===
[[File:Squigadon.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Squigadon.]]
A form of Squig larger than a Great Cave Squig but smaller than a Giant Squig. Maybe a smaller [[Squiggoth]].

First appeared in White Dwarf, and utilized by Hobgoblins. The creator of this monster was from Nick Bayton who literally used a Large Squiggoth from Forgeworld and converted it into a unit for Fantasy by using the [[Lizardmen|Stegadon]] rules in battle. Whilst it may look big, don't let it fool you. Perspective is deceptive and whilst hobgoblins may view it as huge, you should take note that hobgoblins are like half the height of a human, so that Squigadon would be slightly bigger than a rhino.

Seeing as how the Squigadon is literally a converted [[Squiggoth]], whether it would be considered another demonym for a Squiggoth or an entirely different subspecies is unknown. Moreover, how 'canon' this Squig is, we have no clue since it only appeared in ''one'' issue of White Dwarf and that's it. We don't even have any of the bearest hints of fluff. So your guesses on its validity are as good as ours.
<gallery>
W8ox5l0jxaua.jpg|As it appeared in White Dwarf.
</gallery>

===[[Squiggoth]]===
The largest of all squig species, have their own page.

===Squigeon===
[[File:Squigeon3.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squigeon.]]

Squigeons (''Orkus aerium'') are the Squig counterparts of the Terran pigeon or columbidae if you are feeling fancy, often utilized for sending messages during battle amongst Ork tribes that lack more advanced methods of communication. Although they are sometimes hunted by the dreaded Squighawk or used as target practice by Stormboyz.

[[HHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhnnnnnnngggggg-|They are the cutest little orkspawn your will ever get the chance of meeting.]] Unfortunately, due to GeeDubs incompetence, we never ever get to see them further fleshed out in fluff. This time the Commissar would be fine with you petting a Squigeon.

<gallery>
File:Squigeon.jpg
</gallery>

===Squighawk===
[[File:SquigHawk.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squighawk.]]

<span style='color:green;font-size:200%'>'''BA-CAAAWK! OM NOM NOM NOM NOM!'''</span>

Think of a Orkified Pterodactyl. Squighawks are a wild, flying species of Squig that are large enough to eat Orks. Thus, they are ECKS BAWKS HUEG.

Unfortunately, they are often too difficult to be trained (Could be because the Squighawk view Orks are prey #1) and are rarely used by Ork Runtherdz which is saying something on how hard it is to tame these things when the Orks manage to successfully do it to the much larger Squiggoth.

Still, it would be cool if we actually got to use these <s>Dinosaurs</s> flying reptiles on the tabletop. Chances are, these things could potentially reach a size to rival some larger Tyranid flying strains such as the [[Harpy]].

===Squig-Hog===
[[File:Beast Snaggas.jpeg|200px|right|thumb|Squig-Hog]]
[[Boarboyz]] haven't been mentioned in core Ork fluff for quite some time. While they were cool in their own way, it didn't really ever make sense for Orks to be riding Earth animals in the first place. Well, as of 9th Edition it seems that Boarboyz have been retconned and/or [[squatted]] for good, because [[Squighog Boy]]s have now been introduced as a far more [[awesome]] type of Ork heavy cavalry. Squig Hogs are tougher, larger, and far more dangerous than other types of cavalry such as a horse or warboar, and they can eat pretty much anything that fits in their mouths (including the rider, if he fails to keep his mount in line). However, the horse still has a modest speed advantage.

[[Beast Snagga]]s use them as cavalry like the Imperium's [[Rough Riders]] and they are ''thicc'' enough that a [[Gretchin]] can hop on as well. Snaggas who ride these guys are called [[Squighog Boy]]z. While Squighog Boyz can belong to any Klan, they are presumably most common among the [[Snakebites]].

Crunchwise, Squighogs have a pretty nasty bite of S6, AP-1 and D2, meaning you should be able to dispatch the now tough-to-kill [[Primaris Space Marines]] as well as other MEQs and GEQs consistently. What you want from it however, is the fact that these walking fungal bacons are allowed 2 additional attacks every time the unit fights. Combined with the additional weapons from the Ork himself and you get a nasty cavalry unit.
{{clear}}

===Squighound===
[[File:Squighound.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Squighound.]]
Squighounds (''Orkus canis''), commonly known as "Growlers," are a variation of the Attack Squig, used by Ork Slaverz to help them keep the Gretchins and slaves from other races in line, some have four legs, although two-legged varieties certainly exist. "Growlers" are also often kept as a form of pet by other Orks, as they are roughly the size of a small dog, hairy, and particularly vicious.

A Pet Squig often scurries about behind its master, barely under his control, giving its owner no end of amusement and laughs [[Troll|especially when the Squig snaps at the ankles of another Ork.]]

They are not to be confused with the Guard Squig or Herd Squig who are also [[Derp|referred to as 'Squighound'.]]

===Squigosaur===
[[File:Squigosaur_2.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Squigosaur]]
The Squigosaur are large two-legged squigs, that [[Beast Snagga]]s ride upon. They are similar in appearance to the Smasha Squig, but whilst the Smasha Squig is an Orky Pachycephalosaurus, the Squigasaur is the Allosaurus of the family.

The most famous of which is the Big Chompa or otherwise known as '''The Great White Squig''' (AKA the Great White Shark on legs or "I can't believe it's another Moby Dick reference!"). A legendary alpha Squigasaur regarded as the most belligerent, vicious, and savage of its kind. It was responsible for a breathtaking number of missing Boyz and was also thought to be utterly untameable. That is, until Beast Snagga Mozrog Skragbad appeared with all his chad energy and proceeded to beat the ever-loving shit out of it for three days until it complied.

Although he has tamed the Squigosaur, it will revert to its original destructive nature when he is not nearby. In order to keep Big Chompa in line, the long-suffering Skragbad is forced to keep himself at its side and the two are rarely seen apart.

On the tabletop, the Squigosaur's jaws works lethally well with a mounted [[Beastboss]]; three extra attacks which can practically gobble up [[Terminator]]s - especially if you roll a 6 to hit and score 3 mortal wounds.
<gallery>
Squigosaur.JPG|The Great White Squig
HxDM6t0oZyXjrBtR.jpg
</gallery>
{{Clear}}

===Squigpipe===
[[File:Pipe.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squigpipe.]]
Just to further hone in the Scottish stereotype within the Orks (prejudice much, GeeDubs?). This special type of Squig is used by the Orks as a musical instrument. Several tube-like proboscises emanate from this Squig's bag-like body.

The Musical Squig can be tucked under one arm and inflated by blowing down the proboscis. Then, by squeezing the Squig, weird and terrifying sounds can be made through the creature's proboscis pipes. This turns the Squig into a musical instrument, much like the bagpipes, but a thousand times more cacophonous. Orks like to go into battle accompanied by this Squig much to the detriment of their enemies.

<gallery>
File:OCG-grot-playing.jpg
</gallery>

===Squigshark===
[[File:SquigShark.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squigshark.]]
Orks as Jaws. Squigsharks are the Squig counterparts of Terran sharks that inhabit Ork-infested worlds. And no they are not huggable; your local Commissar definitely urges you to '''''NOT''''' pet one out of safety and preventing potential stupidity.

They are known to be very dangerous beast and many Ork sailors trying to cosplay as Moby Dick ended their lives as a food for Squigsharks. Whenever one appears, it is obligatory to play the signature Jaws music. They are by far the top oceanic predator of any Ork World.

YOU. HAVE. BEEN. WARNED.

<gallery>
Deff_Skwadron_Squig-Shark-2.jpg|Dun dun...dun dun...dun dun dun dun dun....
</gallery>

===Snake-Squig===
[[File:Snake-Squigs.jpg|170px|right|thumb|Snake-Squig]]
The Snake-Squig is a very little known species of Squig, which is only shown as an illustration with a [[Snake Bites]] [[Weirdboy]] of said Snake-Squig constricting the Odd Boy like something out of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

Speaking of Temple of Doom, it is quite possible that a Weirdboy uses his psychic mumbo-jumbo to control them like how a snake charmer controls a snake. Of course, what the Weirdboy actually does with the snakes, we have no idea, as they are just there to make him look cool.

In terms of its ecology, the Snake-Squig should share the same niche and behaviour as...well...a regular old snake, specifically the constrictor kind when you compare it to its sheer size. These beasts are like, 2-3 meters long if the image is any indication and is quite capable of chomping down prey as it is, swallowing them whole.

But its role is never ever really known given that all Snake-Squigs are actually victims of Old Zogwort who managed to Harry Potter'ed them into ''becoming'' a Snake-Squig. Because of the fact that Old Zogwort is the only known Ork that does these kinds of things, whether the Snake-Squig is an actual Orkoid species or just the consequence of psychic mishap is currently unknown.

{{Clear}}

===Squig Gobba===
[[File:Squig Gobba 2.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Squig Gobba.]]
A [[Forge World]] model, which is the size of a colossal squig. The difference is that this one can fire smaller squigs out of its mouth. The Squig Gobba is essentially living artillery.

Dragged and prodded onto the battlefield by its malevolent Goblin tenders, it is a huge beast with an oversized gaping maw, a set of extremely powerful lungs and a ravenous appetite to rival even that of a Troll. With the Squig Gobba heavily chained into position to prevent it bounding off after the first tasty morsel it spies, its tenders start dragging lesser squigs from the cages surrounding them as battle is joined, slicking these vicious beasts with foul-tasting noxious liquids.

This not only renders the creatures senseless for a short time, but also prevents the Squig Gobba from immediately swallowing them as the stunned squigs are unceremoniously stuffed into its jaws. Goblins can also make it explode if they want to.

<gallery>
File:Squig Gobba.jpg|Hey look! It seems that the last of the Gastric Brooding Frogs have evolved!
</gallery>

===Stalagsquig===
[[File:GloomspiteGitzDesignersNotes-Dec27-Stalagsquig10vx-1.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Stalagsquig]]

Squigs are highly adaptable creatures, taking a myriad range of forms. Some, for example, infest the rock itself, creating Stalagsquigs.

The Stalagsquigs are a what happens when orks and gobboz believe that <span style='color:green;font-size:100%'>"OIH DAT STONE FING OVER DERE LOOKS LIKE A BITEY SQUIG"</span> and as such the power of [[WAAAGH|WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH made it so.]] The species looks like normal stalagmites from afar but get close enough and you will be introduced to a stone skinned biting nightmare. This particular breed has yet to be seen in 40k but it is prevalent in Ye Age of golden hammer jackasses [[Age of Sigmar]].

It is unknown how these squigs move (if they move at all?) since they seem to have no visible legs, unless it's a luggage scenario where it sprouts thousands of little legs from its base when it wants to move.......WELP, have fun sleeping after thinking about that. Emperor damn, it's like the [[Chaos Spawn|chaos spawns all ov-BGRIHSRAJKHSJAHDSAIUOFDGHU.]] However, according to Warhammer Community, they are totally immobile and viciously hungry creatures that make exploring caves in the Mortal Realms an even worse idea than you thought it was.

As a side note there has been no recorded evidence on how big these squigs can grow to but seeing as how normal stalagmites can grow to be bigger than a sky scraper if given enough space we might have to worry about descending into caves in the foreseeable future.

===Swab Squig===
[[File:Swab.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Swab Squig.]]
The Swab Squig is a type of Hair Squig, but unlike the long trailing hair of its cousins, its round body is covered with short, fluffy fur. Orks use Swab Squigs to mop up during operations, and they come in handy for emergency handkerchiefs too. Despite looking like a giant fluffball they have a humongous mouth and are quite snappy too. Swab Squigs tend to share a comedic relation with [[Snotling|Snotlings]] due to the latter's mentally retarded habit of poking things that should not be poked, which often ends with the little snots running around having their asses bit by the Swab Squig.

Non-pettable by your local Commissar.

<gallery>
File:Squig-swab-2.jpg|It is wise not to pet something that looks cute....
File:Squig-swab-3.jpg|....Or else this happens.
</gallery>

===Syringe Squig===
[[File:Syringe.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Syringe Squig.]]
Syringe Squigs are primarily used for medicinal purposes. These medical Squigs have natural properties which Painboyz find useful when patching together battle-damaged Orks. Syringe Squigs have a long needle-sharp proboscises with which they inject venom into their prey. Syringe Squigs exude a soporific venom which makes a fine anesthetic for Orks when the traditional anesthetic (known to other races as a "concussion") is unavailable.

Syringe Squigs are divided by their sizes to 'small', 'big' and 'urty' which are used depending on the strength of the dose required. The venom is sometimes extracted from the creature and used separately for mixing up some kind of special 'medicine', or if a really large dose is needed.

There is also a special type of Syringe Squig called a '''Vaccine Squig''', whose own immune system produces natural vaccines and antibodies to a host of different pathogens that are extracted and used by Painboyz to aid diseased Orks.

===Tapewyrm Squig===
The Kruleboyz Orruk shaman Gobsprakk can summon a squirming swarm of Tapewyrm Squigs inside the stomachs of his enemies, sickening them and even causing them to explode in a shower of Waaagh! Magic like some sort of twisted DeviantArt fetish. Yeah.

===Tomb Squig===
[[File:Tomb_Squig_placeholder.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Tomb Squig]]
From old-school Warhammer, Tomb Squigs are an albino breed of burrowing squig that feeds on corpses and undead alike.

Often found in [[Dorf|Dwarfen]] tombs that have been broken open and looted, they are sometimes also found in graveyards where their presence often makes sure undead aren't present in these areas. Slightly smaller than regular Squigs, they possess amazingly powerful jaws for their size, which they use to break open stone sarcophagi and to bite through the ceremonial armour Dwarfs often bury their dead in.

At the cost of there being corpse-eating squigs, these critters are as likely to attack and devour the undead as the actually dead (and living as well). As such, Tomb Squigs can serve as a [[Just As Planned|nasty surprise]]; really ruining a tomb robber’s day as not only do they present a threat to life and limb, [[Troll|they can also destroy valuable weapons and armour hidden in the tomb.]]
Source: https://warhammerfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Tomb_Squigs

===Tramplasquig===
[[File:Tramplesquig.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Tramplasquig]]
A quadrupedal Squig breed that is large enough to drag large vehicles. Tramplasquigs are the rhinoceros of the Squig family and their poor temper makes them a popular beast of war as well as a versatile beast of burden.

The [[Beast Snagga]]s use them to carry their [[Kill Rig]]s and [[Hunta Rig]]s. Although they lack any other form of natural weapons other than their bulk and teeth, Beast Snaggas mount armored helmets with a giant blade on top to further maximize their carnage.

On tabletop, the Tramplasquig is essentially the vehicle itself. It works well in conjunction with its ferried troops. As such, the whole thing is no slouch in melee either, as it not only has the squig itself fighting but also a bunch of boyz to hack away. What it does really well is if you have the Ramming Speed stratagem, as it not only throws it at an enemy from further away but it also drops some MWs on top of that, which can help with wiping the mob.
{{Clear}}

===Vampire Squig===
[[File:Vampire.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Vampire Squig.]]
The Vampire Squig is a blood-sucking creature with long sharp fangs, used by Painboyz to bleed the patient and suck bad blood and pus from septic wounds. The Squig does not seem to mind what the blood is like or from what species it comes so long as it gets a regular and plentiful supply.

When times are hard (which for Orks is when there's not much fighting) the Painboyz are forced to find other ways to keep their pets alive, which they do by extolling the benefits of regular bleeding to otherwise healthy Orks. It is also a good way to earn tons of teef in a short amount of time.

=== Wyrdsquig ===

[[File:Wyrd.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Wyrdsquig.]]

A Wyrdsquig is a little known psychic Squig subspecies, that has close genetic links to the Gnasher Squig. Despite their close relations, they are fucking hideous; looking more like an aborted love child between [[H.P. Lovecraft|Yog-Sothoth]] and the [[Halo|Timeless One.]]

This subspecies is rarely encountered in the wild and possesses psychic abilities similar to those of Ork [[Weirdboy]]z. The Wyrdsquig is often employed in battle as a "psychic bomb," releasing a catastrophic telepathic shockwave at the moment of its death. So in layman's terms, it is the Ork equivalent of a Imperial [[Grenades & Explosives#Psyk-Out Grenade|Psyk-Out Grenade]]s.

They are one of the few Warp-based weapons that the Orks utilize along with the [[Shokk_Attack_Gun|Shokk Attack Gun]] and [[Tellyport_Blasta|Tellyport Blasta]].

===Other Squigs===

The breeds of squigs are innumerable and there are a lot of other, unknown types of these creatures in existence. From tiny micro-organisms on Ork bodies to the gigantic beasts put in the Ork spaceships to create breathing atmosphere as a form of a life-sustaining device, each of them has an use in Ork society. Notorious breeds such as the yellow-spotted '''Facegnasha''', the greater '''Fang-gob''', or the infamous '''Leapin’ Deff''' are especially popular for ther use as Bomb Squigs. In Age of Sigmar, it is further expanded, examples such as the '''Glo-Squig''' are a type bioluminescent squig used to light up Lurklairs of the Gloomspite Gitz. Most of the models below include original Squig models, although also included is a green, gelatinous blob that had two beady eyes, similar to a Japanese RPG Slime, which some fa/tg/guy thought was explainable as being like the Orkoid Fungus equivalent of a Slime Mold, although searching has found that this is an unofficial model produced by a third party company, "Krakon Games"; the idea for the model being a Slime asquig probably came from the old Games Workshop Troll boardgames aimed at children, specifically "Squelch!", one about Trolls playing a game involving stomping on Squigs, among the illustrated Squig Cards there is a little Slime Squig. There is also a Small, Hairy, Humanoid Squig, perhaps the Orkoid equivalent of a Gibbon, covered in what could be fungal cilia or mould, called a "Beastling" below, which is an older official model. There was a Squig with a face resembling a Grot's like the Cape-Bearing Squig, but with long, bendy tube legs like stilts. There were 2 spiderlike squigs, one with a face like an Ork's, the other with a massive piercing proboscis, called a "Coffin Crawler" which was responsible for feeding Tyranid Norn Queens. A White Dwarf Squig character was Niblitz, Gobbledigook the goblin/snotling's pet who resembled an attack squig covered in fuzz and with two little horns, who was often said to be "spiderlike" somehow. Niblitz may be the very first squig ever designed, as he first appeared before any other squig models.
<gallery>
File:Squigs_Old_Mini.jpg
File:Retro_Squigs.jpeg
File:VariedSquigs.JPG
File:Niblitz.jpg
</gallery>
{{Clear}}
[[Category: Warhammer Fantasy]]

[[Category: Orcs & Goblins]]

[[Category: Age of Sigmar]]

[[Category: Gloomspite Gitz]]

[[Category: Warhammer 40,000]]

[[Category: Xenos]]

[[Category: Orks]]

[[Category: Feral Orks]]

[[Category: Squigs]]

[[Category: Megafauna]]

{{template: Orks-Forces}}

Warhammer Fantasy Gods

2022-06-30T19:25:53Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Pygmies */

{{Whfb-stub}}
{{Topquote|And then the Cataclysm came. King [[Taal]] rose from His Forest, and with Dark [[Morr]] muttering dire portents in His ear, He banished all immortals from the world. But the Cataclysm’s architects refused His order. [[Tzeentch|The Crow]], [[Khorne|the Hound]], [[Slaanesh|the Serpent]], and [[Nurgle|the Vulture]] were jealous of King Taal, and had tried to use the Great Gates to take what was His. They had failed. As the other immortals fled, the Four attacked, bitter and angry with their frustrations. Many died. After countless battles, King Taal was eventually surrounded. There were few still by his side. [[Ulric]] the Wolf. Noble [[Myrmidia|Margileo]]. Just [[Verena]]. [[Sotek]] the Snake. [[Manann]] of the Sea. And Gentle [[Shallya]], tear-stained and afraid. Even Smiling [[Ranald]] had fled, and now hid in the Places Between, fearful for the future. Then, just as the Four and their allies arrived for the Final Battle, [[Asuryan|Flaming Phoenix]], whom all had thought dead, returned from atop His Gleaming Pyramid, and He smote about Him. Thus the rebels were pushed behind the Great Gates, and were sealed there forever. But they were restless in their cage, and soon worked to escape.|Translated from the Obernarn Stone, now held in the Imperial Museum, Altdorf}}

Like any other fantasy setting, Warhammer Fantasy has its own gods.

Sporadically throughout the game, mainly in a few Chaos books and near [[The End Times|the end of its life]], it was stated that there are no other gods and only [[Chaos Gods]] exist. This is a typically [[Daemon|Daemonic]] twisting of the truth (although the claim was enough to make [[Archaon]] go full-[[Star Wars|Anakin Skywalker]]) and contradictive of other material. There is also some discrepancy between fans of [[Warhammer 40000]] who believe that Fantasy magic works in the same way that Psyker energy works in 40k. The final issue is [[The End Times]] and [[Age of Sigmar]] as well as their 8th edition lead-in, which changed quite a bit of existing lore as retcons disguised as "revealing the truth".

Unsurprisingly, the nature of gods in both settings is one of the more skub-filled lore topics.

=The Nature Of The Divine=
In early Warhammer lore gods simply existed and had their own faiths. Certain Chaos supplements suggested there were no gods and that only [[Chaos]] exists with the nature of the Chaos Gods being insane beings who pretend to be other personas in order to fight each other and themselves, like a giant 1000 character game of [[Dungeons & Dragons]] with no DM and only four people wearing blindfolds so nobody knows who is who other than [[Tzeentch|that one asshole with an actual case of multiple personality disorder who's peeking]]. As this only appears in a few Chaos supplements and nowhere else however, its authenticity is [[skub|questionable]] at best.

The nature of all the gods was explained differently over the years. In the earliest instances, when Warhammer was ''only'' Fantasy, gods didn't exist until the collapse of the Warpgates, and were more akin to extremely powerful angels and daemons than actual deities. Another one of the oldest tellings suggests there is one supremely powerful being at the center of the Warp, and that all gods, evil and good, originate from that single force. In others, the gods always existed, even before the Old Ones. As mentioned above, a few Chaos books suggested all gods were only fractions of larger Chaos gods, whose own origins were unclear. A few other explanations say the benevolent gods (Order) were made by or enserved to the Old Ones, while the malevolent gods (Chaos, Destruction) were rebels. If you take 40K as valid for both its own gods and Fantasy's, it states that gods are actually the coalesced belief and emotion of mortal beings, sort of a psychic gestalt. Whatever the source, it was always left intentionally vague and contradictive which explanation, if any provided, was valid, and there was a sense that the true nature of the divine was something beyond the understanding of the mortals "telling" the story (lore) of the world.

In truth, or at least according to the last entries of the setting, all non-material plane things are made of magic. Souls are magic, the Winds of Magic are magic, Daemons are magic, and so are all the Gods. This is apparently(?) the "truth" that Archaon learned, because the teachings of his faith are that magic is [[Heresy]] and apparently gods were just shitting miracles out of scientific stardust or something.

The End Times event revealed quite a bit, all of which is fairly skubby. The history of Warhammer is that the [[Old Ones]] descended from some unknown place, possibly another dimension, planet, or place in the timeline, on a primitive world full of [[Dinosaur]]s, [[Dragon]]s, and [[Neanderthal]] versions of the classic Fantasy races then created the [[Warp|Warp Gates]] to suck magic from the Warp which they used to alter the world and create a race capable of fighting Chaos (which would eventually come regardless) before the Gates collapsed causing Chaos to arrive much sooner on an unfinished world whereupon the Old Ones fucked off to who knows where or died. The new lore is that this isn't the first time this has happened; Warhammer existed in a time loop, with the Old Ones stealing magic from Chaos which causes the Chaos Gods to feel entitled to own the material plane like [[Slaanesh]] to the [[Eldar]] in 40k, where they spend the rest of their history draining magic from the local gods until a cataclysmic event where a handful of Elves survive on a world outside of existence and guide evolution until the Old Ones show up again, rinse and repeat. This cycle was broken finally by [[Be'lakor]] (who's time-travel and alternate universe fuckery is apparently something new to these timelines, despite the "it always existed because there is no time" nature to Chaos because GW writers can't into consistency) who did...''something'' to the new Elf gods in the next world which altered the cycle. The new cycle involves far more than just the Elves, as many characters survived the old setting and became gods in the new one (some didn't become gods, why isn't clear).

Gods exist that aren't part of the cycle as well. Sigmar for example was a mortal man who became trapped in the magic of the Heavens Wind, greatly limiting his power to affect the mortal world but giving him godhood. Gork and Mork ([[Meme|or is it Mork and Gork?]]) have no proper origin, but are somehow able to grant godhood to members of their own pantheon such as through the Spider God who was just an ordinary spider who bit Gork (or possibly Mork). Some of the Elf gods were survivors of the old setting, some have unknown origins and others were just an existing god mistaken as a separate entity. Ranald gambled his way into divinity after tricked some goddess to give him the blessing. Ulric probably became a god after accidentally tempted with one of the old one's warp devices (the one that house the flame of Ulric) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

=Pantheons=

==Elves==
{{Topquote|M: Do you know much about the elven gods, sir?<br>V: Only that they are degenerates, who bicker amongst themselves instead of opposing the true foe.<br>M: As with the mortals, so with the gods, is that it?<br>V: Indeed. Would that Sigmar could return and show them the error of their ways.| [[vermintide 2|Markus Kruber & Victor Saltzpyre]], questioning the Elven gods' liability}}

The Elf pantheon is divided between the Cadai (positive gods) and Cytherai (negative gods). Some of them are shared with 40k, although beyond portfolio and name they are entirely different.
High Elves worship the Cadai light gods and simply try not to piss off the Cytharai by being pansies (which they fail at). Wood Elves worship some, and the others they've modified the mythos of to be more Wood Elf-y (see how they have got Isha and Kurnous bought back to their 'earthy roots). Dark Elves entirely ignore the light side of the pantheon, and worship the darkest aspects of the darker gods (who don't seem to care much about the twisting of the myth since the DEs are the only ones actively worshiping them, and someone getting your myths wrong is better than nobody).
The humans of Albion worship their own version of a few of the Elf gods as well, and it's possible some masquerade as the gods of the Old World. As revealed in the end times, the Lady is Lileath! Shock, horror.

Each name-rune that represents them doubles as a picture of themselves in abstract, as well as a few hidden images (like Lileath being both the devil horned invocation of magic that early High Elf models had, the twin moons, herself seated in an elegant pose, and a few standard High Elf runes mixed throughout). Many of these emblems appear fully on High Elf shields, banners, capes, and any other flat or ripply surface really.

In the [[Black Library]] series [[Defenders of Ulthuan/Sons of Ellyrion]] the Elf gods are portrayed as very real and very powerful, but outside of that series they are described as dying, faded, or outright consumed by Chaos.

===Cadai===
* '''[[Asuryan|Asuryan, the Creator, Emperor of the Heavens]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. Despite always being portrayed as the creator of the Elves he was actually not their literal father and is more the creator of their culture...sort of (thanks to a retcon mess; Wood Elves are the true culture of the Elves, High Elves were what Asuryan created to fight Chaos but the Dark Elves are the result of Khaine and Chaos influence as well as what Asuryan's desired end goal for Elves to be was. Don't think too much about it, its a fucking mess). Zeus expy, although rather than fuck everything he basically [[Tzeentch|sat on his throne and plotted]]. His priesthood were warrior monks with halberds that cared for the Phoenixes of Ulthuan and maintain a chronicle of history including every single event that ever has or will happen. In a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Malekith]] rather than [[Tyrion]] in End Times, and faded into Malekith's being which possibly made him a nobler and less Darth Vader-like being.

* '''[[Vaul|Vaul, the Maker]]''' Smith god. Saved Isha and Kurnous from Khaine after they saved the mortal Elves, forged the [[Widowmaker]]. Crippled and shackled to his anvil, just like Hephaestus/Vulcan from Greek-Roman mythology. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Isha|Isha, the Mother]]''' Mother god, survivor of the old setting. Gave birth to Lileath as well as the first mortal Elves. Lived in Avelorn in Ulthuan until an unknown point in time when she relocated to [[Athel Loren]] then thanks to the draining of Chaos lost much of her divine power and became [[Ariel]]. Due to retcons there's a snarl as to what exactly the [[Everqueen]] connection to her is; previously, she existed as an entity within the Everqueen surrounded by the souls of all other Everqueens and was able to fight Slaanesh as an equal when fully charged up. As of End Times it was revealed that Lileath actually poisoned her with a shard of eternal ice, slowly killing her until the Everqueen could consume her soul while Lileath absorbed her power.

* '''[[Kurnous|Kurnous, the Hunter]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. The actual father of the mortal Elves. Lived with Isha in Avelorn until they traveled to Athel Loren. Became [[Orion]] with the weakening of Chaos. Due to retcon fuckery, there's an issue where he apparently also dwells in Ellyrion and selects champions from the Elves there to lead the fight against Dark Elves and Chaos even though he spends most of his time in Athel Loren killing Bretonnians and Beastmen for the lulz in the Wild Hunt.

* '''[[Hoeth|Hoeth, Lord of Wisdom]]''' Scholar god. Conflicting sources tie him as part of the reason magic behaves the way it does, and attribute various things to him. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Lileath|Lileath, the Maiden]]''' Daughter of Isha and Kurnous, sister to the entire Elf race. Goddess of prophesy to a degree that her father who is omniscient can be surprised by her, somehow. Took on a villainous role in End Times for engineering events that caused massive failures and deaths across the setting while trying to protect the cycle and send her Wood Elf husband [[Araloth]] as the new Asuryan/Kurnous, the High Elf Prince(ss) [[Eldyra]] as the new Isha, and her children with Araloth to be the rest of the pantheon of the new world which was destroyed somehow by Be'lakor making all of her sacrifice and sabotage for nothing. Was also The Lady of Bretonnia and using their entire race as her pawns, and had the persona of Ladrielle as well.

* '''[[Loec|Loec, the Shadow Dancer]]''' Trickster god, created several magical artifacts. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Mathlann|Mathlann, Lord of the Deeps]]''' God of the sea, confirmed to be a real god in End Times although unknown if he is a survivor of the previous setting or not. Known for saving his champion [[Sea Lord Aislinn]] from death constantly, later revealed to actually be Sea Lord Aislinn. Considered a positive aspect of Ellinill in retconned lore.

===Cytharai===

Probably from the Welsh ''cythrawl'' meaning ‘devil; demon; evil spirit’.

* '''[[Khaine|Khaine, the Bloody-Handed God]]''' Evil Asuryan. Confirmed to be real, unknown if he is a survivor god or not. [[Khorne]] but with magic, he spent most of his time fighting Asuryan for control of the Elves as well as Isha and Kurnous, and just generally being a prick who fucked everything up. Although not on the side of Chaos, he didn't focus any efforts on fighting them and instead caused Elves to fight each other and lose their ability to fight Chaos effectively. Manifested himself in the bloodline of [[Aenarion]], in a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Tyrion]] rather than [[Malekith]] in End Times and died when Asuryan/Malekith killed Tyrion (Tyrion got better, Khaine died).

* '''[[Ereth Khial|Ereth Khial, the Pale Queen]]''' Survivor god of the old setting, fate unknown. Goddess of death for the Elves although thanks to Chaos she gets almost no Elf souls (lore contradiction as apparently the Death Wind contains the bulk of the souls of the dead, even though lore also says Slaanesh eats almost every Elf soul and apparently Ereth Khial was gone or faded by the time of End Times despite Elves that should have already been trapped in the Wind or consumed by Slaanesh appearing as ghosts; arguments can be had in any direction). Suffered in the cold darkness of the new world with Isha and chose to remain alone rather than cling together for comfort as Isha wanted until the new world began with the coming of Asuryan, desired to have him as her husband but he rejected her causing her to hate all beings and torture the Elf souls far worse than Chaos (which represents oblivion rather than suffering). Her domain is called Mirai.

* '''[[Nethu|Nethu, Keeper of the Last Door]]''' Son of Ereth Khial, father unknown. Keeper of the gates of the Mirai and comparable to a Grim Reaper figure. Since Morr is described as an Elf god in a [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] supplement, this may be his true identity. Otherwise his status as real or not is unknown.

* '''[[Anath Raema|Anath Raema, the Savage Huntress]]''' Evil Kurnous, whips around the savage parts of the hearts of the Elves until they go on a Great Hunt but unlike Kurnous she sees all things as game. Given that the lore surrounding Kurnous became fairly evil in regards to his hunts, Anath Raema only represents a lack of concern with preservation and balance rather than outright evil. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Morai-Heg|Morai-Heg, the Crone]]''' An old and wrinkled Elf goddess (yes, apparently they can age) of prophesy who's primary shrine is on an island of Elf amazons who bewitch men to come to the shores that sail too closely then kill them and pave the island with their bones. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Hekarti|Hekarti, Mistress of Magic]]''' Goddess of magic, evil Hoeth. Revealed to be [[Morathi]] in End Times, whether she is a survivor god or not is unknown.

* '''[[Atharti|Atharti, Lady of Desire]]''' Goddess of pleasure, twin sister of Hekarti. Worship of one of them without equal worship of the other causes the less loved one to curse the favoring devotee. Created in 7th edition because Dark Elves worshiping Slaanesh was against [[Gav Thorpe]]'s vision for the race, which is better is the subject of much Skub (although players of the [[Cult Of Slaanesh]] army are strongly against it). Morathi went from being Slaanesh's high priestess and favored mortal to being the biggest worshiper of both Hekarti and Atharti. With the reveal that Morathi IS Hekarti, its left unknown who exactly Atharti is and who punishes you if you prefer Hekarti. Given that in End Times Morathi went quite insane and a little senile after coming under the delusion that first her son Malekith was Aenarion, then the Khaine-possessed Tyrion was Aenarion, Morathi may have been both entities.

* '''[[Ladrielle|Ladrielle, Lady of Mists]]''' A persona of Lileath, a master manipulator. Given that this is a Cytherai and thus one of the less pleasant gods, this may be a better description of Lileath.

* '''[[Ellinill, Lord of Destruction]]''' God of destruction, once a very powerful god with hundreds of children who ran amok throughout the world with him. Drakira tricked Isha into asking Loec to trick him into believing his children were going to revolt, and he went about killing and eating as many as he could. His strength was greatly diminished in his battles. Unknown if real or not. His children are known as the Ellinilli and the only ones that survived are those who hid in the mortal world. Unknow if real or not.

* '''[[Estreuth|Estreuth, Lord of Hunger]]''' God of famine. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Addaioth|Addaioth, Bringer of Fire]]''' God of fire. One of the Ellinilli. Decided to fight his father rather than hide, and was almost killed until Ladrielle (AKA Lileath) saved him and hid him in the mortal world with his siblings. Has prepared to kill his father ever since, thinking of himself as Vaul 2.0 but only creating shitty arms and armor. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Hukon|Hukon, the Sunderer]]''' God of earthquakes. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Drakira|Drakira, Queen of Vengeance]]''' Goddess of revenge, one of the Ellinilli who was picked on by her siblings and neglected by her father. Manipulated Isha's sorrow at the suffering her family caused mortals into becoming hatred, and all beings have been careful not to offend her ever since. Worshiped heavily by Dark Elves, but loves all Elves equally and keeps part of them any time they make a deal with her. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Eldrazor|Eldrazor, Lord of Blades]]''' A god of war and duels. Although he doesn't seek war, once it begins there is nothing out of bounds for him. Basically a more reserved and less aggressive Khaine. Unknown if real or not.

==Dwarfs==
The gods of the [[Dwarfs]] are mortal Dwarfs who attained godhood, and as such are referred to as Ancestor Gods. They have only three main ones with lesser ones as their family (plus one guy who’s just kind of there) , but Dwarfs can invoke the names of their own heroes and ancestors religiously as well.

* '''[[Valaya]]''' Goddess of hearth, home, brewing, healing, defending against Chaos, and basically every single other thing the other two don't do. Settled the first and greatest Dwarf Holds, ancestor of the greatest Dwarfs, invented the Dwarf written language and every other aspect of their culture. The least important god because...[[Fail|reasons]]. In End Times she was discovered to be slumbering by [[Queen Neferata]] in a long-forgotten Vault in a ritual to charge up a magic gate and create a new golden age for Dwarfkind. After a battle between Nef, [[Night Goblins]], and [[Thorek Ironbrow]] the Dwarfs were left dead and Valaya's divine power was consumed by [[Nagash]]. She didn't receive an [[Age of Sigmar]] resurrection, because [[Fail|reasons]].

* '''[[Grungni]]''' Dwarf smith god. After Valaya invented runes, he figured out how to smith them into objects to give Dwarfs magic. Fought in End Times, but survived into Age of Sigmar.

* '''[[Grimnir]]''' Dwarf god of war. After Valaya invented [[Book of Grudges|Grudgekeeping]] he became the patron of them. Became the first [[Slayer]], has a fortress inside of the Warp where he endlessly slaughters the forces of Chaos. Gave up his divinity to [[Gotrek & Felix|Gotrek]] in order to die in the final battle after Gotrek died and avenged his own sin, and in the final battle all Grudges were considered resolved. Gotrek/Grimnir survived into Age of Sigmar where he sat on Sigmar's council until he got bored and was sent to kill a giant monster, causing both to explode and spread throughout the Realms whereupon the mortal Dwarfs who are his devotees collect his parts to reassemble him. Judging by Realmslayer, the Grimnir seen in AoS was the original one with Gotrek merely acting as a vessel for his power, although it seems like Grimnir might have had further plans for Gotrek that have yet to be revealed.

* '''[[Gazul]]''' The Dwarf god of Death. Lived in the time of the trinity, and created the written version of their names as well as the concept of venerating your ancestors. His faith includes the '''Order Of Guardians''', the Dwarf equivalent of Witch Hunters. Every Hold and most settlements, any place that has a place to honorably bury dead Dwarfs in fact, has a shrine or temple to him.

* '''[[Morgrim]]''' God of Engineering. Oldest child of Valaya with Grimnir, personally invented Bolt Throwers and Dwarf Catapults/Stone Throwers (which later became Grudge Throwers). Was Grimnir's companion on the way to close the Warp Gate, but Grimnir forced him to turn back and return home. All Engineers are basically priests of Morgrim, since his teachings are a code of conduct for the craft. Liberal Engineers are considered heretics (but not the kind you shoot, just the kind you shout at) by conservative Dwarfs for their loose interpretations of scripture.

* '''[[Smednir]]''' God of smelting and metalworking. Middle son of Grungni and Valaya. Smednir created the tools that Thungni and Grungni inscribed their rune magic on, and among the greatest creations of the trio of laborers is [[Ghal Maraz]] itself. Smednir's shrines and temples are basically just extensions of those of Grungni's, since the two are inseparable in theme.

* '''[[Thungni]]''' God of Runesmithing. Youngest son of Grungni and Valaya. During the settling of the first Holds he descended into a mystical realm called "Ankor Byrn (Glittering Realm)" where he discovered the ability to forge his mother's language with magic to create runes, although it was his father who later turned the discovery into a science and art. Only descendants of Grungni like himself were capable of learning Runesmithing. All Runesmiths are basically priests of Thungni, like Morgrim's Engineers. Unlike all the other gods who are friendly with the faiths of the allies of the Dwarf race and enemies of those who are Dwarf enemies, Thungni's cult has an additional enemy; non-Dwarfs who try to learn or succeed at making rune magic. This includes human wizards.

*It should be noted that the eldest son of Valaya (with Grungni) is [[Grombrindal|Snorri Whitebeard]]. He did not get to be a god as he had the duty of ruling the Karaz Ankor after his parents departed.

* '''[[Horned Rat|Skavor]]''' An ancestor god who had no talent in crafting using non-living materials but a talent for fleshcrafting and chaos magic. His use of fleshcrafting and chaos magic got him exiled by the rest of the ancestor gods so he fleshcrafted himself into a rat-like abomination and created the Skaven to wipe out the rest of the dwarves out of spite. This is the only known Ancestor God that is shunned and hated by the dwarfs.

==Humans==
Like in all other things, Humanity is really diverse when it comes to religion, ranging from worshipping the [[Chaos Gods]] to worshipping [[Lady of the Lake|an Elf God pretending to be a goddess of chivalry]]. Although some gods are argued to be the [[Sigmar|God of Mankind]], there is no united Human pantheon, just many many different gods for many many different nations. The Old World Pantheon is the collection of Gods worshipped by humans of Old World (which is the closest thing we can get to Human Pantheon). This pantheon mainly divided into two "families", namely '''Northern Gods''' and '''Southern Gods'''. There is also the Patron Gods of nations that don't fit these two families; Sigmar for [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], Lady of the Lake for [[Bretonnia]] and Ursun for [[Kislev]]. Other than them, there are also some other pantheons like [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] Pantheon and thousands of different local gods unrelated to any pantheon. As I said before, Humanity is diverse.
Note also that while the various Human nations may worship ostensibly different gods with different names and different rituals, that these may in fact be local aspects of a smaller number of universal gods. The confirmed example is that of the Old Worlder god of death: when Nehekharan god [[Usirian]] was destroyed this also destroyed the god known in the Empire under the name [[Morr]], for unbeknownst to both sets of worshippers the two gods were simply culturally-specific variants of the same deity. Similar pairings are suspected to exist among other deities (the trade god known as [[Handrich]] to Imperials, but Mercopio to Tileans), and it is thus possible that the bewildering array of human gods may in fact be reducible down to a smaller pantheon of common major deities.
===Empire===
[[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Empire of Man]] has a patron god named [[Sigmar]], the mortal founder of Empire who is believed to be ascended to godhood after he vanished. But unlike [[Imperium of Man|his space faring brother]], the Empire is a polytheistic nation, worship of other gods (except [[Chaos Gods]] and [[Khaine]]) is allowed, although the Cult of Sigmar is the state religion. So most of the Old World Pantheon is also worshipped in Empire or at least respected. The list of the Imperial Gods starting with their Patron God goes as;

* '''[[Sigmar]]''', Warrior-God of Mankind, is the founder of [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], its first Emperor and the most badass human ever lived. His deeds of badassery includes but not limited to; uniting human tribes of Old World, defeating biggest WAAAGH ever happened with said united army, earning the respect of the Dwarfs (by far the hardest one to do), breaking the [[Warriors of Chaos|Norsii]] siege of Middenheim and fighting a fucking [[Bloodthirster]] in there, bashing the skull of [[Nagash]] (doing that by using Nagash's own crown also counts) and destroying his undead army. After establishing a rather stabilized state in Old World, Sigmar left the Empire and never seen again, presumed dead by his people. Years after his departure, some guy named Johann Helsturm proclaimed that he saw the vision of Sigmar being crowned to godhood by [[Ulric]] and joined him among the divinity. Helsturm pretty much created the Cult of Sigmar which gained power among centuries and became the most popular and influental religion in the Empire. Today the Cult of Sigmar holds a major bureaucratic power within the Empire, for example the head of the Sigmarite Church, the Grand Theogonist, is able to cast 3 votes in Emperor's election. Sigmar is worshipped by Imperials as the God of War, Mankind, Heroism, Courage and Empire itsef. He is respected by everyone in the Empire, even the Ulricians of Northern Empire proudly call themselves the sons of Sigmar. His holy symbols are Ghal Maraz (or just a warhammer), the Twin-Tailed Comet and Gryphon. His chants are effective against Daemons and Undead. He is mainly worshipped in Reikland but his worshippers can be found everywhere in the Empire (and probably never found among non-Imperial humans). In the End Times, Sigmar's ascension to godhood is confirmed but [[Tzeentch]] trapped him inside the Winds of Heaven [[Not as planned|which actually supercharged Sigmar with magic]]. In short Sigmar is basicly Conan the Barbarian/Charlemagne/Jesus of Warhammer Fantasy and also Thor to Ulric's Odin.

====Northern Gods====
The '''Northern Gods''' aka the '''Elder Gods''' or the '''Country Gods''' are the gods of pre-Imperial human tribes and during Sigmar's reign. They are quite old, worship of Elder Gods stratches back to several millenia. Although they are losing favor to Sigmar, their worship is still widespread, especially in the countryside. These gods are Ulric, Taal, Rhya and Manann.

* '''[[Ulric]]''', the God of Winter, Wolves and Warfare, younger brother of Taal. He is generally worshipped by non-Chaos [[Vikings]] of Warhammer Fantasy who live in Middenland, Nordland and Ostland. Ulric is the second most popular god of the Empire and was actually the most popular one during the times before Sigmar, being worshiped by all human tribes in one way or another. Actually Sigmar himself was a devout worshipper of him too, all sagas emphasise him being blessed and protected by Ulric. Today, Ulricans are still a powerful group, his worship is quite common and the Viking Pope, Al-Ulric, is able to cast one vote in Emperor's election. When it comes to Sigmar, Ulricians are divided into two. Some of them just don't believe Sigmar is a God and rejects Sigmarites all together and the others believes Sigmar is a God but venerate Ulric more as he is the traditional god of mankind but all of them respect Sigmar all the same as he definitely was Ulric's mortal champion before his ascension to godhood. Ulric is a god of martial skill, not unlike [[Khorne|his evil counter part]] (main difference is Ulric cares whose blood being spilled, preferably his enemies') he favors natural strength; gunpowder weapons and crossbows are to be shunned for they don't require any skill to use. His holy symbol is the White Wolf he manifests. In End Times, [[Teclis]] stole the Flame of Ulric in Middenheim and used it to heal [[Tyrion|his brother]] which caused Middenheim's fall and eventually killed Ulric. [[Eldrad|What a dick]]. It is also revealed that his ascension to the godhood may have to do with the old one device hosting his flame (which may or may not belonging to the ancient Elven colonist before the rise of man and the war of beard that forced the elves to abandoned the old world) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

* '''[[Taal]]''', the God of Wilds, Nature and Beasts, older brother of Ulric and husband of Rhya. Being a Warhammer God, Taal isn't some pesky hippy, he believes in the survival of the fittest. So if you can kill it (in a fair way) all animals are willing to serve you as food and fur. Like Ulric, he favors natural strength and forbids use of gunpowder and adds it the use of metal armor too, only skin and fur of his animals is to be used for clothing. His worshippers are against anything unnatural starting with [[Chaos]] and [[Mutant|Mutants]] to even cities and money in extreme cases. Taal is, like beasts and nature itself, known for being indifferent to morality. His holy symbol is a Stag or just antlers. His worship is almost completely tied with worship of Rhya, which is together called Cult of Taal and Rhya. The two complete eachother as manifestation of Nature; Taal is the animals while Rhya is the plants, Taal is the wrathful natural disasters while Rhya is the generous and fertile soil. He is, like his wife, mainly worshipped in Talabecland. He also has a number of paralells with Kurnous, the Elven god of the hunt.

* '''[[Rhya]]''', the Earth Mother, Goddess of Plants, Farming and Hunting, wife of Taal. She domains over all things that grow, so pretty much Demeter of Warhammer Fantasy. Her worship is a part of Cult of Taal and Rhya which mainly practiced Talabecland. Her holy symbol is a sheaf of wheat and bow and arrow. As said above, worship of Rhya and Taal is tied to eachother though Ryha seems to be less important and [[-4 STR|less powerful]] of the two.

* '''[[Manann]]''', the God of Seas and Tides, son of Taal and Rhya. Worshipped by sailors and fishermen, Manann is not really different than Poseidon of our world. He is quite fickle and dickish, judging his subjects arbitrarily (like Poseidon). Manann's strictures are nothing more than generic sailor superstitions which changes based on sailor, priest and Manann's mood at the time. His holy symbols are wave patterns, albatrosses and his five tinned crown. He is mainly worshipped in Marienburg and other coastal cities although human sailors all around the Old World worship him. Also he is completely identical to [[Mathlann]], the Elven Sea God, and may in fact just be the same deity under a different name.

====Southern Gods====
The '''Southern Gods''' aka the '''Classical Gods''' or the '''Town Gods''' are newer ones among the Old World Pantheon (still older than Sigmar) they are actually not really among the common worship in the Empire (with exception of Morr who is third most popular Imperial God). They are generally worshipped in more civilized and urban areas of South Old World like [[Tilea]] and [[Estalia]]. These gods are Morr, Verena, Myrmidia, Shallya, Ranald and Khaine.

* '''[[Morr]]''', the God of the Dead, Afterlife and Dreams, older brother of [[Khaine]], husband of Verena and father of Myrmidia and Shallya. Similar to Greek Mythology, at the beginning of time the three gods, Ulric, Taal and Morr divided the world between eachother. Ulric and Taal started fighting for the living world while Morr simply settled the realm of the dead. Then the Gods of Mortal Realm and Morr made an agreement to balance things out; Morr and his subjects, the dead, will not tresspass into Mortal Realm and in return, Ulric and Taal will ultimately send all the living to Morr. [[FAIL|Well, when you think about it you can realize this agreement actually gives no benefit to Morr,]] because while Ulric and Taal don't have to do anything for their part (because mortals, naturally, always die), Morr will both have to protect the souls of the dead from being consumed [[Chaos Gods]] and fight the necromancers and undead to do his part of the agreement. Yet again, Morr, being one of the few responsible gods who actively tries to [[gets shit done|do his job,]] maybe took this responsibility willingly. Although he is a less known god among the fans, Morr's worship is the most widespread in the Warhammer world as he is worshipped by all major races and nations even if he is known to them by different names. His symbols are ravens, hourglasses and black roses. His seat of power is in Luccini, Tilea. In End Times, his [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] counterpart, Usirian was devoured by [[Nagash]] which killed Morr too.

* '''[[Verena]]''', the Goddess of Knowledge, Science, Law and Justice, wife of [[Morr]], mother of Myrmidia and Shallya. We all know the Old World is a fucking mess; the civil lands are constantly under siege by the [[Orcs & Goblins|barbarians]] and [[Beastmen|anarchists]] while being ruled by zealots, ignorants, tyrants and decadants. Among this madness, Verena and her worshippers shine as a beacon of reason and intellectuality. Despite being literally the goddess of paperwork, Verena isn't some kind of pacifist (that's [[Shallya|her daughter]]'s gimmick), she dictates her followers to take arms in the face of injustice, tyranny and of course Chaos. Her worshippers usually work as judges, lawyers, scholars, bureaucrats and prone to becoming [[Lawful Stupid]]. Her symbols are owls and scales. Verena doesn't have a seat of power but is mainly being worshipped in big bureaucratic capitals like Altdorf. Also she is probably the same god with [[Hoeth]].

* '''[[Myrmidia]]''', the Goddess of War, Strategy and Military, sister of [[Shallya]]. Yet another god of war, which is normal, considering [[Grimdark|how dominant and constant the war is]]. Myrmidia is rivals with other two Gods of War, [[Ulric]] and [[Sigmar]] but the three actually stand for different aspects of war: Ulric is the down-to-earth part of it, the actual combat, martial prowess and [[Khorne|bloodlust]], Myrmidia is the science of war, strategy and tactics are in her domain and Sigmar stands for the reason behind the war; heroism, patriotism, empire-building, zeal and even self-defence as the Empire never actually seeks for more war. Her worship spreads throught the Empire from Estalia and Tilea, there is even one knightly order that worships to her, the Order of the Blazing Sun which converted during the Crusades. She is mainly worshipped by the generals and strategists rather than the soldiers themselves. Her symbol is a spear behind a shield and an eagle. Lastly if you are retarded and haven't noticed yet, Myrmidia is a shameless ripoff of Athena with no difference other than the name.

* '''[[Shallya]]''', the Goddess of Mercy and Healing, sister of [[Myrmidia]]. Shallya is probably the most [[Noblebright]] thing in Warhammer Fantasy. She offers mercy to all the suffering; the sick, the injured, the beggar, the orphan, the whore, the prisoner, the maimed, the unclean, just all of them. They even believe mutants can be cured, Shallyites actually established a secret mutant village to protect them from the witch hunters. They are right to a some extent because actually some of the mutants are normal mutants like in our world and not corrupted by Chaos at all. [[Grimdark|So probably thousands of humans was burnt on stick just because they are sick]]. She is generally worshipped by doctors and healers or more precisely her worshippers and priests became doctors and healers. Her symbols are a white dove and a heart with a single blood drop. Also she is quite similar to the Elven god [[Isha]].

* '''[[Ranald]]''', the God of Fortune, Luck and Mischief. One of the main problems with [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]] is, while it is still as oppressive as any feudal kingdom it lacks the organized police force to make it effectively like the [[Nazi|modern dictatorships]] did. So there is incredible amouths of criminal activity going on in the Empire. So much, there is a god of it. Although Ranald is the god that stands for freedom against that oppression, he is mainly worshipped by thieves, gamblers and charlatans. Also you may thought his name is nothing fancy, just a generic medieval name, which makes sense because actually Ranald was a mortal that convinced, or tricked, Shallya to let him drink one of her tear vials which ascended Ranald to godhood. Ranald's symbols are a hand with crossed fingers, an X, a black cat and a crow. He is mainly worshipped in big cosmopolitan cities like Marienburg.

* '''[[Khaine]]''', the God of Murder, Violance and Cruelty, younger brother of [[Morr]]. Khaine is in interesting position in the Old World pantheon, while other Elven gods are at least have different human names, Khaine is simply Khaine, the god that Dark Elves worship. Also the worship of Khaine is one of the few outlawed religions in the Empire (only worshipped secretly by cultists) because most human theologians believe Khaine is none other than [[Khorne|the Blood God]] himself. But Khainites know that there is a distinction between Khaine and Khorne; Khorne is more about senseless slaughter, the mass killings happening in the battlefields are what really pleases him. But Khaine is more about the killing of the individuals, the ritualistic art of murder and torture is what really pleases him, yet again battlefields are sacred for him too as the war is nothing more than industialized murder. Also in the End Times, Khaine and Khorne are confirmed to be separate entities but Khaine is still the god of [[murderhobos]] and it is better to outlaw his worship. Khaine is also worshipped as a God of Death, believed to be forever in conflict with his brother, Morr. Being a secret cult, Khaine don't have an openly displayed symbol but a scorpion stinger and a serpentine dagger are symbols generally associated with him. Khaine is commonly worshipped by sadists and serial killers but a few of his worshippers can be found among the soldiery.

===Bretonnia===
[[Lady of the Lake]] is the patron goddess of the [[Bretonnia|Kingdom of Bretonnia]]. Cult of the Lady is the state-religion and holds major political power within Bretonnia and yet the Lady isn't the most widespread worshipped God in Bretonnia. Being a feudal shitland, everything in Bretonnia is divided between [[Noble|Nobility]] and [[Peasant|Peasantry]] (and almost non-existent middle class consisting scholars and merchants) this of course includes the religion too. Peasants are prohibited from the worship of Lady as they are not seen more than vermin and shouldn't bother the Lady with their petty prayers. The middle class is allowed but have to pay tithe to worship in shrines and temple. In short, the cult of the Lady is only open to the Nobility of Bretonnia. This lead the peasantry to worship the Gods of the Old World Pantheon. Bulk of the peasantry (which is also the bulk of Bretonnia's population) worship [[Shallya]] the Goddess of Mercy and Healing. Unlike the Lady of the Lake, Shallya offers confort for everyone especially to the oppressed, suffering people like the peasants of Bretonnia. This made Shallya very popular among the peasants, some of them even believe Shallya is just another aspect of the Lady (basicly her peasant equilavent) which worshippers of the Lady [[Blam|didn't take tolerantly]]. Other than Shallya, Myrmidia is common among the men-at-arms, Taal and Rhya among the farmers, Verena among the scholars etc. Interestingly, worship of Sigmar is almost non-existent within Bretonnia which is weird as Cult of Sigmar, like Cult of Shallya, is a peoples cult, open to everyone. The reason behind this is probably the Bretonnian nobility's xenophobia towards [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]]. Anyway about the Lady of the Lake:

*'''[[Lady of the Lake]]''', the Goddess of Chivalry, Purity and Nobility, the Patron Goddess of [[Bretonnia]]. The Lady of the Lake is basicly the [[Waifu|idealized woman]] that every Bretonnian knight loves. They love her so much many knights are willing to abdicate all their titles and go on a Waifu Quest to find her. Almost all of these Questing Knights die horribly to monsters and other shit they have to fight, before even getting close to her. But most powerful of them find her eventually and when that happens, the Lady of the Lake offers them to drink from the Holy Grail she holds which turns Questing Knights into [[Mary Sue|mary sues]] or Grail Knights as they mostly known as. The Lady of the Lake is only worshipped by the Bretonnian Nobility and her symbols are the Holy Grail and [[Sisters of Battle|Fleur-de-lis]]. In End Times, it was revealed that the Lady of the Lake is none other than the Elven God [[Lileath]], she and the [[Wood Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Wood Elves]] been using Bretonnians as a bulwark against [[Chaos]] and a cat's paw when they don't feel like to risk elf lives. All that holy Grail Knights and lowly peasantry shit was to eliminate the weak and create the best of humanity, worthy of being used by Elves. [[Just as Planned|So the entire culture, religion and politics of Bretonnia is just part of an Elven eugenics programme.]] Also do I have to mention that she was "inspired" from Arthurian legends, like everything else in Bretonnia?

===Kislev===
[[Kislev]] has his own little pantheon of gods consist of three gods: '''Ursun''', '''Dazh''' and '''Tor'''. It isn't like an established Kislevite Pantheon, more like a group of local gods unique to Kislev. While almost all of the Kislevites only worship these three, some other gods have been worshipped by Kislevites too. Northern Gods of the Old World Pantheon is relatively common, mostly [[Ulric]] and Taal mainly because of Kislev's geographical closeness to [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Northern Empire]]. Like in the Empire, many local gods and spirits are venerated too. Interestingly, Kislev is also the only place in the Old World to worship [[Necoho|Ma]][[Zuvassin|lal]]. The Temple of the Ancient Allies in the Kislevite city of Bolgasgrad is the only known temple dedicated to Necoho and Zuvassin, and the city is home to only known worshippers of them. But, to be clear, it isn't like they are commonly worshipped in Kislev, their worshippers are probably even less than their fans in real life. So about the real gods of Kislev:

*'''[[Ursun]]''', the God of [[Bear Lore|Bears]] and Strength, Patron God of Kislev. Ursun is the most commonly worshipped god in Kislev, like Sigmar he's worsipped by everyone from wealthy cityfolk to nomads of the oblast. But in doctrine, Ursun has more common in [[Ulric]] and Taal than Sigmar. Like Ulric, Ursun is all about strenght, he prefers warriors over priests, acts over prayers. And like Taal, Ursun is more of the God of Bears than a God of man, bears are his sacred beast it is a privilege to hunt them, not a right given to humans. Like Taal dictates, bear hunts should be fair, no traps or hunting dogs allowed. One of the reasons that worship of Ursun is so common in Kislev is that Kislev is full of bears and worshipping the God of Bears makes things smoother between man and the beasts (and angering him gets you [[RIP AND TEAR|ripped apart by bears]]). His worshippers are rivals with Ulric's, but mutual respect exists between them. Ursun is practically worshipped by all of the Kislev and only in Kislev. His holy symbol is a bear or a bear's face.

*'''[[Dazh]]''', the God of Sun, Fire and Hospitality. When you live in a frozen wasteland where winters are 10 months long and full of bears, fire and Sun is just what really matters to survive. So you should worship the God of Sun in the second coldest place of the world after [[Chaos Wastes|literally frosty hell]] itself, not some [[Ulric|God of Winter]]. Actually this is why Dazhinyi (and Kislevites in general) despise Ulricans: they are like middle-class children who want winter to come because of Christmas and to play in snow while Kislevites are like homeless people who don't want to freeze to death during winter. Sure, worshipping the God of Winter would probably fix all of that for them, but this is Warhammer so common sense is still [[Heresy|not tolerated]]. Dazh is, like Ursun, widely worshipped by Kislevites but with a bit of change. In the cold harsh tundras of north, Dazh symbolizes the struggle against the nature and his worship is essential to survive Kislevite winters as every campfire and torch lights brightly because of him. In rather civilized south, he is the God of Hospitality, more about hearths and being kind to guests. Dazh's holy symbol is the Sun or a flame. Judging by the Usirian = Morr logic in the End Times, one could say that Ptra and Dazh are the same person due to being primary god of human. Just don't tell Settra about it or he is going to lit Kislev on fire (might be a good thing actually). He is based on Slavic sun god Dazhbog.

*'''[[Tor]]''', the God of Thunder and Lightning. The least inspired name ever given to a god of lightning. But at least he isn't just same with the [[Viking|Norse]] God Thor: Tor isn't a hammer wielding God of Heroism and War (that's [[Sigmar]]'s job) (also Tor prefers an axe), he is more of a force of nature. He is more about saying "Tor is angry today" during a lightning storm than prayers and systematic worship. Well, also a God of Lightning has nothing to offer to humans other than ''not'' striking them with a thunder bolt. Also his stricture is single, simple but smart: "Never stand under a tree in a thunderstorm." Tor's holy symbols are a thunderbolt and a silver axe.

===Nehekhara===
[[Nehekhara]], being '''THE''' human civilization of the world (meaning they are the original human civilization that was created and established by the [[Old Ones]] themselves) has their own unique and sophisticated take on religion and gods. The Priest Kings of Nehekhara and [[Tomb Kings]] of <s>[[Tomb Kings#Death of an Era|old]]</s> today worshipped the '''Nehekharan Pantheon''' also known as the Desert Gods. Nehekarans believed that in the dawn of time, the world was once dark and cold, it was their gods that enlightened the world and created humanity, which is quite a similar story to how the Old Ones created humanity and other races. Almost all of the gods [[Furry|have animal heads or are outright animals]] much like the Egyptian gods. Long ago, the Nehekharan Pantheon consisted of hundreds of different gods and hundreds of different cults dedicated to them, but after [[Nagash]] necro-nuked all of Nehekhara, killing every living thing and reanimating them as [[Undead]], only a handful of Gods remain (unknown if the other gods are dead too, or weren't real to begin with and were simply forgotten) and only the most widespread cult remains today, the Mortuary Cult, a cult dedicated to Usirian. The cult studied death and the afterlife, and also searched for immortality. First they managed to preserve a dead body with mummification (which they learned from the [[Lizardmen]] of the Southlands) then communicating with the dead souls using the [[Warhammer Magic|Wind of Death]] and lastly summoning the dead and binding them to corporal bodies. All of their study lead to Nagash's creation of Necromancy via mixing Dark Magic with the Wind of Death. Anyway about the pantheon:

*'''Ptra''', the God of Sun, Patron God of Nehekhara, husband of Neru. Although he is the most important god of Nehekharan Pantheon, there isn't much to say about him. Ptra is basicly Ra of our world, he rides his chariot in the sky from dawn till dusk, following his love, Neru the Moon Goddess. Unlike other gods of the pantheon, he doesn't have an animal form, or an animal headed form, only appearing in a human form. He is also the creator of humanity, according to Nehekharans. [[Settra the Imperishable]] is his most known (and of course greatest) worshipper because no God is worthy of being worshipped by Settra, other than the King of Gods himself.
*'''Neru''', the Goddess of [[Mannslieb|Moon]] and Protection, wife of Ptra. Boring ass wife of the boring ass god up there. Again not much to say about her, she is actively running away from her husband (for some reason), creating the day and night cycle of the world.
*'''Sakhmet''', the Goddess of the [[Morrslieb|Green Moon]], concubine of Ptra. Also called the Green Witch, Sakhmet envies Ptra's love of Neru, his wife, and all of humanity. During nights, Neru and Sakhmet fight for the domination of the sky, Neru wins most of the time so only Mannslieb appears in the sky but when Sakhmet wins both Mannslieb and Morrslieb appears in the sky, causing days known as Hexenstag and Geheiminstag to the [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Imperials]]. She is seen as a malevolant god by the Nehekharans because she, as said, envies Ptra's love for humanity. While the name is almost same with the Egyptian God Sekhmet, Sakhmet isn't really similar to her other than this: the duality of Sakhmet and Neru resembles how the bloodthirsty lion-headed Goddess of War Sekhmet and the merciful cow-headed Goddess of Love Hathor is the same goddess with a split personality disorder, even so Sakhmet and Neru are certainly not the same goddess at all. Ironically, she had a beastmen follower called '''Moonclaw''' who referred to the green moon as his own mother. During the End Times, chunks of Morrslieb descend up the world after the Skaven's reckless demolition. With that, is safe to say that Sakhmet is officially about as dead as Usirian. But it's not like the moon was alive like the other gods anyway.
*'''Usirian''', the God of the Underworld. Usirian's worship is as widespread as that of Ptra in Nehekhara, since the rise of the Mortuary Cult. As the lord of the Realm of Souls, Usirian judges souls of the living, particullarly the Priest Kings, upon their death; based on their lives, they may make it to the paradise filled with golden palaces to live in and their subjects to tyrannize (two things Priest Kings love the most) or if they didn't had any virtues in life (or [[Peasant|wasn't a nobleborn]]) they probably end up in the deepest pits of the Underworld, [[Grimdark|where millions of beetles will gnaw their skin and entrails forever]] (This sounds eerily similar to Abrahamic religions). Another privilege nobles get is that if they fuck up, Priests of Usirian will try to bargain with Usirian to mitigate their punishments. Khepra Beetles are said to be Usirians agents in the living realm, he monitors the mortals from the beetles' eyes, seeing all sins of the men and because said beetles are everywhere in Nehekhara, [[1984|every man and woman are being watched by him 7/24]]. On the other hand this also means using a bug sprey lets you trick the God of Dead. Usirian is also never physically represented as that would be [[heresy]] (now it is really similar to one particular Abrahamic religion). His most known worshipper is the Grand Hierophant Khatep who is the High Priest of the Mortuary Cult, Prophet of the Lord of the Tomb, Master of Awakenings but most importantly Settra's advisor during his life. Lastly in the [[End Times]], Usirian was devoured by Nagash which killed [[Morr]] too, this confirms that they were indeed the same god (in fact all Gods of Dead are probably the same god).
*'''Djaf''', the God of Death and War. While he is an important god, he is the god of death of undead egyptians after all and his ushabtis are one of the most common ones, not much is known about him. Considering another similar God, Usirian, is venerated much more than him and that he is also a God of War, Djaf is probably more abouth down-to-earth part of death not its concept or spiritual side. Djaf usually takes form of a jackal headed man or a large black jackal so he is basicly the Egyptian God of Death, Anubis.
*'''Asaph''', the Goddess of Beauty and Asps. When to be seen, Asaph takes the form of a seductive woman or [[Furry|an asp but still looking as seductive as woman]]. Lorewisely, the most important thing she did was saving [[Queen Khalida]] from becoming a [[vampire]] which made her the greatest worshipper of Asaph. Other than that, Asaph is really similar to the Chaos God [[Slaanesh]], both being gods of beauty and has a strong association with snakes. Unknown if there is a connection or not.
*'''Geheb''', the God of Earth and Strenght. As a god worshipped by warriors and soldiers, Geheb takes form of a lion or a big hunting dog in animal form and a musclar man with a thick beard in human form. Again another god with a Chaos God similarity, both [[Khorne]] and Geheb is worshipped by great warriors and has hunting dogs as their sacred animal. Also worship of Geheb involves a blood ritual which the worshippers drink the blood of a newly sacrificed ox.
*'''Tahoth''', the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Tahoth usually takes the form of an ibis headed man, or a silver colored ibis which makes him quite similar to [[Tzeentch]], the other bird headed god of knowledge. But this time this is probably because Tzeentch is inspired by the Egyptian God of Knowledge Thoth while Tahoth is just Thoth with a different name.
*'''Sokth''', the God of Scorpions, Thieves and Assassins. Although he is the protector of thieves, Sokth forbids grave-robbing and his sons (scorpions) guard the royal tombs along with Usirian's beetles. It's believed that the Nehekharan scorpions will never sting a true follower of Sokth but I'm sure nobody dares to test that. Sokth usually appears as a giant black scorpion or a man with pure black eyes.
*'''Phakth''', the God of Sky and Justice. Phakth usually takes the form of a hawk headed man or a blue hawk with golden eyes so he is practically the same god as Horus ([[Horus Lupercal|no, not that one]]).
*'''Basth''', the Goddess of Cats and Love. Usually appears as [[Furry|a cat headed woman]] or as [[Catgirl|a woman with cat-like features]]. She is the Egyptian Goddess of Cats, Bastet, of Warhammer Fantasy.
*'''[[Nagash]]''', the Supreme Lord of Undeath. Before I start let me explain why I decided to add Nagash to the list: Not because Nagash ascended to godhood in [[Age of Sigmar]] but because he has been worshipped as a god before that, since his first defeat, by priest kings to vampires, by crazed cultists to great necromancers. You may argue that Nagash is clearly not a god, as he is trying to become a god, so he has no place in here and I would say half of the gods listed here probably don't even exist or are a [[Chaos God]] in disguise so listen up. While not being a part of the Nehekharan Pantheon, Nagash has been (secretly) worshipped as a God by Nehekharans for millenia. Worship of Nagash, or Nagashism as it's named in [[Total War: WARHAMMER|Total War: Warhammer]], stretchs back to his first defeat. After dying in the desert and resurrecting himself as some sort of [[Lich]], Nagash deceived some mountain tribes into worshipping him as a god. After that, said tribesmen and his undead minions built the great fortress of Nagashizzar under the command of Nagash. Even today, in the highest chamber of the fortress, [[God-Emperor of Mankind|the corpse of Nagash sits on his throne with hundreds of zealous cultists worshipping him as a God]], listening to his whispers, doing his bidding. Since then, thinking being worshipped is quite handy, Nagash disguises himself as a god to manipulate humans. It is known that he has been willingly worshipped by many necromancers and vampires (which is actually rare, as vampires generally don't accept anyone as his/her superior). Nagash may also interfere with the wizards of the Wind of Death, especially Mortuary Priests, presenting himself as Usirian, the Nehekharan God of the Dead or [[Morr]], the Imperial God of the Dead, and use them to further his schemes. But he usually does that when he doesn't have a corporeal form because when he is in the mortal realm there is no need to trick anyone into believing he is a god. As said above, in the End Times he ascended to godhood and became the only [[Tomb King]] that made it to [[Age of Sigmar]].

===Northmen===
Although many Norscan tribes venerate all the gods, most tend to favour one of the Four for his blessings. Below them are various Daemon Princes, fallen ancestors and Chaos Champions, and other lesser spirits alongside the Big Four.

*'''[[Khorne]]''' - The Hound, Kharnath, Lord of Rage, Akhar, Kjorn, the Axefather, Khorgar, the Bloodwolf, and the Wolf-Father and many more names. In such a brutal, warlike culture moulded by harsh climate and monsters, he is the most popular deity in Norsca.
*'''[[Tzeentch]]''' - The Eagle, Tchar, the Raven God and expy of [[Odin]]. Patron deity of the seers and ''vitki'' (sorcerers), he is distrusted by most Norscans. However, because he is also the god of the winds of Magic and physical currents, he is venerated before the Norscans board their longships.
*'''[[Nurgle]]''' - The Crow, Neiglen, Nurglitch, Onogal. Usually prayed to for avoiding plagues, or to spare themselves from the worst of the plagues by dedicating themselves to him.
*'''[[Slaanesh]]''' - The Serpent, Shornaar, Lanshor. Invoked at the feasts and marriages that occur after battles.
*'''Mermedus''' - a caricature of Mannan, this monstrous sea horror is invoked to avoid his wrath when Skaelings sail. Prisoners are sacrificed to Mermedus by being drowned with heavy weights, and to die at sea is to sink into Mermedus' domains, deprived from the glorious halls of the Four.

The Norscans believe that they must become strong and cruel, to win the favour of the Four Gods after they die and enter their halls for an eternity of feasting and brawling. Should they die as cowards or without their hands and weapons, they might instead be chased around in the afterlife as playthings for Daemons.

===Minor Nations===
Even if they have never seen the light of the day, [[End Times|and never will]], there are human nations other than [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], [[Bretonnia]] and [[Warriors of Chaos|Northmen]]: the myst shrouded island of Albion, the Great Sultanate of Araby, Democratic City-States of [[Tilea]], Ever-warring kingdoms of [[Estalia]], Feudal Kingdom of [[Nippon]], Grand Empire of [[Cathay]], Kingdoms of Ind, the Hinterlands of Khuresh and more. While collective lore on these are less than any playable faction's, some of these factions' religious practices are known and some what interesting.
*'''[[Tilea]]''' worships the Southern Gods of the [[Old World]] Pantheon, mainly [[Myrmidia]], the Goddess of War and Strategy. Tileans are sailors and pirates, so Manann, the God of Seas, is also worshipped by many. Other than them, local gods of city-states are among common worship. Like Luccan and Luccina, the founders of the City-State of Luccini, is the most worshipped God in said city (You know [[Roman Empire|Romulus and Remus]]?). As a cosmopolitan country, Tilea also been influenced by other cultures and even races, like in Tobaro, people living in the underground tunnels of the city commonly worship il Grungnio or Grungni, the Dwarf God of Miners as he known to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy)|Dwarfs]]. Even so, Tileans are said to be "casual" worshippers, not taking the religion so seriously, unlike the Imperials and Bretonnians.
*'''[[Estalia]]''', being same as Tileans but with Spanish names, worships the Southern Gods of the Old World Pantheon, again mainly [[Myrmidia]]. But this didn't have a unifying effect on Estalians and Tileans, they have been fighting for centuries by now. Both sides claim that they are the real sons of Myrmidia.
*'''Araby''' is known to be worshipping a single god, being one of the very few monotheistic nations in the world. He chooses prophets among the people to teach his gospel to the Arabyans. A warrior-cult known as Dervishers is dedicated to that God, fan-named Ohrmazd (which is another name of Ahura Mazda, the God of Zoroastrianism) and said to be "too willing" to die for their god [[FAIL|which is a bit stupid because real life Dervishs (Islamic Monks) while very religious, were also pacifists and humanists]]. Another possibility would be that the Nehekharan gods might also be worshipped in Araby, as Araby is technically Nehekhara's living successor. Among the deities attested in canon venerated by the Arabyans include:
** '''the Djinn''', which are actually Daemons.
** '''Ancient deities''' older than the Nehekharan gods, promoted by another prophet known as Mullah Aklan'd, who was also Araby's first Great Sultan and unifier.
*'''[[Cathay]]''' is, surprisingly, a semi-atheist country, where the Dragon Emperor commands his people to see him just as a mighty all-knowing leader without any godhood nonsense. [[Emperor|This seems very familiar, doesn't it?]] However, Big D can't control literally everyone, so cults in his name do exist in some remote regions. [[Tzeentch]] worship is also still present, and is a major problem in this country.
*The Kingdoms of '''Ind''' are also called the Land of a Thousand Gods. Shit goes down in Ind because it is literally the land of a thousand gods and at least most of the gods are real and very active. They are said to be very fickle and quick to anger, judging and punishing their worshippers swiftly. So every part of the Indian life is a ritual: like if you overcook a [[Meatbread|meal]] a bit, you may be struck down by the God of Food or if you don't [[THIN YOUR PAINTS|thin your paints]], the [[Duncan Rhodes|God of Thin Paints]] may visit you at night. Leopold Riogillo, a merchant prince, notes that Indians see the tiger-headed [[beastmen]] of their land as holy spirits, yet again it is known that at least one god, the four-armed Bharmir, despises [[Chaos]].
** '''Brahmir''' - not-Brahman (or more like Vishnu), his holy statues can scare the Warp out of Chaos-worshippers.
** '''She'ar Khawn''' - not-Narasimha, a popular deity whose eight-armed statues are found in almost every temple in Ind.
** '''Gilgadresh''' - his temple was looted by Lokhir Fellheart.
*'''Amazons''', the warrior tribeswoman of [[Lustria]], worships the same pantheon of gods as the [[Lizardmen]] who are the [[Old Ones]]. Not much is known other than that.
** '''Rigg''', one of the Old Ones and the mother of Kalith, she is their goddess of war.
** '''Kalith''', the daughter of Rigg and the Elven sea god Amex, her functions and powers are unknown.

==Lizardmen==
Lizardmen revere the [[Old Ones]] as their gods. Lizardmen are brought fully formed into the world as full fighting units from magical spawning pools, some of these units have somehow been marked by one or more of the Old Ones for some specific purpose these are known as sacred spawnings. Albino Lizardmen are said to have the mark of the Old Ones and are believed to be destined for greatness.

* '''[[Sotek]]''' Unlike the other Old Ones Sotek was not among the original pantheon that created the Lizardmen and uplifted the humans, elves and dwarves. Sotek was brought into the world during the invasion of Lustria by the Skaven clan Pestilence. After numerous blood sacrifices [[Khorne|turning rivers red]] by the Lizardmen, a gargantuan snake appeared and chased the Skaven out of Lustria. Those marked by Sotek have a red stripe on top of their heads and sometimes running down their backs, they are fiercer than other Lizardmen. Sotek is the only Old One known to have sacred spawnings of skinks, fitting as it was these little WS 2 T 2 shits that made rivers run red with rat blood.

* '''Chotec''' God of the sun. Those of Chotec's sacred spawning are marked by the colour orange and are more energetic.

* '''Huanchi''' Jaguar god of stealth & ambush. The blessed spawning of Huanchi have darker coloured scales, possibly black or brown, they are experts at hunting down prey.

* '''Itzl''' God of cold-blooded beasts. Those of Itzl's sacred spawning are marked by bony crests and a distinct smell and are great beastmasters.

* '''Tepok''' Depicted as a feathered serpent, Tepok is the god of mystery. Those of Tepok's sacred spawning have purple scales on their backs and are protected against magic.

* '''Tzunki''' God of water. The blessed spawnings of Tzunki have green scales on their backs and are known to be blessed with gills and flippers.

* '''Tlazcotl''' God of stoicism. The blessed spawning of Tlazcotl have yellow scales along the main of their headcreasts and down along the crests of their back.

* '''Quetzl''' God of protection. The blessed spawning of Quetzl have thick scales.

*'''Xhotl''' Possibly a God of retribution given what their blessing does. Saurus are not spawned with it since the eponymous temple city of Xhotl was destroyed in the aftermath of the collapse of the polar gates, with Kroq-gar as the last survivor of it and bearer of the spawning, which grants a magical forcefield to its bearer and strikes back at anything that gets through.

* '''Minor Deities''' Many more Old Ones, like Tlanxla, are mentioned briefly in fluff but they've had very little impact as they've been dead or gone for ages. In rare cases a single saurus or skink will emerge alone from a spawning pool, completely albino of scale, and marked for greatness by all the Old Ones at once.

==Greenskins==
The Greenskins have two universal Gods; with several others.

*'''[[Gork]]''': He's Brutally Cunning.
*'''[[Mork]]''': He's Cunningly Brutal.
*'''Bad Moon''': Venerated by the Night Goblins, he causes mushrooms to grow from anywhere where he shines on, even victims unfortunate enough to be basked in it.
*'''[[Spider-God]]''': a god venerated by the Forest Goblins. They use spider poisons to get high and enter a trance to commune with their god and tame spiders to ride around on in its honor.

==Ogres==
*'''[[Great Maw]]''' - A ''something'' that appeared after the Dragon Emperor of Cathay called down a meteor to punish the Ogres fucking up his lands. It was possibly a warpstone meteor and POSSIBLY caused by interference from Tzeentch but whatever it was left a big fleshy mouth in the ground that cursed the Ogres with a constant hunger, which also made them worship it as a god. Is it? Well the Ogres think so, and are you gonna tell em different?
*'''[[Fire Mouth]]''' - A volcano worshiped by the Firebellies. They drink super hot food (if not actual lava) to venerate it and grant them spells.

==Skaven==
*'''The (Great) [[Horned Rat]]''' - "what a minute isnt The Horned Rat a [[Chaos Gods|Chaos God]]? whats he doing here?" you might be asking. well the answer is "Because he's a.) a fantasy (and its [[Age of Sigmar|sequel]]) god and b.) the only one with its own specific race of worshipers that isnt a [[Chaos Dwarfs|spin off]] or [[Dragon Ogres|split between the other four]]". The Horned Rat is not only the god of the [[Skaven]], he is the exemplar of their race as a whole! He's [[Tzeentch|sneaky and cunning]], ruthlessly [[Slaanesh|self indulgent and self interested]], [[Nurgle|plague-ridden]] and [[Khorne|murderous and power hungry]] and demands that his people follow in his image while also honoring him during. hes also one of the few gods to actually appear to his race and tell them to stop screwing around and get shit done now and again. Various origins have him as a Daemon of Nurgle that got above his raisin and made some ratmen, or a traitorous Dwarfen Ancestor god that fucked off to screw shit up, but its unknown if either of these are true. And he was probably behind The Doom of Kavzar in some way.

==Pygmies==
The Pygmies worshipped 2 Brother Gods, who together decided to kill the 18 other of the original 20 Pygmy Gods when they came to Mallus, despite the 2 Brothers having almost opposite personalities.
*'''Beesbok''': God of Procrastination, Food, Feasting, and Happiness
*'''Brodat''': God of Work, Poison, Magic, and Dourness.
[[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]

Warhammer Fantasy Gods

2022-06-30T19:25:42Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Pygmies */

{{Whfb-stub}}
{{Topquote|And then the Cataclysm came. King [[Taal]] rose from His Forest, and with Dark [[Morr]] muttering dire portents in His ear, He banished all immortals from the world. But the Cataclysm’s architects refused His order. [[Tzeentch|The Crow]], [[Khorne|the Hound]], [[Slaanesh|the Serpent]], and [[Nurgle|the Vulture]] were jealous of King Taal, and had tried to use the Great Gates to take what was His. They had failed. As the other immortals fled, the Four attacked, bitter and angry with their frustrations. Many died. After countless battles, King Taal was eventually surrounded. There were few still by his side. [[Ulric]] the Wolf. Noble [[Myrmidia|Margileo]]. Just [[Verena]]. [[Sotek]] the Snake. [[Manann]] of the Sea. And Gentle [[Shallya]], tear-stained and afraid. Even Smiling [[Ranald]] had fled, and now hid in the Places Between, fearful for the future. Then, just as the Four and their allies arrived for the Final Battle, [[Asuryan|Flaming Phoenix]], whom all had thought dead, returned from atop His Gleaming Pyramid, and He smote about Him. Thus the rebels were pushed behind the Great Gates, and were sealed there forever. But they were restless in their cage, and soon worked to escape.|Translated from the Obernarn Stone, now held in the Imperial Museum, Altdorf}}

Like any other fantasy setting, Warhammer Fantasy has its own gods.

Sporadically throughout the game, mainly in a few Chaos books and near [[The End Times|the end of its life]], it was stated that there are no other gods and only [[Chaos Gods]] exist. This is a typically [[Daemon|Daemonic]] twisting of the truth (although the claim was enough to make [[Archaon]] go full-[[Star Wars|Anakin Skywalker]]) and contradictive of other material. There is also some discrepancy between fans of [[Warhammer 40000]] who believe that Fantasy magic works in the same way that Psyker energy works in 40k. The final issue is [[The End Times]] and [[Age of Sigmar]] as well as their 8th edition lead-in, which changed quite a bit of existing lore as retcons disguised as "revealing the truth".

Unsurprisingly, the nature of gods in both settings is one of the more skub-filled lore topics.

=The Nature Of The Divine=
In early Warhammer lore gods simply existed and had their own faiths. Certain Chaos supplements suggested there were no gods and that only [[Chaos]] exists with the nature of the Chaos Gods being insane beings who pretend to be other personas in order to fight each other and themselves, like a giant 1000 character game of [[Dungeons & Dragons]] with no DM and only four people wearing blindfolds so nobody knows who is who other than [[Tzeentch|that one asshole with an actual case of multiple personality disorder who's peeking]]. As this only appears in a few Chaos supplements and nowhere else however, its authenticity is [[skub|questionable]] at best.

The nature of all the gods was explained differently over the years. In the earliest instances, when Warhammer was ''only'' Fantasy, gods didn't exist until the collapse of the Warpgates, and were more akin to extremely powerful angels and daemons than actual deities. Another one of the oldest tellings suggests there is one supremely powerful being at the center of the Warp, and that all gods, evil and good, originate from that single force. In others, the gods always existed, even before the Old Ones. As mentioned above, a few Chaos books suggested all gods were only fractions of larger Chaos gods, whose own origins were unclear. A few other explanations say the benevolent gods (Order) were made by or enserved to the Old Ones, while the malevolent gods (Chaos, Destruction) were rebels. If you take 40K as valid for both its own gods and Fantasy's, it states that gods are actually the coalesced belief and emotion of mortal beings, sort of a psychic gestalt. Whatever the source, it was always left intentionally vague and contradictive which explanation, if any provided, was valid, and there was a sense that the true nature of the divine was something beyond the understanding of the mortals "telling" the story (lore) of the world.

In truth, or at least according to the last entries of the setting, all non-material plane things are made of magic. Souls are magic, the Winds of Magic are magic, Daemons are magic, and so are all the Gods. This is apparently(?) the "truth" that Archaon learned, because the teachings of his faith are that magic is [[Heresy]] and apparently gods were just shitting miracles out of scientific stardust or something.

The End Times event revealed quite a bit, all of which is fairly skubby. The history of Warhammer is that the [[Old Ones]] descended from some unknown place, possibly another dimension, planet, or place in the timeline, on a primitive world full of [[Dinosaur]]s, [[Dragon]]s, and [[Neanderthal]] versions of the classic Fantasy races then created the [[Warp|Warp Gates]] to suck magic from the Warp which they used to alter the world and create a race capable of fighting Chaos (which would eventually come regardless) before the Gates collapsed causing Chaos to arrive much sooner on an unfinished world whereupon the Old Ones fucked off to who knows where or died. The new lore is that this isn't the first time this has happened; Warhammer existed in a time loop, with the Old Ones stealing magic from Chaos which causes the Chaos Gods to feel entitled to own the material plane like [[Slaanesh]] to the [[Eldar]] in 40k, where they spend the rest of their history draining magic from the local gods until a cataclysmic event where a handful of Elves survive on a world outside of existence and guide evolution until the Old Ones show up again, rinse and repeat. This cycle was broken finally by [[Be'lakor]] (who's time-travel and alternate universe fuckery is apparently something new to these timelines, despite the "it always existed because there is no time" nature to Chaos because GW writers can't into consistency) who did...''something'' to the new Elf gods in the next world which altered the cycle. The new cycle involves far more than just the Elves, as many characters survived the old setting and became gods in the new one (some didn't become gods, why isn't clear).

Gods exist that aren't part of the cycle as well. Sigmar for example was a mortal man who became trapped in the magic of the Heavens Wind, greatly limiting his power to affect the mortal world but giving him godhood. Gork and Mork ([[Meme|or is it Mork and Gork?]]) have no proper origin, but are somehow able to grant godhood to members of their own pantheon such as through the Spider God who was just an ordinary spider who bit Gork (or possibly Mork). Some of the Elf gods were survivors of the old setting, some have unknown origins and others were just an existing god mistaken as a separate entity. Ranald gambled his way into divinity after tricked some goddess to give him the blessing. Ulric probably became a god after accidentally tempted with one of the old one's warp devices (the one that house the flame of Ulric) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

=Pantheons=

==Elves==
{{Topquote|M: Do you know much about the elven gods, sir?<br>V: Only that they are degenerates, who bicker amongst themselves instead of opposing the true foe.<br>M: As with the mortals, so with the gods, is that it?<br>V: Indeed. Would that Sigmar could return and show them the error of their ways.| [[vermintide 2|Markus Kruber & Victor Saltzpyre]], questioning the Elven gods' liability}}

The Elf pantheon is divided between the Cadai (positive gods) and Cytherai (negative gods). Some of them are shared with 40k, although beyond portfolio and name they are entirely different.
High Elves worship the Cadai light gods and simply try not to piss off the Cytharai by being pansies (which they fail at). Wood Elves worship some, and the others they've modified the mythos of to be more Wood Elf-y (see how they have got Isha and Kurnous bought back to their 'earthy roots). Dark Elves entirely ignore the light side of the pantheon, and worship the darkest aspects of the darker gods (who don't seem to care much about the twisting of the myth since the DEs are the only ones actively worshiping them, and someone getting your myths wrong is better than nobody).
The humans of Albion worship their own version of a few of the Elf gods as well, and it's possible some masquerade as the gods of the Old World. As revealed in the end times, the Lady is Lileath! Shock, horror.

Each name-rune that represents them doubles as a picture of themselves in abstract, as well as a few hidden images (like Lileath being both the devil horned invocation of magic that early High Elf models had, the twin moons, herself seated in an elegant pose, and a few standard High Elf runes mixed throughout). Many of these emblems appear fully on High Elf shields, banners, capes, and any other flat or ripply surface really.

In the [[Black Library]] series [[Defenders of Ulthuan/Sons of Ellyrion]] the Elf gods are portrayed as very real and very powerful, but outside of that series they are described as dying, faded, or outright consumed by Chaos.

===Cadai===
* '''[[Asuryan|Asuryan, the Creator, Emperor of the Heavens]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. Despite always being portrayed as the creator of the Elves he was actually not their literal father and is more the creator of their culture...sort of (thanks to a retcon mess; Wood Elves are the true culture of the Elves, High Elves were what Asuryan created to fight Chaos but the Dark Elves are the result of Khaine and Chaos influence as well as what Asuryan's desired end goal for Elves to be was. Don't think too much about it, its a fucking mess). Zeus expy, although rather than fuck everything he basically [[Tzeentch|sat on his throne and plotted]]. His priesthood were warrior monks with halberds that cared for the Phoenixes of Ulthuan and maintain a chronicle of history including every single event that ever has or will happen. In a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Malekith]] rather than [[Tyrion]] in End Times, and faded into Malekith's being which possibly made him a nobler and less Darth Vader-like being.

* '''[[Vaul|Vaul, the Maker]]''' Smith god. Saved Isha and Kurnous from Khaine after they saved the mortal Elves, forged the [[Widowmaker]]. Crippled and shackled to his anvil, just like Hephaestus/Vulcan from Greek-Roman mythology. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Isha|Isha, the Mother]]''' Mother god, survivor of the old setting. Gave birth to Lileath as well as the first mortal Elves. Lived in Avelorn in Ulthuan until an unknown point in time when she relocated to [[Athel Loren]] then thanks to the draining of Chaos lost much of her divine power and became [[Ariel]]. Due to retcons there's a snarl as to what exactly the [[Everqueen]] connection to her is; previously, she existed as an entity within the Everqueen surrounded by the souls of all other Everqueens and was able to fight Slaanesh as an equal when fully charged up. As of End Times it was revealed that Lileath actually poisoned her with a shard of eternal ice, slowly killing her until the Everqueen could consume her soul while Lileath absorbed her power.

* '''[[Kurnous|Kurnous, the Hunter]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. The actual father of the mortal Elves. Lived with Isha in Avelorn until they traveled to Athel Loren. Became [[Orion]] with the weakening of Chaos. Due to retcon fuckery, there's an issue where he apparently also dwells in Ellyrion and selects champions from the Elves there to lead the fight against Dark Elves and Chaos even though he spends most of his time in Athel Loren killing Bretonnians and Beastmen for the lulz in the Wild Hunt.

* '''[[Hoeth|Hoeth, Lord of Wisdom]]''' Scholar god. Conflicting sources tie him as part of the reason magic behaves the way it does, and attribute various things to him. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Lileath|Lileath, the Maiden]]''' Daughter of Isha and Kurnous, sister to the entire Elf race. Goddess of prophesy to a degree that her father who is omniscient can be surprised by her, somehow. Took on a villainous role in End Times for engineering events that caused massive failures and deaths across the setting while trying to protect the cycle and send her Wood Elf husband [[Araloth]] as the new Asuryan/Kurnous, the High Elf Prince(ss) [[Eldyra]] as the new Isha, and her children with Araloth to be the rest of the pantheon of the new world which was destroyed somehow by Be'lakor making all of her sacrifice and sabotage for nothing. Was also The Lady of Bretonnia and using their entire race as her pawns, and had the persona of Ladrielle as well.

* '''[[Loec|Loec, the Shadow Dancer]]''' Trickster god, created several magical artifacts. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Mathlann|Mathlann, Lord of the Deeps]]''' God of the sea, confirmed to be a real god in End Times although unknown if he is a survivor of the previous setting or not. Known for saving his champion [[Sea Lord Aislinn]] from death constantly, later revealed to actually be Sea Lord Aislinn. Considered a positive aspect of Ellinill in retconned lore.

===Cytharai===

Probably from the Welsh ''cythrawl'' meaning ‘devil; demon; evil spirit’.

* '''[[Khaine|Khaine, the Bloody-Handed God]]''' Evil Asuryan. Confirmed to be real, unknown if he is a survivor god or not. [[Khorne]] but with magic, he spent most of his time fighting Asuryan for control of the Elves as well as Isha and Kurnous, and just generally being a prick who fucked everything up. Although not on the side of Chaos, he didn't focus any efforts on fighting them and instead caused Elves to fight each other and lose their ability to fight Chaos effectively. Manifested himself in the bloodline of [[Aenarion]], in a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Tyrion]] rather than [[Malekith]] in End Times and died when Asuryan/Malekith killed Tyrion (Tyrion got better, Khaine died).

* '''[[Ereth Khial|Ereth Khial, the Pale Queen]]''' Survivor god of the old setting, fate unknown. Goddess of death for the Elves although thanks to Chaos she gets almost no Elf souls (lore contradiction as apparently the Death Wind contains the bulk of the souls of the dead, even though lore also says Slaanesh eats almost every Elf soul and apparently Ereth Khial was gone or faded by the time of End Times despite Elves that should have already been trapped in the Wind or consumed by Slaanesh appearing as ghosts; arguments can be had in any direction). Suffered in the cold darkness of the new world with Isha and chose to remain alone rather than cling together for comfort as Isha wanted until the new world began with the coming of Asuryan, desired to have him as her husband but he rejected her causing her to hate all beings and torture the Elf souls far worse than Chaos (which represents oblivion rather than suffering). Her domain is called Mirai.

* '''[[Nethu|Nethu, Keeper of the Last Door]]''' Son of Ereth Khial, father unknown. Keeper of the gates of the Mirai and comparable to a Grim Reaper figure. Since Morr is described as an Elf god in a [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] supplement, this may be his true identity. Otherwise his status as real or not is unknown.

* '''[[Anath Raema|Anath Raema, the Savage Huntress]]''' Evil Kurnous, whips around the savage parts of the hearts of the Elves until they go on a Great Hunt but unlike Kurnous she sees all things as game. Given that the lore surrounding Kurnous became fairly evil in regards to his hunts, Anath Raema only represents a lack of concern with preservation and balance rather than outright evil. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Morai-Heg|Morai-Heg, the Crone]]''' An old and wrinkled Elf goddess (yes, apparently they can age) of prophesy who's primary shrine is on an island of Elf amazons who bewitch men to come to the shores that sail too closely then kill them and pave the island with their bones. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Hekarti|Hekarti, Mistress of Magic]]''' Goddess of magic, evil Hoeth. Revealed to be [[Morathi]] in End Times, whether she is a survivor god or not is unknown.

* '''[[Atharti|Atharti, Lady of Desire]]''' Goddess of pleasure, twin sister of Hekarti. Worship of one of them without equal worship of the other causes the less loved one to curse the favoring devotee. Created in 7th edition because Dark Elves worshiping Slaanesh was against [[Gav Thorpe]]'s vision for the race, which is better is the subject of much Skub (although players of the [[Cult Of Slaanesh]] army are strongly against it). Morathi went from being Slaanesh's high priestess and favored mortal to being the biggest worshiper of both Hekarti and Atharti. With the reveal that Morathi IS Hekarti, its left unknown who exactly Atharti is and who punishes you if you prefer Hekarti. Given that in End Times Morathi went quite insane and a little senile after coming under the delusion that first her son Malekith was Aenarion, then the Khaine-possessed Tyrion was Aenarion, Morathi may have been both entities.

* '''[[Ladrielle|Ladrielle, Lady of Mists]]''' A persona of Lileath, a master manipulator. Given that this is a Cytherai and thus one of the less pleasant gods, this may be a better description of Lileath.

* '''[[Ellinill, Lord of Destruction]]''' God of destruction, once a very powerful god with hundreds of children who ran amok throughout the world with him. Drakira tricked Isha into asking Loec to trick him into believing his children were going to revolt, and he went about killing and eating as many as he could. His strength was greatly diminished in his battles. Unknown if real or not. His children are known as the Ellinilli and the only ones that survived are those who hid in the mortal world. Unknow if real or not.

* '''[[Estreuth|Estreuth, Lord of Hunger]]''' God of famine. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Addaioth|Addaioth, Bringer of Fire]]''' God of fire. One of the Ellinilli. Decided to fight his father rather than hide, and was almost killed until Ladrielle (AKA Lileath) saved him and hid him in the mortal world with his siblings. Has prepared to kill his father ever since, thinking of himself as Vaul 2.0 but only creating shitty arms and armor. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Hukon|Hukon, the Sunderer]]''' God of earthquakes. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Drakira|Drakira, Queen of Vengeance]]''' Goddess of revenge, one of the Ellinilli who was picked on by her siblings and neglected by her father. Manipulated Isha's sorrow at the suffering her family caused mortals into becoming hatred, and all beings have been careful not to offend her ever since. Worshiped heavily by Dark Elves, but loves all Elves equally and keeps part of them any time they make a deal with her. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Eldrazor|Eldrazor, Lord of Blades]]''' A god of war and duels. Although he doesn't seek war, once it begins there is nothing out of bounds for him. Basically a more reserved and less aggressive Khaine. Unknown if real or not.

==Dwarfs==
The gods of the [[Dwarfs]] are mortal Dwarfs who attained godhood, and as such are referred to as Ancestor Gods. They have only three main ones with lesser ones as their family (plus one guy who’s just kind of there) , but Dwarfs can invoke the names of their own heroes and ancestors religiously as well.

* '''[[Valaya]]''' Goddess of hearth, home, brewing, healing, defending against Chaos, and basically every single other thing the other two don't do. Settled the first and greatest Dwarf Holds, ancestor of the greatest Dwarfs, invented the Dwarf written language and every other aspect of their culture. The least important god because...[[Fail|reasons]]. In End Times she was discovered to be slumbering by [[Queen Neferata]] in a long-forgotten Vault in a ritual to charge up a magic gate and create a new golden age for Dwarfkind. After a battle between Nef, [[Night Goblins]], and [[Thorek Ironbrow]] the Dwarfs were left dead and Valaya's divine power was consumed by [[Nagash]]. She didn't receive an [[Age of Sigmar]] resurrection, because [[Fail|reasons]].

* '''[[Grungni]]''' Dwarf smith god. After Valaya invented runes, he figured out how to smith them into objects to give Dwarfs magic. Fought in End Times, but survived into Age of Sigmar.

* '''[[Grimnir]]''' Dwarf god of war. After Valaya invented [[Book of Grudges|Grudgekeeping]] he became the patron of them. Became the first [[Slayer]], has a fortress inside of the Warp where he endlessly slaughters the forces of Chaos. Gave up his divinity to [[Gotrek & Felix|Gotrek]] in order to die in the final battle after Gotrek died and avenged his own sin, and in the final battle all Grudges were considered resolved. Gotrek/Grimnir survived into Age of Sigmar where he sat on Sigmar's council until he got bored and was sent to kill a giant monster, causing both to explode and spread throughout the Realms whereupon the mortal Dwarfs who are his devotees collect his parts to reassemble him. Judging by Realmslayer, the Grimnir seen in AoS was the original one with Gotrek merely acting as a vessel for his power, although it seems like Grimnir might have had further plans for Gotrek that have yet to be revealed.

* '''[[Gazul]]''' The Dwarf god of Death. Lived in the time of the trinity, and created the written version of their names as well as the concept of venerating your ancestors. His faith includes the '''Order Of Guardians''', the Dwarf equivalent of Witch Hunters. Every Hold and most settlements, any place that has a place to honorably bury dead Dwarfs in fact, has a shrine or temple to him.

* '''[[Morgrim]]''' God of Engineering. Oldest child of Valaya with Grimnir, personally invented Bolt Throwers and Dwarf Catapults/Stone Throwers (which later became Grudge Throwers). Was Grimnir's companion on the way to close the Warp Gate, but Grimnir forced him to turn back and return home. All Engineers are basically priests of Morgrim, since his teachings are a code of conduct for the craft. Liberal Engineers are considered heretics (but not the kind you shoot, just the kind you shout at) by conservative Dwarfs for their loose interpretations of scripture.

* '''[[Smednir]]''' God of smelting and metalworking. Middle son of Grungni and Valaya. Smednir created the tools that Thungni and Grungni inscribed their rune magic on, and among the greatest creations of the trio of laborers is [[Ghal Maraz]] itself. Smednir's shrines and temples are basically just extensions of those of Grungni's, since the two are inseparable in theme.

* '''[[Thungni]]''' God of Runesmithing. Youngest son of Grungni and Valaya. During the settling of the first Holds he descended into a mystical realm called "Ankor Byrn (Glittering Realm)" where he discovered the ability to forge his mother's language with magic to create runes, although it was his father who later turned the discovery into a science and art. Only descendants of Grungni like himself were capable of learning Runesmithing. All Runesmiths are basically priests of Thungni, like Morgrim's Engineers. Unlike all the other gods who are friendly with the faiths of the allies of the Dwarf race and enemies of those who are Dwarf enemies, Thungni's cult has an additional enemy; non-Dwarfs who try to learn or succeed at making rune magic. This includes human wizards.

*It should be noted that the eldest son of Valaya (with Grungni) is [[Grombrindal|Snorri Whitebeard]]. He did not get to be a god as he had the duty of ruling the Karaz Ankor after his parents departed.

* '''[[Horned Rat|Skavor]]''' An ancestor god who had no talent in crafting using non-living materials but a talent for fleshcrafting and chaos magic. His use of fleshcrafting and chaos magic got him exiled by the rest of the ancestor gods so he fleshcrafted himself into a rat-like abomination and created the Skaven to wipe out the rest of the dwarves out of spite. This is the only known Ancestor God that is shunned and hated by the dwarfs.

==Humans==
Like in all other things, Humanity is really diverse when it comes to religion, ranging from worshipping the [[Chaos Gods]] to worshipping [[Lady of the Lake|an Elf God pretending to be a goddess of chivalry]]. Although some gods are argued to be the [[Sigmar|God of Mankind]], there is no united Human pantheon, just many many different gods for many many different nations. The Old World Pantheon is the collection of Gods worshipped by humans of Old World (which is the closest thing we can get to Human Pantheon). This pantheon mainly divided into two "families", namely '''Northern Gods''' and '''Southern Gods'''. There is also the Patron Gods of nations that don't fit these two families; Sigmar for [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], Lady of the Lake for [[Bretonnia]] and Ursun for [[Kislev]]. Other than them, there are also some other pantheons like [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] Pantheon and thousands of different local gods unrelated to any pantheon. As I said before, Humanity is diverse.
Note also that while the various Human nations may worship ostensibly different gods with different names and different rituals, that these may in fact be local aspects of a smaller number of universal gods. The confirmed example is that of the Old Worlder god of death: when Nehekharan god [[Usirian]] was destroyed this also destroyed the god known in the Empire under the name [[Morr]], for unbeknownst to both sets of worshippers the two gods were simply culturally-specific variants of the same deity. Similar pairings are suspected to exist among other deities (the trade god known as [[Handrich]] to Imperials, but Mercopio to Tileans), and it is thus possible that the bewildering array of human gods may in fact be reducible down to a smaller pantheon of common major deities.
===Empire===
[[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Empire of Man]] has a patron god named [[Sigmar]], the mortal founder of Empire who is believed to be ascended to godhood after he vanished. But unlike [[Imperium of Man|his space faring brother]], the Empire is a polytheistic nation, worship of other gods (except [[Chaos Gods]] and [[Khaine]]) is allowed, although the Cult of Sigmar is the state religion. So most of the Old World Pantheon is also worshipped in Empire or at least respected. The list of the Imperial Gods starting with their Patron God goes as;

* '''[[Sigmar]]''', Warrior-God of Mankind, is the founder of [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], its first Emperor and the most badass human ever lived. His deeds of badassery includes but not limited to; uniting human tribes of Old World, defeating biggest WAAAGH ever happened with said united army, earning the respect of the Dwarfs (by far the hardest one to do), breaking the [[Warriors of Chaos|Norsii]] siege of Middenheim and fighting a fucking [[Bloodthirster]] in there, bashing the skull of [[Nagash]] (doing that by using Nagash's own crown also counts) and destroying his undead army. After establishing a rather stabilized state in Old World, Sigmar left the Empire and never seen again, presumed dead by his people. Years after his departure, some guy named Johann Helsturm proclaimed that he saw the vision of Sigmar being crowned to godhood by [[Ulric]] and joined him among the divinity. Helsturm pretty much created the Cult of Sigmar which gained power among centuries and became the most popular and influental religion in the Empire. Today the Cult of Sigmar holds a major bureaucratic power within the Empire, for example the head of the Sigmarite Church, the Grand Theogonist, is able to cast 3 votes in Emperor's election. Sigmar is worshipped by Imperials as the God of War, Mankind, Heroism, Courage and Empire itsef. He is respected by everyone in the Empire, even the Ulricians of Northern Empire proudly call themselves the sons of Sigmar. His holy symbols are Ghal Maraz (or just a warhammer), the Twin-Tailed Comet and Gryphon. His chants are effective against Daemons and Undead. He is mainly worshipped in Reikland but his worshippers can be found everywhere in the Empire (and probably never found among non-Imperial humans). In the End Times, Sigmar's ascension to godhood is confirmed but [[Tzeentch]] trapped him inside the Winds of Heaven [[Not as planned|which actually supercharged Sigmar with magic]]. In short Sigmar is basicly Conan the Barbarian/Charlemagne/Jesus of Warhammer Fantasy and also Thor to Ulric's Odin.

====Northern Gods====
The '''Northern Gods''' aka the '''Elder Gods''' or the '''Country Gods''' are the gods of pre-Imperial human tribes and during Sigmar's reign. They are quite old, worship of Elder Gods stratches back to several millenia. Although they are losing favor to Sigmar, their worship is still widespread, especially in the countryside. These gods are Ulric, Taal, Rhya and Manann.

* '''[[Ulric]]''', the God of Winter, Wolves and Warfare, younger brother of Taal. He is generally worshipped by non-Chaos [[Vikings]] of Warhammer Fantasy who live in Middenland, Nordland and Ostland. Ulric is the second most popular god of the Empire and was actually the most popular one during the times before Sigmar, being worshiped by all human tribes in one way or another. Actually Sigmar himself was a devout worshipper of him too, all sagas emphasise him being blessed and protected by Ulric. Today, Ulricans are still a powerful group, his worship is quite common and the Viking Pope, Al-Ulric, is able to cast one vote in Emperor's election. When it comes to Sigmar, Ulricians are divided into two. Some of them just don't believe Sigmar is a God and rejects Sigmarites all together and the others believes Sigmar is a God but venerate Ulric more as he is the traditional god of mankind but all of them respect Sigmar all the same as he definitely was Ulric's mortal champion before his ascension to godhood. Ulric is a god of martial skill, not unlike [[Khorne|his evil counter part]] (main difference is Ulric cares whose blood being spilled, preferably his enemies') he favors natural strength; gunpowder weapons and crossbows are to be shunned for they don't require any skill to use. His holy symbol is the White Wolf he manifests. In End Times, [[Teclis]] stole the Flame of Ulric in Middenheim and used it to heal [[Tyrion|his brother]] which caused Middenheim's fall and eventually killed Ulric. [[Eldrad|What a dick]]. It is also revealed that his ascension to the godhood may have to do with the old one device hosting his flame (which may or may not belonging to the ancient Elven colonist before the rise of man and the war of beard that forced the elves to abandoned the old world) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

* '''[[Taal]]''', the God of Wilds, Nature and Beasts, older brother of Ulric and husband of Rhya. Being a Warhammer God, Taal isn't some pesky hippy, he believes in the survival of the fittest. So if you can kill it (in a fair way) all animals are willing to serve you as food and fur. Like Ulric, he favors natural strength and forbids use of gunpowder and adds it the use of metal armor too, only skin and fur of his animals is to be used for clothing. His worshippers are against anything unnatural starting with [[Chaos]] and [[Mutant|Mutants]] to even cities and money in extreme cases. Taal is, like beasts and nature itself, known for being indifferent to morality. His holy symbol is a Stag or just antlers. His worship is almost completely tied with worship of Rhya, which is together called Cult of Taal and Rhya. The two complete eachother as manifestation of Nature; Taal is the animals while Rhya is the plants, Taal is the wrathful natural disasters while Rhya is the generous and fertile soil. He is, like his wife, mainly worshipped in Talabecland. He also has a number of paralells with Kurnous, the Elven god of the hunt.

* '''[[Rhya]]''', the Earth Mother, Goddess of Plants, Farming and Hunting, wife of Taal. She domains over all things that grow, so pretty much Demeter of Warhammer Fantasy. Her worship is a part of Cult of Taal and Rhya which mainly practiced Talabecland. Her holy symbol is a sheaf of wheat and bow and arrow. As said above, worship of Rhya and Taal is tied to eachother though Ryha seems to be less important and [[-4 STR|less powerful]] of the two.

* '''[[Manann]]''', the God of Seas and Tides, son of Taal and Rhya. Worshipped by sailors and fishermen, Manann is not really different than Poseidon of our world. He is quite fickle and dickish, judging his subjects arbitrarily (like Poseidon). Manann's strictures are nothing more than generic sailor superstitions which changes based on sailor, priest and Manann's mood at the time. His holy symbols are wave patterns, albatrosses and his five tinned crown. He is mainly worshipped in Marienburg and other coastal cities although human sailors all around the Old World worship him. Also he is completely identical to [[Mathlann]], the Elven Sea God, and may in fact just be the same deity under a different name.

====Southern Gods====
The '''Southern Gods''' aka the '''Classical Gods''' or the '''Town Gods''' are newer ones among the Old World Pantheon (still older than Sigmar) they are actually not really among the common worship in the Empire (with exception of Morr who is third most popular Imperial God). They are generally worshipped in more civilized and urban areas of South Old World like [[Tilea]] and [[Estalia]]. These gods are Morr, Verena, Myrmidia, Shallya, Ranald and Khaine.

* '''[[Morr]]''', the God of the Dead, Afterlife and Dreams, older brother of [[Khaine]], husband of Verena and father of Myrmidia and Shallya. Similar to Greek Mythology, at the beginning of time the three gods, Ulric, Taal and Morr divided the world between eachother. Ulric and Taal started fighting for the living world while Morr simply settled the realm of the dead. Then the Gods of Mortal Realm and Morr made an agreement to balance things out; Morr and his subjects, the dead, will not tresspass into Mortal Realm and in return, Ulric and Taal will ultimately send all the living to Morr. [[FAIL|Well, when you think about it you can realize this agreement actually gives no benefit to Morr,]] because while Ulric and Taal don't have to do anything for their part (because mortals, naturally, always die), Morr will both have to protect the souls of the dead from being consumed [[Chaos Gods]] and fight the necromancers and undead to do his part of the agreement. Yet again, Morr, being one of the few responsible gods who actively tries to [[gets shit done|do his job,]] maybe took this responsibility willingly. Although he is a less known god among the fans, Morr's worship is the most widespread in the Warhammer world as he is worshipped by all major races and nations even if he is known to them by different names. His symbols are ravens, hourglasses and black roses. His seat of power is in Luccini, Tilea. In End Times, his [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] counterpart, Usirian was devoured by [[Nagash]] which killed Morr too.

* '''[[Verena]]''', the Goddess of Knowledge, Science, Law and Justice, wife of [[Morr]], mother of Myrmidia and Shallya. We all know the Old World is a fucking mess; the civil lands are constantly under siege by the [[Orcs & Goblins|barbarians]] and [[Beastmen|anarchists]] while being ruled by zealots, ignorants, tyrants and decadants. Among this madness, Verena and her worshippers shine as a beacon of reason and intellectuality. Despite being literally the goddess of paperwork, Verena isn't some kind of pacifist (that's [[Shallya|her daughter]]'s gimmick), she dictates her followers to take arms in the face of injustice, tyranny and of course Chaos. Her worshippers usually work as judges, lawyers, scholars, bureaucrats and prone to becoming [[Lawful Stupid]]. Her symbols are owls and scales. Verena doesn't have a seat of power but is mainly being worshipped in big bureaucratic capitals like Altdorf. Also she is probably the same god with [[Hoeth]].

* '''[[Myrmidia]]''', the Goddess of War, Strategy and Military, sister of [[Shallya]]. Yet another god of war, which is normal, considering [[Grimdark|how dominant and constant the war is]]. Myrmidia is rivals with other two Gods of War, [[Ulric]] and [[Sigmar]] but the three actually stand for different aspects of war: Ulric is the down-to-earth part of it, the actual combat, martial prowess and [[Khorne|bloodlust]], Myrmidia is the science of war, strategy and tactics are in her domain and Sigmar stands for the reason behind the war; heroism, patriotism, empire-building, zeal and even self-defence as the Empire never actually seeks for more war. Her worship spreads throught the Empire from Estalia and Tilea, there is even one knightly order that worships to her, the Order of the Blazing Sun which converted during the Crusades. She is mainly worshipped by the generals and strategists rather than the soldiers themselves. Her symbol is a spear behind a shield and an eagle. Lastly if you are retarded and haven't noticed yet, Myrmidia is a shameless ripoff of Athena with no difference other than the name.

* '''[[Shallya]]''', the Goddess of Mercy and Healing, sister of [[Myrmidia]]. Shallya is probably the most [[Noblebright]] thing in Warhammer Fantasy. She offers mercy to all the suffering; the sick, the injured, the beggar, the orphan, the whore, the prisoner, the maimed, the unclean, just all of them. They even believe mutants can be cured, Shallyites actually established a secret mutant village to protect them from the witch hunters. They are right to a some extent because actually some of the mutants are normal mutants like in our world and not corrupted by Chaos at all. [[Grimdark|So probably thousands of humans was burnt on stick just because they are sick]]. She is generally worshipped by doctors and healers or more precisely her worshippers and priests became doctors and healers. Her symbols are a white dove and a heart with a single blood drop. Also she is quite similar to the Elven god [[Isha]].

* '''[[Ranald]]''', the God of Fortune, Luck and Mischief. One of the main problems with [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]] is, while it is still as oppressive as any feudal kingdom it lacks the organized police force to make it effectively like the [[Nazi|modern dictatorships]] did. So there is incredible amouths of criminal activity going on in the Empire. So much, there is a god of it. Although Ranald is the god that stands for freedom against that oppression, he is mainly worshipped by thieves, gamblers and charlatans. Also you may thought his name is nothing fancy, just a generic medieval name, which makes sense because actually Ranald was a mortal that convinced, or tricked, Shallya to let him drink one of her tear vials which ascended Ranald to godhood. Ranald's symbols are a hand with crossed fingers, an X, a black cat and a crow. He is mainly worshipped in big cosmopolitan cities like Marienburg.

* '''[[Khaine]]''', the God of Murder, Violance and Cruelty, younger brother of [[Morr]]. Khaine is in interesting position in the Old World pantheon, while other Elven gods are at least have different human names, Khaine is simply Khaine, the god that Dark Elves worship. Also the worship of Khaine is one of the few outlawed religions in the Empire (only worshipped secretly by cultists) because most human theologians believe Khaine is none other than [[Khorne|the Blood God]] himself. But Khainites know that there is a distinction between Khaine and Khorne; Khorne is more about senseless slaughter, the mass killings happening in the battlefields are what really pleases him. But Khaine is more about the killing of the individuals, the ritualistic art of murder and torture is what really pleases him, yet again battlefields are sacred for him too as the war is nothing more than industialized murder. Also in the End Times, Khaine and Khorne are confirmed to be separate entities but Khaine is still the god of [[murderhobos]] and it is better to outlaw his worship. Khaine is also worshipped as a God of Death, believed to be forever in conflict with his brother, Morr. Being a secret cult, Khaine don't have an openly displayed symbol but a scorpion stinger and a serpentine dagger are symbols generally associated with him. Khaine is commonly worshipped by sadists and serial killers but a few of his worshippers can be found among the soldiery.

===Bretonnia===
[[Lady of the Lake]] is the patron goddess of the [[Bretonnia|Kingdom of Bretonnia]]. Cult of the Lady is the state-religion and holds major political power within Bretonnia and yet the Lady isn't the most widespread worshipped God in Bretonnia. Being a feudal shitland, everything in Bretonnia is divided between [[Noble|Nobility]] and [[Peasant|Peasantry]] (and almost non-existent middle class consisting scholars and merchants) this of course includes the religion too. Peasants are prohibited from the worship of Lady as they are not seen more than vermin and shouldn't bother the Lady with their petty prayers. The middle class is allowed but have to pay tithe to worship in shrines and temple. In short, the cult of the Lady is only open to the Nobility of Bretonnia. This lead the peasantry to worship the Gods of the Old World Pantheon. Bulk of the peasantry (which is also the bulk of Bretonnia's population) worship [[Shallya]] the Goddess of Mercy and Healing. Unlike the Lady of the Lake, Shallya offers confort for everyone especially to the oppressed, suffering people like the peasants of Bretonnia. This made Shallya very popular among the peasants, some of them even believe Shallya is just another aspect of the Lady (basicly her peasant equilavent) which worshippers of the Lady [[Blam|didn't take tolerantly]]. Other than Shallya, Myrmidia is common among the men-at-arms, Taal and Rhya among the farmers, Verena among the scholars etc. Interestingly, worship of Sigmar is almost non-existent within Bretonnia which is weird as Cult of Sigmar, like Cult of Shallya, is a peoples cult, open to everyone. The reason behind this is probably the Bretonnian nobility's xenophobia towards [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]]. Anyway about the Lady of the Lake:

*'''[[Lady of the Lake]]''', the Goddess of Chivalry, Purity and Nobility, the Patron Goddess of [[Bretonnia]]. The Lady of the Lake is basicly the [[Waifu|idealized woman]] that every Bretonnian knight loves. They love her so much many knights are willing to abdicate all their titles and go on a Waifu Quest to find her. Almost all of these Questing Knights die horribly to monsters and other shit they have to fight, before even getting close to her. But most powerful of them find her eventually and when that happens, the Lady of the Lake offers them to drink from the Holy Grail she holds which turns Questing Knights into [[Mary Sue|mary sues]] or Grail Knights as they mostly known as. The Lady of the Lake is only worshipped by the Bretonnian Nobility and her symbols are the Holy Grail and [[Sisters of Battle|Fleur-de-lis]]. In End Times, it was revealed that the Lady of the Lake is none other than the Elven God [[Lileath]], she and the [[Wood Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Wood Elves]] been using Bretonnians as a bulwark against [[Chaos]] and a cat's paw when they don't feel like to risk elf lives. All that holy Grail Knights and lowly peasantry shit was to eliminate the weak and create the best of humanity, worthy of being used by Elves. [[Just as Planned|So the entire culture, religion and politics of Bretonnia is just part of an Elven eugenics programme.]] Also do I have to mention that she was "inspired" from Arthurian legends, like everything else in Bretonnia?

===Kislev===
[[Kislev]] has his own little pantheon of gods consist of three gods: '''Ursun''', '''Dazh''' and '''Tor'''. It isn't like an established Kislevite Pantheon, more like a group of local gods unique to Kislev. While almost all of the Kislevites only worship these three, some other gods have been worshipped by Kislevites too. Northern Gods of the Old World Pantheon is relatively common, mostly [[Ulric]] and Taal mainly because of Kislev's geographical closeness to [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Northern Empire]]. Like in the Empire, many local gods and spirits are venerated too. Interestingly, Kislev is also the only place in the Old World to worship [[Necoho|Ma]][[Zuvassin|lal]]. The Temple of the Ancient Allies in the Kislevite city of Bolgasgrad is the only known temple dedicated to Necoho and Zuvassin, and the city is home to only known worshippers of them. But, to be clear, it isn't like they are commonly worshipped in Kislev, their worshippers are probably even less than their fans in real life. So about the real gods of Kislev:

*'''[[Ursun]]''', the God of [[Bear Lore|Bears]] and Strength, Patron God of Kislev. Ursun is the most commonly worshipped god in Kislev, like Sigmar he's worsipped by everyone from wealthy cityfolk to nomads of the oblast. But in doctrine, Ursun has more common in [[Ulric]] and Taal than Sigmar. Like Ulric, Ursun is all about strenght, he prefers warriors over priests, acts over prayers. And like Taal, Ursun is more of the God of Bears than a God of man, bears are his sacred beast it is a privilege to hunt them, not a right given to humans. Like Taal dictates, bear hunts should be fair, no traps or hunting dogs allowed. One of the reasons that worship of Ursun is so common in Kislev is that Kislev is full of bears and worshipping the God of Bears makes things smoother between man and the beasts (and angering him gets you [[RIP AND TEAR|ripped apart by bears]]). His worshippers are rivals with Ulric's, but mutual respect exists between them. Ursun is practically worshipped by all of the Kislev and only in Kislev. His holy symbol is a bear or a bear's face.

*'''[[Dazh]]''', the God of Sun, Fire and Hospitality. When you live in a frozen wasteland where winters are 10 months long and full of bears, fire and Sun is just what really matters to survive. So you should worship the God of Sun in the second coldest place of the world after [[Chaos Wastes|literally frosty hell]] itself, not some [[Ulric|God of Winter]]. Actually this is why Dazhinyi (and Kislevites in general) despise Ulricans: they are like middle-class children who want winter to come because of Christmas and to play in snow while Kislevites are like homeless people who don't want to freeze to death during winter. Sure, worshipping the God of Winter would probably fix all of that for them, but this is Warhammer so common sense is still [[Heresy|not tolerated]]. Dazh is, like Ursun, widely worshipped by Kislevites but with a bit of change. In the cold harsh tundras of north, Dazh symbolizes the struggle against the nature and his worship is essential to survive Kislevite winters as every campfire and torch lights brightly because of him. In rather civilized south, he is the God of Hospitality, more about hearths and being kind to guests. Dazh's holy symbol is the Sun or a flame. Judging by the Usirian = Morr logic in the End Times, one could say that Ptra and Dazh are the same person due to being primary god of human. Just don't tell Settra about it or he is going to lit Kislev on fire (might be a good thing actually). He is based on Slavic sun god Dazhbog.

*'''[[Tor]]''', the God of Thunder and Lightning. The least inspired name ever given to a god of lightning. But at least he isn't just same with the [[Viking|Norse]] God Thor: Tor isn't a hammer wielding God of Heroism and War (that's [[Sigmar]]'s job) (also Tor prefers an axe), he is more of a force of nature. He is more about saying "Tor is angry today" during a lightning storm than prayers and systematic worship. Well, also a God of Lightning has nothing to offer to humans other than ''not'' striking them with a thunder bolt. Also his stricture is single, simple but smart: "Never stand under a tree in a thunderstorm." Tor's holy symbols are a thunderbolt and a silver axe.

===Nehekhara===
[[Nehekhara]], being '''THE''' human civilization of the world (meaning they are the original human civilization that was created and established by the [[Old Ones]] themselves) has their own unique and sophisticated take on religion and gods. The Priest Kings of Nehekhara and [[Tomb Kings]] of <s>[[Tomb Kings#Death of an Era|old]]</s> today worshipped the '''Nehekharan Pantheon''' also known as the Desert Gods. Nehekarans believed that in the dawn of time, the world was once dark and cold, it was their gods that enlightened the world and created humanity, which is quite a similar story to how the Old Ones created humanity and other races. Almost all of the gods [[Furry|have animal heads or are outright animals]] much like the Egyptian gods. Long ago, the Nehekharan Pantheon consisted of hundreds of different gods and hundreds of different cults dedicated to them, but after [[Nagash]] necro-nuked all of Nehekhara, killing every living thing and reanimating them as [[Undead]], only a handful of Gods remain (unknown if the other gods are dead too, or weren't real to begin with and were simply forgotten) and only the most widespread cult remains today, the Mortuary Cult, a cult dedicated to Usirian. The cult studied death and the afterlife, and also searched for immortality. First they managed to preserve a dead body with mummification (which they learned from the [[Lizardmen]] of the Southlands) then communicating with the dead souls using the [[Warhammer Magic|Wind of Death]] and lastly summoning the dead and binding them to corporal bodies. All of their study lead to Nagash's creation of Necromancy via mixing Dark Magic with the Wind of Death. Anyway about the pantheon:

*'''Ptra''', the God of Sun, Patron God of Nehekhara, husband of Neru. Although he is the most important god of Nehekharan Pantheon, there isn't much to say about him. Ptra is basicly Ra of our world, he rides his chariot in the sky from dawn till dusk, following his love, Neru the Moon Goddess. Unlike other gods of the pantheon, he doesn't have an animal form, or an animal headed form, only appearing in a human form. He is also the creator of humanity, according to Nehekharans. [[Settra the Imperishable]] is his most known (and of course greatest) worshipper because no God is worthy of being worshipped by Settra, other than the King of Gods himself.
*'''Neru''', the Goddess of [[Mannslieb|Moon]] and Protection, wife of Ptra. Boring ass wife of the boring ass god up there. Again not much to say about her, she is actively running away from her husband (for some reason), creating the day and night cycle of the world.
*'''Sakhmet''', the Goddess of the [[Morrslieb|Green Moon]], concubine of Ptra. Also called the Green Witch, Sakhmet envies Ptra's love of Neru, his wife, and all of humanity. During nights, Neru and Sakhmet fight for the domination of the sky, Neru wins most of the time so only Mannslieb appears in the sky but when Sakhmet wins both Mannslieb and Morrslieb appears in the sky, causing days known as Hexenstag and Geheiminstag to the [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Imperials]]. She is seen as a malevolant god by the Nehekharans because she, as said, envies Ptra's love for humanity. While the name is almost same with the Egyptian God Sekhmet, Sakhmet isn't really similar to her other than this: the duality of Sakhmet and Neru resembles how the bloodthirsty lion-headed Goddess of War Sekhmet and the merciful cow-headed Goddess of Love Hathor is the same goddess with a split personality disorder, even so Sakhmet and Neru are certainly not the same goddess at all. Ironically, she had a beastmen follower called '''Moonclaw''' who referred to the green moon as his own mother. During the End Times, chunks of Morrslieb descend up the world after the Skaven's reckless demolition. With that, is safe to say that Sakhmet is officially about as dead as Usirian. But it's not like the moon was alive like the other gods anyway.
*'''Usirian''', the God of the Underworld. Usirian's worship is as widespread as that of Ptra in Nehekhara, since the rise of the Mortuary Cult. As the lord of the Realm of Souls, Usirian judges souls of the living, particullarly the Priest Kings, upon their death; based on their lives, they may make it to the paradise filled with golden palaces to live in and their subjects to tyrannize (two things Priest Kings love the most) or if they didn't had any virtues in life (or [[Peasant|wasn't a nobleborn]]) they probably end up in the deepest pits of the Underworld, [[Grimdark|where millions of beetles will gnaw their skin and entrails forever]] (This sounds eerily similar to Abrahamic religions). Another privilege nobles get is that if they fuck up, Priests of Usirian will try to bargain with Usirian to mitigate their punishments. Khepra Beetles are said to be Usirians agents in the living realm, he monitors the mortals from the beetles' eyes, seeing all sins of the men and because said beetles are everywhere in Nehekhara, [[1984|every man and woman are being watched by him 7/24]]. On the other hand this also means using a bug sprey lets you trick the God of Dead. Usirian is also never physically represented as that would be [[heresy]] (now it is really similar to one particular Abrahamic religion). His most known worshipper is the Grand Hierophant Khatep who is the High Priest of the Mortuary Cult, Prophet of the Lord of the Tomb, Master of Awakenings but most importantly Settra's advisor during his life. Lastly in the [[End Times]], Usirian was devoured by Nagash which killed [[Morr]] too, this confirms that they were indeed the same god (in fact all Gods of Dead are probably the same god).
*'''Djaf''', the God of Death and War. While he is an important god, he is the god of death of undead egyptians after all and his ushabtis are one of the most common ones, not much is known about him. Considering another similar God, Usirian, is venerated much more than him and that he is also a God of War, Djaf is probably more abouth down-to-earth part of death not its concept or spiritual side. Djaf usually takes form of a jackal headed man or a large black jackal so he is basicly the Egyptian God of Death, Anubis.
*'''Asaph''', the Goddess of Beauty and Asps. When to be seen, Asaph takes the form of a seductive woman or [[Furry|an asp but still looking as seductive as woman]]. Lorewisely, the most important thing she did was saving [[Queen Khalida]] from becoming a [[vampire]] which made her the greatest worshipper of Asaph. Other than that, Asaph is really similar to the Chaos God [[Slaanesh]], both being gods of beauty and has a strong association with snakes. Unknown if there is a connection or not.
*'''Geheb''', the God of Earth and Strenght. As a god worshipped by warriors and soldiers, Geheb takes form of a lion or a big hunting dog in animal form and a musclar man with a thick beard in human form. Again another god with a Chaos God similarity, both [[Khorne]] and Geheb is worshipped by great warriors and has hunting dogs as their sacred animal. Also worship of Geheb involves a blood ritual which the worshippers drink the blood of a newly sacrificed ox.
*'''Tahoth''', the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Tahoth usually takes the form of an ibis headed man, or a silver colored ibis which makes him quite similar to [[Tzeentch]], the other bird headed god of knowledge. But this time this is probably because Tzeentch is inspired by the Egyptian God of Knowledge Thoth while Tahoth is just Thoth with a different name.
*'''Sokth''', the God of Scorpions, Thieves and Assassins. Although he is the protector of thieves, Sokth forbids grave-robbing and his sons (scorpions) guard the royal tombs along with Usirian's beetles. It's believed that the Nehekharan scorpions will never sting a true follower of Sokth but I'm sure nobody dares to test that. Sokth usually appears as a giant black scorpion or a man with pure black eyes.
*'''Phakth''', the God of Sky and Justice. Phakth usually takes the form of a hawk headed man or a blue hawk with golden eyes so he is practically the same god as Horus ([[Horus Lupercal|no, not that one]]).
*'''Basth''', the Goddess of Cats and Love. Usually appears as [[Furry|a cat headed woman]] or as [[Catgirl|a woman with cat-like features]]. She is the Egyptian Goddess of Cats, Bastet, of Warhammer Fantasy.
*'''[[Nagash]]''', the Supreme Lord of Undeath. Before I start let me explain why I decided to add Nagash to the list: Not because Nagash ascended to godhood in [[Age of Sigmar]] but because he has been worshipped as a god before that, since his first defeat, by priest kings to vampires, by crazed cultists to great necromancers. You may argue that Nagash is clearly not a god, as he is trying to become a god, so he has no place in here and I would say half of the gods listed here probably don't even exist or are a [[Chaos God]] in disguise so listen up. While not being a part of the Nehekharan Pantheon, Nagash has been (secretly) worshipped as a God by Nehekharans for millenia. Worship of Nagash, or Nagashism as it's named in [[Total War: WARHAMMER|Total War: Warhammer]], stretchs back to his first defeat. After dying in the desert and resurrecting himself as some sort of [[Lich]], Nagash deceived some mountain tribes into worshipping him as a god. After that, said tribesmen and his undead minions built the great fortress of Nagashizzar under the command of Nagash. Even today, in the highest chamber of the fortress, [[God-Emperor of Mankind|the corpse of Nagash sits on his throne with hundreds of zealous cultists worshipping him as a God]], listening to his whispers, doing his bidding. Since then, thinking being worshipped is quite handy, Nagash disguises himself as a god to manipulate humans. It is known that he has been willingly worshipped by many necromancers and vampires (which is actually rare, as vampires generally don't accept anyone as his/her superior). Nagash may also interfere with the wizards of the Wind of Death, especially Mortuary Priests, presenting himself as Usirian, the Nehekharan God of the Dead or [[Morr]], the Imperial God of the Dead, and use them to further his schemes. But he usually does that when he doesn't have a corporeal form because when he is in the mortal realm there is no need to trick anyone into believing he is a god. As said above, in the End Times he ascended to godhood and became the only [[Tomb King]] that made it to [[Age of Sigmar]].

===Northmen===
Although many Norscan tribes venerate all the gods, most tend to favour one of the Four for his blessings. Below them are various Daemon Princes, fallen ancestors and Chaos Champions, and other lesser spirits alongside the Big Four.

*'''[[Khorne]]''' - The Hound, Kharnath, Lord of Rage, Akhar, Kjorn, the Axefather, Khorgar, the Bloodwolf, and the Wolf-Father and many more names. In such a brutal, warlike culture moulded by harsh climate and monsters, he is the most popular deity in Norsca.
*'''[[Tzeentch]]''' - The Eagle, Tchar, the Raven God and expy of [[Odin]]. Patron deity of the seers and ''vitki'' (sorcerers), he is distrusted by most Norscans. However, because he is also the god of the winds of Magic and physical currents, he is venerated before the Norscans board their longships.
*'''[[Nurgle]]''' - The Crow, Neiglen, Nurglitch, Onogal. Usually prayed to for avoiding plagues, or to spare themselves from the worst of the plagues by dedicating themselves to him.
*'''[[Slaanesh]]''' - The Serpent, Shornaar, Lanshor. Invoked at the feasts and marriages that occur after battles.
*'''Mermedus''' - a caricature of Mannan, this monstrous sea horror is invoked to avoid his wrath when Skaelings sail. Prisoners are sacrificed to Mermedus by being drowned with heavy weights, and to die at sea is to sink into Mermedus' domains, deprived from the glorious halls of the Four.

The Norscans believe that they must become strong and cruel, to win the favour of the Four Gods after they die and enter their halls for an eternity of feasting and brawling. Should they die as cowards or without their hands and weapons, they might instead be chased around in the afterlife as playthings for Daemons.

===Minor Nations===
Even if they have never seen the light of the day, [[End Times|and never will]], there are human nations other than [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], [[Bretonnia]] and [[Warriors of Chaos|Northmen]]: the myst shrouded island of Albion, the Great Sultanate of Araby, Democratic City-States of [[Tilea]], Ever-warring kingdoms of [[Estalia]], Feudal Kingdom of [[Nippon]], Grand Empire of [[Cathay]], Kingdoms of Ind, the Hinterlands of Khuresh and more. While collective lore on these are less than any playable faction's, some of these factions' religious practices are known and some what interesting.
*'''[[Tilea]]''' worships the Southern Gods of the [[Old World]] Pantheon, mainly [[Myrmidia]], the Goddess of War and Strategy. Tileans are sailors and pirates, so Manann, the God of Seas, is also worshipped by many. Other than them, local gods of city-states are among common worship. Like Luccan and Luccina, the founders of the City-State of Luccini, is the most worshipped God in said city (You know [[Roman Empire|Romulus and Remus]]?). As a cosmopolitan country, Tilea also been influenced by other cultures and even races, like in Tobaro, people living in the underground tunnels of the city commonly worship il Grungnio or Grungni, the Dwarf God of Miners as he known to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy)|Dwarfs]]. Even so, Tileans are said to be "casual" worshippers, not taking the religion so seriously, unlike the Imperials and Bretonnians.
*'''[[Estalia]]''', being same as Tileans but with Spanish names, worships the Southern Gods of the Old World Pantheon, again mainly [[Myrmidia]]. But this didn't have a unifying effect on Estalians and Tileans, they have been fighting for centuries by now. Both sides claim that they are the real sons of Myrmidia.
*'''Araby''' is known to be worshipping a single god, being one of the very few monotheistic nations in the world. He chooses prophets among the people to teach his gospel to the Arabyans. A warrior-cult known as Dervishers is dedicated to that God, fan-named Ohrmazd (which is another name of Ahura Mazda, the God of Zoroastrianism) and said to be "too willing" to die for their god [[FAIL|which is a bit stupid because real life Dervishs (Islamic Monks) while very religious, were also pacifists and humanists]]. Another possibility would be that the Nehekharan gods might also be worshipped in Araby, as Araby is technically Nehekhara's living successor. Among the deities attested in canon venerated by the Arabyans include:
** '''the Djinn''', which are actually Daemons.
** '''Ancient deities''' older than the Nehekharan gods, promoted by another prophet known as Mullah Aklan'd, who was also Araby's first Great Sultan and unifier.
*'''[[Cathay]]''' is, surprisingly, a semi-atheist country, where the Dragon Emperor commands his people to see him just as a mighty all-knowing leader without any godhood nonsense. [[Emperor|This seems very familiar, doesn't it?]] However, Big D can't control literally everyone, so cults in his name do exist in some remote regions. [[Tzeentch]] worship is also still present, and is a major problem in this country.
*The Kingdoms of '''Ind''' are also called the Land of a Thousand Gods. Shit goes down in Ind because it is literally the land of a thousand gods and at least most of the gods are real and very active. They are said to be very fickle and quick to anger, judging and punishing their worshippers swiftly. So every part of the Indian life is a ritual: like if you overcook a [[Meatbread|meal]] a bit, you may be struck down by the God of Food or if you don't [[THIN YOUR PAINTS|thin your paints]], the [[Duncan Rhodes|God of Thin Paints]] may visit you at night. Leopold Riogillo, a merchant prince, notes that Indians see the tiger-headed [[beastmen]] of their land as holy spirits, yet again it is known that at least one god, the four-armed Bharmir, despises [[Chaos]].
** '''Brahmir''' - not-Brahman (or more like Vishnu), his holy statues can scare the Warp out of Chaos-worshippers.
** '''She'ar Khawn''' - not-Narasimha, a popular deity whose eight-armed statues are found in almost every temple in Ind.
** '''Gilgadresh''' - his temple was looted by Lokhir Fellheart.
*'''Amazons''', the warrior tribeswoman of [[Lustria]], worships the same pantheon of gods as the [[Lizardmen]] who are the [[Old Ones]]. Not much is known other than that.
** '''Rigg''', one of the Old Ones and the mother of Kalith, she is their goddess of war.
** '''Kalith''', the daughter of Rigg and the Elven sea god Amex, her functions and powers are unknown.

==Lizardmen==
Lizardmen revere the [[Old Ones]] as their gods. Lizardmen are brought fully formed into the world as full fighting units from magical spawning pools, some of these units have somehow been marked by one or more of the Old Ones for some specific purpose these are known as sacred spawnings. Albino Lizardmen are said to have the mark of the Old Ones and are believed to be destined for greatness.

* '''[[Sotek]]''' Unlike the other Old Ones Sotek was not among the original pantheon that created the Lizardmen and uplifted the humans, elves and dwarves. Sotek was brought into the world during the invasion of Lustria by the Skaven clan Pestilence. After numerous blood sacrifices [[Khorne|turning rivers red]] by the Lizardmen, a gargantuan snake appeared and chased the Skaven out of Lustria. Those marked by Sotek have a red stripe on top of their heads and sometimes running down their backs, they are fiercer than other Lizardmen. Sotek is the only Old One known to have sacred spawnings of skinks, fitting as it was these little WS 2 T 2 shits that made rivers run red with rat blood.

* '''Chotec''' God of the sun. Those of Chotec's sacred spawning are marked by the colour orange and are more energetic.

* '''Huanchi''' Jaguar god of stealth & ambush. The blessed spawning of Huanchi have darker coloured scales, possibly black or brown, they are experts at hunting down prey.

* '''Itzl''' God of cold-blooded beasts. Those of Itzl's sacred spawning are marked by bony crests and a distinct smell and are great beastmasters.

* '''Tepok''' Depicted as a feathered serpent, Tepok is the god of mystery. Those of Tepok's sacred spawning have purple scales on their backs and are protected against magic.

* '''Tzunki''' God of water. The blessed spawnings of Tzunki have green scales on their backs and are known to be blessed with gills and flippers.

* '''Tlazcotl''' God of stoicism. The blessed spawning of Tlazcotl have yellow scales along the main of their headcreasts and down along the crests of their back.

* '''Quetzl''' God of protection. The blessed spawning of Quetzl have thick scales.

*'''Xhotl''' Possibly a God of retribution given what their blessing does. Saurus are not spawned with it since the eponymous temple city of Xhotl was destroyed in the aftermath of the collapse of the polar gates, with Kroq-gar as the last survivor of it and bearer of the spawning, which grants a magical forcefield to its bearer and strikes back at anything that gets through.

* '''Minor Deities''' Many more Old Ones, like Tlanxla, are mentioned briefly in fluff but they've had very little impact as they've been dead or gone for ages. In rare cases a single saurus or skink will emerge alone from a spawning pool, completely albino of scale, and marked for greatness by all the Old Ones at once.

==Greenskins==
The Greenskins have two universal Gods; with several others.

*'''[[Gork]]''': He's Brutally Cunning.
*'''[[Mork]]''': He's Cunningly Brutal.
*'''Bad Moon''': Venerated by the Night Goblins, he causes mushrooms to grow from anywhere where he shines on, even victims unfortunate enough to be basked in it.
*'''[[Spider-God]]''': a god venerated by the Forest Goblins. They use spider poisons to get high and enter a trance to commune with their god and tame spiders to ride around on in its honor.

==Ogres==
*'''[[Great Maw]]''' - A ''something'' that appeared after the Dragon Emperor of Cathay called down a meteor to punish the Ogres fucking up his lands. It was possibly a warpstone meteor and POSSIBLY caused by interference from Tzeentch but whatever it was left a big fleshy mouth in the ground that cursed the Ogres with a constant hunger, which also made them worship it as a god. Is it? Well the Ogres think so, and are you gonna tell em different?
*'''[[Fire Mouth]]''' - A volcano worshiped by the Firebellies. They drink super hot food (if not actual lava) to venerate it and grant them spells.

==Skaven==
*'''The (Great) [[Horned Rat]]''' - "what a minute isnt The Horned Rat a [[Chaos Gods|Chaos God]]? whats he doing here?" you might be asking. well the answer is "Because he's a.) a fantasy (and its [[Age of Sigmar|sequel]]) god and b.) the only one with its own specific race of worshipers that isnt a [[Chaos Dwarfs|spin off]] or [[Dragon Ogres|split between the other four]]". The Horned Rat is not only the god of the [[Skaven]], he is the exemplar of their race as a whole! He's [[Tzeentch|sneaky and cunning]], ruthlessly [[Slaanesh|self indulgent and self interested]], [[Nurgle|plague-ridden]] and [[Khorne|murderous and power hungry]] and demands that his people follow in his image while also honoring him during. hes also one of the few gods to actually appear to his race and tell them to stop screwing around and get shit done now and again. Various origins have him as a Daemon of Nurgle that got above his raisin and made some ratmen, or a traitorous Dwarfen Ancestor god that fucked off to screw shit up, but its unknown if either of these are true. And he was probably behind The Doom of Kavzar in some way.

==Pygmies==
The Pygmies worshipped 2 Brother Gods, who together decuded to kill the 18 other of the original 20 Pygmy Gods when they came to Mallus, despite the 2 Brothers having almost opposite personalities.
*'''Beesbok''': God of Procrastination, Food, Feasting, and Happiness
*'''Brodat''': God of Work, Poison, Magic, and Dourness.
[[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]

Warhammer Fantasy Gods

2022-06-30T06:13:50Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Pygmies */

{{Whfb-stub}}
{{Topquote|And then the Cataclysm came. King [[Taal]] rose from His Forest, and with Dark [[Morr]] muttering dire portents in His ear, He banished all immortals from the world. But the Cataclysm’s architects refused His order. [[Tzeentch|The Crow]], [[Khorne|the Hound]], [[Slaanesh|the Serpent]], and [[Nurgle|the Vulture]] were jealous of King Taal, and had tried to use the Great Gates to take what was His. They had failed. As the other immortals fled, the Four attacked, bitter and angry with their frustrations. Many died. After countless battles, King Taal was eventually surrounded. There were few still by his side. [[Ulric]] the Wolf. Noble [[Myrmidia|Margileo]]. Just [[Verena]]. [[Sotek]] the Snake. [[Manann]] of the Sea. And Gentle [[Shallya]], tear-stained and afraid. Even Smiling [[Ranald]] had fled, and now hid in the Places Between, fearful for the future. Then, just as the Four and their allies arrived for the Final Battle, [[Asuryan|Flaming Phoenix]], whom all had thought dead, returned from atop His Gleaming Pyramid, and He smote about Him. Thus the rebels were pushed behind the Great Gates, and were sealed there forever. But they were restless in their cage, and soon worked to escape.|Translated from the Obernarn Stone, now held in the Imperial Museum, Altdorf}}

Like any other fantasy setting, Warhammer Fantasy has its own gods.

Sporadically throughout the game, mainly in a few Chaos books and near [[The End Times|the end of its life]], it was stated that there are no other gods and only [[Chaos Gods]] exist. This is a typically [[Daemon|Daemonic]] twisting of the truth (although the claim was enough to make [[Archaon]] go full-[[Star Wars|Anakin Skywalker]]) and contradictive of other material. There is also some discrepancy between fans of [[Warhammer 40000]] who believe that Fantasy magic works in the same way that Psyker energy works in 40k. The final issue is [[The End Times]] and [[Age of Sigmar]] as well as their 8th edition lead-in, which changed quite a bit of existing lore as retcons disguised as "revealing the truth".

Unsurprisingly, the nature of gods in both settings is one of the more skub-filled lore topics.

=The Nature Of The Divine=
In early Warhammer lore gods simply existed and had their own faiths. Certain Chaos supplements suggested there were no gods and that only [[Chaos]] exists with the nature of the Chaos Gods being insane beings who pretend to be other personas in order to fight each other and themselves, like a giant 1000 character game of [[Dungeons & Dragons]] with no DM and only four people wearing blindfolds so nobody knows who is who other than [[Tzeentch|that one asshole with an actual case of multiple personality disorder who's peeking]]. As this only appears in a few Chaos supplements and nowhere else however, its authenticity is [[skub|questionable]] at best.

The nature of all the gods was explained differently over the years. In the earliest instances, when Warhammer was ''only'' Fantasy, gods didn't exist until the collapse of the Warpgates, and were more akin to extremely powerful angels and daemons than actual deities. Another one of the oldest tellings suggests there is one supremely powerful being at the center of the Warp, and that all gods, evil and good, originate from that single force. In others, the gods always existed, even before the Old Ones. As mentioned above, a few Chaos books suggested all gods were only fractions of larger Chaos gods, whose own origins were unclear. A few other explanations say the benevolent gods (Order) were made by or enserved to the Old Ones, while the malevolent gods (Chaos, Destruction) were rebels. If you take 40K as valid for both its own gods and Fantasy's, it states that gods are actually the coalesced belief and emotion of mortal beings, sort of a psychic gestalt. Whatever the source, it was always left intentionally vague and contradictive which explanation, if any provided, was valid, and there was a sense that the true nature of the divine was something beyond the understanding of the mortals "telling" the story (lore) of the world.

In truth, or at least according to the last entries of the setting, all non-material plane things are made of magic. Souls are magic, the Winds of Magic are magic, Daemons are magic, and so are all the Gods. This is apparently(?) the "truth" that Archaon learned, because the teachings of his faith are that magic is [[Heresy]] and apparently gods were just shitting miracles out of scientific stardust or something.

The End Times event revealed quite a bit, all of which is fairly skubby. The history of Warhammer is that the [[Old Ones]] descended from some unknown place, possibly another dimension, planet, or place in the timeline, on a primitive world full of [[Dinosaur]]s, [[Dragon]]s, and [[Neanderthal]] versions of the classic Fantasy races then created the [[Warp|Warp Gates]] to suck magic from the Warp which they used to alter the world and create a race capable of fighting Chaos (which would eventually come regardless) before the Gates collapsed causing Chaos to arrive much sooner on an unfinished world whereupon the Old Ones fucked off to who knows where or died. The new lore is that this isn't the first time this has happened; Warhammer existed in a time loop, with the Old Ones stealing magic from Chaos which causes the Chaos Gods to feel entitled to own the material plane like [[Slaanesh]] to the [[Eldar]] in 40k, where they spend the rest of their history draining magic from the local gods until a cataclysmic event where a handful of Elves survive on a world outside of existence and guide evolution until the Old Ones show up again, rinse and repeat. This cycle was broken finally by [[Be'lakor]] (who's time-travel and alternate universe fuckery is apparently something new to these timelines, despite the "it always existed because there is no time" nature to Chaos because GW writers can't into consistency) who did...''something'' to the new Elf gods in the next world which altered the cycle. The new cycle involves far more than just the Elves, as many characters survived the old setting and became gods in the new one (some didn't become gods, why isn't clear).

Gods exist that aren't part of the cycle as well. Sigmar for example was a mortal man who became trapped in the magic of the Heavens Wind, greatly limiting his power to affect the mortal world but giving him godhood. Gork and Mork ([[Meme|or is it Mork and Gork?]]) have no proper origin, but are somehow able to grant godhood to members of their own pantheon such as through the Spider God who was just an ordinary spider who bit Gork (or possibly Mork). Some of the Elf gods were survivors of the old setting, some have unknown origins and others were just an existing god mistaken as a separate entity. Ranald gambled his way into divinity after tricked some goddess to give him the blessing. Ulric probably became a god after accidentally tempted with one of the old one's warp devices (the one that house the flame of Ulric) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

=Pantheons=

==Elves==
{{Topquote|M: Do you know much about the elven gods, sir?<br>V: Only that they are degenerates, who bicker amongst themselves instead of opposing the true foe.<br>M: As with the mortals, so with the gods, is that it?<br>V: Indeed. Would that Sigmar could return and show them the error of their ways.| [[vermintide 2|Markus Kruber & Victor Saltzpyre]], questioning the Elven gods' liability}}

The Elf pantheon is divided between the Cadai (positive gods) and Cytherai (negative gods). Some of them are shared with 40k, although beyond portfolio and name they are entirely different.
High Elves worship the Cadai light gods and simply try not to piss off the Cytharai by being pansies (which they fail at). Wood Elves worship some, and the others they've modified the mythos of to be more Wood Elf-y (see how they have got Isha and Kurnous bought back to their 'earthy roots). Dark Elves entirely ignore the light side of the pantheon, and worship the darkest aspects of the darker gods (who don't seem to care much about the twisting of the myth since the DEs are the only ones actively worshiping them, and someone getting your myths wrong is better than nobody).
The humans of Albion worship their own version of a few of the Elf gods as well, and it's possible some masquerade as the gods of the Old World. As revealed in the end times, the Lady is Lileath! Shock, horror.

Each name-rune that represents them doubles as a picture of themselves in abstract, as well as a few hidden images (like Lileath being both the devil horned invocation of magic that early High Elf models had, the twin moons, herself seated in an elegant pose, and a few standard High Elf runes mixed throughout). Many of these emblems appear fully on High Elf shields, banners, capes, and any other flat or ripply surface really.

In the [[Black Library]] series [[Defenders of Ulthuan/Sons of Ellyrion]] the Elf gods are portrayed as very real and very powerful, but outside of that series they are described as dying, faded, or outright consumed by Chaos.

===Cadai===
* '''[[Asuryan|Asuryan, the Creator, Emperor of the Heavens]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. Despite always being portrayed as the creator of the Elves he was actually not their literal father and is more the creator of their culture...sort of (thanks to a retcon mess; Wood Elves are the true culture of the Elves, High Elves were what Asuryan created to fight Chaos but the Dark Elves are the result of Khaine and Chaos influence as well as what Asuryan's desired end goal for Elves to be was. Don't think too much about it, its a fucking mess). Zeus expy, although rather than fuck everything he basically [[Tzeentch|sat on his throne and plotted]]. His priesthood were warrior monks with halberds that cared for the Phoenixes of Ulthuan and maintain a chronicle of history including every single event that ever has or will happen. In a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Malekith]] rather than [[Tyrion]] in End Times, and faded into Malekith's being which possibly made him a nobler and less Darth Vader-like being.

* '''[[Vaul|Vaul, the Maker]]''' Smith god. Saved Isha and Kurnous from Khaine after they saved the mortal Elves, forged the [[Widowmaker]]. Crippled and shackled to his anvil, just like Hephaestus/Vulcan from Greek-Roman mythology. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Isha|Isha, the Mother]]''' Mother god, survivor of the old setting. Gave birth to Lileath as well as the first mortal Elves. Lived in Avelorn in Ulthuan until an unknown point in time when she relocated to [[Athel Loren]] then thanks to the draining of Chaos lost much of her divine power and became [[Ariel]]. Due to retcons there's a snarl as to what exactly the [[Everqueen]] connection to her is; previously, she existed as an entity within the Everqueen surrounded by the souls of all other Everqueens and was able to fight Slaanesh as an equal when fully charged up. As of End Times it was revealed that Lileath actually poisoned her with a shard of eternal ice, slowly killing her until the Everqueen could consume her soul while Lileath absorbed her power.

* '''[[Kurnous|Kurnous, the Hunter]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. The actual father of the mortal Elves. Lived with Isha in Avelorn until they traveled to Athel Loren. Became [[Orion]] with the weakening of Chaos. Due to retcon fuckery, there's an issue where he apparently also dwells in Ellyrion and selects champions from the Elves there to lead the fight against Dark Elves and Chaos even though he spends most of his time in Athel Loren killing Bretonnians and Beastmen for the lulz in the Wild Hunt.

* '''[[Hoeth|Hoeth, Lord of Wisdom]]''' Scholar god. Conflicting sources tie him as part of the reason magic behaves the way it does, and attribute various things to him. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Lileath|Lileath, the Maiden]]''' Daughter of Isha and Kurnous, sister to the entire Elf race. Goddess of prophesy to a degree that her father who is omniscient can be surprised by her, somehow. Took on a villainous role in End Times for engineering events that caused massive failures and deaths across the setting while trying to protect the cycle and send her Wood Elf husband [[Araloth]] as the new Asuryan/Kurnous, the High Elf Prince(ss) [[Eldyra]] as the new Isha, and her children with Araloth to be the rest of the pantheon of the new world which was destroyed somehow by Be'lakor making all of her sacrifice and sabotage for nothing. Was also The Lady of Bretonnia and using their entire race as her pawns, and had the persona of Ladrielle as well.

* '''[[Loec|Loec, the Shadow Dancer]]''' Trickster god, created several magical artifacts. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Mathlann|Mathlann, Lord of the Deeps]]''' God of the sea, confirmed to be a real god in End Times although unknown if he is a survivor of the previous setting or not. Known for saving his champion [[Sea Lord Aislinn]] from death constantly, later revealed to actually be Sea Lord Aislinn. Considered a positive aspect of Ellinill in retconned lore.

===Cytharai===
* '''[[Khaine|Khaine, the Bloody-Handed God]]''' Evil Asuryan. Confirmed to be real, unknown if he is a survivor god or not. [[Khorne]] but with magic, he spent most of his time fighting Asuryan for control of the Elves as well as Isha and Kurnous, and just generally being a prick who fucked everything up. Although not on the side of Chaos, he didn't focus any efforts on fighting them and instead caused Elves to fight each other and lose their ability to fight Chaos effectively. Manifested himself in the bloodline of [[Aenarion]], in a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Tyrion]] rather than [[Malekith]] in End Times and died when Asuryan/Malekith killed Tyrion (Tyrion got better, Khaine died).

* '''[[Ereth Khial|Ereth Khial, the Pale Queen]]''' Survivor god of the old setting, fate unknown. Goddess of death for the Elves although thanks to Chaos she gets almost no Elf souls (lore contradiction as apparently the Death Wind contains the bulk of the souls of the dead, even though lore also says Slaanesh eats almost every Elf soul and apparently Ereth Khial was gone or faded by the time of End Times despite Elves that should have already been trapped in the Wind or consumed by Slaanesh appearing as ghosts; arguments can be had in any direction). Suffered in the cold darkness of the new world with Isha and chose to remain alone rather than cling together for comfort as Isha wanted until the new world began with the coming of Asuryan, desired to have him as her husband but he rejected her causing her to hate all beings and torture the Elf souls far worse than Chaos (which represents oblivion rather than suffering). Her domain is called Mirai.

* '''[[Nethu|Nethu, Keeper of the Last Door]]''' Son of Ereth Khial, father unknown. Keeper of the gates of the Mirai and comparable to a Grim Reaper figure. Since Morr is described as an Elf god in a [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] supplement, this may be his true identity. Otherwise his status as real or not is unknown.

* '''[[Anath Raema|Anath Raema, the Savage Huntress]]''' Evil Kurnous, whips around the savage parts of the hearts of the Elves until they go on a Great Hunt but unlike Kurnous she sees all things as game. Given that the lore surrounding Kurnous became fairly evil in regards to his hunts, Anath Raema only represents a lack of concern with preservation and balance rather than outright evil. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Morai-Heg|Morai-Heg, the Crone]]''' An old and wrinkled Elf goddess (yes, apparently they can age) of prophesy who's primary shrine is on an island of Elf amazons who bewitch men to come to the shores that sail too closely then kill them and pave the island with their bones. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Hekarti|Hekarti, Mistress of Magic]]''' Goddess of magic, evil Hoeth. Revealed to be [[Morathi]] in End Times, whether she is a survivor god or not is unknown.

* '''[[Atharti|Atharti, Lady of Desire]]''' Goddess of pleasure, twin sister of Hekarti. Worship of one of them without equal worship of the other causes the less loved one to curse the favoring devotee. Created in 7th edition because Dark Elves worshiping Slaanesh was against [[Gav Thorpe]]'s vision for the race, which is better is the subject of much Skub (although players of the [[Cult Of Slaanesh]] army are strongly against it). Morathi went from being Slaanesh's high priestess and favored mortal to being the biggest worshiper of both Hekarti and Atharti. With the reveal that Morathi IS Hekarti, its left unknown who exactly Atharti is and who punishes you if you prefer Hekarti. Given that in End Times Morathi went quite insane and a little senile after coming under the delusion that first her son Malekith was Aenarion, then the Khaine-possessed Tyrion was Aenarion, Morathi may have been both entities.

* '''[[Ladrielle|Ladrielle, Lady of Mists]]''' A persona of Lileath, a master manipulator. Given that this is a Cytherai and thus one of the less pleasant gods, this may be a better description of Lileath.

* '''[[Ellinill, Lord of Destruction]]''' God of destruction, once a very powerful god with hundreds of children who ran amok throughout the world with him. Drakira tricked Isha into asking Loec to trick him into believing his children were going to revolt, and he went about killing and eating as many as he could. His strength was greatly diminished in his battles. Unknown if real or not. His children are known as the Ellinilli and the only ones that survived are those who hid in the mortal world. Unknow if real or not.

* '''[[Estreuth|Estreuth, Lord of Hunger]]''' God of famine. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Addaioth|Addaioth, Bringer of Fire]]''' God of fire. One of the Ellinilli. Decided to fight his father rather than hide, and was almost killed until Ladrielle (AKA Lileath) saved him and hid him in the mortal world with his siblings. Has prepared to kill his father ever since, thinking of himself as Vaul 2.0 but only creating shitty arms and armor. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Hukon|Hukon, the Sunderer]]''' God of earthquakes. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Drakira|Drakira, Queen of Vengeance]]''' Goddess of revenge, one of the Ellinilli who was picked on by her siblings and neglected by her father. Manipulated Isha's sorrow at the suffering her family caused mortals into becoming hatred, and all beings have been careful not to offend her ever since. Worshiped heavily by Dark Elves, but loves all Elves equally and keeps part of them any time they make a deal with her. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Eldrazor|Eldrazor, Lord of Blades]]''' A god of war and duels. Although he doesn't seek war, once it begins there is nothing out of bounds for him. Basically a more reserved and less aggressive Khaine. Unknown if real or not.

==Dwarfs==
The gods of the [[Dwarfs]] are mortal Dwarfs who attained godhood, and as such are referred to as Ancestor Gods. They have only three main ones with lesser ones as their family (plus one guy who’s just kind of there) , but Dwarfs can invoke the names of their own heroes and ancestors religiously as well.

* '''[[Valaya]]''' Goddess of hearth, home, brewing, healing, defending against Chaos, and basically every single other thing the other two don't do. Settled the first and greatest Dwarf Holds, ancestor of the greatest Dwarfs, invented the Dwarf written language and every other aspect of their culture. The least important god because...[[Fail|reasons]]. In End Times she was discovered to be slumbering by [[Queen Neferata]] in a long-forgotten Vault in a ritual to charge up a magic gate and create a new golden age for Dwarfkind. After a battle between Nef, [[Night Goblins]], and [[Thorek Ironbrow]] the Dwarfs were left dead and Valaya's divine power was consumed by [[Nagash]]. She didn't receive an [[Age of Sigmar]] resurrection, because [[Fail|reasons]].

* '''[[Grungni]]''' Dwarf smith god. After Valaya invented runes, he figured out how to smith them into objects to give Dwarfs magic. Fought in End Times, but survived into Age of Sigmar.

* '''[[Grimnir]]''' Dwarf god of war. After Valaya invented [[Book of Grudges|Grudgekeeping]] he became the patron of them. Became the first [[Slayer]], has a fortress inside of the Warp where he endlessly slaughters the forces of Chaos. Gave up his divinity to [[Gotrek & Felix|Gotrek]] in order to die in the final battle after Gotrek died and avenged his own sin, and in the final battle all Grudges were considered resolved. Gotrek/Grimnir survived into Age of Sigmar where he sat on Sigmar's council until he got bored and was sent to kill a giant monster, causing both to explode and spread throughout the Realms whereupon the mortal Dwarfs who are his devotees collect his parts to reassemble him. Judging by Realmslayer, the Grimnir seen in AoS was the original one with Gotrek merely acting as a vessel for his power, although it seems like Grimnir might have had further plans for Gotrek that have yet to be revealed.

* '''[[Gazul]]''' The Dwarf god of Death. Lived in the time of the trinity, and created the written version of their names as well as the concept of venerating your ancestors. His faith includes the '''Order Of Guardians''', the Dwarf equivalent of Witch Hunters. Every Hold and most settlements, any place that has a place to honorably bury dead Dwarfs in fact, has a shrine or temple to him.

* '''[[Morgrim]]''' God of Engineering. Oldest child of Valaya with Grimnir, personally invented Bolt Throwers and Dwarf Catapults/Stone Throwers (which later became Grudge Throwers). Was Grimnir's companion on the way to close the Warp Gate, but Grimnir forced him to turn back and return home. All Engineers are basically priests of Morgrim, since his teachings are a code of conduct for the craft. Liberal Engineers are considered heretics (but not the kind you shoot, just the kind you shout at) by conservative Dwarfs for their loose interpretations of scripture.

* '''[[Smednir]]''' God of smelting and metalworking. Middle son of Grungni and Valaya. Smednir created the tools that Thungni and Grungni inscribed their rune magic on, and among the greatest creations of the trio of laborers is [[Ghal Maraz]] itself. Smednir's shrines and temples are basically just extensions of those of Grungni's, since the two are inseparable in theme.

* '''[[Thungni]]''' God of Runesmithing. Youngest son of Grungni and Valaya. During the settling of the first Holds he descended into a mystical realm called "Ankor Byrn (Glittering Realm)" where he discovered the ability to forge his mother's language with magic to create runes, although it was his father who later turned the discovery into a science and art. Only descendants of Grungni like himself were capable of learning Runesmithing. All Runesmiths are basically priests of Thungni, like Morgrim's Engineers. Unlike all the other gods who are friendly with the faiths of the allies of the Dwarf race and enemies of those who are Dwarf enemies, Thungni's cult has an additional enemy; non-Dwarfs who try to learn or succeed at making rune magic. This includes human wizards.

*It should be noted that the eldest son of Valaya (with Grungni) is [[Grombrindal|Snorri Whitebeard]]. He did not get to be a god as he had the duty of ruling the Karaz Ankor after his parents departed.

* '''[[Horned Rat|Skavor]]''' An ancestor god who had no talent in crafting using non-living materials but a talent for fleshcrafting and chaos magic. His use of fleshcrafting and chaos magic got him exiled by the rest of the ancestor gods so he fleshcrafted himself into a rat-like abomination and created the Skaven to wipe out the rest of the dwarves out of spite. This is the only known Ancestor God that is shunned and hated by the dwarfs.

==Humans==
Like in all other things, Humanity is really diverse when it comes to religion, ranging from worshipping the [[Chaos Gods]] to worshipping [[Lady of the Lake|an Elf God pretending to be a goddess of chivalry]]. Although some gods are argued to be the [[Sigmar|God of Mankind]], there is no united Human pantheon, just many many different gods for many many different nations. The Old World Pantheon is the collection of Gods worshipped by humans of Old World (which is the closest thing we can get to Human Pantheon). This pantheon mainly divided into two "families", namely '''Northern Gods''' and '''Southern Gods'''. There is also the Patron Gods of nations that don't fit these two families; Sigmar for [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], Lady of the Lake for [[Bretonnia]] and Ursun for [[Kislev]]. Other than them, there are also some other pantheons like [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] Pantheon and thousands of different local gods unrelated to any pantheon. As I said before, Humanity is diverse.
Note also that while the various Human nations may worship ostensibly different gods with different names and different rituals, that these may in fact be local aspects of a smaller number of universal gods. The confirmed example is that of the Old Worlder god of death: when Nehekharan god [[Usirian]] was destroyed this also destroyed the god known in the Empire under the name [[Morr]], for unbeknownst to both sets of worshippers the two gods were simply culturally-specific variants of the same deity. Similar pairings are suspected to exist among other deities (the trade god known as [[Handrich]] to Imperials, but Mercopio to Tileans), and it is thus possible that the bewildering array of human gods may in fact be reducible down to a smaller pantheon of common major deities.
===Empire===
[[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Empire of Man]] has a patron god named [[Sigmar]], the mortal founder of Empire who is believed to be ascended to godhood after he vanished. But unlike [[Imperium of Man|his space faring brother]], the Empire is a polytheistic nation, worship of other gods (except [[Chaos Gods]] and [[Khaine]]) is allowed, although the Cult of Sigmar is the state religion. So most of the Old World Pantheon is also worshipped in Empire or at least respected. The list of the Imperial Gods starting with their Patron God goes as;

* '''[[Sigmar]]''', Warrior-God of Mankind, is the founder of [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], its first Emperor and the most badass human ever lived. His deeds of badassery includes but not limited to; uniting human tribes of Old World, defeating biggest WAAAGH ever happened with said united army, earning the respect of the Dwarfs (by far the hardest one to do), breaking the [[Warriors of Chaos|Norsii]] siege of Middenheim and fighting a fucking [[Bloodthirster]] in there, bashing the skull of [[Nagash]] (doing that by using Nagash's own crown also counts) and destroying his undead army. After establishing a rather stabilized state in Old World, Sigmar left the Empire and never seen again, presumed dead by his people. Years after his departure, some guy named Johann Helsturm proclaimed that he saw the vision of Sigmar being crowned to godhood by [[Ulric]] and joined him among the divinity. Helsturm pretty much created the Cult of Sigmar which gained power among centuries and became the most popular and influental religion in the Empire. Today the Cult of Sigmar holds a major bureaucratic power within the Empire, for example the head of the Sigmarite Church, the Grand Theogonist, is able to cast 3 votes in Emperor's election. Sigmar is worshipped by Imperials as the God of War, Mankind, Heroism, Courage and Empire itsef. He is respected by everyone in the Empire, even the Ulricians of Northern Empire proudly call themselves the sons of Sigmar. His holy symbols are Ghal Maraz (or just a warhammer), the Twin-Tailed Comet and Gryphon. His chants are effective against Daemons and Undead. He is mainly worshipped in Reikland but his worshippers can be found everywhere in the Empire (and probably never found among non-Imperial humans). In the End Times, Sigmar's ascension to godhood is confirmed but [[Tzeentch]] trapped him inside the Winds of Heaven [[Not as planned|which actually supercharged Sigmar with magic]]. In short Sigmar is basicly Conan the Barbarian/Charlemagne/Jesus of Warhammer Fantasy and also Thor to Ulric's Odin.

====Northern Gods====
The '''Northern Gods''' aka the '''Elder Gods''' or the '''Country Gods''' are the gods of pre-Imperial human tribes and during Sigmar's reign. They are quite old, worship of Elder Gods stratches back to several millenia. Although they are losing favor to Sigmar, their worship is still widespread, especially in the countryside. These gods are Ulric, Taal, Rhya and Manann.

* '''[[Ulric]]''', the God of Winter, Wolves and Warfare, younger brother of Taal. He is generally worshipped by non-Chaos [[Vikings]] of Warhammer Fantasy who live in Middenland, Nordland and Ostland. Ulric is the second most popular god of the Empire and was actually the most popular one during the times before Sigmar, being worshiped by all human tribes in one way or another. Actually Sigmar himself was a devout worshipper of him too, all sagas emphasise him being blessed and protected by Ulric. Today, Ulricans are still a powerful group, his worship is quite common and the Viking Pope, Al-Ulric, is able to cast one vote in Emperor's election. When it comes to Sigmar, Ulricians are divided into two. Some of them just don't believe Sigmar is a God and rejects Sigmarites all together and the others believes Sigmar is a God but venerate Ulric more as he is the traditional god of mankind but all of them respect Sigmar all the same as he definitely was Ulric's mortal champion before his ascension to godhood. Ulric is a god of martial skill, not unlike [[Khorne|his evil counter part]] (main difference is Ulric cares whose blood being spilled, preferably his enemies') he favors natural strength; gunpowder weapons and crossbows are to be shunned for they don't require any skill to use. His holy symbol is the White Wolf he manifests. In End Times, [[Teclis]] stole the Flame of Ulric in Middenheim and used it to heal [[Tyrion|his brother]] which caused Middenheim's fall and eventually killed Ulric. [[Eldrad|What a dick]]. It is also revealed that his ascension to the godhood may have to do with the old one device hosting his flame (which may or may not belonging to the ancient Elven colonist before the rise of man and the war of beard that forced the elves to abandoned the old world) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

* '''[[Taal]]''', the God of Wilds, Nature and Beasts, older brother of Ulric and husband of Rhya. Being a Warhammer God, Taal isn't some pesky hippy, he believes in the survival of the fittest. So if you can kill it (in a fair way) all animals are willing to serve you as food and fur. Like Ulric, he favors natural strength and forbids use of gunpowder and adds it the use of metal armor too, only skin and fur of his animals is to be used for clothing. His worshippers are against anything unnatural starting with [[Chaos]] and [[Mutant|Mutants]] to even cities and money in extreme cases. Taal is, like beasts and nature itself, known for being indifferent to morality. His holy symbol is a Stag or just antlers. His worship is almost completely tied with worship of Rhya, which is together called Cult of Taal and Rhya. The two complete eachother as manifestation of Nature; Taal is the animals while Rhya is the plants, Taal is the wrathful natural disasters while Rhya is the generous and fertile soil. He is, like his wife, mainly worshipped in Talabecland. He also has a number of paralells with Kurnous, the Elven god of the hunt.

* '''[[Rhya]]''', the Earth Mother, Goddess of Plants, Farming and Hunting, wife of Taal. She domains over all things that grow, so pretty much Demeter of Warhammer Fantasy. Her worship is a part of Cult of Taal and Rhya which mainly practiced Talabecland. Her holy symbol is a sheaf of wheat and bow and arrow. As said above, worship of Rhya and Taal is tied to eachother though Ryha seems to be less important and [[-4 STR|less powerful]] of the two.

* '''[[Manann]]''', the God of Seas and Tides, son of Taal and Rhya. Worshipped by sailors and fishermen, Manann is not really different than Poseidon of our world. He is quite fickle and dickish, judging his subjects arbitrarily (like Poseidon). Manann's strictures are nothing more than generic sailor superstitions which changes based on sailor, priest and Manann's mood at the time. His holy symbols are wave patterns, albatrosses and his five tinned crown. He is mainly worshipped in Marienburg and other coastal cities although human sailors all around the Old World worship him. Also he is completely identical to [[Mathlann]], the Elven Sea God, and may in fact just be the same deity under a different name.

====Southern Gods====
The '''Southern Gods''' aka the '''Classical Gods''' or the '''Town Gods''' are newer ones among the Old World Pantheon (still older than Sigmar) they are actually not really among the common worship in the Empire (with exception of Morr who is third most popular Imperial God). They are generally worshipped in more civilized and urban areas of South Old World like [[Tilea]] and [[Estalia]]. These gods are Morr, Verena, Myrmidia, Shallya, Ranald and Khaine.

* '''[[Morr]]''', the God of the Dead, Afterlife and Dreams, older brother of [[Khaine]], husband of Verena and father of Myrmidia and Shallya. Similar to Greek Mythology, at the beginning of time the three gods, Ulric, Taal and Morr divided the world between eachother. Ulric and Taal started fighting for the living world while Morr simply settled the realm of the dead. Then the Gods of Mortal Realm and Morr made an agreement to balance things out; Morr and his subjects, the dead, will not tresspass into Mortal Realm and in return, Ulric and Taal will ultimately send all the living to Morr. [[FAIL|Well, when you think about it you can realize this agreement actually gives no benefit to Morr,]] because while Ulric and Taal don't have to do anything for their part (because mortals, naturally, always die), Morr will both have to protect the souls of the dead from being consumed [[Chaos Gods]] and fight the necromancers and undead to do his part of the agreement. Yet again, Morr, being one of the few responsible gods who actively tries to [[gets shit done|do his job,]] maybe took this responsibility willingly. Although he is a less known god among the fans, Morr's worship is the most widespread in the Warhammer world as he is worshipped by all major races and nations even if he is known to them by different names. His symbols are ravens, hourglasses and black roses. His seat of power is in Luccini, Tilea. In End Times, his [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] counterpart, Usirian was devoured by [[Nagash]] which killed Morr too.

* '''[[Verena]]''', the Goddess of Knowledge, Science, Law and Justice, wife of [[Morr]], mother of Myrmidia and Shallya. We all know the Old World is a fucking mess; the civil lands are constantly under siege by the [[Orcs & Goblins|barbarians]] and [[Beastmen|anarchists]] while being ruled by zealots, ignorants, tyrants and decadants. Among this madness, Verena and her worshippers shine as a beacon of reason and intellectuality. Despite being literally the goddess of paperwork, Verena isn't some kind of pacifist (that's [[Shallya|her daughter]]'s gimmick), she dictates her followers to take arms in the face of injustice, tyranny and of course Chaos. Her worshippers usually work as judges, lawyers, scholars, bureaucrats and prone to becoming [[Lawful Stupid]]. Her symbols are owls and scales. Verena doesn't have a seat of power but is mainly being worshipped in big bureaucratic capitals like Altdorf. Also she is probably the same god with [[Hoeth]].

* '''[[Myrmidia]]''', the Goddess of War, Strategy and Military, sister of [[Shallya]]. Yet another god of war, which is normal, considering [[Grimdark|how dominant and constant the war is]]. Myrmidia is rivals with other two Gods of War, [[Ulric]] and [[Sigmar]] but the three actually stand for different aspects of war: Ulric is the down-to-earth part of it, the actual combat, martial prowess and [[Khorne|bloodlust]], Myrmidia is the science of war, strategy and tactics are in her domain and Sigmar stands for the reason behind the war; heroism, patriotism, empire-building, zeal and even self-defence as the Empire never actually seeks for more war. Her worship spreads throught the Empire from Estalia and Tilea, there is even one knightly order that worships to her, the Order of the Blazing Sun which converted during the Crusades. She is mainly worshipped by the generals and strategists rather than the soldiers themselves. Her symbol is a spear behind a shield and an eagle. Lastly if you are retarded and haven't noticed yet, Myrmidia is a shameless ripoff of Athena with no difference other than the name.

* '''[[Shallya]]''', the Goddess of Mercy and Healing, sister of [[Myrmidia]]. Shallya is probably the most [[Noblebright]] thing in Warhammer Fantasy. She offers mercy to all the suffering; the sick, the injured, the beggar, the orphan, the whore, the prisoner, the maimed, the unclean, just all of them. They even believe mutants can be cured, Shallyites actually established a secret mutant village to protect them from the witch hunters. They are right to a some extent because actually some of the mutants are normal mutants like in our world and not corrupted by Chaos at all. [[Grimdark|So probably thousands of humans was burnt on stick just because they are sick]]. She is generally worshipped by doctors and healers or more precisely her worshippers and priests became doctors and healers. Her symbols are a white dove and a heart with a single blood drop. Also she is quite similar to the Elven god [[Isha]].

* '''[[Ranald]]''', the God of Fortune, Luck and Mischief. One of the main problems with [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]] is, while it is still as oppressive as any feudal kingdom it lacks the organized police force to make it effectively like the [[Nazi|modern dictatorships]] did. So there is incredible amouths of criminal activity going on in the Empire. So much, there is a god of it. Although Ranald is the god that stands for freedom against that oppression, he is mainly worshipped by thieves, gamblers and charlatans. Also you may thought his name is nothing fancy, just a generic medieval name, which makes sense because actually Ranald was a mortal that convinced, or tricked, Shallya to let him drink one of her tear vials which ascended Ranald to godhood. Ranald's symbols are a hand with crossed fingers, an X, a black cat and a crow. He is mainly worshipped in big cosmopolitan cities like Marienburg.

* '''[[Khaine]]''', the God of Murder, Violance and Cruelty, younger brother of [[Morr]]. Khaine is in interesting position in the Old World pantheon, while other Elven gods are at least have different human names, Khaine is simply Khaine, the god that Dark Elves worship. Also the worship of Khaine is one of the few outlawed religions in the Empire (only worshipped secretly by cultists) because most human theologians believe Khaine is none other than [[Khorne|the Blood God]] himself. But Khainites know that there is a distinction between Khaine and Khorne; Khorne is more about senseless slaughter, the mass killings happening in the battlefields are what really pleases him. But Khaine is more about the killing of the individuals, the ritualistic art of murder and torture is what really pleases him, yet again battlefields are sacred for him too as the war is nothing more than industialized murder. Also in the End Times, Khaine and Khorne are confirmed to be separate entities but Khaine is still the god of [[murderhobos]] and it is better to outlaw his worship. Khaine is also worshipped as a God of Death, believed to be forever in conflict with his brother, Morr. Being a secret cult, Khaine don't have an openly displayed symbol but a scorpion stinger and a serpentine dagger are symbols generally associated with him. Khaine is commonly worshipped by sadists and serial killers but a few of his worshippers can be found among the soldiery.

===Bretonnia===
[[Lady of the Lake]] is the patron goddess of the [[Bretonnia|Kingdom of Bretonnia]]. Cult of the Lady is the state-religion and holds major political power within Bretonnia and yet the Lady isn't the most widespread worshipped God in Bretonnia. Being a feudal shitland, everything in Bretonnia is divided between [[Noble|Nobility]] and [[Peasant|Peasantry]] (and almost non-existent middle class consisting scholars and merchants) this of course includes the religion too. Peasants are prohibited from the worship of Lady as they are not seen more than vermin and shouldn't bother the Lady with their petty prayers. The middle class is allowed but have to pay tithe to worship in shrines and temple. In short, the cult of the Lady is only open to the Nobility of Bretonnia. This lead the peasantry to worship the Gods of the Old World Pantheon. Bulk of the peasantry (which is also the bulk of Bretonnia's population) worship [[Shallya]] the Goddess of Mercy and Healing. Unlike the Lady of the Lake, Shallya offers confort for everyone especially to the oppressed, suffering people like the peasants of Bretonnia. This made Shallya very popular among the peasants, some of them even believe Shallya is just another aspect of the Lady (basicly her peasant equilavent) which worshippers of the Lady [[Blam|didn't take tolerantly]]. Other than Shallya, Myrmidia is common among the men-at-arms, Taal and Rhya among the farmers, Verena among the scholars etc. Interestingly, worship of Sigmar is almost non-existent within Bretonnia which is weird as Cult of Sigmar, like Cult of Shallya, is a peoples cult, open to everyone. The reason behind this is probably the Bretonnian nobility's xenophobia towards [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]]. Anyway about the Lady of the Lake:

*'''[[Lady of the Lake]]''', the Goddess of Chivalry, Purity and Nobility, the Patron Goddess of [[Bretonnia]]. The Lady of the Lake is basicly the [[Waifu|idealized woman]] that every Bretonnian knight loves. They love her so much many knights are willing to abdicate all their titles and go on a Waifu Quest to find her. Almost all of these Questing Knights die horribly to monsters and other shit they have to fight, before even getting close to her. But most powerful of them find her eventually and when that happens, the Lady of the Lake offers them to drink from the Holy Grail she holds which turns Questing Knights into [[Mary Sue|mary sues]] or Grail Knights as they mostly known as. The Lady of the Lake is only worshipped by the Bretonnian Nobility and her symbols are the Holy Grail and [[Sisters of Battle|Fleur-de-lis]]. In End Times, it was revealed that the Lady of the Lake is none other than the Elven God [[Lileath]], she and the [[Wood Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Wood Elves]] been using Bretonnians as a bulwark against [[Chaos]] and a cat's paw when they don't feel like to risk elf lives. All that holy Grail Knights and lowly peasantry shit was to eliminate the weak and create the best of humanity, worthy of being used by Elves. [[Just as Planned|So the entire culture, religion and politics of Bretonnia is just part of an Elven eugenics programme.]] Also do I have to mention that she was "inspired" from Arthurian legends, like everything else in Bretonnia?

===Kislev===
[[Kislev]] has his own little pantheon of gods consist of three gods: '''Ursun''', '''Dazh''' and '''Tor'''. It isn't like an established Kislevite Pantheon, more like a group of local gods unique to Kislev. While almost all of the Kislevites only worship these three, some other gods have been worshipped by Kislevites too. Northern Gods of the Old World Pantheon is relatively common, mostly [[Ulric]] and Taal mainly because of Kislev's geographical closeness to [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Northern Empire]]. Like in the Empire, many local gods and spirits are venerated too. Interestingly, Kislev is also the only place in the Old World to worship [[Necoho|Ma]][[Zuvassin|lal]]. The Temple of the Ancient Allies in the Kislevite city of Bolgasgrad is the only known temple dedicated to Necoho and Zuvassin, and the city is home to only known worshippers of them. But, to be clear, it isn't like they are commonly worshipped in Kislev, their worshippers are probably even less than their fans in real life. So about the real gods of Kislev:

*'''[[Ursun]]''', the God of [[Bear Lore|Bears]] and Strength, Patron God of Kislev. Ursun is the most commonly worshipped god in Kislev, like Sigmar he's worsipped by everyone from wealthy cityfolk to nomads of the oblast. But in doctrine, Ursun has more common in [[Ulric]] and Taal than Sigmar. Like Ulric, Ursun is all about strenght, he prefers warriors over priests, acts over prayers. And like Taal, Ursun is more of the God of Bears than a God of man, bears are his sacred beast it is a privilege to hunt them, not a right given to humans. Like Taal dictates, bear hunts should be fair, no traps or hunting dogs allowed. One of the reasons that worship of Ursun is so common in Kislev is that Kislev is full of bears and worshipping the God of Bears makes things smoother between man and the beasts (and angering him gets you [[RIP AND TEAR|ripped apart by bears]]). His worshippers are rivals with Ulric's, but mutual respect exists between them. Ursun is practically worshipped by all of the Kislev and only in Kislev. His holy symbol is a bear or a bear's face.

*'''[[Dazh]]''', the God of Sun, Fire and Hospitality. When you live in a frozen wasteland where winters are 10 months long and full of bears, fire and Sun is just what really matters to survive. So you should worship the God of Sun in the second coldest place of the world after [[Chaos Wastes|literally frosty hell]] itself, not some [[Ulric|God of Winter]]. Actually this is why Dazhinyi (and Kislevites in general) despise Ulricans: they are like middle-class children who want winter to come because of Christmas and to play in snow while Kislevites are like homeless people who don't want to freeze to death during winter. Sure, worshipping the God of Winter would probably fix all of that for them, but this is Warhammer so common sense is still [[Heresy|not tolerated]]. Dazh is, like Ursun, widely worshipped by Kislevites but with a bit of change. In the cold harsh tundras of north, Dazh symbolizes the struggle against the nature and his worship is essential to survive Kislevite winters as every campfire and torch lights brightly because of him. In rather civilized south, he is the God of Hospitality, more about hearths and being kind to guests. Dazh's holy symbol is the Sun or a flame. Judging by the Usirian = Morr logic in the End Times, one could say that Ptra and Dazh are the same person due to being primary god of human. Just don't tell Settra about it or he is going to lit Kislev on fire (might be a good thing actually). He is based on Slavic sun god Dazhbog.

*'''[[Tor]]''', the God of Thunder and Lightning. The least inspired name ever given to a god of lightning. But at least he isn't just same with the [[Viking|Norse]] God Thor: Tor isn't a hammer wielding God of Heroism and War (that's [[Sigmar]]'s job) (also Tor prefers an axe), he is more of a force of nature. He is more about saying "Tor is angry today" during a lightning storm than prayers and systematic worship. Well, also a God of Lightning has nothing to offer to humans other than ''not'' striking them with a thunder bolt. Also his stricture is single, simple but smart: "Never stand under a tree in a thunderstorm." Tor's holy symbols are a thunderbolt and a silver axe.

===Nehekhara===
[[Nehekhara]], being '''THE''' human civilization of the world (meaning they are the original human civilization that was created and established by the [[Old Ones]] themselves) has their own unique and sophisticated take on religion and gods. The Priest Kings of Nehekhara and [[Tomb Kings]] of <s>[[Tomb Kings#Death of an Era|old]]</s> today worshipped the '''Nehekharan Pantheon''' also known as the Desert Gods. Nehekarans believed that in the dawn of time, the world was once dark and cold, it was their gods that enlightened the world and created humanity, which is quite a similar story to how the Old Ones created humanity and other races. Almost all of the gods [[Furry|have animal heads or are outright animals]] much like the Egyptian gods. Long ago, the Nehekharan Pantheon consisted of hundreds of different gods and hundreds of different cults dedicated to them, but after [[Nagash]] necro-nuked all of Nehekhara, killing every living thing and reanimating them as [[Undead]], only a handful of Gods remain (unknown if the other gods are dead too, or weren't real to begin with and were simply forgotten) and only the most widespread cult remains today, the Mortuary Cult, a cult dedicated to Usirian. The cult studied death and the afterlife, and also searched for immortality. First they managed to preserve a dead body with mummification (which they learned from the [[Lizardmen]] of the Southlands) then communicating with the dead souls using the [[Warhammer Magic|Wind of Death]] and lastly summoning the dead and binding them to corporal bodies. All of their study lead to Nagash's creation of Necromancy via mixing Dark Magic with the Wind of Death. Anyway about the pantheon:

*'''Ptra''', the God of Sun, Patron God of Nehekhara, husband of Neru. Although he is the most important god of Nehekharan Pantheon, there isn't much to say about him. Ptra is basicly Ra of our world, he rides his chariot in the sky from dawn till dusk, following his love, Neru the Moon Goddess. Unlike other gods of the pantheon, he doesn't have an animal form, or an animal headed form, only appearing in a human form. He is also the creator of humanity, according to Nehekharans. [[Settra the Imperishable]] is his most known (and of course greatest) worshipper because no God is worthy of being worshipped by Settra, other than the King of Gods himself.
*'''Neru''', the Goddess of [[Mannslieb|Moon]] and Protection, wife of Ptra. Boring ass wife of the boring ass god up there. Again not much to say about her, she is actively running away from her husband (for some reason), creating the day and night cycle of the world.
*'''Sakhmet''', the Goddess of the [[Morrslieb|Green Moon]], concubine of Ptra. Also called the Green Witch, Sakhmet envies Ptra's love of Neru, his wife, and all of humanity. During nights, Neru and Sakhmet fight for the domination of the sky, Neru wins most of the time so only Mannslieb appears in the sky but when Sakhmet wins both Mannslieb and Morrslieb appears in the sky, causing days known as Hexenstag and Geheiminstag to the [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Imperials]]. She is seen as a malevolant god by the Nehekharans because she, as said, envies Ptra's love for humanity. While the name is almost same with the Egyptian God Sekhmet, Sakhmet isn't really similar to her other than this: the duality of Sakhmet and Neru resembles how the bloodthirsty lion-headed Goddess of War Sekhmet and the merciful cow-headed Goddess of Love Hathor is the same goddess with a split personality disorder, even so Sakhmet and Neru are certainly not the same goddess at all. Ironically, she had a beastmen follower called '''Moonclaw''' who referred to the green moon as his own mother. During the End Times, chunks of Morrslieb descend up the world after the Skaven's reckless demolition. With that, is safe to say that Sakhmet is officially about as dead as Usirian. But it's not like the moon was alive like the other gods anyway.
*'''Usirian''', the God of the Underworld. Usirian's worship is as widespread as that of Ptra in Nehekhara, since the rise of the Mortuary Cult. As the lord of the Realm of Souls, Usirian judges souls of the living, particullarly the Priest Kings, upon their death; based on their lives, they may make it to the paradise filled with golden palaces to live in and their subjects to tyrannize (two things Priest Kings love the most) or if they didn't had any virtues in life (or [[Peasant|wasn't a nobleborn]]) they probably end up in the deepest pits of the Underworld, [[Grimdark|where millions of beetles will gnaw their skin and entrails forever]] (This sounds eerily similar to Abrahamic religions). Another privilege nobles get is that if they fuck up, Priests of Usirian will try to bargain with Usirian to mitigate their punishments. Khepra Beetles are said to be Usirians agents in the living realm, he monitors the mortals from the beetles' eyes, seeing all sins of the men and because said beetles are everywhere in Nehekhara, [[1984|every man and woman are being watched by him 7/24]]. On the other hand this also means using a bug sprey lets you trick the God of Dead. Usirian is also never physically represented as that would be [[heresy]] (now it is really similar to one particular Abrahamic religion). His most known worshipper is the Grand Hierophant Khatep who is the High Priest of the Mortuary Cult, Prophet of the Lord of the Tomb, Master of Awakenings but most importantly Settra's advisor during his life. Lastly in the [[End Times]], Usirian was devoured by Nagash which killed [[Morr]] too, this confirms that they were indeed the same god (in fact all Gods of Dead are probably the same god).
*'''Djaf''', the God of Death and War. While he is an important god, he is the god of death of undead egyptians after all and his ushabtis are one of the most common ones, not much is known about him. Considering another similar God, Usirian, is venerated much more than him and that he is also a God of War, Djaf is probably more abouth down-to-earth part of death not its concept or spiritual side. Djaf usually takes form of a jackal headed man or a large black jackal so he is basicly the Egyptian God of Death, Anubis.
*'''Asaph''', the Goddess of Beauty and Asps. When to be seen, Asaph takes the form of a seductive woman or [[Furry|an asp but still looking as seductive as woman]]. Lorewisely, the most important thing she did was saving [[Queen Khalida]] from becoming a [[vampire]] which made her the greatest worshipper of Asaph. Other than that, Asaph is really similar to the Chaos God [[Slaanesh]], both being gods of beauty and has a strong association with snakes. Unknown if there is a connection or not.
*'''Geheb''', the God of Earth and Strenght. As a god worshipped by warriors and soldiers, Geheb takes form of a lion or a big hunting dog in animal form and a musclar man with a thick beard in human form. Again another god with a Chaos God similarity, both [[Khorne]] and Geheb is worshipped by great warriors and has hunting dogs as their sacred animal. Also worship of Geheb involves a blood ritual which the worshippers drink the blood of a newly sacrificed ox.
*'''Tahoth''', the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Tahoth usually takes the form of an ibis headed man, or a silver colored ibis which makes him quite similar to [[Tzeentch]], the other bird headed god of knowledge. But this time this is probably because Tzeentch is inspired by the Egyptian God of Knowledge Thoth while Tahoth is just Thoth with a different name.
*'''Sokth''', the God of Scorpions, Thieves and Assassins. Although he is the protector of thieves, Sokth forbids grave-robbing and his sons (scorpions) guard the royal tombs along with Usirian's beetles. It's believed that the Nehekharan scorpions will never sting a true follower of Sokth but I'm sure nobody dares to test that. Sokth usually appears as a giant black scorpion or a man with pure black eyes.
*'''Phakth''', the God of Sky and Justice. Phakth usually takes the form of a hawk headed man or a blue hawk with golden eyes so he is practically the same god as Horus ([[Horus Lupercal|no, not that one]]).
*'''Basth''', the Goddess of Cats and Love. Usually appears as [[Furry|a cat headed woman]] or as [[Catgirl|a woman with cat-like features]]. She is the Egyptian Goddess of Cats, Bastet, of Warhammer Fantasy.
*'''[[Nagash]]''', the Supreme Lord of Undeath. Before I start let me explain why I decided to add Nagash to the list: Not because Nagash ascended to godhood in [[Age of Sigmar]] but because he has been worshipped as a god before that, since his first defeat, by priest kings to vampires, by crazed cultists to great necromancers. You may argue that Nagash is clearly not a god, as he is trying to become a god, so he has no place in here and I would say half of the gods listed here probably don't even exist or are a [[Chaos God]] in disguise so listen up. While not being a part of the Nehekharan Pantheon, Nagash has been (secretly) worshipped as a God by Nehekharans for millenia. Worship of Nagash, or Nagashism as it's named in [[Total War: WARHAMMER|Total War: Warhammer]], stretchs back to his first defeat. After dying in the desert and resurrecting himself as some sort of [[Lich]], Nagash deceived some mountain tribes into worshipping him as a god. After that, said tribesmen and his undead minions built the great fortress of Nagashizzar under the command of Nagash. Even today, in the highest chamber of the fortress, [[God-Emperor of Mankind|the corpse of Nagash sits on his throne with hundreds of zealous cultists worshipping him as a God]], listening to his whispers, doing his bidding. Since then, thinking being worshipped is quite handy, Nagash disguises himself as a god to manipulate humans. It is known that he has been willingly worshipped by many necromancers and vampires (which is actually rare, as vampires generally don't accept anyone as his/her superior). Nagash may also interfere with the wizards of the Wind of Death, especially Mortuary Priests, presenting himself as Usirian, the Nehekharan God of the Dead or [[Morr]], the Imperial God of the Dead, and use them to further his schemes. But he usually does that when he doesn't have a corporeal form because when he is in the mortal realm there is no need to trick anyone into believing he is a god. As said above, in the End Times he ascended to godhood and became the only [[Tomb King]] that made it to [[Age of Sigmar]].

===Northmen===
Although many Norscan tribes venerate all the gods, most tend to favour one of the Four for his blessings. Below them are various Daemon Princes, fallen ancestors and Chaos Champions, and other lesser spirits alongside the Big Four.

*'''[[Khorne]]''' - The Hound, Kharnath, Lord of Rage, Akhar, Kjorn, the Axefather, Khorgar, the Bloodwolf, and the Wolf-Father and many more names. In such a brutal, warlike culture moulded by harsh climate and monsters, he is the most popular deity in Norsca.
*'''[[Tzeentch]]''' - The Eagle, Tchar, the Raven God and expy of [[Odin]]. Patron deity of the seers and ''vitki'' (sorcerers), he is distrusted by most Norscans. However, because he is also the god of the winds of Magic and physical currents, he is venerated before the Norscans board their longships.
*'''[[Nurgle]]''' - The Crow, Neiglen, Nurglitch, Onogal. Usually prayed to for avoiding plagues, or to spare themselves from the worst of the plagues by dedicating themselves to him.
*'''[[Slaanesh]]''' - The Serpent, Shornaar, Lanshor. Invoked at the feasts and marriages that occur after battles.
*'''Mermedus''' - a caricature of Mannan, this monstrous sea horror is invoked to avoid his wrath when Skaelings sail. Prisoners are sacrificed to Mermedus by being drowned with heavy weights, and to die at sea is to sink into Mermedus' domains, deprived from the glorious halls of the Four.

The Norscans believe that they must become strong and cruel, to win the favour of the Four Gods after they die and enter their halls for an eternity of feasting and brawling. Should they die as cowards or without their hands and weapons, they might instead be chased around in the afterlife as playthings for Daemons.

===Minor Nations===
Even if they have never seen the light of the day, [[End Times|and never will]], there are human nations other than [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], [[Bretonnia]] and [[Warriors of Chaos|Northmen]]: the myst shrouded island of Albion, the Great Sultanate of Araby, Democratic City-States of [[Tilea]], Ever-warring kingdoms of [[Estalia]], Feudal Kingdom of [[Nippon]], Grand Empire of [[Cathay]], Kingdoms of Ind, the Hinterlands of Khuresh and more. While collective lore on these are less than any playable faction's, some of these factions' religious practices are known and some what interesting.
*'''[[Tilea]]''' worships the Southern Gods of the [[Old World]] Pantheon, mainly [[Myrmidia]], the Goddess of War and Strategy. Tileans are sailors and pirates, so Manann, the God of Seas, is also worshipped by many. Other than them, local gods of city-states are among common worship. Like Luccan and Luccina, the founders of the City-State of Luccini, is the most worshipped God in said city (You know [[Roman Empire|Romulus and Remus]]?). As a cosmopolitan country, Tilea also been influenced by other cultures and even races, like in Tobaro, people living in the underground tunnels of the city commonly worship il Grungnio or Grungni, the Dwarf God of Miners as he known to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy)|Dwarfs]]. Even so, Tileans are said to be "casual" worshippers, not taking the religion so seriously, unlike the Imperials and Bretonnians.
*'''[[Estalia]]''', being same as Tileans but with Spanish names, worships the Southern Gods of the Old World Pantheon, again mainly [[Myrmidia]]. But this didn't have a unifying effect on Estalians and Tileans, they have been fighting for centuries by now. Both sides claim that they are the real sons of Myrmidia.
*'''Araby''' is known to be worshipping a single god, being one of the very few monotheistic nations in the world. He chooses prophets among the people to teach his gospel to the Arabyans. A warrior-cult known as Dervishers is dedicated to that God, fan-named Ohrmazd (which is another name of Ahura Mazda, the God of Zoroastrianism) and said to be "too willing" to die for their god [[FAIL|which is a bit stupid because real life Dervishs (Islamic Monks) while very religious, were also pacifists and humanists]]. Another possibility would be that the Nehekharan gods might also be worshipped in Araby, as Araby is technically Nehekhara's living successor. Among the deities attested in canon venerated by the Arabyans include:
** '''the Djinn''', which are actually Daemons.
** '''Ancient deities''' older than the Nehekharan gods, promoted by another prophet known as Mullah Aklan'd, who was also Araby's first Great Sultan and unifier.
*'''[[Cathay]]''' is, surprisingly, a semi-atheist country, where the Dragon Emperor commands his people to see him just as a mighty all-knowing leader without any godhood nonsense. [[Emperor|This seems very familiar, doesn't it?]] However, Big D can't control literally everyone, so cults in his name do exist in some remote regions. [[Tzeentch]] worship is also still present, and is a major problem in this country.
*The Kingdoms of '''Ind''' are also called the Land of a Thousand Gods. Shit goes down in Ind because it is literally the land of a thousand gods and at least most of the gods are real and very active. They are said to be very fickle and quick to anger, judging and punishing their worshippers swiftly. So every part of the Indian life is a ritual: like if you overcook a [[Meatbread|meal]] a bit, you may be struck down by the God of Food or if you don't [[THIN YOUR PAINTS|thin your paints]], the [[Duncan Rhodes|God of Thin Paints]] may visit you at night. Leopold Riogillo, a merchant prince, notes that Indians see the tiger-headed [[beastmen]] of their land as holy spirits, yet again it is known that at least one god, the four-armed Bharmir, despises [[Chaos]].
** '''Brahmir''' - not-Brahman (or more like Vishnu), his holy statues can scare the Warp out of Chaos-worshippers.
** '''She'ar Khawn''' - not-Narasimha, a popular deity whose eight-armed statues are found in almost every temple in Ind.
** '''Gilgadresh''' - his temple was looted by Lokhir Fellheart.
*'''Amazons''', the warrior tribeswoman of [[Lustria]], worships the same pantheon of gods as the [[Lizardmen]] who are the [[Old Ones]]. Not much is known other than that.
** '''Rigg''', one of the Old Ones and the mother of Kalith, she is their goddess of war.
** '''Kalith''', the daughter of Rigg and the Elven sea god Amex, her functions and powers are unknown.

==Lizardmen==
Lizardmen revere the [[Old Ones]] as their gods. Lizardmen are brought fully formed into the world as full fighting units from magical spawning pools, some of these units have somehow been marked by one or more of the Old Ones for some specific purpose these are known as sacred spawnings. Albino Lizardmen are said to have the mark of the Old Ones and are believed to be destined for greatness.

* '''[[Sotek]]''' Unlike the other Old Ones Sotek was not among the original pantheon that created the Lizardmen and uplifted the humans, elves and dwarves. Sotek was brought into the world during the invasion of Lustria by the Skaven clan Pestilence. After numerous blood sacrifices [[Khorne|turning rivers red]] by the Lizardmen, a gargantuan snake appeared and chased the Skaven out of Lustria. Those marked by Sotek have a red stripe on top of their heads and sometimes running down their backs, they are fiercer than other Lizardmen. Sotek is the only Old One known to have sacred spawnings of skinks, fitting as it was these little WS 2 T 2 shits that made rivers run red with rat blood.

* '''Chotec''' God of the sun. Those of Chotec's sacred spawning are marked by the colour orange and are more energetic.

* '''Huanchi''' Jaguar god of stealth & ambush. The blessed spawning of Huanchi have darker coloured scales, possibly black or brown, they are experts at hunting down prey.

* '''Itzl''' God of cold-blooded beasts. Those of Itzl's sacred spawning are marked by bony crests and a distinct smell and are great beastmasters.

* '''Tepok''' Depicted as a feathered serpent, Tepok is the god of mystery. Those of Tepok's sacred spawning have purple scales on their backs and are protected against magic.

* '''Tzunki''' God of water. The blessed spawnings of Tzunki have green scales on their backs and are known to be blessed with gills and flippers.

* '''Tlazcotl''' God of stoicism. The blessed spawning of Tlazcotl have yellow scales along the main of their headcreasts and down along the crests of their back.

* '''Quetzl''' God of protection. The blessed spawning of Quetzl have thick scales.

*'''Xhotl''' Possibly a God of retribution given what their blessing does. Saurus are not spawned with it since the eponymous temple city of Xhotl was destroyed in the aftermath of the collapse of the polar gates, with Kroq-gar as the last survivor of it and bearer of the spawning, which grants a magical forcefield to its bearer and strikes back at anything that gets through.

* '''Minor Deities''' Many more Old Ones, like Tlanxla, are mentioned briefly in fluff but they've had very little impact as they've been dead or gone for ages. In rare cases a single saurus or skink will emerge alone from a spawning pool, completely albino of scale, and marked for greatness by all the Old Ones at once.

==Greenskins==
The Greenskins have two universal Gods; with several others.

*'''[[Gork]]''': He's Brutally Cunning.
*'''[[Mork]]''': He's Cunningly Brutal.
*'''Bad Moon''': Venerated by the Night Goblins, he causes mushrooms to grow from anywhere where he shines on, even victims unfortunate enough to be basked in it.
*'''[[Spider-God]]''': a god venerated by the Forest Goblins. They use spider poisons to get high and enter a trance to commune with their god and tame spiders to ride around on in its honor.

==Ogres==
*'''[[Great Maw]]''' - A ''something'' that appeared after the Dragon Emperor of Cathay called down a meteor to punish the Ogres fucking up his lands. It was possibly a warpstone meteor and POSSIBLY caused by interference from Tzeentch but whatever it was left a big fleshy mouth in the ground that cursed the Ogres with a constant hunger, which also made them worship it as a god. Is it? Well the Ogres think so, and are you gonna tell em different?
*'''[[Fire Mouth]]''' - A volcano worshiped by the Firebellies. They drink super hot food (if not actual lava) to venerate it and grant them spells.

==Skaven==
*'''The (Great) [[Horned Rat]]''' - "what a minute isnt The Horned Rat a [[Chaos Gods|Chaos God]]? whats he doing here?" you might be asking. well the answer is "Because he's a.) a fantasy (and its [[Age of Sigmar|sequel]]) god and b.) the only one with its own specific race of worshipers that isnt a [[Chaos Dwarfs|spin off]] or [[Dragon Ogres|split between the other four]]". The Horned Rat is not only the god of the [[Skaven]], he is the exemplar of their race as a whole! He's [[Tzeentch|sneaky and cunning]], ruthlessly [[Slaanesh|self indulgent and self interested]], [[Nurgle|plague-ridden]] and [[Khorne|murderous and power hungry]] and demands that his people follow in his image while also honoring him during. hes also one of the few gods to actually appear to his race and tell them to stop screwing around and get shit done now and again. Various origins have him as a Daemon of Nurgle that got above his raisin and made some ratmen, or a traitorous Dwarfen Ancestor god that fucked off to screw shit up, but its unknown if either of these are true. And he was probably behind The Doom of Kavzar in some way.

==Pygmies==
The Pygmies worshipped 2 Brother Gods, who conniving together to kill the 18 other of the original 20 Pygmy Gods when they came to Mallus, despite the 2 Brothers having almost opposite personalities.
*'''Beesbok''': God of Procrastination, Food, Feasting, and Happiness
*'''Brodat''': God of Work, Poison, Magic, and Dourness.
[[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]

Warhammer Fantasy Gods

2022-06-30T06:09:18Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Pygmies */

{{Whfb-stub}}
{{Topquote|And then the Cataclysm came. King [[Taal]] rose from His Forest, and with Dark [[Morr]] muttering dire portents in His ear, He banished all immortals from the world. But the Cataclysm’s architects refused His order. [[Tzeentch|The Crow]], [[Khorne|the Hound]], [[Slaanesh|the Serpent]], and [[Nurgle|the Vulture]] were jealous of King Taal, and had tried to use the Great Gates to take what was His. They had failed. As the other immortals fled, the Four attacked, bitter and angry with their frustrations. Many died. After countless battles, King Taal was eventually surrounded. There were few still by his side. [[Ulric]] the Wolf. Noble [[Myrmidia|Margileo]]. Just [[Verena]]. [[Sotek]] the Snake. [[Manann]] of the Sea. And Gentle [[Shallya]], tear-stained and afraid. Even Smiling [[Ranald]] had fled, and now hid in the Places Between, fearful for the future. Then, just as the Four and their allies arrived for the Final Battle, [[Asuryan|Flaming Phoenix]], whom all had thought dead, returned from atop His Gleaming Pyramid, and He smote about Him. Thus the rebels were pushed behind the Great Gates, and were sealed there forever. But they were restless in their cage, and soon worked to escape.|Translated from the Obernarn Stone, now held in the Imperial Museum, Altdorf}}

Like any other fantasy setting, Warhammer Fantasy has its own gods.

Sporadically throughout the game, mainly in a few Chaos books and near [[The End Times|the end of its life]], it was stated that there are no other gods and only [[Chaos Gods]] exist. This is a typically [[Daemon|Daemonic]] twisting of the truth (although the claim was enough to make [[Archaon]] go full-[[Star Wars|Anakin Skywalker]]) and contradictive of other material. There is also some discrepancy between fans of [[Warhammer 40000]] who believe that Fantasy magic works in the same way that Psyker energy works in 40k. The final issue is [[The End Times]] and [[Age of Sigmar]] as well as their 8th edition lead-in, which changed quite a bit of existing lore as retcons disguised as "revealing the truth".

Unsurprisingly, the nature of gods in both settings is one of the more skub-filled lore topics.

=The Nature Of The Divine=
In early Warhammer lore gods simply existed and had their own faiths. Certain Chaos supplements suggested there were no gods and that only [[Chaos]] exists with the nature of the Chaos Gods being insane beings who pretend to be other personas in order to fight each other and themselves, like a giant 1000 character game of [[Dungeons & Dragons]] with no DM and only four people wearing blindfolds so nobody knows who is who other than [[Tzeentch|that one asshole with an actual case of multiple personality disorder who's peeking]]. As this only appears in a few Chaos supplements and nowhere else however, its authenticity is [[skub|questionable]] at best.

The nature of all the gods was explained differently over the years. In the earliest instances, when Warhammer was ''only'' Fantasy, gods didn't exist until the collapse of the Warpgates, and were more akin to extremely powerful angels and daemons than actual deities. Another one of the oldest tellings suggests there is one supremely powerful being at the center of the Warp, and that all gods, evil and good, originate from that single force. In others, the gods always existed, even before the Old Ones. As mentioned above, a few Chaos books suggested all gods were only fractions of larger Chaos gods, whose own origins were unclear. A few other explanations say the benevolent gods (Order) were made by or enserved to the Old Ones, while the malevolent gods (Chaos, Destruction) were rebels. If you take 40K as valid for both its own gods and Fantasy's, it states that gods are actually the coalesced belief and emotion of mortal beings, sort of a psychic gestalt. Whatever the source, it was always left intentionally vague and contradictive which explanation, if any provided, was valid, and there was a sense that the true nature of the divine was something beyond the understanding of the mortals "telling" the story (lore) of the world.

In truth, or at least according to the last entries of the setting, all non-material plane things are made of magic. Souls are magic, the Winds of Magic are magic, Daemons are magic, and so are all the Gods. This is apparently(?) the "truth" that Archaon learned, because the teachings of his faith are that magic is [[Heresy]] and apparently gods were just shitting miracles out of scientific stardust or something.

The End Times event revealed quite a bit, all of which is fairly skubby. The history of Warhammer is that the [[Old Ones]] descended from some unknown place, possibly another dimension, planet, or place in the timeline, on a primitive world full of [[Dinosaur]]s, [[Dragon]]s, and [[Neanderthal]] versions of the classic Fantasy races then created the [[Warp|Warp Gates]] to suck magic from the Warp which they used to alter the world and create a race capable of fighting Chaos (which would eventually come regardless) before the Gates collapsed causing Chaos to arrive much sooner on an unfinished world whereupon the Old Ones fucked off to who knows where or died. The new lore is that this isn't the first time this has happened; Warhammer existed in a time loop, with the Old Ones stealing magic from Chaos which causes the Chaos Gods to feel entitled to own the material plane like [[Slaanesh]] to the [[Eldar]] in 40k, where they spend the rest of their history draining magic from the local gods until a cataclysmic event where a handful of Elves survive on a world outside of existence and guide evolution until the Old Ones show up again, rinse and repeat. This cycle was broken finally by [[Be'lakor]] (who's time-travel and alternate universe fuckery is apparently something new to these timelines, despite the "it always existed because there is no time" nature to Chaos because GW writers can't into consistency) who did...''something'' to the new Elf gods in the next world which altered the cycle. The new cycle involves far more than just the Elves, as many characters survived the old setting and became gods in the new one (some didn't become gods, why isn't clear).

Gods exist that aren't part of the cycle as well. Sigmar for example was a mortal man who became trapped in the magic of the Heavens Wind, greatly limiting his power to affect the mortal world but giving him godhood. Gork and Mork ([[Meme|or is it Mork and Gork?]]) have no proper origin, but are somehow able to grant godhood to members of their own pantheon such as through the Spider God who was just an ordinary spider who bit Gork (or possibly Mork). Some of the Elf gods were survivors of the old setting, some have unknown origins and others were just an existing god mistaken as a separate entity. Ranald gambled his way into divinity after tricked some goddess to give him the blessing. Ulric probably became a god after accidentally tempted with one of the old one's warp devices (the one that house the flame of Ulric) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

=Pantheons=

==Elves==
{{Topquote|M: Do you know much about the elven gods, sir?<br>V: Only that they are degenerates, who bicker amongst themselves instead of opposing the true foe.<br>M: As with the mortals, so with the gods, is that it?<br>V: Indeed. Would that Sigmar could return and show them the error of their ways.| [[vermintide 2|Markus Kruber & Victor Saltzpyre]], questioning the Elven gods' liability}}

The Elf pantheon is divided between the Cadai (positive gods) and Cytherai (negative gods). Some of them are shared with 40k, although beyond portfolio and name they are entirely different.
High Elves worship the Cadai light gods and simply try not to piss off the Cytharai by being pansies (which they fail at). Wood Elves worship some, and the others they've modified the mythos of to be more Wood Elf-y (see how they have got Isha and Kurnous bought back to their 'earthy roots). Dark Elves entirely ignore the light side of the pantheon, and worship the darkest aspects of the darker gods (who don't seem to care much about the twisting of the myth since the DEs are the only ones actively worshiping them, and someone getting your myths wrong is better than nobody).
The humans of Albion worship their own version of a few of the Elf gods as well, and it's possible some masquerade as the gods of the Old World. As revealed in the end times, the Lady is Lileath! Shock, horror.

Each name-rune that represents them doubles as a picture of themselves in abstract, as well as a few hidden images (like Lileath being both the devil horned invocation of magic that early High Elf models had, the twin moons, herself seated in an elegant pose, and a few standard High Elf runes mixed throughout). Many of these emblems appear fully on High Elf shields, banners, capes, and any other flat or ripply surface really.

In the [[Black Library]] series [[Defenders of Ulthuan/Sons of Ellyrion]] the Elf gods are portrayed as very real and very powerful, but outside of that series they are described as dying, faded, or outright consumed by Chaos.

===Cadai===
* '''[[Asuryan|Asuryan, the Creator, Emperor of the Heavens]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. Despite always being portrayed as the creator of the Elves he was actually not their literal father and is more the creator of their culture...sort of (thanks to a retcon mess; Wood Elves are the true culture of the Elves, High Elves were what Asuryan created to fight Chaos but the Dark Elves are the result of Khaine and Chaos influence as well as what Asuryan's desired end goal for Elves to be was. Don't think too much about it, its a fucking mess). Zeus expy, although rather than fuck everything he basically [[Tzeentch|sat on his throne and plotted]]. His priesthood were warrior monks with halberds that cared for the Phoenixes of Ulthuan and maintain a chronicle of history including every single event that ever has or will happen. In a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Malekith]] rather than [[Tyrion]] in End Times, and faded into Malekith's being which possibly made him a nobler and less Darth Vader-like being.

* '''[[Vaul|Vaul, the Maker]]''' Smith god. Saved Isha and Kurnous from Khaine after they saved the mortal Elves, forged the [[Widowmaker]]. Crippled and shackled to his anvil, just like Hephaestus/Vulcan from Greek-Roman mythology. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Isha|Isha, the Mother]]''' Mother god, survivor of the old setting. Gave birth to Lileath as well as the first mortal Elves. Lived in Avelorn in Ulthuan until an unknown point in time when she relocated to [[Athel Loren]] then thanks to the draining of Chaos lost much of her divine power and became [[Ariel]]. Due to retcons there's a snarl as to what exactly the [[Everqueen]] connection to her is; previously, she existed as an entity within the Everqueen surrounded by the souls of all other Everqueens and was able to fight Slaanesh as an equal when fully charged up. As of End Times it was revealed that Lileath actually poisoned her with a shard of eternal ice, slowly killing her until the Everqueen could consume her soul while Lileath absorbed her power.

* '''[[Kurnous|Kurnous, the Hunter]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. The actual father of the mortal Elves. Lived with Isha in Avelorn until they traveled to Athel Loren. Became [[Orion]] with the weakening of Chaos. Due to retcon fuckery, there's an issue where he apparently also dwells in Ellyrion and selects champions from the Elves there to lead the fight against Dark Elves and Chaos even though he spends most of his time in Athel Loren killing Bretonnians and Beastmen for the lulz in the Wild Hunt.

* '''[[Hoeth|Hoeth, Lord of Wisdom]]''' Scholar god. Conflicting sources tie him as part of the reason magic behaves the way it does, and attribute various things to him. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Lileath|Lileath, the Maiden]]''' Daughter of Isha and Kurnous, sister to the entire Elf race. Goddess of prophesy to a degree that her father who is omniscient can be surprised by her, somehow. Took on a villainous role in End Times for engineering events that caused massive failures and deaths across the setting while trying to protect the cycle and send her Wood Elf husband [[Araloth]] as the new Asuryan/Kurnous, the High Elf Prince(ss) [[Eldyra]] as the new Isha, and her children with Araloth to be the rest of the pantheon of the new world which was destroyed somehow by Be'lakor making all of her sacrifice and sabotage for nothing. Was also The Lady of Bretonnia and using their entire race as her pawns, and had the persona of Ladrielle as well.

* '''[[Loec|Loec, the Shadow Dancer]]''' Trickster god, created several magical artifacts. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Mathlann|Mathlann, Lord of the Deeps]]''' God of the sea, confirmed to be a real god in End Times although unknown if he is a survivor of the previous setting or not. Known for saving his champion [[Sea Lord Aislinn]] from death constantly, later revealed to actually be Sea Lord Aislinn. Considered a positive aspect of Ellinill in retconned lore.

===Cytharai===
* '''[[Khaine|Khaine, the Bloody-Handed God]]''' Evil Asuryan. Confirmed to be real, unknown if he is a survivor god or not. [[Khorne]] but with magic, he spent most of his time fighting Asuryan for control of the Elves as well as Isha and Kurnous, and just generally being a prick who fucked everything up. Although not on the side of Chaos, he didn't focus any efforts on fighting them and instead caused Elves to fight each other and lose their ability to fight Chaos effectively. Manifested himself in the bloodline of [[Aenarion]], in a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Tyrion]] rather than [[Malekith]] in End Times and died when Asuryan/Malekith killed Tyrion (Tyrion got better, Khaine died).

* '''[[Ereth Khial|Ereth Khial, the Pale Queen]]''' Survivor god of the old setting, fate unknown. Goddess of death for the Elves although thanks to Chaos she gets almost no Elf souls (lore contradiction as apparently the Death Wind contains the bulk of the souls of the dead, even though lore also says Slaanesh eats almost every Elf soul and apparently Ereth Khial was gone or faded by the time of End Times despite Elves that should have already been trapped in the Wind or consumed by Slaanesh appearing as ghosts; arguments can be had in any direction). Suffered in the cold darkness of the new world with Isha and chose to remain alone rather than cling together for comfort as Isha wanted until the new world began with the coming of Asuryan, desired to have him as her husband but he rejected her causing her to hate all beings and torture the Elf souls far worse than Chaos (which represents oblivion rather than suffering). Her domain is called Mirai.

* '''[[Nethu|Nethu, Keeper of the Last Door]]''' Son of Ereth Khial, father unknown. Keeper of the gates of the Mirai and comparable to a Grim Reaper figure. Since Morr is described as an Elf god in a [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] supplement, this may be his true identity. Otherwise his status as real or not is unknown.

* '''[[Anath Raema|Anath Raema, the Savage Huntress]]''' Evil Kurnous, whips around the savage parts of the hearts of the Elves until they go on a Great Hunt but unlike Kurnous she sees all things as game. Given that the lore surrounding Kurnous became fairly evil in regards to his hunts, Anath Raema only represents a lack of concern with preservation and balance rather than outright evil. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Morai-Heg|Morai-Heg, the Crone]]''' An old and wrinkled Elf goddess (yes, apparently they can age) of prophesy who's primary shrine is on an island of Elf amazons who bewitch men to come to the shores that sail too closely then kill them and pave the island with their bones. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Hekarti|Hekarti, Mistress of Magic]]''' Goddess of magic, evil Hoeth. Revealed to be [[Morathi]] in End Times, whether she is a survivor god or not is unknown.

* '''[[Atharti|Atharti, Lady of Desire]]''' Goddess of pleasure, twin sister of Hekarti. Worship of one of them without equal worship of the other causes the less loved one to curse the favoring devotee. Created in 7th edition because Dark Elves worshiping Slaanesh was against [[Gav Thorpe]]'s vision for the race, which is better is the subject of much Skub (although players of the [[Cult Of Slaanesh]] army are strongly against it). Morathi went from being Slaanesh's high priestess and favored mortal to being the biggest worshiper of both Hekarti and Atharti. With the reveal that Morathi IS Hekarti, its left unknown who exactly Atharti is and who punishes you if you prefer Hekarti. Given that in End Times Morathi went quite insane and a little senile after coming under the delusion that first her son Malekith was Aenarion, then the Khaine-possessed Tyrion was Aenarion, Morathi may have been both entities.

* '''[[Ladrielle|Ladrielle, Lady of Mists]]''' A persona of Lileath, a master manipulator. Given that this is a Cytherai and thus one of the less pleasant gods, this may be a better description of Lileath.

* '''[[Ellinill, Lord of Destruction]]''' God of destruction, once a very powerful god with hundreds of children who ran amok throughout the world with him. Drakira tricked Isha into asking Loec to trick him into believing his children were going to revolt, and he went about killing and eating as many as he could. His strength was greatly diminished in his battles. Unknown if real or not. His children are known as the Ellinilli and the only ones that survived are those who hid in the mortal world. Unknow if real or not.

* '''[[Estreuth|Estreuth, Lord of Hunger]]''' God of famine. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Addaioth|Addaioth, Bringer of Fire]]''' God of fire. One of the Ellinilli. Decided to fight his father rather than hide, and was almost killed until Ladrielle (AKA Lileath) saved him and hid him in the mortal world with his siblings. Has prepared to kill his father ever since, thinking of himself as Vaul 2.0 but only creating shitty arms and armor. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Hukon|Hukon, the Sunderer]]''' God of earthquakes. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Drakira|Drakira, Queen of Vengeance]]''' Goddess of revenge, one of the Ellinilli who was picked on by her siblings and neglected by her father. Manipulated Isha's sorrow at the suffering her family caused mortals into becoming hatred, and all beings have been careful not to offend her ever since. Worshiped heavily by Dark Elves, but loves all Elves equally and keeps part of them any time they make a deal with her. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Eldrazor|Eldrazor, Lord of Blades]]''' A god of war and duels. Although he doesn't seek war, once it begins there is nothing out of bounds for him. Basically a more reserved and less aggressive Khaine. Unknown if real or not.

==Dwarfs==
The gods of the [[Dwarfs]] are mortal Dwarfs who attained godhood, and as such are referred to as Ancestor Gods. They have only three main ones with lesser ones as their family (plus one guy who’s just kind of there) , but Dwarfs can invoke the names of their own heroes and ancestors religiously as well.

* '''[[Valaya]]''' Goddess of hearth, home, brewing, healing, defending against Chaos, and basically every single other thing the other two don't do. Settled the first and greatest Dwarf Holds, ancestor of the greatest Dwarfs, invented the Dwarf written language and every other aspect of their culture. The least important god because...[[Fail|reasons]]. In End Times she was discovered to be slumbering by [[Queen Neferata]] in a long-forgotten Vault in a ritual to charge up a magic gate and create a new golden age for Dwarfkind. After a battle between Nef, [[Night Goblins]], and [[Thorek Ironbrow]] the Dwarfs were left dead and Valaya's divine power was consumed by [[Nagash]]. She didn't receive an [[Age of Sigmar]] resurrection, because [[Fail|reasons]].

* '''[[Grungni]]''' Dwarf smith god. After Valaya invented runes, he figured out how to smith them into objects to give Dwarfs magic. Fought in End Times, but survived into Age of Sigmar.

* '''[[Grimnir]]''' Dwarf god of war. After Valaya invented [[Book of Grudges|Grudgekeeping]] he became the patron of them. Became the first [[Slayer]], has a fortress inside of the Warp where he endlessly slaughters the forces of Chaos. Gave up his divinity to [[Gotrek & Felix|Gotrek]] in order to die in the final battle after Gotrek died and avenged his own sin, and in the final battle all Grudges were considered resolved. Gotrek/Grimnir survived into Age of Sigmar where he sat on Sigmar's council until he got bored and was sent to kill a giant monster, causing both to explode and spread throughout the Realms whereupon the mortal Dwarfs who are his devotees collect his parts to reassemble him. Judging by Realmslayer, the Grimnir seen in AoS was the original one with Gotrek merely acting as a vessel for his power, although it seems like Grimnir might have had further plans for Gotrek that have yet to be revealed.

* '''[[Gazul]]''' The Dwarf god of Death. Lived in the time of the trinity, and created the written version of their names as well as the concept of venerating your ancestors. His faith includes the '''Order Of Guardians''', the Dwarf equivalent of Witch Hunters. Every Hold and most settlements, any place that has a place to honorably bury dead Dwarfs in fact, has a shrine or temple to him.

* '''[[Morgrim]]''' God of Engineering. Oldest child of Valaya with Grimnir, personally invented Bolt Throwers and Dwarf Catapults/Stone Throwers (which later became Grudge Throwers). Was Grimnir's companion on the way to close the Warp Gate, but Grimnir forced him to turn back and return home. All Engineers are basically priests of Morgrim, since his teachings are a code of conduct for the craft. Liberal Engineers are considered heretics (but not the kind you shoot, just the kind you shout at) by conservative Dwarfs for their loose interpretations of scripture.

* '''[[Smednir]]''' God of smelting and metalworking. Middle son of Grungni and Valaya. Smednir created the tools that Thungni and Grungni inscribed their rune magic on, and among the greatest creations of the trio of laborers is [[Ghal Maraz]] itself. Smednir's shrines and temples are basically just extensions of those of Grungni's, since the two are inseparable in theme.

* '''[[Thungni]]''' God of Runesmithing. Youngest son of Grungni and Valaya. During the settling of the first Holds he descended into a mystical realm called "Ankor Byrn (Glittering Realm)" where he discovered the ability to forge his mother's language with magic to create runes, although it was his father who later turned the discovery into a science and art. Only descendants of Grungni like himself were capable of learning Runesmithing. All Runesmiths are basically priests of Thungni, like Morgrim's Engineers. Unlike all the other gods who are friendly with the faiths of the allies of the Dwarf race and enemies of those who are Dwarf enemies, Thungni's cult has an additional enemy; non-Dwarfs who try to learn or succeed at making rune magic. This includes human wizards.

*It should be noted that the eldest son of Valaya (with Grungni) is [[Grombrindal|Snorri Whitebeard]]. He did not get to be a god as he had the duty of ruling the Karaz Ankor after his parents departed.

* '''[[Horned Rat|Skavor]]''' An ancestor god who had no talent in crafting using non-living materials but a talent for fleshcrafting and chaos magic. His use of fleshcrafting and chaos magic got him exiled by the rest of the ancestor gods so he fleshcrafted himself into a rat-like abomination and created the Skaven to wipe out the rest of the dwarves out of spite. This is the only known Ancestor God that is shunned and hated by the dwarfs.

==Humans==
Like in all other things, Humanity is really diverse when it comes to religion, ranging from worshipping the [[Chaos Gods]] to worshipping [[Lady of the Lake|an Elf God pretending to be a goddess of chivalry]]. Although some gods are argued to be the [[Sigmar|God of Mankind]], there is no united Human pantheon, just many many different gods for many many different nations. The Old World Pantheon is the collection of Gods worshipped by humans of Old World (which is the closest thing we can get to Human Pantheon). This pantheon mainly divided into two "families", namely '''Northern Gods''' and '''Southern Gods'''. There is also the Patron Gods of nations that don't fit these two families; Sigmar for [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], Lady of the Lake for [[Bretonnia]] and Ursun for [[Kislev]]. Other than them, there are also some other pantheons like [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] Pantheon and thousands of different local gods unrelated to any pantheon. As I said before, Humanity is diverse.
Note also that while the various Human nations may worship ostensibly different gods with different names and different rituals, that these may in fact be local aspects of a smaller number of universal gods. The confirmed example is that of the Old Worlder god of death: when Nehekharan god [[Usirian]] was destroyed this also destroyed the god known in the Empire under the name [[Morr]], for unbeknownst to both sets of worshippers the two gods were simply culturally-specific variants of the same deity. Similar pairings are suspected to exist among other deities (the trade god known as [[Handrich]] to Imperials, but Mercopio to Tileans), and it is thus possible that the bewildering array of human gods may in fact be reducible down to a smaller pantheon of common major deities.
===Empire===
[[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Empire of Man]] has a patron god named [[Sigmar]], the mortal founder of Empire who is believed to be ascended to godhood after he vanished. But unlike [[Imperium of Man|his space faring brother]], the Empire is a polytheistic nation, worship of other gods (except [[Chaos Gods]] and [[Khaine]]) is allowed, although the Cult of Sigmar is the state religion. So most of the Old World Pantheon is also worshipped in Empire or at least respected. The list of the Imperial Gods starting with their Patron God goes as;

* '''[[Sigmar]]''', Warrior-God of Mankind, is the founder of [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], its first Emperor and the most badass human ever lived. His deeds of badassery includes but not limited to; uniting human tribes of Old World, defeating biggest WAAAGH ever happened with said united army, earning the respect of the Dwarfs (by far the hardest one to do), breaking the [[Warriors of Chaos|Norsii]] siege of Middenheim and fighting a fucking [[Bloodthirster]] in there, bashing the skull of [[Nagash]] (doing that by using Nagash's own crown also counts) and destroying his undead army. After establishing a rather stabilized state in Old World, Sigmar left the Empire and never seen again, presumed dead by his people. Years after his departure, some guy named Johann Helsturm proclaimed that he saw the vision of Sigmar being crowned to godhood by [[Ulric]] and joined him among the divinity. Helsturm pretty much created the Cult of Sigmar which gained power among centuries and became the most popular and influental religion in the Empire. Today the Cult of Sigmar holds a major bureaucratic power within the Empire, for example the head of the Sigmarite Church, the Grand Theogonist, is able to cast 3 votes in Emperor's election. Sigmar is worshipped by Imperials as the God of War, Mankind, Heroism, Courage and Empire itsef. He is respected by everyone in the Empire, even the Ulricians of Northern Empire proudly call themselves the sons of Sigmar. His holy symbols are Ghal Maraz (or just a warhammer), the Twin-Tailed Comet and Gryphon. His chants are effective against Daemons and Undead. He is mainly worshipped in Reikland but his worshippers can be found everywhere in the Empire (and probably never found among non-Imperial humans). In the End Times, Sigmar's ascension to godhood is confirmed but [[Tzeentch]] trapped him inside the Winds of Heaven [[Not as planned|which actually supercharged Sigmar with magic]]. In short Sigmar is basicly Conan the Barbarian/Charlemagne/Jesus of Warhammer Fantasy and also Thor to Ulric's Odin.

====Northern Gods====
The '''Northern Gods''' aka the '''Elder Gods''' or the '''Country Gods''' are the gods of pre-Imperial human tribes and during Sigmar's reign. They are quite old, worship of Elder Gods stratches back to several millenia. Although they are losing favor to Sigmar, their worship is still widespread, especially in the countryside. These gods are Ulric, Taal, Rhya and Manann.

* '''[[Ulric]]''', the God of Winter, Wolves and Warfare, younger brother of Taal. He is generally worshipped by non-Chaos [[Vikings]] of Warhammer Fantasy who live in Middenland, Nordland and Ostland. Ulric is the second most popular god of the Empire and was actually the most popular one during the times before Sigmar, being worshiped by all human tribes in one way or another. Actually Sigmar himself was a devout worshipper of him too, all sagas emphasise him being blessed and protected by Ulric. Today, Ulricans are still a powerful group, his worship is quite common and the Viking Pope, Al-Ulric, is able to cast one vote in Emperor's election. When it comes to Sigmar, Ulricians are divided into two. Some of them just don't believe Sigmar is a God and rejects Sigmarites all together and the others believes Sigmar is a God but venerate Ulric more as he is the traditional god of mankind but all of them respect Sigmar all the same as he definitely was Ulric's mortal champion before his ascension to godhood. Ulric is a god of martial skill, not unlike [[Khorne|his evil counter part]] (main difference is Ulric cares whose blood being spilled, preferably his enemies') he favors natural strength; gunpowder weapons and crossbows are to be shunned for they don't require any skill to use. His holy symbol is the White Wolf he manifests. In End Times, [[Teclis]] stole the Flame of Ulric in Middenheim and used it to heal [[Tyrion|his brother]] which caused Middenheim's fall and eventually killed Ulric. [[Eldrad|What a dick]]. It is also revealed that his ascension to the godhood may have to do with the old one device hosting his flame (which may or may not belonging to the ancient Elven colonist before the rise of man and the war of beard that forced the elves to abandoned the old world) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

* '''[[Taal]]''', the God of Wilds, Nature and Beasts, older brother of Ulric and husband of Rhya. Being a Warhammer God, Taal isn't some pesky hippy, he believes in the survival of the fittest. So if you can kill it (in a fair way) all animals are willing to serve you as food and fur. Like Ulric, he favors natural strength and forbids use of gunpowder and adds it the use of metal armor too, only skin and fur of his animals is to be used for clothing. His worshippers are against anything unnatural starting with [[Chaos]] and [[Mutant|Mutants]] to even cities and money in extreme cases. Taal is, like beasts and nature itself, known for being indifferent to morality. His holy symbol is a Stag or just antlers. His worship is almost completely tied with worship of Rhya, which is together called Cult of Taal and Rhya. The two complete eachother as manifestation of Nature; Taal is the animals while Rhya is the plants, Taal is the wrathful natural disasters while Rhya is the generous and fertile soil. He is, like his wife, mainly worshipped in Talabecland. He also has a number of paralells with Kurnous, the Elven god of the hunt.

* '''[[Rhya]]''', the Earth Mother, Goddess of Plants, Farming and Hunting, wife of Taal. She domains over all things that grow, so pretty much Demeter of Warhammer Fantasy. Her worship is a part of Cult of Taal and Rhya which mainly practiced Talabecland. Her holy symbol is a sheaf of wheat and bow and arrow. As said above, worship of Rhya and Taal is tied to eachother though Ryha seems to be less important and [[-4 STR|less powerful]] of the two.

* '''[[Manann]]''', the God of Seas and Tides, son of Taal and Rhya. Worshipped by sailors and fishermen, Manann is not really different than Poseidon of our world. He is quite fickle and dickish, judging his subjects arbitrarily (like Poseidon). Manann's strictures are nothing more than generic sailor superstitions which changes based on sailor, priest and Manann's mood at the time. His holy symbols are wave patterns, albatrosses and his five tinned crown. He is mainly worshipped in Marienburg and other coastal cities although human sailors all around the Old World worship him. Also he is completely identical to [[Mathlann]], the Elven Sea God, and may in fact just be the same deity under a different name.

====Southern Gods====
The '''Southern Gods''' aka the '''Classical Gods''' or the '''Town Gods''' are newer ones among the Old World Pantheon (still older than Sigmar) they are actually not really among the common worship in the Empire (with exception of Morr who is third most popular Imperial God). They are generally worshipped in more civilized and urban areas of South Old World like [[Tilea]] and [[Estalia]]. These gods are Morr, Verena, Myrmidia, Shallya, Ranald and Khaine.

* '''[[Morr]]''', the God of the Dead, Afterlife and Dreams, older brother of [[Khaine]], husband of Verena and father of Myrmidia and Shallya. Similar to Greek Mythology, at the beginning of time the three gods, Ulric, Taal and Morr divided the world between eachother. Ulric and Taal started fighting for the living world while Morr simply settled the realm of the dead. Then the Gods of Mortal Realm and Morr made an agreement to balance things out; Morr and his subjects, the dead, will not tresspass into Mortal Realm and in return, Ulric and Taal will ultimately send all the living to Morr. [[FAIL|Well, when you think about it you can realize this agreement actually gives no benefit to Morr,]] because while Ulric and Taal don't have to do anything for their part (because mortals, naturally, always die), Morr will both have to protect the souls of the dead from being consumed [[Chaos Gods]] and fight the necromancers and undead to do his part of the agreement. Yet again, Morr, being one of the few responsible gods who actively tries to [[gets shit done|do his job,]] maybe took this responsibility willingly. Although he is a less known god among the fans, Morr's worship is the most widespread in the Warhammer world as he is worshipped by all major races and nations even if he is known to them by different names. His symbols are ravens, hourglasses and black roses. His seat of power is in Luccini, Tilea. In End Times, his [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] counterpart, Usirian was devoured by [[Nagash]] which killed Morr too.

* '''[[Verena]]''', the Goddess of Knowledge, Science, Law and Justice, wife of [[Morr]], mother of Myrmidia and Shallya. We all know the Old World is a fucking mess; the civil lands are constantly under siege by the [[Orcs & Goblins|barbarians]] and [[Beastmen|anarchists]] while being ruled by zealots, ignorants, tyrants and decadants. Among this madness, Verena and her worshippers shine as a beacon of reason and intellectuality. Despite being literally the goddess of paperwork, Verena isn't some kind of pacifist (that's [[Shallya|her daughter]]'s gimmick), she dictates her followers to take arms in the face of injustice, tyranny and of course Chaos. Her worshippers usually work as judges, lawyers, scholars, bureaucrats and prone to becoming [[Lawful Stupid]]. Her symbols are owls and scales. Verena doesn't have a seat of power but is mainly being worshipped in big bureaucratic capitals like Altdorf. Also she is probably the same god with [[Hoeth]].

* '''[[Myrmidia]]''', the Goddess of War, Strategy and Military, sister of [[Shallya]]. Yet another god of war, which is normal, considering [[Grimdark|how dominant and constant the war is]]. Myrmidia is rivals with other two Gods of War, [[Ulric]] and [[Sigmar]] but the three actually stand for different aspects of war: Ulric is the down-to-earth part of it, the actual combat, martial prowess and [[Khorne|bloodlust]], Myrmidia is the science of war, strategy and tactics are in her domain and Sigmar stands for the reason behind the war; heroism, patriotism, empire-building, zeal and even self-defence as the Empire never actually seeks for more war. Her worship spreads throught the Empire from Estalia and Tilea, there is even one knightly order that worships to her, the Order of the Blazing Sun which converted during the Crusades. She is mainly worshipped by the generals and strategists rather than the soldiers themselves. Her symbol is a spear behind a shield and an eagle. Lastly if you are retarded and haven't noticed yet, Myrmidia is a shameless ripoff of Athena with no difference other than the name.

* '''[[Shallya]]''', the Goddess of Mercy and Healing, sister of [[Myrmidia]]. Shallya is probably the most [[Noblebright]] thing in Warhammer Fantasy. She offers mercy to all the suffering; the sick, the injured, the beggar, the orphan, the whore, the prisoner, the maimed, the unclean, just all of them. They even believe mutants can be cured, Shallyites actually established a secret mutant village to protect them from the witch hunters. They are right to a some extent because actually some of the mutants are normal mutants like in our world and not corrupted by Chaos at all. [[Grimdark|So probably thousands of humans was burnt on stick just because they are sick]]. She is generally worshipped by doctors and healers or more precisely her worshippers and priests became doctors and healers. Her symbols are a white dove and a heart with a single blood drop. Also she is quite similar to the Elven god [[Isha]].

* '''[[Ranald]]''', the God of Fortune, Luck and Mischief. One of the main problems with [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]] is, while it is still as oppressive as any feudal kingdom it lacks the organized police force to make it effectively like the [[Nazi|modern dictatorships]] did. So there is incredible amouths of criminal activity going on in the Empire. So much, there is a god of it. Although Ranald is the god that stands for freedom against that oppression, he is mainly worshipped by thieves, gamblers and charlatans. Also you may thought his name is nothing fancy, just a generic medieval name, which makes sense because actually Ranald was a mortal that convinced, or tricked, Shallya to let him drink one of her tear vials which ascended Ranald to godhood. Ranald's symbols are a hand with crossed fingers, an X, a black cat and a crow. He is mainly worshipped in big cosmopolitan cities like Marienburg.

* '''[[Khaine]]''', the God of Murder, Violance and Cruelty, younger brother of [[Morr]]. Khaine is in interesting position in the Old World pantheon, while other Elven gods are at least have different human names, Khaine is simply Khaine, the god that Dark Elves worship. Also the worship of Khaine is one of the few outlawed religions in the Empire (only worshipped secretly by cultists) because most human theologians believe Khaine is none other than [[Khorne|the Blood God]] himself. But Khainites know that there is a distinction between Khaine and Khorne; Khorne is more about senseless slaughter, the mass killings happening in the battlefields are what really pleases him. But Khaine is more about the killing of the individuals, the ritualistic art of murder and torture is what really pleases him, yet again battlefields are sacred for him too as the war is nothing more than industialized murder. Also in the End Times, Khaine and Khorne are confirmed to be separate entities but Khaine is still the god of [[murderhobos]] and it is better to outlaw his worship. Khaine is also worshipped as a God of Death, believed to be forever in conflict with his brother, Morr. Being a secret cult, Khaine don't have an openly displayed symbol but a scorpion stinger and a serpentine dagger are symbols generally associated with him. Khaine is commonly worshipped by sadists and serial killers but a few of his worshippers can be found among the soldiery.

===Bretonnia===
[[Lady of the Lake]] is the patron goddess of the [[Bretonnia|Kingdom of Bretonnia]]. Cult of the Lady is the state-religion and holds major political power within Bretonnia and yet the Lady isn't the most widespread worshipped God in Bretonnia. Being a feudal shitland, everything in Bretonnia is divided between [[Noble|Nobility]] and [[Peasant|Peasantry]] (and almost non-existent middle class consisting scholars and merchants) this of course includes the religion too. Peasants are prohibited from the worship of Lady as they are not seen more than vermin and shouldn't bother the Lady with their petty prayers. The middle class is allowed but have to pay tithe to worship in shrines and temple. In short, the cult of the Lady is only open to the Nobility of Bretonnia. This lead the peasantry to worship the Gods of the Old World Pantheon. Bulk of the peasantry (which is also the bulk of Bretonnia's population) worship [[Shallya]] the Goddess of Mercy and Healing. Unlike the Lady of the Lake, Shallya offers confort for everyone especially to the oppressed, suffering people like the peasants of Bretonnia. This made Shallya very popular among the peasants, some of them even believe Shallya is just another aspect of the Lady (basicly her peasant equilavent) which worshippers of the Lady [[Blam|didn't take tolerantly]]. Other than Shallya, Myrmidia is common among the men-at-arms, Taal and Rhya among the farmers, Verena among the scholars etc. Interestingly, worship of Sigmar is almost non-existent within Bretonnia which is weird as Cult of Sigmar, like Cult of Shallya, is a peoples cult, open to everyone. The reason behind this is probably the Bretonnian nobility's xenophobia towards [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]]. Anyway about the Lady of the Lake:

*'''[[Lady of the Lake]]''', the Goddess of Chivalry, Purity and Nobility, the Patron Goddess of [[Bretonnia]]. The Lady of the Lake is basicly the [[Waifu|idealized woman]] that every Bretonnian knight loves. They love her so much many knights are willing to abdicate all their titles and go on a Waifu Quest to find her. Almost all of these Questing Knights die horribly to monsters and other shit they have to fight, before even getting close to her. But most powerful of them find her eventually and when that happens, the Lady of the Lake offers them to drink from the Holy Grail she holds which turns Questing Knights into [[Mary Sue|mary sues]] or Grail Knights as they mostly known as. The Lady of the Lake is only worshipped by the Bretonnian Nobility and her symbols are the Holy Grail and [[Sisters of Battle|Fleur-de-lis]]. In End Times, it was revealed that the Lady of the Lake is none other than the Elven God [[Lileath]], she and the [[Wood Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Wood Elves]] been using Bretonnians as a bulwark against [[Chaos]] and a cat's paw when they don't feel like to risk elf lives. All that holy Grail Knights and lowly peasantry shit was to eliminate the weak and create the best of humanity, worthy of being used by Elves. [[Just as Planned|So the entire culture, religion and politics of Bretonnia is just part of an Elven eugenics programme.]] Also do I have to mention that she was "inspired" from Arthurian legends, like everything else in Bretonnia?

===Kislev===
[[Kislev]] has his own little pantheon of gods consist of three gods: '''Ursun''', '''Dazh''' and '''Tor'''. It isn't like an established Kislevite Pantheon, more like a group of local gods unique to Kislev. While almost all of the Kislevites only worship these three, some other gods have been worshipped by Kislevites too. Northern Gods of the Old World Pantheon is relatively common, mostly [[Ulric]] and Taal mainly because of Kislev's geographical closeness to [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Northern Empire]]. Like in the Empire, many local gods and spirits are venerated too. Interestingly, Kislev is also the only place in the Old World to worship [[Necoho|Ma]][[Zuvassin|lal]]. The Temple of the Ancient Allies in the Kislevite city of Bolgasgrad is the only known temple dedicated to Necoho and Zuvassin, and the city is home to only known worshippers of them. But, to be clear, it isn't like they are commonly worshipped in Kislev, their worshippers are probably even less than their fans in real life. So about the real gods of Kislev:

*'''[[Ursun]]''', the God of [[Bear Lore|Bears]] and Strength, Patron God of Kislev. Ursun is the most commonly worshipped god in Kislev, like Sigmar he's worsipped by everyone from wealthy cityfolk to nomads of the oblast. But in doctrine, Ursun has more common in [[Ulric]] and Taal than Sigmar. Like Ulric, Ursun is all about strenght, he prefers warriors over priests, acts over prayers. And like Taal, Ursun is more of the God of Bears than a God of man, bears are his sacred beast it is a privilege to hunt them, not a right given to humans. Like Taal dictates, bear hunts should be fair, no traps or hunting dogs allowed. One of the reasons that worship of Ursun is so common in Kislev is that Kislev is full of bears and worshipping the God of Bears makes things smoother between man and the beasts (and angering him gets you [[RIP AND TEAR|ripped apart by bears]]). His worshippers are rivals with Ulric's, but mutual respect exists between them. Ursun is practically worshipped by all of the Kislev and only in Kislev. His holy symbol is a bear or a bear's face.

*'''[[Dazh]]''', the God of Sun, Fire and Hospitality. When you live in a frozen wasteland where winters are 10 months long and full of bears, fire and Sun is just what really matters to survive. So you should worship the God of Sun in the second coldest place of the world after [[Chaos Wastes|literally frosty hell]] itself, not some [[Ulric|God of Winter]]. Actually this is why Dazhinyi (and Kislevites in general) despise Ulricans: they are like middle-class children who want winter to come because of Christmas and to play in snow while Kislevites are like homeless people who don't want to freeze to death during winter. Sure, worshipping the God of Winter would probably fix all of that for them, but this is Warhammer so common sense is still [[Heresy|not tolerated]]. Dazh is, like Ursun, widely worshipped by Kislevites but with a bit of change. In the cold harsh tundras of north, Dazh symbolizes the struggle against the nature and his worship is essential to survive Kislevite winters as every campfire and torch lights brightly because of him. In rather civilized south, he is the God of Hospitality, more about hearths and being kind to guests. Dazh's holy symbol is the Sun or a flame. Judging by the Usirian = Morr logic in the End Times, one could say that Ptra and Dazh are the same person due to being primary god of human. Just don't tell Settra about it or he is going to lit Kislev on fire (might be a good thing actually). He is based on Slavic sun god Dazhbog.

*'''[[Tor]]''', the God of Thunder and Lightning. The least inspired name ever given to a god of lightning. But at least he isn't just same with the [[Viking|Norse]] God Thor: Tor isn't a hammer wielding God of Heroism and War (that's [[Sigmar]]'s job) (also Tor prefers an axe), he is more of a force of nature. He is more about saying "Tor is angry today" during a lightning storm than prayers and systematic worship. Well, also a God of Lightning has nothing to offer to humans other than ''not'' striking them with a thunder bolt. Also his stricture is single, simple but smart: "Never stand under a tree in a thunderstorm." Tor's holy symbols are a thunderbolt and a silver axe.

===Nehekhara===
[[Nehekhara]], being '''THE''' human civilization of the world (meaning they are the original human civilization that was created and established by the [[Old Ones]] themselves) has their own unique and sophisticated take on religion and gods. The Priest Kings of Nehekhara and [[Tomb Kings]] of <s>[[Tomb Kings#Death of an Era|old]]</s> today worshipped the '''Nehekharan Pantheon''' also known as the Desert Gods. Nehekarans believed that in the dawn of time, the world was once dark and cold, it was their gods that enlightened the world and created humanity, which is quite a similar story to how the Old Ones created humanity and other races. Almost all of the gods [[Furry|have animal heads or are outright animals]] much like the Egyptian gods. Long ago, the Nehekharan Pantheon consisted of hundreds of different gods and hundreds of different cults dedicated to them, but after [[Nagash]] necro-nuked all of Nehekhara, killing every living thing and reanimating them as [[Undead]], only a handful of Gods remain (unknown if the other gods are dead too, or weren't real to begin with and were simply forgotten) and only the most widespread cult remains today, the Mortuary Cult, a cult dedicated to Usirian. The cult studied death and the afterlife, and also searched for immortality. First they managed to preserve a dead body with mummification (which they learned from the [[Lizardmen]] of the Southlands) then communicating with the dead souls using the [[Warhammer Magic|Wind of Death]] and lastly summoning the dead and binding them to corporal bodies. All of their study lead to Nagash's creation of Necromancy via mixing Dark Magic with the Wind of Death. Anyway about the pantheon:

*'''Ptra''', the God of Sun, Patron God of Nehekhara, husband of Neru. Although he is the most important god of Nehekharan Pantheon, there isn't much to say about him. Ptra is basicly Ra of our world, he rides his chariot in the sky from dawn till dusk, following his love, Neru the Moon Goddess. Unlike other gods of the pantheon, he doesn't have an animal form, or an animal headed form, only appearing in a human form. He is also the creator of humanity, according to Nehekharans. [[Settra the Imperishable]] is his most known (and of course greatest) worshipper because no God is worthy of being worshipped by Settra, other than the King of Gods himself.
*'''Neru''', the Goddess of [[Mannslieb|Moon]] and Protection, wife of Ptra. Boring ass wife of the boring ass god up there. Again not much to say about her, she is actively running away from her husband (for some reason), creating the day and night cycle of the world.
*'''Sakhmet''', the Goddess of the [[Morrslieb|Green Moon]], concubine of Ptra. Also called the Green Witch, Sakhmet envies Ptra's love of Neru, his wife, and all of humanity. During nights, Neru and Sakhmet fight for the domination of the sky, Neru wins most of the time so only Mannslieb appears in the sky but when Sakhmet wins both Mannslieb and Morrslieb appears in the sky, causing days known as Hexenstag and Geheiminstag to the [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Imperials]]. She is seen as a malevolant god by the Nehekharans because she, as said, envies Ptra's love for humanity. While the name is almost same with the Egyptian God Sekhmet, Sakhmet isn't really similar to her other than this: the duality of Sakhmet and Neru resembles how the bloodthirsty lion-headed Goddess of War Sekhmet and the merciful cow-headed Goddess of Love Hathor is the same goddess with a split personality disorder, even so Sakhmet and Neru are certainly not the same goddess at all. Ironically, she had a beastmen follower called '''Moonclaw''' who referred to the green moon as his own mother. During the End Times, chunks of Morrslieb descend up the world after the Skaven's reckless demolition. With that, is safe to say that Sakhmet is officially about as dead as Usirian. But it's not like the moon was alive like the other gods anyway.
*'''Usirian''', the God of the Underworld. Usirian's worship is as widespread as that of Ptra in Nehekhara, since the rise of the Mortuary Cult. As the lord of the Realm of Souls, Usirian judges souls of the living, particullarly the Priest Kings, upon their death; based on their lives, they may make it to the paradise filled with golden palaces to live in and their subjects to tyrannize (two things Priest Kings love the most) or if they didn't had any virtues in life (or [[Peasant|wasn't a nobleborn]]) they probably end up in the deepest pits of the Underworld, [[Grimdark|where millions of beetles will gnaw their skin and entrails forever]] (This sounds eerily similar to Abrahamic religions). Another privilege nobles get is that if they fuck up, Priests of Usirian will try to bargain with Usirian to mitigate their punishments. Khepra Beetles are said to be Usirians agents in the living realm, he monitors the mortals from the beetles' eyes, seeing all sins of the men and because said beetles are everywhere in Nehekhara, [[1984|every man and woman are being watched by him 7/24]]. On the other hand this also means using a bug sprey lets you trick the God of Dead. Usirian is also never physically represented as that would be [[heresy]] (now it is really similar to one particular Abrahamic religion). His most known worshipper is the Grand Hierophant Khatep who is the High Priest of the Mortuary Cult, Prophet of the Lord of the Tomb, Master of Awakenings but most importantly Settra's advisor during his life. Lastly in the [[End Times]], Usirian was devoured by Nagash which killed [[Morr]] too, this confirms that they were indeed the same god (in fact all Gods of Dead are probably the same god).
*'''Djaf''', the God of Death and War. While he is an important god, he is the god of death of undead egyptians after all and his ushabtis are one of the most common ones, not much is known about him. Considering another similar God, Usirian, is venerated much more than him and that he is also a God of War, Djaf is probably more abouth down-to-earth part of death not its concept or spiritual side. Djaf usually takes form of a jackal headed man or a large black jackal so he is basicly the Egyptian God of Death, Anubis.
*'''Asaph''', the Goddess of Beauty and Asps. When to be seen, Asaph takes the form of a seductive woman or [[Furry|an asp but still looking as seductive as woman]]. Lorewisely, the most important thing she did was saving [[Queen Khalida]] from becoming a [[vampire]] which made her the greatest worshipper of Asaph. Other than that, Asaph is really similar to the Chaos God [[Slaanesh]], both being gods of beauty and has a strong association with snakes. Unknown if there is a connection or not.
*'''Geheb''', the God of Earth and Strenght. As a god worshipped by warriors and soldiers, Geheb takes form of a lion or a big hunting dog in animal form and a musclar man with a thick beard in human form. Again another god with a Chaos God similarity, both [[Khorne]] and Geheb is worshipped by great warriors and has hunting dogs as their sacred animal. Also worship of Geheb involves a blood ritual which the worshippers drink the blood of a newly sacrificed ox.
*'''Tahoth''', the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Tahoth usually takes the form of an ibis headed man, or a silver colored ibis which makes him quite similar to [[Tzeentch]], the other bird headed god of knowledge. But this time this is probably because Tzeentch is inspired by the Egyptian God of Knowledge Thoth while Tahoth is just Thoth with a different name.
*'''Sokth''', the God of Scorpions, Thieves and Assassins. Although he is the protector of thieves, Sokth forbids grave-robbing and his sons (scorpions) guard the royal tombs along with Usirian's beetles. It's believed that the Nehekharan scorpions will never sting a true follower of Sokth but I'm sure nobody dares to test that. Sokth usually appears as a giant black scorpion or a man with pure black eyes.
*'''Phakth''', the God of Sky and Justice. Phakth usually takes the form of a hawk headed man or a blue hawk with golden eyes so he is practically the same god as Horus ([[Horus Lupercal|no, not that one]]).
*'''Basth''', the Goddess of Cats and Love. Usually appears as [[Furry|a cat headed woman]] or as [[Catgirl|a woman with cat-like features]]. She is the Egyptian Goddess of Cats, Bastet, of Warhammer Fantasy.
*'''[[Nagash]]''', the Supreme Lord of Undeath. Before I start let me explain why I decided to add Nagash to the list: Not because Nagash ascended to godhood in [[Age of Sigmar]] but because he has been worshipped as a god before that, since his first defeat, by priest kings to vampires, by crazed cultists to great necromancers. You may argue that Nagash is clearly not a god, as he is trying to become a god, so he has no place in here and I would say half of the gods listed here probably don't even exist or are a [[Chaos God]] in disguise so listen up. While not being a part of the Nehekharan Pantheon, Nagash has been (secretly) worshipped as a God by Nehekharans for millenia. Worship of Nagash, or Nagashism as it's named in [[Total War: WARHAMMER|Total War: Warhammer]], stretchs back to his first defeat. After dying in the desert and resurrecting himself as some sort of [[Lich]], Nagash deceived some mountain tribes into worshipping him as a god. After that, said tribesmen and his undead minions built the great fortress of Nagashizzar under the command of Nagash. Even today, in the highest chamber of the fortress, [[God-Emperor of Mankind|the corpse of Nagash sits on his throne with hundreds of zealous cultists worshipping him as a God]], listening to his whispers, doing his bidding. Since then, thinking being worshipped is quite handy, Nagash disguises himself as a god to manipulate humans. It is known that he has been willingly worshipped by many necromancers and vampires (which is actually rare, as vampires generally don't accept anyone as his/her superior). Nagash may also interfere with the wizards of the Wind of Death, especially Mortuary Priests, presenting himself as Usirian, the Nehekharan God of the Dead or [[Morr]], the Imperial God of the Dead, and use them to further his schemes. But he usually does that when he doesn't have a corporeal form because when he is in the mortal realm there is no need to trick anyone into believing he is a god. As said above, in the End Times he ascended to godhood and became the only [[Tomb King]] that made it to [[Age of Sigmar]].

===Northmen===
Although many Norscan tribes venerate all the gods, most tend to favour one of the Four for his blessings. Below them are various Daemon Princes, fallen ancestors and Chaos Champions, and other lesser spirits alongside the Big Four.

*'''[[Khorne]]''' - The Hound, Kharnath, Lord of Rage, Akhar, Kjorn, the Axefather, Khorgar, the Bloodwolf, and the Wolf-Father and many more names. In such a brutal, warlike culture moulded by harsh climate and monsters, he is the most popular deity in Norsca.
*'''[[Tzeentch]]''' - The Eagle, Tchar, the Raven God and expy of [[Odin]]. Patron deity of the seers and ''vitki'' (sorcerers), he is distrusted by most Norscans. However, because he is also the god of the winds of Magic and physical currents, he is venerated before the Norscans board their longships.
*'''[[Nurgle]]''' - The Crow, Neiglen, Nurglitch, Onogal. Usually prayed to for avoiding plagues, or to spare themselves from the worst of the plagues by dedicating themselves to him.
*'''[[Slaanesh]]''' - The Serpent, Shornaar, Lanshor. Invoked at the feasts and marriages that occur after battles.
*'''Mermedus''' - a caricature of Mannan, this monstrous sea horror is invoked to avoid his wrath when Skaelings sail. Prisoners are sacrificed to Mermedus by being drowned with heavy weights, and to die at sea is to sink into Mermedus' domains, deprived from the glorious halls of the Four.

The Norscans believe that they must become strong and cruel, to win the favour of the Four Gods after they die and enter their halls for an eternity of feasting and brawling. Should they die as cowards or without their hands and weapons, they might instead be chased around in the afterlife as playthings for Daemons.

===Minor Nations===
Even if they have never seen the light of the day, [[End Times|and never will]], there are human nations other than [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], [[Bretonnia]] and [[Warriors of Chaos|Northmen]]: the myst shrouded island of Albion, the Great Sultanate of Araby, Democratic City-States of [[Tilea]], Ever-warring kingdoms of [[Estalia]], Feudal Kingdom of [[Nippon]], Grand Empire of [[Cathay]], Kingdoms of Ind, the Hinterlands of Khuresh and more. While collective lore on these are less than any playable faction's, some of these factions' religious practices are known and some what interesting.
*'''[[Tilea]]''' worships the Southern Gods of the [[Old World]] Pantheon, mainly [[Myrmidia]], the Goddess of War and Strategy. Tileans are sailors and pirates, so Manann, the God of Seas, is also worshipped by many. Other than them, local gods of city-states are among common worship. Like Luccan and Luccina, the founders of the City-State of Luccini, is the most worshipped God in said city (You know [[Roman Empire|Romulus and Remus]]?). As a cosmopolitan country, Tilea also been influenced by other cultures and even races, like in Tobaro, people living in the underground tunnels of the city commonly worship il Grungnio or Grungni, the Dwarf God of Miners as he known to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy)|Dwarfs]]. Even so, Tileans are said to be "casual" worshippers, not taking the religion so seriously, unlike the Imperials and Bretonnians.
*'''[[Estalia]]''', being same as Tileans but with Spanish names, worships the Southern Gods of the Old World Pantheon, again mainly [[Myrmidia]]. But this didn't have a unifying effect on Estalians and Tileans, they have been fighting for centuries by now. Both sides claim that they are the real sons of Myrmidia.
*'''Araby''' is known to be worshipping a single god, being one of the very few monotheistic nations in the world. He chooses prophets among the people to teach his gospel to the Arabyans. A warrior-cult known as Dervishers is dedicated to that God, fan-named Ohrmazd (which is another name of Ahura Mazda, the God of Zoroastrianism) and said to be "too willing" to die for their god [[FAIL|which is a bit stupid because real life Dervishs (Islamic Monks) while very religious, were also pacifists and humanists]]. Another possibility would be that the Nehekharan gods might also be worshipped in Araby, as Araby is technically Nehekhara's living successor. Among the deities attested in canon venerated by the Arabyans include:
** '''the Djinn''', which are actually Daemons.
** '''Ancient deities''' older than the Nehekharan gods, promoted by another prophet known as Mullah Aklan'd, who was also Araby's first Great Sultan and unifier.
*'''[[Cathay]]''' is, surprisingly, a semi-atheist country, where the Dragon Emperor commands his people to see him just as a mighty all-knowing leader without any godhood nonsense. [[Emperor|This seems very familiar, doesn't it?]] However, Big D can't control literally everyone, so cults in his name do exist in some remote regions. [[Tzeentch]] worship is also still present, and is a major problem in this country.
*The Kingdoms of '''Ind''' are also called the Land of a Thousand Gods. Shit goes down in Ind because it is literally the land of a thousand gods and at least most of the gods are real and very active. They are said to be very fickle and quick to anger, judging and punishing their worshippers swiftly. So every part of the Indian life is a ritual: like if you overcook a [[Meatbread|meal]] a bit, you may be struck down by the God of Food or if you don't [[THIN YOUR PAINTS|thin your paints]], the [[Duncan Rhodes|God of Thin Paints]] may visit you at night. Leopold Riogillo, a merchant prince, notes that Indians see the tiger-headed [[beastmen]] of their land as holy spirits, yet again it is known that at least one god, the four-armed Bharmir, despises [[Chaos]].
** '''Brahmir''' - not-Brahman (or more like Vishnu), his holy statues can scare the Warp out of Chaos-worshippers.
** '''She'ar Khawn''' - not-Narasimha, a popular deity whose eight-armed statues are found in almost every temple in Ind.
** '''Gilgadresh''' - his temple was looted by Lokhir Fellheart.
*'''Amazons''', the warrior tribeswoman of [[Lustria]], worships the same pantheon of gods as the [[Lizardmen]] who are the [[Old Ones]]. Not much is known other than that.
** '''Rigg''', one of the Old Ones and the mother of Kalith, she is their goddess of war.
** '''Kalith''', the daughter of Rigg and the Elven sea god Amex, her functions and powers are unknown.

==Lizardmen==
Lizardmen revere the [[Old Ones]] as their gods. Lizardmen are brought fully formed into the world as full fighting units from magical spawning pools, some of these units have somehow been marked by one or more of the Old Ones for some specific purpose these are known as sacred spawnings. Albino Lizardmen are said to have the mark of the Old Ones and are believed to be destined for greatness.

* '''[[Sotek]]''' Unlike the other Old Ones Sotek was not among the original pantheon that created the Lizardmen and uplifted the humans, elves and dwarves. Sotek was brought into the world during the invasion of Lustria by the Skaven clan Pestilence. After numerous blood sacrifices [[Khorne|turning rivers red]] by the Lizardmen, a gargantuan snake appeared and chased the Skaven out of Lustria. Those marked by Sotek have a red stripe on top of their heads and sometimes running down their backs, they are fiercer than other Lizardmen. Sotek is the only Old One known to have sacred spawnings of skinks, fitting as it was these little WS 2 T 2 shits that made rivers run red with rat blood.

* '''Chotec''' God of the sun. Those of Chotec's sacred spawning are marked by the colour orange and are more energetic.

* '''Huanchi''' Jaguar god of stealth & ambush. The blessed spawning of Huanchi have darker coloured scales, possibly black or brown, they are experts at hunting down prey.

* '''Itzl''' God of cold-blooded beasts. Those of Itzl's sacred spawning are marked by bony crests and a distinct smell and are great beastmasters.

* '''Tepok''' Depicted as a feathered serpent, Tepok is the god of mystery. Those of Tepok's sacred spawning have purple scales on their backs and are protected against magic.

* '''Tzunki''' God of water. The blessed spawnings of Tzunki have green scales on their backs and are known to be blessed with gills and flippers.

* '''Tlazcotl''' God of stoicism. The blessed spawning of Tlazcotl have yellow scales along the main of their headcreasts and down along the crests of their back.

* '''Quetzl''' God of protection. The blessed spawning of Quetzl have thick scales.

*'''Xhotl''' Possibly a God of retribution given what their blessing does. Saurus are not spawned with it since the eponymous temple city of Xhotl was destroyed in the aftermath of the collapse of the polar gates, with Kroq-gar as the last survivor of it and bearer of the spawning, which grants a magical forcefield to its bearer and strikes back at anything that gets through.

* '''Minor Deities''' Many more Old Ones, like Tlanxla, are mentioned briefly in fluff but they've had very little impact as they've been dead or gone for ages. In rare cases a single saurus or skink will emerge alone from a spawning pool, completely albino of scale, and marked for greatness by all the Old Ones at once.

==Greenskins==
The Greenskins have two universal Gods; with several others.

*'''[[Gork]]''': He's Brutally Cunning.
*'''[[Mork]]''': He's Cunningly Brutal.
*'''Bad Moon''': Venerated by the Night Goblins, he causes mushrooms to grow from anywhere where he shines on, even victims unfortunate enough to be basked in it.
*'''[[Spider-God]]''': a god venerated by the Forest Goblins. They use spider poisons to get high and enter a trance to commune with their god and tame spiders to ride around on in its honor.

==Ogres==
*'''[[Great Maw]]''' - A ''something'' that appeared after the Dragon Emperor of Cathay called down a meteor to punish the Ogres fucking up his lands. It was possibly a warpstone meteor and POSSIBLY caused by interference from Tzeentch but whatever it was left a big fleshy mouth in the ground that cursed the Ogres with a constant hunger, which also made them worship it as a god. Is it? Well the Ogres think so, and are you gonna tell em different?
*'''[[Fire Mouth]]''' - A volcano worshiped by the Firebellies. They drink super hot food (if not actual lava) to venerate it and grant them spells.

==Skaven==
*'''The (Great) [[Horned Rat]]''' - "what a minute isnt The Horned Rat a [[Chaos Gods|Chaos God]]? whats he doing here?" you might be asking. well the answer is "Because he's a.) a fantasy (and its [[Age of Sigmar|sequel]]) god and b.) the only one with its own specific race of worshipers that isnt a [[Chaos Dwarfs|spin off]] or [[Dragon Ogres|split between the other four]]". The Horned Rat is not only the god of the [[Skaven]], he is the exemplar of their race as a whole! He's [[Tzeentch|sneaky and cunning]], ruthlessly [[Slaanesh|self indulgent and self interested]], [[Nurgle|plague-ridden]] and [[Khorne|murderous and power hungry]] and demands that his people follow in his image while also honoring him during. hes also one of the few gods to actually appear to his race and tell them to stop screwing around and get shit done now and again. Various origins have him as a Daemon of Nurgle that got above his raisin and made some ratmen, or a traitorous Dwarfen Ancestor god that fucked off to screw shit up, but its unknown if either of these are true. And he was probably behind The Doom of Kavzar in some way.

==Pygmies==
*'''Beesbok''': God of Procrastination, Food, Feasting, and Happiness
*'''Brodat''': God of Work, Poison, Magic, and Dourness.
[[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]

Warhammer Fantasy Gods

2022-06-30T06:08:18Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Skaven */

{{Whfb-stub}}
{{Topquote|And then the Cataclysm came. King [[Taal]] rose from His Forest, and with Dark [[Morr]] muttering dire portents in His ear, He banished all immortals from the world. But the Cataclysm’s architects refused His order. [[Tzeentch|The Crow]], [[Khorne|the Hound]], [[Slaanesh|the Serpent]], and [[Nurgle|the Vulture]] were jealous of King Taal, and had tried to use the Great Gates to take what was His. They had failed. As the other immortals fled, the Four attacked, bitter and angry with their frustrations. Many died. After countless battles, King Taal was eventually surrounded. There were few still by his side. [[Ulric]] the Wolf. Noble [[Myrmidia|Margileo]]. Just [[Verena]]. [[Sotek]] the Snake. [[Manann]] of the Sea. And Gentle [[Shallya]], tear-stained and afraid. Even Smiling [[Ranald]] had fled, and now hid in the Places Between, fearful for the future. Then, just as the Four and their allies arrived for the Final Battle, [[Asuryan|Flaming Phoenix]], whom all had thought dead, returned from atop His Gleaming Pyramid, and He smote about Him. Thus the rebels were pushed behind the Great Gates, and were sealed there forever. But they were restless in their cage, and soon worked to escape.|Translated from the Obernarn Stone, now held in the Imperial Museum, Altdorf}}

Like any other fantasy setting, Warhammer Fantasy has its own gods.

Sporadically throughout the game, mainly in a few Chaos books and near [[The End Times|the end of its life]], it was stated that there are no other gods and only [[Chaos Gods]] exist. This is a typically [[Daemon|Daemonic]] twisting of the truth (although the claim was enough to make [[Archaon]] go full-[[Star Wars|Anakin Skywalker]]) and contradictive of other material. There is also some discrepancy between fans of [[Warhammer 40000]] who believe that Fantasy magic works in the same way that Psyker energy works in 40k. The final issue is [[The End Times]] and [[Age of Sigmar]] as well as their 8th edition lead-in, which changed quite a bit of existing lore as retcons disguised as "revealing the truth".

Unsurprisingly, the nature of gods in both settings is one of the more skub-filled lore topics.

=The Nature Of The Divine=
In early Warhammer lore gods simply existed and had their own faiths. Certain Chaos supplements suggested there were no gods and that only [[Chaos]] exists with the nature of the Chaos Gods being insane beings who pretend to be other personas in order to fight each other and themselves, like a giant 1000 character game of [[Dungeons & Dragons]] with no DM and only four people wearing blindfolds so nobody knows who is who other than [[Tzeentch|that one asshole with an actual case of multiple personality disorder who's peeking]]. As this only appears in a few Chaos supplements and nowhere else however, its authenticity is [[skub|questionable]] at best.

The nature of all the gods was explained differently over the years. In the earliest instances, when Warhammer was ''only'' Fantasy, gods didn't exist until the collapse of the Warpgates, and were more akin to extremely powerful angels and daemons than actual deities. Another one of the oldest tellings suggests there is one supremely powerful being at the center of the Warp, and that all gods, evil and good, originate from that single force. In others, the gods always existed, even before the Old Ones. As mentioned above, a few Chaos books suggested all gods were only fractions of larger Chaos gods, whose own origins were unclear. A few other explanations say the benevolent gods (Order) were made by or enserved to the Old Ones, while the malevolent gods (Chaos, Destruction) were rebels. If you take 40K as valid for both its own gods and Fantasy's, it states that gods are actually the coalesced belief and emotion of mortal beings, sort of a psychic gestalt. Whatever the source, it was always left intentionally vague and contradictive which explanation, if any provided, was valid, and there was a sense that the true nature of the divine was something beyond the understanding of the mortals "telling" the story (lore) of the world.

In truth, or at least according to the last entries of the setting, all non-material plane things are made of magic. Souls are magic, the Winds of Magic are magic, Daemons are magic, and so are all the Gods. This is apparently(?) the "truth" that Archaon learned, because the teachings of his faith are that magic is [[Heresy]] and apparently gods were just shitting miracles out of scientific stardust or something.

The End Times event revealed quite a bit, all of which is fairly skubby. The history of Warhammer is that the [[Old Ones]] descended from some unknown place, possibly another dimension, planet, or place in the timeline, on a primitive world full of [[Dinosaur]]s, [[Dragon]]s, and [[Neanderthal]] versions of the classic Fantasy races then created the [[Warp|Warp Gates]] to suck magic from the Warp which they used to alter the world and create a race capable of fighting Chaos (which would eventually come regardless) before the Gates collapsed causing Chaos to arrive much sooner on an unfinished world whereupon the Old Ones fucked off to who knows where or died. The new lore is that this isn't the first time this has happened; Warhammer existed in a time loop, with the Old Ones stealing magic from Chaos which causes the Chaos Gods to feel entitled to own the material plane like [[Slaanesh]] to the [[Eldar]] in 40k, where they spend the rest of their history draining magic from the local gods until a cataclysmic event where a handful of Elves survive on a world outside of existence and guide evolution until the Old Ones show up again, rinse and repeat. This cycle was broken finally by [[Be'lakor]] (who's time-travel and alternate universe fuckery is apparently something new to these timelines, despite the "it always existed because there is no time" nature to Chaos because GW writers can't into consistency) who did...''something'' to the new Elf gods in the next world which altered the cycle. The new cycle involves far more than just the Elves, as many characters survived the old setting and became gods in the new one (some didn't become gods, why isn't clear).

Gods exist that aren't part of the cycle as well. Sigmar for example was a mortal man who became trapped in the magic of the Heavens Wind, greatly limiting his power to affect the mortal world but giving him godhood. Gork and Mork ([[Meme|or is it Mork and Gork?]]) have no proper origin, but are somehow able to grant godhood to members of their own pantheon such as through the Spider God who was just an ordinary spider who bit Gork (or possibly Mork). Some of the Elf gods were survivors of the old setting, some have unknown origins and others were just an existing god mistaken as a separate entity. Ranald gambled his way into divinity after tricked some goddess to give him the blessing. Ulric probably became a god after accidentally tempted with one of the old one's warp devices (the one that house the flame of Ulric) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

=Pantheons=

==Elves==
{{Topquote|M: Do you know much about the elven gods, sir?<br>V: Only that they are degenerates, who bicker amongst themselves instead of opposing the true foe.<br>M: As with the mortals, so with the gods, is that it?<br>V: Indeed. Would that Sigmar could return and show them the error of their ways.| [[vermintide 2|Markus Kruber & Victor Saltzpyre]], questioning the Elven gods' liability}}

The Elf pantheon is divided between the Cadai (positive gods) and Cytherai (negative gods). Some of them are shared with 40k, although beyond portfolio and name they are entirely different.
High Elves worship the Cadai light gods and simply try not to piss off the Cytharai by being pansies (which they fail at). Wood Elves worship some, and the others they've modified the mythos of to be more Wood Elf-y (see how they have got Isha and Kurnous bought back to their 'earthy roots). Dark Elves entirely ignore the light side of the pantheon, and worship the darkest aspects of the darker gods (who don't seem to care much about the twisting of the myth since the DEs are the only ones actively worshiping them, and someone getting your myths wrong is better than nobody).
The humans of Albion worship their own version of a few of the Elf gods as well, and it's possible some masquerade as the gods of the Old World. As revealed in the end times, the Lady is Lileath! Shock, horror.

Each name-rune that represents them doubles as a picture of themselves in abstract, as well as a few hidden images (like Lileath being both the devil horned invocation of magic that early High Elf models had, the twin moons, herself seated in an elegant pose, and a few standard High Elf runes mixed throughout). Many of these emblems appear fully on High Elf shields, banners, capes, and any other flat or ripply surface really.

In the [[Black Library]] series [[Defenders of Ulthuan/Sons of Ellyrion]] the Elf gods are portrayed as very real and very powerful, but outside of that series they are described as dying, faded, or outright consumed by Chaos.

===Cadai===
* '''[[Asuryan|Asuryan, the Creator, Emperor of the Heavens]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. Despite always being portrayed as the creator of the Elves he was actually not their literal father and is more the creator of their culture...sort of (thanks to a retcon mess; Wood Elves are the true culture of the Elves, High Elves were what Asuryan created to fight Chaos but the Dark Elves are the result of Khaine and Chaos influence as well as what Asuryan's desired end goal for Elves to be was. Don't think too much about it, its a fucking mess). Zeus expy, although rather than fuck everything he basically [[Tzeentch|sat on his throne and plotted]]. His priesthood were warrior monks with halberds that cared for the Phoenixes of Ulthuan and maintain a chronicle of history including every single event that ever has or will happen. In a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Malekith]] rather than [[Tyrion]] in End Times, and faded into Malekith's being which possibly made him a nobler and less Darth Vader-like being.

* '''[[Vaul|Vaul, the Maker]]''' Smith god. Saved Isha and Kurnous from Khaine after they saved the mortal Elves, forged the [[Widowmaker]]. Crippled and shackled to his anvil, just like Hephaestus/Vulcan from Greek-Roman mythology. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Isha|Isha, the Mother]]''' Mother god, survivor of the old setting. Gave birth to Lileath as well as the first mortal Elves. Lived in Avelorn in Ulthuan until an unknown point in time when she relocated to [[Athel Loren]] then thanks to the draining of Chaos lost much of her divine power and became [[Ariel]]. Due to retcons there's a snarl as to what exactly the [[Everqueen]] connection to her is; previously, she existed as an entity within the Everqueen surrounded by the souls of all other Everqueens and was able to fight Slaanesh as an equal when fully charged up. As of End Times it was revealed that Lileath actually poisoned her with a shard of eternal ice, slowly killing her until the Everqueen could consume her soul while Lileath absorbed her power.

* '''[[Kurnous|Kurnous, the Hunter]]''' Father god, survivor of the old setting. The actual father of the mortal Elves. Lived with Isha in Avelorn until they traveled to Athel Loren. Became [[Orion]] with the weakening of Chaos. Due to retcon fuckery, there's an issue where he apparently also dwells in Ellyrion and selects champions from the Elves there to lead the fight against Dark Elves and Chaos even though he spends most of his time in Athel Loren killing Bretonnians and Beastmen for the lulz in the Wild Hunt.

* '''[[Hoeth|Hoeth, Lord of Wisdom]]''' Scholar god. Conflicting sources tie him as part of the reason magic behaves the way it does, and attribute various things to him. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Lileath|Lileath, the Maiden]]''' Daughter of Isha and Kurnous, sister to the entire Elf race. Goddess of prophesy to a degree that her father who is omniscient can be surprised by her, somehow. Took on a villainous role in End Times for engineering events that caused massive failures and deaths across the setting while trying to protect the cycle and send her Wood Elf husband [[Araloth]] as the new Asuryan/Kurnous, the High Elf Prince(ss) [[Eldyra]] as the new Isha, and her children with Araloth to be the rest of the pantheon of the new world which was destroyed somehow by Be'lakor making all of her sacrifice and sabotage for nothing. Was also The Lady of Bretonnia and using their entire race as her pawns, and had the persona of Ladrielle as well.

* '''[[Loec|Loec, the Shadow Dancer]]''' Trickster god, created several magical artifacts. Status as real unknown.

* '''[[Mathlann|Mathlann, Lord of the Deeps]]''' God of the sea, confirmed to be a real god in End Times although unknown if he is a survivor of the previous setting or not. Known for saving his champion [[Sea Lord Aislinn]] from death constantly, later revealed to actually be Sea Lord Aislinn. Considered a positive aspect of Ellinill in retconned lore.

===Cytharai===
* '''[[Khaine|Khaine, the Bloody-Handed God]]''' Evil Asuryan. Confirmed to be real, unknown if he is a survivor god or not. [[Khorne]] but with magic, he spent most of his time fighting Asuryan for control of the Elves as well as Isha and Kurnous, and just generally being a prick who fucked everything up. Although not on the side of Chaos, he didn't focus any efforts on fighting them and instead caused Elves to fight each other and lose their ability to fight Chaos effectively. Manifested himself in the bloodline of [[Aenarion]], in a very [[Skub|skubby]] part of the lore he possessed [[Tyrion]] rather than [[Malekith]] in End Times and died when Asuryan/Malekith killed Tyrion (Tyrion got better, Khaine died).

* '''[[Ereth Khial|Ereth Khial, the Pale Queen]]''' Survivor god of the old setting, fate unknown. Goddess of death for the Elves although thanks to Chaos she gets almost no Elf souls (lore contradiction as apparently the Death Wind contains the bulk of the souls of the dead, even though lore also says Slaanesh eats almost every Elf soul and apparently Ereth Khial was gone or faded by the time of End Times despite Elves that should have already been trapped in the Wind or consumed by Slaanesh appearing as ghosts; arguments can be had in any direction). Suffered in the cold darkness of the new world with Isha and chose to remain alone rather than cling together for comfort as Isha wanted until the new world began with the coming of Asuryan, desired to have him as her husband but he rejected her causing her to hate all beings and torture the Elf souls far worse than Chaos (which represents oblivion rather than suffering). Her domain is called Mirai.

* '''[[Nethu|Nethu, Keeper of the Last Door]]''' Son of Ereth Khial, father unknown. Keeper of the gates of the Mirai and comparable to a Grim Reaper figure. Since Morr is described as an Elf god in a [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] supplement, this may be his true identity. Otherwise his status as real or not is unknown.

* '''[[Anath Raema|Anath Raema, the Savage Huntress]]''' Evil Kurnous, whips around the savage parts of the hearts of the Elves until they go on a Great Hunt but unlike Kurnous she sees all things as game. Given that the lore surrounding Kurnous became fairly evil in regards to his hunts, Anath Raema only represents a lack of concern with preservation and balance rather than outright evil. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Morai-Heg|Morai-Heg, the Crone]]''' An old and wrinkled Elf goddess (yes, apparently they can age) of prophesy who's primary shrine is on an island of Elf amazons who bewitch men to come to the shores that sail too closely then kill them and pave the island with their bones. Status as real or not unknown.

* '''[[Hekarti|Hekarti, Mistress of Magic]]''' Goddess of magic, evil Hoeth. Revealed to be [[Morathi]] in End Times, whether she is a survivor god or not is unknown.

* '''[[Atharti|Atharti, Lady of Desire]]''' Goddess of pleasure, twin sister of Hekarti. Worship of one of them without equal worship of the other causes the less loved one to curse the favoring devotee. Created in 7th edition because Dark Elves worshiping Slaanesh was against [[Gav Thorpe]]'s vision for the race, which is better is the subject of much Skub (although players of the [[Cult Of Slaanesh]] army are strongly against it). Morathi went from being Slaanesh's high priestess and favored mortal to being the biggest worshiper of both Hekarti and Atharti. With the reveal that Morathi IS Hekarti, its left unknown who exactly Atharti is and who punishes you if you prefer Hekarti. Given that in End Times Morathi went quite insane and a little senile after coming under the delusion that first her son Malekith was Aenarion, then the Khaine-possessed Tyrion was Aenarion, Morathi may have been both entities.

* '''[[Ladrielle|Ladrielle, Lady of Mists]]''' A persona of Lileath, a master manipulator. Given that this is a Cytherai and thus one of the less pleasant gods, this may be a better description of Lileath.

* '''[[Ellinill, Lord of Destruction]]''' God of destruction, once a very powerful god with hundreds of children who ran amok throughout the world with him. Drakira tricked Isha into asking Loec to trick him into believing his children were going to revolt, and he went about killing and eating as many as he could. His strength was greatly diminished in his battles. Unknown if real or not. His children are known as the Ellinilli and the only ones that survived are those who hid in the mortal world. Unknow if real or not.

* '''[[Estreuth|Estreuth, Lord of Hunger]]''' God of famine. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Addaioth|Addaioth, Bringer of Fire]]''' God of fire. One of the Ellinilli. Decided to fight his father rather than hide, and was almost killed until Ladrielle (AKA Lileath) saved him and hid him in the mortal world with his siblings. Has prepared to kill his father ever since, thinking of himself as Vaul 2.0 but only creating shitty arms and armor. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Hukon|Hukon, the Sunderer]]''' God of earthquakes. One of the Ellinilli. Almost no lore given.

* '''[[Drakira|Drakira, Queen of Vengeance]]''' Goddess of revenge, one of the Ellinilli who was picked on by her siblings and neglected by her father. Manipulated Isha's sorrow at the suffering her family caused mortals into becoming hatred, and all beings have been careful not to offend her ever since. Worshiped heavily by Dark Elves, but loves all Elves equally and keeps part of them any time they make a deal with her. Unknown if real or not.

* '''[[Eldrazor|Eldrazor, Lord of Blades]]''' A god of war and duels. Although he doesn't seek war, once it begins there is nothing out of bounds for him. Basically a more reserved and less aggressive Khaine. Unknown if real or not.

==Dwarfs==
The gods of the [[Dwarfs]] are mortal Dwarfs who attained godhood, and as such are referred to as Ancestor Gods. They have only three main ones with lesser ones as their family (plus one guy who’s just kind of there) , but Dwarfs can invoke the names of their own heroes and ancestors religiously as well.

* '''[[Valaya]]''' Goddess of hearth, home, brewing, healing, defending against Chaos, and basically every single other thing the other two don't do. Settled the first and greatest Dwarf Holds, ancestor of the greatest Dwarfs, invented the Dwarf written language and every other aspect of their culture. The least important god because...[[Fail|reasons]]. In End Times she was discovered to be slumbering by [[Queen Neferata]] in a long-forgotten Vault in a ritual to charge up a magic gate and create a new golden age for Dwarfkind. After a battle between Nef, [[Night Goblins]], and [[Thorek Ironbrow]] the Dwarfs were left dead and Valaya's divine power was consumed by [[Nagash]]. She didn't receive an [[Age of Sigmar]] resurrection, because [[Fail|reasons]].

* '''[[Grungni]]''' Dwarf smith god. After Valaya invented runes, he figured out how to smith them into objects to give Dwarfs magic. Fought in End Times, but survived into Age of Sigmar.

* '''[[Grimnir]]''' Dwarf god of war. After Valaya invented [[Book of Grudges|Grudgekeeping]] he became the patron of them. Became the first [[Slayer]], has a fortress inside of the Warp where he endlessly slaughters the forces of Chaos. Gave up his divinity to [[Gotrek & Felix|Gotrek]] in order to die in the final battle after Gotrek died and avenged his own sin, and in the final battle all Grudges were considered resolved. Gotrek/Grimnir survived into Age of Sigmar where he sat on Sigmar's council until he got bored and was sent to kill a giant monster, causing both to explode and spread throughout the Realms whereupon the mortal Dwarfs who are his devotees collect his parts to reassemble him. Judging by Realmslayer, the Grimnir seen in AoS was the original one with Gotrek merely acting as a vessel for his power, although it seems like Grimnir might have had further plans for Gotrek that have yet to be revealed.

* '''[[Gazul]]''' The Dwarf god of Death. Lived in the time of the trinity, and created the written version of their names as well as the concept of venerating your ancestors. His faith includes the '''Order Of Guardians''', the Dwarf equivalent of Witch Hunters. Every Hold and most settlements, any place that has a place to honorably bury dead Dwarfs in fact, has a shrine or temple to him.

* '''[[Morgrim]]''' God of Engineering. Oldest child of Valaya with Grimnir, personally invented Bolt Throwers and Dwarf Catapults/Stone Throwers (which later became Grudge Throwers). Was Grimnir's companion on the way to close the Warp Gate, but Grimnir forced him to turn back and return home. All Engineers are basically priests of Morgrim, since his teachings are a code of conduct for the craft. Liberal Engineers are considered heretics (but not the kind you shoot, just the kind you shout at) by conservative Dwarfs for their loose interpretations of scripture.

* '''[[Smednir]]''' God of smelting and metalworking. Middle son of Grungni and Valaya. Smednir created the tools that Thungni and Grungni inscribed their rune magic on, and among the greatest creations of the trio of laborers is [[Ghal Maraz]] itself. Smednir's shrines and temples are basically just extensions of those of Grungni's, since the two are inseparable in theme.

* '''[[Thungni]]''' God of Runesmithing. Youngest son of Grungni and Valaya. During the settling of the first Holds he descended into a mystical realm called "Ankor Byrn (Glittering Realm)" where he discovered the ability to forge his mother's language with magic to create runes, although it was his father who later turned the discovery into a science and art. Only descendants of Grungni like himself were capable of learning Runesmithing. All Runesmiths are basically priests of Thungni, like Morgrim's Engineers. Unlike all the other gods who are friendly with the faiths of the allies of the Dwarf race and enemies of those who are Dwarf enemies, Thungni's cult has an additional enemy; non-Dwarfs who try to learn or succeed at making rune magic. This includes human wizards.

*It should be noted that the eldest son of Valaya (with Grungni) is [[Grombrindal|Snorri Whitebeard]]. He did not get to be a god as he had the duty of ruling the Karaz Ankor after his parents departed.

* '''[[Horned Rat|Skavor]]''' An ancestor god who had no talent in crafting using non-living materials but a talent for fleshcrafting and chaos magic. His use of fleshcrafting and chaos magic got him exiled by the rest of the ancestor gods so he fleshcrafted himself into a rat-like abomination and created the Skaven to wipe out the rest of the dwarves out of spite. This is the only known Ancestor God that is shunned and hated by the dwarfs.

==Humans==
Like in all other things, Humanity is really diverse when it comes to religion, ranging from worshipping the [[Chaos Gods]] to worshipping [[Lady of the Lake|an Elf God pretending to be a goddess of chivalry]]. Although some gods are argued to be the [[Sigmar|God of Mankind]], there is no united Human pantheon, just many many different gods for many many different nations. The Old World Pantheon is the collection of Gods worshipped by humans of Old World (which is the closest thing we can get to Human Pantheon). This pantheon mainly divided into two "families", namely '''Northern Gods''' and '''Southern Gods'''. There is also the Patron Gods of nations that don't fit these two families; Sigmar for [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], Lady of the Lake for [[Bretonnia]] and Ursun for [[Kislev]]. Other than them, there are also some other pantheons like [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] Pantheon and thousands of different local gods unrelated to any pantheon. As I said before, Humanity is diverse.
Note also that while the various Human nations may worship ostensibly different gods with different names and different rituals, that these may in fact be local aspects of a smaller number of universal gods. The confirmed example is that of the Old Worlder god of death: when Nehekharan god [[Usirian]] was destroyed this also destroyed the god known in the Empire under the name [[Morr]], for unbeknownst to both sets of worshippers the two gods were simply culturally-specific variants of the same deity. Similar pairings are suspected to exist among other deities (the trade god known as [[Handrich]] to Imperials, but Mercopio to Tileans), and it is thus possible that the bewildering array of human gods may in fact be reducible down to a smaller pantheon of common major deities.
===Empire===
[[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Empire of Man]] has a patron god named [[Sigmar]], the mortal founder of Empire who is believed to be ascended to godhood after he vanished. But unlike [[Imperium of Man|his space faring brother]], the Empire is a polytheistic nation, worship of other gods (except [[Chaos Gods]] and [[Khaine]]) is allowed, although the Cult of Sigmar is the state religion. So most of the Old World Pantheon is also worshipped in Empire or at least respected. The list of the Imperial Gods starting with their Patron God goes as;

* '''[[Sigmar]]''', Warrior-God of Mankind, is the founder of [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], its first Emperor and the most badass human ever lived. His deeds of badassery includes but not limited to; uniting human tribes of Old World, defeating biggest WAAAGH ever happened with said united army, earning the respect of the Dwarfs (by far the hardest one to do), breaking the [[Warriors of Chaos|Norsii]] siege of Middenheim and fighting a fucking [[Bloodthirster]] in there, bashing the skull of [[Nagash]] (doing that by using Nagash's own crown also counts) and destroying his undead army. After establishing a rather stabilized state in Old World, Sigmar left the Empire and never seen again, presumed dead by his people. Years after his departure, some guy named Johann Helsturm proclaimed that he saw the vision of Sigmar being crowned to godhood by [[Ulric]] and joined him among the divinity. Helsturm pretty much created the Cult of Sigmar which gained power among centuries and became the most popular and influental religion in the Empire. Today the Cult of Sigmar holds a major bureaucratic power within the Empire, for example the head of the Sigmarite Church, the Grand Theogonist, is able to cast 3 votes in Emperor's election. Sigmar is worshipped by Imperials as the God of War, Mankind, Heroism, Courage and Empire itsef. He is respected by everyone in the Empire, even the Ulricians of Northern Empire proudly call themselves the sons of Sigmar. His holy symbols are Ghal Maraz (or just a warhammer), the Twin-Tailed Comet and Gryphon. His chants are effective against Daemons and Undead. He is mainly worshipped in Reikland but his worshippers can be found everywhere in the Empire (and probably never found among non-Imperial humans). In the End Times, Sigmar's ascension to godhood is confirmed but [[Tzeentch]] trapped him inside the Winds of Heaven [[Not as planned|which actually supercharged Sigmar with magic]]. In short Sigmar is basicly Conan the Barbarian/Charlemagne/Jesus of Warhammer Fantasy and also Thor to Ulric's Odin.

====Northern Gods====
The '''Northern Gods''' aka the '''Elder Gods''' or the '''Country Gods''' are the gods of pre-Imperial human tribes and during Sigmar's reign. They are quite old, worship of Elder Gods stratches back to several millenia. Although they are losing favor to Sigmar, their worship is still widespread, especially in the countryside. These gods are Ulric, Taal, Rhya and Manann.

* '''[[Ulric]]''', the God of Winter, Wolves and Warfare, younger brother of Taal. He is generally worshipped by non-Chaos [[Vikings]] of Warhammer Fantasy who live in Middenland, Nordland and Ostland. Ulric is the second most popular god of the Empire and was actually the most popular one during the times before Sigmar, being worshiped by all human tribes in one way or another. Actually Sigmar himself was a devout worshipper of him too, all sagas emphasise him being blessed and protected by Ulric. Today, Ulricans are still a powerful group, his worship is quite common and the Viking Pope, Al-Ulric, is able to cast one vote in Emperor's election. When it comes to Sigmar, Ulricians are divided into two. Some of them just don't believe Sigmar is a God and rejects Sigmarites all together and the others believes Sigmar is a God but venerate Ulric more as he is the traditional god of mankind but all of them respect Sigmar all the same as he definitely was Ulric's mortal champion before his ascension to godhood. Ulric is a god of martial skill, not unlike [[Khorne|his evil counter part]] (main difference is Ulric cares whose blood being spilled, preferably his enemies') he favors natural strength; gunpowder weapons and crossbows are to be shunned for they don't require any skill to use. His holy symbol is the White Wolf he manifests. In End Times, [[Teclis]] stole the Flame of Ulric in Middenheim and used it to heal [[Tyrion|his brother]] which caused Middenheim's fall and eventually killed Ulric. [[Eldrad|What a dick]]. It is also revealed that his ascension to the godhood may have to do with the old one device hosting his flame (which may or may not belonging to the ancient Elven colonist before the rise of man and the war of beard that forced the elves to abandoned the old world) as discovered by Archaon in the end times.

* '''[[Taal]]''', the God of Wilds, Nature and Beasts, older brother of Ulric and husband of Rhya. Being a Warhammer God, Taal isn't some pesky hippy, he believes in the survival of the fittest. So if you can kill it (in a fair way) all animals are willing to serve you as food and fur. Like Ulric, he favors natural strength and forbids use of gunpowder and adds it the use of metal armor too, only skin and fur of his animals is to be used for clothing. His worshippers are against anything unnatural starting with [[Chaos]] and [[Mutant|Mutants]] to even cities and money in extreme cases. Taal is, like beasts and nature itself, known for being indifferent to morality. His holy symbol is a Stag or just antlers. His worship is almost completely tied with worship of Rhya, which is together called Cult of Taal and Rhya. The two complete eachother as manifestation of Nature; Taal is the animals while Rhya is the plants, Taal is the wrathful natural disasters while Rhya is the generous and fertile soil. He is, like his wife, mainly worshipped in Talabecland. He also has a number of paralells with Kurnous, the Elven god of the hunt.

* '''[[Rhya]]''', the Earth Mother, Goddess of Plants, Farming and Hunting, wife of Taal. She domains over all things that grow, so pretty much Demeter of Warhammer Fantasy. Her worship is a part of Cult of Taal and Rhya which mainly practiced Talabecland. Her holy symbol is a sheaf of wheat and bow and arrow. As said above, worship of Rhya and Taal is tied to eachother though Ryha seems to be less important and [[-4 STR|less powerful]] of the two.

* '''[[Manann]]''', the God of Seas and Tides, son of Taal and Rhya. Worshipped by sailors and fishermen, Manann is not really different than Poseidon of our world. He is quite fickle and dickish, judging his subjects arbitrarily (like Poseidon). Manann's strictures are nothing more than generic sailor superstitions which changes based on sailor, priest and Manann's mood at the time. His holy symbols are wave patterns, albatrosses and his five tinned crown. He is mainly worshipped in Marienburg and other coastal cities although human sailors all around the Old World worship him. Also he is completely identical to [[Mathlann]], the Elven Sea God, and may in fact just be the same deity under a different name.

====Southern Gods====
The '''Southern Gods''' aka the '''Classical Gods''' or the '''Town Gods''' are newer ones among the Old World Pantheon (still older than Sigmar) they are actually not really among the common worship in the Empire (with exception of Morr who is third most popular Imperial God). They are generally worshipped in more civilized and urban areas of South Old World like [[Tilea]] and [[Estalia]]. These gods are Morr, Verena, Myrmidia, Shallya, Ranald and Khaine.

* '''[[Morr]]''', the God of the Dead, Afterlife and Dreams, older brother of [[Khaine]], husband of Verena and father of Myrmidia and Shallya. Similar to Greek Mythology, at the beginning of time the three gods, Ulric, Taal and Morr divided the world between eachother. Ulric and Taal started fighting for the living world while Morr simply settled the realm of the dead. Then the Gods of Mortal Realm and Morr made an agreement to balance things out; Morr and his subjects, the dead, will not tresspass into Mortal Realm and in return, Ulric and Taal will ultimately send all the living to Morr. [[FAIL|Well, when you think about it you can realize this agreement actually gives no benefit to Morr,]] because while Ulric and Taal don't have to do anything for their part (because mortals, naturally, always die), Morr will both have to protect the souls of the dead from being consumed [[Chaos Gods]] and fight the necromancers and undead to do his part of the agreement. Yet again, Morr, being one of the few responsible gods who actively tries to [[gets shit done|do his job,]] maybe took this responsibility willingly. Although he is a less known god among the fans, Morr's worship is the most widespread in the Warhammer world as he is worshipped by all major races and nations even if he is known to them by different names. His symbols are ravens, hourglasses and black roses. His seat of power is in Luccini, Tilea. In End Times, his [[Nehekhara|Nehekharan]] counterpart, Usirian was devoured by [[Nagash]] which killed Morr too.

* '''[[Verena]]''', the Goddess of Knowledge, Science, Law and Justice, wife of [[Morr]], mother of Myrmidia and Shallya. We all know the Old World is a fucking mess; the civil lands are constantly under siege by the [[Orcs & Goblins|barbarians]] and [[Beastmen|anarchists]] while being ruled by zealots, ignorants, tyrants and decadants. Among this madness, Verena and her worshippers shine as a beacon of reason and intellectuality. Despite being literally the goddess of paperwork, Verena isn't some kind of pacifist (that's [[Shallya|her daughter]]'s gimmick), she dictates her followers to take arms in the face of injustice, tyranny and of course Chaos. Her worshippers usually work as judges, lawyers, scholars, bureaucrats and prone to becoming [[Lawful Stupid]]. Her symbols are owls and scales. Verena doesn't have a seat of power but is mainly being worshipped in big bureaucratic capitals like Altdorf. Also she is probably the same god with [[Hoeth]].

* '''[[Myrmidia]]''', the Goddess of War, Strategy and Military, sister of [[Shallya]]. Yet another god of war, which is normal, considering [[Grimdark|how dominant and constant the war is]]. Myrmidia is rivals with other two Gods of War, [[Ulric]] and [[Sigmar]] but the three actually stand for different aspects of war: Ulric is the down-to-earth part of it, the actual combat, martial prowess and [[Khorne|bloodlust]], Myrmidia is the science of war, strategy and tactics are in her domain and Sigmar stands for the reason behind the war; heroism, patriotism, empire-building, zeal and even self-defence as the Empire never actually seeks for more war. Her worship spreads throught the Empire from Estalia and Tilea, there is even one knightly order that worships to her, the Order of the Blazing Sun which converted during the Crusades. She is mainly worshipped by the generals and strategists rather than the soldiers themselves. Her symbol is a spear behind a shield and an eagle. Lastly if you are retarded and haven't noticed yet, Myrmidia is a shameless ripoff of Athena with no difference other than the name.

* '''[[Shallya]]''', the Goddess of Mercy and Healing, sister of [[Myrmidia]]. Shallya is probably the most [[Noblebright]] thing in Warhammer Fantasy. She offers mercy to all the suffering; the sick, the injured, the beggar, the orphan, the whore, the prisoner, the maimed, the unclean, just all of them. They even believe mutants can be cured, Shallyites actually established a secret mutant village to protect them from the witch hunters. They are right to a some extent because actually some of the mutants are normal mutants like in our world and not corrupted by Chaos at all. [[Grimdark|So probably thousands of humans was burnt on stick just because they are sick]]. She is generally worshipped by doctors and healers or more precisely her worshippers and priests became doctors and healers. Her symbols are a white dove and a heart with a single blood drop. Also she is quite similar to the Elven god [[Isha]].

* '''[[Ranald]]''', the God of Fortune, Luck and Mischief. One of the main problems with [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]] is, while it is still as oppressive as any feudal kingdom it lacks the organized police force to make it effectively like the [[Nazi|modern dictatorships]] did. So there is incredible amouths of criminal activity going on in the Empire. So much, there is a god of it. Although Ranald is the god that stands for freedom against that oppression, he is mainly worshipped by thieves, gamblers and charlatans. Also you may thought his name is nothing fancy, just a generic medieval name, which makes sense because actually Ranald was a mortal that convinced, or tricked, Shallya to let him drink one of her tear vials which ascended Ranald to godhood. Ranald's symbols are a hand with crossed fingers, an X, a black cat and a crow. He is mainly worshipped in big cosmopolitan cities like Marienburg.

* '''[[Khaine]]''', the God of Murder, Violance and Cruelty, younger brother of [[Morr]]. Khaine is in interesting position in the Old World pantheon, while other Elven gods are at least have different human names, Khaine is simply Khaine, the god that Dark Elves worship. Also the worship of Khaine is one of the few outlawed religions in the Empire (only worshipped secretly by cultists) because most human theologians believe Khaine is none other than [[Khorne|the Blood God]] himself. But Khainites know that there is a distinction between Khaine and Khorne; Khorne is more about senseless slaughter, the mass killings happening in the battlefields are what really pleases him. But Khaine is more about the killing of the individuals, the ritualistic art of murder and torture is what really pleases him, yet again battlefields are sacred for him too as the war is nothing more than industialized murder. Also in the End Times, Khaine and Khorne are confirmed to be separate entities but Khaine is still the god of [[murderhobos]] and it is better to outlaw his worship. Khaine is also worshipped as a God of Death, believed to be forever in conflict with his brother, Morr. Being a secret cult, Khaine don't have an openly displayed symbol but a scorpion stinger and a serpentine dagger are symbols generally associated with him. Khaine is commonly worshipped by sadists and serial killers but a few of his worshippers can be found among the soldiery.

===Bretonnia===
[[Lady of the Lake]] is the patron goddess of the [[Bretonnia|Kingdom of Bretonnia]]. Cult of the Lady is the state-religion and holds major political power within Bretonnia and yet the Lady isn't the most widespread worshipped God in Bretonnia. Being a feudal shitland, everything in Bretonnia is divided between [[Noble|Nobility]] and [[Peasant|Peasantry]] (and almost non-existent middle class consisting scholars and merchants) this of course includes the religion too. Peasants are prohibited from the worship of Lady as they are not seen more than vermin and shouldn't bother the Lady with their petty prayers. The middle class is allowed but have to pay tithe to worship in shrines and temple. In short, the cult of the Lady is only open to the Nobility of Bretonnia. This lead the peasantry to worship the Gods of the Old World Pantheon. Bulk of the peasantry (which is also the bulk of Bretonnia's population) worship [[Shallya]] the Goddess of Mercy and Healing. Unlike the Lady of the Lake, Shallya offers confort for everyone especially to the oppressed, suffering people like the peasants of Bretonnia. This made Shallya very popular among the peasants, some of them even believe Shallya is just another aspect of the Lady (basicly her peasant equilavent) which worshippers of the Lady [[Blam|didn't take tolerantly]]. Other than Shallya, Myrmidia is common among the men-at-arms, Taal and Rhya among the farmers, Verena among the scholars etc. Interestingly, worship of Sigmar is almost non-existent within Bretonnia which is weird as Cult of Sigmar, like Cult of Shallya, is a peoples cult, open to everyone. The reason behind this is probably the Bretonnian nobility's xenophobia towards [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]]. Anyway about the Lady of the Lake:

*'''[[Lady of the Lake]]''', the Goddess of Chivalry, Purity and Nobility, the Patron Goddess of [[Bretonnia]]. The Lady of the Lake is basicly the [[Waifu|idealized woman]] that every Bretonnian knight loves. They love her so much many knights are willing to abdicate all their titles and go on a Waifu Quest to find her. Almost all of these Questing Knights die horribly to monsters and other shit they have to fight, before even getting close to her. But most powerful of them find her eventually and when that happens, the Lady of the Lake offers them to drink from the Holy Grail she holds which turns Questing Knights into [[Mary Sue|mary sues]] or Grail Knights as they mostly known as. The Lady of the Lake is only worshipped by the Bretonnian Nobility and her symbols are the Holy Grail and [[Sisters of Battle|Fleur-de-lis]]. In End Times, it was revealed that the Lady of the Lake is none other than the Elven God [[Lileath]], she and the [[Wood Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Wood Elves]] been using Bretonnians as a bulwark against [[Chaos]] and a cat's paw when they don't feel like to risk elf lives. All that holy Grail Knights and lowly peasantry shit was to eliminate the weak and create the best of humanity, worthy of being used by Elves. [[Just as Planned|So the entire culture, religion and politics of Bretonnia is just part of an Elven eugenics programme.]] Also do I have to mention that she was "inspired" from Arthurian legends, like everything else in Bretonnia?

===Kislev===
[[Kislev]] has his own little pantheon of gods consist of three gods: '''Ursun''', '''Dazh''' and '''Tor'''. It isn't like an established Kislevite Pantheon, more like a group of local gods unique to Kislev. While almost all of the Kislevites only worship these three, some other gods have been worshipped by Kislevites too. Northern Gods of the Old World Pantheon is relatively common, mostly [[Ulric]] and Taal mainly because of Kislev's geographical closeness to [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Northern Empire]]. Like in the Empire, many local gods and spirits are venerated too. Interestingly, Kislev is also the only place in the Old World to worship [[Necoho|Ma]][[Zuvassin|lal]]. The Temple of the Ancient Allies in the Kislevite city of Bolgasgrad is the only known temple dedicated to Necoho and Zuvassin, and the city is home to only known worshippers of them. But, to be clear, it isn't like they are commonly worshipped in Kislev, their worshippers are probably even less than their fans in real life. So about the real gods of Kislev:

*'''[[Ursun]]''', the God of [[Bear Lore|Bears]] and Strength, Patron God of Kislev. Ursun is the most commonly worshipped god in Kislev, like Sigmar he's worsipped by everyone from wealthy cityfolk to nomads of the oblast. But in doctrine, Ursun has more common in [[Ulric]] and Taal than Sigmar. Like Ulric, Ursun is all about strenght, he prefers warriors over priests, acts over prayers. And like Taal, Ursun is more of the God of Bears than a God of man, bears are his sacred beast it is a privilege to hunt them, not a right given to humans. Like Taal dictates, bear hunts should be fair, no traps or hunting dogs allowed. One of the reasons that worship of Ursun is so common in Kislev is that Kislev is full of bears and worshipping the God of Bears makes things smoother between man and the beasts (and angering him gets you [[RIP AND TEAR|ripped apart by bears]]). His worshippers are rivals with Ulric's, but mutual respect exists between them. Ursun is practically worshipped by all of the Kislev and only in Kislev. His holy symbol is a bear or a bear's face.

*'''[[Dazh]]''', the God of Sun, Fire and Hospitality. When you live in a frozen wasteland where winters are 10 months long and full of bears, fire and Sun is just what really matters to survive. So you should worship the God of Sun in the second coldest place of the world after [[Chaos Wastes|literally frosty hell]] itself, not some [[Ulric|God of Winter]]. Actually this is why Dazhinyi (and Kislevites in general) despise Ulricans: they are like middle-class children who want winter to come because of Christmas and to play in snow while Kislevites are like homeless people who don't want to freeze to death during winter. Sure, worshipping the God of Winter would probably fix all of that for them, but this is Warhammer so common sense is still [[Heresy|not tolerated]]. Dazh is, like Ursun, widely worshipped by Kislevites but with a bit of change. In the cold harsh tundras of north, Dazh symbolizes the struggle against the nature and his worship is essential to survive Kislevite winters as every campfire and torch lights brightly because of him. In rather civilized south, he is the God of Hospitality, more about hearths and being kind to guests. Dazh's holy symbol is the Sun or a flame. Judging by the Usirian = Morr logic in the End Times, one could say that Ptra and Dazh are the same person due to being primary god of human. Just don't tell Settra about it or he is going to lit Kislev on fire (might be a good thing actually). He is based on Slavic sun god Dazhbog.

*'''[[Tor]]''', the God of Thunder and Lightning. The least inspired name ever given to a god of lightning. But at least he isn't just same with the [[Viking|Norse]] God Thor: Tor isn't a hammer wielding God of Heroism and War (that's [[Sigmar]]'s job) (also Tor prefers an axe), he is more of a force of nature. He is more about saying "Tor is angry today" during a lightning storm than prayers and systematic worship. Well, also a God of Lightning has nothing to offer to humans other than ''not'' striking them with a thunder bolt. Also his stricture is single, simple but smart: "Never stand under a tree in a thunderstorm." Tor's holy symbols are a thunderbolt and a silver axe.

===Nehekhara===
[[Nehekhara]], being '''THE''' human civilization of the world (meaning they are the original human civilization that was created and established by the [[Old Ones]] themselves) has their own unique and sophisticated take on religion and gods. The Priest Kings of Nehekhara and [[Tomb Kings]] of <s>[[Tomb Kings#Death of an Era|old]]</s> today worshipped the '''Nehekharan Pantheon''' also known as the Desert Gods. Nehekarans believed that in the dawn of time, the world was once dark and cold, it was their gods that enlightened the world and created humanity, which is quite a similar story to how the Old Ones created humanity and other races. Almost all of the gods [[Furry|have animal heads or are outright animals]] much like the Egyptian gods. Long ago, the Nehekharan Pantheon consisted of hundreds of different gods and hundreds of different cults dedicated to them, but after [[Nagash]] necro-nuked all of Nehekhara, killing every living thing and reanimating them as [[Undead]], only a handful of Gods remain (unknown if the other gods are dead too, or weren't real to begin with and were simply forgotten) and only the most widespread cult remains today, the Mortuary Cult, a cult dedicated to Usirian. The cult studied death and the afterlife, and also searched for immortality. First they managed to preserve a dead body with mummification (which they learned from the [[Lizardmen]] of the Southlands) then communicating with the dead souls using the [[Warhammer Magic|Wind of Death]] and lastly summoning the dead and binding them to corporal bodies. All of their study lead to Nagash's creation of Necromancy via mixing Dark Magic with the Wind of Death. Anyway about the pantheon:

*'''Ptra''', the God of Sun, Patron God of Nehekhara, husband of Neru. Although he is the most important god of Nehekharan Pantheon, there isn't much to say about him. Ptra is basicly Ra of our world, he rides his chariot in the sky from dawn till dusk, following his love, Neru the Moon Goddess. Unlike other gods of the pantheon, he doesn't have an animal form, or an animal headed form, only appearing in a human form. He is also the creator of humanity, according to Nehekharans. [[Settra the Imperishable]] is his most known (and of course greatest) worshipper because no God is worthy of being worshipped by Settra, other than the King of Gods himself.
*'''Neru''', the Goddess of [[Mannslieb|Moon]] and Protection, wife of Ptra. Boring ass wife of the boring ass god up there. Again not much to say about her, she is actively running away from her husband (for some reason), creating the day and night cycle of the world.
*'''Sakhmet''', the Goddess of the [[Morrslieb|Green Moon]], concubine of Ptra. Also called the Green Witch, Sakhmet envies Ptra's love of Neru, his wife, and all of humanity. During nights, Neru and Sakhmet fight for the domination of the sky, Neru wins most of the time so only Mannslieb appears in the sky but when Sakhmet wins both Mannslieb and Morrslieb appears in the sky, causing days known as Hexenstag and Geheiminstag to the [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|Imperials]]. She is seen as a malevolant god by the Nehekharans because she, as said, envies Ptra's love for humanity. While the name is almost same with the Egyptian God Sekhmet, Sakhmet isn't really similar to her other than this: the duality of Sakhmet and Neru resembles how the bloodthirsty lion-headed Goddess of War Sekhmet and the merciful cow-headed Goddess of Love Hathor is the same goddess with a split personality disorder, even so Sakhmet and Neru are certainly not the same goddess at all. Ironically, she had a beastmen follower called '''Moonclaw''' who referred to the green moon as his own mother. During the End Times, chunks of Morrslieb descend up the world after the Skaven's reckless demolition. With that, is safe to say that Sakhmet is officially about as dead as Usirian. But it's not like the moon was alive like the other gods anyway.
*'''Usirian''', the God of the Underworld. Usirian's worship is as widespread as that of Ptra in Nehekhara, since the rise of the Mortuary Cult. As the lord of the Realm of Souls, Usirian judges souls of the living, particullarly the Priest Kings, upon their death; based on their lives, they may make it to the paradise filled with golden palaces to live in and their subjects to tyrannize (two things Priest Kings love the most) or if they didn't had any virtues in life (or [[Peasant|wasn't a nobleborn]]) they probably end up in the deepest pits of the Underworld, [[Grimdark|where millions of beetles will gnaw their skin and entrails forever]] (This sounds eerily similar to Abrahamic religions). Another privilege nobles get is that if they fuck up, Priests of Usirian will try to bargain with Usirian to mitigate their punishments. Khepra Beetles are said to be Usirians agents in the living realm, he monitors the mortals from the beetles' eyes, seeing all sins of the men and because said beetles are everywhere in Nehekhara, [[1984|every man and woman are being watched by him 7/24]]. On the other hand this also means using a bug sprey lets you trick the God of Dead. Usirian is also never physically represented as that would be [[heresy]] (now it is really similar to one particular Abrahamic religion). His most known worshipper is the Grand Hierophant Khatep who is the High Priest of the Mortuary Cult, Prophet of the Lord of the Tomb, Master of Awakenings but most importantly Settra's advisor during his life. Lastly in the [[End Times]], Usirian was devoured by Nagash which killed [[Morr]] too, this confirms that they were indeed the same god (in fact all Gods of Dead are probably the same god).
*'''Djaf''', the God of Death and War. While he is an important god, he is the god of death of undead egyptians after all and his ushabtis are one of the most common ones, not much is known about him. Considering another similar God, Usirian, is venerated much more than him and that he is also a God of War, Djaf is probably more abouth down-to-earth part of death not its concept or spiritual side. Djaf usually takes form of a jackal headed man or a large black jackal so he is basicly the Egyptian God of Death, Anubis.
*'''Asaph''', the Goddess of Beauty and Asps. When to be seen, Asaph takes the form of a seductive woman or [[Furry|an asp but still looking as seductive as woman]]. Lorewisely, the most important thing she did was saving [[Queen Khalida]] from becoming a [[vampire]] which made her the greatest worshipper of Asaph. Other than that, Asaph is really similar to the Chaos God [[Slaanesh]], both being gods of beauty and has a strong association with snakes. Unknown if there is a connection or not.
*'''Geheb''', the God of Earth and Strenght. As a god worshipped by warriors and soldiers, Geheb takes form of a lion or a big hunting dog in animal form and a musclar man with a thick beard in human form. Again another god with a Chaos God similarity, both [[Khorne]] and Geheb is worshipped by great warriors and has hunting dogs as their sacred animal. Also worship of Geheb involves a blood ritual which the worshippers drink the blood of a newly sacrificed ox.
*'''Tahoth''', the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. Tahoth usually takes the form of an ibis headed man, or a silver colored ibis which makes him quite similar to [[Tzeentch]], the other bird headed god of knowledge. But this time this is probably because Tzeentch is inspired by the Egyptian God of Knowledge Thoth while Tahoth is just Thoth with a different name.
*'''Sokth''', the God of Scorpions, Thieves and Assassins. Although he is the protector of thieves, Sokth forbids grave-robbing and his sons (scorpions) guard the royal tombs along with Usirian's beetles. It's believed that the Nehekharan scorpions will never sting a true follower of Sokth but I'm sure nobody dares to test that. Sokth usually appears as a giant black scorpion or a man with pure black eyes.
*'''Phakth''', the God of Sky and Justice. Phakth usually takes the form of a hawk headed man or a blue hawk with golden eyes so he is practically the same god as Horus ([[Horus Lupercal|no, not that one]]).
*'''Basth''', the Goddess of Cats and Love. Usually appears as [[Furry|a cat headed woman]] or as [[Catgirl|a woman with cat-like features]]. She is the Egyptian Goddess of Cats, Bastet, of Warhammer Fantasy.
*'''[[Nagash]]''', the Supreme Lord of Undeath. Before I start let me explain why I decided to add Nagash to the list: Not because Nagash ascended to godhood in [[Age of Sigmar]] but because he has been worshipped as a god before that, since his first defeat, by priest kings to vampires, by crazed cultists to great necromancers. You may argue that Nagash is clearly not a god, as he is trying to become a god, so he has no place in here and I would say half of the gods listed here probably don't even exist or are a [[Chaos God]] in disguise so listen up. While not being a part of the Nehekharan Pantheon, Nagash has been (secretly) worshipped as a God by Nehekharans for millenia. Worship of Nagash, or Nagashism as it's named in [[Total War: WARHAMMER|Total War: Warhammer]], stretchs back to his first defeat. After dying in the desert and resurrecting himself as some sort of [[Lich]], Nagash deceived some mountain tribes into worshipping him as a god. After that, said tribesmen and his undead minions built the great fortress of Nagashizzar under the command of Nagash. Even today, in the highest chamber of the fortress, [[God-Emperor of Mankind|the corpse of Nagash sits on his throne with hundreds of zealous cultists worshipping him as a God]], listening to his whispers, doing his bidding. Since then, thinking being worshipped is quite handy, Nagash disguises himself as a god to manipulate humans. It is known that he has been willingly worshipped by many necromancers and vampires (which is actually rare, as vampires generally don't accept anyone as his/her superior). Nagash may also interfere with the wizards of the Wind of Death, especially Mortuary Priests, presenting himself as Usirian, the Nehekharan God of the Dead or [[Morr]], the Imperial God of the Dead, and use them to further his schemes. But he usually does that when he doesn't have a corporeal form because when he is in the mortal realm there is no need to trick anyone into believing he is a god. As said above, in the End Times he ascended to godhood and became the only [[Tomb King]] that made it to [[Age of Sigmar]].

===Northmen===
Although many Norscan tribes venerate all the gods, most tend to favour one of the Four for his blessings. Below them are various Daemon Princes, fallen ancestors and Chaos Champions, and other lesser spirits alongside the Big Four.

*'''[[Khorne]]''' - The Hound, Kharnath, Lord of Rage, Akhar, Kjorn, the Axefather, Khorgar, the Bloodwolf, and the Wolf-Father and many more names. In such a brutal, warlike culture moulded by harsh climate and monsters, he is the most popular deity in Norsca.
*'''[[Tzeentch]]''' - The Eagle, Tchar, the Raven God and expy of [[Odin]]. Patron deity of the seers and ''vitki'' (sorcerers), he is distrusted by most Norscans. However, because he is also the god of the winds of Magic and physical currents, he is venerated before the Norscans board their longships.
*'''[[Nurgle]]''' - The Crow, Neiglen, Nurglitch, Onogal. Usually prayed to for avoiding plagues, or to spare themselves from the worst of the plagues by dedicating themselves to him.
*'''[[Slaanesh]]''' - The Serpent, Shornaar, Lanshor. Invoked at the feasts and marriages that occur after battles.
*'''Mermedus''' - a caricature of Mannan, this monstrous sea horror is invoked to avoid his wrath when Skaelings sail. Prisoners are sacrificed to Mermedus by being drowned with heavy weights, and to die at sea is to sink into Mermedus' domains, deprived from the glorious halls of the Four.

The Norscans believe that they must become strong and cruel, to win the favour of the Four Gods after they die and enter their halls for an eternity of feasting and brawling. Should they die as cowards or without their hands and weapons, they might instead be chased around in the afterlife as playthings for Daemons.

===Minor Nations===
Even if they have never seen the light of the day, [[End Times|and never will]], there are human nations other than [[the Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|the Empire]], [[Bretonnia]] and [[Warriors of Chaos|Northmen]]: the myst shrouded island of Albion, the Great Sultanate of Araby, Democratic City-States of [[Tilea]], Ever-warring kingdoms of [[Estalia]], Feudal Kingdom of [[Nippon]], Grand Empire of [[Cathay]], Kingdoms of Ind, the Hinterlands of Khuresh and more. While collective lore on these are less than any playable faction's, some of these factions' religious practices are known and some what interesting.
*'''[[Tilea]]''' worships the Southern Gods of the [[Old World]] Pantheon, mainly [[Myrmidia]], the Goddess of War and Strategy. Tileans are sailors and pirates, so Manann, the God of Seas, is also worshipped by many. Other than them, local gods of city-states are among common worship. Like Luccan and Luccina, the founders of the City-State of Luccini, is the most worshipped God in said city (You know [[Roman Empire|Romulus and Remus]]?). As a cosmopolitan country, Tilea also been influenced by other cultures and even races, like in Tobaro, people living in the underground tunnels of the city commonly worship il Grungnio or Grungni, the Dwarf God of Miners as he known to the [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy)|Dwarfs]]. Even so, Tileans are said to be "casual" worshippers, not taking the religion so seriously, unlike the Imperials and Bretonnians.
*'''[[Estalia]]''', being same as Tileans but with Spanish names, worships the Southern Gods of the Old World Pantheon, again mainly [[Myrmidia]]. But this didn't have a unifying effect on Estalians and Tileans, they have been fighting for centuries by now. Both sides claim that they are the real sons of Myrmidia.
*'''Araby''' is known to be worshipping a single god, being one of the very few monotheistic nations in the world. He chooses prophets among the people to teach his gospel to the Arabyans. A warrior-cult known as Dervishers is dedicated to that God, fan-named Ohrmazd (which is another name of Ahura Mazda, the God of Zoroastrianism) and said to be "too willing" to die for their god [[FAIL|which is a bit stupid because real life Dervishs (Islamic Monks) while very religious, were also pacifists and humanists]]. Another possibility would be that the Nehekharan gods might also be worshipped in Araby, as Araby is technically Nehekhara's living successor. Among the deities attested in canon venerated by the Arabyans include:
** '''the Djinn''', which are actually Daemons.
** '''Ancient deities''' older than the Nehekharan gods, promoted by another prophet known as Mullah Aklan'd, who was also Araby's first Great Sultan and unifier.
*'''[[Cathay]]''' is, surprisingly, a semi-atheist country, where the Dragon Emperor commands his people to see him just as a mighty all-knowing leader without any godhood nonsense. [[Emperor|This seems very familiar, doesn't it?]] However, Big D can't control literally everyone, so cults in his name do exist in some remote regions. [[Tzeentch]] worship is also still present, and is a major problem in this country.
*The Kingdoms of '''Ind''' are also called the Land of a Thousand Gods. Shit goes down in Ind because it is literally the land of a thousand gods and at least most of the gods are real and very active. They are said to be very fickle and quick to anger, judging and punishing their worshippers swiftly. So every part of the Indian life is a ritual: like if you overcook a [[Meatbread|meal]] a bit, you may be struck down by the God of Food or if you don't [[THIN YOUR PAINTS|thin your paints]], the [[Duncan Rhodes|God of Thin Paints]] may visit you at night. Leopold Riogillo, a merchant prince, notes that Indians see the tiger-headed [[beastmen]] of their land as holy spirits, yet again it is known that at least one god, the four-armed Bharmir, despises [[Chaos]].
** '''Brahmir''' - not-Brahman (or more like Vishnu), his holy statues can scare the Warp out of Chaos-worshippers.
** '''She'ar Khawn''' - not-Narasimha, a popular deity whose eight-armed statues are found in almost every temple in Ind.
** '''Gilgadresh''' - his temple was looted by Lokhir Fellheart.
*'''Amazons''', the warrior tribeswoman of [[Lustria]], worships the same pantheon of gods as the [[Lizardmen]] who are the [[Old Ones]]. Not much is known other than that.
** '''Rigg''', one of the Old Ones and the mother of Kalith, she is their goddess of war.
** '''Kalith''', the daughter of Rigg and the Elven sea god Amex, her functions and powers are unknown.

==Lizardmen==
Lizardmen revere the [[Old Ones]] as their gods. Lizardmen are brought fully formed into the world as full fighting units from magical spawning pools, some of these units have somehow been marked by one or more of the Old Ones for some specific purpose these are known as sacred spawnings. Albino Lizardmen are said to have the mark of the Old Ones and are believed to be destined for greatness.

* '''[[Sotek]]''' Unlike the other Old Ones Sotek was not among the original pantheon that created the Lizardmen and uplifted the humans, elves and dwarves. Sotek was brought into the world during the invasion of Lustria by the Skaven clan Pestilence. After numerous blood sacrifices [[Khorne|turning rivers red]] by the Lizardmen, a gargantuan snake appeared and chased the Skaven out of Lustria. Those marked by Sotek have a red stripe on top of their heads and sometimes running down their backs, they are fiercer than other Lizardmen. Sotek is the only Old One known to have sacred spawnings of skinks, fitting as it was these little WS 2 T 2 shits that made rivers run red with rat blood.

* '''Chotec''' God of the sun. Those of Chotec's sacred spawning are marked by the colour orange and are more energetic.

* '''Huanchi''' Jaguar god of stealth & ambush. The blessed spawning of Huanchi have darker coloured scales, possibly black or brown, they are experts at hunting down prey.

* '''Itzl''' God of cold-blooded beasts. Those of Itzl's sacred spawning are marked by bony crests and a distinct smell and are great beastmasters.

* '''Tepok''' Depicted as a feathered serpent, Tepok is the god of mystery. Those of Tepok's sacred spawning have purple scales on their backs and are protected against magic.

* '''Tzunki''' God of water. The blessed spawnings of Tzunki have green scales on their backs and are known to be blessed with gills and flippers.

* '''Tlazcotl''' God of stoicism. The blessed spawning of Tlazcotl have yellow scales along the main of their headcreasts and down along the crests of their back.

* '''Quetzl''' God of protection. The blessed spawning of Quetzl have thick scales.

*'''Xhotl''' Possibly a God of retribution given what their blessing does. Saurus are not spawned with it since the eponymous temple city of Xhotl was destroyed in the aftermath of the collapse of the polar gates, with Kroq-gar as the last survivor of it and bearer of the spawning, which grants a magical forcefield to its bearer and strikes back at anything that gets through.

* '''Minor Deities''' Many more Old Ones, like Tlanxla, are mentioned briefly in fluff but they've had very little impact as they've been dead or gone for ages. In rare cases a single saurus or skink will emerge alone from a spawning pool, completely albino of scale, and marked for greatness by all the Old Ones at once.

==Greenskins==
The Greenskins have two universal Gods; with several others.

*'''[[Gork]]''': He's Brutally Cunning.
*'''[[Mork]]''': He's Cunningly Brutal.
*'''Bad Moon''': Venerated by the Night Goblins, he causes mushrooms to grow from anywhere where he shines on, even victims unfortunate enough to be basked in it.
*'''[[Spider-God]]''': a god venerated by the Forest Goblins. They use spider poisons to get high and enter a trance to commune with their god and tame spiders to ride around on in its honor.

==Ogres==
*'''[[Great Maw]]''' - A ''something'' that appeared after the Dragon Emperor of Cathay called down a meteor to punish the Ogres fucking up his lands. It was possibly a warpstone meteor and POSSIBLY caused by interference from Tzeentch but whatever it was left a big fleshy mouth in the ground that cursed the Ogres with a constant hunger, which also made them worship it as a god. Is it? Well the Ogres think so, and are you gonna tell em different?
*'''[[Fire Mouth]]''' - A volcano worshiped by the Firebellies. They drink super hot food (if not actual lava) to venerate it and grant them spells.

==Skaven==
*'''The (Great) [[Horned Rat]]''' - "what a minute isnt The Horned Rat a [[Chaos Gods|Chaos God]]? whats he doing here?" you might be asking. well the answer is "Because he's a.) a fantasy (and its [[Age of Sigmar|sequel]]) god and b.) the only one with its own specific race of worshipers that isnt a [[Chaos Dwarfs|spin off]] or [[Dragon Ogres|split between the other four]]". The Horned Rat is not only the god of the [[Skaven]], he is the exemplar of their race as a whole! He's [[Tzeentch|sneaky and cunning]], ruthlessly [[Slaanesh|self indulgent and self interested]], [[Nurgle|plague-ridden]] and [[Khorne|murderous and power hungry]] and demands that his people follow in his image while also honoring him during. hes also one of the few gods to actually appear to his race and tell them to stop screwing around and get shit done now and again. Various origins have him as a Daemon of Nurgle that got above his raisin and made some ratmen, or a traitorous Dwarfen Ancestor god that fucked off to screw shit up, but its unknown if either of these are true. And he was probably behind The Doom of Kavzar in some way.

==Pygmies==
Beesbok: God of Procrastination, Food, Feasting, and Happiness
Brodat: God of Work, Poison, Magic, and Dourness.
[[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]

Orc

2022-06-30T05:40:59Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Cyclops Orcs */

[[File:Orc.jpg|400px|thumb|right|An average Warhammer Orc.]]
{{Topquote|These have not had a fair press. They are fanatically brave in spite of being weaker and less practiced than most other humanoids, and must be kind to animals, since they train them so well. It is interesting that Tolkien’s characters describe them in terms very similar to those used by medieval chroniclers to describe Mongols, who in our day are considered a nice friendly people of slightly eccentric lifestyle.|Phil Barker, Sue Laflin Barker & Richard Bodley Scott, ''Hordes of the Things''}}

'''Orcs''' are a fantasy race that is used in a number of settings. Compare to [[Ork]]. They are generally depicted as barbaric humanoids with tusks and green or gray skin(or some combination of the two). Typically, they are stronger than an average [[human]], though generally less intelligent as well.

They enjoy molesting, eating and generally mistreating the goblins, their smaller cousins. They have longstanding relationships with trolls and ogres, their larger and more stupid neighbors, whom they con into performing demeaning menial tasks and press into service in wartime. Their relations with more distant races are more variable - some may work for humans as mercenaries, for example, while others will attack humans on sight. They are also interfertile with many other races, leading to the existence of [[half-orc]]s. The long-standing exception to this is [[elves]]. All orcs hate elves, and this makes them good people.

Historically, the term is derived from an Anglo-Saxon word meaning 'demon', according to Tolkien, who lifted the word from Beowulf and proceeded to invent orcs as a fantasy race out of whole cloth.

=The Master Template=
While many traditional fantasy races (elves, dwarves, dragons, goblins and wizards) can be traced back to folklore and mythology, orcs are entirely a product of modern fantasy literature. Here we have a basic rundown of the image that comes up when people say "Orc" and how it evolved.

==Tolkien==
[[File:Tolkien Goblins.JPG|thumb|right|400px|The origin of the original Orcs.]]
Orcs as we know them have their beginnings with Tolkien's works. The first orcs were created by Melkor (later known as Morgoth) shortly after the first elves awoke, before humans existed. It should be noted that Tolkien never definitively stated the true origin of Orcs , and most of what we have comes from notes and decisions he left to his son Christopher when he passed control of the setting over.
According to one account published after Tolkien's death in The Silmarillion, some of these elves wandered about exploring this world that they had awoken in and were captured by some of Melkor's Maiar ("fallen angels" futher down the hierarchy, Melkor being basically Satan) and were taken to Angband, his base of operations. Because Melkor was bitter about being unable to create life they were tortured, abused, cursed, mutated and selectively bred until you got Orcs, [[What| because obviously torture is totally going to influence the physiology of your offspring]]. The result was a species of ugly, bad-smelling, fanged, bow-legged, long-armed, claw-handed, hairy apelike humanoids which were 'sallow', 'swart' or 'black' in coloration, had an aversion to sunlight, ranged in size from smaller than a hobbit to almost as large as a man. These creatures would make up the bulk of Melkor and later Sauron's armies.

Tolkien's Orcs are not stupid, described as "making no beautiful things, but many clever ones" and their speech, while crass, is articulate. They are capable of making weapons (bows, spears, daggers, shields and curved swords), armor (helmets, mail and scale armor supplemented by salvage), effective if unpleasant medicine (prosthetic limbs are literally stabbed into the stump, for example), and are pretty good engineers on top of creating assembly lines; one of the general morals of Tolkien's works is rampant industrialization is a path to evil and/or misfortune, and making Orcs more advanced than other races reflects this. They are almost as good at mining as Dwarves are even if their work ethic leaves something to be desired. Nor are all orcs identical. There are variations among Orcs both in terms of individual personalities and differences between groups. Orcs from the Misty Mountains are described as being fairly tribal while those of Mordor are regimented (to the point where they have serial numbers). There are also different breeds of Orcs, besides the garden variety Orc you also have 'snufflers' bred for following scent trails and the larger and more sun resistant Uruk-Hai bred by Sauron and Saruman, supposedly made by crossbreeding Orcs with humans and specialized to act as commanders. However they are violent, sadistic, spiteful, enjoy breaking stuff, have no concern for aesthetics and are as a rule hateful and miserable. Fighting, killing, eating, drinking, looting, blowing stuff up, gaining power, bossing their subordinates around, torturing and presumably raping captives can only give temporary reprieve. They hate Sauron and especially Melkor, but serve them out of fear, their psychic influence over them and the fact that everyone who is not under their authority despises them and wants them dead. They are capable of internal loyalty and do have some social taboos (being accused of eating other Orcs is a considerable insult even though they are perfectly fine with eating non-Orcs) which are enough to let them act together as groups, although these groups tend to collapse due to infighting after reaching a certain size in the absence of a leader who can terrify them into submission.

Despite this, little is said by Tolkien about how Orcs live their lives on a day-to-day basis as their role in the story is as a force which threatens the heroes and those around them. It can be extrapolated, however that it is usually nasty, brutish and short. Some of the interactions between different groups of orcs frequently results in back-stabbing and violent power struggles, so we can assume that they operate on a grimdark version of Klingon politics. All the orcs mentioned are male which is usually interpreted as "orcs don't bring their womenfolk along on campaigns" (which is basically what Tolkien said in one of his letters) but has led a few to say that orcish sexual dimorphism is basically nonexistent or that female orcs don't exist. Given Sauron's proclivities and the various castes in mordor they were likely subject to some form of selective breeding program.

In Tolkien's published works, "Orc" and "goblin" are synonyms (at least at first; later he said that goblins were a subtype of orc, and later still he said that they were totally unrelated). In later editions of The Hobbit, he says that "goblin" is a translation of "orc", which is "not an English word". "Uruk" means Orc in Black Speech, a mix of Elvish, human tongue, and Sauron's attempts to give them their own language. Most fantasy fiction typically distinguishes between Goblins and Orcs: most of Tolkien's Orcs would resemble other works' Goblins (Frodo and Sam disguised themselves as Orcs, so we can assume at least some are Hobbit height). The largest Orcs in Middle Earth - the Uruks of Isengard and Mordor - appear to be somewhat smaller than Men.

===Grey areas===
The question of whether they are [[always Chaotic Evil|intrinsically evil]] is never brought up, and several of Tolkien's unpublished works suggest that this was due to his own misgivings with the concept of a wholly evil race. Melkor had no power to create other beings himself, but the fact that elves could be corrupted would also imply Eru had either made the souls of some elves either inherently evil or easily corrupted to become evil. Unlike Melkor, Sauron, and Balrogs who were spiritual beings that made an active choice to be evil, Orcs are universally portrayed as evil which means they could be evil from birth which was strongly against Tolkien's strong Catholic beliefs in the nature of good and evil. This in turn contradicted his own views on the nature of Eru as a wholly good deity while also opening up some thorny questions of faith for Tolkien himself, and even in his last writings it appears he could not come up with a satisfactory explanation for how they could be universally evil by nature. Christopher similarly has not come up with a satisfactory answer and has largely avoided the subject, avoiding talking about Orcs as anything but adult militant antagonists and leaning back on his father's suggestions of corrupted man/elf hybrids descended from enslaved elves.

Fans divide into different camps of explanation.

* Orcs could be born adult and "male", like the Warhammer Orcs discussed below, and thus be more intelligent animal like Dragons as opposed to inherently evil people.
* Another suggestion is they could also be people who are indoctrinated from youth, such as their closest inspiration as the Central Powers in World War 1 (trying to kill Tolkien in the Somme) and Axis (who blew up his barn while he and the family hid in the cellar during the Blitz) which would make Orcs antagonists with horrible leaders and a corrupt ideology as opposed to naturally evil; this would make them as evil as the Easterlings.
* Some have reasoned, in the vein of the second suggestion, that Orcs are not all unified on Melkor/Sauron's side, which is supported by a single line from Tolkien that no race stood united for or against Sauron; this is dismissed by some with the elf/man origins as all Orcs evil and all elves good, but can be interpreted either way. In this view some have reasoned there must be neutral tribes of Orcs who did not participate in conflict and are as unmentioned as the Stoorish Hobbits (Gollum's original people, who's only importance at all and thus only mention is just that; being Gollum's people before he degenerated into a [[Ghoul|ghoulish]] being), that these Orcs could possibly even be good for all that is known.
* Another idea is that Melkor's corruption of the Elves he kidnapped either diminished or removed their capacity to do good, which would make creating the Orcs one of the most monstrous acts he had ever committed, and considering this guy was capital-E Evil in every way he could think of that says a whole goddamn lot.
* One possibility, strongly hinted at in the text by the fight going out of the Orcs as soon as the Ring was destroyed, is that some kind of mind control was involved.
* The final suggestion is Orcs have no souls, and much like the Little Mermaid (not the Disney version, but rather the original story where they are Feyfolk who are sea foam come to life in the forms of people that can love and grieve, but return to sea foam in oblivion when they die because they have no souls) are just some natural material come to life with no real importance or moral rights because they were not intentionally created by the omnipotent creator (Dwarves are exempt from this fate, being creations of the Vala Aulë who were granted life and 'adopted' by Eru Illuvatar). In this view you could do anything you want to an Orc from killing to torture because they have as much natural rights as their base components, similar to the destruction of the Golem in Hebrew myth, and would explain the ostensible absence of orc-souls in the afterlife of Tolkien's cosmology, though one could find moral problems with this as well depending on your worldview. Tolkien seems to have considered this explanation at one point but ultimately rejected it, as he believed that the Orcs would have been no more intelligent than any other animal if they were truly soulless.

In any case, Tolkien invented Orcs and what is discussed above served as the inspiration of of MANY spinoffs that to various degrees A: took the idea and ran with it while expanding on it to fill in the blanks, B: took the basic idea and gave it a few tweaks, or C: deliberately subverted what people expected from Orcs, making it possible for them to be the good guys. There have been various takes on the "are Orcs fundamentally evil?" question. As a general rule more people tend to go with some flavor of "no, strictly speaking" in that regard as it opens up more narrative possibilities as opposed to a race of set-in-stone killer meatbots utterly unable to deviate from their programing though still cast them primarily in a villainous role.

===Direct Adaptations===
For the most part the Lord of the Rings movies created by Peter Jackson have done a reasonable interpretation of the orcs from the books, though they have cranked their aggression up a bit, uglied them to a great degree, often used the green skin-tones that were popularized later, made them much taller across the board, and ''possibly'' confirmed females. No females are pointed out, but some actresses that played Orcs have insisted their characters (who are usually killed by Elf acrobatics in the same scene or just screech at the camera and shoot an arrow) are female; Jackson has never confirmed or denied this but still made a point of including these interviews on the special features sections of the home release of the movies. Then again, he also put Elves at Helms Deep...

Notably, the 2014 game Middle Earth: Shadow of Mordor, while mostly known for being "actually pretty good" for what was essentially an Assassin's Creed clone, also showed Orc culture. Essentially, they were a naturally evil race ruled by a hierarchy of tribe chiefs who use grimdark Klingon politics; meaning whoever could knock around his fellow Uruks became boss, and a boss who could honorably duel, assassinate, or otherwise neutralize his peers climbed the ladder. While they were the Chaotic Evil monsters Tolkien didn't want to portray them as, this didn't mean that they weren't interesting. Their mindset was that when they weren't focusing on eliminating other tribes, most Uruks just wanted to put in a hard day's work (of bossing around human slaves), made small talk, had drinking songs, and at the end of the day just go have a drink with his mates. With the mental influence of Celebrimbor's shade on them they are rendered neutral in terms of good/evil, but will still fight and kill each other for promotions; this is generally interpreted as mind control, although a large number of Orcs following you without Celebrimbor in the sequel suggests it may also be you reducing Sauron's influence on them and allowing them to make their own moral choices.

==Warhammer==
[[File:Black Orc.jpg|400px|thumb|right|The modern interpretation of Orcs.]]
[[Games Workshop]] was originally a company that produced quality boards for games like Chess, but after two out of three of the original team fell in love with Dungeons & Dragons after [[Gary Gygax]] sent them a copy (believing they were a legitimate company based on their name, rather than three guys in an apartment sending out stuff through the mail) they began distributing licensed games and later producing miniatures for use in these games under the brand [[Citadel Miniatures]].

As time went on, they had a surplus of unsold miniatures and had trouble retaining the rights to sell their products, so they began to have members of their team create new games owned by Games Workshop to use the models they produced (which unfortunately made many of the early Warhammer designs that survive [[Broo|extreme]] [[Daemon|ripoffs]]). The most successful of these was [[Warhammer Fantasy]], then just Warhammer, which was a wargame version of Dungeons & Dragons that existed mostly just to sell models. Warhammer didn't get its own setting and story until 3rd edition, where [[Orcs & Goblins|its Orcs]] were described as having green skin and red eyes with tusks in their mouths as well as being savage brutes that gathered in hordes and attacked civilization, or just about anything capable of fighting, every so often. Although later on this lore became more complex with Warhammer greenskins becoming genderless mushroom-apes with the creation of [[Warhammer 40000]] which was ported back into Fantasy, the prototype Warhammer Orc still had females and Half-Orcs.

With this, the master template of Orcs was completed. Almost every fantasy setting to use Orcs after Warhammer made them green and sometimes gave them red eyes with tusks, which eventually migrated back into Dungeons & Dragons and even the Lord Of The Rings movies. However, one thing was missing. Orcs were still Always Chaotic Evil which greatly limited their use, and non-evil Orcs were a footnote that didn't even have a [[Drizzt]] to be their posterboy example.

==[[Warcraft]]==
The importance of Warcraft isn't actually in any evolution in any master template. In fact, what it mostly did is combine concepts from previous fantasy settings into a setting and use the appearance of Warhammer Orcs, which was thrust into mainstream public perception and made Orcs "cool" causing a boom of fantasy gaming both on the tabletop and in video games, as well as the movie screen.

Warcraft: Orcs & Humans was released in 1994, and featured generic knights VS generic Orcs in the Warhammer style (indeed, rumors persist that Warcraft was a canceled Warhammer game as Games Workshop had been experimenting at the time with video games). Orcs were controlled by Demons from some obscure Satanic force, and used Ogres as their minions. The only real innovation was Orcs coming from another planet through a portal, although the theme of Satanic forces invading from portals was largely dropped and instead lived on in the Diablo franchise. The game was a surprising success, being low budget from a minor studio.

It was followed by Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness in 1996, which sold RIDICULOUSLY well and sparked a boom in the entire Real Time Strategy genre which quickly became a staple of PC gaming. The setting was expanded a great deal, although Orcs remained mostly the same but were joined by Goblins (who coincidentally looked similar but were a different race), Trolls, their persisting Ogre slaves, the undead (created by the Orcs from their own dead Warlocks), and enslaved dragons. The most diverse change to be found here was Goblins being a race of money-obsessed mad scientists, and Trolls being intelligent. An expansion pack was released that involved the humans invading the Orc homeworld to end the war.

Setting their eyes on the horizon, Blizzard planned an explosion of lore with a book series beginning with Of Blood And Honor which went into the friendship between a human Paladin and an aged Orc ex-Shaman who hated what his race had become which created complexity in what had previously been just a generic "kill it all and loot/eat then march again" race. The second book was Day Of The Dragon, expanding a minor plot involving Dragons into the war between good and evil which had used the Horde and Alliance as a proxy for their own machinations. Lord Of The Clans delved deeper into Orc lore, explaining that they were a race with souls naturally attuned to other sources of energy that had communed with the forces of nature itself until they were tricked into a Daemonic curse that affected them like meth, giving them fanatical boosts of power until it diminished their body and soul into a husk; the main character of the book, named Thrall by humans who used him as a pit fighter, learned nature magic and freed the defeated Orcs to lead them to a peaceful natural existence again. Finally the book The Last Guardian detailed the madness of the human supreme wizard Medivh who had summoned the Orcs into the world in the first place and gave context on the Burning Legion, transforming them from a vaguely satanic demon army into a varied force of cosmic enemies that would fit right into Doctor Who.
Here finally Warcraft added new flavor to their Orcs although unlike previous versions of non-evil Orcs the Warcraft version had identical culture only without malice. The major difference here was making them neutral race that actually got to be in the spotlight, as all previous non-evil Orcs were minor races left mostly undescribed beyond the basics that never starred in a story and always were just an option for exotic PCs; Warcraft was the first setting to make them a core race in the starring role with equal importance to humans in the first person narrative, which catapulted Orcs across fantasy fiction in importance.

In Warcraft III: Reign Of Chaos, released in 2002, Blizzard took the mantle of villains entirely away from the Horde and rendered the judgement of gray morality into all factions. The Alliance were racist arrogant bastards that hated each other, were ineffective, and easy to corrupt. The Horde was full of the same assholes from Warcraft I and II that were missing "the good old days" and jumped at a chance to suckle Daemon teat for power again (although the curse was broken during the game). Undead wore the mantle of villainy, but that's because they were lead by a soulless human merged with the ghost of the Orc who set in motion the events which made the Horde evil in the first place. Also, there was forest Elves who wanted everyone to get the fuck out of their forest.

Warcraft III became THE game on the PC at the time, and Warcraft mania had made the image of Orcs something the average non-gamer person could identify. Green skin, tusks, gigantic frame with large shoulders, and sometimes red eyes (which just meant "evil Orc" in Warcraft) became THE Orc as a result of Warcraft, which very little since then has drifted away from. Very few fictional works with Orcs that came after left out these details.

Next in 2004 came World Of Warcraft, '''THE''' MMO which destroyed or outlasted every competitor, surviving for <s>12</s> '''15''' full years and which is still ongoing today. While most of the changes added in WoW remain only important to Warcraft continuity, as they haven't migrated into the mainstream yet, non-evil (or at least neutral) Orcs put upon both by their own evil kin and the hateful humanity became the default Orc. As the game's story moved on, the main racial plot for the Orcs concern itself with its heritage as bloodthirsty conquerors, with the younger lads wondering whether or not wanton genocide really was all that bad... One of them even took the Horde to... [[Nazi|An interesting place]]. So the nature of Orcs as evil/not-evil-just-really-fighty is still being discussed within the game.

So while Warcraft didn't pioneer the idea of non-evil Orcs, greenskins with tusks, or Orcs being in control of their own destiny rather than being pawns in the schemes of a greater power, it did make the Master Template a staple of fantasy fiction. Stories like the Styx and Divinity video games have continued using the new template since then, with more on the way. Even Warhammer itself dropped the most outright evil of their Orcs since then, making them Chaotic Neutral destructive forces that can be allied with rather than Chaotic Evil.

=Mold-Breakers=
{{topquote|Look at them. Ranks, files, locked in everlasting conflict at the whim of the player. They fight, they fall, and they cannot turn back because the whips drive them on, and all they know is whips, kill or be killed. Darkness in front of them, darkness behind them, darkness and whips in their heads. But what if you could take one out of this game, get him before the whips do, take him to a place without whips‚ what might he become? One creature. One singular being. Would you deny them that chance?|Lord Havelock Vetinari, '''Unseen Academicals''', on the subject of [[Terry Pratchett|Sir Terry Pratchett's]] Orcs}}

As the above suggests, orcs are typically your generic [[barbarian]] rapine-horde of bad-guys in most fantasy settings. However, this isn't always the case, and a number of notable exceptions have developed over the years.

'''Discworld''' (Also the universe where the above quote comes from) barely mentions orcs, only saying that they were made as cannon fodder for an evil empire before it was destroyed. There is, however, one orc Character; Nutt, who is Perhaps the most intelligent being in the whole setting, incredibly strong and fucking brilliant at football, although he avoids becoming a [[Mary Sue]] due to Terry Pratchett's Incredibly good writing.

'''[[Al-Qadim]]''' is notable for being probably the first full-on retooling of the orcs from "rampaging barbarian tribes" to "just one more fantasy race that mostly gets along with the others." This is mostly because, rather than having all the races living in their own corners of the world with their own cultures, the deserts of Al-Qadim saw lots of racial mixing around the few oases, and thus a single unified culture comprised of multiple races formed. The only enemies who ''are'' always evil are explicitly supernatural, like the YAKMEN! Also, the most likely setting ever for [[/d/|elf-orc crossbreeding]].

'''[[Eberron]]''' gave its orcs a status as a relatively peaceful race who were once responsible for combating the threat of [[aberration]] hordes from beyond the stars, as well as founders of the tradition of druidism in-setting. Orcs generally tend to live in few places and have vastly different cultures, some good, some evil, some neutral. Even in the present, they tend to live in the swamp-regions and do no harm; they freely mingle with humans and adopt them into their tribes, so [[half-orc]]s are not only common, but have just as much an expectation of being born from consensual relationships as anyone else, rather than the "orc man raping a human woman" expectation of most other D&D settings.
*Shadow Marches, said to be orc homeland, is home to the the Gatekeeper druids who saved the world from aberrations severl thousand years ago and are busy keeping evil unkillable daelkyr lords of madness locked in their prisons. But it's also a home to cults of Kyrzin, one of those evil lords of madness and orc tribes loyal to Gatekeepers and those loyal to Kyrzin are constantly fighting. Both tend to kill outsiders wandering through their lands, because those outsiders are usually enemy agents and it saves time, so don't get confused by Gatekeepers being the good guys, they're by no means nice guys.
*Droaam, right next to Shadow Marches is a multi-cultural nation of monsters and orks are a sizeable population of it. Gaa’aram tribes are your typical evil barbarian orcs, only difference being they form multi-racial tribes where orcs, goblins, ogres and trolls work together. Gaa’ran on the other hand are "peaceful" farmers and about the only people in Droaam who do agriculture. "Peaceful" is in brackets is because they would only fill you with axes and hang your mutilated corpse on a stick to deter future trespassers if you trespass on their lands, being the epitome of "get off my lawn".
*Demon Wastes have two competing cultures, both made of orcs, humans and half-orcs fighting together. Ghaash'kala clans are "good" human, orc, and half-orc [[barbarian]] clans all living and fighting and drinking together for the glory of Kalok Shash, an incarnation of the Silver Flame, in an endless war to make sure nothing ''else'' in the Demon Wastes ever gets out. That being said, things they fight are mostly evil orcs of Carrion Tribes who worship demons and make your typical Faerun orcs look like saints in comparison. Just like in Shadow Marchers, don't assume Ghaash'kala are nice because they're good - they operate under assumption that anything that comes from the wastes is corrupted and needs to die (an assumption that is right 99% of times), so don't expect eny mercy if you come to their lands from the wrong side.
*Finally, separated from all other orc lands are Jorash'Tal, the asshole racist orcs of Mror Holds who hate dwarfs with fiery passion for invading and colonizing their mountains thousands of years ago and refuse to let it go. They're nomad tribes roaming valleys between the mountains and are generally nice people that ''won't'' kill you for trespassing on their lands unlike other orc cultures generally painted as "good". Unless you're dwarf. In which case they kill you for the sins of other dwarfs that lived so long ago no one remembers them. Generally they're a case study on how racial grievances won't do you any good, no matter how justified they are. Dorfs, being both more numerous and technologically advanced are locked in indecision what to do with them as half their clans want to make peace and integrate Jorash'Tal, putting them to work since most holds are in need of more labour, while the other half pushes for the ultimate solution to orcish problem.

'''[[Forgotten Realms]]''', although certainly playing it straight, has exceptions too, in the form of the AD&D-only orc subspecies known as the Ondonti. A ''Lawful Good'' race of peaceful, quiet, contemplative, gentle orcs who devote themselves to [[Eldath]] (a minor Goddess of Peace and Quiet Places) and live a humble life as farmers in a hidden valley. They have several Priestly spell-like abilities (Sanctuary (Self) and Purify Food & Water 3/day, Barkskin 1/day and Tree 1/week), are resistant to poison and immune to Charm spells. The general belief of their origin is that they are an example of option 3 in the infamous [[The Orc Baby Dilemma]], with a bunch of Eldathi priests taking orphaned orc infants into seclusion and bringing them up into their cult, causing them to forsake their ancestral barbarity and embrace peace, quiet and advanced hygiene. You can check out their AD&D stats [http://www.lomion.de/cmm/orcondon.php here]. It's also worth noting that many D&D fans take the stance that orcs, goblins, ogres, and other "always evil" monsters are only evil because ''they're brought up in an evil culture'', and that an orc raised in a human household would be just as Good as their adoptive parents (assuming the parents actually ''are'' Good-aligned, that is). There's also the Kingdom of Many-Arrows, a nation of orcs that seeks to have diplomatic ties to their neighbours, though they do occasionally raid their neighbours, especially the local human barbarian tribes.

'''[[Spelljammer]]''' is an unusual entry on this list, because its unique orcs, or ''Scro'', are still bad guys. It's just that, in [[AD&D|an era where orcs were defined as being chaotic, anarchic, disorganized hordes]] scro were defined by being cultured, intelligent, disciplined and well-organized soldierly regiments - in other words, very close to how [[hobgoblin]]s have come to be defined in modern editions. They are even bigger than normal orcs, pimp out their teeth with much bling, and [[Nazi|wear black leather uniforms when not in battle armor]].

'''[[Warcraft]]''', as covered above, may be the iconic example of a mold-breaker when it comes to orcs. After making them fairly bog-standard bad guy invaders in the first two games (if a little unusual in that they were also invaders from another planet), the third game offered the revelation that orcs had once been a [[noblebright]] culture of shamans and honorable warriors, but were corrupted into savage, bloodthirsty conquerors by an evil warlock and the setting's demonic BBEG. As a result, their campaign in the third game focused on their drive to draw their beaten clans out of human territory and found a new nation for themselves where they could try and rediscover their past. This led to the formation of the Horde faction in [[World of Warcraft]], which took off hugely in popularity because of its then-novel idea of traditionally brutal monster races (orcs, [[troll]]s, [[undead]], and [[minotaur]]s) as an ordinary, viably civilized (relatively speaking) faction in its own right. There was even a short-lived tabletop RPG (first a D&D 3.5 spin off, then a more "customized" but still fundamentally D&D-cloned WoW version) as a result. They still fight, bicker, and war with the "good" races, but now it's because of [[Blizzard]]'s <s>refusal to [[Advancing the Storyline|give up the "dual faction" mechanic and let the story progress]] along with long-standing prejudices between both the Alliance and the Horde rather than because they're the bad guys</s> revolving door of insane and genocidal Horde warchiefs who get overthrown every 2-4 years, with Orcs on both sides of the warchief's agenda. The plot twist is that this time, the warchief is not an Orc at all, but an undead elf which adds layers of complexity. For example, the Orcs go along with her orders in an attempted genocide of the Night Elves after the demons are defeated, but one of the key figures to rise against her was an Orc.

While '''[[Elder Scrolls]]''' **prepare for shitelf cope** Orcs (or Orsimer, if you wish to use their proper name) weren't even considered ''people'' in the first game, by the time the third game rolled around they had become fully integrated into normal society and weren't looked upon any differently from elves or humans. They are as intelligent as anybody else (in the fifth game one even runs the library at the local mage's college) and generally known to be the best smiths in the setting besides the long-extinct Dwarves, as well as crazy good soldiers next to the Nords and Redguards. Their skill in fighting with heavy armor has lent them a place as heavy shock legionaries in the Imperial Legions. One Orc even became the continent's best chef. Technically, they're a subspecies of Elf which were transformed into their current state after the Daedric Prince Boethiah [[Vore|ate (and shat out)]] their greatest champion/god, who was himself turned into the Daedric Prince Malacath.

'''[[Wicked Fantasy]]''' Orks ''were'' originally the standard Always Chaotic Evil raider types, having been created by malevolent gods for the purpose of fighting for their amusement. And then, one day, thirteen great orkish heroes realized that their race had always been nothing more than slaves, and chose to take a new path. They fought their gods and slew them, and though they still struggle with the lingering blood-rage they were created with, they are now a comparatively peaceful race. They're still a ''dark'' race, but not an evil one. For example, they worship pain as a sacred concept... because, by their understanding of it, pain is ultimately on the side of life and it is the giver of strength. Pain warns you when you are hurt, when you are about to die, but it also pushes you to fight harder, to try and survive. Orks prize battle scars as near-sacred objects; nothing comes without sacrifice, and without a scar, the physical symbol of pain, for reference, a victory is ultimately meaningless.

'''[[Sharakim]]''' seem like this at first glance, as they are orcs who are highly organized, discipline, civilized and benevolent people, but arguably don't count: they're the descendants of humans who were cursed to ''look like'' orcs for sacrilege, not really proper orcs.

'''[[Monster Hunter International]]''' orcs, while green and tusked, are among the few monsters that aren't evil as a species. Unlike most of them they are not PUFF exempt, so they do their best to stay hidden from the government. Monster Hunter International helps hide the orcs at their headquarters in Cazador, Alabama and, in return, gets a help from a few orcs. Appearance wise MHI Orcs are pretty standard, though they wear masks to hide this from humans (though the one look at their village suggests they may do this beyond just secrecy). What makes them interesting is that they have an (Orc) god given talent that makes them very specialized in a particular area, yet utterly incompetent at something related to but outside that area. These include a master of bladed weapons that can't hit the broad side of a barn with a gun, and a helicopter pilot who can make a [[MI-24 Hind]] do things even current helicopters can't, but is unable to drive a car (Upon hearing this, one character speculates that Top Gear's Stig is an orc). They can also make magical healing potions, though they need to be made for specific people and don't keep well. Female orcs greatly outnumber males, so polygamy is the norm. MHI Orcs also worship heavy metal musicians. Most information about orcs in this world is based on the depiction of one friendly tribe, and the only other tribe mentioned was willing to slaughter this friendly tribe, so it's likely other tribes differ in some or all aspects.

It's not very common, as one can see, but some DMs have been known to revamp orcs for their own homebrew settings as well.

=Orcs in D&D=
[[File:DnD Original Orc.jpg|thumb|right|300px|1st Edition D&D Orcs, now commonly referred to by some variation of "P'Orcs" by fans.]]
In the first edition of [[Dungeons & Dragons]], Orcs were among the first monsters inspired by folklore and fantasy literature added to the game in a reissue set. They became the primary antagonists out of the many enemies in the game due primarily to their statline rather than their iconic nature, since they were the best "always an enemy" humanoid to accompany a [[Big Bad Evil Guy|BBEG]]. Early DnD Orcs were pig-like monsters resulting from savage tribals that bred with all other races they warred with (so reproducing via rape) with no unified culture or language, but interestingly were also described as having a "reputation for cruelty that is deserved, but humans are just as capable of evil as orcs" which suggests they weren't anything extraordinary to the setting. There was also a short-lived form of Cycloptic Orc, from the British Boxed Set illustrations of AD&D.

Half a decade after their introduction, they were given a more neanderthal appearance as well as being given a size-increase to that of a gorilla (which is actually shorter than the average human, btw), were made able to breed with humans resulting in the [[Half-Orc]] playable race, and given their own mythology (which in most D&D settings is the explanation for why a race behaves the way it does). The leader god is named [[Gruumsh]], who was screwed over in inheritance of the world by the gods of the fairer races causing him to be a bitter asshole and make his race into entitled "might makes right" pricks like a father passing on their shitty life to their kids. Gruumsh's family are below him in importance and include his wife [[Luthic]], goddess of the submission of Orc females as the inferior gender, who goes barefoot and never wields a weapon and just serves to run the home and [[Meme|make babby]], and their son [[Bahgtru]] who's pretty much the god of "stupid, but strong", along with Gruumsh's second in command [[Ilneval]] who is the Orc god of war that directly guides mortal Orcs, with the four together representing the Neutral and "Lawful" (as in they are willing to take orders and respect their place in society) side of the pantheon. Also added were [[Shargaas]] the god of general bad magic and spooky things, and [[Yurtrus]] the god of ruin and death, neither of whom have any loyalty to Gruumsh's side of the pantheon and represent the truly Chaotic "for the evulz" aspect of Orcs.

An article for [[Dragon Magazine]] later gave the option of making the traditionally evil races like Orcs and [[Kobolds]] player characters of any alignment. This lead to the [[Forgotten Realms]] setting having two races of Orcs that are capable of any alignment, the pacifistic Ondonti who culturally are closer to Hobbit than Orruk, and the Gray Orcs who are treated as another among the fair races. All other D&D Orcs remained stupid-evil.

Dungeons & Dragons became the standard for most fantasy that came after, but ultimately for Orcs the only purpose was to move forward to the next step in the master template.

Despite their traditional role as bad guys, since at least the days of Basic D&D, where they had their own [[Known World Gazetteer]] in "The Orcs of Thar", orcs have actually been a full-fledged PC race. True, you typically need DM permission, but the option was there.

Though... not a lot of people took it, as in accordance with their fluff, orcs could be mechanically rather... lackluster. It's a well-known fact in 4th and 5th edition alike that, really, you're better off using and reflavoring the [[half-orc]] or even the [[goliath]] races instead. Especially in 5th edition, where they are literally ''the only race in the game'', aside from [[kobold]]s, to get an ability score penalty.

This has changed with Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse. Orcs have lost their Primal Intuition; Aggressive has been reworked into Adrenaline Rush allowing them to Dash as a bonus action PB times per long rest, and they gain temporary hit points equal to their proficiency bonus when they do; and they've gained the Half-Orc's Relentless Endurance. On top of all that, with the modern WotC design philosophy, they get the same "add 2 to 1 stat and 1 to another, or 1 to 3 different stats" that all races get, so no more ability score penalty.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Orc ODD1.png|Original D&D
orc sewer A1.png|[[Scourge of the Slave Lords|A1: Slave Pits of the Undercity]]
orc camp A1.png|A1: Slave Pits of the Undercity
orc MCV1.jpg|2e Monstrous Compendium
orc MM 2e.png|2e Monstrous Manual
Orc miners First Quest.jpg|2e orcs with some klingon-like head ridges (First Quest).
orc MM 3e.jpg|3e
orc MM 4e.jpg|4e
4e Orcs, Monster Vault.jpg|Orc sexual dimorphism is a bit of a hit-and-miss affair.
4e Orcs, Dragon 374.png
orc MM 5e.jpg|5e
orc B1.png|Pathfinder
orc ARG 1.png
orc ARG 3.png
Orc sf 1.png|Starfinder
Orc sf 2.png
</gallery>

==PC Stats==
===BECMI===
In BECMI era [[Mystara]], there are two different Orc race-classes; the standard Orc, as seen in [[Known World Gazetteer|The Orcs of Thar]], and the horse-riding Krugel Orc, seen in the [[Hollow World]] subsetting. If the Krugel Orcs are Mystara's proto-orcs, then they must be the orcs of Mystara's distant past, Blackmoor, who were ruled by King Funk, chosen of the Lovecraftian Egg of Coot to lead the orcish hordes, arguably the first big fearsome orc warlord type character in tabletop gaming, predating Warhammer's Grimgor Ironhide, Kings of War's Gakamak the Smasher, and Faerun's Obould Many-Arrows. Said Krugel Orcs were one of many savage tribal races produced by D&D Beastmen, alongside Ogres, Cyclops, Goblins, and Trolls.

;Standard Mystaran Orc
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="100%"> Click "Expand" to see the stablock.
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
::Orc Ability Modifiers: +1 Strength, -1 Dexterity
::Note: Like all Humanoids from "The Orcs of Thar", an Orc has racial ability score caps of 18 in all scores bar [[Intelligence]] and [[Wisdom]], which are capped at 16.
::Note: Like all Humanoids from "The Orcs of Thar", an Orc determines its [[Charisma]] score for interacting with [[human]]s and [[demihuman]]s by dividing its Charisma score by 3 (rounding down) and subtacting the result from 9.
::Orc Natural Armor Class: 8
::Can become [[Shaman]]s (6th level) and [[Wokani]] (4th level).

{| class=wikitable
!Orc's's level || XP Required || Orc's hit dice
|-
|0||0||d8
|-
|1||1,000||2d8
|-
|2||2,000||3d8
|-
|3||4,000||-
|-
|4||8,000||4d8
|-
|5||16,000||5d8
|-
|6||32,000||6d8
|-
|7||64,000||-
|-
|8||130,000||7d8
|-
|9||260,000||+2 Hit Points
|-
|Subsequent||200,000||+2 Hit Points
|}
</div></div>

;Krugel Orc
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::Racial Ability Modifiers: +1 Strength, -1 Dexterity, maximum of 16 Intelligence and 16 Wisdom
::Prime Requisite: Strength - Strength 13+ for +5% to XP earned, Strength 16+ for +10% to XP earned
::Save as [[Fighter]] of equivalent level
::Can reach 6th level as Shaman and 4th level as Wokani
::Mandatory Skill: Riding (Horse or Bounder - a kind of far-leaping bipedal carnivorous [[dinosaur]])
::Unlike normal Mystaran orcs, Krugel orcs have lost their Infravision
::Cultural Melee Weapons: Dagger, Sword (Short/Broad/Bastard), Mace, Club, Warhammer, Spear, Javelin, Lance, Net, Whip
::Cultural Missile Weapons: Crossbow (Light/Heavy), Bow (Long/Short), Sling
::Cultural Armor: Leather, Scale, Mail, Chain Mail, Banded Mail, Shield (including horned, knife, sword and tusked), Leather Horse Barding
::Shamans can use: Mace, club, warhammer, lance, net, all cultural armor
::Wokani can use: Dagger, club, net, whip

Krugel Experience Table: Krugels can reach level 36
::1: 0 XP, 1D8 Hit Dice
::2: 1,000 XP, 2D8 Hit Dice
::3: 2,000 XP, 3D8 Hit Dice
::4: 4,000 XP
::5: 8,000 XP, 4D8 Hit Dice
::6: 16,000 XP, 5D8 Hit Dice
::7: 32,000 XP, 6D8 Hit Dice
::8: 64,000 XP
::9: 130,000 XP, 7D8 Hit Dice
::10: 260,000 XP, +2 HP (Constitution bonus no longer applies)
::+1 Level: +200,000 XP, +2 HP (Constitution bonus no longer applies)
</div></div>

===AD&D===
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::+1 Strength,-2 Charisma
::Strength: Minimum 6, Maximum 18
::Dexterity: Minimum 3, Maximum 17
::Constitution: Minimum 8, Maximum 18
::Intelligence: Minimum 3, Maximum 16
::Wisdom: Minimum 3, Maximum 16
::Charisma: Minimum 3, Maximum 12
::Available Classes & Max Levels: Fighter 10, Cleric 9, Shaman 6, Witch Doctor 6, Thief 11
::35% chance to spot new and unusual constructions
::25% chance to spot sloping passages
::Infravision 60 feet
::-1 penalty to attack rolls and morale when in direct sunlight
::Weapon Proficiencies: Battle axe, crossbow, flail, hand axe, spear, any bow, any pole arm, any sword.
::Nonweapon Proficiencies: Alertness, armorer, blacksmithing, bowyer/fletcher, carpentry, chanting, close-quarter fighting, hunting, intimidation, looting, religion, set snares, spellcraft, tracking, weaponsmithing.
</div></div>

===3e===
There are several different orc stats, scattered across multiple sourcebooks. The "common" orc in the [[Monster Manual]] featured the following statblock:

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::+4 Strength, -2 Intelligence, -2 Wisdom, -2 Charisma
::Medium size
::Base land speed 30 feet
::Darkvision out to 60 feet
::Light Sensitivity (Ex): -1 penalty to Attack rolls when exposed to bright sunlight or a daylight spell.
::[[Favored Class]]: [[Barbarian]]
</div></div>

====Forgotten Realms====
In the [[Forgotten Realms]], however, there are three different varieties of orc:

The "Mountain Orc" is the most common of the three races, and is the most generic, being pretty much standard Monster Manual orcs. They inhabit the Frozen North, predominantly the Spine of the World mountains and other hilly regions (hence the name), and for the most part at generic would-be conquerors foiled by their own inability to focus on anything besides killing - except for when [[Obould Many-Arrows]] tried to forcibly drag them out of their pits and show them that the best way to get respect is to actually make a kingdom of their own. These guys use the standard orc profile.

Deep Orcs, or [[Orog]]s, are a stronger, smarter (but somewhat shorter) breed of orc native to the [[Underdark]]. See their page for more details.

Finally, Gray Orcs are a strange race of emotional, impulsive, and deeply religious orcs originally hailing from another world. Long story short, centuries ago, an archmage created a portal to their world, but wound up being killed for an unrelated incident before anyone ever found out about this portal - which meant nobody ever shut it off. Five years after his death, the orcs found the portal and swarmed through in a religious crusade, battling the empires of Mulhorand and Unther in the 6-years-long Orcgate Wars, which ended with the closing of the portal, the defeat of several of the incarnate gods of Mulhorand and Unther, and the scattering of the gray orcs into loose, fractious tribes that still haunt the Moonsea and the Endless Wastes. Though physically weaker than their mountain orc "relatives", gray orcs are much more strong-willed and independent, and retain a knack for divine magic which makes them dangerous. They also possess a far swifter stride and keener senses of smell. Gray Orc PCs have the following racial stats:

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::+2 Strength, +2 Wisdom, -2 Intelligence, -2 Charisma
::Medium Size
::Base Speed 40 feet
::Racial Weapon Proficiency: Great-Axe and Longbow
::Light Sensitivity (Ex): -1 penalty to Attack rolls when exposed to bright sunlight or a daylight spell.
::Scent (Ex)
::Orc Blood: For all effects and special abilities that target a creature's race, Gray Orcs count as '''Orcs'''.
::[[Favored Class]]: [[Cleric]]
::[[Level Adjustment]]: +1
</div></div>

====3rd Party Settings====
;[[Midnight]]
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::+4 Strength, -2 Intelligence, -2 Charisma
::Medium
::Base land speed 30 feet
::Weapon Familiarty: Vardatches are Martial Weapons for Orcs
::Night Fighter: Darkvision 60 feet, +1 racial bonus to attack rolls when fighting with no light.
::Light Sensitivity: -1 penalty on attack rolls in bright sunlight or within the radius of a daylight spell.
:: Resistance to Cold: Immune to nonlethal damage caused by cold weather, severe cold, exposure or extreme cold. Halve lethal damage (rounding down) inflicted by extreme cold.
::Natural Predator: Orcs add their Str modifier to Intimidate checks as well as their Cha modifier.
::Spell Resistant: +2 racial bonus on saves against spells and spell-like effects, -2 spell energy points for orc casters.
::+1 racial bonus on damage rolls against dwarves.
::+1 racial bonus on attack rolls when fighting in groups of 10 or more orcs; allies and enemies both count for triggering this feature.
::[[Favored Class]]: [[Barbarian]]
</div></div>

;Warcraft the RPG
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* +2 Constitution, -2 Intelligence
::Medium size
::Base land speed 30 feet
::Low-Light Vison
::Battle Rage: Can Rage once per day as per a Barbarian, or adds +1 to rages per day if a Barbarian
::Weapon Familiarity: Orc Claws are a Martial Weapon rather than an Exotic Weapon
::Weapon Proficiency: Automatically receive Martial Weapon Proficiency (Battleaxe) as a bonus feat
::+2 racial bonus to Handle Animal (Wolf) checks and Intimidate checks. Handle Animal (Wolf) and Intimidate are always Class Skills for orcs.
::+1 racial bonus to attack rolls against humans
::[[Favored Class]]: [[Fighter]]
</div></div>

;World of Warcraft the RPG
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* +2 Stamina, -2 Intellect (Note: Con and Int by different names)
::Medium size
::Base land speed 30 feet
::Low-Light Vison
::Battle Rage: Can Rage once per day as per a Barbarian, or adds +1 to rages per day if a Barbarian
::Weapon Familiarity: Orc Claws are a Martial Weapon rather than an Exotic Weapon
::Weapon Proficiency: Automatically receive Martial Weapon Proficiency (Battleaxe) as a bonus feat
::+2 racial bonus to Handle Animal (Wolf) checks and Intimidate checks. Intimidate is always a Class Skill for orcs.
::+1 racial bonus to attack rolls against humans
::[[Favored Class]]: [[Barbarian]]
</div></div>

===4e===
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::+2 Strength, +2 Constitution
::Size: Medium
::Speed: 6 squares
::Vision: Low-light
::Running Charge (+2 to Speed when charging)
::Warrior's Surge (racial encounter power; make a 1[W] + Strength modifier attack with a melee weapon against an opponent's AC and get to spend a healing surge)
</div></div>

===5e===
Added in Volo's Guide to Monsters as a monster race. They get the following traits... which are, as more than one person has noticed, essentially the 5e [[Half-Orc]] stats with -2 Intelligence tacked on and with the gloriously beefy Relentless Endurance (survive a killing strike with 1 [[hit point]] left 1/day) and Savage Attack (+1 die of damage on a melee weapon critical hit) replaced with the okay Aggressive trait and the pathetically overvalued Powerful Build trait, something that [[skub|has caused its fair share of arguments]].

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<div class="mw-collapsible-content">
::+2 Strength, +1 Constitution, -2 Intelligence
::30 feet base movement speed
::Size is medium, but they get <strike>almost large</strike> Powerful build which gives them the carrying capacity of a large creature.
::60 feet darkvision
::Aggressive (use bonus action to dash, must finish dash closer to your enemy than where the dash started)
::Menacing (Intimidation proficiency, same as half orcs)
</div></div>

Amazingly, orcs got an official retcon with an official PC writeup in the 5e [[Eberron]] splatbook. "Rising from the Last War" uses the above orc as a base, but strips away the pointless -2 Intelligence penalty and trades the Menacing for ''Primal Intuition'', which gives them two free skill proficiencies chosen from a list made up of Animal Handling, Insight, Intimidation, Medicine, Nature, Perception and Survival. This is much more useful, and better meshes with the theme of the orcs as the primary [[druid]]ic race in Eberron, and overall makes them a powerful and viable PC race... still, from a flavor perspective, there's something to be said for switching the Half-Orc and Orc stats around.

This version of the Orc was subsequently reprinted in the [[Exandria]] splatbook "Explorer's Guide to Wildemount", so it seems to have become more or less the official replacement for Volo's initial shitfest.

And as of the October errata, that is now the case, and the change seems to be a step in the right direction for orcs and [[Kobold|kobolds]]. Even so, it goes without saying, but [[Skub|it's simply impossible to please everyone]].

====3rd Party Settings====
;Arkadia
The [[Orc]]s of [[Arkadia]] are a race born from the blood of the Great Hydra, and native to the broken wastes of Garagos. Also known as [[Giant]]s for their mighty stature - orcs typically stand 6 to 7 feet tall, though the orcs of Gargaros can grow even larger - the race has long been the traditional enemy of the Arkadians, as the race seems possessed to the last by madness and the need for destruction. But... Arkadian orcs are not a monolithic racial force. There are many tribes of orcs scattered throughout Gargaros. The Cerberans train cerberus worgs to hunt and kill; the Cyclopax fight alongside [[Cyclops|cyclopean giants]]; and the Hydrak, the largest and most hated — even by their own kind — who worship the bound titan, seeking to free it through fire and blood. Despite the ancient animosity between orcs and men, some tribes of orcs have come to find a place in Arkadia, especially among the Krytans who value strength and physical prowess above all else. These orcs were first taken as slaves during one of the many wars with Gargaros. Thrown into the fighting pits and gladiatorial arenas they displayed such power and ferocity that the king, impressed, granted them freedom and a place in his army. Many Orcs have since taken to the worship of Krytos with abandon, finding in the mighty god a surrogate father who shares their savagery and love of combat.

Arkadian orcs resemble humans, but with leaf-like ears similar to those of the [[Arkadian Elf|elves]], powerful builds, and jutting lower canines. Their skin is the color of ochre clay; orange, reddish brown, or ashen grey, often varying from tribe to tribe. Many orcs wear black warpaint in stark bands and square keyed patterns. Valuing strength and dominance above all else, orcs, as a Hyperian general once put it, make excellent warriors and terrible soldiers. Their physical prowess and violent nature make them most at home in Kryta, whose army cares more for the might of individuals than the discipline of lines. Their fearlessness and unbridled aggression on the field make them an unstoppable force, ideal as linebreakers, often turning the tide of battle almost single-handed. Some, lacking even the control for this, become mercenaries. Others take to the fighting pits or, with some luck, the grand coliseums of Illyria, untouched by Gargaran raids, where their prodigious size and strength are coveted for their exotic nature.

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::Ability Score Increase: +2 Strength, +1 Constitution
::Size: Medium
::Speed: 30 feet
::Darkvision: 60 feet
::Colossal Build: Your carrying capacity and the amount of weight you can push, drag, or lift is doubled as if you were one size category larger.
::Relentless Endurance: When you are reduced to 0 hit points but not killed outright, you can drop to 1 hit point instead. You can’t use this feature again until you finish a long rest.
::Savage Attacks: When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon’s damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit.
</div></div>

;World of Farland
Orcs in the [[World of Farland]] come in a number of different subspecies, as part of their home setting's homage to the [[Lord of the Rings]] books that inspired it.

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::Ability Score Increase: +2 Strength
::Size: Medium
::Speed: 30 feet
::Vision: Darkvision 60 feet
::Orcish Weaponry: You are proficient with the Hand Axe, Battle Axe, Great Axe, Scimitar and Great Sword.
::Aggressive: Once per short rest, you can use a Bonus Action to move up to your speed towards a creature that you can see.
::Subrace: Choose the Snog, Skaruk or Irzuk subrace.
</div></div>

'''Snog''' orcs, or "Slave Orcs", are the root-stock of the orcish race; first bred as fodder for the wars of dark masters, they are still used in that role to this day, and are literally bred like livestock for that role.
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::Ability Score Increase: +1 Constitution
::Relentless Endurance: When you are reduced to 0 hit points but not killed outright, you can drop to 1 hit point instead. You can’t use this feature again until you finish a long rest.
::Indefatigable: You have Advantage on all Constitution checks relating to exhaustion, forced marching, going without food and water, and going without sleep.
::Armored: You have Proficiency with Light and Medium armor.
</div></div>

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'''Skaruk''' orcs, or "Wild Ones", are orcs descended from tribes that fled their creators and have since pursued independent existences in the wilderness.
::Ability Score Increase: +1 Dexterity
::Savage Attacks: When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon’s damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit.
::Wild Rage: After you first take damage in battle, you deal +1 damage with each attack for the next minute until you are knocked unconscious, or if your turn ends and you haven't attacked a hostile creature since your last turn or taken damage since then.
</div></div>

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'''Irzuk''' orcs are a new race of orcs bred for their resistance to the cold and their ability to track victims. They are visually distinguished by their uniquely crimson hides.
::Ability Score Increase: +1 Wisdom
::Tracker: You have Proficiency in Survival and gain Advantage on Survival checks relating to tracking by scent.
::Cold Endurance: You have Advantage on Constitution checks relating to resisting natural cold and are Resistant to Cold Damage.
::Enhanced Aggression: When you use your Aggressive trait, you can move up to +10 feet over your normal movement limit.
</div></div>

;Scarred Lands
Orcs of the [[Scarred Lands]] are semi-nomadic tribals who live in the plains and savannahs of [[Ghelspad]], noted for their talents in astrology and riding [[Dire Animal|Dire Wolves]], strong tribal identities, and a preference for a simple life with a few great luxuries. They originally fought on the titans side in the Divine War, but most of them took the asylum offer given by the gods. They all have the following stats:

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::Ability Score Increase: +3 Strength, +1 Constitution
::Size: Medium
::Speed: 30 feet
::Darkivision 30 feet
::Aggressive: As a bonus action, you can move up to your speed toward a hostile creature you can see.
::Menacing: Proficieny in the Intimidation skill
::Orcish Combat Training: You are proficient with the battleaxe, greataxe, handaxe, and lance.
::Savage Attacks: When you score a critical hit with a melee weapon attack, you can roll one of the weapon’s damage dice one additional time and add it to the extra damage of the critical hit.
::Language: You speak Orcish and one other language.
</div></div>

===[[Pathfinder]] 1e===
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* +4 Strength, -2 Intelligence, -2 Wisdom, -2 Charisma
::Medium size
::Base land speed 30 feet
::Darkvision out to 60 feet
::Ferocity (can keep fighting at zero HP, but is Staggered and loses 1 HP each round automatically)
::Light Sensitivity (automatically suffer Dazzled condition in daylight)
::Weapon Familiarity: Automatically proficient with Greataxe and Falchion, treat any weapon with "Orc" in its name as a Martial weapon.
</div></div>

As nameless monsters who won't survive the encounter anyways, Ferocity effectively adds their constitution score (''score'', not modifier) to their HP. This make them quite dangerous at low levels, since it ''triples'' their HP (the standard Orc has 6 HP and 12 con). This isn't enough to put them next to [[Cat|house cats]], incorporeal foes or [[Swarm]]s as slayers of low level PCs, it does make them quite hard for their supposed CR 1/3.

===Pathfinder 2e===
Compared to their previous edition, and the DnD 5e, the Orcs of second edition is a lot more fleshed out. With the APG sidesteping a lot of their more "violent" tendencies of pillaging and "conception" of half-orcs, preferring to focus on their glory-seeking, honesty and unbreakable loyalty to those they see as equals or treat them nicely. They are a society looking to surpass their shitty upbringings, wanting to move on from their long history of conflict.... [[derp|by way of conflict]].

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::Hit points: 10
::Size: Small
::Speed: 25 feet
::Ability Boosts: Strength, Free
::Languages: Common and Orcish, as well as any other languages equal to your intelligence modifier.
::Darkvision: You can see in darkness and dim light just as well as you can see in bright light, though your vision in darkness is in black and white.
</div></div>

===Starfinder===
Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Orcs in [[Starfinder]] were long ago enslaved by the Drow and forcibly underwent social engineering to make them servile to the Drow on an almost genetic level. Their once green skin has turned blue, to better blend in with the tunnels of the Drow planet's underground caverns and to resemble their masters' more purple skintones.

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::Ability Modifiers: +4 Str, –2 Cha
::Hit Points: 6
::Size and Type: Medium humanoid (orc).
::Conditioned Focus: Due to her conditioning, an orc can choose one skill that becomes a class skill for her. If the chosen skill is a class skill from the class she takes at 1st level, she instead gains a +1 bonus to checks with that skill. In addition, due to her confidence with that skill, once per day, before she attempts a check with the chosen skill, the orc can grant herself a +2 bonus to that check.
::Darkvision 60 feet
::Fierce Survivalist: Orcs receive a +2 racial bonus to Intimidate and Survival checks.
::Light Sensitivity: An orc is dazzled as long as she remains in an area of bright light.
::Orc Ferocity: Once per day, an orc brought to 0 Hit Points but not killed can fight on for 1 more round. The orc drops to 0 HP and is dying (following the normal rules for death and dying) but can continue to act normally until the end of his next turn, when he becomes unconscious as normal. If he takes additional damage before this, he ceases to be able to act and falls unconscious.
</div></div>

=Green Skin=
One usually wonders where the green coloration of Orcish skin came from, in the old myths (i.e., Lord of the Rings) the orcs were established as barbaric, crude brutes, true; but the approximate skin color was never truly established, the Orcs were generally described as filthy and mucky, with darkened skin and bestial countenances. (Similarly, in the films their skin shades are in varying shades of ash-black and dirty-brown, the occasional bit of face-painting notwithstanding.) It wasn't until the advent of the Hulk comics, and GW deciding to make their orcs different, that the common skin of the orc became green. Because Warhammer's orcs became so memorable, thousands of copycats have followed suit.

This of course may not truly explain why some orcs in DnD have green skin as well, DnD being around before Warhammer, but the a more precise green coloration in its orcs may have come later. Indeed, earlier DnD art shows a variety of skin colors, some of them sallow yellow and earthy reds. Green may have come about because all the other possible colors simply have clashing connotations, such as a calming blue, or offensive real world racial connotations (black, [[kobold|red]], brown, and [[goblin|yellow]] are right out for a barbaric and evil race of XP bags.) Another theory is that Ian Livingstone and Steve Jackson, the 2 co-founders of [[Games Workshop]], also had a lot of communication with Brian Blume, the developer of D&D, especially in the early days of these 2 companies, so it is entirely possible that certain ideas were mentioned and then copied.

''In-universe'' reasons for their chartreuse complexions vary between IPs; While earlier editions claimed that the Orks of 40k are said to be animate plants, current lore dictates that Ork DNA is a combination of animal, plant, and fungal DNA, thus their colors are effectively the result of chlorophyll running through their bodies (while the animal part conveniently allows them to bleed red for grimdark purposes). Meanwhile, the green skins of the orcs of The Elder Scrolls and Warcraft universes are the result of demonic tampering; The Orsimer are a result of the above-mentioned champion-devoured-and-shat-out incident, while the Warcraft Orcs were convinced to drink the blood of the Pit Lord Mannoroth, changing their normally brown or grey skin into that distinct hue, with further ingestion of Pit Lord blood turning them red. Some orc clans turned down the offer however, and still keep their original skin tones in the present.

Though for what it's worth, D&D orcs are grey, not green, as of 5e. Seriously, open your monster manual if you don't believe us.

=Piggish Looks=
On occasion, a person may find orcs depicted as pig-men, despite the generally accepted portrayal of orcs as being (usually green-skinned) Frazetta Man style cavemen fellows. This goes back to [[Dungeons & Dragons]] 1st edition, where orcs were described as having a fundamentally "piggish snout" for a face and depicted as more or less a boar's head on a hunch-shouldered, ugly, green-skinned chimpanzee. Some depictions of orcs thusly refer back to this. It's most common in Japan, where old-school [[neckbeard]]s grew up to have a huge impact on art, manga and videogames. For a reference cue there, see the Moblins from the Legend of Zelda series. Similar incidents of redesign of classic tabletop gaming creatures include dogfaced kobolds, pumpkinheaded bugbears, starving-looking lanky trolls, and slinky hobgoblin-like gnolls.

=Cyclops Orcs=
An even rarer variant from the British 1st Edition AD&D Boxed Set illustrations. This one-eyed example was originally published by Games Workshop, and later inspired the appearance of Fangor Gripe, one of the Orc leaders of the Vile Rune tribe. May have been inspired by one of the descriptions of Gruumsh in D&D being cycloptic after Corellon took out his eye, and his wounded socket and existing one merged together to give him one big eye.
<gallery>
cyclops orc.jpg
</gallery>

=Monstergirl Depictions=
{{Monstergirls}}
Orcs are not the most commonly seen of [[monstergirls]], as many of the individuals inclined to make monstergirls, despite what many [[/d/]] cliches may lead you to believe, aren't inclined to find orcs attractive. Those rare orc MGs seen tend to be, basically, green-skinned [[Amazon]]s; [[musclegirl]]s of a particularly dumb "fight 'em an' fuck 'em" mentality with a penchant for either raping men or gathering in harems around particularly strong, tough warriors (who may or may not be made to submit).

In the [[Monster Girl Encyclopedia]], the Orc is a chubby pink girl with pig ears on her head and a pig's tail (see above about how "pigmen orcs" are popular in Japan). She's a vanilla demihuman-type mamono who goes around in large groups by preference. They're femdommy by nature, but happily submit to maledom if a potential spouse can overpower them in a fight, and also enjoy sharing a spouse between them. Hilariously, this is pretty square with what official sources have established about D&D orc sexual mores. January 2018 saw the release of the "High Orc"; a bigger, stronger, smarter and fiercer version of the standard orc, the "boar-girl" to their "pig-girl". Fearless, cunning and strong, they are natural leaders of their lesser kin, aided by the fact they release a pheromone that whips up a lust for battle (and sex) in any nearby orc. Of course, if you beat them, that knocks the wind out of the normal orcs' sails, and they will generally flee or surrender on the spot. High Orcs fit the same sexual mold as their weaker siblings, aside from their pheromone doubling as an aphrodisiac. In a twist that /tg/ finds hilarious, High Orcs have dark brown skin, which, combined with their status as the natural leaders of the race, immediately puts them in mind of the [[Black Orc]]s of [[Warhammer Fantasy]]. Most likely they were instead based on the Uruk-hai of [[The Lord of the Rings]], but why let that spoil a good laugh?

[[Daily Life with Monstergirl]] combines the above two, having male Orcs be ugly green pig dudes who lust for human (and human-like) women. Thus far we haven't seen female Orcs yet, but like the [[centaur]]s in the series they will likely be a lot more attractive than their male counterparts. As a matter of fact, a female orc named Ruka actually shows up in the tie-in online game as one of your potential haremettes; if taken as canon, then female orcs in this setting are indeed cute green-skinned pig-girls - unlike the MGE version, they have a pig's tail and trotters for feet, with elf-like ears, as the Daily Life verse tends to avoid more animalistic ears for its beast-girls in general.

<gallery>
Female Orc.jpg|gb2kitchen
Amazon Orc.jpg|In some depictions female orcs are rather [[amazon]]ian.
MGE Orc.jpg|A pig-eared orc from the Monster Girl Encyclopedia.
MGE High Orc.jpg|Bigger, tougher, smarter champions of orcdom, the boar-based High Orcs are essentially the MGE's [[Black Orc]]s.
Monster Musume Ruka the Orc.png|Ruka from Monster Musume showcases an incredibly rare meeting point between p'orc and greenskin.
1642287072.baguette2077 konosubaorc 001.jpg|Who says Pigfaced Orc Women can't be attractive?
AsianPigOrc.jpg|Weeaboo Pigfaced Orc Waifu
Aggralan, Mag'har Shamaness.jpg|The she-orcs of [[Warcraft]] have always been pretty hot.
orc ARG 2.png|Pathfinder proving [[half-orc]]s don't HAVE to have human mothers.
</gallery>

=See Also=
*[[Goblins]]
*[[Ork]]
*[[Orcs & Goblins]]

=Gallery=
<gallery>
Orcweapons.JPG|Ork made [[Exotic weapons]].
Orksword.GIF|Ork make more [[Exotic weapons]].
Orc_bard.jpg|What happens when the DM lets him take a homebrew feat to use his Strength score for Perform (Dance) checks.
Orcs are Grays.jpg|Orks are Xenos, after all...
CyclopticOrcs.jpg|Even rarer than Pigfaced Orcs are Cycloptic Orcs.
</gallery>

{{D&D1e-Races}}
{{D&D2e-Races}}
{{D&D4e-Races}}
{{D&D5e-Races}}
{{Pathfinder-Races}}
{{Starfinder-Races}}
[[Category:Scarred Lands Races]]

Rift-Forged Orcs

2022-06-30T05:37:31Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0:

New army for Kings of War, an army of uber-orcs seemingly inspired by Stormcast Eternals.

[[Category: Kings of War]]

Squig

2022-06-28T21:15:13Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Other Squigs */

[[File:Squig.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Squigs. Making [[Tyranids]] feel insecure in the eating department.]]

[[File:MilkSquig.jpeg|thumb|Sadly noncanon, at least not yet...]]
A Squig, short for squiggly beast, is any one of a variety of bizarre organisms that exist semi-symbiotically with [[Orcs & Goblins]] and [[Orks]] alike. [[Fungus]]-based animals, their most iconic form resembles a large round ball that opens up a huge maw full of teeth, propelled by two strong legs that let it run, scramble and jump all over the place.

Night Goblins in particular like to herd huge swarms of these things onto the battlefield, as they are violently unpredictable and surprisingly dangerous.

In the 41st millennium, on the other hand, they play a somewhat different role. Some ork [[Warboss]]es will keep such squigs as personal attack animals, [[Oddboys|slavers]] always have trusty squig-hounds to help tame [[grot]]s, and [[Tankbustas]] favor a breed that they cram full of bombs and coax to charge towards (hopefully) the enemy before blowing up.

According to the [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] splat, "Old World Bestiary", squig-meat is perfectly edible by humans and actually very tasty. Spit-roasted squig is described as resembling smoked ham with the consistency of young chicken.

[[Age of Sigmar]] introduces a mythological aspect to their origins with the introduction of Boingob, the godbeast progenitor of all Squigs. This massive creature barreled through the realms in a frenzied pursuit of the light of Hysh (basically the sun), until it finally jumped up and was roasted alive. Now its colossal skeleton serves as a holy place/impenetrable lurk lair to the Moonclan Grots.

Squigs can be bred into a vast variety of forms and functions. The most famous of these is arguably the monstrous [[Squiggoth]] which provide a similar sort of heavy infantry to a war elephant. Other, more obscure types include (but by no means limited to) Bag Squigs, Bomb Squigs, Eating Squig, Gas Squigs, Hair Squigs, Oily Squigs, Paint Squigs, Squig Sharks, Squig Hawks, and Squigeons all of which can be further explained below. Squigs are basically the apps of Ork society: if you can think of a function, there's a squig for that.

==Squig Varieties==
As mentioned. Squigs come in all sizes and flavors. Here are the documented species of Squigs officially recognized by the Imperium/whatever-institutio-exists-in-AoS.

===Attack Squig===
[[File:AttackSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Attack Squig.]]
The most common and identifiable type of Squig. Whenever someone says Squig, this is the one that pops in everyone's head. The Attack Squig (''Orkus ferocitas''), also known as the Cave Squig, looks like it's trying to compete with the [[Tyranids]] for sheer 'OMNOMNOMNOMNOM' ability, consisting of nothing more than a bouncing ball of claws and razor-sharp teeth. These Squigs, as their name implies, are often used as attack animals, weapons, or pets. They can be given to the [[Grots]] as a food source (if the Squig doesn't eat them first) or even war mounts if said Grot is feeling particularly brave that day.

Sometimes an Attack Squig is transformed into a '''Bomb Squig''' via jamming as much explosive materials into the Squigs mouth as possible before setting it loose to fuck up some tanks. These specialized Attack Squigs are often utilized by either Ork Flashgitz or Tankbustas.

<gallery>
File:BombSquig.png|Bomb Squig.
</gallery>

===Bitey Squig===
[[File:Bitey Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bitey Squig]]
Bitey Squigs are a sub-species of Attack Squigs that have sufficient jaws, claws, and stingers to savage the target and anything close by. This breed is squig is frequently fired from Squig Launchas and Heavy Squig Launchas. Launched gnashing and snarling into the enemy, they latch onto the first thing they hit and do not stop chewing until they are killed. A bit like the Face-Eating Squig to be honest.

Legends states that the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]] was created due to a [[Just As Planned|'mishap']] when a Bitey Squig or some form of Attack Squig was accidentally stuffed into
the launcha and fired into a ''very'' unfortunate Ork’s face and thus, the legend was born.

It seems that the Bitey Squig can be differentiated by the normal Attack Squig with a stronger jaw, this can be seen with its more pronounced jawline which could only be supported with powerful jaw muscles. There is also the aforementioned stingers, which would most likely be located at the tail, unfortunately there isn't any indication that the tail has something ''alluding'' to a stinger tail. Bitey Squigs are also much smaller than the Attack Squig in order to fit inside a Squig Launcha, seeing as how an Attack Squig is often the size of sheep, it makes sense for the Orks to utilize a much more smaller and mobile version to be used as ammunition.

===Bile Squig===
[[File:Bile_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bile Squig]]

The Bile Squigs come in a variety of breeds and are capable of spraying, squirting, or vomiting harmful fluids from their orifices. This breed of squig is frequently fired from Squig Launchas and Heavy Squig Launchas.

Typically launched by the handful, these creatures squeal and thrash while jetting acid, lubricants, poisons, and flammable fluids in every direction. The effects can sometimes be harmless, but other times can cause their victims to burst into flames, explode, or dissolve. Essentially, they are the Orky version of the [[Flamers of Tzeentch]], you never know what you're gonna get.

Bile Squigs seem to have an enlarged earhole or an orifice for which they shoot out their concoction of liquids, it is identified by its very [[Derp|derpy appearance]] and its long tongue which maybe used to lick off any excess liquid it shoots out.
===Bat Squig===
[[File:Bat_squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bat Squig]]

A squig that has bat wings..... That's it..... Look it's just a squig that has bat wings alright it has the typical squig mentality, lives in a cave and can fly the only difference is that IT JUST HAS BAT WINGS. These Bat Squigs descend upon their victims in a flurry of gnashing jaws and spattering guano. It's not got some depressing story in which it lost its parents and now hunts down all everything that isn't greenskin, NO IT'S JUST A SQUIG WITH BAT WINGS, also no legs.

Might share a genetic lineage with a certain human performer with an equally surly disposition and big mouth, but that’s just speculation.

On tabletop, at the start of your shooting phase, you can pick 1 enemy unit within 18" of this model and roll a dice. On a 5+ that enemy unit suffers 1 mortal wound. This ability cannot be used if the Bat Squig minion has been removed.

<gallery>
File:Bat_squig_in_a_shellnut.JPG
</gallery>

===Boom Squig===
[[File:Boom_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Boom Squig]]

A special sub-species of the 'Splodin Squig.

This breed is squig is frequently fired from [[Squig Launcha]]s and [[Heavy Squig Launcha]]s. Boom Squigs, also known as Mine Squigs due to their shape, are infamous for their defense mechanism of violently exploding at the slightest provocation, typically due to direct physical contact or a loud noise ([[FAIL|or sometimes even their own bouts of indigestion]]).

They detonate with such force that they kill or maim anything unlucky enough to be in the vicinity. These creatures thus make the perfect living ammunition for Orks and are also sometimes used as landmines. They are also favored by Orks as the tools of [[Lulz|practical jokes,]] as nothing will amuse a Speed Freek more than hiding a [[Just As Planned|Boom Squig under the seat of a Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy driver like an explosive whoopee cushion.]]

<gallery>
File:Boom_Squif_Top.JPG
</gallery>

===Bowel-Torrent Squig===
[[File:Bowel_Squig?.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Bowel-Torrent Squig]]

A mysterious Squig referred to only as one of the most "revolting" and "panic-inducing". [[Shitstorm|Given its name it should be very easy to understand why.]] They are one of the numerous forms of living ammunition from the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]].

Unfortunately, despite being important enough to be mentioned in fluff, they still didn't really get that much screen time...or an identifiable model for that specific matter in the first place.

Fortunately for us in /tg/, the Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy model holds so many Squigs in its trunk and around the vehicle that we can sort of guess which Squig might best describe the Bowel-Torrent Squig the best.

Due to the Squig's....[[Bullshit|unique way of expelling its munitions]], we believe that the small albeit grumpy looking Squig with the long tail ''may be'' the elusive Bowel-Torrent Squig. Ya know...'cause it looks similar to that of a pigeon and this thing can 'fly' once it exits out the Squig Launcha. We would let your figure out the rest.

===Bag Squig===
[[File:Bag_Squig_2.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Bag Squig.]]

This type of Squig has a large, gaping mouth and a bag-like body that is almost entirely composed of stomach and nothing else. The stomach coincidentally functions secondarily as a pouch that allows the Squig to survive by slowly digesting food it stores up inside its body similar to that of modern Earth animals that hibernate by eating a lot of food during the summer. If the Squig is dried out, it can be made into a flask for drinks. If it is tanned like leather, it makes a useful bag or belt pouch.

By far one of the most practical form of Squigs used by the Orks.

<gallery>
Image:Bag_Squig.PNG
</gallery>

===Burna' Squig===
[[File:Burna_Squig_2.PNG|150px|right|thumb|Burna Squig.]]

The Burna' Squig is similar to the 'Sploding Squig. However while the 'Sploding Squig is a biological grenade the Burna' Squig is a biological molotov cocktail. Inside a Burna' Squig consists of multiple chemicals that when mixed, burst into flames rather than exploding. Orks sometime shake their Burna' Squigs to further enhance their fiery potential (Or force them to swallow even MOAR flammable materials such as Promethium) after being thrown if it doesn't explode in their face of course.

If the Ork is feeling a bit picky and don't really want to risk having his head blown off by enemy snipers, he can just let the Squig go off to its intended target. Of course, these may not result in the desired outcome as the Squig may be shot before it gets the chance to explode or the Squig wouldn't even explode in the first place and just growls at the target harmlessly.

The effects of Burna Squigs are equivalent to other flammable explosives found in the Imperium.

<gallery>
File:Burna_Squig.PNG
</gallery>

===Buzzer Squig===
[[File:Buzzer.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Buzzer Squig.]]
Buzzer Squigs are an insect-like like variation of the Squig typically used by Orks and Gretchins in a [[Squig Catapult|Squig Katapult,]] as they are very vicious and a swarm can strip the flesh off a man-sized creature within seconds. They are essentially flying piranhas but without the cowardly aspects of a piranha.

Buzzer Squigs are found among Ork fungus groves and are trapped in pots by Gretchin. The special pots are made from sun-baked mud, drilled with tiny holes to allow the Squigs inside to breathe. The top of the vessel is corked shut and sealed with more mud once a good number of Squigs has been put inside. Normally the Squigs feed by burrowing into other larger Squigs or small animals such as rats, so when they are captured they soon begin to get very hungry. They can be kept without food in the pot for many weeks, getting angrier and more savage all the time. If the Gretchin is unfortunate in capturing these hornets of doom or accidentally breaks a pot full of these things, then he may end up as their lunch.

Gretchin can tell which pots contain the angriest Squigs from the high pitch of the droning and the vibrations of the pot as the Squigs try to burrow out (the walls of the pot must be made thick and hard). These pots, each containing a small swarm of enraged Buzzer Squigs, are the missiles fired by the Squig Katapult. The pot cracks open on impact, releasing the swarm of enraged Buzzer Squigs, who attack anyone nearby. They are great against Imperial Guards, Tau, Kroot, and low level Tyranid forces (cue irony of the [[Lulz|Tyranids getting out-NOMMED in their own game]]). Unfortunately they are quite useless when it comes to MEQs as those claws and fangs aren't going to do much against ceramite and reinforced wraithbone.

Buzzer Squigs can also be found on the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]], although they're far more limited in role due to the presence of other Squig species.

<gallery>
File:Buzzer_Squig_Model.JPG
</gallery>

===Buzzing Squig===
[[File:Buzzing.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Buzzing Squig.]]
Not to be confused with Buzz''er'' Squigs, Buzz''ing'' Squigs have tiny, propeller-like wings on their tails: miniature airscrews that allow them to fly like a biological helicopter. When they contact flesh (which they can smell), they bores in and eat their way straight through the unfortunate target. Upon emerging from the victim, they immediately dive back and bore through again, or set upon another victim. Orks have learned to use these deadly nuisances as weapons.

Gretchin are set to work trapping them for dispersal as swarms around the battlefield. Buzzing Squigs may also be kept in pots and thrown from makeshift catapults like the [[Squig Catapult|Squig Katapult.]] When the pot containing the Buzzing Squigs cracks, it releases a swirling swarm of these flesh-eating monsters.

In all honesty though, by function there is very little difference between the Buzzer and Buzzing Squigs as they both fulfill the same niche. They only look different enough to warrant their own species.

===Coffin Crawler===
[[File:CoffinCrawlerSquig.png|right|thumb|150px|Coffin Crawler]]
Coffin-Crawlers were an Old-School Tyranid Squig who would consume fresh corpses and grow in bulk until they were ready to return to the Norn-Queen, carrying their swollen bodies back to feed the [[Norn Queen]].

Genetic material in the form of captive creatures and corpse scavengers called Coffin-Crawlers is fed into the great maws located at the top of the Norn-Queen and synthesised by its genetic shredder organs. The dissembled DNA structures form a gene-bank which provides the raw material from which new creatures called bio-constructs are created.Once a type of bio-construct has been designed more identical creatures can be cloned by the Norn-Queens.

Much like the Grabber-Slasher Squig, when Squigs were separated from Tyranids, they were reduced to the status of just being a variety of Big Squig. That, and their role has been replaced by [[Rippers]].

===Gob Squig===
[[File:Gob.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Gob Squig.]]
Gob Squigs are small enough to be put into an Ork's mouth and left there for the rest of the day (or the next few days, if the Ork forgets about it). The Squig cleans the Ork's mouth out by rooting round the teeth and eating the juicy bits of food that are stuck between them. They look like your typical fantasy [[Slime]] with a funny face although your local Commissar would suggest not petting one as they are known to bite. They are essentially an Ork's version of a toothbrush but more effective and cost-productive

The '''Chewin' Squig''' is another variant of the Gob Squig. An Ork can pop this sort of Squig into his mouth and chew on it while he sits and thinks (or sits and enjoys not thinking). The Ork version of a chewing gum, how the Squig could survive being munched by an Ork is a feat unknown by Imperial Xenologists.

===Great Cave Squig===
[[File:99800209017_GoblinWarbossCaveSquigNEW01.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Great Cave Squig]]
Think a regular Attack Squig given steroids. A Great Cave Squig is simply a larger variant of the more common Cave Squig that has grown to such a magnificent size that it has become as large as an Imperial warhorse. This Squig sub-species is the second largest of the non-Squiggoth family, with only the Colossal Squig surpassing it in both size and weight. Its large mouth is filled with teeth the size of swords and sabres and their appetite as ravenous as their smaller counterparts. These things are solitary predators that like to [[Get shit done|get shit done by itself.]]

Because of their large size, the Great Cave Squig makes for excellent cavalry for Night Goblins. However, their aggressive behavior makes it difficult for one to tame them effectively. The process of [[Rape|breaking in]] a Great Cave Squig would cost the lives of many Night Goblin, but once the beast learns to accept a rider, they serve as a more stable mount than the smaller and more unruly Cave Squig. Although they are costly to maintain, eating over twice their own body weight daily, a Night Goblin Warboss would do almost anything to keep such a magnificent asset in the hands of his tribe.

Since they're so difficult to tame, often times Goblins don't even bother doing so, instead just chaining two Great Cave Squigs together, pointing them vaguely in the direction of the enemy and setting them loose, resulting in the infamous Mangler Squigs. The Squigs drag and pull each-other across the battlefield, resulting in them essentially becoming living wrecking balls. In Age of Sigmar, some particularly insane Loonbosses use a pair of Mangler Squigs as a mount, usually if they're leading a Squigalanche warband.

On the even rarer occasions when a Great Cave Squig continuous to grow exponentially, they would grow to such a monstrous size that they are once again categorized into another even larger variant called simple as the Colossal Squig (As seen below).

<gallery>
Image:GreatCave Squig.png|NYUM YUM YUM YUM YUM!
</gallery>

===Colossal Squig===
[[File:CollossalSquig.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Colossal Squig.]]
Think an Great Cave Squig on steroids and having a mouth and stomach that could rival a [[Haruspex]] and the [[Mawloc|Mawloc]] in a eating competition. The Colossal Squigs are the largest variants of Squigs known to exist short of Squiggoths.

These cyclopean or six-eyed monsters boast an insatiable appetite, and are in essence no more than an impossibly vast fleshy maw studded with row upon row of scimitar-bladed teeth. The only way they get into battle is by finding some Orks and just moving in with them.

The Colossal Squig is often used as a giant living battering ram, bashing and splintering anything smaller than the Squig into a fine paste. Of course the presence of the Squiggoth kind of placed the status of the Colossal Squig in question. Nevertheless, they still have the capability of eating entire Space Marines whole let alone normal Guardsmen, granting some laughs by the local Boyz if the Squig doesn't eat them first.

Of special note is a small change to this subtype of Squig in [[Age of Sigmar]] - When a Colossal Squig dies, it blows up into a bunch of smaller Cave Squigs! ... Nature running its course?...

===Cape Squig===
[[File:GloomspiteGitzDesignersNotes-Dec27-Capesquigs10vh-1.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Cape Squig]]

These cute little Squigs are there to make you feel just a tad bit more important.

A Squig found only in [[Age of Sigmar]]. A presumably regal and dignified breed of squig, these little beasties help Skragrott keep his magnificent cape off the floor. Or maybe they’re trying to eat it. Probably both…

Anyways, these Squigs are quite sought after since they have a... distinct head shape of the Greenskin's moon, which makes it downright flash. Why their heads are shaped like that is anyone's guess (selective breeding?). Skragrott, the Loonking himself, is the self-styled overlord of the Gloomspite Gitz (AKA Night Goblins, copyright edition). His sinister presence upon the field of battle ensures his fellow grots fight with greater spite and cunning than ever.

On tabletop, these little beasties are there for decorative purposes in order to make Skragrott look more important than he really is. Seriously you think they would provide anything of substance in the actual game?

===Dice Squig===
[[File:DiceSquigs.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Dice Squig]]
Famed for their bounciness, the rare and elusive Dice Squigs have been known to be used by particularly kunnin’ Grot Loonbosses in games of tactics and chance. They are usually given out in an event of a mass brawl, with [[Grot]]s assembling bets on would emerge the victor.

These small, eyeless, limbless blobs of flesh have very little use other than your usual Ork gamblin', however, a wise Greenskin must still be cautious when handling these things as they still have a mouth that may bite your fingers off.

Currently, most Dice Squigs have different yellow splotches on each side save for the face, which is an obvious analogue to the actual numbers system of an actual dice. Also represented as an actual limited edition squig-dice for sale by Games Workshop.

{{Clear}}

===Eating Squig===
[[File:EatingSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Eating Squig.]]
An Eating Squig (also known as Grubs or ''Orkus consumit'') is a limbless blob used as the primary Ork food source. It resembles an elongated, squarish slug with two eyes and a small pug mouth (like a cross between a blob fish and uncanned SPAM). Orks usually prefer them cooked, but they can be eaten raw as well. Gretchin are quite adept in cooking them and have a number of methods including kebabing, marinating in fungus wine, stuffed with fungus and herbs, roasted on a spit, deep fried with fungus chips, or griddled over a campfire. Who knew the Ork race have such a fine taste at culinary skills? Again Commissars would suggest not petting one no matter how pug-cute it looks, although suggesting to eat one for emergency rationing is fine for them.

With the fast reproduction on all Orkoid lifeforms, it is unknown why the [[Imperium of Man]] still haven't decided on capturing one of these Squigs and then mass producing them which would stop Galactic world hunger that plagues some of the Imperial Worlds (and no, [[Grox|not because of heresy]]). Maybe they are already looking into it, but with how slow the IoM usually is it may take decades to even centuries for it to be finalized and distributed in the entire Galaxy. Or it might have something to do with the fact that they're creature from the orkoid genus, so they release spores everywhere that can grow into the more dangerous parts of the genus including actual orks.

If the Eating Squig is the Duck/Chicken of an Ork culinary experience, then the '''Juicy Squig''' is the foie gras of Ork cuisine. The Juicy Squig is a very rare and delicious type of Eating Squig that may perhaps be the only known Ork delicacy. This Squig lives at the very bottom of an Ork fungal drop, and are not only rare, but difficult to find and bring up from the depths. Since these Squigs are seldom caught by the Gretchin and Snotlings, they often grow quite large and become even tastier as they get older.

In Age of Sigmar, there is also type of swamp-dwelling squig in the Mortal Realms called the '''Slobbersquig''', mentioned in the second edition Orruk Warclans Battletome as being part of the regular diet consumed by the Kruleboyz, alongside bog toads, swamp hoppers, cold crawfish, spine-ridged mud worms, and human flesh. Compared to the rest of the food on this list, it could be conjectured the Slobbersquig is a sluglike, unappealing Eatin' Squig that drools constantly and lives in swamp muck instead of the bottom of the greenskin drops.
<gallery>
File:OCG-grot-trader.jpg|Lovely indeed.
</gallery>

===Guard Squig===
[[File:Guard_Squig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Guard Squig.]]
Ork Kaptins have been breeding a form of Squig known as a Guard Squig, or Squig Hound to some. Think of them as Guard Dogs. These creatures have all the ferocity of an Attack Squig, but are bred to be utterly loyal to their masters. When alone or not in battle, Squig Hounds are usually seen sleeping on their post or lying on their master's lap. Guard Squigs are often seen as a step up above the normal Attack Squig due to their aforementioned loyalty.

Guard Squigs are not to be confused with the Herd Squig whose nickname also bears the name Squighound or the [[Derp|actual Squighound themselves.]] Why GeeDubs thought repeating the name of three different species is a good idea is a mystery. Is it though? These are orks we’re talking about. Considering the rather direct (and often short) manner with which orks approach life, it’s hardly a surprise they’d have one name for several breeds of squigs. One ork may name a particular breed of squig a bitey squig for biting a lot, only to have his head bit off by said squig, prompting the next ork to confirm that it is indeed a bitey squig, while somewhere else in the mob the same little drama is occurring with an entirely different breed of biting squig with identical results. Orks are pragmatic...in their way.

===Targeting Squig===
[[File:Targeting-squig-art.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Targeting Squig.]]
A unusual type of Squig, Targeting Squigs (''Orkus scopum'') are weird creatures with a single targeting eye that serve as biological equivalents of Gitfindas used by Flash Gitz. Sometimes their pupils are even shaped into a cross-hair.

How the Squig could communicate with the Flash Gitz is unknown. Although certain unique sounds or barks could be help the Ork to signal that there may be ample prey around. That or it could flash different colors or release certain pheromones that only Orkoid species can detect.

On tabletop there is very little difference between the Squig and regular Gitfindas other then the cosmetic change. And they are cool looking model.

<gallery>
File:Targeting-squig.png
File:Last-wall-squig.jpg
</gallery>

===Face-Eater Squig===
[[File:Face Eater.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Face-Eater Squig.]]
Like how Humans have binge eating contests, the Orks have their own variety. Of course in this case the food has the potential of eating your face off. Here is where the Face-Eater Squigs come into play. The Face-Eater Squig is a toothed variety of Squig used both as a weapon and in the infamous Ork face-eating contests.

These Squigs, also known as "Gnashers" or "Gnasher Squigs," are a vicious mass of sharp teeth and claws. In their active state they appear to be just a gnashing mouth and very little else, though they look much like any other Eatin' Squig when they are at rest. Because of their violent nature, Gnashers provide the Orks with endless entertainment, and Squig-eating is one of the Orks' favorite pastimes. The Ork and the Squig both open their mouths and bite, in a parody of a kiss. If the Ork eats the Squig, he wins. If he keels over backwards, he loses.

Some Painboys made attempts to use Gnashers to amputate a patients limbs, but these attempts weren't very successful as they tend to bite off orderlies' arms or even Dok's fingers. Face-Eaters are often used as an attack squig. This organism is known to Imperium biologists as Orkus ravenati.

<gallery>
File:GnasherSquig.jpg|Nasty little fuckers.
</gallery>

===Flesheater Squig===
[[File:Flesheater.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Flesheater Squig.]]
In order to increase their wealth, some Orks breed large, ferocious beasts known as Flesheaters. The Flesheater has a great, gaping mouth like a crocodile, full of rows of sharp fangs that are similar to an Ork's canine teeth. They look like furry Orky crocodiles. Flesheaters continually shed and replace their teeth, and all the Orks have to do to collect this wealth is send a Gretchin to collect the teeth, who, of course, aren't overly keen on this duty.

Like Ork teeth, Flesheater teeth also deteriorate after a few years. Flesheaters are extremely long-lived, but rarely breed in captivity, making them even more valuable. Most Orks who own Flesheaters are either already Nobz, or become Nobz on account of the wealth derived from owning these Squigs. Not surprisingly, impoverished Orks sometimes attempt to steal a Flesheater, or even raid rival settlements to capture them.

They are literally a mobile money-making machine - who says money can't grow on <s>trees</s> animals?

===Gas Squig===
[[File:GasSquigs.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Gas Squig.]]

It is a Squig that literally has a [[Lulz|killer fart.]]

The Gas Squig produces a gas so toxic that Orks with gas masks throw this Squig in combat, using the Squig itself as a chemical weapon. They're essentially living gas bombs. Despite their use as a one time explosive however, the Ork can just let the Squig run loose in the battlefield, spreading as much chaos as possible as these nasty little runts can cover an entire field in a bath of toxic miasma and corrosive chemicals.

It is unknown what type of chemicals is needed for the Gas Squig to unleash a untold volume of lethal farts. High levels of methane or magic/warp-related bullshit is the only potential answer.

They are seen as one of the summoning Squigs in Warhammer Online.

According to the illustration of Warhammer Online, Gas Squigs look like normal Attack Squigs but with hole-like projections that constantly spew out the toxic materials like chimneys.

===Grabber-Slasher Squig===
[[File:Grabberslasher.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Grabber-Slasher/Big Squig]]

These guys originated way back in older editions of Warhammer, when Squigs were the result of Tyranids consuming Orkoid biomass instead of always being around. The Grabber-Slasher is a form of large ambush Squig, that prefers to lurk in ducts and either grab prey with its massive arm and drag it away to devour, or hump-slash it with its big crotch-spike.

As one can imagine from things ''that'' early on, they look like fucking abominations and something out of a Cronenberg film than a product of 40k. Seriously, that giant clawed hand on top of its head does not help. They also apparently have a chameleonic ability to change their skin colour and texture to hide better in crevices and ducts. But again, with that giant hand and [[/d/|horned dick,]] such idea of it being chameleonic should be taken with some salt. Even worse is the fact that the Tyranid Hive Mind used it as a prototype to the Lictor in early editions, using it to assassinate those who threatened the plans of the Tyranids, imagine the shame and humiliation of being killed by something as fugly as THAT!

When Squigs were later retconned into being always a part of the Orkoid Fungus Biosphere, the Grabber-Slasher was retconned into being just a [[Derp|"Big Squig"]], which is honestly, quite disappointingly generic.

===Hair Squig===
[[File:Hairy.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Hair Squig.]]
Do you want to know how and where the Orks get their hairy ponytails from? Well the answer is obviously simple: they use Squigs to do the job, due to Orks being naturally hairless. Hair Squigs are a parasitic variety of Squig which possess small bodies, no legs, no eyes, and a pair of pincers in place of a mouth.

They have long hair running from their tiny bodies that Orks like to customize and dye after clamping the Squig's pincers onto their own hairless heads, though this customization has no effect on the Squig's health.

One particular variety of Hair Squig is known as '''Chin Squig'''. These creatures feature a long thin body with claws and hair all over it and serve as the equivalent of a beard. They are also known to be a sign of age and status among Orks.

<gallery>
File:Hair Squig.jpg
File:Chin_Squig.jpg|Chin Squig.
</gallery>

===Limpin Squig===
[[File:AoSSquigs-Jan8-SquigBall1jvrh.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Limpin Squig or a turkey drumstick, you make the call.]]

[[Lolwut|A Squig football/handegg. Yeah its weird but it makes sense in context.]]

Technically, this squig is from [[Blood Bowl]] rather than the [[Age of Sigmar|Mortal Realms (AKA Age of Sigmar)]], but its existence is so hilariously dumb it might as well be part of the Squig family. Also known as the Squigball, Orc teams are known for using squigs as balls, shearing one leg off so it can’t run away. Sometimes, they just find a particularly bulbous Squig and then literally kick its ass.

These Squigs must be extremely durable, squishy and bouncy. The best Limpin' Squigs have flesh that is extremely flexible, sturdy bones to survive repeated impacts and kicks, a skin firm enough to be held onto for long periods of time, an attitude that makes sure it doesn't ends up biting its holder in the middle of some intense Blood Bowl, and just the right enough shape to bounce to its trajectory.

It is not known is they exist in 40k or AoS, although seeing as how Orks/Orcs are stereotypical British hooligans, we wouldn't be surprised if they did.

===Mendin' Squig===
[[File:Squig-hairy-medical.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Mendin' Squig.]]
Mendin' Squigs or more commonly (and annoyingly) called the Hairy Squigs (Again not to be confused with Hair Squigs much to the Xenobiologist's constant frustration) is a type of medicinal Squig. Hairy/Mendin' Squigs are used by Painboyz as over glorified stitches. The Painboy simply applies it to the open wound, which it holds closed with its tiny, needle-like teeth. The Painboy then twists its tail off, leaving the head embedded in the flesh, repeating the process until the wound is "riveted up." The Mendin' Squig then feeds off blood oozing from the wound, thus keeping it clean and free from infection. By the time it shrivels and drops off, the wound has usually healed.

This form of medical technique is actually quite closer to reality than make believe. Some South American and African tribes use particularly large bulldog ants to act as crude stitching. They just grab the ants and allow the powerful jaws to snap shut on the wound and like the Mendin' Squigs they then twist its body off, leaving only the head which is still in contact with the wound until it shrivels and falls off once fully healed.

===Herd Squig===
[[File:HerdSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Herd Squig.]]
Herd Squigs have been specially bred and developed by Runtherds for the purpose of herding and controlling the herds of Runtz. They are related to the many varieties of pet Squigs, but have been selectively bred for their speed, intelligence, ferocity and endurance.

Their long, sensitive snouts and keen ears enable them to track down errant Snotlings and Gretchin wherever they might hide. Herd Squigs are excellent tracking beasts, and can follow trails which are days old.

They are also called Squighounds, which as you already know, [[Herp|should not be confused with the Guard Squig who already bears that nickname or the actual Squighounds themselves.]]

They are like pigs but more Orky.

===Hoppa Fungus===
[[File:DKI3T3c3fv3xNy92.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Hoppa Fungus]]
A Hoppa Fungus or Fun-Hoppas, are a type of Squig that skirts the line between Orkoid Mushroom and Squig, from the Snotling Blood Bowl set. They are small, round, lumpy "mushrooms" with a cartoony, squiggy face on their front. There are two sizes of them, one for throwing like a living rock and another for riding like a moon hopper, even more so than normal squigs as these ones lack legs.

How they managed to hop around without a leg, we are not too sure, although more technical elegan/tg/entelmen had assumed that they use their entire body mass as one giant muscle like a snake, to propel themselves for locomotion.

They seem overall, pretty harmless as far as Squigs go, given that they don't seem to routinely eat their riders or throwers. But boy do these giant grey meatballs look like they came out of a Loony Tunes cartoon.

<Gallery>
Hopper_Fungus.JPG
</gallery>

===Horned Squig===
[[File:HornedSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Horned Squig.]]
<s>A Squig that's [[/d/|''so Horny!'']]</s> {{Blam}}

The Horned Squig is a Squig which is gifted with long, sharp horns stretching from its head that Orks often jam into barricades to serve as living obstacles or act as a moving and mobile battering ram for siege warfare. They act like bulls and if used against troops, often ram its horns into the poor unfortunate sod in a relentless, charging stampede. They have a brighter red color scheme than Cave Squigs.

If the Horned Squig is disabled, then the Ork can simply just strap the Squig on its forearm and use it as a living weapon. The Orks are anything but wasteful and is capable of using everything, even other living organisms to its 'full' potential.

Like the Gas Squigs they are seen as one of the summoning Squigs in Warhammer Online.

===Mimic===
[[File:Squig_Mimic.PNG|150px|right|thumb|Mimic.]]

<span style='color:green;font-size:100%'>CA-CAW! OI GITZ GET MOVIN UNLESS YOU WANT ME TO TELL DA BOSS ON WHO IS MUCKIN' ABOUT!</span>

A particularly popular type of pet Squig is known as the Mimic. As you imagine, they are Ork parrots. This Squig has a large and toothy beak-like mouth and is vaguely parrot-like in both appearance and function.

Mimics can be seen perched on the shoulders of many an old and haggard Ork usually from the [[Freebooterz ]]to keep the pirate theme, casting expletives and insults at Greenskin passersby. Kaptins have a endearing affection to these little creatures and their ability to shout and swear at larger and more opposing Orks is often seen as a humorous delight to the Kaptin. Although woe to any Ork who accidentally swat these creatures out of annoyance. [[FATAL|The chance of getting your head wired to a Big Lobba by a pissed off Kaptin? Too high.]]

===Oily Squig===
[[File:Grot_Oiler.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Oily Squig.]]
The Oily Squig is a variety of Squig bred by Ork Meks to create fuel for the Orks' ramshackle vehicles. They create the fuel, an organically-synthesized version of Promethium, in their rotund bellies, and it can be squeezed out of their anteater-like trunks. These Squigs have no mouths, other than their trunk, and are not combat-oriented like their far more aggressive counterparts.

The most efficient way of extracting the oil from the creatures is to use a large pressing machine, although more primitive methods, such as having gretchin to jump up and down on them are also widely used. Orks prepare the barrels of the squig oil in advance and take those with them when they go on campaigns.

There exist two varieties of Oily Squigs, one with arms and a distinct head, and one that resembles an Attack Squig with a trunk for dispensing their fuel oil.

<gallery>
File:Squig-oily.jpg
File:7e-grotoiler.jpg
</gallery>

===Paint Squig===
[[File:PaintSquig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Paint Squig.]]
Orks can be creative artists too! This small, vividly colored Squig excretes powerful dyes that are used as warpaint. These paints are also used by Gretchin artists as pigments for wall paintings and decorative banners.

Many Paint Squigs have tufts of hair on their trails, which allows the artist to use the Squig as both a brush and tube of paint simultaneously. The shells of Edible Squigs are also used by Gretchin artists as paint pots and palettes.

===Parasite-Hunting Squig===
[[File:Parasite-Hunter.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Parasite-Hunting Squig.]]
Parasite-Hunting Squigs are tiny but voracious feeders used to clear an Ork's body and clothes of parasites. An Ork simply drops a handful of these Squigs into his clothing and lets them crawl around. They look like Orkified spiders which can give arachnophobes nightmares but the Orks don't give a zog.

The Squigs prey on lice, ticks or leeches the Ork may have acquired in the course of his many unsavoury habits. When the engorged Parasite-Hunting squigs drop out of the Ork's clothing, the Ork simply gathers them up and pops them into his mouth for a juicy chomp.

===Rat Squig===
[[File:RatSquig.jpg]]
[[File:Rat_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Rat Squig]]
A unholy abomination spawned from [[Skaven]] science (Is anybody surprise?).

The Rat Squig is a species of Squig created by Clan Moulder by fusing rat or skaven meat with Squigs, creating a form of furry, rat-faced squig with scaly patches of leathery skin, and the ability of regeneration. They apparently also have bloodlust, even in comparison to normal squigs.

They commonly do not have flat backs like Skarl, which is also outfitted with a specially made saddle able to carry his Grey Seer master. Now whether they breed via spores like a normal Squig, we have no idea as the fluff don't really go that much into it.

There is a mod in Total War: Warhammer called [https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2746640530 Elon's Rat Squigs] where these creatures were implemented in. Most of the images came from this mod.

<gallery>
Rat_Squig_Mod.JPG
</gallery>

===Screech Squig===
[[File:Screech_Squig.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Screech Squig]]

A mysterious Squig referred to as having [[Sonic Weaponry|oversized lungs that allow it to make an extremely loud screech.]] Screech Squigs disorient, incapacitate and make the enemy's ear drums burst in one of the most horrid sounds possible (We in /tg/ imagines it as mixing the cries of an infant that has sand paper in its throat with that of fingernails scratching the surface of a chalkboard). They are one of the numerous forms of living ammunition from the [[Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy]].

Unfortunately, despite being important enough to be mentioned in fluff, they still didn't really get that much screen time...or an identifiable model for that specific matter in the first place.

Fortunately for us in /tg/, the Rukkatrukk Squigbuggy model holds so many Squigs in its trunk and around the vehicle that we can sort of guess which Squig might best describe the Screech Squig the best. Due to the fact that it is nothing more than a weaponized Mimic or a living Sonic Weapon, the Screech Squig needs both a big mouth and a wide barrelled body to encompass its huge lungs. Unfortunately, most Squigs have a big mouth and a wide body. Likewise, we hypothesize that the Screech Squig might be in fact, the big Squig we see inside of the Heavy Squig Launcha. This is alluded to the fact that its mouth is close relatively shut and will only open once fired from the Launcha. You wouldn't want your Boyz to go all bleeding in their noggins because they failed to pacify that thing right?

A similarly themed and named Squig exists in Age of Sigmar called the '''Syari Screamersquig'''. A rare albino beast that loathes any form of light, and reacts to it with ear shattering screams. Unfortunately for it, it’s native to the Syari region of the Realm of Light. It’s been hunted to near extinction by the Lumineth Realm-Lords and is prized by many Grot Loonbosses for its screaming powers.

===Snufflesquig===
[[File:Snufflesquig.PNG|150px|right|thumb|Snufflesquig]]

Squig truffle pigs but more [[Derp|derpy in appearances.]]

Snufflesquigs are little more than massive noses and snapping mouths with wiry little legs that can be trained by Sneaky Snufflers to identify Looncaps, a type of mushroom that grows from the light of the Bad Moon, from others that induce effects such as vomit slime, break out in luminous yellow spots, babble uncontrollably or even burst into flames. When the Bad Moon approaches these unique squigs begin to howl with raised snouts.

Like truffle pigs, Snufflesquigs have a tendency to eat these shrooms if not carefully attended.

May be a reference to Snuffler Orcs, a breed of Orc from Middle Earth described as small, black, and huge nosed, used for tracking victims.

===Smasha Squig===
[[File:LAEMX6Acaz90SDmn.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Smasha Squig]]
A cousin to the [[Squighog]], the Smasha Squig is basically an orkified [[Dinosaur|Pachycephalosaurus]].

Smashas are usually ridden by [[Nob]]s from the [[Beast Snagga]] sub-kulture, where they are often found leading mobs of [[Squighog Boy]]z into battle. The Smasha Squig itself is bipedal, running on two legs rather than four. It is also larger, tougher, and even more ferocious than your regular old [[squighog|Squig Bacon]]. Any Nob who has managed to beat a Smasha Squig into submission is ''not'' an Ork to be trifled with.

Once "tamed," a heavy armor plate is bolted to the Smasha Squig's skull. This is not done to protect the squig, for among its kind it is already noted for having an exceptionally thick skull encasing an exceptionally tiny (and shock-resistant) brain. Rather, the plate enhances the beast's natural head-butting tendencies so that the Smasha truly becomes a living, snarling wrecking ball.

On the tabletop, the Smasha Squig complements the Nob rider who is already a beast (pun intended) in close combat. Crunchwise, this oversized fungal dinosaur grants additional attacks with its jaws and its Smasha 'Ead has a chance to deal up to [[rape|five mortal wounds]] after a charge or heroic intervention. Finally, the rider is equipped with a Big Choppa and a slugga, and with T6 and 5 wounds the model is just as hard to kill as you'd expect.
{{Clear}}

===Spiky Squig===
[[File:Spiky.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Spiky Squig.]]
Spiky Squigs look like a living ball covered with spines which, when agitated, as an instinctive reaction, can shoot out at any threatening creature rather like a porcupine (except porcupines can't actually do that) .

These spines inflict a poisonous sting on anyone struck by them, though the effect of the poison on Orkish flesh is not as drastic as it is on other races due to the similar biology of all Orkoid races. Squigs of this kind are used in some bionik arms fitted with cages and a quick release system, so they can be used as a close combat weapon as a living, breathing Morning Star.

Spiky Squigs move via rolling around like a ball, however when it comes to hunting food, it would propel itself at high speed before launching into the unsuspecting prey. Launching its poisonous spines and letting it run its course. This unusual hunting method has been seen by xenobiologists as bizarre and weird.

===Spiteshroom===
[[Image: Spiteshroom.png|150px|right|thumb|Spiteshroom]]

A creature that blurs the line between Squig and Fungus, much like Hoppa Fungus. Spiteshrooms are fungal creatures that inhabit the dark and damp caves favoured by Dankhold Troggoths. They emit an incessant high-pitched shrieks and shrill idiot ditties that distracts even the most veteran warriors. The fungal clouds they release can rot flesh from bone. They are favored as familiars of Madcap Shamans.

Due to the fact that they seemed locked into ground like actual mushrooms, Spiteshrooms are immobile like the larger Stalagsquig.

<gallery>
Spiteshroom_and_Stalagsquig.JPG|With a Stalagsquig in a ''literal'' face off.
</gallery>

==='Sploding Squig===
[[File:Splodin_Squig.jpg|150px|right|thumb|'Sploding Squig.]]
A biological grenade used by the Orks if they run out of stikkbombs. 'Sploding Squigs possess multiple stomachs, each containing a thick broth of unstable digestive chemicals. Some 'Sploding Squigs may be covered in spines which may act as fragmentation when it explodes.

When agitated, usually though violent shaking, the 'Sploding Squig's digestive juices combine into a combustible liquid, causing the Squig to explode in a shower of meat, teeth, and bone fragments. While typically thrown in combat, 'Sploding Squigs are also often buried and used as mines. Orks are known to force-feed 'Sploding Squigs a meal of scrap metal before battle in an effort to enhance their lethality.

If the Ork is feeling a bit picky and doesn't really want to risk having his head blown off by enemy snipers he can just let the Squig go off to its intended target. Of course this may not result in the desired outcome as the Squig may be shot before it gets the chance to explode or the Squig wouldn't even explode in the first place and just growls at the target harmlessly.

However, the widespread use of regular Bomb Squigs has lessened the value of 'Sploding Squigs as Bomb Squigs are just regular Attack Squig fitted with explosives. No need to wait around for a specialized and uncommon Squig to mature when the most common type of Squig already fills in their purpose.

===Spore Squig===
[[File:AoSSquigs-Jan8-SporeSquig3mteg.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Spore Squig]]

[[Drug|A Squig to huff some shrooms and get high.]]

A walking LSD projector. These little squigs are used defensively by Fungoid Cave-Shamans, who need but stamp on one to release an obscuring cloud of spores. The Fungoid Cave-Shamans themselves are the lepers of Goblin kind. Found only in [[Age of Sigmar]], the mushroom-gobbling grot maniacs known as Cave-Shamans are obviously not right in the head.

To these greenskinned nutters, to get lost in a brain-mangling vision is to grow closer to the side of Gorkamorka that epitomises cunning and trickiness over brute strength, which is the side that all grots like the best.

The Spore Squig is nothing more than a living, breathing hookah for the greenskin to sniff some grade-A meth and can, on command, release said spores towards its enemies to make them just as high as the Squig's personnel caretakers.

Moral of the story, don't do drugs kiddos, especially on the battlefield.

===Squigadon===
[[File:Squigadon.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Squigadon.]]
A form of Squig larger than a Great Cave Squig but smaller than a Giant Squig. Maybe a smaller [[Squiggoth]].

First appeared in White Dwarf, and utilized by Hobgoblins. The creator of this monster was from Nick Bayton who literally used a Large Squiggoth from Forgeworld and converted it into a unit for Fantasy by using the [[Lizardmen|Stegadon]] rules in battle. Whilst it may look big, don't let it fool you. Perspective is deceptive and whilst hobgoblins may view it as huge, you should take note that hobgoblins are like half the height of a human, so that Squigadon would be slightly bigger than a rhino.

Seeing as how the Squigadon is literally a converted [[Squiggoth]], whether it would be considered another demonym for a Squiggoth or an entirely different subspecies is unknown. Moreover, how 'canon' this Squig is, we have no clue since it only appeared in ''one'' issue of White Dwarf and that's it. We don't even have any of the bearest hints of fluff. So your guesses on its validity are as good as ours.
<gallery>
W8ox5l0jxaua.jpg|As it appeared in White Dwarf.
</gallery>

===[[Squiggoth]]===
The largest of all squig species, have their own page.

===Squigeon===
[[File:Squigeon3.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squigeon.]]

Squigeons (''Orkus aerium'') are the Squig counterparts of the Terran pigeon or columbidae if you are feeling fancy, often utilized for sending messages during battle amongst Ork tribes that lack more advanced methods of communication. Although they are sometimes hunted by the dreaded Squighawk or used as target practice by Stormboyz.

[[HHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhnnnnnnngggggg-|They are the cutest little orkspawn your will ever get the chance of meeting.]] Unfortunately, due to GeeDubs incompetence, we never ever get to see them further fleshed out in fluff. This time the Commissar would be fine with you petting a Squigeon.

<gallery>
File:Squigeon.jpg
</gallery>

===Squighawk===
[[File:SquigHawk.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squighawk.]]

<span style='color:green;font-size:200%'>'''BA-CAAAWK! OM NOM NOM NOM NOM!'''</span>

Think of a Orkified Pterodactyl. Squighawks are a wild, flying species of Squig that are large enough to eat Orks. Thus, they are ECKS BAWKS HUEG.

Unfortunately, they are often too difficult to be trained (Could be because the Squighawk view Orks are prey #1) and are rarely used by Ork Runtherdz which is saying something on how hard it is to tame these things when the Orks manage to successfully do it to the much larger Squiggoth.

Still, it would be cool if we actually got to use these <s>Dinosaurs</s> flying reptiles on the tabletop. Chances are, these things could potentially reach a size to rival some larger Tyranid flying strains such as the [[Harpy]].

===Squig-Hog===
[[File:Beast Snaggas.jpeg|200px|right|thumb|Squig-Hog]]
[[Boarboyz]] haven't been mentioned in core Ork fluff for quite some time. While they were cool in their own way, it didn't really ever make sense for Orks to be riding Earth animals in the first place. Well, as of 9th Edition it seems that Boarboyz have been retconned and/or [[squatted]] for good, because [[Squighog Boy]]s have now been introduced as a far more [[awesome]] type of Ork heavy cavalry. Squig Hogs are tougher, larger, and far more dangerous than other types of cavalry such as a horse or warboar, and they can eat pretty much anything that fits in their mouths (including the rider, if he fails to keep his mount in line). However, the horse still has a modest speed advantage.

[[Beast Snagga]]s use them as cavalry like the Imperium's [[Rough Riders]] and they are ''thicc'' enough that a [[Gretchin]] can hop on as well. Snaggas who ride these guys are called [[Squighog Boy]]z. While Squighog Boyz can belong to any Klan, they are presumably most common among the [[Snakebites]].

Crunchwise, Squighogs have a pretty nasty bite of S6, AP-1 and D2, meaning you should be able to dispatch the now tough-to-kill [[Primaris Space Marines]] as well as other MEQs and GEQs consistently. What you want from it however, is the fact that these walking fungal bacons are allowed 2 additional attacks every time the unit fights. Combined with the additional weapons from the Ork himself and you get a nasty cavalry unit.
{{clear}}

===Squighound===
[[File:Squighound.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Squighound.]]
Squighounds (''Orkus canis''), commonly known as "Growlers," are a variation of the Attack Squig, used by Ork Slaverz to help them keep the Gretchins and slaves from other races in line, some have four legs, although two-legged varieties certainly exist. "Growlers" are also often kept as a form of pet by other Orks, as they are roughly the size of a small dog, hairy, and particularly vicious.

A Pet Squig often scurries about behind its master, barely under his control, giving its owner no end of amusement and laughs [[Troll|especially when the Squig snaps at the ankles of another Ork.]]

They are not to be confused with the Guard Squig or Herd Squig who are also [[Derp|referred to as 'Squighound'.]]

===Squigosaur===
[[File:Squigosaur_2.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Squigosaur]]
The Squigosaur are large two-legged squigs, that [[Beast Snagga]]s ride upon. They are similar in appearance to the Smasha Squig, but whilst the Smasha Squig is an Orky Pachycephalosaurus, the Squigasaur is the Allosaurus of the family.

The most famous of which is the Big Chompa or otherwise known as '''The Great White Squig''' (AKA the Great White Shark on legs or "I can't believe it's another Moby Dick reference!"). A legendary alpha Squigasaur regarded as the most belligerent, vicious, and savage of its kind. It was responsible for a breathtaking number of missing Boyz and was also thought to be utterly untameable. That is, until Beast Snagga Mozrog Skragbad appeared with all his chad energy and proceeded to beat the ever-loving shit out of it for three days until it complied.

Although he has tamed the Squigosaur, it will revert to its original destructive nature when he is not nearby. In order to keep Big Chompa in line, the long-suffering Skragbad is forced to keep himself at its side and the two are rarely seen apart.

On the tabletop, the Squigosaur's jaws works lethally well with a mounted [[Beastboss]]; three extra attacks which can practically gobble up [[Terminator]]s - especially if you roll a 6 to hit and score 3 mortal wounds.
<gallery>
Squigosaur.JPG|The Great White Squig
HxDM6t0oZyXjrBtR.jpg
</gallery>
{{Clear}}

===Squigpipe===
[[File:Pipe.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squigpipe.]]
Just to further hone in the Scottish stereotype within the Orks (prejudice much, GeeDubs?). This special type of Squig is used by the Orks as a musical instrument. Several tube-like proboscises emanate from this Squig's bag-like body.

The Musical Squig can be tucked under one arm and inflated by blowing down the proboscis. Then, by squeezing the Squig, weird and terrifying sounds can be made through the creature's proboscis pipes. This turns the Squig into a musical instrument, much like the bagpipes, but a thousand times more cacophonous. Orks like to go into battle accompanied by this Squig much to the detriment of their enemies.

<gallery>
File:OCG-grot-playing.jpg
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===Squigshark===
[[File:SquigShark.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Squigshark.]]
Orks as Jaws. Squigsharks are the Squig counterparts of Terran sharks that inhabit Ork-infested worlds. And no they are not huggable; your local Commissar definitely urges you to '''''NOT''''' pet one out of safety and preventing potential stupidity.

They are known to be very dangerous beast and many Ork sailors trying to cosplay as Moby Dick ended their lives as a food for Squigsharks. Whenever one appears, it is obligatory to play the signature Jaws music. They are by far the top oceanic predator of any Ork World.

YOU. HAVE. BEEN. WARNED.

<gallery>
Deff_Skwadron_Squig-Shark-2.jpg|Dun dun...dun dun...dun dun dun dun dun....
</gallery>

===Snake-Squig===
[[File:Snake-Squigs.jpg|170px|right|thumb|Snake-Squig]]
The Snake-Squig is a very little known species of Squig, which is only shown as an illustration with a [[Snake Bites]] [[Weirdboy]] of said Snake-Squig constricting the Odd Boy like something out of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.

Speaking of Temple of Doom, it is quite possible that a Weirdboy uses his psychic mumbo-jumbo to control them like how a snake charmer controls a snake. Of course, what the Weirdboy actually does with the snakes, we have no idea, as they are just there to make him look cool.

In terms of its ecology, the Snake-Squig should share the same niche and behaviour as...well...a regular old snake, specifically the constrictor kind when you compare it to its sheer size. These beasts are like, 2-3 meters long if the image is any indication and is quite capable of chomping down prey as it is, swallowing them whole.

But its role is never ever really known given that all Snake-Squigs are actually victims of Old Zogwort who managed to Harry Potter'ed them into ''becoming'' a Snake-Squig. Because of the fact that Old Zogwort is the only known Ork that does these kinds of things, whether the Snake-Squig is an actual Orkoid species or just the consequence of psychic mishap is currently unknown.

{{Clear}}

===Squig Gobba===
[[File:Squig Gobba 2.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Squig Gobba.]]
A [[Forge World]] model, which is the size of a colossal squig. The difference is that this one can fire smaller squigs out of its mouth. The Squig Gobba is essentially living artillery.

Dragged and prodded onto the battlefield by its malevolent Goblin tenders, it is a huge beast with an oversized gaping maw, a set of extremely powerful lungs and a ravenous appetite to rival even that of a Troll. With the Squig Gobba heavily chained into position to prevent it bounding off after the first tasty morsel it spies, its tenders start dragging lesser squigs from the cages surrounding them as battle is joined, slicking these vicious beasts with foul-tasting noxious liquids.

This not only renders the creatures senseless for a short time, but also prevents the Squig Gobba from immediately swallowing them as the stunned squigs are unceremoniously stuffed into its jaws. Goblins can also make it explode if they want to.

<gallery>
File:Squig Gobba.jpg|Hey look! It seems that the last of the Gastric Brooding Frogs have evolved!
</gallery>

===Stalagsquig===
[[File:GloomspiteGitzDesignersNotes-Dec27-Stalagsquig10vx-1.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Stalagsquig]]

Squigs are highly adaptable creatures, taking a myriad range of forms. Some, for example, infest the rock itself, creating Stalagsquigs.

The Stalagsquigs are a what happens when orks and gobboz believe that <span style='color:green;font-size:100%'>"OIH DAT STONE FING OVER DERE LOOKS LIKE A BITEY SQUIG"</span> and as such the power of [[WAAAGH|WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH made it so.]] The species looks like normal stalagmites from afar but get close enough and you will be introduced to a stone skinned biting nightmare. This particular breed has yet to be seen in 40k but it is prevalent in Ye Age of golden hammer jackasses [[Age of Sigmar]].

It is unknown how these squigs move (if they move at all?) since they seem to have no visible legs, unless it's a luggage scenario where it sprouts thousands of little legs from its base when it wants to move.......WELP, have fun sleeping after thinking about that. Emperor damn, it's like the [[Chaos Spawn|chaos spawns all ov-BGRIHSRAJKHSJAHDSAIUOFDGHU.]] However, according to Warhammer Community, they are totally immobile and viciously hungry creatures that make exploring caves in the Mortal Realms an even worse idea than you thought it was.

As a side note there has been no recorded evidence on how big these squigs can grow to but seeing as how normal stalagmites can grow to be bigger than a sky scraper if given enough space we might have to worry about descending into caves in the foreseeable future.

===Swab Squig===
[[File:Swab.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Swab Squig.]]
The Swab Squig is a type of Hair Squig, but unlike the long trailing hair of its cousins, its round body is covered with short, fluffy fur. Orks use Swab Squigs to mop up during operations, and they come in handy for emergency handkerchiefs too. Despite looking like a giant fluffball they have a humongous mouth and are quite snappy too. Swab Squigs tend to share a comedic relation with [[Snotling|Snotlings]] due to the latter's mentally retarded habit of poking things that should not be poked, which often ends with the little snots running around having their asses bit by the Swab Squig.

Non-pettable by your local Commissar.

<gallery>
File:Squig-swab-2.jpg|It is wise not to pet something that looks cute....
File:Squig-swab-3.jpg|....Or else this happens.
</gallery>

===Syringe Squig===
[[File:Syringe.jpg|150px|thumb|right|Syringe Squig.]]
Syringe Squigs are primarily used for medicinal purposes. These medical Squigs have natural properties which Painboyz find useful when patching together battle-damaged Orks. Syringe Squigs have a long needle-sharp proboscises with which they inject venom into their prey. Syringe Squigs exude a soporific venom which makes a fine anesthetic for Orks when the traditional anesthetic (known to other races as a "concussion") is unavailable.

Syringe Squigs are divided by their sizes to 'small', 'big' and 'urty' which are used depending on the strength of the dose required. The venom is sometimes extracted from the creature and used separately for mixing up some kind of special 'medicine', or if a really large dose is needed.

There is also a special type of Syringe Squig called a '''Vaccine Squig''', whose own immune system produces natural vaccines and antibodies to a host of different pathogens that are extracted and used by Painboyz to aid diseased Orks.

===Tapewyrm Squig===
The Kruleboyz Orruk shaman Gobsprakk can summon a squirming swarm of Tapewyrm Squigs inside the stomachs of his enemies, sickening them and even causing them to explode in a shower of Waaagh! Magic like some sort of twisted DeviantArt fetish. Yeah.

===Tomb Squig===
[[File:Tomb_Squig_placeholder.JPG|150px|right|thumb|Tomb Squig]]
From old-school Warhammer, Tomb Squigs are an albino breed of burrowing squig that feeds on corpses and undead alike.

Often found in [[Dorf|Dwarfen]] tombs that have been broken open and looted, they are sometimes also found in graveyards where their presence often makes sure undead aren't present in these areas. Slightly smaller than regular Squigs, they possess amazingly powerful jaws for their size, which they use to break open stone sarcophagi and to bite through the ceremonial armour Dwarfs often bury their dead in.

At the cost of there being corpse-eating squigs, these critters are as likely to attack and devour the undead as the actually dead (and living as well). As such, Tomb Squigs can serve as a [[Just As Planned|nasty surprise]]; really ruining a tomb robber’s day as not only do they present a threat to life and limb, [[Troll|they can also destroy valuable weapons and armour hidden in the tomb.]]
Source: https://warhammerfantasy.fandom.com/wiki/Tomb_Squigs

===Tramplasquig===
[[File:Tramplesquig.JPG|200px|right|thumb|Tramplasquig]]
A quadrupedal Squig breed that is large enough to drag large vehicles. Tramplasquigs are the rhinoceros of the Squig family and their poor temper makes them a popular beast of war as well as a versatile beast of burden.

The [[Beast Snagga]]s use them to carry their [[Kill Rig]]s and [[Hunta Rig]]s. Although they lack any other form of natural weapons other than their bulk and teeth, Beast Snaggas mount armored helmets with a giant blade on top to further maximize their carnage.

On tabletop, the Tramplasquig is essentially the vehicle itself. It works well in conjunction with its ferried troops. As such, the whole thing is no slouch in melee either, as it not only has the squig itself fighting but also a bunch of boyz to hack away. What it does really well is if you have the Ramming Speed stratagem, as it not only throws it at an enemy from further away but it also drops some MWs on top of that, which can help with wiping the mob.
{{Clear}}

===Vampire Squig===
[[File:Vampire.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Vampire Squig.]]
The Vampire Squig is a blood-sucking creature with long sharp fangs, used by Painboyz to bleed the patient and suck bad blood and pus from septic wounds. The Squig does not seem to mind what the blood is like or from what species it comes so long as it gets a regular and plentiful supply.

When times are hard (which for Orks is when there's not much fighting) the Painboyz are forced to find other ways to keep their pets alive, which they do by extolling the benefits of regular bleeding to otherwise healthy Orks. It is also a good way to earn tons of teef in a short amount of time.

=== Wyrdsquig ===

[[File:Wyrd.jpg|150px|right|thumb|Wyrdsquig.]]

A Wyrdsquig is a little known psychic Squig subspecies, that has close genetic links to the Gnasher Squig. Despite their close relations, they are fucking hideous; looking more like an aborted love child between [[H.P. Lovecraft|Yog-Sothoth]] and the [[Halo|Timeless One.]]

This subspecies is rarely encountered in the wild and possesses psychic abilities similar to those of Ork [[Weirdboy]]z. The Wyrdsquig is often employed in battle as a "psychic bomb," releasing a catastrophic telepathic shockwave at the moment of its death. So in layman's terms, it is the Ork equivalent of a Imperial [[Grenades & Explosives#Psyk-Out Grenade|Psyk-Out Grenade]]s.

They are one of the few Warp-based weapons that the Orks utilize along with the [[Shokk_Attack_Gun|Shokk Attack Gun]] and [[Tellyport_Blasta|Tellyport Blasta]].

===Other Squigs===

The breeds of squigs are innumerable and there are a lot of other, unknown types of these creatures in existence. From tiny micro-organisms on Ork bodies to the gigantic beasts put in the Ork spaceships to create breathing atmosphere as a form of a life-sustaining device, each of them has an use in Ork society. Notorious breeds such as the yellow-spotted '''Facegnasha''', the greater '''Fang-gob''', or the infamous '''Leapin’ Deff''' are especially popular for ther use as Bomb Squigs. In Age of Sigmar, it is further expanded, examples such as the '''Glo-Squig''' are a type bioluminescent squig used to light up Lurklairs of the Gloomspite Gitz. Most of the models below include original Squig models, although also included is a green, gelatinous blob that had two beady eyes, similar to a Japanese RPG Slime, which some fa/tg/guy thought was explainable as being like the Orkoid Fungus equivalent of a Slime Mold, although searching has found that this is an unofficial model produced by a third party company, "Krakon Games"; the idea for the model being a Slime asquig probably came from the old Games Workshop Troll boardgames aimed at children, specifically "Squelch!", one about Trolls playing a game involving stomping on Squigs, among the illustrated Squig Cards there is a little Slime Squig. There is also a Small, Hairy, Humanoid Squig, perhaps the Orkoid equivalent of a Gibbon, covered in what could be fungal cilia or mould, called a "Beastling" below, which is an older official model. There was a Squig with a face resembling a Grot's like the Cape-Bearing Squig, but with long, bendy tube legs like stilts. There were 2 spiderlike squigs, one with a face like an Ork's, the other with a massive piercing proboscis, called a "Coffin Crawler" which was responsible for feeding Tyranid Norn Queens. A White Dwarf Squig character was Niblitz, Gobbledigook the goblin/snotling's pet who resembled an attack squig covered in fuzz and with two little horns, who was often said to be "spiderlike" somehow. Niblitz may be the very first squig ever designed, as he first appeared before any other squig models.
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File:Squigs_Old_Mini.jpg
File:Retro_Squigs.jpeg
File:VariedSquigs.JPG
File:Niblitz.jpg
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{{Clear}}
[[Category: Warhammer Fantasy]]

[[Category: Orcs & Goblins]]

[[Category: Age of Sigmar]]

[[Category: Gloomspite Gitz]]

[[Category: Warhammer 40,000]]

[[Category: Xenos]]

[[Category: Orks]]

[[Category: Feral Orks]]

[[Category: Squigs]]

[[Category: Megafauna]]

{{template: Orks-Forces}}

Kroot

2022-06-27T21:38:16Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Physiology */

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[[Image:Kroot.png|thumbnail|right|300px|In Tau Empire, chicken eats YOU!]]

{{topquote|They are fierce indeed these Kroot, and savage. I look upon them and tremble at their ferocity. I can only hope that when the enemy sees them they tremble as I do.|Por'vre Tau Cho, Water caste envoy}}

The '''Kroot''' (''Krootis <s>spencer here</s> aviana'') are a vassal species to the [[Tau|Tau Empire]]. Rather bitey. Basically carnivorous space chickens who look like a cross between the dreadlocked aliens from ''Predator'' and ancient [[Terra|Terran]] terror birds, with a bit of D&D's [[Aarakocra]] thrown in. They steal genetic traits of things they eat, and work for people who aren't the Tau. Which means they are cool.

However, the Kroot see little support from [[Games Workshop]] and players in general, likely due to the fact that their odd stats, high frailty despite being billed as a melee force, and lack of wargear in the Tau list make them less than effective, and their [[Warhammer_40,000/Chapter_Approved/Kroot_Mercenaries|mercenary codex]] is from an old [[Chapter Approved]] (and thus no longer legal).

For those interested, there's [[Codex - Kroots: /tg/'s 9th Edition]]. Most people will let you use it in a friendly game.

As of the most recent [[Dark Eldar]] codex, the [[Haemonculus]] Covens has taken a liking to the way Kroot gastronomy reacts to evolution and had conducted a gigantic raid which, to put it lightly, utterly destroyed Pech a new one. The Dark Eldar pretty much [[Looted]] nearly the entire biosphere of Pech including a several dozen Kroot Shapers, seriously we aren't even joking on the whole looted part. Essentially the Dark Eldar almost [[Exterminatus]] an entire planet through [[Blood Ravens|sheer theft that would make a Bloody Magpie proud.]] Suffice it to say, Pech was saved by a counterattack by the Tau, but by then it was too little too late. The Kroot's homeworld lay devastated and the rescuing Tau party was greeted with a grisly scene of mutilated Kroot corpses laid out in Eldar Lexicon which translates to, "[[Rape|Welcome to the feast.]]" The Tau in all their naive weeaboo hats, promptly shat themselves a brown stinky brick whilst the captured Kroots were promptly turned into KFC. Since that day, the Tau have encountered many similar messages on their worlds, which may just paint a sign that our little weeaboos will be the Dark Eldar's new buddy.

It is uncertain, and probably unlikely, that we will ever get a kroot codex thanks to the Imperium centric focus of the setting. Thanks Geedubs. However, we ''did'' get Kill Team rules for a Kroot Mercenary faction in the January 2019 White Dwarf. Strictly fun and noncompetitive, but it's ''something''.

GOOD NEWS! With all the new options with Ninth edition, it is now possible to run a <strike>mostly</strike> Kroot Army! EDIT: [https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/01/26/field-an-entire-army-of-upgraded-kroot-with-codex-tau-empire/ | Now you can run an <i>entirely</i> Kroot army!]

==Physiology==
[[File:OW EOI Kroot Shaper.png|thumbnail|right|300px|''By instinctively isolating and analysing the DNA contained with the flesh of potential food sources, these exceptional Kroot, known as Shapers, can determine whether the prey’s characteristics are favourable or detrimental to the genetic advancement of their Kindred, and can thereby guide the development of the other Kroot. They are the wardens and caretakers of their Kindred’s genetic inheritance, and they guard it against regression, corruption, and unwanted mutation.'']]
[[Xenology]] suggests that the reason Kroot are humanoid, able to walk and think, and able to build weapons and spacecraft is because at one time in their history, an [[Ork]] ship crashed on Pech (the Kroot's home planet). The Kroot promptly started eating the dazed survivors of this crash (how they managed to not end up with a full-blown Ork infestation remains anyone's guess. Maybe the kroot lick their plates when they are done eating, leading to no spores left behind, anyone's guess.) and subsequently managed to gain some of the Orks' innate understanding for technology, as well as a measure of their resilience. Oh, and the basic humanoid body layout on top of that. Two arms, bipedal gait, the whole shebang. Evidence for this are pieces of wreckage marked with Ork glyphs scattered all over Pech that the Kroot regard as sacred objects, as well as the presence of hybrid fungal matter in parts of their body. It could thus be argued that the Kroot are an entire race of "Half-Orks", or at least Hybridized with the Orkoid Fungus genetic genome to a degree. Also, "Kroot" spelled backwards is "To ork." It is unknown if this is intentional. The "Father" of the Kroot race in their Legend of Vawk the Huntress, meanwhile, is Gmork, whose description matches Gorkamorka/Gork and Mork, along with the name sounding like Gork and Mork smashed together. When Vawk took bites out of Gmork, his blood poisoned her, but as she died she vomited forth the Ancestral Kroothawks out upon Planet Pech. Also, Kroot starts like Krork, the original Orkoids who devolved into modern Orkoids.

For some reason, the fluff likes to point out how revolting the Kroot are for their carnivorous practices, even though, when you really stop and think about it, the Kroot are one of the more morally upright races around. They're explicitly not xenophobic racists, they ''have to'' eat dead sapients to stay intelligent (unlike, say, [[Space Marines]] and [[Tyranids]] who also eat people's brains to gain knowledge, or the fucking [[Dark Eldar]], who do it purely for lulz), and they're not notably more cruel than anyone else but the Tau, who seem to be the only people in the universe who more or less tolerate them. Although this may have to do with point of view, most of the time it's the Tau or [[Imperial Guard]] who would find the eating of the dead, friend or foe, gross. Tyranids are viewed as mindless animals, so eating things isn't as "wrong" for them, and most people forgot Space Marines can gain knowledge by eating brains [[Blood_Angels#Red_Thirst|(occasionally chasing it with fresh squeezed blood)]]. Most who do spend their time around Kroot generally seem to like them, though. The "revolting" part may be more of a knee-jerk reaction from people not used to seeing bird people eating dudes.

You may have noticed that this article talks a lot about eating. According to Chapter Approved in [[White Dwarf]], the Kroot physiology basically revolves around their mouth. They have multiple stomachs, no excretory organs (what they can't digest, they puke up), and females even breed by transforming a stomach into a womb and then vomiting up the baby/babies when it's/they're full grown. Take a wild guess how they conceive.

...The answer is back rubs. Male Kroot have specialized pores that secrete a gene-bearing bio-fluid (what experts refer to as "alien bird-jizz") on their palms, whilst female Kroot have "receptor pores" for this fluid on the smalls of their back. So when two Kroot make babies, the male has to give the female a back rub. Yeah, we thought it would be [[Heterosexual Sex in the Missionary Position|kinkier]], too. The main question though is why would they need sexual reproduction in the first place, since it's goal is intermixing genomes to spread useful genes, and they already have controlled horizontal gene transfer on par with fucking Tyranids, which is orders of magnitude more efficient. Guess, noone in GeeDubs attended Genetics 101.

Fun Fact: they are the only nonhuman species that can have [[Blank]]s, likely because they ate one at some point.

==Culture==

Kroot also moonlight as [[Codex - Kroots: /tg/'s 9th Edition|mercenaries]] for races other than the Tau, though about the only sapient beings whose flesh they won't eat are the Tau, since the Tau saved them from extinction. Mercenary bands eat lots of different stuff, and so [[Kroot_Kindreds|can have various genetic traits]]. Thus, Kroot can use [[Eldar|Weeaboo Fightan Magiks]], be [[Orks|cunnin' but fighty]], or have [[Space Marines|balls of steel]], depending on who they've eaten, but not as well as the originals. Eating [[Chaos]]-types causes Bad Things™ to happen. They also refuse to eat the 'Nids, because the Shapers, the Kroot leaders, fear becoming slaves to the [[Hive Mind]] (though realistically there'd eventually come along one or two Kroot dumb enough to do it anyway). They also can't eat anyone infected by the [[Necron]]s' Nanites because Nanites will turn Kroot into another Necron/[[C'Tan]] zombie slave. They also get paid in weapons, allowing them to use Imperial and Tau special weapons together, and nearly their entire army can infiltrate, <strike>and get 1st turn assault if they're lucky</strike> (NOPE, 6th edition ended that shit). Kroot don't use tanks or much in the way of tech (aside from [[Kroot Rifle|long rifle-like guns with blades on both ends]]), instead using native animals derived from the Kroot genus. They have attack dogs, gorillas with elephant guns, riding beasts like allosaurs, and really big riding beasts like T. rexes. Think the Gungans from ''The Phantom Menace'', only <s>not totally lame</s> [[Awesome]]. There is no contention that Kroot are exponentially cooler than Gungans. <span style='color:red;font-size:115%'> More meat? Good! BWWAAAK! <span style='color:yellow;font-size:115%'>

They also have a rather dark sense of humor; for example, offering human meat to human diplomats because [[Troll|they think seeing their reactions are funny.]] This is also shown in the second Last Chancers book "Kill Team", where Kage is forced to eat a human brain (while he goes into horrific detail about the taste and texture). After this, the Kroot reveals that this was a secret test of character, but also that it was good for shits and giggles. In general, the Kroot sense of humor revolves around making other people profoundly uncomfortable. For example, a Kroot might walk into the same elevator as a Water Caste diplomat, turn up her pungent pheromones to full blast, and silently laugh her bird-woman ass off as the increasingly-uncomfortable fellow passenger tries to ignore it with less and less success.

Kroot also have shamans (psykers). They pilot warp ships called [[Warspheres]]; ''very'' large, spherical vessels of dubious quality but nonetheless capable of warp travel. Warspheres also double as mobile communities for the Kroot when they are away from Pech.

In the short story "Warsphere", which all of ten people have read, where Dahyak Grekh of Blackstone Fortress fame tricks a dark eldar Archon into giving up the location of said Blackstone Fortress, we gain a little bit of insight into the technology and culture of the Kroot on their eponymous space-cities. On a spiritual level, the Kroot believe in a warrior-spirit named Vawk the Huntress, who assumedly blessed the Warsphere of the story, and that vast chambers and halls of their ships are carved with the histories of the Kindred who made them. We also learn that the Kroot are incredibly proud of their heritage, and even think its funny that someone would try to repair a warsphere, thinking that no one but the Kroot could understand its technology. Oh, and that the Kroot can learn the memories of the things they eat, such as the location of a Blackstone Fortress. On a technological level, they are riddled with traps that are impossible to disarm without the aid of a Kroot, as their user manuals consist of memory-imbued scraps of flesh and totemic symbols. Oh, also, Warspheres have mechanical birds that defend the insides.

The book Liber Xenologicus gives more details on the Kroot religion. In their origin myth, Vawk the Huntress flew across the primordial chaos of the Nothingsea until she encountered the rival god Gmork. This battle was so intense that it created the stars and planets of the galaxy. Vawk gained Gmork's strength by drinking his blood and so was able to defeat him, but it was a short lived victory as his blood was poisonous. Her last act before perishing was to descend to the planet Pech, where her feathers became the forest and bones became the mountains, and vomit a great flock of eagles into the sky. This is likely a crude genetic memory of the Kroot's original evolution into sapience by eating Orks.

==Known Kroot Forms==
As mentioned above, the downside of Kroot consumptive evolution is that it's really easy for them to get "stuck" on the wrong path and devolve permanently into an atavistic form. As a consequence, every animal-filled ecological niche on Pech is now filled by some form of degenerated kroot. But, so far, only a select handful of Kroot offshoots have been explicitly called out...

*'''[[Kroot Hound]]s''' are one of the most iconic of these strains, having been around since the Kroot were released. These Kroot degenerated into small, sleek, pack-hunting quadrupeds, easily tamed by their still-sapient cousins.
* '''[[Krootox]]es''' are the second-most iconic Kroot strains; degenerated into hulking, ape-like herbivores, they're mostly used as beasts of burden and as mobile mounts for heavy artillery.
*'''[[Lesser Knarloc]]s''' are sort of a step-up from the Kroot Hounds, being analogous to either a pack-hunting terror-bird or a more avian pack of velociraptors. Kroot like to ride them as cavalry.
*'''[[Great Knarloc]]s''' are much, ''much'' bigger, solo-hunter variants of the standard Knarlocs. If a lesser Knarloc is a Velociraptor, the great one is a beaky T-Rex.
*'''Krootors''' are swamp-dwelling, amphibious predators, essentially a Krootified alligator. Their only known appearance in the canon so far is in [[Black Crusade (RPG)|The Screaming Vortex]], on the planet Asphodel.
*'''Kroothawks''' are either another offshoot of the kroot species, like the hounds, or the ancestral grandaddy of the whole shebang, as supposedly when their creator-goddess Vawk was dying she vomited a crap ton of them into Pech's sky. Whichever is the case, the kroot venerate the hawks and use their likeness in their totems and rituals. Unfortunately, we've never seen a kroothawk model or image, so how big they are or what they exactly look like is up to debate, but they're basically pterodactyls.

==TL;DR==

Kroot: Shoot like Tau with bolters. Move and hit like Eldar. Die like Guardsmen. (And have an amour save that will save them from [[lasgun|lasguns]] and nothing else—16% of the time) As of 8th, Kroot lost infiltrate for a Scout move, and hit like Space Marines in close combat.

==Building list==
Do you like to win more than you like to have fun? No? Good, you might enjoy a full Kroot list in the 9th ed. version of the Kroot Mercenaries / T'au Empire. With the welcome promotion of the shaper to an HQ unit, coupled with their own relics and warlord traits, you're free to run wild and eat your enemies to your heart's content.
*A small note, however, is that including but a single ethereal, despite being counter to a pure kroot army, goes a long way in the effectiveness of your kindred. With a single floating hippy, you gain access to a <Sept> for the detachment, which should always be Dal'yth, so then your Kroot (and your vespids if you're feeling saucy) can benefit from Tactical Philosophies. On top of that, Ethereals can chant a prayer explicitly for upgrading Auxiliaries. It might be worth kitbashing an ethereal to look like a kroot shaman, but all-in-all, it should be a serious consideration, unless you're a die-hard fan of Predator and Halo's jackals.
*Secondly, unless you're willing to dip into Legends or used Unaligned units, your army won't end up being very diverse. While its very possible to get over 1k of mainline bords, your liable to field up to 80-100 models in carnivores alone, which is just. . . a lot to manage. But! If your gaming group is chill with it (and they should be because fighting an army of pure kroot seems like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity), the inclusion of the Legends units really helps make the list more well-rounded.
**Unfortunately, with the transition into 9th, Dahyak Grekh got the axe as a unit, but not before leaving a lasting impression. His model can be used to represent a shaper with an alternative set of wargear, giving them them a pistol and grenade belt in exchange for their ritual blade. The kroot may have lost their Sly Marbo, but he shall never be forgotten.

In terms of list-building, the kroot benefit from the fact that no units are competing for slots. Shapers are your only options for HQs (unless you're taking an ethereal, but we'll circle back to that), carnivores are your only troops, so on and so forth. This is because of the '''Kroot Pack''' rule that carnivores have, which means that for every squad of them you take, up to one unit each of shapers/krootoxen/hounds can be taken without filling a slot. Meaning that hounds and knarloc riders will never compete for fast attack slots (because you should just run the hounds as NOFOS), and if you're feeling adventurous, you can spam three ethereals for your obligatory HQ slots, and still take up to three shapers (for the same reason). Round out the list with some Great Knarlocs in your heavy support, and you have something that actually resembles an army.

Gameplay wise, the Kroot benefit from being fast and having ok melee. Shapers, carnivores, and hounds all get a pre-game move before the game begins, while both types of knarlocs can auto-advance 6", and hounds can re-roll advances and charges. Coupled with one of your warlord traits, you can even still keep up all the shooting while they're all advancing up the board. At the same time, while they are realistically a horde army, the sheer volume of their melee should be enough to surpass some of the low-tier armies on the assault, but naturally you'll crumple against every army that's better at melee, as Kroot universally have shitty armor saves and no invulns, with your only durability boost coming from a stratagem.
*Ironically, however, a somewhat competent gunline can be made from massed krootoxes, your best shooting unit, an attending shaper for re-roll 1s to hit, and at least one baggage harness Great Knarloc for exploding 6s to hit. With a potential 18 auto-cannon shots (plus more if you're adding Great Knarlocs with their own guns to the mix) you've got some pretty scary fire coming down wind.

You're not likely to win anything with this army, but you are basically free to goof around. You aren't strong or competitive in any way, but part of this hobby is fun, so shut up and have fun.

== Modelling ==
A slight issue with the Kroot range is that it's incredibly small and unsupported. In that, GW has only ever made a handful of kits for them, the majority being metal or resin. The only plastic Kroot kit is the carnivores, while knarlocs and great knarlocs, their most badass kits, haven't been supported in years.

However, there's a light at the end of the tunnel, my fellow bird-lovers! If you don't mind 3rd party, there's a seller on Etsy that makes off-brand Kroot models that are honestly pretty fucking fire. He's made remodels of the long-lost knarlocs, resin prints of hounds, alternative bits to make regular Kroot look sci-fi, and even has some GSC/Kroot prints. Honestly he does a good job, nuff said.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MasterShaperFelix?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=1051976211

== Gallery ==

<gallery>
Image:YesIagree.png|They also have quite a way with words.
</gallery>

[[Category: Warhammer 40,000]]

[[Category: Xenos]]

[[Category: Tau]]

[[Category: Kroot]]

[[Category:Minor Xenos Species]]

{{Template:Tau}}

{{Template:Important Species in 40k}}

Kroot

2022-06-27T16:42:08Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Physiology */

{{cleanup}}
[[Image:Kroot.png|thumbnail|right|300px|In Tau Empire, chicken eats YOU!]]

{{topquote|They are fierce indeed these Kroot, and savage. I look upon them and tremble at their ferocity. I can only hope that when the enemy sees them they tremble as I do.|Por'vre Tau Cho, Water caste envoy}}

The '''Kroot''' (''Krootis <s>spencer here</s> aviana'') are a vassal species to the [[Tau|Tau Empire]]. Rather bitey. Basically carnivorous space chickens who look like a cross between the dreadlocked aliens from ''Predator'' and ancient [[Terra|Terran]] terror birds, with a bit of D&D's [[Aarakocra]] thrown in. They steal genetic traits of things they eat, and work for people who aren't the Tau. Which means they are cool.

However, the Kroot see little support from [[Games Workshop]] and players in general, likely due to the fact that their odd stats, high frailty despite being billed as a melee force, and lack of wargear in the Tau list make them less than effective, and their [[Warhammer_40,000/Chapter_Approved/Kroot_Mercenaries|mercenary codex]] is from an old [[Chapter Approved]] (and thus no longer legal).

For those interested, there's [[Codex - Kroots: /tg/'s 9th Edition]]. Most people will let you use it in a friendly game.

As of the most recent [[Dark Eldar]] codex, the [[Haemonculus]] Covens has taken a liking to the way Kroot gastronomy reacts to evolution and had conducted a gigantic raid which, to put it lightly, utterly destroyed Pech a new one. The Dark Eldar pretty much [[Looted]] nearly the entire biosphere of Pech including a several dozen Kroot Shapers, seriously we aren't even joking on the whole looted part. Essentially the Dark Eldar almost [[Exterminatus]] an entire planet through [[Blood Ravens|sheer theft that would make a Bloody Magpie proud.]] Suffice it to say, Pech was saved by a counterattack by the Tau, but by then it was too little too late. The Kroot's homeworld lay devastated and the rescuing Tau party was greeted with a grisly scene of mutilated Kroot corpses laid out in Eldar Lexicon which translates to, "[[Rape|Welcome to the feast.]]" The Tau in all their naive weeaboo hats, promptly shat themselves a brown stinky brick whilst the captured Kroots were promptly turned into KFC. Since that day, the Tau have encountered many similar messages on their worlds, which may just paint a sign that our little weeaboos will be the Dark Eldar's new buddy.

It is uncertain, and probably unlikely, that we will ever get a kroot codex thanks to the Imperium centric focus of the setting. Thanks Geedubs. However, we ''did'' get Kill Team rules for a Kroot Mercenary faction in the January 2019 White Dwarf. Strictly fun and noncompetitive, but it's ''something''.

GOOD NEWS! With all the new options with Ninth edition, it is now possible to run a <strike>mostly</strike> Kroot Army! EDIT: [https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/01/26/field-an-entire-army-of-upgraded-kroot-with-codex-tau-empire/ | Now you can run an <i>entirely</i> Kroot army!]

==Physiology==
[[File:OW EOI Kroot Shaper.png|thumbnail|right|300px|''By instinctively isolating and analysing the DNA contained with the flesh of potential food sources, these exceptional Kroot, known as Shapers, can determine whether the prey’s characteristics are favourable or detrimental to the genetic advancement of their Kindred, and can thereby guide the development of the other Kroot. They are the wardens and caretakers of their Kindred’s genetic inheritance, and they guard it against regression, corruption, and unwanted mutation.'']]
[[Xenology]] suggests that the reason Kroot are humanoid, able to walk and think, and able to build weapons and spacecraft is because at one time in their history, an [[Ork]] ship crashed on Pech (the Kroot's home planet). The Kroot promptly started eating the dazed survivors of this crash (how they managed to not end up with a full-blown Ork infestation remains anyone's guess. Maybe the kroot lick their plates when they are done eating, leading to no spores left behind, anyone's guess.) and subsequently managed to gain some of the Orks' innate understanding for technology, as well as a measure of their resilience. Oh, and the basic humanoid body layout on top of that. Two arms, bipedal gait, the whole shebang. Evidence for this are pieces of wreckage marked with Ork glyphs scattered all over Pech that the Kroot regard as sacred objects, as well as the presence of hybrid fungal matter in parts of their body. It could thus be argued that the Kroot are an entire race of "Half-Orks", or at least Hybridized with the Orkoid Fungus genetic genome to a degree.

For some reason, the fluff likes to point out how revolting the Kroot are for their carnivorous practices, even though, when you really stop and think about it, the Kroot are one of the more morally upright races around. They're explicitly not xenophobic racists, they ''have to'' eat dead sapients to stay intelligent (unlike, say, [[Space Marines]] and [[Tyranids]] who also eat people's brains to gain knowledge, or the fucking [[Dark Eldar]], who do it purely for lulz), and they're not notably more cruel than anyone else but the Tau, who seem to be the only people in the universe who more or less tolerate them. Although this may have to do with point of view, most of the time it's the Tau or [[Imperial Guard]] who would find the eating of the dead, friend or foe, gross. Tyranids are viewed as mindless animals, so eating things isn't as "wrong" for them, and most people forgot Space Marines can gain knowledge by eating brains [[Blood_Angels#Red_Thirst|(occasionally chasing it with fresh squeezed blood)]]. Most who do spend their time around Kroot generally seem to like them, though. The "revolting" part may be more of a knee-jerk reaction from people not used to seeing bird people eating dudes.

You may have noticed that this article talks a lot about eating. According to Chapter Approved in [[White Dwarf]], the Kroot physiology basically revolves around their mouth. They have multiple stomachs, no excretory organs (what they can't digest, they puke up), and females even breed by transforming a stomach into a womb and then vomiting up the baby/babies when it's/they're full grown. Take a wild guess how they conceive.

...The answer is back rubs. Male Kroot have specialized pores that secrete a gene-bearing bio-fluid (what experts refer to as "alien bird-jizz") on their palms, whilst female Kroot have "receptor pores" for this fluid on the smalls of their back. So when two Kroot make babies, the male has to give the female a back rub. Yeah, we thought it would be [[Heterosexual Sex in the Missionary Position|kinkier]], too. The main question though is why would they need sexual reproduction in the first place, since it's goal is intermixing genomes to spread useful genes, and they already have controlled horizontal gene transfer on par with fucking Tyranids, which is orders of magnitude more efficient. Guess, noone in GeeDubs attended Genetics 101.

Fun Fact: they are the only nonhuman species that can have [[Blank]]s, likely because they ate one at some point.

==Culture==

Kroot also moonlight as [[Codex - Kroots: /tg/'s 9th Edition|mercenaries]] for races other than the Tau, though about the only sapient beings whose flesh they won't eat are the Tau, since the Tau saved them from extinction. Mercenary bands eat lots of different stuff, and so [[Kroot_Kindreds|can have various genetic traits]]. Thus, Kroot can use [[Eldar|Weeaboo Fightan Magiks]], be [[Orks|cunnin' but fighty]], or have [[Space Marines|balls of steel]], depending on who they've eaten, but not as well as the originals. Eating [[Chaos]]-types causes Bad Things™ to happen. They also refuse to eat the 'Nids, because the Shapers, the Kroot leaders, fear becoming slaves to the [[Hive Mind]] (though realistically there'd eventually come along one or two Kroot dumb enough to do it anyway). They also can't eat anyone infected by the [[Necron]]s' Nanites because Nanites will turn Kroot into another Necron/[[C'Tan]] zombie slave. They also get paid in weapons, allowing them to use Imperial and Tau special weapons together, and nearly their entire army can infiltrate, <strike>and get 1st turn assault if they're lucky</strike> (NOPE, 6th edition ended that shit). Kroot don't use tanks or much in the way of tech (aside from [[Kroot Rifle|long rifle-like guns with blades on both ends]]), instead using native animals derived from the Kroot genus. They have attack dogs, gorillas with elephant guns, riding beasts like allosaurs, and really big riding beasts like T. rexes. Think the Gungans from ''The Phantom Menace'', only <s>not totally lame</s> [[Awesome]]. There is no contention that Kroot are exponentially cooler than Gungans. <span style='color:red;font-size:115%'> More meat? Good! BWWAAAK! <span style='color:yellow;font-size:115%'>

They also have a rather dark sense of humor; for example, offering human meat to human diplomats because [[Troll|they think seeing their reactions are funny.]] This is also shown in the second Last Chancers book "Kill Team", where Kage is forced to eat a human brain (while he goes into horrific detail about the taste and texture). After this, the Kroot reveals that this was a secret test of character, but also that it was good for shits and giggles. In general, the Kroot sense of humor revolves around making other people profoundly uncomfortable. For example, a Kroot might walk into the same elevator as a Water Caste diplomat, turn up her pungent pheromones to full blast, and silently laugh her bird-woman ass off as the increasingly-uncomfortable fellow passenger tries to ignore it with less and less success.

Kroot also have shamans (psykers). They pilot warp ships called [[Warspheres]]; ''very'' large, spherical vessels of dubious quality but nonetheless capable of warp travel. Warspheres also double as mobile communities for the Kroot when they are away from Pech.

In the short story "Warsphere", which all of ten people have read, where Dahyak Grekh of Blackstone Fortress fame tricks a dark eldar Archon into giving up the location of said Blackstone Fortress, we gain a little bit of insight into the technology and culture of the Kroot on their eponymous space-cities. On a spiritual level, the Kroot believe in a warrior-spirit named Vawk the Huntress, who assumedly blessed the Warsphere of the story, and that vast chambers and halls of their ships are carved with the histories of the Kindred who made them. We also learn that the Kroot are incredibly proud of their heritage, and even think its funny that someone would try to repair a warsphere, thinking that no one but the Kroot could understand its technology. Oh, and that the Kroot can learn the memories of the things they eat, such as the location of a Blackstone Fortress. On a technological level, they are riddled with traps that are impossible to disarm without the aid of a Kroot, as their user manuals consist of memory-imbued scraps of flesh and totemic symbols. Oh, also, Warspheres have mechanical birds that defend the insides.

The book Liber Xenologicus gives more details on the Kroot religion. In their origin myth, Vawk the Huntress flew across the primordial chaos of the Nothingsea until she encountered the rival god Gmork. This battle was so intense that it created the stars and planets of the galaxy. Vawk gained Gmork's strength by drinking his blood and so was able to defeat him, but it was a short lived victory as his blood was poisonous. Her last act before perishing was to descend to the planet Pech, where her feathers became the forest and bones became the mountains, and vomit a great flock of eagles into the sky. This is likely a crude genetic memory of the Kroot's original evolution into sapience by eating Orks.

==Known Kroot Forms==
As mentioned above, the downside of Kroot consumptive evolution is that it's really easy for them to get "stuck" on the wrong path and devolve permanently into an atavistic form. As a consequence, every animal-filled ecological niche on Pech is now filled by some form of degenerated kroot. But, so far, only a select handful of Kroot offshoots have been explicitly called out...

*'''[[Kroot Hound]]s''' are one of the most iconic of these strains, having been around since the Kroot were released. These Kroot degenerated into small, sleek, pack-hunting quadrupeds, easily tamed by their still-sapient cousins.
* '''[[Krootox]]es''' are the second-most iconic Kroot strains; degenerated into hulking, ape-like herbivores, they're mostly used as beasts of burden and as mobile mounts for heavy artillery.
*'''[[Lesser Knarloc]]s''' are sort of a step-up from the Kroot Hounds, being analogous to either a pack-hunting terror-bird or a more avian pack of velociraptors. Kroot like to ride them as cavalry.
*'''[[Great Knarloc]]s''' are much, ''much'' bigger, solo-hunter variants of the standard Knarlocs. If a lesser Knarloc is a Velociraptor, the great one is a beaky T-Rex.
*'''Krootors''' are swamp-dwelling, amphibious predators, essentially a Krootified alligator. Their only known appearance in the canon so far is in [[Black Crusade (RPG)|The Screaming Vortex]], on the planet Asphodel.
*'''Kroothawks''' are either another offshoot of the kroot species, like the hounds, or the ancestral grandaddy of the whole shebang, as supposedly when their creator-goddess Vawk was dying she vomited a crap ton of them into Pech's sky. Whichever is the case, the kroot venerate the hawks and use their likeness in their totems and rituals. Unfortunately, we've never seen a kroothawk model or image, so how big they are or what they exactly look like is up to debate, but they're basically pterodactyls.

==TL;DR==

Kroot: Shoot like Tau with bolters. Move and hit like Eldar. Die like Guardsmen. (And have an amour save that will save them from [[lasgun|lasguns]] and nothing else—16% of the time) As of 8th, Kroot lost infiltrate for a Scout move, and hit like Space Marines in close combat.

==Building list==
Do you like to win more than you like to have fun? No? Good, you might enjoy a full Kroot list in the 9th ed. version of the Kroot Mercenaries / T'au Empire. With the welcome promotion of the shaper to an HQ unit, coupled with their own relics and warlord traits, you're free to run wild and eat your enemies to your heart's content.
*A small note, however, is that including but a single ethereal, despite being counter to a pure kroot army, goes a long way in the effectiveness of your kindred. With a single floating hippy, you gain access to a <Sept> for the detachment, which should always be Dal'yth, so then your Kroot (and your vespids if you're feeling saucy) can benefit from Tactical Philosophies. On top of that, Ethereals can chant a prayer explicitly for upgrading Auxiliaries. It might be worth kitbashing an ethereal to look like a kroot shaman, but all-in-all, it should be a serious consideration, unless you're a die-hard fan of Predator and Halo's jackals.
*Secondly, unless you're willing to dip into Legends or used Unaligned units, your army won't end up being very diverse. While its very possible to get over 1k of mainline bords, your liable to field up to 80-100 models in carnivores alone, which is just. . . a lot to manage. But! If your gaming group is chill with it (and they should be because fighting an army of pure kroot seems like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity), the inclusion of the Legends units really helps make the list more well-rounded.
**Unfortunately, with the transition into 9th, Dahyak Grekh got the axe as a unit, but not before leaving a lasting impression. His model can be used to represent a shaper with an alternative set of wargear, giving them them a pistol and grenade belt in exchange for their ritual blade. The kroot may have lost their Sly Marbo, but he shall never be forgotten.

In terms of list-building, the kroot benefit from the fact that no units are competing for slots. Shapers are your only options for HQs (unless you're taking an ethereal, but we'll circle back to that), carnivores are your only troops, so on and so forth. This is because of the '''Kroot Pack''' rule that carnivores have, which means that for every squad of them you take, up to one unit each of shapers/krootoxen/hounds can be taken without filling a slot. Meaning that hounds and knarloc riders will never compete for fast attack slots (because you should just run the hounds as NOFOS), and if you're feeling adventurous, you can spam three ethereals for your obligatory HQ slots, and still take up to three shapers (for the same reason). Round out the list with some Great Knarlocs in your heavy support, and you have something that actually resembles an army.

Gameplay wise, the Kroot benefit from being fast and having ok melee. Shapers, carnivores, and hounds all get a pre-game move before the game begins, while both types of knarlocs can auto-advance 6", and hounds can re-roll advances and charges. Coupled with one of your warlord traits, you can even still keep up all the shooting while they're all advancing up the board. At the same time, while they are realistically a horde army, the sheer volume of their melee should be enough to surpass some of the low-tier armies on the assault, but naturally you'll crumple against every army that's better at melee, as Kroot universally have shitty armor saves and no invulns, with your only durability boost coming from a stratagem.
*Ironically, however, a somewhat competent gunline can be made from massed krootoxes, your best shooting unit, an attending shaper for re-roll 1s to hit, and at least one baggage harness Great Knarloc for exploding 6s to hit. With a potential 18 auto-cannon shots (plus more if you're adding Great Knarlocs with their own guns to the mix) you've got some pretty scary fire coming down wind.

You're not likely to win anything with this army, but you are basically free to goof around. You aren't strong or competitive in any way, but part of this hobby is fun, so shut up and have fun.

== Modelling ==
A slight issue with the Kroot range is that it's incredibly small and unsupported. In that, GW has only ever made a handful of kits for them, the majority being metal or resin. The only plastic Kroot kit is the carnivores, while knarlocs and great knarlocs, their most badass kits, haven't been supported in years.

However, there's a light at the end of the tunnel, my fellow bird-lovers! If you don't mind 3rd party, there's a seller on Etsy that makes off-brand Kroot models that are honestly pretty fucking fire. He's made remodels of the long-lost knarlocs, resin prints of hounds, alternative bits to make regular Kroot look sci-fi, and even has some GSC/Kroot prints. Honestly he does a good job, nuff said.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MasterShaperFelix?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=1051976211

== Gallery ==

<gallery>
Image:YesIagree.png|They also have quite a way with words.
</gallery>

[[Category: Warhammer 40,000]]

[[Category: Xenos]]

[[Category: Tau]]

[[Category: Kroot]]

[[Category:Minor Xenos Species]]

{{Template:Tau}}

{{Template:Important Species in 40k}}

Kroot

2022-06-27T16:38:29Z

2601:188:C300:64B8:1C03:928A:2086:2AA0: /* Physiology */

{{cleanup}}
[[Image:Kroot.png|thumbnail|right|300px|In Tau Empire, chicken eats YOU!]]

{{topquote|They are fierce indeed these Kroot, and savage. I look upon them and tremble at their ferocity. I can only hope that when the enemy sees them they tremble as I do.|Por'vre Tau Cho, Water caste envoy}}

The '''Kroot''' (''Krootis <s>spencer here</s> aviana'') are a vassal species to the [[Tau|Tau Empire]]. Rather bitey. Basically carnivorous space chickens who look like a cross between the dreadlocked aliens from ''Predator'' and ancient [[Terra|Terran]] terror birds, with a bit of D&D's [[Aarakocra]] thrown in. They steal genetic traits of things they eat, and work for people who aren't the Tau. Which means they are cool.

However, the Kroot see little support from [[Games Workshop]] and players in general, likely due to the fact that their odd stats, high frailty despite being billed as a melee force, and lack of wargear in the Tau list make them less than effective, and their [[Warhammer_40,000/Chapter_Approved/Kroot_Mercenaries|mercenary codex]] is from an old [[Chapter Approved]] (and thus no longer legal).

For those interested, there's [[Codex - Kroots: /tg/'s 9th Edition]]. Most people will let you use it in a friendly game.

As of the most recent [[Dark Eldar]] codex, the [[Haemonculus]] Covens has taken a liking to the way Kroot gastronomy reacts to evolution and had conducted a gigantic raid which, to put it lightly, utterly destroyed Pech a new one. The Dark Eldar pretty much [[Looted]] nearly the entire biosphere of Pech including a several dozen Kroot Shapers, seriously we aren't even joking on the whole looted part. Essentially the Dark Eldar almost [[Exterminatus]] an entire planet through [[Blood Ravens|sheer theft that would make a Bloody Magpie proud.]] Suffice it to say, Pech was saved by a counterattack by the Tau, but by then it was too little too late. The Kroot's homeworld lay devastated and the rescuing Tau party was greeted with a grisly scene of mutilated Kroot corpses laid out in Eldar Lexicon which translates to, "[[Rape|Welcome to the feast.]]" The Tau in all their naive weeaboo hats, promptly shat themselves a brown stinky brick whilst the captured Kroots were promptly turned into KFC. Since that day, the Tau have encountered many similar messages on their worlds, which may just paint a sign that our little weeaboos will be the Dark Eldar's new buddy.

It is uncertain, and probably unlikely, that we will ever get a kroot codex thanks to the Imperium centric focus of the setting. Thanks Geedubs. However, we ''did'' get Kill Team rules for a Kroot Mercenary faction in the January 2019 White Dwarf. Strictly fun and noncompetitive, but it's ''something''.

GOOD NEWS! With all the new options with Ninth edition, it is now possible to run a <strike>mostly</strike> Kroot Army! EDIT: [https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/01/26/field-an-entire-army-of-upgraded-kroot-with-codex-tau-empire/ | Now you can run an <i>entirely</i> Kroot army!]

==Physiology==
[[File:OW EOI Kroot Shaper.png|thumbnail|right|300px|''By instinctively isolating and analysing the DNA contained with the flesh of potential food sources, these exceptional Kroot, known as Shapers, can determine whether the prey’s characteristics are favourable or detrimental to the genetic advancement of their Kindred, and can thereby guide the development of the other Kroot. They are the wardens and caretakers of their Kindred’s genetic inheritance, and they guard it against regression, corruption, and unwanted mutation.'']]
[[Xenology]] suggests that the reason Kroot are humanoid, able to walk and think, and able to build weapons and spacecraft is because at one time in their history, an [[Ork]] ship crashed on Pech (the Kroot's home planet). The Kroot promptly started eating the dazed survivors of this crash (how they managed to not end up with a full-blown Ork infestation remains anyone's guess. Maybe the kroot lick their plates when they are done eating, leading to no spores left behind, anyone's guess.) and subsequently managed to gain some of the Orks' innate understanding for technology, as well as a measure of their resilience. Oh, and the basic humanoid body layout on top of that. Two arms, bipedal gait, the whole shebang. Evidence for this are pieces of wreckage marked with Ork glyphs scattered all over Pech that the Kroot regard as sacred objects, as well as the presence of hybrid fungal matter in parts of their body. It could thus be argued that the Kroot are an entire race of "Half-Orks".

For some reason, the fluff likes to point out how revolting the Kroot are for their carnivorous practices, even though, when you really stop and think about it, the Kroot are one of the more morally upright races around. They're explicitly not xenophobic racists, they ''have to'' eat dead sapients to stay intelligent (unlike, say, [[Space Marines]] and [[Tyranids]] who also eat people's brains to gain knowledge, or the fucking [[Dark Eldar]], who do it purely for lulz), and they're not notably more cruel than anyone else but the Tau, who seem to be the only people in the universe who more or less tolerate them. Although this may have to do with point of view, most of the time it's the Tau or [[Imperial Guard]] who would find the eating of the dead, friend or foe, gross. Tyranids are viewed as mindless animals, so eating things isn't as "wrong" for them, and most people forgot Space Marines can gain knowledge by eating brains [[Blood_Angels#Red_Thirst|(occasionally chasing it with fresh squeezed blood)]]. Most who do spend their time around Kroot generally seem to like them, though. The "revolting" part may be more of a knee-jerk reaction from people not used to seeing bird people eating dudes.

You may have noticed that this article talks a lot about eating. According to Chapter Approved in [[White Dwarf]], the Kroot physiology basically revolves around their mouth. They have multiple stomachs, no excretory organs (what they can't digest, they puke up), and females even breed by transforming a stomach into a womb and then vomiting up the baby/babies when it's/they're full grown. Take a wild guess how they conceive.

...The answer is back rubs. Male Kroot have specialized pores that secrete a gene-bearing bio-fluid (what experts refer to as "alien bird-jizz") on their palms, whilst female Kroot have "receptor pores" for this fluid on the smalls of their back. So when two Kroot make babies, the male has to give the female a back rub. Yeah, we thought it would be [[Heterosexual Sex in the Missionary Position|kinkier]], too. The main question though is why would they need sexual reproduction in the first place, since it's goal is intermixing genomes to spread useful genes, and they already have controlled horizontal gene transfer on par with fucking Tyranids, which is orders of magnitude more efficient. Guess, noone in GeeDubs attended Genetics 101.

Fun Fact: they are the only nonhuman species that can have [[Blank]]s, likely because they ate one at some point.

==Culture==

Kroot also moonlight as [[Codex - Kroots: /tg/'s 9th Edition|mercenaries]] for races other than the Tau, though about the only sapient beings whose flesh they won't eat are the Tau, since the Tau saved them from extinction. Mercenary bands eat lots of different stuff, and so [[Kroot_Kindreds|can have various genetic traits]]. Thus, Kroot can use [[Eldar|Weeaboo Fightan Magiks]], be [[Orks|cunnin' but fighty]], or have [[Space Marines|balls of steel]], depending on who they've eaten, but not as well as the originals. Eating [[Chaos]]-types causes Bad Things™ to happen. They also refuse to eat the 'Nids, because the Shapers, the Kroot leaders, fear becoming slaves to the [[Hive Mind]] (though realistically there'd eventually come along one or two Kroot dumb enough to do it anyway). They also can't eat anyone infected by the [[Necron]]s' Nanites because Nanites will turn Kroot into another Necron/[[C'Tan]] zombie slave. They also get paid in weapons, allowing them to use Imperial and Tau special weapons together, and nearly their entire army can infiltrate, <strike>and get 1st turn assault if they're lucky</strike> (NOPE, 6th edition ended that shit). Kroot don't use tanks or much in the way of tech (aside from [[Kroot Rifle|long rifle-like guns with blades on both ends]]), instead using native animals derived from the Kroot genus. They have attack dogs, gorillas with elephant guns, riding beasts like allosaurs, and really big riding beasts like T. rexes. Think the Gungans from ''The Phantom Menace'', only <s>not totally lame</s> [[Awesome]]. There is no contention that Kroot are exponentially cooler than Gungans. <span style='color:red;font-size:115%'> More meat? Good! BWWAAAK! <span style='color:yellow;font-size:115%'>

They also have a rather dark sense of humor; for example, offering human meat to human diplomats because [[Troll|they think seeing their reactions are funny.]] This is also shown in the second Last Chancers book "Kill Team", where Kage is forced to eat a human brain (while he goes into horrific detail about the taste and texture). After this, the Kroot reveals that this was a secret test of character, but also that it was good for shits and giggles. In general, the Kroot sense of humor revolves around making other people profoundly uncomfortable. For example, a Kroot might walk into the same elevator as a Water Caste diplomat, turn up her pungent pheromones to full blast, and silently laugh her bird-woman ass off as the increasingly-uncomfortable fellow passenger tries to ignore it with less and less success.

Kroot also have shamans (psykers). They pilot warp ships called [[Warspheres]]; ''very'' large, spherical vessels of dubious quality but nonetheless capable of warp travel. Warspheres also double as mobile communities for the Kroot when they are away from Pech.

In the short story "Warsphere", which all of ten people have read, where Dahyak Grekh of Blackstone Fortress fame tricks a dark eldar Archon into giving up the location of said Blackstone Fortress, we gain a little bit of insight into the technology and culture of the Kroot on their eponymous space-cities. On a spiritual level, the Kroot believe in a warrior-spirit named Vawk the Huntress, who assumedly blessed the Warsphere of the story, and that vast chambers and halls of their ships are carved with the histories of the Kindred who made them. We also learn that the Kroot are incredibly proud of their heritage, and even think its funny that someone would try to repair a warsphere, thinking that no one but the Kroot could understand its technology. Oh, and that the Kroot can learn the memories of the things they eat, such as the location of a Blackstone Fortress. On a technological level, they are riddled with traps that are impossible to disarm without the aid of a Kroot, as their user manuals consist of memory-imbued scraps of flesh and totemic symbols. Oh, also, Warspheres have mechanical birds that defend the insides.

The book Liber Xenologicus gives more details on the Kroot religion. In their origin myth, Vawk the Huntress flew across the primordial chaos of the Nothingsea until she encountered the rival god Gmork. This battle was so intense that it created the stars and planets of the galaxy. Vawk gained Gmork's strength by drinking his blood and so was able to defeat him, but it was a short lived victory as his blood was poisonous. Her last act before perishing was to descend to the planet Pech, where her feathers became the forest and bones became the mountains, and vomit a great flock of eagles into the sky. This is likely a crude genetic memory of the Kroot's original evolution into sapience by eating Orks.

==Known Kroot Forms==
As mentioned above, the downside of Kroot consumptive evolution is that it's really easy for them to get "stuck" on the wrong path and devolve permanently into an atavistic form. As a consequence, every animal-filled ecological niche on Pech is now filled by some form of degenerated kroot. But, so far, only a select handful of Kroot offshoots have been explicitly called out...

*'''[[Kroot Hound]]s''' are one of the most iconic of these strains, having been around since the Kroot were released. These Kroot degenerated into small, sleek, pack-hunting quadrupeds, easily tamed by their still-sapient cousins.
* '''[[Krootox]]es''' are the second-most iconic Kroot strains; degenerated into hulking, ape-like herbivores, they're mostly used as beasts of burden and as mobile mounts for heavy artillery.
*'''[[Lesser Knarloc]]s''' are sort of a step-up from the Kroot Hounds, being analogous to either a pack-hunting terror-bird or a more avian pack of velociraptors. Kroot like to ride them as cavalry.
*'''[[Great Knarloc]]s''' are much, ''much'' bigger, solo-hunter variants of the standard Knarlocs. If a lesser Knarloc is a Velociraptor, the great one is a beaky T-Rex.
*'''Krootors''' are swamp-dwelling, amphibious predators, essentially a Krootified alligator. Their only known appearance in the canon so far is in [[Black Crusade (RPG)|The Screaming Vortex]], on the planet Asphodel.
*'''Kroothawks''' are either another offshoot of the kroot species, like the hounds, or the ancestral grandaddy of the whole shebang, as supposedly when their creator-goddess Vawk was dying she vomited a crap ton of them into Pech's sky. Whichever is the case, the kroot venerate the hawks and use their likeness in their totems and rituals. Unfortunately, we've never seen a kroothawk model or image, so how big they are or what they exactly look like is up to debate, but they're basically pterodactyls.

==TL;DR==

Kroot: Shoot like Tau with bolters. Move and hit like Eldar. Die like Guardsmen. (And have an amour save that will save them from [[lasgun|lasguns]] and nothing else—16% of the time) As of 8th, Kroot lost infiltrate for a Scout move, and hit like Space Marines in close combat.

==Building list==
Do you like to win more than you like to have fun? No? Good, you might enjoy a full Kroot list in the 9th ed. version of the Kroot Mercenaries / T'au Empire. With the welcome promotion of the shaper to an HQ unit, coupled with their own relics and warlord traits, you're free to run wild and eat your enemies to your heart's content.
*A small note, however, is that including but a single ethereal, despite being counter to a pure kroot army, goes a long way in the effectiveness of your kindred. With a single floating hippy, you gain access to a <Sept> for the detachment, which should always be Dal'yth, so then your Kroot (and your vespids if you're feeling saucy) can benefit from Tactical Philosophies. On top of that, Ethereals can chant a prayer explicitly for upgrading Auxiliaries. It might be worth kitbashing an ethereal to look like a kroot shaman, but all-in-all, it should be a serious consideration, unless you're a die-hard fan of Predator and Halo's jackals.
*Secondly, unless you're willing to dip into Legends or used Unaligned units, your army won't end up being very diverse. While its very possible to get over 1k of mainline bords, your liable to field up to 80-100 models in carnivores alone, which is just. . . a lot to manage. But! If your gaming group is chill with it (and they should be because fighting an army of pure kroot seems like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity), the inclusion of the Legends units really helps make the list more well-rounded.
**Unfortunately, with the transition into 9th, Dahyak Grekh got the axe as a unit, but not before leaving a lasting impression. His model can be used to represent a shaper with an alternative set of wargear, giving them them a pistol and grenade belt in exchange for their ritual blade. The kroot may have lost their Sly Marbo, but he shall never be forgotten.

In terms of list-building, the kroot benefit from the fact that no units are competing for slots. Shapers are your only options for HQs (unless you're taking an ethereal, but we'll circle back to that), carnivores are your only troops, so on and so forth. This is because of the '''Kroot Pack''' rule that carnivores have, which means that for every squad of them you take, up to one unit each of shapers/krootoxen/hounds can be taken without filling a slot. Meaning that hounds and knarloc riders will never compete for fast attack slots (because you should just run the hounds as NOFOS), and if you're feeling adventurous, you can spam three ethereals for your obligatory HQ slots, and still take up to three shapers (for the same reason). Round out the list with some Great Knarlocs in your heavy support, and you have something that actually resembles an army.

Gameplay wise, the Kroot benefit from being fast and having ok melee. Shapers, carnivores, and hounds all get a pre-game move before the game begins, while both types of knarlocs can auto-advance 6", and hounds can re-roll advances and charges. Coupled with one of your warlord traits, you can even still keep up all the shooting while they're all advancing up the board. At the same time, while they are realistically a horde army, the sheer volume of their melee should be enough to surpass some of the low-tier armies on the assault, but naturally you'll crumple against every army that's better at melee, as Kroot universally have shitty armor saves and no invulns, with your only durability boost coming from a stratagem.
*Ironically, however, a somewhat competent gunline can be made from massed krootoxes, your best shooting unit, an attending shaper for re-roll 1s to hit, and at least one baggage harness Great Knarloc for exploding 6s to hit. With a potential 18 auto-cannon shots (plus more if you're adding Great Knarlocs with their own guns to the mix) you've got some pretty scary fire coming down wind.

You're not likely to win anything with this army, but you are basically free to goof around. You aren't strong or competitive in any way, but part of this hobby is fun, so shut up and have fun.

== Modelling ==
A slight issue with the Kroot range is that it's incredibly small and unsupported. In that, GW has only ever made a handful of kits for them, the majority being metal or resin. The only plastic Kroot kit is the carnivores, while knarlocs and great knarlocs, their most badass kits, haven't been supported in years.

However, there's a light at the end of the tunnel, my fellow bird-lovers! If you don't mind 3rd party, there's a seller on Etsy that makes off-brand Kroot models that are honestly pretty fucking fire. He's made remodels of the long-lost knarlocs, resin prints of hounds, alternative bits to make regular Kroot look sci-fi, and even has some GSC/Kroot prints. Honestly he does a good job, nuff said.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/MasterShaperFelix?ref=simple-shop-header-name&listing_id=1051976211

== Gallery ==

<gallery>
Image:YesIagree.png|They also have quite a way with words.
</gallery>

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