Editing Age of Sigmar Roleplay (section)

==Races==
One of the things that separates Soulbound from [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]] is the sheer diversity of playable races that can make up a Soulbinding - gone are the days of nothing but humans with maybe a token [[elf]], [[dwarf]] or [[halfling]]! Well, okay, in fairness, WFRPG 4th edition is starting to follow in Soulbound's footsteps, adding things like [[ogre]]s and [[gnome]]s to the PC list. Anyway.

Of course, having so many potential races to play does raise a natural question: what the heck do they think of each other? Whilst mono-racial or at least mono-factional Bindings do tend to be the norm, depending on what the gods will, a Binding can have some really damn crazy mixes and so that means that sometimes, people just need to play nice...

The corebook offers Human, Duardin (Fyreslayer or Kharadon Overlord), Aelf (Dark Aelf or Witch Aelf) and Sylvaneth races. ''Star and Scales'' added Seraphon, and ''Champions of Order'' added Aelf (Lumineth). ''Champions of Death'' added Ghoul, Vampire, Wight, Nighthaunt and Ossiarch Bonereaper. ''Champions of Destruction'' added Orruk (Bonesplitter, Ironjaw, Kruleboy), Grot, Hobgrot, Troggoth and Ogor. ''Era of the Beast'' added [[Draconith]] and, technically, Scathborne (as Witch Aelf Archetypes rather than separate races).

===Champions of Order===
Being the default protagonist race, even in [[Warhammer: Age of Sigmar]], '''Humans''' don't really get any particular "hook" assigned to them to become Soulbound; their motivations are usually tied more into their background and class (sorry, ''Archetype'') - a Battle Mage is probably after greater arcane power, a Warrior Priest is motivated by religious faith, and so forth. As to how they feel about being bound spiritually to nonhumans, well, that's largely left to inferal, though the general sentiment is probably along the lines of "better to have them inside pissing out than outside pissing in". After all, wouldn't ''you'' rather have some of the monsters on ''your'' side for once?

'''Ulgan Aelves''' are typically motivated by pride, a desire for profit, or a love of adventure. The sheer power of becoming a Soulbound is very enticing, and having powerful compatriots around who actually can't betray you is useful in its own right.

The '''Daughters of Khaine''' are usually directly appointed to Bindings by Morathi to get rid of her followers that have become too dangerous or useful to just kill and be done with them. See, as much as being a Soulbound grants a Witch Aelf personal power, it also permanently cuts them out of the bloody hierarchy of the cult of [[Khaine]]. Plus, it helps smooth the oft-rocky relationship that Morathi has with the other Gods of Order. Some Witch Aelves even welcome the Binding; whether overly ambitious, too independent to knuckle under to Morathi's will (as executed by their superiors), or even sliding towards heresy, these Witch Aelves are happy to be part of the Binding... even if it means that they have to be linked with non-Witch Aelves. Ironically, the price a Witch Aelf pays for being Soulbound is in an inevitable loss of faith - having their souls opened up to emotions and energies beyond those normally experienced by a Witch Aelf invariably leads to them doubting Khaine's bloody creed. Even Hag Priestesses are willing to embrace the Binding for the power, immortality and the freedom it offers.

To say that '''Fyreslayer Duradin''' have conflicted feelings about Soulbound is an understatement. A reclusive and insular people, the idea of opening themselves up to outsiders to the point of literally mingling souls is daunting, if not mildly obscene. Even outside of that issue, there's the little problem of sterility; the super-patriarchal society of Fyreslayers revolves heavily around one's ability to sire sons, after all (no mention is made of what the Fyreslayer ''women'' think, but then, who knows if they even exist) and so the usual "it serves my political ambitions" goal is completely absent amongst these Duradin Soulbound. Most Fyreslayers who agree to be Soulbound are ''Grimnyn'', "Fated Wanderers" - those who are desperately seeking a purpose in life or at least a glorious death, in a slightly less [[grimdark]] version of the Slayer's Oath, or Doomseekers who actually do swear the full Slayer's Oath and seek death in battle. Those who aren't Grimnyn or Doomed are still oddballs in their own right. Soulbound Fyreslayers often make a big deal about needing remuneration for their services, if only to make their normal kinsfolk a little more comfortable - ironically, becoming Soulbound often tempers a Fyreslayer's usual greed. The precise Archetype a Fyreslayer followers often dictates what they want out of their membership in a binding - but recovering Ur-Gold remains a top priority.

The '''Idoneth Deepkin''' are rarely called to become a Soulbound, but at the same time, they find the offer incredibly enticing. It brings them freedom from the pain that plagues them from birth, great power, a surety of their continued existence without the need to steal souls from others, and freedom to reap a soul-harvest from whoever they please (so long as the Binding was going to kill them anyway). With the awareness the gods do not expect faith or worship of a Binding, only its obedience, and a refusal to directly serve Teclis, the Idoneth who are given the chance to be Soulbound typically grab it with both hands, even if it ''does'' tend to alienate them from their xenophobic kindred.

The '''Kharadron Overlords''' approach the topic of Soulbinding with the same guiding principles that dictate every other action they take: [[Leagues of Votann|pragmatism and profit.]] An irreligious race, the Kharadrons focus on what the Binding boils down to if you strip out all that god-stuff: a lifelong and literally unbreakable contract, wherein the Kharadon offers loyal service and is granted extended life and myriad opportunities for glory and profit. Also, a handy immunity to the intense paranoia caused by even slight exposure to aether-gold. True, it's a case of great rewards carrying commiserate risks, but to most Kharadron, that's only proper, and so they will happily make the bargain.

'''Stormcast Eternals''' are an oddity in that they are the only members of a Binding who aren't properly Soulbound. Even the Bindings of Destruction have a phenomenon akin to Soulfire in the form of the WAAAAGH, but a Stormcast's spirit is inherently tied to [[Sigmar]]. They are and will always to some level be outsiders; attaches to the Binding and not members of it proper. Sigmar selects Stormcasts to accompany Bindings for many reasons, from mentorship to spying on Bindings he doesn't particular trust. Some Stormcasts actually choose to join Bindings of their own free will, finding companionship in beings who have a similarly...unusual... relationship with mortality.

The '''Sylvaneth''' regard joining a Binding as both a solemn, terrible burden and a great gift. The curse of the Soulbound is that it destroys a Sylvaneth's lamentiri, effectively ending its former existence of an eternal cycle; unable to birth future incarnations of itself, when a Soulbound Sylvaneth dies, its memories and everything that made it an individual goes with it, lost forever. This is a terrifying fate, and for this reason only Alarielle herself will ask a Sylvaneth to become a Soulbound (and she much prefers to select human or aelven champions instead). But at the same time, breaking from the Spirit Song gives a Sylvaneth an entirely new view of the world; it opens them up to new minds, new worlds, new emotions and perspectives. Merging their essence with the quickblooded humanoids of the Realms, ironically, makes Sylvaneth Soulbound some of the very few of their race who can truly understand non-Sylvaneth. They make natural envoys, especially because ordinary Sylvaneth are more inclined to open up to and trust outsiders Bound to one of their own, given the respect they regard Soulbound.

The '''Lumineth''' regard the act of Soulbinding with a certain degree of favor; after all, it's not so different on a conceptual level from the practices of their own aelementiri in particular, or even just their cultural embrace of collectivism. Many Lumineth undergo the Binding with rather arrogant beliefs that they will be "spreading wisdom to the less fortunate", but often they find themselves learning from their bond-mates in the process. Indeed, some of the wiser Realm-lords will even push for students to become Sounbound in order to save them from the path of insular, narrow-minded obsession - an ongoing danger with these Hysh-born Aelves.

'''Seraphon''', just like Stormcast Eternals, cannot become Soulbound, with all attempts to create them resulting in the death of all involved. The exact reasons for this are unknown, some claiming their souls have already been bound, others that their souls are just fundamentally incompatible with that of other mortals. When Seraphon feel the need to aid a Binding, they typically don't bother to introduce themselves or explain their motives: they simply appear and say they're going to help. Once their goals are accomplished, they leave the party as mysteriously as they arrived; the game itself recommends Seraphon characters only stick around for one adventure before being retired.   

You'll notice that these entries don't talk very much about how to have these races get on with each other.  That's because the Champions of Order basically represent the "default protagonists" of the setting: these are the races who are '''used''' to hanging out with each other and working together. Oh, they still bash each other's brains out and everybody knows it, but in general, the cosmopolitan cities of the Free Peoples are places where humans, aelves, and duradin intermingle freely - even Sylvaneth are welcome, if slightly exotic. They're just not as "weird" as the other potential races...

===Champions of Death===
'''Now''' we're starting to get weird!

'''Ghouls''' are, in many ways, the [[undead]] of the Realms most willing to join a mixed-Faction Binding. After all, they already "live" under a perpetual delusion of being noble champions, knights in shining armor, brave heroes, etcetera: traveling alongside living humans, Stormcast Eternals, duradin or aelves is honestly easy for a ghoul to handle - if anything, it's less stressful for their fevered brains than having to travel with a murderous skulking ghost, a bone-harvesting ossiarch or a blood-sucking vampire. The trick is figuring out what would make a Binding made up of living beings accept the ghoul! The easiest answer is that a) this Binding is one of those collaborations between Nagash and the other non-Chaos deities of the Realms, and b) Nagash decided to be a dick for laughs, which he does pretty often. On the other hand, Soulbinding actually does grant a ghoul greater lucidity, although they can never remain truly "sane" at all times; maybe the ghoul achieved luicidity long enough to beg for salvation from the horror of its previous existence, or maybe it knows something useful enough that placing it under a Binding was deemed necessary. 

'''Nighthaunts''', of all the [[undead]], can be said to eagerly seek Binding with non-undead allies, because of what such a Binding offers that a Binding of Death cannot: freedom. Whether that freedom is the shadow of a life that is at least outside of the eternal torments of Shyish, or the certainty of annihilation and passing beyond Nagash's torturous grip upon defeat, or sits somewhere between those two points doesn't matter - all that matters is that Binding their undead soul with the essences of living beings frees them from their existence. Of course, they first have to escape from their natural state of bitterness and spite enough to consider this simple truth, then somehow escape Shyish so they can petition one of the living gods, but a Nighthaunt who can pull ''that'' off is usually guaranteed to be accepted. Of course, how much of a hassle having a specter in your Binding is depends on the precise nature of the spook; a Guardian of Souls is generally quite easy to work with, fully appreciative of the freedom its new state offers, but a murderous Cairn Wraith is often more a self-propelled weapon than a proper teammate.

The '''Ossiarch Bonereapers''' are almost literally Nagash's take on the Stormcast Eternals, and so have the same issue: already an amalgamation of countless slivers of souls, their essence can't be interwoven with others to become Soulbound. Amongst Bindings of Death, they fill largely a similar role to the Stormcasts, but in mixed company? That's where things get interesting. Most commonly, an Ossiarch joins a living Binding because they have a goal in common and their interests coincide; the generic reason any of the undead end in a mixed-faction Binding. But then there are other reasons... Some Ossiarchs follow Bindings of any sort in order to study Soulfire, hoping to refine their own creation rituals. Others just find themselves spontaneously achieving synergy with a Binding as if the Bound were fellow Ossiarchs. Parrha exiles often ally themselves with Bindings for the simple reason that they don't want to be remoulded or recycled, and a Binding makes for powerful allies. Others are just driven by impulse - some lingering emotion or memory from one or more fragments of their patchwork soul that survived the amalgamation. Ossiarchs from different legions can have even stranger motivations - the Petrifex Elite's tendency to incorporate the fossilized bones of long-fallen Soulbound often results in them inheriting missions from their "donors", whilst the Null Myriad cares far more about protecting the Realms from the horrors of Chaos and the void than about Nagash's petty squabbles and the Crematorians simply hope that studying Soulfire can teach them how to avoid being consumed by their own spiritual flames.

'''Vampires''', as a general rule, privately loathe Nagash and chafe under his rule, being well-aware that if he achieves his goal of killing all life and turning it into undead, they will be destroyed in the process - they need blood to sustain their existence. Whilst some turn to Binding for freedom - at least dying whilst Soulbound will ensure they cannot be tortured by the vengeful Nagash for all eternity - or even for noble reasons, most do so out of a sense of self preservation or to further their own ambitions. Living members of the Binding typically tolerate the vampire for its raw power and useful skills - ironically, many vampires often find themselves in Bindings aimed specifically at battling the undead, and often they appreciate the irony with some dark humor.

'''Wights''' are the rarest of the Undead to become Soulbound in a mixed-faction Binding, and when it happens, invariably, it's to pursue a purpose. Either their place in the Binding helps them attain the purpose they defied death to complete, or else it gives them a chance to find a new purpose.

Also, spare a thought for '''Necromancers''', the human mages who have devoted themselves to studying the dark arts pioneered by Nagash. Being living beings who seek to master the forces of death, necromancers are both universally reviled by the undead but also needed; undead hold more power, but a living magic-user has much greater mental flexibility, allowing them to innovate and learn at a rate far greater than the undead. At the same time, Nagash loathes his would-be heirs, tolerating them only so far as they are useful. Necromancers aware of the art of Soulbinding eagerly pursue it as a reliable (if roundabout) way of achieving immortality, with some even managing to emulate the ritual themselves, and they're not very picky about who they merge souls with. If anything, living companions in a Binding are often more tolerable than powerful, free-willed undead, for reasons that should be obvious.

===Champions of Destruction===
A funny fact about the Champions of Destruction is that the more mystically based Archetypes often have the easiest time integrating into mixed factions. Wardokks are natural team players who consider non-Gorkamorkans no different that the usual oddballs and outcasts they work with. Fungoid Cave Shamans were literally made to be the Voices of Mork, so they naturally fit in when Mork decides to make common cause with the other gods to fashion a Binding, whilst Wise-Grots regard Bindings as just another type of Gobbapalooza, one with even grander stages to access. Warchantas can sometimes ''hear'' the heartbeats of their future Soulbound, and don't care about the shape of the body that heart beats in, just that it can play its part in the rhythm of the WAAAAAGH! Butchers appreciate the exotic ingredients and love the rare chance to share ogor culture with outsiders. 

'''Bonesplitter Orruks''' are amongst the most spiritual of the Races of Destruction; after all, they already gave up their original orruk lifestyle (usually as an Ironjaw) to join the Bonesplitterz in the first place, all based on a deep, intuitive feeling that "dis was right". Bonesplitterz approach being Soulbound in much the same way; precognitive sensations compel an orruk to walk away from his Rukk and start wandering until, eventually, he bumps into the future members of his Binding. And if they turn out to not be orruks (or grots, or even ogors or troggoths)? Well, he don't care! A Bonesplitter'z mentality can usually be summed up as "Dis is my mob; don't matta what dey lookz like, dey is mine, an' I'll krump any git what lookz at dem funny". Of course, an Orruk is still an Orruk and a non-Destruction Binding will usually need to keep its more Destructive impulses in check, but that deep-seated faith in his companions means that a Bonesplitter will typically be surprisingly acceptant of these behaviors, confident that this is the will of Gorkamorka being carried through them, just as it is carried through him. They are perhaps the orruk subrace most commonly found in mixed-faction Bindings.

'''Grots''', whether they be Moonclan or Spiderfang, accept Soulbindings largely to pursue power or save their own skin, and if that means being bound to non-Destruction races, they don't really care. In fact, aside from the sometimes confusing rules about who it's okay to stab and when, a non-greenskin Binding actually tends to work out pretty well for grots, who are surprised to find that so long as they do what they're told, they can generally expect ''not'' to be beaten up on a whim.

'''Troggoths''' are the most ineffable of all the Destruction races. Orruks, grots and ogors have no understanding ''why'' they get added to Destruction Bindings, so it's literally anybody's guess why a troggoth sometimes ends up being Soulbound to non-Destruction races. Usually, Troggoths just act on their own strange and inscrutable whims... and their Soulbound just have to work with the flow, regardless of what race they are. But hey, the two ton killing machine is better on your side.

'''Ironjawz Orruks''' often become Soulbound to non-Destruction Bindings in almost a mythic recreation of that long-ago alliance between Sigmar and Gorkamorka: the Ironjawz respect warriors, and don't care for little details like shape or skin color. So long as they're given plenty of chances to take on tough opponents, they're happy. Unfortunately, Ironjawz aren't as patient as their Bonesplitter cousins, and tend to get recalticant if they are held back from fights. Whilst smarter Ironjawz do have a sense of patience, they are first and foremost followers of Gork, so a Binding that succeeds with an Ironjaw in it is usually one that is quick to find targets for him to krump.

'''Kruleboyz Orruks''' are the least-likely of all the Orruk subraces to be seen in a non-Destruction Binding. It's not because they're opposed to the idea; as the Morky orruk society, they see a lot of potential in the Binding, and at the very least, it opens up so many places to get into that normally would be closed off to them. The problem is in the name: whereas Ironjawz and Ogors can have a convivial boisterousness and Grots or Bonesplitterz are usually entertaining, Kruleboyz are genuinely sadistic and mean. But then again, not all of the Free Peoples are exactly "nice guys" themselves, and if a Binding can work with a Witch Aelf, then working with an orruk who lives to spook people isn't that big a stretch. Besides, Kruleboyz tend to need less "managing" than Ironjawz or Bonesplitterz.

The little-known '''Hobgrots''' make natural Soulbound; the thieves, traders and schemers of orruk (and subspecies) society, they're ''used'' to interacting with non-grotz without fighting them. The trick is for a hobgrot to figure out what they can offer to a god other than Gorkamorka to make them accept him as a Soulbound in the first place, with most defaulting to their sneakiness and cunning. 

'''Ogors''' are the Destruction race most commonly seen in mixed faction Bindings, for the simple reason that, as the most human-like and "civilized" of their ilk, ogors already freely work alongside the Free Peoples as mercenaries on the regular. Ogors tend to take a pragmatic approach to Soulbinding in general, and that applies regardless of the other races involved. Often, they'll join a largely Order or Death-based Binding for access to plenty of food, especially if it's an exotic delicacy that they would have a hard time sating if they weren't given free access to their Binding's society.