Amazons in Warhammer!

Converted from the original Citadel Journal article by ???

The Amazons of the Warhammer world were originally documented by Richard Halliwell in the Second
Citadel Compendium, around 1985. The scenario was primarily intended for Warhammer FRP, which
explains the "RPG-like" aspects of the following write-up.

The Amazons of Southern Lustria, with details of Rigg's Shrine

The dense tropical jungles of the Cadiz Basin are inhabited only very sparsely.
Occasionally, primitive bands of nomadic hunters will pass through, or wary traders from
the Nordic settlements on the coasts will brave the treacherous rivers in order to ply their
wares. By far the most populous of the native groups are the wild and matriarchal
Amazons.
The Amazons live in the hundreds of scattered villages throughout the jungle, and in the
Amazonian city of Genaina. Genaina, though incorporating many stone buildings of
considerable size, is mostly built of grass and mud in the same way as the smaller villages.
Amazon villages can be easily recognized by the manner of construction, for the builders
nearly always erect their dwellings upon tall piles of solid wood, so as to raise the living
areas away from the ground. In this way the Amazons avoid the worst excesses of
periodic flooding.
Amazon Religion
The Amazons worship their own Gods. The hate all worshippers of Quetzalcoatl,
particularly the Slann. In addition to the many small village and way Temples dotted
throughout Amazonia, there are two main cult centers, the Temple of Karra in Genaina
and the Great Shrine of Rigg standing on the shores of Lake Lokka. The mysteries of the
Temple of Karra, and the untold riches of the Royal Palace at Genaina, lie outside the
immediate scope of this write-up.
Rigg's Shrine
The Great Shrine stands on the shore of Lake Lokka, deep in the forests of Amazonia. It is
said to commemorate the mythic union between Rigg, Amazon Goddess of War, and
Amex, Sea Elf God of Wealth and Happiness. Here they brought into the world Kalith,
Mother of all Amazons. This creation myth lies at the very center of Amazon religious
dogma.
Worshippers of Rigg amongst the Amazon tribes make regular Pilgrimages to the Shrine.
The administration of the center is in the hands of the Amazonian Sisterhood. Its buildings
house a Sisterhood diocesan center along with its offices, a library, and a meeting hall.
Like all Amazon holy places, the Shrine and its precincts are forbidden to non-Amazons,
except those with special dispensation from the High Priestess. Even then, the privilege is
bestowed only on women, and they would find themselves under constant guard.
Rigg
Rigg is the leading figure in the Amazon Pantheon. She is neutral. Her spheres of influence
are Warfare, Blood, Koka, and Violent Death. Her physical manifestation is a giant
Amazon woman, 9 feet tall, with red hair and eyes. She wears no armor. She carries a
magical fighting knife and 4 magical throwing knives. The throwing knives have a range of
18" and hit at strength 4.
Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld
Rigg 8 8 6 6 5 4 10 3 10

The Sisterhood
The Sisterhood originates from the High Age of Southern Lustria, a golden age of science
and technology. Even then, Amazonia was a wild and fiercely independent land. The
technocratic and wise Old Slann accepted this and respected Amazon territory. While
other Humans were regarded as inferior, enslaved, and treated little better than cattle, the
Amazons retained their freedom.
Old Slann and Amazon were able to exist, almost entirely peacefully, side-by-side. There
was even a measure of trade and cooperation between the two races. Amazons were
particularly valued as Acolytes and as Thralls by the High Age Magi.
These Amazon émigrés were the ancestors of the present-day Sisterhood. They were to
gain, through their work and their studies, a close familiarity with the High Age sciences.
Eventually the Old Slann fell, their civilization was destroyed, and their knowledge lost
even to their own descendants. Modern-day Slann regard any trace of the old times with
fear and suspicion; the Old Sciences have been lost to them. Not so the Sisterhood, who
retained and preserved much of their knowledge. Whilst they could not hope to re-create
the products of the High Age, they could still use and maintain many of the artifacts which
they had salvaged from the fall.
This knowledge became the basis of the Sisterhood's power and authority within Amazon
society. The careful organization, fanatic devotion, and above all the secrecy of the
Sisterhood ensure a continuing hegemony in the religious, political, and scientific spheres
of Amazon life.
The Koka-Kalim
The Koka-Kalim are religious zealots, fanatically dedicated worshippers of the Goddess
Rigg. The Kalim stress greatly the religious value of the narcotic Koka. They are all
addicted users.
Constantly within the grip of the drug's effects, they eat, sleep, and say very little.
Deprived of normal sensory functions, they can overcome great pain, and have little
natural aversion to blood, slaughter, or death. Their state of mind makes them very edgy,
unpredictable, irrational, and strung-out. They make ideal fanatic warriors.
The Sisterhood, with their monopoly of the theological establishment, maintain a small
army of Koka-Kalim as servants, guards, and fighters. Koka-Kalim serving the Sisterhood
are known as Devouts. Many are issued by the Sisterhood with Old Slann weaponry. Most
commonly they will be given Power Swords or Bolt Guns.
Mother Samantha
Samantha's birthplace lies somewhere in Eastern Amazonia. Born into a nomadic tribe, she
eventually became a member of the Kalim and from there joined the Devout.
She rose with remarkable speed from the Devout to the Sisterhood, and then upwards
through the ranks of the Sisterhood. She is now a High Priestess, the Head of the Holy
Shrine of Rigg.
Samantha is still surprisingly young. Because of her nomadic background she is an agile
and able fighter, as well as a powerful magician. Her characteristics are: M-5 inches; WS-
6; BS-4; S-3; T-C; W-2; I-8; A-2; LD-5; Int-8, Cl-8; WP-8.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld
Samantha 564342827
Samantha is armed with the traditional weapons of the High Priestess of Rigg. She carries
a long-bladed knife and 4 throwing knives.
She has a magic level of 4 and may take High or Battle Magic.
Amazon Profiles
The individual warriors and people of Amazonia have talents and abilities unique to
themselves; their characteristic scores would vary from individual to individual. However,
the following values represent the average scores for each type, or class, of Amazon.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld Save Equipment

Queens Bodyguard 5 5 5 3 3 1 5 1 7 6 Bow, Sword, Spear, Light Armour
Noble 5 4 4 3 3 1 5 1 7 6 Spear, Throwing Knife, Light Armour
Tribeswoman 5 3 3 3 3 1 5 1 7 - Bow, Throwing Knife
Beserker 5 4 4 3 3 1 5 1 10 - Two swords. Subject to Frenzy
Koka Kalim 5 4 4 3 3 1 7 1 10 - Throwing Knives
Koka Kalim Devout 5 4 4 3 3 1 7 1 10 - High Age Weapons

High Age Weapons

These weapons date back to Old Slann times. They have been carefully maintained and
preserved by the Sisterhood. High Age Weapons include Needlers, Bolt Pistols, Bolt
Rifles, Power Swords, and Arcane Rods.
Needler
This is a powerful airgun that fires steel or chemical needles. The Sisterhood employ
hollow poisoned needles. The poison used is ineffective against Dwarfs and Elves, stuns
Humans for 5D6 turns, and kills Slann. After each shot the weapon needs to be re-
pressurized, which takes 1 stationary and otherwise inactive Move Phase. Needlers are
silent and very accurate, and make ideal weapons for assassins.
Range: Short-8 inches/Max-20 inches
Armor Penetration: -1 (giving a +1 Saving Throw)
Attack Strength: 1
In the original write-up, there followed 8 pages of scenarios, including a burglary of the
Shrine by adventurers and a Raid on the Shrine by Norsemen. The scenarios provided
full floorplans for the Shrine and a dozen accompanying illustrations, including one
depicting a Koka-Kalim using a Bolt Gun to blow a Norseman literally to smithereens.
(Even the horns on his helmet are shattering. That's gotta hurt!) The illustrations are
uncredited, but John Blanche was working on the Compendium back then, and the
artwork has a definite Blanche feel to it. Also included was a 2-page color map of the
area around the Shrine, and a page of illustrations (no photos) of the then-new Amazon
minis.
Items of interest in this write-up: Norse colonies in Lustria, mention of the Sea Elves, no
mention of the role of men (or children) in Amazon society, specs for some WH40K-like
weapons. The Amazons pre-dated the Skaven, but I imagine there would be no love lost
between the ladies and the rats, for many of the same reasons as the enmity between the
ladies and the frogs/lizards. By the way, does any of the above information conflict with
the details given in the Lizardmen Army Book? I'll get my own copy one of these days . . .
As for the minis themselves: They bear a striking resemblance to, and are obviously a
major inspiration for, Necromunda's Escher minis, although much more modest in
proportions and attire. Heads are mostly bald, with mohawks, plumes of hair, numerous
wild braids, etc. They wear primarily deerskin dresses and tunics with lots of pseudo-
Aztec ornamentation, including colorful feathers in their hair, on their clothes, and on
necklaces, bracelets, and armbands; lots of beadword, especially big earrings; and face
and body paint (or tattoos), including lots of lightning bolt designs.
The Amazon minis available in 1985 included:
The Goddess Rigg, a 9-foot woman wielding a large knife, wearing ornate robes and a
feathered head-dress
Mother Samantha, wearing robes of office, a skull-topped staff, and a feathered head-
dress
A Sisterhood Mage, similar to Mother Samantha
A Sisterhood Novice wearing a hooded cloak, armed with a dagger
A Noble wearing a feathered cloak, armed with a spear and shield
2 Tribeswomen with bows
2 Bodyguards with light armor, one with a bow and one with a spear and shield
1 Berserker with 2 swords
3 Koka-Kalim, each with 4 throwing knives strapped to their hips, one armed with two
knives, one striking overhead with a blowpipe, and one with a Bolt Gun. The throwing
knives are especially interesting, very short and very wide-bladed. The Bolt Gun is
MUCH smaller than the guns in WH40K or Necromunda, more like the size of a .38
Special.
The minis look good, similar to the current Lizardmen line in decoration and details, but
different enough that they wouldn't look derivative on the battlefield. Could one of the
UK list members find out if these minis are still available from GWUK?
If you wanted to field this force, and the old minis are no longer available, Eschers could
easily be modified into Amazons. Cut off any decoration that looks too high-tech, add
feathers and plumes in various locations, maybe make the tops a little more covered up
and the skirts a little longer (using lead foil or epoxy putty). Add some suitable knives
strapped to their hips, maybe from the Space Marine Scout sprue, and replace the hand-
held weapons with knives, short swords, spears, bows, and the occasional Power Sword.
A cut down Shuriken Pistol would look about right for a Bolt Gun or Needler.
There are also many other lines of Amazons/woman warriors out there, although some
may no longer be available. Grenadier's Amazons were female barbarian types. Ral
Partha once did a line of Greek Amazons, and has recently begun a new line of Amazons.
RP's Dark Sun, Shadowrun, Planescape, and Player Character lines also include a
number of minis that have much of the feel of the old GW Amazons.