Kislev

By Niels Arne Dam, Tim Eccles, and Alfred Nuez Jr.

Additional Material developed y Jo!n "oody, #yan $ileman,
and Tala!eim %ro&ect Team
'()T*#+
The Great War Against Chaos
E,cerpts from t!e Diaries of -ommon )oldiers
By t!e -olle.ium 'istorica
With due diligence, the scholars of the Collegium Historica have been compiling a
comprehensive tome which describes the events surrounding the Great War against Chaos, its
antecedents and aftermath. This great effort remains a work in progress, but a sampling is
submitted here to provide a sort of overview to this most important period in Imperial history.
In this submission, we will take a look at the events from the soldiers point of view. Given the
lack of writing skills prevalent among the average Imperial and !islevite citi"en, the sources
used here are very rare indeed. #till, these e$cerpts provide an interesting insight of the times
that are generally overlooked by scholars of lesser stature.
We cite four sources in this endeavour% &oyar 'olkh #taverovich from the !islev area( Cregnor
Hardhelm, a )warf captain of the *ed Talons mercenary band( Holger #chmidt, a member of a
+iddenheim detachment of archers( and ,obert -lesicher, a volunteer from the *eikland who
ran messages between the various unit leaders.
'olkh, ./ !alde"eit .01.%
A contingent of Dwarfs from Karaz-a-Karak arrived today on their way to
Praag. When told that the great city of the north was under siege with little
hope of relief, the Dwarfs owed their heads in silence. !heir leader then
proclaimed that the Dwarfs will stand with the Kislevites to attle the "reat
#nemy. !he Dwarfs egin work on strengthening the defences of Kislev.
'olkh, 2. 3lric"eit .01.%
$o word has reached us since !sar Ale%is sent an appeal to the soft-living
&mperials to the west. Where is their great army' Why have they not
appeared to help us' We assume that the siege of Praag continues apace.
!he rumour that circulates is that the (haos horde is toying with the people of
Praag, stretching out their inevitale doom. !he generals have stopped
sending riders out as they no longer return. )eanwhile, we continue to store
provisions, ut we are e%hausted from the wait. !hings are looking leak
indeed.
'olkh, 24 3lric"eit .01.%
A carrier pigeon arrived yesterday earing news that the &mperial army had
left !alaheim a week or so ago. Perhaps this )agnus, who leads that army, is
the great man many are claiming him to e.
,obert, 24 3lric"eit .01.%
Arrived in Wurzen today with a newly-arrived *eiklander contingent to +oin the
army of the glorious and ,igmar-lessed -aron )agnus von -ildhofen, known
as .the Pious./ &0ve spotted his magni1cence from afar and noted that he was
dressed as a warrior-priest of ,igmar. !he host he leads must e the largest
ever assemled in the whole world. !here are hundreds of anners 2uttering
in the wind, of all colours and heraldic devices. !here are also a great deal of
cannon. & dout not that the minions of (haos will e swept away y the
power of the #mpire.
Holger, 24 3lric"eit .01.%
,ome 3stlander Knights have arrived to +oin the foot soldiers and cannons to
push their way through the snow along the road that follows the *iver !alaec
to the 4rskoy. Weeks ago, von -ildhofen has sent his fastest, and est, troops
to Praag to relieve the siege there. !he restof us are to +oin the Kislevite
troops that the !sar is mustering for the push north.
Cregnor, 25 3lric"eit .010%
!he *ed !alons have now een assigned to march on the northern 2ank of
)agnus0 great &mperial army. We had een guarding the aggage train until
"rak ate two hal2ing cooks who did not have the wit or foresight to ensure
they had enough provisions to feed a loody 3gre. We kept "rak from eing
lamed for the incident y claiming that we eat ack a -eastman raiding
party after they ate the two hal2ings in 5uestion. !he troops are grumling
aout the cold weather. -ah6 &0ve een through worse when & was serving a
term out of Karak Kadrin.
Cregnor, .4 3lric"eit .010%
7ast night we were attacked while on sentry duty y -eastmen. 7ars was
impaled y a spear efore he could let out a warning cry and 3tto took a
grievous wound in the gut. We couldn0t help him with a 5uicker death as we
were too usy eating ack the raiders. !he (haos easties roke and ran
after "rak impaled several on a pike. !he 3gre then proceeded to eat his
victims. &0m not sure what is worse8 hearing the -eastmen wail as "rak eats
them alive 9though dying: or his smacking his 3grish lips after eating each
-eastman. ,mall wonder he developed a stomach ache soon after.
,obert, .4 3lric"eit .01.%
*umours circulated around the camp that another proing assault was
repulsed y )agnus0 elite sentries during the night. Why do they continue
this folly' Perhaps it0s fear that drives them.
Holger, +ondstille .01.%
As we get closer to Kislev, the more things are out of a place. A sudden hot
wind lew out of the north and started to melt the snow. !his will make the
going more treacherous. &0ve never seen the like efore.
'olkh, +ondstille .01.%
A 1ercely hot wind lasts Kislev from the direction of Praag. A wizard manning
the walls urst into 2ames and died. With a heavy heart and great anger we
knew that the rave city of Praag has fallen to the invaders from the northern
Wastes this day. We will not allow this a;ront to go unavenged.
,obert, 21 'orhe$en .01.%
#ach day, the weather ecomes unseasonaly almy. !he roads have turned
into mud from the sudden snowmelt and the going is slow. We continue as we
are reminded each day that (haos will never rest until we and our kin are all
enslaved and sacri1ced to the Dark Powers. 3utriders returned from the east.
!heir look was grim and they were hurried to )agnus0 pavilion. !hey met for
an hour efore )agnus called his captains for a meeting. &mperial "uard
cordoned o; the area so the leaders could meet in peace.
Cregnor, 21 'orhe$en .01.%
(aptains, such as myself, were summoned to )agnus0 large tent after he met
with this close advisors. We were told that we would arrive in the vicinity of
Kislev in three days. )agnus cautioned us that the forces arrayed against us
were formidale and their numers endless. $othing like a good it of cheer
to pick us up. &f & had my douts efore, & am certainly happy now that &
signed a couple of ,layers for this +o.
Holger, 21 'orhe$en .01.%
3ur sergeant told us to keep on our toes from this point out. !he enemy is
within a few days march. )ore than likely, they0ll have patrols looking to
snipe at the fringes of the army.
'olkh, 2. 'orhe$en .01.%
!he host of the "reat #nemy appears efore the gates of Kislev. !heir
numers are endless. $o matter. -y the wills of 3lric, !aal, and *hya, we will
see this 1ght to the itter end. After they sacri1ced some of their captives in
a rutal ritual to the Dark Powers 9some of the men had to empty their
stomachs of ile:, the horde pounded our gates hard. !he Dwarf allistae are
killing a large numer of the enemy, ut this is nothing more than an irritant
to the esiegers.
Holger, 20 'orhe$en .01.%
-y 4lric, the numers of (haos minions is eyond all reckoning. ,everal of my
company emptied their ladders at the sight of the horde. & fear that many of
us will not survive the upcoming attle. & go now to form up with my
company.
,obert, 20 'orhe$en .01.%
)agnus the "lorious, chosen of ,igmar, gave us a rousing speech this
morning. <e then sent his captains forward to deploy their troops. !hanks e
to ,igmar that the horde seems unaware of our presence. We need every
advantage we can get.
Cregnor, 20 'orhe$en .01.%
&t0s a good day to die.
'olkh, 20 'orhe$en .01.%
!he sounds of horns can e heard in the west. We turn to look and see the
charge of the &mperial army. While its numers are great, they still pale
against the (haos servants who they strive against. !he initial impact is great
as the &mperial army falls upon the (haos rear. !he enemy seems to e
routing efore they are rought around y their leaders. A great shout at the
north gate greets its opening as Dwarfs and the Kislevite army rush out to
take advantage of the &mperial attack. & put this +ournal down and +oin the
attack.
,obert, 26 'orhe$en .01.%
& am one of the lucky ones to have survived the harrowing attle that took
place yesterday. We attacked the foul creatures in their rear, slaughtering
many while dispersing their numer. !hese rale seemed lost until their
terrile leaders made their way to take command of the situation. ,oon, the
tales were turned on us and we fought for our lives and that of our fellows.
&t was then that the great gates of Kislev opened up so that the Dwarfs and
Kislevites within could open another front. !heir impetus was 5uickly spent
and they egan a 1ghting withdraw whilst we were surrounded. )agni1cent
)agnus, the avatar of ,igmar as surely as & fought that day, fought against
the mighty leader of the (haos horde in single comat. !he attle seemed to
last all day.
As the attle turned against us, the knights that )agnus sent to Praag arrived
une%pectedly from the north with Kislevite cavalry. !hey charged hard onto
the rear of the (haos horde as the thrice lessed )agnus eheaded the
(hampion of (haos. !his proved too much for the invaders from the Wastes
and they roke. A mighty cheer arose as the attle was won.
!he cost was great.
Holger, 26 'orhe$en .01.%
& survived the attle. !he nightmares have egun.
'okh, 26 'orhe$en .01.%
3n ended knees, & gave thanks to all the gods8 3lric, !aal, and *hya for this
deliverance. ,o many have died for our eloved motherland.
Cregnor, 26 'orhe$en .01.%
!he ,layers gave a good account of themselves efore they fell to the
)inotaurs. !hey were avenged y "rak who seemed rather pleased that the
sides of )inotaurs might last him a couple of days of feasting. & think the *ed
!alons will stay away from the 3gre until his .feast/ is over. & wouldn0t want
any .accidents/ to occur.
While others are proclaiming this day a great victory, they don0t realise that a
lot of (haos easties got away. ,omeone0s going to have to go after this
creatures and e%terminate them. & have a ad feeling aout this=
With the departure of (haos, it seems that winter is returning to Kislev.
Cregnor, .2 'orhe$en .01.%
While the celeration continues in Kislev, we are given our orders. !he *ed
!alons will +oin the hunt in ,pring to eradicate the elements of the (haos
horde that 2ed the -attle of Kislev and still plague the land. We will e sent to
the !ranslynsk region around "rovod >orest. "rak is looking forward to new
delicacies, ut he0ll have to wait a month or so.
!he men of the #mpire are complaining aout the cold Kislevite winter. 3ne
would think they were pansy #lves=