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https://trackofwords.wordpress.com/2016/11/25/black-library-live-coming-soon-age-of-sigmar/#_=_

Hallowed Knights: Plague Garden by Josh Reynolds
This will feature the Hallowed Knights Stormcast chamber heading to the realm of Nurgle, kicking ass and taking names. It was pitched as being the beginning of a new wave of Age of Sigmar books.

Josh: “Hallowed Knights: Plague Garden takes place after the Season of War campaign and the All-Gates game book. It follows Gardus and the Steel Souls warrior chamber as they invade the realm of Nurgle in order to rescue Lord-Castellant Grymn from the Plague God and his followers. Tornus the Redeemed (formerly Torglug the Despised) is a major character, as is Gutrot Spume. And while it follows the Steel Souls, it’s very much a Hallowed Knights book – it’ll explore some of the Stormhost’s culture, their way of honouring the dead, of keeping their memories of mortal life intact, etc. It’s also a book about redemption and faith, and how those things aren’t necessarily seen in the same way by all of the Hallowed Knights. The Stormhost is made up of the Faithful – but that can mean a lot of different things. Also – female Stormcasts. Far as I know, this’ll be the first book to mention them.”


Oh yes and this as well if people want to know what stormcast do off duty I suggest if you have lore questions check out josh's ask fm and of course someone seems excited for female stormcast finally appearing on askfm.

How complicated is the concept of Gender and identity when you have been reforged by a god into an eternal warrior angel of storms?

Surprisingly uncomplicated. But you'll have to wait to find out just how uncomplicated.

How many female stormcast eternals are in your new book?

Wait and find out.

What do you think stormcast eternals do when they're off duty?

Actually, that's talked about a bit in Hallowed Knights: Plague Garden. Different stormcasts do different things, from quiet contemplation to games of chance and skill. It depends on what they did in life, and the traditions of their stormhost. The Hallowed Knights, for instance, spend a lot of time trying to record the memories of their mortal life, so that who they were and where they came from won't be forgotten after their inevitable reforging. Some stormhosts probably build (or rebuild) the places they liberate. The Astral Templars hunt monsters for fun, or go bother their descendants.

And some stormcast - those who've been reforged too many times - don't do anything. They just wait for the next battle.

Ok, that seems pretty neat!

the idea of them "bothering their descendants" is pretty funny.

This is the sort of fluff AoS needs pumping into it.
The guys work really is top quality and well worth reading.

Alot of the issues with AoS was the lack of depth and understanding, which i feel is being brought back pretty well now and needs to continue.

 amazingturtles wrote:
the idea of them "bothering their descendants" is pretty funny.

+1. If I was reborn as a super-human immortal warrior in service to my god, bothering my descendants is absolutely what I would do in my spare time.

Definitely hyped for the upcoming AoS fluff.

How do you "not do anything"? Do you just sleep and they wake you up? Go in statis? Hibernate?

Don't Stormcasts need to train so that is something they need to do at least. Just do nothing makes no sense to me at all. That can't make them battle worthy at all.

No wonder they are reforged to many times

Ah someone remembered the Sisters of Sigmar.

So when do the models come out?

Models are already out, or do you need boob armour for Sisters of Sigmar? :p

Serious, there will be no distinction because just like how a Sauron or Aelf or Orruk is taken, they are all in the image of Sigmar, so a female wouldn't be any different.

 NinthMusketeer wrote:

 amazingturtles wrote:
the idea of them "bothering their descendants" is pretty funny.

+1. If I was reborn as a super-human immortal warrior in service to my god, bothering my descendants is absolutely what I would do in my spare time.

Definitely hyped for the upcoming AoS fluff.

All bothering them about irrelevant things that happened 500 years ago. All asking them why they never visit you. "there were hordes of demons in the way, great great great great grand dad." "So? You've still got two feet! The walk would have done you good!"

Also and unrelated but related to other posts: If I ever did get a stormcast set, they would be a mixture of male and female.

No, there would not need to be any new models. And no boobplate.

Once I get around to finding suitably epic Fantasy female names and get everything painted, every hero and Extremis chamber member in my army is gonna be referred to as female. Except the Lord Relictor, just to illustrate how different he is.

How bad is it that the first name that came to my mind is Thunderthighs?

Anyway, there's alot of awesome fantasy name generators you can find on the web.

 amazingturtles wrote:

 NinthMusketeer wrote:

 amazingturtles wrote:
the idea of them "bothering their descendants" is pretty funny.

+1. If I was reborn as a super-human immortal warrior in service to my god, bothering my descendants is absolutely what I would do in my spare time.

Definitely hyped for the upcoming AoS fluff.

All bothering them about irrelevant things that happened 500 years ago. All asking them why they never visit you. "there were hordes of demons in the way, great great great great grand dad." "So? You've still got two feet! The walk would have done you good!"

Also and unrelated but related to other posts: If I ever did get a stormcast set, they would be a mixture of male and female.

No, there would not need to be any new models. And no boobplate.

Ugh, (near-)immortal family members who surprise visit via lightning bolts. Talk about a nightmare.

Haha, the infamous boobplate. Best example of how debatable it is was when a art piece on Reddit imaginary warhammer showed some. Those posts usually get one or two comments, ten if it's really good art. That piece got a whopping 95 comments from the debates about it.

Davor wrote:
How do you "not do anything"? Do you just sleep and they wake you up? Go in statis? Hibernate?

Don't Stormcasts need to train so that is something they need to do at least. Just do nothing makes no sense to me at all. That can't make them battle worthy at all.

No wonder they are reforged to many times

I wonder if they're like undead/robots at that point? Listless and emotionless warriors that end up being elite cannon fodder as they can't fight effectively anymore but they're too valuable to let death completely claim them.

Makes me think of those Dark Souls bosses that are basically moving husks. Despite they're previous abilities their undead minds and lack of practice makes them predictable and go from dragon-slaying champions to mindless monsters.

 amazingturtles wrote:
Ok, that seems pretty neat!

the idea of them "bothering their descendants" is pretty funny.

*Stormcast makes jewish mother-so Big Bang Theory's Leonard's mother- impersonation*

"How is that you've yet to go and smite the forces of chaos? How come you haven't married a hale and strong female capable of ripping that orruk's spine in half? EAT THE VEGGIES!"

I've been working on the idea that old stormcasts who have died many times either have too much personality and go questing, or they become like golems, fighting in their own units.
They could even be used as guards, standing by realm gates as silent watchers.

I also love the idea that stormcasts do have lives, as I'm in the middle of converting a squad of questors for a sort of questors paladin lodge out in the realm of life and i want them all to have little relics and trinkets on their person.

This might actually be the first AoS book I read. Will this be the same one exploring the cities and peoples of the realms?

I am excited by female Stormcast. I would want different minis though - boob plate and all please. Or at least lithe fully plated models (with optional heads instead of helmets too).

 Bottle wrote:
I would want different minis though - boob plate and all please. Or at least lithe fully plated models (with optional heads instead of helmets too).

Is there much technology showing on the Sisters of Silence? I haven't really paid much attention to that Prospero release. As proxies until/if Sigmarettes are released, of course.

Didn't White Dwarf mention female Stormcasts? I'll check.

 EmberlordofFire8 wrote:
Didn't White Dwarf mention female Stormcasts? I'll check.

What ever comes out White Dwarf can't be taken seriously. They are wrong so many times it's not even funny. They still have a long way to go with me before I believe anything they say especially with battle reports that they use to fake years ago. WD is like a crooked politician. Once they break your trust it takes a long time to believe in them again.

Female Stormcasts are specifically mentioned in one of the hardback books - it says something like the men and women of a single noble family are inducted into a warrior chamber - away from my books.

Looking forward to reading these - really enjoy his novels.

Maybe it's just me, but I find this humanizing Stormcasts to make them less cool.

Wayniac wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but I find this humanizing Stormcasts to make them less cool.

How so?

Personally i find them much more interesting as varied individuals.

Anything that differentiates Stormcasts from their false perception as "Fantasy Space Marines" is a good thing in my opinion.

Wayniac wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but I find this humanizing Stormcasts to make them less cool.

I think there's enough variety in Stormhosts that if you want to play a stoic, nigh-inhuman force you can justify the fluff for one. I like that some are getting personalities, though, so your dudes have space to be "your dudes".

Requizen wrote:

Wayniac wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but I find this humanizing Stormcasts to make them less cool.

I think there's enough variety in Stormhosts that if you want to play a stoic, nigh-inhuman force you can justify the fluff for one. I like that some are getting personalities, though, so your dudes have space to be "your dudes".

You don't even have to justify it. It's a natural thing that happens with the Stormcast as they get reforged upon death, they become colder, more focused as their personalities and will slowly get drained away. It's a process that slowly terrifies the Stormcast who have not gone through it because of how inhuman they start to feel to others once they've been reforged once or twice.

 ZebioLizard2 wrote:

Requizen wrote:

Wayniac wrote:
Maybe it's just me, but I find this humanizing Stormcasts to make them less cool.

I think there's enough variety in Stormhosts that if you want to play a stoic, nigh-inhuman force you can justify the fluff for one. I like that some are getting personalities, though, so your dudes have space to be "your dudes".

You don't even have to justify it. It's a natural thing that happens with the Stormcast as they get reforged upon death, they become colder, more focused as their personalities and will slowly get drained away. It's a process that slowly terrifies the Stormcast who have not gone through it because of how inhuman they start to feel to others once they've been reforged once or twice.

Yup it's becoming a thing in novels that many of the stormcast's that haven't been reforged are scared of dying. Now they are not scared to die for the cause or for sigmar they are scared of losing what makes them well them! One lord celestant was afraid of losing his memories of his time with his friends in the tavern enjoying themselves before sigmar opened the gates. Or losing your personality and starting to treat their soldiers less like "people".

The bladestorm novel heavily goes into the reforging and how it can effect the men under them and those around them. Plus being pretty much an unfeeling robot utterly focused on sigmar's mission.

Warriors of chaos were inspired by marines that does not mean they are the same. Stormcast feel fear, they can starve and they need to set camp and rest less than an normal man but you know.

Stormcast have an almost tragic facet when it comes to their humanity. They desperately cling to whatever part of themselves is still human but at the same time feel a need to push it away so they can do their jobs better. Their struggle and fear is that without some piece of their old selves they aren't really people anymore; just Sigmarbots that fight Chaos.

I have not kept up on the novels, but for those who have - As I understand it, Nagash is enraged by the existence of the Stormcast, as Sigmar's methods to make them immortal effectively cheats death. In turn, I've understood it that the gradual degradation of the Stormcast as they die and are reforged is due to Nagash taking a bit of their soul with every return to Azyrheim. Is that correct?

If so, it could certainly leave open non-Chaos based campaigns in the future. I can imagine a tremendous war with Nagash (say, when Death gets some new models...) to reclaim the lost fragments of those Stormcast who fell in battle, restoring them to their former selves.

Oggthrok wrote:
I have not kept up on the novels, but for those who have - As I understand it, Nagash is enraged by the existence of the Stormcast, as Sigmar's methods to make them immortal effectively cheats death. In turn, I've understood it that the gradual degradation of the Stormcast as they die and are reforged is due to Nagash taking a bit of their soul with every return to Azyrheim. Is that correct?

If so, it could certainly leave open non-Chaos based campaigns in the future. I can imagine a tremendous war with Nagash (say, when Death gets some new models...) to reclaim the lost fragments of those Stormcast who fell in battle, restoring them to their former selves.

Funny enough in lord of undeath novel nagash is already making plans to claim the souls out of his grasp stormcast and those who are marked by the chaos gods.

 shinros wrote:

Oggthrok wrote:
I have not kept up on the novels, but for those who have - As I understand it, Nagash is enraged by the existence of the Stormcast, as Sigmar's methods to make them immortal effectively cheats death. In turn, I've understood it that the gradual degradation of the Stormcast as they die and are reforged is due to Nagash taking a bit of their soul with every return to Azyrheim. Is that correct?

If so, it could certainly leave open non-Chaos based campaigns in the future. I can imagine a tremendous war with Nagash (say, when Death gets some new models...) to reclaim the lost fragments of those Stormcast who fell in battle, restoring them to their former selves.

Funny enough in lord of undeath novel nagash is already making plans to claim the souls out of his grasp stormcast and those who are marked by the chaos gods.

Spoiler:

He is building another black pyramid it's kinda funny how mannfred and arkhan was pretty much "in" the plot but neferata does not figure it out until the end

It was a very weak Neferata in that novel - quite disappointing in fact - I got the impression the author was not really interested in her.

Nagash is, to be fair, fairly easily enraged especially when people play with "his" toys.

 Mr Morden wrote:

 shinros wrote:

Oggthrok wrote:
I have not kept up on the novels, but for those who have - As I understand it, Nagash is enraged by the existence of the Stormcast, as Sigmar's methods to make them immortal effectively cheats death. In turn, I've understood it that the gradual degradation of the Stormcast as they die and are reforged is due to Nagash taking a bit of their soul with every return to Azyrheim. Is that correct?

If so, it could certainly leave open non-Chaos based campaigns in the future. I can imagine a tremendous war with Nagash (say, when Death gets some new models...) to reclaim the lost fragments of those Stormcast who fell in battle, restoring them to their former selves.

Funny enough in lord of undeath novel nagash is already making plans to claim the souls out of his grasp stormcast and those who are marked by the chaos gods.

Spoiler:

He is building another black pyramid it's kinda funny how mannfred and arkhan was pretty much "in" the plot but neferata does not figure it out until the end

It was a very weak Neferata in that novel - quite disappointing in fact - I got the impression the author was not really interested in her.

Nagash is, to be fair, fairly easily enraged especially when people play with "his" toys.

Actually no I disagree I feel the novel all displayed the flaws and pros of the mortarch's quite clearly. Neferata is good at corrupting people into her service completely(Hence being the mortarch of blood) which is the thing nagash likes about her and his chief problem with her is the main fact as per the novel says that her plans never go beyond the "flesh" or her "small" wants as nagash said. It's the same in whfb she was pretty much in the dark about the situation until she felt nagash's Resurrection she was barely involved in it while Arkhan and mannfred did majority of the work. Also you see it multiple times in her novel for whfb. Plus he keeps mannfred around to actually screw over her plans and put her in her place according to josh.

Nagash's problem with mannfred is that he is waaaay too reckless but he appreciates and likes his twisted mind(his mind is as twisted as nagash according josh and they are alike) I mean he is the only mortarch he calls "child".

Arkhan? Yes nagash also has problems with him as well. He likes that he is utterly loyal but the problem is he pretty much has zero ambition and no desire to improve himself which nagash finds disappointing.

Since neferata thought she could use the stormcast and the possible alliance to escape nagash hell she even thought she could take over the realm of death in nagash's absence. This is just my opinion but I think neferata has not truly accepted nagash as her master. Even in the novel mannfred of all people in his thoughts said that nagash is his master completely and utterly and he fully accepts that. Also his godhood going by the audiodrama. Neferata thought nagash had no idea about her plan but played her through out the whole book.

Josh says that neferata wants to rule the shyish and schemes towards that but mannfred upsets that scheme majority of the time and prods Arkhan into action (since there seems to be some sort of rivalry between Arkhan and mannfred on who is the better servant ) that's nagash's role for him.

 shinros wrote:

 Mr Morden wrote:

 shinros wrote:

Oggthrok wrote:
I have not kept up on the novels, but for those who have - As I understand it, Nagash is enraged by the existence of the Stormcast, as Sigmar's methods to make them immortal effectively cheats death. In turn, I've understood it that the gradual degradation of the Stormcast as they die and are reforged is due to Nagash taking a bit of their soul with every return to Azyrheim. Is that correct?

If so, it could certainly leave open non-Chaos based campaigns in the future. I can imagine a tremendous war with Nagash (say, when Death gets some new models...) to reclaim the lost fragments of those Stormcast who fell in battle, restoring them to their former selves.

Funny enough in lord of undeath novel nagash is already making plans to claim the souls out of his grasp stormcast and those who are marked by the chaos gods.

Spoiler:

He is building another black pyramid it's kinda funny how mannfred and arkhan was pretty much "in" the plot but neferata does not figure it out until the end

It was a very weak Neferata in that novel - quite disappointing in fact - I got the impression the author was not really interested in her.

Nagash is, to be fair, fairly easily enraged especially when people play with "his" toys.

Actually no I disagree I feel the novel all displayed the flaws and pros of the mortarch's quite clearly. Neferata is good at corrupting people into her service completely(Hence being the mortarch of blood) which is the thing nagash likes about her and his chief problem with her is the main fact as per the novel says that her plans never go beyond the "flesh" or her "small" wants as nagash said. It's the same in whfb she was pretty much in the dark about the situation until she felt nagash's Resurrection she was barely involved in it while Arkhan and mannfred did majority of the work. Also you see it multiple times in her novel for whfb. Plus he keeps mannfred around to actually screw over her plans and put her in her place according to josh.

Nagash's problem with mannfred is that he is waaaay too reckless but he appreciates and likes his twisted mind(his mind is as twisted as nagash according josh and they are alike) I mean he is the only mortarch he calls "child".

Arkhan? Yes nagash also has problems with him as well. He likes that he is utterly loyal but the problem is he pretty much has zero ambition and no desire to improve himself which nagash finds disappointing.

Since neferata thought she could use the stormcast and the possible alliance to escape nagash hell she even thought she could take over the realm of death in nagash's absence. This is just my opinion but I think neferata has not truly accepted nagash as her master. Even in the novel mannfred of all people in his thoughts said that nagash is his master completely and utterly and he fully accepts that. Also his godhood going by the audiodrama. Neferata thought nagash had no idea about her plan but played her through out the whole book.

Josh says that neferata wants to rule the shyish and schemes towards that but mannfred upsets that scheme majority of the time and prods Arkhan into action (since there seems to be some sort of rivalry between Arkhan and mannfred on who is the better servant ) that's nagash's role for him.

Maybe, maybe - I just felt that she was portrayed as by far the weakest of the Mortarchs whereas that was def not the case in the world that was - now it may be that Nagash has created his own version of her in the new world, remembering her flaws (as he sees them)?

I thought Mannfred was trying to supplent Nagash as much as the Queen of Mysteries, hoping that Nagash was too weak to interefere? Neferata has always had her impuslive side and whilst loving her long drawn out plans alos often msesses them up. She always hated and feared Nagash and I agree that given her enjoyig the living as much as the dead (as long as they serve her) disapoints Nagash as he has always sought to rule over a world (s) populated by just the dead. Its also why she hates and fears Nagash - her vampires have no place in it, or the living she desperatly wants to have to recreate her lost realm.

 Mr Morden wrote:

 shinros wrote:

 Mr Morden wrote:

 shinros wrote:

Oggthrok wrote:
I have not kept up on the novels, but for those who have - As I understand it, Nagash is enraged by the existence of the Stormcast, as Sigmar's methods to make them immortal effectively cheats death. In turn, I've understood it that the gradual degradation of the Stormcast as they die and are reforged is due to Nagash taking a bit of their soul with every return to Azyrheim. Is that correct?

If so, it could certainly leave open non-Chaos based campaigns in the future. I can imagine a tremendous war with Nagash (say, when Death gets some new models...) to reclaim the lost fragments of those Stormcast who fell in battle, restoring them to their former selves.

Funny enough in lord of undeath novel nagash is already making plans to claim the souls out of his grasp stormcast and those who are marked by the chaos gods.

Spoiler:

He is building another black pyramid it's kinda funny how mannfred and arkhan was pretty much "in" the plot but neferata does not figure it out until the end

It was a very weak Neferata in that novel - quite disappointing in fact - I got the impression the author was not really interested in her.

Nagash is, to be fair, fairly easily enraged especially when people play with "his" toys.

Actually no I disagree I feel the novel all displayed the flaws and pros of the mortarch's quite clearly. Neferata is good at corrupting people into her service completely(Hence being the mortarch of blood) which is the thing nagash likes about her and his chief problem with her is the main fact as per the novel says that her plans never go beyond the "flesh" or her "small" wants as nagash said. It's the same in whfb she was pretty much in the dark about the situation until she felt nagash's Resurrection she was barely involved in it while Arkhan and mannfred did majority of the work. Also you see it multiple times in her novel for whfb. Plus he keeps mannfred around to actually screw over her plans and put her in her place according to josh.

Nagash's problem with mannfred is that he is waaaay too reckless but he appreciates and likes his twisted mind(his mind is as twisted as nagash according josh and they are alike) I mean he is the only mortarch he calls "child".

Arkhan? Yes nagash also has problems with him as well. He likes that he is utterly loyal but the problem is he pretty much has zero ambition and no desire to improve himself which nagash finds disappointing.

Since neferata thought she could use the stormcast and the possible alliance to escape nagash hell she even thought she could take over the realm of death in nagash's absence. This is just my opinion but I think neferata has not truly accepted nagash as her master. Even in the novel mannfred of all people in his thoughts said that nagash is his master completely and utterly and he fully accepts that. Also his godhood going by the audiodrama. Neferata thought nagash had no idea about her plan but played her through out the whole book.

Josh says that neferata wants to rule the shyish and schemes towards that but mannfred upsets that scheme majority of the time and prods Arkhan into action (since there seems to be some sort of rivalry between Arkhan and mannfred on who is the better servant ) that's nagash's role for him.

Maybe, maybe - I just felt that she was portrayed as by far the weakest of the Mortarchs whereas that was def not the case in the world that was - now it may be that Nagash has created his own version of her in the new world, remembering her flaws (as he sees them)?

I thought Mannfred was trying to supplent Nagash as much as the Queen of Mysteries, hoping that Nagash was too weak to interefere? Neferata has always had her impuslive side and whilst loving her long drawn out plans alos often msesses them up. She always hated and feared Nagash and I agree that given her enjoyig the living as much as the dead (as long as they serve her) disapoints Nagash as he has always sought to rule over a world (s) populated by just the dead. Its also why she hates and fears Nagash - her vampires have no place in it, or the living she desperatly wants to have to recreate her lost realm.

It is really her the only factions with returning characters is Death and Chaos for obvious reasons since both forces have power to manipulate death greatly. They make the point that mannfred's and neferata's bloodlines are older than the age of myth aka they are from the world that was even krell is most likely coming back since they say there is a "lord of despair that is older than the age of myth". Also mannfred has aspirations of power hence why he tried his plot OUTSIDE of shyish thinking that nagash won't really move outside of it but low and behold Arkhan appearing in ghur to put manny in time out.

As nagash said to mannfred all that he does he is able to do so because HE allows it, the same is with neferata, She thought she was beyond the eyes of nagash but her scheme was plain as day in front of him also neferata prefers to avoid warfare josh makes that exact point. I feel this is relevant Josh gives his insight into the mortarch's and how they serve nagash and how nagash keeps em in check.

Nagash is paranoid. He sees traitors in every shadow and cannot conceive of someone not wanting what he has (in fact, he and Mannfred are a LOT alike). The Mortarchs are simultaneously his most powerful followers and the greatest potential dangers to his reign. So, Mannfred exists because he acts as a foil to Neferata, upsetting her schemes and distracting her from any attempts at usurpation(which he does in lord of undeath), and as a rival to Arkhan, prodding him into action and keeping him alert for treachery.

Too, Mannfred is the most aggressive of the Mortarchs - Neferata, by nature, would rather out think the enemy than face them in the field, while Arkhan's loyalty prevents him from striking out on his own initiative much. Mannfred will happily take the war to the enemy, and have no difficulty adapting to an ever-changing situation. Neferata would rather die than abandon what's hers, and Arkhan's major overriding concern is defending Nagash. Mannfred, on the other hand, will happily abandon his army if it looks like he's going to lose, escape, rebuild and try again at a later date. Smash him down, he just pops up elsewhere, with another army and an even more infuriating scheme. He serves Nagash by serving his own ambitions - like Nagash, he cannot conceive of defeat, or failure. So whatever happens, he'll just keep trying.

More simply, Neferata is Nagash's castellan, defending his holdings. Arkhan is his grand vizier, overseeing the running of the realm and handing down orders. And Mannfred is his champion, casting down his foes (whoever they might be) and making them curse the name of Nagash.