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According
to your most imperial order, I am to compile a manuscript which
explains in detail the great realms of the Old World and the wondrous
inhabitants of these lands. As Sigmar is my witness I will describe
truthfully the lands of the Old World, the southern continents and the
New World. I shall also discuss the eastern lands beyond the Worlds
Edge Mountains: the great steppes of the east and the mysterious lands
of Cathay.
Thus I write under the two moons, Morrslieb and Mannslieb. I write of
the days long gone and I write of the days that are yet to come, and
those days are the days of Man. We are the inheritors of the twin
bounties of wealth and wonderment that the Old World has to offer, if
we can defeat the evils that besiege us.
Of the Old World
The Old World is bounded by the immeasurably high Worlds Edge
Mountains in the east, by the dark and deep Great Ocean to the west,
and by the forbidding Troll Country in the north. To the South lies a
broad arm of the Great Ocean and beyond this the shores of the land of
Araby.
In ancient times Dwarfs and Elves fought over possession of the Old
World and, after many centuries of bitter conflict, retreated into
their own lands. In their wake came the Orcs from the east, who
infested the trackless forests and wastes and ruined the abandoned
cities of the Dwarfs and Elves. Later the tribes of Mankind wandered
into the Old World and began to clear the land and dwell there.
Incessantly did they fight against the Orcs and out of this long
conflict arose the great realms of men, namely the Empire and
Bretonnia, Estalia, Tilea and Kislev.
The Legend of Sigmar Heldenhammer
At the dawn of the Age of Iron, when men first learned the secret of
its forging from the Dwarfs, the tribes of men were scattered and
fearful of the Orcs. In those days the Orcs did rampage far and wide
across the lands of the Old World. From far in the east they came
slaying and making slaves of Mankind wherever they went. A great cry
went up to the skies from wretched Mankind,
"Who can deliver us?"
An heir was born to the chief of the Unberogens, greatest of the
tribes of men, and his birth was heralded by a twin-tailed comet and
by thunder and lightning at night. He grew to manhood and became a
mighty warrior, one who could withstand a thousand Orcs on his own,
with none beside him. Orcs slunk back at his approach and even Dwarfs
sang his saga.
This was the holy Sigmar of which the sacred legends speak. He it was
who utterly crushed the Orcish armies in the terrible Battle of the
Blackfire Pass. The songs say that half of the green skinned warriors
of the Worlds Edge Mountains were slain that day. Thus was Sigmar
founder of the Empire that endures to this day and the one who first
appointed the Elector Counts. He who saved the Dwarf king as well as
humble men. The holder of the Hammer of Wrath by which evil is
vanquished. By the mere utterance of his name may the righteous cause
every evil thing to be banished.
Many other tales are told of the first Emperor, including the
description of how he defeated an entire army of Orcs armed only with
the jawbone of an ox.
Twice more the twin-tailed comet has been seen in the lands of the
Empire. In the year of woes of 1999 when the twin-tailed comet
destroyed the city of Mordheim, and three hundred years later when
Magnus the Pious, the saviour of the Empire was born. Every time the
wings of fire in the sky heralded the coming of great things
Our Honoured Land - The Empire
Our beautiful Empire is the largest, the most powerful nation in all
of the Old World. We, the sons of Sigmar, have a right to be proud.
For over two millennia the banner of the Griffon has flown over Castle
Reikschlosse, proclaiming the might and glory of the Emperors.
Altdorf is the capital of our glorious Empire and the seat of the
Emperor. Here all manner of arts and sciences flourish under the
patronage of the imperial crown. Here lies the great Shrine of Sigmar
and the Engineers' Guildhall, and the spires of the Colleges of Magic
rise high above the rooftops of Altdorf. Herein lies the heart of our
trade: river barges laden with goods dock and depart here, and our
rich markets bustle with traders from as far as Araby.
While Altdorf is second to none in its glory and splendour, our Empire
encompasses many other places of beauty and awe besides the capital.
The prosperous fields of Reikland stretch around the capital, and
farms, estates and villages dot the fields before giving way to the
all-encompassing forests of the Empire.
Nuln is the gem of Reikland situated above the mighty River Reik. Once
she was the first city of the Empire and of old the seat of Emperors.
Many Dwarf craftsmen came to dwell here and work their forges along
the Reik, where great oak barges arrive daily with ore and coals. The
great bridge which spans the broad Reik at Nuln is wondrous to behold
and the glory and pride of the city. Beyond this there are no more
bridges for the river is too wide. Within the boundaries of Nuln
stands the Imperial Artillery School, and many universities for the
studious amongst the population of Empire. Herein rules the Elector
Countess Emmanuelle von Liebewitz, a beauty who is famous for her
masked balls and lavish parties, which almost rival the splendour of
the Imperial court.
Middenheim, the city of the White Wolf, is built upon a towering crag
rising up out of the great forest. It is an impregnable fortress which
may only be approached by four roads raised up on arches. Ulric is
patron god of this mighty city and his high priest rules alongside the
Elector Count of the city. Herein lies the stronghold of the famed
order of the ferocious Knights of the White Wolf.
Marienburg, the busy prosperous port which lies at the mouth of the
Reik is no longer part of our great Empire. Her wealth is legendary.
Here ships from every realm are docked bringing all manner of exotic
goods and luxuries. The pride and pretension of the citizens knows no
bounds and they claim to be the equal in every way of the Tileans in
art and culture.
Talabheim lies also in the midst of the forest in the very heart of
the Empire. Here dwell the hardy woodsmen and hunters who keep their
axes and bows by the threshold of their cottages. The city itself
rests within a rocky bowl whose steep outward sides present wall-like
fortifications. Within these natural walls stand the sturdy buildings
of Talabheim.
Mordheim, that once great city is no more. Of this place it is wise to
say little. Such was the sin of this city that a great thunderbolt
from the heavens did raze it to be no more than a bleak ruin. Some say
this was the Hammer of Judgement, wielded by Sigmar himself.
Lastly, there is the cursed lands of Sylvania, the most infamous of
the provinces. It was here that the dreaded Vampire Counts rose five
hundred years ago. These aristocrats of the night sent their hordes of
zombies and skeletons to ravage all the lands between the sea and the
Worlds Edge Mountains. Only after centuries of war were they defeated
at the grim Battle of Hel Fen.
Many of the derelict villages are abodes of Ghoul clans, and
travellers are warned from approaching the ruined castles and mansions
of Sylvania after dark. Travellers should be wary and avoid the cursed
soil of Sylvania if you can. The less said about this desolate and
ghastly land, the better Mannfred von Carstein, the last of the dread
Vampire Counts is dead. Long may he rest.
Ostland, snow bound and windswept, marches with Kislev and is the
bastion of the Empire against Orc and Chaos alike. Her warriors are
well accustomed to war and know little comfort in their great timber
fortresses.
The Moot is a fat land, rich in pastures and produces much that is
good for the tables of the nobility. It is inhabited by Halflings who
are renowned for their greed and craving for good food, rather than
their courage.
Solland, the southernmost of our provinces is no more. During the
rampages of the Orc Warlord Gorbad Ironclaw Solland was razed and
deserted. The Elector Count of Solland fell in battle and his Runefang
was lost. After the war the lands of Solland and its few remaining
inhabitants were divided between the neighbouring province.
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