Tzeentch
From Lexicanum
| Tzeentch | |||
| |||
| Aspect | Ambition, plotting, change, psychic powers | ||
| Sacred Number | 9 | ||
| Traits | Psyker, conspirator | ||
| Enemy God | Nurgle | ||
| Daemons | |||
| Lord of Change, Horror, Flamer | |||
Tzeentch is a God of Chaos who represents the vitality and volatility of change. Tzeentch is closely associated with sorcery and magic, as well as dynamic mutation, and grand, convoluted scheming.
In his mind Tzeentch listens to the hopes and plans of every mortal and every nation; and through his own complex plots and manipulation he alters the course of history to achieve some great plan beyond mortal knowledge.
Tzeentch is often visualized as the serpent which writhes and twists to represent constant change and this is mirrored in its symbol with curves and points to represent change and conclusion.
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Followers of Tzeentch
The mortal champions of Tzeentch are especially dangerous, as they wield awesome sorcerous power on top of their considerable physical prowess.
The Thousand Sons Chaos Space Marines Legion serves Tzeentch exclusively. At the start of the Horus Heresy, the Thousand Sons Primarch Magnus the Red predicted Horus's treachery through the use of black sorcery, and attempted to warn the Emperor. The Emperor rejected his warning, choosing to focus on how he gained the information, rather than what the information was; and sent Leman Russ, Primarch of the Space Wolves to retrieve Magnus for interrogation. The message was intercepted by Horus however (who by now was riddled by Chaos), who instead convinced Russ into launching an actual assault on the Thousand Sons and destroy their homeworld. Furious at the Emperor's pious blindness, and what seemed to be outright betrayal, Magnus the Red dedicated both himself and his legion to the dark god of knowledge to follow both his own selfish desires, and get revenge on the Emperor.
After the Horus Heresy, the Legion retreated into the Eye of Terror. Magnus ascended to become a mighty Daemon Prince, and Ahriman took the role of leader of the Thousand Sons. The longer the Legion was under Tzeentch, the more their bodies began to mutate and change to the God's whim. Ahriman, Chief Librarian of the Thousand Sons cast the Rubric of Ahriman on his men in an attempt to rid them of their afflictions. Sadly, the sorcery didn't work quite as planned, and the bodies of any marine without sorcerous powers were turned to dust, their souls entombed in their power armour for eternity. This gave rise to the names Rubric Marines, and more commonly Tomb Marines.
Daemons of Tzeentch
Tzeentchian Daemons tend to be bird-like in nature, or mutated to the point of unrecognizability.
The Greater Daemon of Tzeentch is the Lord of Change, typically an Avian-like winged humanoid Daemon of vast intelligence and massive sorcerous and psychic power, although less so in physical strength.
The main line Daemon of Tzeentch is the Horror, an ever-shifting mass of flesh and limbs with numerous orifices for launching fire. A variant of the Horror is the Flamer, which are slightly more powerful and with numerous gaping maws that produce the searing flames which give these daemons their name. They launch Doombolts at enemies unlike Horrors which launch Daemonic Fire at enemies.
The daemon beasts of Tzeentch are Screamers, ray-like creatures that swoop down on foes and cut them apart with their sharp claws before retreating and charging again.
The Disk of Tzeentch is a meld of magic, metal, and daemon and is often used as a transport for a mortal champion.
The Maze of Tzeentch
The Maze of Tzeentch is Tzeetch's realm within the warp. This maze is woven from the raw fabric of magic, threaded upon deceit and conspiracy. Of all the landscapes of the Immaterium, this domain is by far the most bizarre and incomprehensible. the Mazes presence is felt across all of the Daemonic realms. Interchanging, shifting avenues made of pure crystals of every colour crisscross Tzeentch's realm. Hidden pathways built from lies and schemes lead out from the maze and infiltrate the dominions of other gods, binding together the fractious Realms of Chaos. The maze itself has no Daemonic defenders. Its own illusory passages are enough of a barrier to any intruder not possessed of the strongest mind imaginable. Its glittering corridors reflect not only light but also hope, misery, dreams and nightmares. The labyrinth does not merely reflect but also distorts, pulling apart hope and purpose turning them into insanity and despair. Driven by Tzeentch's unconscious schemes, the labyrinth constantly moves and rearranges. Those lost within the maze's reaches will wander for eternity with their minds shattered, their dreams broken upon the wheel of their own failed ambition. At the centre of the maze, hidden from those who have not the insane insight to find it, stands the Impossible Fortress. The architecture of the bastion is constantly replaced by new and ever more maddening spires, gates and walls. doors and other entrance points yawn open like starving mouths, before clamping for eternity moments later, barring all access. Within the Fortress time and space does not exist at all and gravity shifts and changes, or disappears all together. Lights of every colour, some even unknown in the real universe, springs from the shifting walls. For mortals, who are so locked in their physical ways, the fortress is impenetrable. Men are driven insane, while their bodies might implode or be pulled apart by the forces unleashed by Tzeentch's passing thoughts. Even immortal daemons cannot easily endure the twisted horror of the Impossible Fortress and only the Lords of Change can safely navigate its corridors, and only these Greater daemons of Tzeentch can tread the secret paths that lead to the inner sanctum of the fortress; The Hidden Library, where Tzeentch, the puppet master himself resides, eternally plotting.1
Related articles
Sources
- Codex: Chaos Space Marines (3rd Edition, 2nd Codex)
- Realm of Chaos: Slaves to Darkness
- Realm of Chaos: The Lost and the Damned
- 1:Codex: Chaos Daemons (4th Edition)
| Chaos Space Marine Army List | Chaos Infantry • Chaos Vehicles • Daemons |
|---|---|
| Chaos Space Marine Armoury | Chaos Weapons • Daemon Weapons • Chaos Wargear • Chaos Psychic Powers |
| Daemons | Daemon Prince • Greater Daemon • Lesser Daemon • Daemonic Steed • Daemon Weapons • Daemonic Gifts |
| Gods of Chaos | Khorne • Tzeentch • Slaanesh • Nurgle |
| Rebels/Characters | Traitor Legions • Renegade Chapters • Chaos Cults/Ezekyle Abaddon • Lucius • Ahriman • Kharn • Typhus |
| Products of Chaos | Chaos Artefacts • Chaos Structures |
