For ten thousand years, the seeker of arcane truths known as Ahriman has roamed the galaxy in a quest to acquire every artefact, every tome and every scroll that harbours eldritch powers
The Idoneth Deepkin are a mysterious race of aelves who dwell within the oceans of the Mortal Realms, emerging from their watery seclusion to plunder the souls of land-dwellers – a grim harvest upon which their very survival depends.
Produced by Fiat Ansaldo, the M13/40 was the main battle tank of the Italian army in World War II and served throughout the war following its introduction in 1940. Although designated as a medium tank it was more in line with the light tanks of other nations at the time.
The Thousand Sons advance into battle amidst gouts of kaleidoscopic warpflame and bolts of raw sorcery. The heart of these arcane armies is comprised of Rubricae – implacable warriors who level salvo after salvo against the foe, marching at the command of the mighty Sorcerers and diabolic Infernal Masters who rule their fractured Legion. Around them come shrieking herds of Tzaangor, mutant shock troops armed with cursed blades and dark sorcery.
At first they appear as spectral blurs in the ethersea, distant streamlined shapes that seem to materialise from nowhere. With powerful thrusts of their sickle-finned tails, the forms grow all too quickly as they launch their attack
No troops exemplify the Idoneth Deepkin way of life more than the Akhelian Guard. Mounted atop Fangmora Eels, they fight in a loose formation ideal for rapid assaults and sudden retreats, typifying the hit-and-run style of war common amongst the aelves of the depths.
Shrugging off enemy missiles, the Akhelian Leviadon plunges into the fray. Scythed fins dismember foes while the beast’s powerful jaws clamp down with enough force to crush tempered steel.
Idolised echoes of a bygone era, the Eidolons of Mathlann are summoned to life in times of dire need. These are no divine avatars, however, but collective manifestations of the ancestral souls of the Idoneth Deepkin, spirits of vengeance wrapped in the image of a lost aelven god.
It is the Tidecasters who conjure the phantasmal sea that allows aelf and aquatic beast to move and breathe as if they were in their own natural environment.
Namarti Reavers provide the archers and scouts for the Idoneth Deepkin phalanxes.
Infernal Masters forge pacts with daemonic entities, referred to in the lore of Prospero as tutelaries. Chanting jagged syllables and making promises of blood and souls, they unleash the powers of these malign familiars to engulf their foes in swarms of momentarily corporeal terrors, to divine whispers of the future, or to master the currents of the warp itself.
Mussolini famously boasted that the Italian army had eight million bayonets standing at the ready. In actuality, the standing Italian army was far smaller than that, with huge numbers of troops conscripted into a war they neither believed in nor understood. The fighting ability of units of the Italian army varied greatly, with much of the rank and file lacking proper equipment, transport and even motivation. Still, there were several key battles in North Africa and the Eastern Front where they performed well.