Extremis Chamber

With strikes of skysplitting lightning, the Stormcast Eternals arrived in the Mortal Realms bringing bloody retribution to the minionsof the Dark Gods. This was Sigmar’s war – a crusade to free the realms, a campaign to exact vengeance for the wanton slaughter wrought in the Age of Chaos.

With the dawn of this new age, the armies at Sigmar’s command had power enough to stand against the forces of Chaos. Yet as the shock of those initial strikes wore off, and the overwhelming numbers of the foe were brought to bear, the Stormhosts of the Heavens began to find themselves hard pressed.

Had the God-King waited too long? Had his foes grown too powerful? Not even the divine are free of doubt.

As the Chaos Gods sent forth their seemingly endless counter-attacks, the Heavens too were emptied. In Sigmar’s hour of need, Dracothion arrived once more. Roaring, the Great Drake released a bolt of celestial judgement, and across Sigmaron the doors of a hundred Temples opened.

It was time to unleash the might of the Extremis Chambers.

History[]

Origins[]

Every Stormcast Eternal is a hero, a mortal plucked from battle by Sigmar and whisked away to Azyr. There, in the Heavens, aspirants are broken and then reforged, their spirits alloyed with the divine might of the God-King himself. Clad in heavy armour of sigmarite and armed with weapons wreathed in lightning, each Stormcast is more than a match for a dozen mortal warriors. Yet such are the forces arrayed against them – towering monsters, mutated warriors and daemons from the Realm of Chaos – that sometimes even the Warrior Chambers are not enough to prevail. In those direst of circumstances, against the most powerful foes, there is but one recourse: the aid of the Extremis Chambers.

Led by a Lord-Celestant, an Extremis Chamber is composed entirely of the most elite Stormcasts, each mounted atop either a Dracoth or a huge Stardrake. Fast-striking and hard-hitting, even a single element from an Extremis Chamber can change the course of a battle. When deployed in its entirety, an Extremis Chamber is a thunderbolt of devastation, the most formidable Stormcast Eternal formation yet to descend from the Heavens.

Well did Sigmar know his foe. In ages past, the God-King had witnessed spears and arrows bounce like hail off the Juggernaut riders of Khorne; he had seen first-hand the line-cracking fury of a Bloodthirster assault. In battles beyond count, Sigmar had watched blue flame and plaguestorms wash over his own armies, blunting his assaults or smashing apart his defences. In the role of defender, Sigmar had learned that massing the best troops into a single strike force could win even the most protracted conflict, for it gave rise to an unstoppable momentum, a spear-thrust that could shatter battle lines and rip out the heart of the enemy.

Envisioned by Sigmar and Dracothion, the Extremis Chambers were fashioned after their own unique bond – a pairing of man and starbeast, indomitable warrior and creature of great celestial power. Such a formation was seen as Order’s answer to the greater daemons – a force that could lead any attack, or cleanse any battlefield. The deployment of an Extremis Chamber would instil fear in all who opposed the might of the righteous.

The plan was for every Stormhost to contain at least one Extremis Chamber. Some Stormhosts, like the Hammers of Sigmar, would have many such formations. However, the undertaking was slow and oft delayed. Not a single Extremis Chamber was battle-ready when Sigmar cast his first lightning bolt into the Mortal Realms, beginning his war to overthrow the cruel tyranny of the Chaos Gods.

It took time to find and reforge the greatest of mankind’s heroes, but securing the oaths of Dracoths and Stardrakes proved more difficult still. Those children of Dracothion that died had ever been reincarnated amongst the Heavens, their spirits returning to new forms. However, the influx of Chaos was circumventing this age-old cycle, and the creatures were becoming a dying race.

Dracothion feared the intrigues of the Dark Gods, and so he looked to the future. The Great Drake saw many evil portents, reading signs of a looming disaster hidden in the stars. He saw hints that foretold the machinations of Archaon and the Dark Gods coming to fruition unless the Extremis Chambers could halt them.

Driven by great urgency, the mighty Dracothion visited Sigmaron, speeding the creation of the Extremis Chambers with his own roaring bolts of celestial energy.

So did the Extremis Chambers at last join the fray. First were the Hammers Draconis of the Hammers of Sigmar, but even as they were sent to war, other chambers were judged battle-ready. The Blackbolts of the Anvils of the Heldenhammer were grim in deed and aspect; their Dracoths shimmered, darkening like ominous thunderheads. The Hammerclaws – another chamber of the Hammers of Sigmar – were amongst the quickest to claim glory, defeating all in the Gladitorium, while the Chamber Resplendent of the Hallowed Knights brought Sigmar triumph in the Ghurlands. The Stormdrakes of the Tempest Lords laid waste to the dreaded Skullfort, demolishing it so no two stones stood atop each other. And the legends grew.

With the Extremis Chambers now campaigning across every realm, the High Star Sigendil above Sigmaron burned all the brighter, blazing its cold-blue light so that it was visible even during daylight hours. All those who opposed the God-King looked up in the skies and cursed the brilliant light above them. To them it was little more than a hateful reminder that one realm still remained to be conquered, that Sigmar had thus far escaped his due. But to the oppressed, the dispossessed, the scattered nomads driven from their homes and pursued by minions of the Dark Gods, the star’s beams offered something else altogether – it offered hope.^[1d]

Already the people whispered that mighty Dracothion had returned, that the night stars rippled with the movements of his massive coils. The star knights of Sigmar now rode upon dragons, and they could breathe thunderclouds or call down starfire to smite evil. So did Dracothion’s roar echo alongside Sigmar’s thunder.

Children of Dracothion[]

Across the realms legends are told of the Great Drake, Dracothion, the draconic godbeast who is ruler of the night sky, Hunter of the Azyrite Cosmos. Long before the first cities were raised, people and beasts alike looked skywards. The righteous marvelled at the beauty and order of the stars, while the wicked despised them, wishing to strike down their loathsome light. Many myths sprang up about those heavens, and how the zodiac godbeasts came to call them home. The redwelt Dracothion, a constellation writ large across the black pall of eternity.

Primitive races across the realms marked the outline of Dracothion amongst the firmament. To prophets or those gifted with witchsight, however, something more than clusters of celestial bodies could be discerned. The keenest of observers could pick out scales that glinted like stars, or perceive a sinuous shift that sent ripples across the heavens. More tangible evidence of the Great Drake, however, could be seen throughout the realms themselves.

It was during the most intense starfalls that Dracothion’s offspring descended from the heavens. These were the Stardrakes – creatures noble of aspect and filled with celestial magic. Although they shared many characteristics with dragons -- large reptilian bodies, vast wings and long serpentine necks – the Stardrakes were something altogether different. The beasts shimmered with coruscating energies; one moment they radiated abrilliant light, the next they faded to the colour of the night sky, a flickering iridescence playing over their dusky scales. It was this celestial energy that gave them mystical powers.

Reclusive creatures, Stardrakes have established scattered strongholds, always choosing the most isolated locations. Most favoured are the realms’ highest places, the eldest beasts nestling amidst the peaks of the mightiest mountain ranges. From these lofty perches the Stardrakes hunt the upper aether or bask in starlight. As creatures of celestial magic, they feed upon both flesh and the rays of the firmament itself. With powerful claws and fangs the size of blades, Stardrakes can down even the winged stymphalions or zephyrgriffs in the high atmosphere, or swoop over mountain peaks in pursuit of quarry the size of a Thundertusk or grigordon. Stardrakes will attack any beast of Chaos upon sight, but will never deign to consume such foul fare. As the offspring of Dracothion, Stardrakes are creatures of Order – the corruptions of Chaos are anathema to them. For those found wanting in purity, Stardrakes can roar forth a devastating thunderhead, or call blazing starfire down from the heavens.

For fierce temperament and savage instincts, few creatures can match the Dracoth. Looming over even the tallest of men, these quadrupedal beasts absorb celestial energies, spitting them out as bolts of crackling lightning. Dracoths hunt in packs, and share their larger relatives’ hatred for Chaos. Unlike Stardrakes, however, Dracoths are primarily encountered in the hinterlands of Azyr, with only rare sightings of the creatures in other realms.

The exact connection between Dracoths and Stardrakes is unknown. Some speculate that Dracoths are distant descendants of the Great Drake, but there are some scholars of Azyrheim who contend that Dracoths are Stardrake hatchlings, offspring that will one day return to the Heavens to undergo metamorphosis amongst the stars.

It is known that Stardrakes and Dracoths do not die as do mortal creatures, but are instead reincarnated. Their souls return to the stars, and they are born anew from the breath of Dracothion. However, so tainted has the aether become by Chaos that the starsoul does not always return to the Heavens, but can remain trapped in the high places of the world.

Highly intelligent, Stardrakes and Dracoths understand the languages of man, duardin and aelf, although they speak exclusively in their own inscrutable tongue. Throughout the ages these celestial creatures did not willingly engage with other races, save only when they were united by a common foe. Once a threat was defeated, alliances were abandoned as the Dracoths or Stardrakes returned to their isolated ways. That changed with the coming of the Stormcast Eternals.

Sigmar called upon the aid of all creatures and gods of Order to aid his greatest endeavour. It was Dracothion who first charged the Anvil of Apotheosis – for while Vulcatrix’s fire burned hotter, it was the magic of the Great Drake’s bolt that ensured her flames would burn for eternity. Reading the future, Dracothion saw that Sigmar’s warriors would need more. So it was that Dracothion made a pact with Sigmar, claiming that those who proved themselves worthy might form bonds with his own children. Together, immortal man, Dracoth, and Stardrake could stand against even the mightiest of Chaos champions and greater daemons. Although the plan took many years to bear fruit, it had begun. The Stormcast Eternal known as Vandus Hammerhand was the first to tame a Dracoth, and as the beast bowed before him and became his steed, the realms entered a new era of war.^[1h]

Organisation[]

All Extremis Chambers are organised in the same manner, each composed of three parts: a Lord-Celestant, Drakesworn Templars, and warriors of the Dracothian Guard. Every Stormhost has at least one of these powerful formations, while some Stormhosts, such as the Hammers of Sigmar, contain even more. While founded upon the same principles, each Extremis Chamber is unique, reflecting individual traits of man and starbeast, as well as the temperament of the Stormhost. For instance, none are as relentless as the Celestial Vindicators, and the most righteous of all are the warriors of the Hallowed Knights.^[1j]

The most powerful Stormcasts of the Extremis Chambers are their Lord-Celestants. It was they who absorbedthe most divine energy upon the Anvil of Apotheosis, and who then succeeded at the Trials of Starwalking when questing to meet the Dracoth packs. Once anointed as a Lord-Celestant, only the Stormhost’s Lord-Commander and the God-King himself rank higher.^[1j]

The Drakesworn Templars are few in number, but each is a mighty champion of his kind. The Templars can fight alone, group together into formidable battalions or act as leaders for retinues of Dracothian Guard. It is the Templars that lead the rites of the Drakesworn Temples, including those of the Warrior Code and Laws of Judgement.^[1j]

The Dracothian Guard make up the bulk of an Extremis Chamber, and are organised into two divisions: Lightning Echelons and Thunderwave Echelons. Each of these echelons is composed oft wo types of retinue, armed and trained to fight in a specific manner.^[1j]

The elements of an Extremis Chamber first train to fight independently. A lone Drakesworn Templar or a single retinue of Dracothian Guard can turn the tide of battle. However, as powerful as individual factions might be, only when deployed en masse is the true might of an Extremis Chamber revealed.^[1j]

Cast from the Heavens, the Extremis Chamber arrives upon the battlefield with a thunderclap. Amidst roaring challenges, the Lightning Echelon of the Dracothian Guard are the first to attack. At the fore are the Fulminators, their stormstrike glaives lowered and charged with power. They are the tip of the spear, their role to penetrate the enemy’s heart. The crackling energy generated by their weapons offers protection to themselves and those that follow. Immediately behind the initial assault comes the second half of the Lightning Echelon, the Tempestors. With their volleystorm crossbows, they fire ahead to weaken the enemy and shoot down any that might hinder the advance. The arrival of the Thunderwave Echelon is signalled by the Concussors. Their lightning hammer assault sunders any battleline, ensuring the foe cannot surround the Lightning Echelon and opening the way for the killing strike. The final stage of the attack comes in the form of the Desolators. With sweeps of their thunderaxes, they cleave apart the shattered and bloodied foe.^[1j]

Landing behind the Dracothian Guard come a trio of Drakesworn Templars. Depending upon need, the winged Stardrakes can launch swooping strikes to support their smaller kindred, either assaulting together or separating to smash the enemy centre and flanks simultaneously. Amassing their celestial power, the Drakesworn Templars can unleash a surge of energy like the blast of an exploding star, which can heal brethren or slay foes.^[1j]

The Lord-Celestant’s primary role is to direct the warriors under his command, lending his sword-arm only where it is most needed. His weapon is the Extremis Chamber itself – one he has honed to martial perfection in the brutal training exercises of the Gladitorium. Through his leadership, the might of immortal man works in glorious harmony with the star-charged power of Dracothion’s children. ^[1j]