Warhammer Seraphon Book
Agata Schweiss
Older than memory, existing for aeons unrecorded, the Seraphon have ever waged an unending, savage war against the forces of Chaos. Descending to strike a vengeful blow against the Dark Gods for the destruction of their beloved World That Was aeons ago, as the Age of Sigmar dawns, they seek to bring order to the Mortal Realms.
Summoned by the incredible power of the Slann Starmasters, they materialize from the energy of the stars themselves - nimble Skinks, predatory Saurus and hulking Kroxigor, each intent on destroying the forces that have corrupted and darkened the Mortal Realms almost beyond repair. Wrought of purest star-magic, the Seraphon are true beings of Azyr.
Tales tell of how during the Age of Myth the Great Drake, Dracothion, came to guide the Seraphon to the Mortal Realms. From across the gulf of eternity, Dracothion beheld the glittering vessels of the Seraphon as they drifted like motes of dust through the darkness. Overcome with curiosity for these strange alien objects, he sought them out. When the star drake drew closer, he sensed the minds of the Slann, and within their thoughts a heady mixture of loss and rage.
Communing with the ancient seers, Dracothion had a vision of the death of the World That Was. Weeping in anger, the Great Drake let out a piercing cry that echoed through the void. Drawn to this godly lament, the slann turned the course of their vessels towards its source, following the blazing silver stars that were Dracothion's tears. Thus did the Seraphon reach the Realm of Azyr and take their place within the heavens. Time and their long journey across the void have taken their toll upon the Slann.
Many have been slain in the relentless war with the Dark Gods, while others have simply vanished, lost to the slow march of ages and the endless battles that wrack the Mortal Realms. However, some live on despite the death of their bodies as spirits trapped within desiccated mortal forms -- creatures of celestial magic more than flesh and blood.
Greatest among these is Lord Kroak, believed by the Slann to be the oldest of their kind. Filled with the light of Azyr, Kroak is a vessel of immense arcane power, and though his body may be withered and useless, battlefields still tremble before his mighty incantations.
Legends tell of an empire within the stars, far above even the highest towers of Sigmaron or the light of Sigendil that burns above it. Beyond the reach of all but the Slann themselves, this is the place where the Seraphon dwell, waiting for the call of the Starmasters.
The Woad Lords of the Forest of Clawstell stories of vessels that can sail between worlds. They believe that the Seraphon are on an endless crusade, and that the Mortal Realms are but one battlefield they fight upon. The prophets of the Whispering Tower claim the Seraphon are fashioned of daemon-stuff, but all that is known for sure is that they do not appear without the presence of the Slann.
From the gestalt memory of these ancient seers are the Seraphon given shape. Heralded by the blazing light of Azyr, the Seraphon manifest. No mortal or daemon can bear to look upon their coming as the army solidifies, materializing from the falling starlight like embers cast forth from flame.
As the will of the Slann made manifest, it is little wonder that the Seraphon are the bitter enemies of Chaos. Ever since the gaze of the Dark Gods first fell upon the Mortal Realms, these celestial being have fought them. Yet the Slann are few when compared to the teeming armies of darkness.
Chaos has grown powerful during an age of blood, and the Seraphon must choose their battles wisely. But with the rising storm, the Seraphon now have allies to their cause. At last, there is a chance to turn back the tide.
Swift and merciless is the Seraphon way of war, their resolution to banish Chaos absolute. Through arcane might and primal savagery, their armies slay damned tyrants, cast down skull-studded fortresses and seal corrupted Realmgates, all in the name of preserving order.
The true power of the Seraphon, however, lies not in their magic or strength of arms, but in the unfathomable plan that guides their every deed. The Dark Gods have learnt little during their long war with the Seraphon, as they still bicker and fight among themselves. The Slann, however, have pondered long and carefully upon how best to destroy their foe.
To the Slann, the Mortal Realms are a great game board upon which the armies of Chaos will be fought and defeated. Placing each piece with precision, they are able to look many moves ahead of their enemy, engaging them in battle when and where they choose. Step by step, they manipulate fate to bring about the final defeat of Chaos.
Despite this unity of purpose, the Seraphon are also a divided race. Each Slann, and the cohorts of warriors they summon, is but a fragment of a long dead civilization, and each has their own view of how the war for the Mortal Realms should be waged.
The Slann will often endure millennia of solitude, only rarely connecting with their kin. In this time, each individual Slann pursues their own campaign against the servants of Chaos or those that would stand in the way of perfect order for the realms.
When many Slann gather for war it heralds a truly momentous battle -- the stars themselves move into alignment, promising the destruction of empires. In such instances the Seraphon are at their strongest, their celestial might almost unrivalled.
Though the Slann seem to care nothing for the stories of mortals, the myth of the Seraphon spreads across the Mortal Realms with each battle. Tales like that of Toc-choa the Bringer of the Celestial Dawn, who vanquished a horde of Khornate chariot riders with the cosmic light of a hundred Engines of the Gods; Qulaqal the Master of the Seven Falling Stars, who laid siege to the bubonic Dreadhold of Scaramath; and Kurkori the Dreaming Seer of the Nightmare War, who slew the great daemon Balagrex on the shores of the ever-burning sea.
Mortal concerns of time or space hold little meaning for the Slann. Such is their power that they are able to bridge the vast distances between the stars and the realms in an instant. They appear at will, their warriors never more than a thought away.
Unlike a mortal army, or even Sigmar's Stormcast Eternals, the Seraphon need not muster before great bastions or stand in ranks awaiting the order to march. They are in a permanent state of battle-readiness, materializing within the Mortal Realms as the first horns of battle blare and then vanishing once more when the object of their wrath is utterly destroyed.
The arrival of a Seraphon force can take many forms, such is the power and scope of the magic the Slann use to summon them. Some ride down from the heavens upon falling stars, while others appear in beams of sunlight striking down through dark, roiling clouds. Their arrival is invariably swift, and usually unexpected.
As long as the Slann lives, fresh warriors can be called from Azyr to tip the balance of a battle. Those few who have fought against the Seraphon and survived speak of cohorts of troops suddenly appearing on their flanks, or great saurian beasts manifesting deep within their ranks, at the merest gesture from their Slann master.
The Seraphon strike at places of the darkest power, seeking them out for their connection to the Chaos Gods rather than for any tactical reason a mortal general might understand. Over centuries of war, countless sites where the followers of the Dark Gods have tainted the ground with their profane worship have felt the Seraphon's wrath.
Into the Gorevale marched the Slann and their cohorts, to the place where Sigmar's Stormcast Eternals were locked in furious battle with the Khornate hordes of the Bloodbound. For the first time, Stormcast and seraphon laid eyes upon one another, and in that moment knew they shared a common foe.
As one they loosed their fury, the howling warriors of Khorne slain by Sigmarite hammers and celestite clubs. In the battle to purge the Gorevale of the Bloodbound, the Seraphon attacked with untamed savagery. Though never a word passed between the enigmatic saurian warriors and Sigmar's chosen, both knew when and where to strike.
When the last idols of the Gorevale were cast down and the wild-eyed priests of the Bloodbound put to the sword, the Stormcast Eternals watched as their seeming allies returned to the stars. Sigmarite hammers were held high in salute as the Seraphon vanished in beams of starlight. Neither were to know that many more foes would soon face the combined might of Stormcast and Seraphon.
The Seraphon's empire perishes in a storm of Chaos at the hands of the Dark Gods. Their homelands on the World That Was destroyed, the Seraphon escape into the stars. The slann -- greatest of wizards -- guide the race beyond the reach of the Ruinous Powers, though they are forced to watch their beloved world die, consumed by the tide of Chaos energies, as they sail into the void.
As the Age of Chaos wracks the Mortal Realms, gateways between worlds are corrupted by followers of the Dark Gods. Though the Slann have no need of the gates to pass between realms, they understand their worth to the Ruinous Powers. With spells that set the stars to trembling, the Slann change the alignment of many gateways, altering forever where they lead.
Long in the making, Sigmar's Tempest booms out across the Mortal Realms. From the heavens, the Slann observe the Stormcast Eternals as they launch their first devastating assaults on the armies of the Dark Gods. Though the Seraphon make no pacts with Sigmar, the two share the same foes, and their armies proceed to scour the realms of Chaos in a storm of lightning and starlight.
When the Seraphon march to war, cohorts of reptilian warriors are called down from the stars of Azyr. None but the Slann know for sure whence they hail, only that they appear as if from nowhere. Under golden icons they form up in disciplined ranks, even great saurian beasts awaiting the command of the Slann to attack.