Chaos (Warhammer)
Encyclopedia
In Games Workshop's
Warhammer Fantasy
and Warhammer 40,000
fictional universe
s, Chaos refers to the often stereotypically malevolent entities which live in a different timespace, known as the Warp in Warhammer 40,000 and as the Realm of Chaos in Warhammer Fantasy. The term can refer to these warp entities and their influence, the servants and worship
pers of these entities, or even the parallel universe in which these entities are supposed to reside. The most powerful of these warp entities are those known as the Chaos Gods, also sometimes referred to as the Dark Gods, Ruinous Powers, or the Powers of Chaos. Similarities exist between the Warhammer idea of Chaos and the concept of Chaos
from Michael Moorcock
's Elric saga, which also influenced D&D's alignment system. Further similarities can be see with the godlike extradimensional Great Old Ones of horror writer H. P. Lovecraft
's stories.
. Many different Chaos Gods were named in the various early miniature catalogues released by Citadel in the early eighties. But it was never clearly explained what the fictional pantheon looked like. The idea of "Four Great Powers of Chaos", i.e. Chaos Gods, was first introduced in the two Realm of Chaos sourcebooks released 1988 and 1990 respectively. To date these remain the original and amongst the most detailed pieces of work published by Games Workshop regarding Chaos. The Black Library "artbooks" of the Liber Chaotica series (released from 2001–2006) and Black Industries' Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay supplement, the Tome of Corruption: Secrets from the Realm of Chaos (published 2006) contain as much detail as the original Realms of Chaos sourcebooks (and, in the case of the Liber Chaotica, taken directly from the original books), but with the various additions and changes to the Chaos imagery that GW has introduced over the years - although these latter two books focus mainly upon Chaos as perceived through the Warhammer Fantasy imagery.
Both game worlds depict fictional settings out of spiritual balance, where emotions, urges and thoughts permeate from a functioning brain and manifest in a dimension of existence called "the Warp". The world presented is one of Animism
, where the dissipated currents and waves of quantum-electromagnetic fluctuations of a functioning mind, or what is frequently called the "soul" of any creature of a psychic nature in the "physical universe". In the fictional setting of Warhammer, these "bits of mind and memory" are drawn together, like-to-like, within the "meta-physical universe" that is to say "the Warp" or "the Realm of Chaos" (40K and Fantasy respectively), merging into great psychic "storms" or "vortices". As is the case with the "Big Four" Chaos Gods, these "vortices" sometimes gain consciousness, self-awareness and even personality of a sort in the metaphysical (or psychic
) context of the Warp. However, this consciousness and/or personality are dominated by the paradigm of the emotions that form the vortex they exude from - so a vortex of anger, rage and of souls and soul fragments that are saturated with feelings of anger and bloodlust (perhaps because they are the souls of dead serial killers or berserk warriors for instance) would be an entirely and eternally furious and violent consciousness / personality.
Chaos Gods are no different from any of the other myriad of Demons that inhabit the parallel universe, but are considerably stronger and with an influence that is greater than other "Warp Entity" or "Demon" by orders of magnitude.
The main four deities of the Chaos pantheon exude from the "biggest" vortices of emotion and souls within the Warp and these vortices are the biggest because they are formed from the most basic and readily experienced emotions common to almost all intelligent sentient beings. Thus these entities are the strongest of all the many entities that can and have formed within the Warp. The four great gods are often used as antagonists in their respective settings, frequently sparking great wars against other factions with the aim of gaining total domination over the entire setting. The names and aspects of these four great gods are:
Games Workshop
Games Workshop Group plc is a British game production and retailing company. Games Workshop has published the tabletop wargames Warhammer Fantasy Battle and Warhammer 40,000...
Warhammer Fantasy
Warhammer Fantasy (setting)
Warhammer Fantasy is a fantasy setting, created by Games Workshop, which is used by many of the company's games. Some of the best-known games set in this world are: the table top wargame Warhammer Fantasy Battle, the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay pen-and-paper role-playing game, and the MMORPG...
and Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40,000
Warhammer 40,000 is a tabletop miniature wargame produced by Games Workshop, set in a dystopian science fantasy universe. Warhammer 40,000 was created by Rick Priestley in 1987 as the futuristic companion to Warhammer Fantasy Battle, sharing many game mechanics...
fictional universe
Fictional universe
A fictional universe is a self-consistent fictional setting with elements that differ from the real world. It may also be called an imagined, constructed or fictional realm ....
s, Chaos refers to the often stereotypically malevolent entities which live in a different timespace, known as the Warp in Warhammer 40,000 and as the Realm of Chaos in Warhammer Fantasy. The term can refer to these warp entities and their influence, the servants and worship
Worship
Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity. The word is derived from the Old English worthscipe, meaning worthiness or worth-ship — to give, at its simplest, worth to something, for example, Christian worship.Evelyn Underhill defines worship thus: "The absolute...
pers of these entities, or even the parallel universe in which these entities are supposed to reside. The most powerful of these warp entities are those known as the Chaos Gods, also sometimes referred to as the Dark Gods, Ruinous Powers, or the Powers of Chaos. Similarities exist between the Warhammer idea of Chaos and the concept of Chaos
Law and Chaos
Law and Chaos are the dominant metaphysical forces in the fantasy stories of Michael Moorcock, which he derived from Poul Anderson . Law and Chaos are in constant struggle, but they are kept in check by the Cosmic Balance, an even more powerful force for neutrality. The Eternal Champion is doomed...
from Michael Moorcock
Michael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
's Elric saga, which also influenced D&D's alignment system. Further similarities can be see with the godlike extradimensional Great Old Ones of horror writer H. P. Lovecraft
H. P. Lovecraft
Howard Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
's stories.
The Chaos Gods
The concept of Chaos Gods has been a more or less integral part of both Warhammer universes ever since they were first conceived. The Chaos Gods in Warhammer are essentially deities worshiped and feared by various groups and that is what makes these groups followers of Chaos. In this idea there is evidently a strong influence from the British fantasy writer Michael MoorcockMichael Moorcock
Michael John Moorcock is an English writer, primarily of science fiction and fantasy, who has also published a number of literary novels....
. Many different Chaos Gods were named in the various early miniature catalogues released by Citadel in the early eighties. But it was never clearly explained what the fictional pantheon looked like. The idea of "Four Great Powers of Chaos", i.e. Chaos Gods, was first introduced in the two Realm of Chaos sourcebooks released 1988 and 1990 respectively. To date these remain the original and amongst the most detailed pieces of work published by Games Workshop regarding Chaos. The Black Library "artbooks" of the Liber Chaotica series (released from 2001–2006) and Black Industries' Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay supplement, the Tome of Corruption: Secrets from the Realm of Chaos (published 2006) contain as much detail as the original Realms of Chaos sourcebooks (and, in the case of the Liber Chaotica, taken directly from the original books), but with the various additions and changes to the Chaos imagery that GW has introduced over the years - although these latter two books focus mainly upon Chaos as perceived through the Warhammer Fantasy imagery.
Both game worlds depict fictional settings out of spiritual balance, where emotions, urges and thoughts permeate from a functioning brain and manifest in a dimension of existence called "the Warp". The world presented is one of Animism
Animism
Animism refers to the belief that non-human entities are spiritual beings, or at least embody some kind of life-principle....
, where the dissipated currents and waves of quantum-electromagnetic fluctuations of a functioning mind, or what is frequently called the "soul" of any creature of a psychic nature in the "physical universe". In the fictional setting of Warhammer, these "bits of mind and memory" are drawn together, like-to-like, within the "meta-physical universe" that is to say "the Warp" or "the Realm of Chaos" (40K and Fantasy respectively), merging into great psychic "storms" or "vortices". As is the case with the "Big Four" Chaos Gods, these "vortices" sometimes gain consciousness, self-awareness and even personality of a sort in the metaphysical (or psychic
Psychic
A psychic is a person who professes an ability to perceive information hidden from the normal senses through extrasensory perception , or is said by others to have such abilities. It is also used to describe theatrical performers who use techniques such as prestidigitation, cold reading, and hot...
) context of the Warp. However, this consciousness and/or personality are dominated by the paradigm of the emotions that form the vortex they exude from - so a vortex of anger, rage and of souls and soul fragments that are saturated with feelings of anger and bloodlust (perhaps because they are the souls of dead serial killers or berserk warriors for instance) would be an entirely and eternally furious and violent consciousness / personality.
Chaos Gods are no different from any of the other myriad of Demons that inhabit the parallel universe, but are considerably stronger and with an influence that is greater than other "Warp Entity" or "Demon" by orders of magnitude.
The main four deities of the Chaos pantheon exude from the "biggest" vortices of emotion and souls within the Warp and these vortices are the biggest because they are formed from the most basic and readily experienced emotions common to almost all intelligent sentient beings. Thus these entities are the strongest of all the many entities that can and have formed within the Warp. The four great gods are often used as antagonists in their respective settings, frequently sparking great wars against other factions with the aim of gaining total domination over the entire setting. The names and aspects of these four great gods are:
- Khorne-Bloodlust/War/Death
- Tzeentch-Change/Fate/Mutation
- Nurgle-Plague/Despair/Disease
- Slaanesh-Lust/Pleasure/Excess