Mammoth del Caos

REGOLE SPECIALI per IL MAMMOTH delle ORDE del CAOS




THE LEGEND OF TAROK OF THE KHAZAG
THE KHAZAG TRIBE

Many years ago, when the world was much younger, the Khazag were a primitive barbarian tribe living in the hard stone lands of the northern tundra. They knew little of the world beyond, of its gods or its wars. They survived the
harsh winds and deadly cold by hunting herds of giant Mammoths across the
tundra.
All the tribesmen were raised to be fearless hunters and trappers, as they must be, to face such huge prey. The beasts they slew provided the tribes folk with all their needs. Furs for warm clothing, meat for food, hide for their tents, ivory and bone for weapons and for trading with other tribes, on the rare occasions the nomads crossed their path.
Within their fire-warmed tents the tribe worshipped the great beasts that
sustained their life. They honoured the beast’s spirit, but above all they
gave praise to Angkor who they believed to be the ancestral father of all
Mammoths, and upon whose back the world was carried. For hundreds of years Angkor provided for his people. The herds were strong, the hunting was plentiful and the tribal life of the Khazag remained unchanged.
But if the Khazag had forsaken the world beyond, then the world had not forgotten them, and soon the eye of other far greater powers fell upon them. For
none that live in the northern wastes can escape the true gods of that land for long. The dark powers had new plans for the simple Khazag tribe.

THE BANISHMENT OF TAROK
The change in the tribe’s destiny began with the birth of the chieftain’s first son,
named Tarok. Tarok grew amongst his people and learned their ways, in time he became a fierce and brave hunter, the foremost of the tribes young men. But Tarok’s soul was cruel and vengeful. As a young hunter Tarok and his followers fell foul of the tribal lores.
Whilst hunting on the frozen tundra with his band of followers a dispute erupted over who had made the killing blow of their quarry, and therefore who should have the right to eat the beasts heart (a tribal ritual that passed the beast strength to the killer). Tarok claimed his spear had felled the Bull-Mammoth, whilst another hunter and his band also claimed the kill. The argument became heated and Tarok became enraged. He launched his spear at his rival and a
melee broke out. Six of the rival band died in the ensuing fight.
To kill another tribal member was strictly forbidden. When news of the murders spread through the tribe Tarok and his followers were dragged from their tents to face his father and the wrath of the entire tribe. They would have been stoned to death by the mob but Tarok’s father forbade it. Instead he decreed that for their crimes all would be banished from the tribe, thrown out onto the pitiless tundra to survive or die as Angkor willed. As the tribe packed their tents and moved on they left Tarok and his friends behind, bound and unarmed in the snow. Tarok howled and cursed in rage at his fate. What became of them none in the tribe knew.


EXILE AND RETURN
Tarok and his followers did not die but, by luck or some greater will, escaped and found their way north, where they met and joined the marauding warbands of the Chaos wastes, competing for the favour of their gods.
Cursing his father, Tarok vowed vengeance against his people and embraced the arts of warfare and bloodshed. Like many before him and after, he became a Chaos marauder, raiding south, burning and pillaging in the name of his new masters, the gods of Chaos. Tarok was well favoured by his Gods and grew strong, learning much dark-lore and all the time plotting his return to the Khazag. When Tarok was strong enough and had gathered his own loyal warband to him Tarok set out to find his people.
The night of Tarok’s return was a night of horror and blood for the Khazag people. The hooves of many horses pounded through the snow, lit torches in hand, as Tarok took his pitiless revenge. His men burned the tribal encampments, killing all who fought back. By the light of the burning tents Tarok had the aging chieftain dragged before him and forced into submission on his knees before the unknown conqueror. Slowly he removed his great horned helmet to reveal himself before completing his revenge.
‘I have returned, father, to claim my birthright and my destiny. Once you spared me death, such was your folly. I shall not make the same mistake. By right of birth and conquest I claim leadership of the Khazag in the name of the true gods. ‘
A single cruel blow of his axe decapitated his father.


THE ENSLAVEMENT OF THE KHAZAG
Although brave hunters the Khazag had never been a war-like people. They looked only to their own survival, but with the return of Tarok that would soon change. Although a powerful champion in his own right Tarok was still a mere tool, a pawn in the god's greater schemes.
The Gods of Chaos used their new champion to corrupt the Khazag to their own desires. In the Khazag they saw a new source of worshippers and warriors and a chance to expand their dominion. With Tarok as their chieftain the Khazag would become devout followers of Chaos, their skills as hunters would now be turned to warfare and bloodshed on the battlefields of Chaos.
But the Khazag were hardy and proud, and several times rose up in rebellion against their new overlords. Each time they were defeated but there spirit was not broken, much to Tarok’s anger.

THE TAMING OF ANGKOR
Enraged Tarok set out to prove the power of his new gods and his divine right to rule. Aided by his masters he claimed he could tame Angkor, and bring the tribe’s so-called god before them in chains. He begged his gods to grant him the visions and power to find and tame Angkor.
In one bloody night he sacrificed one in ten of the Khazag tribe to his masters, staining the ground red and piling his victims heads about the encampment. He swore dreadful oaths of loyalty and service and pledge that if the gods aided him now he would lead the Khazag into an endless war against their foes. Pleased with his devotion the gods granted Tarok a vision. Tarok’s quest would take him deep into the heart of the Chaos wastes. Gathering his loyal warband, Tarok set off into a howling blizzard, and soon vanished…
Tarok journeyed far, travelling deep into the heart of the Chaos wastes, where nameless horrors crawled the earth and there, by the will of the gods, found and tamed Angkor. Later it was said that the battle to tame Angkor lasted for three days and nights, and most of Tarok’s warband were slain fighting the beast. But eventually Tarok subdued the ferocious beast . Close to death, Angkors daemonic spirit had been broken. Bound in chains Angkor submitted to a new master. Tarok and his surviving followers climbed upon the great beast back and rode south.
He did not return for a year and a day. In the meantime hope sprung amongst the Khazag that they had been freed from the tyrant. But it was not to be. The portents were evil, the Mammoth herds had vanished, hunting was poor, the northern sky turned blood red, and storm clouds gathered. On the crest of that storm, lashed by rain, wind and lightning came Tarok, the very earth trembling before him as he rode Angkor through the tribal encampments. He had defeated their god and the Khazag finally submitted before him. All hailed Tarok as their true chieftain, his gods must be the true, greater powers, as he had always claimed. From that moment the Khazag gave themselves willingly to the worship of Chaos.


ANGKOR, THE FATHER OF MAMMOTHS
‘HE WHO CARRIES THE WORLD UPON HIS BACK’

M WS BS S T W I A Ld
6 3 1 10 7 12 2 Special 5
Save: The plates on the side of the Mammoth give it a 6+ armour save.
Ignore Psychology: Nothing scares an enraged Mammoth! They are immune to Psychology.
Large Target: Mammoths are…well, Mammoth sized! It is a large target.
Terror: The Mammoth is massive, shaking the ground with its foot falls, bellowing and snorting as it crushes all before it. A Mammoth causes terror in their foes. See the Warhammer Psychology rules for details. A Mammoth has a unit strength of 12 for fear tests
Move: So huge and heavy is the Mammoth that they step over or easily crush obstacles such as walls and fences without breaking stride. Treat any obstacles that are not higher than the Mammoths knees as open ground. The Mammoth is a lumbering beast and cannot make a March move. It may still charge as normal.


MAMMOTH SPECIAL ATTACKS
Mammoths do not attack in the same way as other creatures though they select their victims as normal. They do not respond to orders and have no plans beyond violently crushing anything before them. The player controlling the Mammoth may select one of the following types of attacks each time it is the Mammoths turn to attack.
Trample, Stamp, Gore…
The Mammoth just walks right into and over the enemy, crushing them beneath its massive feet, smashing them with its trunk and tusks and generally throwing its massive weight about. This can have a devastating effected on densely packed troops, but skirmishers can more easily evade the trampling. A unit attacked by a trampling Mammoth sustains 1D6+the rank bonus of the unit being attacked (max 3) Strength 10 hits. Work out damage and saves as normal.
Butt
The Mammoth charges head first, ramming its huge weigh into the target, flattening buildings, walls, towers. This attack can only be used against stationary targets such as buildings, walls, castle gates etc. A butt attack cannot be used against enemy units or characters, they are too small.
The Mammoth automatic scores one hit against the target, causing a Strength 10 hit. If this is against a castle roll on 2D6+10 on the appropriate damage table.
See Appendix Four in the Warhammer rulebook, ‘Rules of Siege’ for details.
Pick up and …
The Mammoth uses its agile trunk to grab a hapless victim that is either in base contact or touching a model in base contact (the trunk has a long reach). The target may make a single attack to fend off the trunk. If it hits and wounds the Mammoth then the attack fails, otherwise the Mammoth grabs the model and rolls a D6 to see what the Mammoth does next:
1-2 Throw back into combat. The victim is hurled back into his own unit like a missile. This causes D3 wounds on the victim with no saves of any kind allowed, and D6 Str 4 hits (saves as normal) on the unit. If the thrown model survives place it at the back of the target unit.
3-4 Hurl. The victim is hurled into any enemy unit within 18” of the Mammoth, randomly determine which. This causes D3 wounds on the victim with no saves of any kind allowed, and D6 Str 4 hits (saves as normal) on the unit. If no enemy units are in range threat this as a Throw back into combat result. If the thrown model survives place it at the back of the target unit.
5 Eat. The Mammoth swings the victim into it’s gaping mouth and munches him down. The model is removed from the game. If the target is another large creature then even a Mammoth’s mouth is not large enough. Roll this result again for large creatures that the Mammoth picks up.
6 Squash. The Mammoths strong trunk constricts the victim until it pops! The model is a casualty and is removed from the game. Any creature or character with a basic strength of 6 or above is too strong to be squashed, in which case roll again on this table.
Bellow
The Mammoth roars and bellows at the enemy. Deafeningly loud and terrifying neither the Mammoth nor any units in contact with it actually fight if they have not already done so this turn. The Mammoth’s side automatically wins the combat round. The enemy must make a break test with a –1 modifier.
Howdah
The Howdah on the Mammoths back must carry a single unit of up to 20 Chaos Marauders. This unit may include a champion, banner bearer and musician. This unit may be equipped with hooks and chains, for swing down at their enemies. Hooks and chains count as throwing axes and cost +1 pts per model. Up to 10 Marauders may use the hooks and chains to attack units in close combat with the Mammoth. Whilst in the howdah the Marauders count as Skirmishers for the purposes of resolving combat. If the Mammoth is killed the surviving Marauders must spend their next turn reforming.
In addition to the Marauders the howdah throne may seat a single Chaos Lord or Exalted Champion for the points costs indicated in Warhammer Armies book: Chaos. A Chaos Sorcerer may cast spells from the back of the Mammoth.
The howdah may also carry an Aspiring Champion carrying the Army Battle Standard.
Any characters or the Marauders can dismount from the Mammoth, to fight on foot as normal. The Mammoth must remain stationary for the entire turn, and those dismounting (down ropes and rope ladders) can do nothing else (including casting spells etc) in the turn they dismount. They are formed up in a single unit in base contact with the Mammoth model, as if reforming. Once dismounted they may not remount, this would take far too long.
A character may dismount to take part in a challenge, and may automatically remount or continue fighting on the ground if he survives.
The howdah can be targeted by missile fire separately from the Mammoth and counts as hard cover against missile fire for those in it. All attacks against the Mammoth and its riders must be resolved against the Mammoth, not the riders who are too high up to be hit. Attacks by flying creatures can be targeted at either the riders or the Mammoth itself.
Troops riding a Mammoth are immune to psychology and do not take panic tests, they have nowhere to run! They will be carried out of combat if the Mammoth should fail its break test.
The Mammoth is so tall that troops in the howdah can use it as a siege tower, and can exit the howdah onto castle battlements and towers as if it was a siege tower.
Rampage
Once a Mammoth is badly wounded it is likely to become uncontrollably wild, and begin to rampage out of control. At the start of the Chaos players turn roll a D6. If the score is higher than the Mammoths remaining wounds it goes berserk and begins to rampage out of control. Once the Mammoth starts rampaging do not
roll again, it remains berserk until it is killed or leaves the table. Note, do not roll until the Mammoth has 5 wounds or less remaining.
As compulsory movement the Mammoth moves 2D6 inches in a random direction as determined by the scatter dice. The Mammoth counts as charging and tramples any unit (friend or foe) it moves into. If the random movement takes the Mammoth into a wall or building then it butts the obstacle instead.


POINTS:
600 + cost of the unit or character carried. The Mammoth counts as two Rare choices for a Chaos Army. The unit of Marauders and the Characters must be bought separately.