LAWhammer Tales 1: The Daughter of Mordax (Patreon)

The following All-Access post is a slightly edited version of the intro to the pdf attached to this post. The bottom includes an additional Q&A, though.

If you want to discuss this post, the story attached to it, or point out any errors you spot (and please do point them out) there is a forum post for doing this on Discord found here.

Right, let's go!

During one of my Ask Andy Anything streams, I mentioned that I’d used the ‘dragon under Altdorf Zoo’, in my games of WFRP. I also mentioned that I’d written a story explaining why it was there and how it had become involved in my game.

After the stream, I was messaged by a bunch of folks asking if they could read the story. So, I trawled through my hard drives to see if it was still there, and it was, so why the hell not, eh? According to the file’s date, I wrote it back in 2008, a long time before Warhammer Fantasy Battle ended, so it’s a bit ancient. But I’m sure you won’t mind – just keep in mind that the story attached to this post is over 15 years old. Also, before you dive into what it offers, there are a couple of things you should know first:

1)    No matter how it opens, this is an End Times tale. In particular, the last section of the story takes place during the Siege of Altdorf. I wrote this several years before GW resolved its own End Times, so keep that in mind.

2)    In this version of Warhammer, Patriarch Thyrus Gormann had been replaced by Reikheld Mair as the leader of the Bright Order. For those of you who know your LAWhammer lore, you’ll recognise that character as Elrick’s mistress – so we have a connection!

Beyond that, the story is the Warhammer world as you know it, with perhaps a few tweaks along the way, all of which are described in the text. So, you should be on familiar ground no matter your Warhammer or LAWhammer experience.

If you enjoy this short story and would like more, I have many similar snippets of fiction hidden away on my PCs, so I’m sure I could rustle up another story or two in future if anyone would like to read them. But I’ll leave that for all of you to decide.

I hope you enjoy what this wee snippet describing one version of where the red dragon beneath Altdorf originated offers. Perhaps it will help you decide how to use her in your personal games.

The following answers a few questions. But it may be better to read them after you've read the attached story.

Does this story take place in LAWhammer?
Yup! Even though much of it is set after 2512IC, this story is a vision that’s been scryed by a Celestial College wizard who’s investigating the Storm of Shemtek. So, a possible future, and a terrifying one for Altdorf, but not necessarily the future. Only future play will determine that. But, if the PCs do not interrupt events somehow, this will happen in our game.

Who is Mordax?
Good question. Does anyone out there know? Should I give a prize to the first person to get it correct? It's super obscure...

Is this Karl-Franz's dragon?
If you want it to be, sure. But you'll need a bloody good story for why she would ever let someone like good ol' KF anywhere near her.

So, is this the dragon in the zoo?
In my game, yes. Although, it's worth noting that she's not really in the zoo. Instead, it was built over her by Emperor Wilhelm III. It was also he who named the dragon 'Imperious Rex'.

What do all the ancient language quotations actually say?
That is for you, like the dragon, to decipher. Some are obvious. Some less so. And at least one is kinda important to LAWhammer.

What Celestial wizard scryed this story?
That will be revealed at some point in the game.

Will there be more 'LAWhammer Tales'?
Only if folks want them. But, if they're wanted, sure.

EDITS
07/05/14: Version 1.1 of the pdf uploaded, including a title name change because I MISPELLED MORDAX! The shame is absolute.
Thanks to Isnah over on Discord for pointing out the error!