Kislev

"You look down on us and think we are little better than barbarians, but you should be glad we are, for without us here, the northern tribes would be dining on the flesh of your children in your burning homes. But for the courage that flows in our veins would your lands be theirs. Look down on us? You should get on your knees and thank us every day!"

- Vitalia Kovash, Kislevite Winged Lancer

The Kingdom of Kislev, sometimes known as the Realm of the Ice Queen or simply as Kislev, is the most northernly Human civilization within the Old World, a powerful and war-driven nation that is known far and wide for having one of the greatest horsemens to ever roam the plains of the southern realms. From the World's Edge Mountains to the East and the Sea of Claws in the West, Kislev stands at the very frontiers of Human civilization, a land covered in wide-open steppes and thundering icy rivers, where lonely villages stand isolated in the empty wilderness, while mighty cities rise from the landscape like great islands of stone. The climate is harsh and unforgiving, and only the strongest, most determined people can survive here.

The inhabitants of Kislev are these very same people, a race of wolf-tough and self-reliant warriors, valiant and determined in the defense of their homeland against the hated marauders of the uppermost North. Ruled by the mighty Tzars, Kislev is a nation born from the saddle, their peoples ancestry being traced to the mighty horse-warriors of the Eastern Steppes many millennium ago.

Since the founding of this mighty kingdom, Kislev has been, since its very creation, under siege by the murderous Hordes of Chaos Undivided, a kingdom that sits forever at the brink of total annihilation. Countless generations of Kislevites have fought, bled, and died in the snowy tundra of those harsh northern lands, and it is thanks to these brave Kislevite warriors that the Kingdoms of Men have managed to flourish in the south, huddled together in their warm and safe homes, whilst the Sons of Kislev fight till they draw their very last breath.

History
"Long ago, many Gospodar clans lived upon the Endless Steppe. Like today, it was a vast province and was lashed with the terrible energies of Chaos. The Gospodars were beset by all manner of foul foes, and the Deamon Gods offered surcease from these attacks if the Gospodars would but bow their head in worship. But the Gospodars were stubborn."

- Militsa Lushadoch Gmelin, Ice Witch

Since before the founding of Kislev, the people that would found and rule Kislev were the ancient clans of the Gospodar, a mighty nomadic people of the Eastern Steppes, their province encompassing a vast lenght of land for many many miles around. They lived, drank, loved, and died like their fore-fathers before them, living out their lives in relative peace. All that changed the day Chaos began to flowed like water into their former homeland, and foul foes and numberless beast of all kind began to stalk and kill off their people. The mighty Gospodars and their former brethrens and neighbors, The Hung and Kurgans, fought on against the wills of the Chaos Gods, for no sane Human being would willing give up their soul to damnation. But such a foe could not be stop by the swing of a sword, and in time, one by one, their former neighbors were subdued, and turned against their former allies. Though their brethrens were mighty and fierce, they lacked the will power of the Gospodars to fight on, and so the Gospodars kept on fighting, ever believing in the divinity of their Gods, and requesting their aid against them. The greatest of their god, Ursen, God of Bears and Strength, aided his people in their time of need, but even his godly strength and will of arms proved insufficient, and slowly but surely, the Gospodars plight was desperate.

Then a great spirit called "The Ancient Widow", "Kislev" or simply "The Land" whispered to a Gospodar shaman-priestess. The spirit promised her great power if she swore to lead her people West, towards a distant, frozen realm where the spirit was trapped by the will of the Dark Gods. The shaman, desperate to aid her people, readily agreed and was granted the ancient and mystical power of Winter itself. With the Ancient Widow's guidance, the shaman quickly mastered her new and god-like powers and used them to gather what she needed to fulfill her promise. With her will-power and powerful magic, she bound the disparate Gospodar Clans into a single unified people and placed herself above them as their first Khan-Queen.

With her people united and determined, the massive horde of horsemen raced across their now dying homeland, riding all their hardest to escape the darkness that has come to consume them all. After generations upon generations of bloodshed and sacrifice on the Endless Steppe, the now war-driven people of the Gospodars, lead by the descendant of Khan-Queen Miska, finally reached the mighty Worlds Edge Mountain, the final barrier that bars the way from her peoples destiny. Once Khan-Queen Miska reached the other side, there, wide-eyed, she encountered a vast snow-covered plain pulsing with mystical icy power. She immediately collapsed to the ground and wept frozen tears, for she knew the search for her peoples salvation was finally over.

The Great Conquest of Kislev (1497 IC to 1524 IC
Though the great spirit promised this beautiful snowy paradise to the Gospodars, the land was already claimed by another group of horse-born people. The Ungols of ancient times have lived in this lands for centuries, having fought and bleed their blood and the blood of their sons to halt the Greenskin menace that invaded the Old World during the reign of Sigmar Heldenhammer. Though peace between the Ungols and Sigmar's people were solidified during the Battle of Black Fire Pass, this peace did not transfer towards these new invaders. Though these were powerful tribes, those people of the Ungols of Kislev, or the Udoses and Ostagoths of the Empire could not hope to stand in the way of the Gospodar horde that pours out of the north.

Under the leadership of Khan-Queen Miska, the Gospodars were powerful and wealthy and possessed of an unmatch genius in warfare, their skills in fighting from horseback superior to that of even the Ungols. The Khan-Queen was not only a warrior of great skill and courage, but also a powerful sorcerer of unmatched power. Soon, the Ungols were pushed back and scattered, with the Ungols having an ever-lasting fear of the dreaded "Ice Queen". The Khan-Queen continued her march of conquest against the Ungol tribes for several years, eventually leading her host towards the walls and gates of the Ungol bastion of Praag itself. Though mighty and powerful, the walls of this ancient city was laid low by the powerful icy spells of the Khan-Queens magic, forcing the entirety of the Ungol people westward towards their new capital city of Norvad.

With the sudden dislocation of their native homeland, the Ungols migrated towards the northwest, forcing their way into Ropsmenn territory. All previous alliances and treaties between these two people ended when Praag fell, and an Ungol army under the leadership of Warlord Hethis Chaq defeated a Ropsmenn host led by their ruler, King Weiran on the cliffs overlooking the Sea of Claws. With the death of their ruler, the Ropsmenn tribes were scattered, and the Ungols claimed their former neighbors lands and absorbed the remnants of this once great people.

The Founding of a Kingdom (1525 to 2301 IC)
Not content to keep and cultivate the lands they have earned during their conquest, the Gospodar tribes began to further expand their territories westward until they came into conflict with the provinces of Ostland and Ostermark. Torn with strife and constant warfare during the Time of the Three Emperors, the Men of the Empire were not strong enough to halt the advance of the Gospodar horsemen as they drove deep into unoccupied territory. Soon much of the northern territories of Ostland was lost, until finally the Gospodars had to halt their advance at the edge of the Forest of Shadows.

Though the lands the Gospodars claimed were won back by the military might of the Imperial Armies, the status and power of the Gospodars eventually made the Empire consider their claims as a Kingdom in its own right. Khan-Queen Miska did not live to see the land she had begun to forge take shape, for she vanished into the north, claiming to have seen a vision of a terrible furture where she would once again be needed to lead her people to salvation. Leaving her fearsome magical warblade, Fearfrost, to her daughter Shoika, Miska gathered her most trusted warriors and rode north, never to return. By the year of 1527 IC, the Gospodar tribes under the rulership of their new Khan-Queen began construction of their great capital city, which they named Kislev, after the land and kingdom itself. With the city of her people in construction, Shoika removed her previous title as Khan-Queen and accepted her new title as Tzar to indicate her new reign over the lands north of the Urskoy.

Under the new rulership of Tzarina Shoika, the city that was to become Kislev was built, and the realm began to take shape into the nation it was today. Having inherited the title as the new Tzarina of Kislev, the Gospodarin Calendar and the establishment of the nation of Kislev was founded under her edict. Her first act as Tzarina was to march on towards Norvard, the last bastion of Ungol resistance against Gospodar dominace. This mighty trading port on the western coast of Kislev, proved to be the key in placing Kislev at the forefront of trade with the rest of the world, and Shoika knew that her dreams of a unified nation will not be fufilled, whilst the city is still held under enemy hands. Leading her host through the open tundra of Northern Kislev, her host of warriors began a new campaign to solidify their hold on the northwestern territories. Less than two years after her crowning as Tzarina, Shoika and her host of horsemen eventually besieged and captured the capital city of Norvard, renaming it Erengrad, in honour of the victory. Those Ungols that survived the bloody siege fled to the north, where they were ruthlessly hunted until finally their people had no choice but to accept the Gospodars rule over the land and assimilate into Gospodar society.

With this final act, the birth of their new nation was complete and in recognition of this, the Gospodar people relinquish their former names and adopted the name of Kislevites, after the name of the land and their capital city. Within a few years, the settlements of Praag and Erengrad were rebuilt and began to grow in size once more. Praag grew rich and powerful due to the large influx of Ungols returning to their once beautiful city to start life anew under Kislevite rulership. Erengrad experienced a huge increase in trade and wealth as the new ports and harbours that were built became one of the most busiest trading hubs in the entire Old World. From here, the Kislevites were able to sail the Sea of Claws, trading and fighting with the Norse and the Imperials, as well as keeping the few remaining Ungol tribes that refused to submit to their rule in check.

This time of great prosperity and happiness lasted for nearly 750 years, and over-time, the people of the Gospodars and Ungol blood-line intermingled, creating the society that many would view now as modern day Kislev. Though the Ungols and Gospodars now live in tranquil harmony, there is still a large division made between them that has shape the way Kislev is structured. The ruling elite, from whom the Tzar and Tzarina hails, are unsurprisingly all of Gospodar heritage, though the influence of their language and beliefs is more evident in the fertile south. Further north however, where the lands become more barren and the Horse Tribes still hold sway, there's been a resurgence in the old ways of life before the coming of the Gospodars. In fact, Praag has been reclaimed in large part by the old Ungol nobility and, in many ways, is a seperate power on itself in the far north.

The Great War against Chaos (Late 2301 IC)
For generations, the sons of Kislev have fought and died on the barren plains of the far north. Chaos raids against the south are common in a land so close to the Chaos Waste, and this endless streams of warfare have only made the people of this land hardier then those of the weaker south. After years of constant conflict with the northern maruaders, the Tzar or Tzarina have ordered the establishment of several forts occupying the southern end of High Pass and Black Blood Pass, usually garrisoned by several hundred men under the leadership of a March Boyar to watch for any sign of an upcoming invasion.

As the years have gone by, these raids have grown more fearsome and numerous, and the tribes of the Ungol grew uneasy as their Hags and Shamans foretold a great gathering of powerful eldritch energies from the Far North. The power of the Dark Gods began to grow stronger and stronger in the Chaos Waste over the millennium, and war-drums were sounded as the armies of the north gathered for the great slaughtering that was to come. Cold northern winds blew particularly strong, and portents of doom were abound, heralding those with magical insight to see the great storm that was coming to consume them all. On the winter of 2031 IC, a powerful Kurgan Chieftain, Asavar Kul of the Kul tribe, lead a massive invasion force of Chaos Warriors towards the very heart of Kislev itself, heeding the calls of the Dark God with his new title as the Everchosen. When the tribes came south, some called it The Great Slaughtering, The Godcalling, The Coming of the Storm, but by those of the weaker southern realms, this invasion was known as the Great War against Chaos.

In response to this, a force of Kislevite and Imperial soldiers was mustered, and faced the oncoming hordes just north of the city of Praag, between the towns of Murmagrad and Chazask. The allied army was unfortunately surrounded and massacred, underestimating the sheer size and numbers of Kul's army. Advancing at the western foothills of the Worlds Edge Mountain, the Chaos horde had also managed to subsequently destroy a contingent of Kislevites defending the last operational bridge on the River Lysnk, and Kul's forces crossed the last barrier between it and the city of Praag.

For much of the spring and summer of 2031 IC, the Chaos army besieged the Ungol city of Praag, the so-called Bastion of the North. For months now, the Chaos armies under Kul had made daring assaults against the city's walls, but the sheer ferocity of the defenders courage proved just as fearsome as the Northmen themselves. The city walls stood high and proud, and the city's defenders hurled back their attacks time and again with desperate heroics and the use of their deadly skills of the bow. But it was not the sword or axe that proved the downfall of this great city, but one that the Kislevites thought was their greatest of weapons. In the Winter of 2031 IC, starvation began to run wild in the streets of Praag, unable to feed its numerous populace without the produce made by the now destroyed local farms. Though the winter cold killed far more Chaos warriors then Kislevites defenders, the meager defense that the city had left after the season's end proved insufficient to hold the walls, and at the end of Winter, Praag had fallen, and the Chaos hordes ran amok in its streets.

With its downfall, the raw powers of Chaos engulfed the very city, like a never ending tide of pure mutation that corrupts everything in its path, and the Bastion of the North was changed forever. Its survivors were fused together in hellish, inhuman shapes. Living bodies melted into the walls of the city, so that it became impossible to tell flesh from stone. Distorted faces peered from walls, agonized limbs writhed from the pavement, and pillars of stone groaned with voices that came from once-human throats. Praag had become a living nightmare and a grim warning of the suffering that lay ahead if the warriors of the Dark Gods were victorious.

The Battle of Kislev (Spring of 2032 IC)
Before the downfall of the city, the current Tzar, Alexis Romanoff sent a plea for aid against the Chaos Horde that were assailing his gates. The first to heed the call was the Elector Count of Ostland, whose army was subsequently destroyed just north of the city of Praag. Unlike the Elector Count of Ostland however, the other Elector Counts of the Empire grew terrified, believing that all hope was lost, and that the End Times had truly come. Weakened by the Age of Three Emperors and the endless streams of mysterious crop failures, rampant disease, and rife mutation amongst the many provinces, hidden Chaos cults from all over the Empire had instigated uprisings to further disrupt the Imperial war-effort, hoping to gain favor from the invaders once the Empire has fallen. One particularly powerful Chaos Cult, called The Magi led the largest of the uprisings, using their powerful Tzeentch sorcerors to summon forth daemons and horrors upon the city of Nuln. Those who remained loyal to Sigmar prayed for deliverance, receiving an answer in the twin-tailed comet that soared in the night sky. Magnus the Pious saw the comet, and inspired by his grounding in the church of Sigmar used his influence as a minor noble to rally the people.

Under Magnus's leadership, Nuln was liberated from Chaos, with Magnus taking up his crusade across the Empire. A massive army was being assembled from the Elector Counts and other powers, either swayed by Magnus' tongue or afraid of any refusal to aid the growing force. It became the largest army ever assembled within the Empire in its long and war-torn history. Eventually, Magnus reached the city of Middenheim, where he sought an audience with Ar-Ulric Kriestov to gain support for the war. After Kriestov denounced Magnus as nothing more then a charlatan, Magnus walked through the Sacred Flame of Ulric - a holy site of the Church of Ulric which separates the pure from the tainted, and the truthful from the liar. After miraculously emerging unscathed, Magnus had proven the righteousness of his cause, and gained the support of a powerful ally. Magnus tactfully appointed Kriestov as the leader of his cavalry force. With the aid of Pieter Lazlo, the personal ambassador of Magnus, Teclis, Loremaster of the Tower of Hoeth has also joined Magnus regime, along with two other very powerful wizards. With his forces ready, the army began to march on towards the north.

Knowing that the army was too large to be able to reach Praag on time, Magnus ordered Krestov's cavalry force, consisting of vengeful Kislevite Wing Lancers and glory-hungry knights, to ride with all speed towards the beleaguered city. Night and day, the Imperial and Kislevite horsemen rode to aid their brothers of the north, envisioning great horrors that is to come to the people of Praag if they are too late. Sadly however, it all came true the day the army reached the outskirts of the city. Praag has fallen, just a few short hours after the arrival of the army. From off in the distance, they could hear the screams of dying men, the screeches of butchered woman, and the cries of the children as they see their life go up in flames and bloodshed. The Imperial army stood quiet and grim on that sorrowful hill, weeping small tears as they watched the last Chaos army finish up their bloody works.

With the fall of the city, several hundred Dwarven warriors from the city of Karaz-a-Karak has marched ceaselessly towards the capital city of Kislev, hoping to aid in its defense. With the last Chaos army having left the shattered city of Praag, the Imperial cavalry army hunted the rearguard of Asavar Kul's horde, destroying them utterly without Asavar Kul's knowing. Magnus on the other hand was marching is force towards Kislev as well, hoping to resupply before heading toward Praag, naive of the events that has befallen the city.

Upon his arrival in the outskirts of the city, he saw the capital besieged by the Chaos hordes, with only a few detachments of Kislevites and a contingent of Dwarfs desperately fighting to keep the enemy at bay. Seeing the event as dire, Magnus immediately ordered the charge towards the enemies rear. Surprised by the sudden arrival of the massive Imperial army and the unstoppable power of Teclis's magic, the Chaos lines began to waver as grim-faced Imperial soldiers drove a wedge deep into the enemy ranks. Just when the Chaos hordes began to buckle by this sudden assault, Asavar Kul rallied his greatest warriors and used their greater numbers to encircle Magnus's army. The relief force began to get bogged down by the greater number of their enemy, and Magnus was forced into a defensive position as the Horde began to close in all around them. On the city walls, the battle between the Forces of Chaos and the Imperial relief army was seen by the Kislevite defenders. Three hundred Dwarfs broke out of the city gates in an attempt to try and reach the Imperial relief force, but they were beaten back. Only half of their numbers returning to the beleaguered Kislevite capital.

When it seemed that all hope was lost to the defenders of the city, the Imperial cavalry which had been sent to relieve fallen Praag, appeared on the northern horizon, on the so-called “Hill of Heroes”, and launched a devastating attack borne of hatred upon the Chaos horde. Watching the enemy suddenly broken by the appearance of the Imperial reinforcements, Magnus spurred his men on to one last herculean effort to relieve the city. Seeing that the Forces of Order had gained some momentum, the gates of Kislev were opened and the Kislevites and their Dwarven allies spilled forth to slam into the Army of Chaos from yet another flank. Caught between three separate offensives on every side, the Chaos horde slowly disintegrated, and a mass route soon ensured. The plains of the city grew thick with Northmen blood and bodies, as the Kislevite brought dire hatred upon those that has destroyed their beloved homeland. The remnants of the horde fled back to the north, where they faced the dire punishments of their failures to their gods. The body of Kul was never found.

The Red Bokha and the Purging of Kislev (2032 to 2517 IC)
Even as the armies of the Kislevite massacre the last of the Northmen invaders, the damage was beyond repair, Kislev is in ruins, its populations massacred, and its cities turned to rubble. For more then a century this state of affair has lasted, with none of the Tzar's having enough power, wealth, or even having the sense of duty to reconstruct all that which their forefathers had worked so hard to achieve.

Taking advantage of this distraction, all manner of foul creatures took up residence in unoccupied areas of Kislev, killing off those few villages that had survived the initial invasion force, and becoming an ever present threat to those that leave the comforts of the south. Such things has only gotten worse when one of their own Tzarina, Kattarin the Bloody, became one of the dreaded Vampires, and did a secretive and bloody massacred on the population of the city of Kislev that had given her that rightful name. Only the intervention of her very own son, Tzarvich Pavel has ended her reign of terror over the land. But even this new Tzar did little to ease the pain of a ruined kingdom, and it was only in the year 2491 IC, that a new and true ruler of Kislev rose up to aid his people in this dire time.

In the heavily forested woodland areas just east of Kislev, near the borders of the World's Edge Mountains, the then ruler of Kislev, Vladimir Bokha, died fighting Goblins that had infested the region since the Chaos Invasion several hundred years earlier. This Tzar was the first in his line to actually take up arms and ensure the safety of his people by doing a systematic campaign of purgings throughout the lands of Troll Country, the Northern Oblast, and the eastern woodlands of Kislev. Vladimir's son, Boris Bokha was crowned the next Tzar of Kislev after his father's demise. Borisk Bokha was a fiery, pasisonate warrior, and it was said that he was born with the sound of the Bloodheart howling on the winds above him -- a good omen for a warrior of Kislev -- and the hags and wise women have prophasied that he would fight hard and die well to ensure the safety of this kingdom.

Boris continued his father's work for years, emptying the treasures of his own family to hire mercenaries to retrain the Kislevite armies, rebuilding bridges, roads, and towns, as well as importing large sums of black powder and Imperial Engineers from the Empire to aid in his wars and massive construction projects. Though it almost bankrupted his family, and several other noble families in the bargain, Tzar Boris' reign will be forever remembered for his driving spirit and eagerness to reclaim the lands that had become the domains of Goblins, Trolls, Beastmen, and other foul things.

During his first few years as Tzar, Boris and his army of highly-trained Kislevite warriors had also beaten a Beastmen horde in the outskirts of Praag, earning Boris the title as "The Red", a testimony to the gruesome massacre that had unfolded upon the Beastmen army. Tzar Boris was also instrumental in the revival of the Cult of Ursen, the original religion of the Gospodar people from which had slowly been overtaken by the worship of Ulric, Taal, and other foreign Gods. To do so, he undertook the trail of initiation that the priest of Ursen must overcome to join the order, and went to the forest to tame themselves a wild bear. He was not seen or heard of for eighteen days, and many feared he had met a gruesome fate in the depts of the icy forest. Preparations began for the coronation of his infant daughter Katarin when the search parties came across his unconscious form on the nineteenth day of the search. His still body was guarded by a bear of monstrous proportions, and the beast would not let anyone near him. The Tzar was also surrounded by the corpse of over two dozen massive wolves, and the snow was red with their blood. Nothing the searchers could do would entice the bear away from their ruler or convince it that they meant no harm. Finally, after another day had passed, Boris awoke, and the bear allowed the searchers to approach and tend to their ruler's wounds.

The tale of Boris related upon his return to the city of Kislev has since passed into folklore, though few doubt the truth of it. Four days before being found by the searchers and after much wandering, he came across the mightiest bear he had ever seen, with teeth and claws like sabre blades, and muscle that bulge with wiry veins. Taking this as a sign from Ursen, he had confronted the beast, and it charged him, the ground shaking with the fury of its charge and a bloodcurdling roar echoing throughout the forest. With his bare hands, he fended off the creatures attacks but could not overpower it. The struggle lasted a full day before a massive wolf pack, drawn by the scent of their combined blood, attacked. The wolves immediately went for the bear, but Boris sprang to its aid, crushing the skulls of the Wolves with his fist and tearing them from his back. Boris was badly wounded during the fighting, and the Tzar fell to his knees and sank to the ground, unconcious. As the beast closed in for the kill, the bear protected his erstwhile enemy from the common foe. It stood over the supine Tzar, tearing the wolves apart with its claws and savaging them with its powerful jaws. Boris had slipped into unconciousness, yet each time he had drifted awake, the bear had been there, protecting him from the wolves.

After being found, the bear returned to Kislev with the Tzar, and from then on, whenever Boris took to the field of battle, it was atop the back of his mighty companion Urskin (meaning Bear-brother), both a symbol of Ursens power and affection for Boris and an implacable enemy in battle. In the year of 2517 IC, after much campaigning and purging in the northern Oblast of Kislev, the once mighty Tzar fell at a battle near the borders of Troll Country, whilst leading a pulk of Kislevite horsemen. At an unnamed river crossing, the Tzar charged deep into the Kurgan army of Hetzar Feydaj but was soon surrounded and cut off from the rest of his army.

He and Urskin fought with all the might and fury of the Bear God, but even Red Boris could not triumph against such odds. Urksin was able to fight his way clear of the Kurgans and carry the Tzar back to the rest of his army, but it was already too late; the Tzar had taken a score of mortal or lethal wounds. Only when the battle was won did the Tzar slide from the back of Urskin and  die in the cold hard ground of the Kislevite Oblast. The army of Kislevite were agasp and mourned his passing, whilst his faithful companion Urskin roared in mourning for a full night before vanishing into the bleak northlands, and legend has it that to this day Urskin continues to hunt down the creatures of Chaos that slew his master.

With the death of Tzar Boris, the now fully grown Katarin became the new Tzarina of Kislev, the latest in a long line of rulers descended from the ancient Khan-Queen of the Gospodars. She rules with a cold majesty, beloved by her subjects and feared by her enemies. But barely four years into her reign, the land began to shake as the drums of war echo throughout the lands of the north, as the greatest invasion since the time of the Great War against Chaos, will forever decide the fate of her new kingdom.

Geography
"Through blood runs power of land...If concentrate...can feel Ancient Widow in every beat of heart, in every breath. Kislev is Land, Land is Kislev!.. We are Kislev!..."

- Bara Doya, Hag Witch

To gaze upon the beautiful, snow-encrusted lands of the Realm of the Ice Queen, is to also gaze upon a bloodied plain of snow, violence and barren tundra that stretch as far as the "eye can see". This inhospitable land is Kislev, a Kingdom that has been the first barrier between the lands of the Far North, and the fertile lands of the Far South. To live in this land, is to know bloodshed and misery without end, a land that only breeds the most hardiest of warriors to combat the threats that are constantly posed against the world.

The Kislevite people are these same warriors, a race of wolf-tough and self-reliant people that is often seen by their more "Southernly" neighbors as nothing more then barbarians themselves. But such lack of forsight into the minds of a Kislevite is ill-founded, as due to living at the very borders of Madness and Corruption, the people of Kislev has valued bravery, duty, and determination above all other traits. For living at the edges of the Mortal World and the Realm of Chaos, the Kislevite had to give it their all, lest they and their kingdom shall finally fall under the servitude of the Dark Gods.

To the South and South-West, the Kingdom of Kislev is bordered by the great and powerful Empire of Man, a country to which Kislev and her people have always been engaged in an eternal Brotherhood of Arms and Comradeship after the great victory won and fought by Magnus the Pious, the Savior of the Great War against Chaos. For centuries, the Warriors of Kislev and the Soldiers of the Empire fought side by side against the forces of the Dark Gods that continues to assail at their gates for millennium, and although relations between the two nations were not constantly harmonious, they have always responded to the Call of Battle whenever the other is found in peril. The great expanses of the Sea of Claws marks the western coast of Kislev and those communities that survive through fishing and whaling must constantly face the terrors of the Norse raiders, from which they sail across those perilous waters in their eagerness for riches and plunder. The Kingdom of Kislev has no offical Fleet or Armadas at her disposal, and the only fleets of ships located anywhere near these coastlines are owned by independent Merchant Princes in the Trade-City of Erengrad. Thusly, it is almost gauranteed that coastal communites have to fend for themselves upon the spotting of another Norse raiding party coming upon their shores.

To the north-west, along the northern coast of the Sea of Claws, lay the desolate and often barren and cold area of tundra known by many as Troll Country. This land has earned its name by the huge diversity of Trolls that has made their homes there, a result that stems from the constant flow of mutated winds flowing constantly southwards from the northern waste. As such, the land itself is highly infertile and barren, resulting in a lack of agriculture and established settlements. Several attempts have been made to settle in these hostile lands from many different race of people, the most prominent of which were the now near-extinct Ropsmenn tribes. However, ever since their near annilation by the Gospodars, no race of people has managed to tame the harsh territory; not even the horse-lords of northern Kislev have any desire to have claim to such a cursed and unforgivable land such as this.

To the east, the land has given way to large tracks of woodland that grows towards the foothills of the World's Edge Mountain. From here, numerous tribes of Orcs and Goblins that have crossed the mountain passes have now made permanent settlements and villages, plaguing both Dwarf and Kislevite towns settled along the mountain roads. It is also from here that the Kislevites and Dwarves make regular trade with one-another, a mutual benefit that has aided in both nations prosperity.

The Steppes
"It ain't natural to live out there without a good roof of stone above yeh. I kept in my wagon with a big hat on, so's I didn't go mad like them. Nary a decent mountain to be had within eye-shot and nowt but open skies and empty land all around you. I tell you it ain't natural..."

- Demzad Urgrimson, Dwarf merchant of Karaz-A-Karak

Unlike the lands of other kingdoms, the unique feature of Kislev's geography is the massive, sprawling grasslands that covers much of her territory. These grasslands are known as Steppes, a vast landscape where a traveler is never warm, and the air is parched and dry from a lack of moisture. Very little rain falls on the steppes, meaning only the hardiest grass and plants can survive in such a cold climate. However, when the rain does fall, it usually comes in a thunderous downpour, flooding the nearby banks and rivers and stopping all but the most fool-hardy from travelling. Aside from the common small villages, known as stanitsas, virtually the only inhabitants of the steppes are the nomadic tribesmen who roam the steppe in groups, constantly searching for new grazing ground to feed their herds of livestock.

The soil in the northern lands of Kislev is particularly poor, and only in the more temperament and fertile south can farmers coax crops from the land without much difficulty, forcing most Ungol tribes to rely on livestock. Northern marauders, also known as Kyazak, have also dwelled in the steppes for many generations, but these ferocious warrior-tribesmen do not grow any crop or rear any animals; instead, they take what they need by force, attacking local villages and ambushing any travelers they come across for gold and food. Such is the vastness of the steppes that it is next to impossible to hunt all these raiders out of their lands for good.

Climate
"Bah, all that kvas makes them mad! Who would want to live there anyway? The summers are cold, the winters are freezing, and if the nomads don’t kill you, the marauders will! I tell you, they’re welcome to the place!"

- Sebastian Wurtz, Merchant of Nuln

Kislev’s climate varies enormously, ranging from long, dark winters to warm, balmy summers when the long grasses can catch fire. During particularly hot summers, which is a rarity in Kislev, this threat is particularly dangerous, for such steppe fires can spread with unimaginable rapidity since the grass is so dry, and many unwary travellers have been trapped and burned to death by such a conflagration. Such fires are rare, and for the most part, Kislev is a cold, bleak land with little sunlight to warm the body

Kislev’s deadly cold winters are infamous throughout the Old World, and when the snows come, the land is held tight in its iron grip. Temperatures plummet to far below freezing, and to be caught out on the steppe in winter is to die. Snow blankets the land in white, and such is the unending vista of featureless whiteness that covers the land that the Kislevites have a term for such emptiness. It is known as Raspotitsa, which means “roadlessness,” and no one that values their life dares to travel in such times. Even outside the months of winter, the northern reaches of the steppe are often covered in snow year-round, and the temperature never reaches far above freezing.

When spring finally comes to Kislev, it brings with it a mixture of snow and rain, and with the break of the winter, the steppe comes alive with people as tribes migrate to find fresh grazing, kyazak seek out new prey, and caravans of merchants set off with fresh cargoes to take to far-off markets. Travel in spring is dangerous, as the icy landscape becomes muddy, and wagons often become trapped in the mud, where they will no doubt be abandoned to enable the caravan to move on before it becomes prey for kyazak.

Autumn is when the people of Kislev hunker down to weather the harsh winter to come. Old men wearily shake their heads and declare that this coming winter will be hard; it is something of a tradition for the elderly of Kislev to complain that each coming winter will be the hardest yet and then proclaim how the winters were harder when they were younger. In the autumn, firewood is stocked, livestock slaughtered, and crops stockpiled so there will be enough food to last until spring

Cities
There are three large cities in Kislev: Praag, Erengrad and the city of Kislev itself. Each city has its own distinct history and personality, and so, though they are all peopled by Kislevites, they each have a character of their own.

Kislev
The capital of the nation and seat of the Tzars and Tzarinas who rule the land, Kislev is the largest and most developed of the three cities. Situated close to the Urskoy, it is virtually on the border with the Empire, and many Imperial customs and aesthetic values have influenced Kislevan life, literature and architecture. Founded as the capital by the Khans and Khan-queens of the Gospodar people in Year 1 (IC 1524), it has been besieged several times in its history, though has never fallen to an enemy. At the centre of Kislev lies the Bokha Palaces, the hereditary seat of power rebuilt during the reign of Tzar Boris Bokha after the original Palace Gospodarin was all but destroyed during the Great War against Chaos in 778 (IC 2302).

Erengrad
In ancient times the High Elves had a trading port in what is now Erengrad during their attempted colonization of the Old World. Erengrad was originally the Ungol capital, when it was merely a walled town known as Norvard, and later overrun by the Gospodars. Erengrad is Kislev’s main trading city and its largest port. Situated on the coast of the Sea of Claws at the mouth of the Lynsk, vessels from across the Old World, New World and even Norsca come here with goods, slaves, gems and precious metals. Kislev does not have a standing navy as such, but the waters of the Sea of Claws are dangerous. As such all merchantmen are armed in some fashion and can be pressed into service by the Tzarina when needed.

Praag
Praag, also known as the Cursed City is the most northerly of Kislev’s largest settlements and has been overrun by the northern tribes several times. During the Great War against Chaos, the walls and buildings themselves became so corrupted with Chaos energy that they sprouted tentacles and eyes, the ground writhed and wails and screams echoed from the rooftops. After the victory of Magnus the Pious at the siege of Kislev, the Kislevites razed Praag to the ground and rebuilt it, though it is still rumoured that a taint of Chaos remains there. Praag has also served as a rallying point for the Ungols in times of war and contains a sizable Ungol population, attempting to secede on three occassions.

Government
Kislev ruled by powerful warrior-sorcerers who practice a unique kind of sorcery called Ice Magic. The ruler of Kislev is a Tzar who ascends to the throne through birthright, although they all originate from Gospodar heritage.

Society
Gospodar and Ungol culture remains largely distinct and in part serves to makes Kislev almost two nations in one. Kislev is also delineated between north and south. In the south, the culture and society of the Gospodars predominate, while to the north, where the lands are more barren, the horse tribes hold sway.

Nobility
The middle-ranking hereditary nobles of Kislev are known as boyarin. The Boyar subjects owe him their fealty in return for protection and support in times of war and famine. The boyarin are responsible for organizing the raising of militia troops from subject villages, as well as commanding armies. Boyarin are exclusively of Gospodar descent.

Druzhina is the lowest rank of nobility among the Gospodars. Low ranking military officers tend to hold this title. Traditionally the title is hereditary, but is sometimes granted to individuals by a Tzar in recognition of great acts of service to the ruler or to Kislev.

Military
Throughout the course of human history, Kislev has always bred hardy people, not only because of the harsh climate and generally infertile lands, but also due to the constant depredation by the raiders of the Northern Waste. The fiery hatred for these Men of the North is well evident, for so many years has the sons of Kislev died by their hands, with the Ungol tribes of the north bore the greatest of this hatred. Known by the Kislevites as Kyazak (meaning Outlaws or Raiders), these raiding parties are an ever-present threat to settlements and caravans north of the river Lynsk, and some have managed to even cross the river itself, and prey upon the more defenceless south. But most incursions are usually small and short-lived. Unable to match the speed of the Kislevite horsemen, most raid would usually be harassed until they are forced to retreat back north, unable to catch up and kill the lightning-fast attacks of their victims.

This strategy of warfare is common amongst the north, where the lack of numbers forces many Ungol tribes to adopt a hit-and-run tactic to wear down their opponents rather then using overwhelming numbers. With their skills at horsemenship and archery, this tactic proved successful numerous times over. If the Northmen manages to bypass these tribes of Horse-archers, and attack the more defenceless southern towns south of the River Lysnk, local Kislevite nobles would gather a Rotas (meaning Squadron) of the famed Winged Lancers into their banner and drive the northmen out of their land. This is common amongst those towns of Gospodar heritage, and is known as the most common way for the Kislevites of the Southern Oblast to counter huge incursions. Occasionally, a particularly powerful chieftian or warlord would rise amongst the tribes of the Norscan and Kurgan people and lead a massive invasion consisting of a confederation of several tribes into the heart of Kislev. In such a situation, the bulk of Kislevite towns would pool their Rotas of Winged Lancers togather, forming themselves into Battions called Pulks (meaning Army). When enough Pulks are assembled, the Kislevite army would intercept the Invasion force, and attack the Maruaders from all sides, often demoralizing their enemy into a mass route.

The Tzar maintains a standing army of Kossars - disciplined Ungol and Gospodar foot soldiers who fight with a characteristic combination of axe and bow. At range they wear down the enemy with arrows, swiftly shifting to their axes to receive an enemy charge. They have been known to be dreadfully effective against the Chaos armies, due to their ability to set-up ambushes and other such withering tactics to stall the invaders and allow their own armies time to prepare and engage.

The Kislev military has other units that are not seen in Warhammer Fantasy Battle. The following units are from the specialist games ranges:

Knights, Bowmen, Axemen, Trained Bears and War Wagons from Warmaster. Druzhina, Streltsi and Cossacks from Mordheim.

Religion
The Kislevites worship many different gods, although only a small number of major ones. The religion of Kislev is steeped in history, absorbing elements of the various different tribe, most importantly that of the Gospodars and Ungols. There are three major gods in Kislev: Ursun, Dazh and Tor. These three are worshipped over most of the land.

There are also several other gods worshipped, especially in the south, including Taal and Ulric. There is a regional difference between the north and south, the south being influenced by the religion of the Empire, while the north being influenced by the old Ungol tribes.

Kislevites also worship many other small, nature and household spirits who help in daily lives or test them. Small offerings and tributes are followed in a near unthinking fashion to appease the needs of the many gods.