Screaming Bell

"The great battle of the plain hereabouts. The turning of the armies of the Empire! To a Man, we all sensed that something was amiss that day...something unnatural. Fear where there was fearlessness, a weakening of iron resolve. Brave men, Greatswords true, quailed and broke rank, sewing shame and enmity amongst their allies..."

- Sir Vogel, Imperial Geatsword

The Screaming Bell is an unholy battle-altar dedicated to the Horned Rat, driven forward by the whim of the Skaven Hordes with a Grey Seer at the fore. The tolling of this holy relic strikes deep into the hearts of the evil ratmen, inspiring such awe to its allies while inspiring fear into the hearts of the enemy. The Bell itself is an ever-present symbol of the creation-legend of the Skaven race and it is from these unholy altars that the Grey Seers preach their plans of total domination in the name of the malevolent God.

These relics were cast in the hellish warpforges beneath Skavenblight, using bronze laced with pure warpstone. The Warlock-Engineers of Clan Skyre are the ones who aid in the casting of the bell, joining alongside the Grey Seers in a thirteen-day ritual.

The monotonous chittering incantation causes glowing ruines of balefire to writhe mystically across the bell and as the casting is cooled, the metal is coated many times over with sacrifical blood. Once forged, the Bell is installed upon a wooden carriage drawn forward by a horde of fanatical followers and a great Rat Ogre to ring it. Rumour has it that some piece of the great tower of Kavzar is incorporated into each Screaming Bell, be it a chunk of masonry or some small part of the Horned Bell that sits within the tallest tower of the Temple of the Horned Rat.

In battle, the omnious tolling of the bell resounds above the clamour of the fighting, a message of death to foes but a declaration of supremacy to all Skaven. The deafening sound drives the Skaven Hordes into a reckless frenzy, hardening their craven hearts to feats of uncommon savagry. The thunderous tolling is magically amplified and with each toll, the din grows louder and more terrible, making the very stones to split and buildings to crumble. To those that are attunned to the Horned Rat, each toll gives out one single worded message; doom.

Source

 * Warhammer Armies: Skaven (7th Edition) -- pg. 42
 * Warhammer - Forge of War 01 (2007) (Whitewolf-DCP) -- pg 7

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