Bull Centaur Renders

"The flow of slaves to the Dark Lands of the Chaos Dwarfs feeds two great needs; the sprawling mine pits and the bloody hunger of the Bull Centaurs. Only by force of arms do we stop these plagues from draining our kingdoms dry."

—Gerlach Wurnst, Captain of Arms in the Border Princes.^[3a]

Warhammer Bull Centaur — Bull Centaur Render rearing.

Bull Centaurs or Renders as they are sometimes called, are creatures with the upper torso of a Chaos Dwarf but the body of a ferocious bull. Many centuries ago, when the Chaos Dwarfs were first twisted by Chaos, some of their race were transformed into Bull Centaurs. Since those days the Bull Centaurs have guarded the great statue of Hashut in the temple high atop the Tower of Zharr-Naggrund. They are as keen witted and intelligent as Chaos Dwarfs and completely devoted to the worship of Hashut, the Father of Darkness.^[1a]

Bull Centaurs are arrogant and cruel creatures, utterly dedicated to the Masters of Zharr-Naggrund and their horrifying deity.^[1b] The Chaos Dwarf Sorcerers trust them completely, and often entrust them with complex or dangerous tasks. Although they are few in number they are more powerful than Chaos Dwarfs and much swifter in battle. Even though there are mighty individuals amongst them, there are no sorcerers in their number.^[1a]

Overview

Warped and malign creatures, Chaos Dwarf Bull Centaurs are, as their name suggests, twisted amalgams of Chaos Dwarf and ferocious bull in aspect, the unnatural fusion creating hulking, monstrous beasts far larger than either and driven with cannibalistic appetites. Many centuries ago, during the Time of Chaos, a fraction of those that survived the onslaught became horrifically mutated, their stubborn Dwarf resistance to the warping taint overwhelmed utterly by the awful energies to which they were subjected, and so the first Bull Centaurs were born. They came to serve their wider kin as shock troops and temple guardians, and to them was entrusted the protection of the sacred fanes of Hashut, as they more than any other had been twisted into the closest semblance of the Father of Darkness' image. Into each successive generation of Chaos Dwarfs a handful of new 'blessed' kin has been born - usually to the death of their unfortunate dams - and such children are given over immediately to the Sorcerers to serve in turn. This number however has not proven enough, and Hashut's inventive priesthood have wielded their dark arts to make more, tampering with their offspring using horrific magic, and even fusing them into frameworks of metal and Daemon-tainted flesh to swell the ranks of their temple guardians.^[2a]^[3a]

As well as serving as temple guardians, the Bull Centaurs are also entrusted with dangerous tasks by their masters, who trust them implicitly. They are hulking, savage creatures whose strength and endurance far exceeds that of a Chaos Dwarf, and thanks to their strange forms, they are far swifter in battle. As they age, their flesh hardens and distorts almost to the consistency of a living metal, and rather than heal naturally from injuries, they must instead rely upon their Sorcerer-masters to repair their wounds with poultices of molten mercury, steel sutures and brazen splints. Although as keen-witted and intelligent as their Chaos Dwarf brethren, and utterly devoted to the worship of Hashut, their Father of Darkness, they are even swifter to anger, and are often otherwise preoccupied with a great hunger for flesh. A good number of the slave-sacrifices bound for Hashut's temples will actually be rent apart, limb-from-limb at the Bull Centaurs' holy feasts, as while slave meat is a common fare for the Chaos Dwarfs, the Bull Centaurs prefer their meals both alive and screaming.^[2a]^[3a]

Wargear

Bull Centaur Render regiments are formed of 3-12 Bull Centaurs. They are normally armed with heavy armour and a hand weapon, but they can equip themselves with a shield or another hand weapon, or change both items for a single two-handed weapon.^[3a]