Clanrat

Clanrats are the second-most common of troop available to the Skaven. The only Skaven variety that outnumbers them is the Slave Rats.

History

The bulk of most Skaven armies are formed of Clanrats- a vast and verminous horde of ratmen that make up the warrior class. These Skaven belong to any one of thousands of clans scattered throughout the underground burrows, strongholds and bursting cavern-cities that make up the Under-Empire. Of all the teeming masses, only the worker dregs, the shiftless Skavenslaves, are more numerous than the Clanrats.

Clanrats are slightly smaller than man-sized, standing four to five feet high. They range between lithe and scrawny and are possessed of a constant energy, most commonly seen in a nervous twitching of their hairless, worm-like tails. A single Clanrat is not a fearsome opponent. A lone warrior will lack any degree of discipline or determination and is likely to skulk in the shadows, afraid to go forward, too catious to go backwards. Unless driven by black hunger, a single Clanrat will only attack something that is visibly weakened or crippled, preferring even then to attack unseen from behind. When banded together in a large pack, however, Skaven bolster each other's confidence and fuel their feral ferocity to a highly aggressive level. This allows the individually cowardly ratmen to form massive units that will recklessly hurl themselves into a fray against even obviously superior troops.

Like all Skaven, Clanrats are hierarchical bullies that will go out of their way to kick, maim and otherwise keep down any beneth their own rank, in their case, the lowly Skavenslaves. Similarly, Clanrats will fawn over and prostrate themselves before anyone else- in their case, everyone but Skavenslaves. In larger Skaven strongholds, many clans co-exist in a constant power struggle- and most Clanrats will know (and spend an inordinate amount of time dwelling upon) which clans, Clawleaders or Chieftains are on the decline and therefore vunerable.

When a Warlord gathers his might for war, the Clanrats are front and center, occupying a key place in the battleline. They form into great blocks to overwhelm a foe with their weight of numbers and the fury of their attack. If the Warlord can afford the price and is in reasonable standing with Clan Skryre, then a Weapons Team might accompany the regiment. These arcane devices of destruction are viewed suspiciously by the Clanrats, who frequently suffer due to their all-too frequent technical failures.

After the adrenaline-burst of melee, Clanrats need to feed or suffer the unbearable pangs of the Black Hunger. Immediately following any combat, the ratmen scour the battlefield, devouring the dead and injured of friend and foe alike.

Clawleaders

Clawleaders are the heads of any group of Clanrats.

References

• Warhammer Armies Codex: Skaven (5th edition).