The symbol of the Cult of the Yellow Fang
The Cult of the Yellow Fang is a secretive Human Chaos Cult that worships the Horned Rat, the minor Chaos God that is the creator and divine patron of the Skaven.[1a]
Many Men of the Old World hold dim views of the future. They believe that the Empire is failing, that perhaps the time of Mankind itself is coming to an end. It seems that whatever Humans build or create crumbles into ruin and corruption: rulers care nothing for the ruled, a priest's prayers are little more than empty words mouthed by someone who no longer believes, and family members betray each other for just a few coins or a jug of cheap beer. Certainly the constant threat of a new Chaos invasion from the north under the command of the rumoured thirteenth Everchosen Archaon has lent fuel to the fires of their bleak thoughts.[1a]
Most keep their thoughts to themselves, hope they are wrong, and do their best to get through just one more day. Others, however, are certain a new order is coming and have decided to throw in their lot with it. They want to be atop the pile when the Empire comes crashing down. For these people, the Cult of the Yellow Fang and its worship of the Horned Rat offer a means of survival and a place of power in the coming new order.[1a]
History[]
It is not known when exactly the Cult of the Yellow Fang was formed. It is possible that a rat-worshipping cult of some kind -- not unheard of in the Empire and beyond -- was somehow co-opted by an opportunistic Skaven. It is also possible that the creation of the cult was a Skaven plan from the very start, with Men slowly inducted into an organisation entirely of inhuman making. In either case, the idea of using Human pawns came quite naturally to the Skaven. They consider themselves superior to every other species, and manipulating a few Humans into doing their bidding would therefore prove trivial.[2a]
Over time this practice of bribery and intimidation of a few useful Human spies gave way to something much closer to outright indoctrination. The best part of all is that the cult is now self-sustaining. From time to time the Skaven step in to guide it in directions they find useful, but mainly the Yellow Fang has grown and maintained itself.[2a]
The cult has branches across the Old World, wherever Men live with Skaven beneath them. For the most part the cult has maintained its secrecy admirably. Even in Tilea, where Skaven existence is more commonly known, few could guess that their Human followers are not the occasional wayward soul or blackmailed sewer jack, but instead a fervently devoted sect of worshippers.[2a]
The cult now eagerly awaits the day when its secret masters will rise up, throw down the corrupt Empire, and grant their favoured Human servants first pick of the spoils. This is almost certainly not going to happen, and indeed to most Skaven not used to dealing with Humans -- which is the vast majority of the ratmen -- there is little difference between one Human and another, and surely all will be devoured when the great day comes and the Children of the Horned Rat rise up during the Great Ascendancy to take their rightful place atop the carnage of a ruined mortal world.[2a]
Symbol[]
A cultist bearing the symbol of the Yellow Fang prepares an ambush in pursuit of the cult's nefarious goals.
The symbol of the cult is a stylised Skaven triangle symbol, with one of the lower points painted a dirty yellow and longer than the other. Also, there is the curved dagger favoured by the cult for rituals and assassination, its shape suggestive of a rat's fang. Particularly devout members have a small yellow fang tattooed under their upper arm, while others go so far as to have an incisor knocked out, stained yellow, and hung from a string to wear around their necks. With such poor dental care across the Old World, the lack of an incisor is hardly noticed.[1a]
The truly devoted take things to an even greater degree, modifying their own bodies to look as ratlike as possible. Teeth are filed to points and ears are sewn to better resemble those of a rat. Some take on the affectations of Skaven speech and behaviour, repeating words and adopting twitching, jerking movements. The Skaven, of course, find this rather amusing, and further proof that theirs is the superior species -- after all, why else would lesser creatures seek to emulate them?[2a]
To some Yellow Fang members this is just so: they wish to look more like the creatures they worship. To others, especially among the faction that knows of and worships the Horned Rat directly, this is done not to emulate the Skaven, but in homage to their chosen god. A few of these fervent Yellow Fang extremists have even taken to wearing horns. While the average Skaven will think little of this, perhaps finding it mildly amusing, most Grey Seers would view it as a grievous insult. While a few Grey Seers do have dealings with the cult, none have yet to witness this brazen blasphemy directly -- undoubtedly a blast of warp lightning would end such an encounter rather quickly.[2a]
Locations[]
The Cult of the Yellow Fang has its main strength in western Middenland and the northern Reikland. Its core can be found in the Carroburg area, where cultists have worked themselves into positions of moderate power in the ruling hierarchy. There is a branch also in Altdorf, which is subservient to the Carroburg cabal.[1b]
Individual agents of the cult do its dirty work as far afield as Marienburg and Bögenhafen, and the cult has influence among the river pirates of the Lower Reik.[1b]
Temperament[]
The Yellow Fang worships the Horned Rat, the minor Chaos God of the hideous Skaven. As such, its members are usually secretive and clandestine, preferring to work from behind the scenes. Members of the cult are skilled at manipulating others without revealing their own goals. Thus, when a plot is foiled, few recognise the presence of the true conspirators behind it. Even when the authorities make arrests, the false leads and double blinds left by the cult keep their hidden hand unseen.[1b]
Even in Tilea, where Skaven existence is more commonly known, few could guess that their Human followers are not the occasional wayward soul or blackmailed sewer jack, but instead a fervently devoted sect of worshippers.[2a]
Compared to other cults of the Horned Rat, however, the Cult of the Yellow Fang is more devoted to direct action to break down the existing order. They are also fond of public acts of terror, to spread fear and dismay through the populace. If they cannot find a convenient dupe to carry out an assassination, the cult will send a member to do so, as they did when they tricked a Halfling rat catcher into killing the Baroness Chrobok while she was officiating at a tournament in Delberz. [1b]
Under current leadership, the cult is less than fully devoted to the Skaven as a race. Its hierarchs believe that they are destined to take over from the Skaven when the Empire inevitably crumbles. After all, did not Men once crush the ratmen during the reign of Emperor Mandred Skavenslayer, proving their superiority? Once they have established the new order, there will be time to seize power from the ratmen. Until then, the cultists practice utter obeisance and hope to prove to their horned god their worthiness to.[1b]
Methods[]
Cultists of the Yellow Fang
The Cult of the Yellow Fang can be surprisingly effective. It uses direct action to attack and undermine the existing order. It is particularly fond of public acts of sabotage that spread fear and dismay through the populace, such as the despoilment of the Nordtor wells in 2420 IC that resulted in an outbreak of the galloping trots that festered in the district for months. If they cannot find a convenient dupe to carry out an assassination, the cult will send one of its own to complete the assignment -- but they are careful to remove all cult tattoos and other identifying marks from the assassin's body. Undertakings such as these are invariably suicide missions, so there must be no evidence leading back to the Yellow Fang.[2a]
Typically the Yellow Fang are dispatched to either clear the way for a Skaven incursion, or to clean up after such an attack has gone badly. Beyond the more general goal of preparing Human cities to fall, the Under-Empire is always on the lookout for areas where it might gain an advantage. Human engineering is watched carefully, for example designs and plans are often copied or adopted by Yellow Fang cultists inserted among the student body at Imperial engineering colleges. The Skaven have learned much by closely observing Human cultures as far afield as Grand Cathay or Araby, and excel at putting this knowledge to use.[2a]
When more direct action is called for, such as killing someone in the Empire who has learned too much of the Skaven's existence, the Yellow Fang are sometimes used to lay the path or gather intelligence for a more skilled Skaven assassin -- such as the one dispatched to kill Eunice Hasche in The Horned Rat. The Yellow Fang excel in this role, as their understanding of Human culture means they are better equipped to predict a target's movements, for example, attend a Middenball game next week or a play this weekend (sport and the theatre being two concepts with which most Skaven would struggle).[2a]
The Yellow Fang are always on the lookout for opportunities to advance their position. This often takes the form of requesting greater authority or autonomy from their secret masters. The Skaven think this quite understandable, if undesirable, behaviour, but such is their view of Humans that even their most devoted servants are rarely trusted with any truly important task.[2a]
Still, from time to time the Yellow Fang are given a task to which the Skaven would consider themselves better suited, such as a raid or assassination. In all such cases a Skaven team will be on standby in the sewers below, ready to rush in and set things right if the Humans have failed in some way. Should the Humans succeed, the Skaven credit the victory to their own watchful oversight of the bumbling cultists.[2a]
Strictures[]
While they have no priests per se, that role being reserved for the Skaven's Grey Seers, some cultists of the Yellow Fang are wizards, practitioners of Dark Magic. Regardless of any ability to practice magic, all cultists must abide by the following requirements, under pain of torture and death:
- Never reveal the existence of the cult to any outsider, unless it is for a recruitment sanctioned by cult leaders.[1b]
- Always strive to tear down the works of the Empire. Sabotage what you can, and interfere with what you cannot.[1b]
- Plant the seeds of fear, doubt, and despair wherever possible. A discouraging word in the right ear may well be worth a dozen daggers.[1b]
- Once every quarter, on a night when the Chaos Moon is in its first quarter, the members shall gather and sacrifice a Human, Elf, Dwarf, or Halfling to the Horned Rat. If a sacrifice cannot be found, then a cult member shall have the honour.[1b]