The Changeling as depicted in Total War: Warhammer III.
The Changeling, known also as the "Perplexing Prankster," the "Deceiving Horror," or even "Tzeentch's Trickster," is a Herald of Tzeentch who personifies the part of the Changer of Ways' psyche that is the meddler and the deceiver.[1b]
Icon of the Changeling and his Tzeentchian army, the Deceivers, in Total War: Warhammer III.
The Changeling is the ultimate trickster, who can take the form of other beings, from the tiniest of insects to the most massive of Greater Daemons. None, save perhaps Tzeentch himself, know the Changeling’s true form, for he goes cowled and cloaked when in his own shape -- perhaps even the Changeling himself has forgotten it.[1b]
Not only can the Changeling mirror the form of another, he can adopt mannerisms and personalities in so flawless a fashion that even the Dark Gods can be deceived. In all of creation there is only one entity that the Changeling cannot duplicate: the Great God Tzeentch himself. The Grand Schemer will not suffer any being to steal his identity, even for a moment.[1b]
Though Tzeentch loves to take credit for the Changeling's schemes, only a handful of the Daemon's adventures are carried out at his divine patron's directions. The Great Schemer is content to let the Changeling roam wild through eternity, causing havoc where he may. Each meddling opens up more possibilities in the Great Game, and Tzeentch watches with amusement as the Changeling weaves his uneven tapestry of disruption.[1b]
That so many of his pranks have caused terrible wars is of no concern to the Changeling. He loves the discord of conflict, for it breeds opportunity to deceive and dismay like nothing else. His enjoyment begins even before armies clash: impersonating messengers and generals to disrupt strategy wherever possible. When battle begins, the Changeling is wont to adopt the shape and skill of the most powerful foe, pounding the enemy to pieces with malicious enthusiasm and borrowed muscle.[1b]
History
The Changeling of Tzeentch in his most common form.
Afflicted as he is with a low tolerance for boredom, the Changeling exists to play malicious tricks upon all about him. On one occasion, taking the shape of a Daemonette, he stole the silver apples of knowledge from Slaanesh's palace in the Dark Prince's Realm.[1b]
The Changeling makes his escape after another cunning theft.
On the edge of the Dark Prince's territory he then assumed the form of a Plaguebearer and slipped into Nurgle's garden, only to grow tired of the game and abandon the apples to rot amidst the decaying fronds.[1b]
When Slaanesh discovered the theft, he flew into a rage and sent his armies to retrieve the lost treasures. So did Slaanesh and Nurgle come to blows, the former believing the latter to be a thief, and the latter convinced the former had engineered a pretext for invasion.[1b]
The Changeling was already elsewhere -- stealing Collars of Khorne from Flesh Hounds and melting them down to create brass dioramas of the Blood God's greatest defeats.[1b]
So has the Changeling passed through eternity, sowing mischief in his wake. It was he who cut away Slaanesh's hair while the Dark Prince slept, and from it wove the cloak that Tzeentch presented to his mortal Champion Egrimm van Horstmann. It was the Changeling who sealed the doors of Khorne's Brass Citadel while he was away campaigning, forcing the Blood God to shatter his own proud gates when he returned.
The Changeling's handiwork is always obvious after the fact -- indeed, part of the prank is to make the victim aware of his deceiver, but impotent to act against him. It is of little surprise then that Tzeentch's brother gods burn with desire to destroy the Changeling, to tear him limb from limb and scatter his parts and pieces across reality; yet somehow he always evades capture.[1b]
Treachery at Tlanxla
The Changeling unleashing the sorcery of Tzeentch, as depicted in Total War: Warhammer III.[4]
In the year 703 IC, the Changeling took the form of the Liche King Arkhan the Black. So disguised, he promised a cabal of Necrarch Vampires untold sorcerous knowledge in exchange for their assistance in an attack on the Lustrian temple-city of Tlanxla.[1a]
The Changeling, as depicted in Total War: Warhammer III.[4]
Whilst Zombie hordes fought Tlanxla's Lizardmen protectors to a standstill, the Changeling's Daemons ransacked the treasure vaults of both sides, swiftly overwhelming defences weakened by the ongoing battle and claiming many mighty artefacts -- which they then devoured.[1a]
Imitating the Monkey King
"Descriptions of the Monkey King vary wildly depending on region and local legends. In northern Cathay, he is said to be a raging gorilla, in the west, a baboon-like creature with golden hair and an engorged rear (for the King is always in heat). On the eastern coast, legends tell of a gluttonous orangutan with an exposed belly covered with unsightly boils. In some parts of the south, the Monkey King is said to be a slight spider-monkey who jumps upon the shoulder of allies and enemies, whispering half-truths and lies."
- —Examples of the conflicting information over the Monkey King circulating in Grand Cathay.[2]
According to some stories, the Changeling is responsible for the negative image of the Monkey King in Grand Cathay as a Chaos-aligned creature.[3]
Although there was an antagonistic relationship between the Monkey King and the Cathayan Dragons who rule the Celestial Empire, there were good relations as well, with the Monkey King training warriors for all Cathay. Tzeentch, the god of intrigue, sought to end this threat to his attempts to overthrow the empire by using the Changeling to frame the Monkey King as a monster.[3]
Videos
Sources
- 1: Warhammer Armies: Daemons of Chaos (8th Edition)
- 2: Total War: Warhammer III (PC Game)
- 3: Interview With Warhammer 3's Lead Writer Andy Hall - Total War Warhammer 3 - Lorebeards Podcast, Feb 12, 2022
- 4: Total War Blog - Shadows of Change: Introducing the Changeling
Gallery
