"In deeds! In a great many deeds! The garden must grow, and so it has. Our father sneezes great promise inside thee, little doctor. He bethinks thee... a change of careen. Perhaps green fingers rather than red, hmm? Perhaps the paradise beyond bewaits you?"
- —Ku'gath Plaguefather praises the work done by his favourite Champion of Nurgle, Festus the Leechlord.[3d]
Ku'gath Plaguefather, also known as the "Foetid Brewmaster," the "Plagueweaver" and the "Rotting Poxmaker," is among the most favoured of all Nurgle's Great Unclean Ones.[1d] Like all of the Plague Lord's Greater Daemons, Ku'gath has many names in many realms. In Naggaroth he is cursed as Jharihn, in Lustria feared as Xochitataliav, in Tilea hated as Kisveraldo the Foul-Breathed, and in distant Grand Cathay reviled as Cha-Zin-Fa the Ever-Pustulent.[2a]
Whilst other Great Unclean Ones work to spread the plagues already extant, Ku'gath is fascinated by the breeding of new and virulent life. Ku'gath aims to one day breed a contagion that can infect the gods themselves. The Plaguefather prides himself upon his detachment. So absorbed is he in his search for the perfect plague, Ku'gath remains relatively untroubled by the shifting balance of power within the Realm of Chaos, yet this is not to say that the Plaguefather does not play his part in the Great Game. Ku'gath's experiments are nothing without practical results, and he is ever eager to test fresh creations on the battlefield.[1d]
The Plaguefather rides upon a massive palanquin bedecked with alchemical paraphernalia: vials full of seething powder, flasks of indescribable liquid and hessian sacks stuffed to bursting with Nurglings. This great bulk is held aloft by a carpet of straining Nurglings, and Ku'gath is attended on by countless others, all bred from the Plaguefather's pox vats. Ku'gath's Nurglings are not merely servants -- they are also ammunition, for in battle Ku'gath is wont to hurl them into the enemy ranks. The unwilling projectiles burst on impact, drenching the target with disease-ridden fluids. Ku'gath watches keenly as each Nurgling's pox takes effect. Should the plague achieve Ku'gath's expectation, he gurgles with a proud father's delight. If the results do not meet with approval, Ku'gath immediately brews a refined version of the plague, dunks a fresh Nurgling, and lets fly once again.[1d]
Quick Answers
What is the significance of Ku'gath Plaguefather's title 'Foetid Brewmaster'?
What role does Ku'gath Plaguefather play in the Warhammer universe?
What are some of the deeds accomplished by Ku'gath Plaguefather in the Warhammer 40k universe?
History
Origins
Ku'gath Plaguefather is obsessed with discovering the perfect plague.[1d]
Of all Nurgle's Daemons, Ku'gath is the most willing to enter the physical realm -- his quest for more efficacious plague-reagents knows no boundaries. A few drops of mortal blood can turn a quiescent pox into a raging epidemic. Ku'gath has discovered that ground Skaven bladder, for example, increases the virulence of Red Pox a hundredfold. Thus, in the cause of experimentation, Ku'gath makes a point of acquiring fresh specimens whenever he enters the mortal worlds. Indeed, the Plaguefather keeps a variety of specimens, mortal and Daemon, caged in a dank chamber among the sagging rafters of Nurgle's decaying mansion in the Realm of the Plaguelord, so that he always has a suitable supply of ingredients to hand.[1d]
It is during forays into the Known World that Ku'gath has encountered the one mortal race that has penetrated his scientific detachment to kindle his rage -- the Dwarfs. On a professional level, the Plaguefather hates the creatures for their resilience to disease; on a personal level, he is embittered by a truly ignominious defeat beneath the walls of Karaz-a-Karak. Either way, there is no doubt in Ku'gath's mind as to the first test subjects when his perfect plague is prepared.[1d]
Great Catastrophe
After the collpase of the Polar Gates of the Old Ones, the Daemonic legions of the Chaos Gods entered the world and unleashed untold carnage in what is called the Great Catastrophe. Ku'gath led the Daemonic legions of Nurgle against the region that would later be called the Old World, fighting against the Dwarfs under the leadership of their Ancestor Gods.[6a]
One by one, the Dwarf fortresses fell, swept from history by the Daemonic tide. In the northern mountains, a thousand unstoppable Bloodletters scaled the walls of Kazad Klad, drowning the keep's stones in the blood of its defenders. A few leagues south-west, the twin bastions of Karag Garaz and Khaz Bryn prevailed against Ku'Gath's legions for near a month, undone only when Nurgle's Rot began to fester in the tarn that provided the Dwarfs with water.[6a]
Soon only one great fortress remained -- the deeping hold of Karaz-a-Karak -- the eternal Everpeak. Seeking no time to replenish their losses, Ku'gath's legions launched their attack on Karaz-a-Karak. Though his legions had been greatly reduced, the Plaguefather still commanded an army whose numbers were beyond counting. No opposition was encountered on the march to the Everpeak and the outer gate lay unguarded.[6a]
Ku'gath, deeming his foe already broken, led his army into the tunnels and pillared caverns surrounding Everpeak, unprepared for the stubbornness of the Dwarfs that awaited him. Having drawn the Daemons onto the very walls of their underground fortress, the Dwarfs shattered their own domain and brought the mountain down. This was no act of sacrifice -- while Ku'gath and his Daemonic legion were utterly annihilated, the Dwarfs survived behind the walls of Karaz-a-Karak.[6a]
Plaguefather's Return
Ku'gath concocting a new disease.
In the year 111 IC, a great Daemonic horde swept over the Worlds Edge Mountains, bringing ruin in its wake. No one Daemon led the host, for it was too massive to be guided by a single will, but it was Ku'gath Plaguefather who led the attack on the Dwarf capital of Karaz-a-Karak, just as he had done five thousand years before.[1a]
Under the Plaguefather's direction, the Daemons assailed the Dwarfen defenders with every contagion ever to curse the Known World. Yet, as in Ku'gath's last assault, the tenacity of the Dwarfs proved too much for even his most prized plagues. The Daemons breached three layers of defences, but four others remained unsullied by their hands. The siege was eventually lifted and Ku'gath banished back to the Realm of Chaos by the stout and vengeful arm of King Stromni Axehand.[1a]
Battles of Stone and Tire
In the year 1316 IC, no fewer than three Dwarf Holds -- Karak Mar, Karak Nol and Dok Duraz -- were lost to rampaging Daemons. Indeed, that Zhufbar did not fall also was due to the iron resolve of its defenders, a formidable array of emplaced war engines and the timely arrival of a relief army from Karak Kadrin.[4]
The Great Unclean One Ku'gath Plaguefather, failing to conquer where three rival Greater Daemons succeeded (and thus losing Father Nurgle a wager against his brother Chaos Gods), was banished to the Forge of Souls in punishment.[1b] Ku'gath would only spend a few centuries within the Forge of Souls for this failure, as Nurgle was always a forgiving father towards his children, but Ku'gath's defeat at Zhufbar would compound the Great Unclean One's hatred for the Dwarf race even further.[4]
Forays into the Known World
In 1401 IC, Ku'gath entered a pact with the Herald of Khorne U'zhul Skulltaker. The two carved a swathe of destruction across the Bretonnian heartlands. The Daemon army was only defeated when Sir Gryff of Everbyl rallied the peasants of fifty villages to oppose them.[6b]
In 1775 IC, Ku'gath returned to the mortal world once more only to be defeated by an army of Kar Draonrath of the Dark Elves. Yet even in defeat, the Poxweaver managed to cause half the city's population to succumb to the nauseating shacklerot in a matter of days.[6c]
The Afflicted Shroud and Incursion Into Grand Cathay
The icon of Ku'gath Plaguefather and his Nurglish army, the Poxmakers of Nurgle, as depicted in Total War: Warhammer III.
A creative being, Ku'gath was always more focused on experimenting with new diseases than spreading the existing gifts of Father Nurgle. This view has brought him into conflict with his fellow Great Unclean Ones more than once, as they believe creating and experimenting with new types of plagues can belong to only the great father Nurgle, a mere Daemon's role being only to spread plagues and act as the Urfather's heralds. Three like-minded Great Unclean Ones formed a sect, known as the "Afflicted Shroud," to prevent Ku'gath from creating any new diseases.[4]
When Ku'gath was on the hunt for a rare ingredient to use it in one of his clever experiments, deep down in the sunbaked chasms upon the mortal plane, in the Dragon Isles, the Afflicted Shroud cornered him. As the Afflicted Shoud made their threats, Ku'gath only looked on amused. As the Shroud's self-designated leader, Grand Paraoxus, made his final demands, Ku'gath looked up with a wide grin as countless Nurglings looked down upon the chasm.[4]
Ku'gath had prepared a special virus, one created specially to render down his own Daemonic kin, and infected his own Nurglings with it. The Foetid Brewmaster's children fell upon his rivals, and the new virus was such a powerful disease that even the infamous constitution of a Great Unclean One failed to halt it. Yet, Grand Paraoxus survived the Nurgling avalanche and fled across the sea towards Grand Cathay, and Ku'gath followed in pursuit.[4]
As Zin-Fa, as Ku'gath was known in those Far Eastern lands, chased his prey he took great delight in visiting the many sights and cities of Grand Cathay, showing his appreciation by reciprocating with the many gifts he had created. In the Southern and Western Provinces, crops withered, rice paddies were blighted, and the people took ill. But the Plaguefather was in a rush and so unfortunately could not stop to admire his work.[4]
Ku'gath finally caught up with Grand Paraoxus in the Central Provinces, close to the city of Shang-Wu. As the Greater Daemons prepared to do battle, three of the Cathayan Dragons arrowed down from the sky. Yuan Bo, the Jade Dragon, was leading them, joined by his two siblings Zhao Ming, the Iron Dragon, and Li Dao, the Fire Dragon. The Cathayan Dragons fell upon the Daemonic intruders, the Fire Dragon delivering the killing blow by setting both children of Nurgle aflame with the burning wind and banishing them from the mortal plane.[4]
Ku'gath never stopped smiling, as he knew he would soon return. Grand Paraoxus was not so content, for he would now feel the full weight of Ku'gath's jovial wrath in the Realm of Chaos.[4]
Year of Woe
Ku'gath Plaguefather as depicted in Total War: Warhammer III.
The year 2520 IC, as mortals reckon time, was when Tzeentch sent his two-headed Lord of Change Kairos Fateweaver to steal the twelve enchanted artefacts once possessed by the Grail Companions of Gilles le Breton. So important was this goal to Tzeentch that he dispatched the greater part of his armies to the mortal world. So began Bretonnia's "Year of Woe," where the tombs of the Companions were ransacked, nearby towns razed and countless thousands of Bretonnians -- high and low born alike -- met their deaths at the tentacles of Tzeentchian Daemons.[1c]
Castles provided no defence, for their crude stones were easily tumbled by the sorceries of Pink Horrors or transmuted by the warpfires of Flamers. Only at Grail Shrines, where the power of the Lady of the Lake still waxed strong, could any shelter be found. Worse, with each artefact recovered, Fateweaver's Daemons grew ever more powerful.[1c]
In the initial battles about Montfort and Quenelles, the lances and valour of the Bretonnian knights cost the Daemonic hosts greatly. By the time eight artefacts had been seized, only the boldest dukes would even consider taking the field. In the twelfth month, with only a single artefact outside of Fateweaver's clutches, only King Louen Leoncoeur chanced his arm -- and he lost far more battles than he won.[1c]
The final battle of the Year of Woe was the Siege of Mousillon, for it was in this city that the last artefact lay. At the height of the siege, the Bretonnian armies made one last sortie against their abusers. As they did so, help arrived from a most unusual source. Nurgle had long been fond of Mousillon, for it had been the breeding ground for many of his favourite plagues. He could not bear the thought of the city being eradicated by the minions of his hated rival Tzeentch, and so loosed his own Daemonic armies.[1c]
Unaware of the wider battle being fought, the Bretonnians gave no quarter that day. They saw only an army of Daemons given over to fighting amongst itself, and slaughtered everything that came before their lances. Ku'gath Plaguefather bludgeoned Kairos Fateweaver to feathered ruin, only to find himself pierced on the points of a dozen blessed lances. With the destruction of their leaders, both Daemon armies vanished -- doubtless to pursue the battle on more familiar territory in the Realm of Chaos -- leaving only their battle-ravaged fallen and the very items Fateweaver had come to steal.[1c]
End Times
"A grapeful truth, beseecher-leech. All-hordes congeal, Glotts and Spumelings snail-slow no more - not since Father's vinely tunnels yawned. I have ensored even Daemonbleeder hath mustard in his path."
- —Ku'gath Plaguefather informs his protegé Festus that all is ready for their plan.[3c]
Ku'gath during the End Times.
The thirteenth Everchosen Archaon had raised great warlords in his own image, each to harness the might of one of the Dark Gods in his goal to bring about the End Times. For Khorne, the swordmaiden Valkia the Bloody had been chosen to bring destruction to the lands of Naggaroth, for Slaanesh, Sigvald the Magnificent led the armies of Chaos against Kislev and for Tzeentch, Vilitch the Curseling commanded the armies of the Changer of Ways and led them south.[3a]
Yet the appointed warlord of Nurgle, Festak Krann, had been slain at the Auric Bastion by the Men of the Empire. Seeking a replacement in order to prevent his fourfold union from falling apart, Archaon searched for a warlord worthy of leading his armies in the name of the Lord of Decay. It was Ku'gath Plaguefather who came before the Everchosen and offered him three ceramic jars. Each jar contained plagues so potent that they did not only afflict mortals, but the very essence of the sky and land itself. In the wake of the visit, Archaon appointed the Brothers Glott as the vanguard of his army sent against the southern realms of Men.[3a]
Ku'gath had long sponsored the Champion of Nurgle known as Festus the Leechlord. When the fallen doctor, in his quest to bring the Garden of Nurgle into the mortal realm, found himself impeded, Ku'gath subtly aided his protegé, twisting the vagaries of fate into Festus' favour.[3a] Under Ku'gath's guidance, the Leechlord burned specially-prepared Nurglings to cloud Altdorf in poisonous smog from his secret lair in the Altdorf sewers.[3b]
As the armies of Nurgle advanced from the north, the west and the east towards Altdorf, Ku'gath and Festus enacted the final phase of their plan. Disease had run rampant in Altdorf in the months before and with the growing strength of Chaos as the invasion proceeded, the dimensional barriers between the Realm of Chaos and the mortal realm broke. Milk-white rain erupted from the sky, transforming the plague-dead into twisted flesh-trees and allowing the vile flora of Nurgle's Garden to insert itself in the very heart of the Empire.[3e]
The pair sauntered through the streets of the despoiled Imperial capital, with Ku'gath beaming like a proud father at his colleague's success and his soon-to-come ascension into a Daemon Prince of the inner court of Nurgle. Yet one place resisted the pestilent blessings they had unleashed. The Temple of Shallya in Altdorf stood as a refuge from the expansion of the Plaguelord's garden into the mortal realm and so the pair went to extinguish it.[3f] Enraged by the revelation that the goddess of compassion, after all the delicious plagues his master had visited upon her, was ungrateful enough to impede his father's plans, Ku'gath was ready to smash her temple to powder with his own oily fists if necessary.[3h]
None could stop them, for the blessings of Nurgle strengthened them both, until the Undead army of the resurrected Vampire Lord Vlad von Carstein met them at the courtyard on the far side of the temple.[3g]
Battle at the Temple
"Just as the daemon reached out for Margrit, something moving incredibly fast shot out of the skies, streaking like lightning from the storm. She had a vague impression of wings, blurred with speed, and the cry of a human voice speaking a language she did not understand."
- —Louen Leoncoeur enters the fray.[2c]
As the hulking Greater Daemon prepared to slaughter the huddled Shallyan priestesses and their wounded charges, King Louen Leoncoeur of Bretonnia arrowed from the sky mounted astride his Hippogryph Beaquis like a living missile. The Grail Knight's challenge rang out, causing Ku'gath to turn and face him. Plague Drones buzzed erratically through the skies to their master's defence, but they were too slow. The Plaguefather barely had time to raise his hand before the High Paladin's lance struck home. Its blessed tip sank an arm's length into the Daemon's rotting breast, with Beaquis' claws slashing in close behind.[3i]
Alas, with a speed that belied his massive size, Ku'gath grabbed the lance around its shaft and used it as a lever to hurl both man and beast into the Temple of Shallya. Flailing sidelong, the Hippogryph and its plate-armoured rider hit the dome with such force that they smashed right through it in a shower of stone and ceramic shards. Luminous blood trickled down the sides of what was left of the curved dome, but the king and his mount had disappeared from sight.[3i] High Priestess Margrit used the opportunity to stab her blunt blade into the Daemon's hoof, which pained the Great Unclean One greatly.[2c]
Turning away, Ku'gath loomed over the thin line of wounded Imperial State Troops and Flagellants protecting the white-robed high priestess of Shallya. Kicking away a half-dozen warriors standing in his path, the Daemon raised his sword for the kill.[3i]
Suddenly, Louen Leoncoeur hurtled out of the temple archway, glowing blade raised. As Ku'gath brought his weapon down in a crushing overhead sweep, the warrior sprang to the side, catching the Shallyan high priestess around the waist with his shield arm and casting her aside onto a nearby stretcher. Flagstones burst into powder where she had been standing a moment before K'ugath's blow fell. Louen leapt up, boosting off an antique table that had been pressed into service as an operating bench and leaping into the air towards his obese opponent. The old warrior's blade arced down in a two-handed blow that opened the lance wound in Ku'gath's chest still further, exposing the Greater Daemon's rotting heart.[3i]
Bellowing in outrage, the Plaguefather turned his massive head round in a great scoop, catching Leoncoeur in his antlers and tossing him straight upwards into the air. The Bretonnian seemed to hang suspended at the apex of his flight before Ku'gath slammed his rusted metal sword right into the knight's midsection, sending him flying over the milling Daemon horde below to crash into a statue of Magnus the Pious. More golden liquid trickled from Louen's wounds, yet he got to his feet once more, his shield glowing with azure light as he growled a prayer to his goddess, the Lady of the Lake, to grant him strength.[3i]
Even amid all the terror and filth, those Shallyans who had witnessed the fight were struck by the knight's sheer beauty. Louen's hair seemed to shimmer like gold, and his armour, though streaked with the blood of slain Chaos Champions, still glittered with a high sheen. He charged straight at the Daemon once more, spitting words of challenge that sounded like some strange music, working his blade in blistering arcs and hacking into its loose flesh. He moved so fast, shrugging off wounds and taking the fight straight to the titanic creature that loomed over him. Ku'gath struck Louen with his giant bronze sword, each strike capable of breaking bone into dust, but still the Grail Knight fought on.[2c]
Defeat of Ku'gath
The Lionheart soon found himself fighting against both Ku'gath and his horde of Plaguebearers, who had finally come to assist their master. Rolling under Ku'gath's sword-strike, Louen began cutting down the Daemonic tide pressing against him, his flashing sword glowing bright under the light of the twin-tailed comet in the sky high above. At this, the Plaguefather covered his eyes with a flabby forearm, rearing back as if stung.[3k]
The battle finally ended when the Bretonnian knight plunged his holy blade deep into the Greater Daemon's bulbous throat. Hanging from his sacred sword, the golden blood that was drizzling from Louen's many wounds began to sear Ku'gath's flesh. Worse still, it trickled into the gaping wound in the Daemon's festering heart. The golden lifeblood, bearing the blessing of a goddess even more powerful than Shallya, began to consume the Plaguefather. Ku'gath bawled and roared and flailed, but it did no good. The former king of Bretonnia hung on grimly as his opponent was eaten away by the very fluids he had spilled.[3k]
In his struggle, the Daemon knocked into the podium bearing Emperor Magnus the Pious' memorial, and the statue of the great Imperial war leader came crashing down. As Louen leapt free, the statue's lumpen metal weight pinned Ku'gath to the ground. Second by agonising second, the Greater Daemon bubbled away into nothingness, banished back to the Realm of Chaos, until all that was left was a simmering stain.[3k]
Total War: Warhammer III
"A god-pox! You tempt me old man, but I cannot reach the Forge of Souls. The Maelstrom prevents us."
- —Ku'gath, responding to the idea brought to him by The Advisor of the creation of a god-pox distilled from the body of the Kislevite bear god Ursun
Ku'gath Plaguefather in his laboratory at the Gallows Tree.
In Total War: Warhammer III, Ku'gath was trapped in the mortal world after the roar of the Kislevite bear god Ursun had stirred the Winds of Magic into a maelstrom. Taking up residence in the Gallows Tree in the Northern Chaos Wastes, he was visited by a mysterious man known only as The Advisor.[5a]
Originally believing the man to be another specimen for his grotesque experiments, Ku'gath was informed by The Advisor of the Daemon Prince Be'lakor's plot to imprison Ursun, the patron god of Kislev, in the Forge of Souls. The Plaguefather saw this as delightful, and was eager to claim the carrion that would be left in Be'lakor's wake. When The Advisor told him that Ursun was mortally wounded and probably dying, KKu'gath saw a chance to claim the ingredient needed for his masterwork. In exchange for a single drop of blood from the bear god for The Advisor, Ku'gath could claim the divine corpse for his experiments.[5a]
Ku'gath failed in this task, as the forces of Kislev ultimately proved victorious in saving Ursun from Be'lakor's machinations and defeating the Dark Master.[5b]
Wargear
- Necrotic Missiles – Plague-ridden Nurglings constantly burst from Ku'gath's body like foetid hatchlings. These creatures are particularly scabrous, spreading a necrotic toxin to everything they touch. In battle, the Plaguefather will often make use of these critters, throwing them at the enemy in a manner akin to a catapult.[1d][5]
Canon Conflicts
While in the 8th Edition sourcebook End Times: Glottkin, it was the Bretonnian King Louen Leoncouer's own divinely-infused golden blood that destroyed Ku'gath,[3k] in the End Times novel The Fall of Altdorf it was holy water from the Shallyan temple that did the deed instead.[2c]
Videos
Sources
- 1: Warhammer Armies: Daemons of Chaos (8th Edition)
- 2: The Fall of Altdorf (Novel) by Chris Wraight
- 3: Warhammer: The End Times - Glottkin (8th Edition)
- 4: Total War Blog - Who is Ku’gath Plaguefather: An Interview with Lead Writer, Andy Hall
- 5: Total War: Warhammer III (PC Game)
- 5a: The Body of The Bear (Ku'gath Campaign)
- 5b: Campaign text from the Champions of Chaos DLC
- 6: Warhammer Armies: Daemons of Chaos (7th Edition)