"Dance-dance through shadow!"
- —A Master Assassin[2]
Flanked by his Eshin Triad, a Clan Eshin Master Assassin leaps into the heat of battle.
A Master Assassin, also called an Assassin Adept[3b], is among the most highly-skilled Eshin Assassins in the employ of the Skaven Clan Eshin and represents the penultimate ranking in the clan's hierarchy of killers.[2b]
There are only 13 Master Assassins in service to the clan at one time.[1a] The best among them is given the title of Deathmaster, who serves as the personal instrument of the Nightlord, the clan's Skaven Warlord.[2b]
Role[]
"Of all of Clan Eshin's warriors, though, the Adept Assassin is the most feared and reviled. These Skaven are masters in all of the techniques learned in distant Cathay and bring to bear an incredible array of fighting techniques that allow them to eclipse the greatest Human killers. Using a host of weapons from the throwing star and blowgun to the repeating crossbow and an arsenal of poisons, these dealers of death are blamed for the majority of suspicious murders in both Skaven and Dwarf societies, not to mention those untimely deaths in the Human lands by those who do not deny the Skaven menace."
- —Unit description of Clan Eshin Adept Assassins
A Master Assassin of Clan Eshin preparing for battle.
The Skaven of Clan Eshin spend years perfecting their skills in combat and subterfuge. While even the least of their kind are swift and lethal, most are deemed expendable by their masters, and die before they are considered for the vaunted rank of Death Runner, much less the pinnacle of their killing arts represented by a Master Assassin. Unlike the majority of Skaven, Master Assassins often work alone. They have a myriad of deadly skills and each has their own preferences in how they choose to operate and deal out death. [5a]
Only those Gutter Runners who excel in their trade can ever hope to be indoctrinated into the deepest secrets of the Cathayan fighting arts. While still burdened by the typical Skaven traits of selfishness and double-dealing, Master Assassins are more patient, centred, and ruthless than their brethren. They can kill with a touch, are masters of countless weapons, and can slip in and out of the most heavily guarded strongholds unseen. [3a]
A Master Assassin of Clan Eshin
The Clan Eshin way is stealth, not might, but in times of all-out war, the clan's ruling Nightlord can decide to send forth an entire army commanded by a Master Assassin. Always striking at night, they appear from nowhere and disappear with the first light of dawn, leaving a trail of destruction and death in their way. It is rumored that these killers haunt the shadowy catacombs beneath the Imperial city of Middenheim known as Under-Middenheim.[1a]
Master Assassins are distinguished from Eshin Assassins by their ability to lead armies and, of course, their lethality.[1a][6a]
Wargear[]
Master Assassins bear twin Skaven Punch Daggers, a variant of Weeping Blades that glow brightly with Warpstone. They are also equipped with poisonous Throwing Stars, which they use to remove key enemies at a distance.[1a][2a]
Some particularly fortunate Assassin Adepts have a Cloak of Shadows among their wargear, such as Fleer Twitchkill and Snikch, the clan's Deathmaster.[3b]
Notable Master Assassins[]
- Fleer Twitchkill - Twitchkill is a Master Assassin with a penchant for killing his apprentices. One of his apprentices was Dricht Skuttlespite, a Gutter Runner.[4a]
- Shiwan Stalkscent - A Master Assassin charged by Nightlord Sneek to assist and protect Thanquol with the Snake Prophet of the Lizardmen. Also, to keep an eye on the Grey Seer and ensure the Nightlord's orders were being followed.
Sources[]
- 1: Warhammer Fantasy: Storm of Chaos (6th Edition)
- 1a: pg. 92
- 2: Total War: Warhammer II (PC Game)
- 3: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 2nd Edition: Children of the Horned Rat (RPG)
- 4: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: The Enemy Within Campaign - The Horned Rat Companion (RPG)
- 4a: pg. 51
- 5: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: The Enemy Within Campaign (RPG)
- 5a: pg. 47
- 6: Warhammer: Skaven Armies (7th Edition)
- 6a: pg. 52
Gallery[]
