A powerful Dark Elf sorceress of the Dark Convent
Sorceresses, traditionally referred to as the "Dark Brides of Malekith" and informally known as "Hags,"[4a] belong to the Dark Convent of Sorceresses and are the most prominent Dark Elf magic-users of Naggaroth.
Quick Answers
Who are the 'Dark Brides of Malekith' in Warhammer?
What is the Dark Convent of Sorceresses?
How did the Elves learn to manipulate the Winds of Magic?
What is the limit to the amount of power the Elven Sorceresses can control?
What is the role of a Dark Elf Sorceress in Naggaroth?
History
Elves have a natural affinity for the shifting Winds of Magic. In the ancient days, they learned the secrets of manipulating this mystical power from the Slann, the most powerful servants of the Old Ones. Yet for all their expertise, there was always a limit to the amount of power the Elves could harness -- the risk of madness and spiritual corruption prevented them from delving deeper into the power of Chaos.[1a]
It was Morathi, the mother of the Witch King Malekith, who first ventured into this forbidden territory. Through dark rituals and bloody sacrifices, she moulded the energies of Chaos to her bidding. With this sorcery -- the unrefined power of magic -- Morathi soon began to weave enchantments and spells whose raw power far outstripped anything the Elves had previously known. To this day, Dark Elves study the sorcerous arts, utterly seduced by the unrestrained energy it allows them to command.[1a]
Role
Concept art of a Dark Elf sorceress for Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning.
Chief amongst the magic-wielders of Naggaroth are the sisters of the Dark Convent of sorceresses who are gathered in the great fortress of Ghrond. Competition for positions in the Dark Convent is bloody and fierce. Those that survive their sisters' ambitions learn some of the most powerful magic in the Known World. They can call upon ancient Daemonic entities to devour their enemies, hurl storms of wicked shards at their foes or engulf them in dark energy.[1a]
A Dark Elf sorceress as rendered for Total War: Warhammer II.
All sorceresses are sworn solely to the service of the Witch King and owe him fealty before any other tie of loyalty.[4a] Should a Dreadlord's need be great enough to secure aid from the Dark Convent, he will find himself in proxy command of a magical mastery as well-rounded as it is ruthlessly wielded. The Dark Magic of sorcery is but one of the disciplines studied by the sorceresses of Ghrond, and they can call upon the lores of battle magic with just as much skill as the stiff-souled High Elf Mages of Ulthuan.[1a]
Enemies can be immolated by whirling fire storms, turned to crystal by swirling purple energies, torn limb from limb by elementals, blasted apart by lightning or transmuted into solid gold. All the while, the sorceress laughs with wicked delight, her castings becoming wilder as the joy of battle overtakes her. Yet no matter how absorbed she becomes in the destruction, the sorceress always has one eye on her putative employer, her mind ablaze with the possibilities of how she will exact payment if none voluntarily forthcoming.[1a]
Rarity of Male Sorcerers
The staves and daggers used by Dark Elf sorceresses as magical implements and weapons.
Though Dark Elves of both genders are capable of mastering the art of Dark Magic, male sorcerers are regarded with disdain, fear and suspicion among the Druchii -- a situation only exacerbated by the generous bounties Malekith offers for such a being's severed head. The Witch King knows of the Prophecy of Demise, whose ancient stanzas foretell how a great warrior will one day be cast from his home by a sorcerer. Malekith -- ever given to a cautious mindset in such matters -- believes it is he to whom the prophecy refers, and he is determined to cheat that destiny -- one severed Dark Elf male sorcerer head at a time.[1a]
When the Prophecy of Demise was revealed, the male sorcerers known as Doomfire Warlocks were cursed by Malekith, so that they could continue to serve and delay the fate of having their souls absorbed by Slaanesh only through sacrificing the lives of others. While Doomfire Warlocks can still can be recruited by the armies of the Dark Elves to serve in battles, the younger generations of male sorcerers have not been granted the same fate as their elders nor the chance to serve alongside them, for Malekith instead put bounties on their heads rather than cursing them. Nonetheless, there are still those among the Dark Elves who would rather risk the Witch King's wrath by employing a male sorcerer rather than incur a debt to the Dark Convent, so some male sorcerers yet survive to work their art.
High Sorceresses
"Is there any greater dealer of death than a sorceress at the height of her powers? Perhaps...but none will take as great a joy in unleashing it."
- —The High Sorceresses of Naggaroth.[3]
High Sorceresses, also known as Supreme Sorceresses, are the most powerful practitioners of Dark Magic in all of Naggaroth bar the Witch King or Morathi herself, and they wield terrifying powers. They are incredibly adept at manipulating the Winds of Magic in their rawest, most destructive form, channelling energies that would destroy lesser beings into powerful spells that can lay waste to armies.[2][3]
Miniatures
Sources
- 1: Warhammer Armies: Dark Elves (8th Edition)
- 1a: page 37
- 2: Warhammer: Mark of Chaos (Battle March)
- 3: Total War: Warhammer II (PC Game)
- 4: The Daemon's Curse (Novel) by Dan Abnett and Mike Lee
- 4a: Ch. 4
Gallery
