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Vangheist, captain of the spectral ship Shadewraith
Vangheist was the ghost captain of the spectral ship Shadewraith which was part of the Undead Dreadfleet under the command of the Vampire Noctilus.[1a]
Every mariner that sails that Great Ocean has heard the tale of Vangheist and his turncoat crew, for it is a tale of bitter treachery and greed. Lured by promises of immortality, Vangheist slew his wizard master Albrechtus von Zeich in cold blood in the hope of claiming that which the Light Wizard sought to destroy among the servants of Chaos. And immortality he received on reaching his journey's end into the Realm of Chaos, though it was not in the manner that Vangheist expected.[1a]
When the warship returned to the mortal plane, both crew and vessel had long since rotted away, leaving nothing but a ghost ship. It had become the Shadewraith, doomed to spread the misery of its eternal curse to all who look upon it.[1a]
History[]
Origins[]
It is whispered in the booze-sodden dens of Sartosa that one of the Dreadfleet's number is crewed only by unquiet spirits -- the departed shades of mutineers whose treachery has been rewarded by an eternity of torment. The captain of this benighted galleon is the arch-traitor Vangheist, a man whose name is synonymous with the most hated turncoats ever to sail the seas of the Known World.[2a]
Vangheist's story is over a hundred years old, though every captain abroad upon the Great Ocean knows it as well as he knows his own ship. The story goes that Captain Vangheist and the mercenary sea-dogs of the warship Stormbreaker were once employed by the archmage Albrechtus von Zeich, a gifted practitioner of the Lore of Light and dedicated opponent of the Chaos Gods.[2a]
Albrechtus requested that each of the Stormbreaker's crewmen swear a solemn oath upon the sacred waters of Manann, the god of the sea, in exchange for a chest of purest gold -- an oath to remain loyal to the wizard's orders no matter what temptation came before them. Vangheist's company were only too happy to oblige, for von Zeich's gold was plentiful, and shimmered with all the colors of the sunset.[2a]
Less than two weeks into the wizard's employ, the crew of the Stormbreaker began to regret their haste. The archmage had demanded they sail due north, and though the Stormbreaker's cannons could drive off even the most determined raiders, the Sea of Claws harboured far worse things than Men.[2a]
The first few altercations were easily dealt with; sea-scorpions were driven away howling by darts of burning light from von Zeich's fingertips, and rival pirate ships became searing conflagrations of white-hot flame as soon as they raised the black flag. But as Vangheist and his sailors plunged ever northward, even the skies became hostile, their shimmering, psychedelic colours seeming to form mocking faces and leering Daemonic skulls.[2a]
Still von Zeich would not tell the mariners of his true goal. Eventually, curiosity overcame Vangheist. Whilst the captain entertained the archmage in a feast to celebrate their victory over a squall of salt-harpies, his first mate, Rotten Einrich, forced entry into von Zeich's quarters. There he found an ancient tome bound in living leather, a book that whispered of a titanic serpent of living fire, and a secret of eternal life that lay within its lair.[2a]
Galvanized by Einrich's tales of immortality ready to be seized, the crew made full sail northwards. It was not long before the coruscating night sky led them to their quarry. As the crew gawped spellbound at the vortex of shifting colours that manifested above them, a great roaring tendril of flame burst from the glowing seas, crested by eight screaming skulls that belched clouds of black acid.[2a]
From the crow's nest of the Stormbreaker, von Zeich engaged the monster with searing bolts of pure Hysh. On the decks below, the crew sent cannonades into its unearthly flesh. Though many of the Stormbreaker's crew were burnt to ash, the Flame-Wyrm was eventually defeated, banished back to the Realm of Chaos from whence it had emerged. Von Zeich rejoiced, despite his wounds, and bid Vangheist turn back to port -- the beast was vanquished, and their quest was complete.[2a]
Vangheist refused. Raising his pistol, he shot the archmage in the chest and kicked him overboard into shark-infested waters. He would have the secret of immortality, consequences be damned.[2a]
Ever northward the Stormbreaker sailed, not realising that it sailed towards its doom. The shrill shrieks of the undulating Screamers above them drew them on and on, until the colours of the sea and the sky became one, and the Chaos Moon, Morrslieb, grew fat enough to fill the sky. The Stormbreaker passed into that dread realm at the top of the Known World, and it did not return -- at least not as it had left.[2a]
What the crew of the Stormbreaker found within the Realm of Chaos, no one will ever know. The dead keep their secrets. They sailed for what seemed centuries, passing across seas and under stars which turned themselves into twisting faces and screaming winds. They encountered the twisting bodies of great sea-Daemons. Their bodies aged and withered; their ship rotted beneath them. But still they pressed on, until direction lost meaning and they sailed the seas of Morrslieb itself.[2a][3a]
Though Vangheist and his crew had sailed onward in search of eternal life, they found quite the opposite, for the Realm of Chaos eventually spat them back out into the material realm as Undead spirits.[2a][3a]
At the same time, when the Stormbreaker eventually returned to the Great Ocean of the mortal realm, nothing remained of it save its spirit. It had become the Shadewraith, a spectral vessel with no purpose other than to spread the misery of its eternal curse to all who look upon it. [2a][3a]
Now, Vangheist has returned to the piratical ways he followed in life. His ship preys upon lone vessels, dragging away souls to join in his Undead torment. None have ever discerned any purpose in such attacks, the Shadewraith appearing and disappearing almost at random. Captains often like to say Vangheist comes for mutineers, and that the Arch-traitor can tell if you harbour treacherous thoughts, but the truth of this is somewhat suspect, given the sources.[3a]
Recently, however, there have been more sightings of the Shadewraith off Tilea's coast. Vangheist's ship, carried through the air upon the backs of the damned, has even been reported attacking towns and villages on shore, locking still-living people in its hold to take them who knows where. These actions go against all previously observed behaviour of the ghost ship, and are beginning to worry those who study such matters. Either the Arch-traitor is not as aimless as previously thought, or some master of the dead has taken up his strings.[3a]
The crew of the Liebenswerte Adda met the Shadewraith in the Sea of Claws. To survive the encounter they gave to Vangheist the dead bodies they were transporting and a non-specified sacrifice to add to his crew.[3a]
Battle of the Vigils[]
In 2522 IC Vangheist's ship was seen at the Battle of Sartosa, at the side of Count Noctilus, to plunder the City of Pirates.[4a] The Dreadfleet then returned to raiding the mainland coast of Tilea until the fleet of Luccini intercepted the Dreadfleet at the Vigils and was able to drive them back over the Great Ocean.[4b]
Death[]
The destruction of the Shadewraith during the final battle at the Galleon's Graveyard, during 2522 IC was a breathtaking battle in which the ghostly galleon, relentless in its assault, faced off against the Grand Alliance fleet. Despite the Shadewraith's initial advantage, Captain Roth orchestrated a daring plan. Utilizing a Djinn's tempest power under the control of the Golden Magus, he propelled the Shadewraith toward his own ship, Heldenhammer. With impeccable timing, Sigmar's Wrath, a colossal statue wielding a holy warhammer, descended upon the Shadewraith, shattering it with a storm of golden light. The ghostly vessel disintegrated into wisps of light, and the tempest djinn absorbed its essence before transforming into a glowing sphere, which was captured by the Golden Magus. Despite the victory, Captain Roth couldn't shake the chilling gaze of the Golden Magus, whose eyes betrayed a cold, ominous intent.[4c]
Wargear[]
- Liber Malefic Nautica – The Liber Malefic Nautica is an arcane tome possessed by Vangheist detailing the oceans of the Realm of Chaos, describing places where a ship might pass from one realm to the other and sail across the mortal world in half the time crossing such a distance would normally take.[3a]
- The Traitor's Shot – The Traitor's Shot is the pistol which Vangheist used to kill the Light Wizard Albrechtus von Zeich. It draws from Vangheist's own spiritual essence for its infinite supply of ammunition.[3a]