123-592: Warhammer Fantasy is a fictional fantasy universe created by Games Workshop and used in many of its games, including the table top wargame Warhammer , the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay (WFRP) pen-and-paper role-playing game , and a number of video games: the MMORPG Warhammer Online: Age of Reckoning , the strategy games Total War: Warhammer , Total War: Warhammer II and Total War: Warhammer III and
246-742: A "Nordic-Atlantean" or "Aryan-Nordic" master race that spread from Atlantis over the Northern Hemisphere and beyond. The Hyperboreans were contrasted with the Jewish people. Party ideologist Alfred Rosenberg (in The Myth of the Twentieth Century , 1930) and SS-leader Heinrich Himmler made it part of the official doctrine. The idea was followed up by the adherents of Esoteric Nazism such as Julius Evola (1934) and, more recently, Miguel Serrano (1978). The idea of Atlantis as
369-449: A consequence, Atlantis has become a byword for any and all supposed advanced prehistoric lost civilizations and continues to inspire contemporary fiction, from comic books to films. While present-day philologists and classicists agree on the story's fictional nature, there is still debate on what served as its inspiration. Plato is known to have freely borrowed some of his allegories and metaphors from older traditions, as he did with
492-744: A different region of the empire. Grand Cathay have long ago constructed an enormous fortification called the Great Bastion on their northern border, to guard against incursions from Hobgoblins and the forces of Chaos who dwell on the Eastern Steppes. There is some trade with the human nations of the Old World (via the "Ivory Road") and the High Elves (via the sea), as well as coastal raids by the Dark Elves. But overall, contact between
615-665: A fictional universe may be a remote alien planet or galaxy with little apparent relationship to the real world (as in Star Wars ); in fantasy, it may be a greatly fictionalized or invented version of Earth's distant past or future (as in The Lord of the Rings ). In a 1970 article in CAPA-alpha , comics historian Don Markstein defined the fictional universe as meant to clarify the concept of fictional continuities. According to
738-532: A number of parallels between the physical organisation and fortifications of Syracuse and Plato's description of Atlantis. Gunnar Rudberg was the first who elaborated upon the idea that Plato's attempt to realize his political ideas in the city of Syracuse could have heavily inspired the Atlantis account. Some ancient writers viewed Atlantis as fictional or metaphorical myth; others believed it to be real. Aristotle believed that Plato, his teacher, had invented
861-585: A possible connection with Plato's island. John V. Luce notes that when Plato writes about the genealogy of Atlantis's kings, he writes in the same style as Hellanicus, suggesting a similarity between a fragment of Hellanicus's work and an account in the Critias . Rodney Castleden suggests that Plato may have borrowed his title from Hellanicus, who may have based his work on an earlier work about Atlantis. Castleden has pointed out that Plato wrote of Atlantis in 359 BC, when he returned to Athens from Sicily. He notes
984-474: A story which exemplifies such a society. Critias mentions a tale he considered to be historical, that would make the perfect example, and he then follows by describing Atlantis as is recorded in the Critias . In his account, ancient Athens seems to represent the "perfect society" and Atlantis its opponent, representing the very antithesis of the "perfect" traits described in the Republic . According to Critias,
1107-581: A strong assumption that sentient beings are fundamentally flawed and will eventually bring about their own destruction via the forces of Chaos. The possibility of the victory of Chaos is a major theme in the End Times campaign. Dwarfs are an ancient, gritty, and determined race integral in the founding of the Empire. Dwarfs are the greatest craftsmen in the Warhammer World, a skill largely matched by
1230-625: A technologically sophisticated, more advanced culture . Donnelly drew parallels between creation stories in the Old and New Worlds, attributing the connections to Atlantis, where he believed the Biblical Garden of Eden existed. As implied by the title of his book, he also believed that Atlantis was destroyed by the Great Flood mentioned in the Bible. Donnelly is credited as the "father of
1353-658: A theme that Bacon discussed in The New Atlantis ( c. 1623 ). A character in the narrative gives a history of Atlantis that is similar to Plato's and places Atlantis in America. People had begun believing that the Mayan and Aztec ruins could possibly be the remnants of Atlantis. Much speculation began as to the origins of the Maya , which led to a variety of narratives and publications that tried to rationalize
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#17327944924791476-455: A time your State stayed the course of a mighty host, which, starting from a distant point in the Atlantic ocean, was insolently advancing to attack the whole of Europe, and Asia to boot. For the ocean there was at that time navigable; for in front of the mouth which you Greeks call, as you say, 'the pillars of Heracles ,' there lay an island which was larger than Libya and Asia together; and it
1599-733: A witch-hunter fighting the Chaos minions in the remote regions of the Empire. The Realm of Chaos (also called the Warp, the Aethyr, the Empyrean, the Realm of Souls or the Immaterium) is an alternate dimension which is found in several of Games Workshop's fictional universes, including Warhammer Fantasy. It is separate to the physical world of Warhammer, and draws inspiration from depictions of hell ,
1722-661: A word it is evident that all of them borrow from Moses, and publish his statements as their own. Aside from Plato's original account, modern interpretations regarding Atlantis are an amalgamation of diverse, speculative movements that began in the sixteenth century, when scholars began to identify Atlantis with the New World . Francisco Lopez de Gomara was the first to state that Plato was referring to America, as did Francis Bacon and Alexander von Humboldt ; Janus Joannes Bircherod said in 1663 orbe novo non-novo ("the New World
1845-407: Is a northerly region, roughly an analogue to Europe . It is a broadly temperate area dominated by several large human countries as well as smaller states controlled by Dwarfs and Wood Elves. There are also some areas controlled by Undead lords, or marauding Beastmen, Orcs, or Goblins. The Empire of Man, known to most as the Empire, is the largest and oldest human civilization in the Old World. It
1968-822: Is also Nippon ( Japan ), and Araby (Based loosely on the various Middle Eastern powers that ruled throughout the Middle Ages and Renaissance , most notably the Ottoman Empire ). Many factions, such as the Elves, the Lizardmen, the Ogres and the Halflings, have been created by the Old Ones : star-travelling gods responsible for the creation of most of the setting's sentient races. These Old Ones were brought low by
2091-566: Is culturally, technologically, and geographically based on early modern Germany, with its name being an allusion to the historical Holy Roman Empire . To the east lie the World's Edge Mountains, to the west Bretonnia, to the south the Border Princes/Badlands and to the north is Kislev and the sea. The main cities (which mostly lie in the south) are Altdorf (the current capital), Middenheim, Nuln, Talabheim and Averheim. The Empire
2214-467: Is impassable and impenetrable, because there is a shoal of mud in the way; and this was caused by the subsidence of the island. The logographer Hellanicus of Lesbos wrote an earlier work entitled Atlantis , of which only a few fragments survive. Hellanicus' work appears to have been a genealogical one concerning the daughters of Atlas (Ἀτλαντὶς in Greek means "of Atlas"), but some authors have suggested
2337-859: Is not new"). Athanasius Kircher accepted Plato's account as literally true, describing Atlantis as a small continent in the Atlantic Ocean. Contemporary perceptions of Atlantis share roots with Mayanism , which can be traced to the beginning of the Modern Age , when European imaginations were fueled by their initial encounters with the indigenous peoples of the Americas. From this era sprang apocalyptic and utopian visions that would inspire many subsequent generations of theorists. Most of these interpretations are considered pseudohistory , pseudoscience , or pseudoarchaeology , as they have presented their works as academic or scientific , but lack
2460-647: Is the only major River in the Dark Lands, and it is heavily polluted by Chaos Dwarf industry. To the southwest is the Plain of Bones where the remains of many dead dragons can be found. This area draws practitioners of necromancy and the Undead. To the southeast are the Dragon Isles which are often cited as a desirable, if dangerous, location for voyages in search of riches to aim for. On its southern coastline in
2583-431: Is why magic is such an unwieldy, dangerous and often mutating force. The Realm is inhabited by malevolent daemonic creatures made of magic, the souls of mortal creatures, and most notably the four evil Chaos Gods. These four "Ruinous Powers" exert a corrupting influence upon mortals in the physical world. Their ultimate goal is to expand the Realm of Chaos, engulfing and destroying the physical world entirely. In contrast to
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#17327944924792706-508: The Republic , the Atlantis story is meant to bear witness to the superiority of his concept of a state. Despite its minor importance in Plato's work, the Atlantis story has had a considerable impact on literature. The allegorical aspect of Atlantis was taken up in utopian works of several Renaissance writers, such as Francis Bacon 's New Atlantis and Thomas More 's Utopia . On
2829-560: The Ring of Fire series , actively court canonical stimulus from fans, but gate and control the changes through a formalized process and the final say of the editor and universe creator . Atlantis Atlantis ( Ancient Greek : Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος , romanized : Atlantìs nêsos , lit. 'island of Atlas ') is a fictional island mentioned in Plato 's works Timaeus and Critias as part of an allegory on
2952-592: The Black Library . Warhammer Monthly was a comic book , published by Black Library , which ran for over 5 years and included strips set in the other areas of the Warhammer Universe. Generally running concurrently with Warhammer Monthly was Inferno! - also published by Black Library - a magazine which compiled short stories and occasional unconnected illustrations set in the fictional backgrounds of Games Workshop. Games Workshop licensed out
3075-593: The Black Plague and the Moorish invasion of Spain , and others from original fantasy sources. Like Middle-earth , Warhammer's Dwarfs are declining in population, the Elves have mostly departed for homelands in the West, and a Great Necromancer is reborn after the defeats in his Southern stronghold. There are numerous nations, races and ethnicities in the Warhammer World. Mankind, the most prominent, often proves to be
3198-602: The Chaos Dwarfs who split from their brothers after being corrupted by Chaos. In the jungles of the Lustria continent ( Central and South America ) are the Lizardmen who were created by the Old Ones to aid in their great works. The Slann, who act as leaders and priests, now lead the Lizardmen blindly, via ancient prophecies containing almost incomprehensible instructions left by the Old Ones. The culture and aesthetic of
3321-583: The Greek and Mayan languages , which produced a narrative of the destruction of Atlantis. The 1882 publication of Atlantis: the Antediluvian World by Ignatius L. Donnelly stimulated much popular interest in Atlantis. He was greatly inspired by early works in Mayanism , and like them, attempted to establish that all known ancient civilizations were descended from Atlantis, which he saw as
3444-578: The Hellenic deities of old divided the land so that each deity might have their own lot; Poseidon was appropriately, and to his liking, bequeathed the island of Atlantis. The island was larger than Ancient Libya and Asia Minor combined, but it was later sunk by an earthquake and became an impassable mud shoal, inhibiting travel to any part of the ocean. Plato asserted that the Egyptians described Atlantis as an island consisting mostly of mountains in
3567-578: The Maya peoples had descended from the Toltecs , people he believed were the surviving population of the racially superior civilization of Atlantis. His work combined with the skillful, romantic illustrations of Jean Frederic Waldeck , which visually alluded to Egypt and other aspects of the Old World , created an authoritative fantasy that excited much interest in the connections between worlds. Inspired by Brasseur de Bourbourg's diffusion theories,
3690-472: The Middle-earth canon of J. R. R. Tolkien . Early in his career, Kim Newman wrote Warhammer novels under the pen name Jack Yeovil. Some elements from these books (in particular his heroine Genevieve Dieudonné) later reappeared in the award-winning Anno Dracula series . Early novels were published as "GW Books" by Boxtree Ltd, but more recently novels have been under Games Workshop's publishing arm,
3813-574: The Nazis with a mythological precedent and a pretext for their ideological platform and their subsequent genocide . However, Blavatsky's writings mention that the Atlantean were in fact olive-skinned peoples with Mongoloid traits who were the ancestors of modern Native Americans , Mongolians , and Malayans . The idea that the Atlanteans were Hyperborean , Nordic supermen who originated in
Warhammer Fantasy (setting) - Misplaced Pages Continue
3936-465: The Socratic method in order to discuss contrary positions within the context of a supposition. The Timaeus begins with an introduction, followed by an account of the creations and structure of the universe and ancient civilizations. In the introduction, Socrates muses about the perfect society, described in Plato's Republic ( c. 380 BC ), and wonders if he and his guests might recollect
4059-507: The Timaeus gives a description of the geography of Atlantis: That an island of such nature and size once existed is evident from what is said by certain authors who investigated the things around the outer sea. For according to them, there were seven islands in that sea in their time, sacred to Persephone , and also three others of enormous size, one of which was sacred to Hades, another to Ammon , and another one between them to Poseidon,
4182-698: The Warhammer world, the most famous of which are the novels featuring Gotrek and Felix by William King . The Gotrek and Felix series was taken over by Nathan Long , starting with Orcslayer in 2006. Warhammer Fantasy author Stephen Baxter has stated that according to Marc Gascoigne the idea of Chaos in Warhammer was inspired by The Eternal Champion and its sequels, written by Michael Moorcock , who made use of ideas from Three Hearts and Three Lions by Poul Anderson . The Warhammer elves were inspired by The Broken Sword by Poul Anderson as well
4305-531: The hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world , making it the literary counter-image of the Achaemenid Empire . After an ill-fated attempt to conquer "Ancient Athens," Atlantis falls out of favor with the deities and submerges into the Atlantic Ocean . Since Plato describes Athens as resembling his ideal state in
4428-607: The story of Gyges . This led a number of scholars to suggest possible inspiration of Atlantis from Egyptian records of the Thera eruption , the Sea Peoples invasion, or the Trojan War . Others have rejected this chain of tradition as implausible and insist that Plato created an entirely fictional account, drawing loose inspiration from contemporary events such as the failed Athenian invasion of Sicily in 415–413 BC or
4551-418: The underworld and cosmic horror . The normal laws of physics and linear time / causality do not apply in the Realm of Chaos, and it is said that mortals who enter or even glimpse it tend to go insane. The Realm itself is composed of raw magical energy generated by the emotions and thoughts of sapient creatures such as humans. Thus, the Realm of Chaos is the source of magic in the Warhammer World, and this
4674-518: The unit called winged lancer - a reference to the Polish winged hussar . Much of Kislev is cold steppe, although there is an extensive taiga forest in the east. To the northwest, there is an ill-defined border between Kislev and Troll Country, a marshy, frigid wilderness infested with monsters. Historically, Kislev has been inhabited by a succession of human ethnic groups: first the Roppsmenn, then
4797-498: The " Akashic Records " (a term borrowed from Theosophy ), Cayce declared that he was able to give detailed descriptions of the lost continent. He also asserted that Atlantis would "rise" again in the 1960s (sparking much popularity of the myth in that decade) and that there is a " Hall of Records " beneath the Egyptian Sphinx which holds the historical texts of Atlantis. As continental drift became widely accepted during
4920-529: The Athenians, that it is neither a mere myth nor unadorned history, although some take it as history and others as myth", he is treating "Crantor's view as mere personal opinion, nothing more; in fact he first quotes and then dismisses it as representing one of the two unacceptable extremes". Cameron also points out that whether he refers to Plato or to Crantor, the statement does not support conclusions such as Otto Muck's "Crantor came to Sais and saw there in
5043-458: The Athenians, while that island itself was submerged by God under the sea. Both Plato and Aristotle praise this philosopher, and Proclus has written a commentary on him. He himself expresses views similar to our own with some modifications, transferring the scene of the events from the east to the west. Moreover he mentions those ten generations as well as that earth which lies beyond the Ocean. And in
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5166-403: The Atlantean empire, and as the alliance disintegrated, prevailed alone against the empire, liberating the occupied lands. But afterwards there occurred violent earthquakes and floods; and in a single day and night of misfortune all your warlike men in a body sank into the earth, and the island of Atlantis in like manner disappeared in the depths of the sea. For which reason the sea in those parts
5289-815: The Dead" lies to the South of the Badlands and Old World, west of the Dark Lands. To the west lies Araby and to the south, the Southlands. Fictional universe A fictional universe , also known as an imagined universe or a constructed universe , is the internally consistent fictional setting used in a narrative or a work of art . This concept is most commonly associated with works of fantasy and science fiction , and can be found in various forms such as novels , comics , films , television shows , video games , and other creative works. In science fiction,
5412-422: The Egyptians this story about the Athenians and Atlanteans, so as to make them say that the Athenians really once lived according to that system. The next sentence is often translated "Crantor adds, that this is testified by the prophets of the Egyptians, who assert that these particulars [which are narrated by Plato] are written on pillars which are still preserved." But in the original, the sentence starts not with
5535-543: The Empire, across the Grey Mountains, and north of Estalia. Bretonnia is a temperate land with a mild climate and fertile soils, inspired by Medieval France and legends of King Arthur . In the centre of the country lie the Forest of Arden and Massif Orcal, two wild regions inhabited by Beastmen and Orcs/Goblins, respectively. Dominated by feudal dukedoms and ruled by a King, Bretonnia has a stark class divide between
5658-517: The Great Vortex, a magical storm that drains excess magical energy from the world, fed by a global network of waystones maintained by the High Elves. If the Vortex were to fail, magical energy would build up and allow large scale invasions of Daemons from the Realm of Chaos. Naggaroth is the cold, bleak land analogous to North America . It is dominated by the cruel Dark Elves, who broke away from
5781-445: The High Elves following a destructive civil war called the Sundering. In general Naggaroth is quite wild and sparsely inhabited. In the north it has a tundra climate, while in the centre pine forests grow, inhabited by Beastmen. In the south lie steaming subtropical swamps and a land bridge to Lustria. The Dark Elves dwell primarily in large cities in the northeast: Naggarond (the capital), Ghrond, Clar Karond, Karond Kar and Har Ganeth. In
5904-425: The Lizardmen are heavily inspired by those of the Aztec and Mayan cultures. Orcs and Goblins , and their kin (also known as Greenskins), are relatively primitive and disorganized, but their instinctive belligerence threatens the various nations. Their violent nature commonly causes wars against not only the neighboring peoples, but also their own kind. They are found predominantly in the forests and mountains of
6027-428: The Mediterranean, lending credence to many details in Plato's discussion. The fourth-century historian Ammianus Marcellinus , relying on a lost work by Timagenes , a historian writing in the first century BC, writes that the Druids of Gaul said that part of the inhabitants of Gaul had migrated there from distant islands. Some have understood Ammianus's testimony as a claim that at the time of Atlantis's sinking into
6150-400: The Northern Atlantic or even in the far North, was popular in the German ariosophic movement around 1900, propagated by Guido von List and others. It gave its name to the Thule Gesellschaft , an antisemite Münich lodge, which preceded the German Nazi Party (see Thule ). The scholars Karl Georg Zschaetzsch [ de ] (1920) and Herman Wirth (1928) were the first to speak of
6273-509: The Old World (based on Ancient Egypt ), the Vampire Counts in the Old World (based upon Dracula which is set in Transylvania ), the zombie pirates of Luthor Harkon's Vampire Coast found on the eastern coast of Lustria (based on stereotypical pirates of the 18th century ), and Nagash in his own city of undead. Prior to Games Workshop retconning the backstory, there was previously a unified Undead Army. Outside of games, there have been novels, novellas and short stories by various authors set in
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#17327944924796396-459: The Old World, as well in the jungles to the south and stretched across the steppes to the East, but their kin can be found all over the world, inhabiting almost all continents and adapting to their environments. Thus there are many sub-species of Orcs and Goblins such as Black Orcs and Night Goblins. They are described in the supplemental book Orcs and Goblins , first published in 1993. The phrase "orcs & goblins" also refers collectively to all of
6519-413: The Phoenix King (High King) in Lothern and the Everqueen in Avelorn. Prior to the High Elves, Ulthuan was inhabited by many Dragons, and many still slumber here under the mountains. Outside of infrequent invasions, the only threats on Ulthuan are monsters in the Annuli Mountains. As Ulthuan is a magical floating island, the Underway and Under-Empire do not extend to it. At the centre of the Inner Sea lies
6642-418: The Realm of Chaos, the Chaos Wastes (also known as the Umbra Chaotica) are a part of the physical world. They are a vast, warped, cold and barren wasteland surrounding the northern polar region (and probably also the southern polar region) of the world. The Wastes border Grand Cathay, the Eastern Steppes, the Ogre Kingdoms, Norsca and Naggaroth. Norsca and the Eastern Steppes are sometimes considered to be part of
6765-403: The Tzars against heritics and political enemies alike. Kislev's military is primarily composed of rotas of the Streltsi (firearm-welding infantry, hence the name) and the Winged Lancers - also known as "the Riders of the Dead,” for "they are mourned as if already deceased". The country's recently established official religion is the Great Orthodoxy. The country's most important god is Ursun,
6888-417: The Ungols and most recently the Gospodars who have united the region. The state is ruled by Tzars (female title: Tzarina) and the current ruler is Tzarina Katarin, the "Ice Queen." Tzars rule over Boyars (the middle nobility) and the Druzhina (the lowest nobility, mostly composed of ethnic Gospodars). There's also the Chekist , the secret police and the analogue of the Empire's Inquisition that's used by
7011-454: The Wastes. At the north pole, there is a great collapsed Chaos Portal which allows travel between the physical world and the Realm of Chaos. This Portal spews dangerous, raw magical energy into the physical world, causing mutations to any person or creature in the north, and even to the land, climate and flow of time. The Chaos Wastes are inhabited by various mutated flora and fauna, Daemons, Chaos monsters (including Beastmen ), Greenskins and
7134-468: The World's Edge Mountains and Mountains of Mourn. It lacks any real-world equivalent, but is similar to Mordor of Tolkien 's Middle-earth , with a dry climate and many volcanoes. In the northern Dark Lands is the empire of the Chaos Dwarfs . They are the most powerful faction in the region, and mesh industrialisation and mesopotamian influences. Outside of this area, the Dark Lands are mostly dominated by barbaric Orcs and Goblin tribes. The River Ruin
7257-441: The afterlife). The Empire is a large, diverse country based around several large rivers: the Reik, Talabec, Stir and Aver. The various Provinces are each ruled by an Elector Count or equivalent, who elect an Emperor to rule for life. Despite this, the provinces have a great deal of autonomy to govern and defend themselves, and there has been centuries-long periods of civil war and contending-Emperors/Empresses. The centre and north of
7380-458: The ancient culture of Atlantis. The book was published in 1940. Blavatsky was also inspired by the work of the 18th-century astronomer Jean-Sylvain Bailly , who had "Orientalized" the Atlantis myth in his mythical continent of Hyperborea , a reference to Greek myths featuring a Northern European region of the same name, home to a giant, godlike race. Dan Edelstein claims that her reshaping of this theory in The Secret Doctrine provided
7503-535: The ancient traditions from before the sundering, and a third group as the rustic, sylvan and mysterious Wood Elves. The High Elves inhabit the magical island of Ulthuan (analogous to Atlantis ), while the Dark Elves inhabit the continent of Naggaroth (correspondent to North America in the real world), a desolate icy wilderness and the Wood Elves live in the forests of Athel Loren in the Old World. Many races have fallen to, or been corrupted by Chaos. The barbaric Warriors of Chaos (formerly called "Hordes of Chaos") invade
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#17327944924797626-408: The barbaric human tribes of the Norse, Kurgan, Hung and Tong. These Warriors of Chaos worship the evil Chaos Gods whose influence is strong in the Wastes. In order to guard against incursions from the north, Grand Cathay has constructed a Great Bastion (similar to the real-world Great Wall of China ), while the Dark Elves of Naggaroth have constructed a series of Watchtower fortresses. The Old World
7749-418: The bear-god of winter and strength, and the Kislevites seem to have a special affinity with bears. Other important gods include Dazh (god of fire, the sun, summer, family and hospitality) and Tor (god of storms). The main cities of Kislev are the eponymous Kislev, Erengrad and Praag The Cursed, which rule over the vast Oblasts surrounding them. The country's northern frontier position means that it often bears
7872-416: The brunt of devastating Chaos invasions, as Kislevite warriors spill their blood to keep the southern lands safe. Combined with poor soil and notoriously freezing winters, this has made the Kislevites a hardy, no-nonsense people. Out of necessity, Kislev has retained good relations with The Empire and Dwarfs: close allies against Chaos. The Dark Lands lie east of the Old World and west of the Far East, between
7995-408: The central island itself was five stades in diameter [about 0.92 km; 0.57 mi]. In Plato's metaphorical tale, Poseidon fell in love with Cleito, the daughter of Evenor and Leucippe, who bore him five pairs of male twins. The eldest of these, Atlas , was made rightful king of the entire island and the ocean (called the Atlantic Ocean in his honor), and was given the mountain of his birth and
8118-409: The civilization of Atlantis reached its peak between 1,000,000 and 900,000 years ago, but destroyed itself through internal warfare brought about by the dangerous use of psychic and supernatural powers of the inhabitants. Rudolf Steiner , the founder of anthroposophy and Waldorf Schools , along with other well known Theosophists, such as Annie Besant , also wrote of cultural evolution in much
8241-414: The civilized nations from the far northern Chaos Wastes. Beastmen, the human-animal hybrid products of Chaos are found in the dark forests of the entire Warhammer world. The Chaos forces are the personified flaws of sapient beings; the inner daemons of living things come back through a magic medium as literal daemons to torment and kill. The ultimate victory of these forces is often hinted at, highlighting
8364-449: The country is dominated by huge forests, which often house bandits, Chaos cultists, Orcs/Goblins or Beastmen who prey on isolated settlements. The south of the country has a warmer climate and is dominated by grassland and extensive fields. Despite the great differences between the provinces, the people of the Empire are kept united by their "steel, gunpowder and faith in Sigmar" as well as a common language: Reikspiel. Bretonnia lies west of
8487-401: The criteria he imagined: Fictional universes are sometimes shared by multiple prose authors, with each author's works in that universe being granted approximately equal canonical status. For example, Larry Niven 's fictional universe Known Space has an approximately 135-year period in which Niven allows other authors to write stories about the Man-Kzin Wars . Other fictional universes, like
8610-516: The daemonic forces inadvertently unleashed by the collapse of their Warp Gates (one on the North Pole and one on the South Pole ), leaving their creations to fend for themselves. This backstory also provides an easy explanation for the presence of a variety of familiar fantasy races. Ogres and Halflings, for example, are closely related. Both are resistant to the mutating effects of Chaos energies (fuelled by hearty appetites and efficient metabolisms), but have opposite physical templates. The Elves were
8733-427: The destruction of Helike in 373 BC. The only primary sources for Atlantis are Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias ; all other mentions of the island are based on them. The dialogues claim to quote Solon , who visited Egypt between 590 and 580 BC; they state that he translated Egyptian records of Atlantis. Plato introduced Atlantis in Timaeus , written in 360 BC: For it is related in our records how once upon
8856-643: The discoveries within the context of the Bible and that had undertones of racism in their connections between the Old and New World. The Europeans believed the indigenous people to be inferior and incapable of building that which was now in ruins and by sharing a common history, they insinuated that another race must have been responsible. In the middle and late nineteenth century, several renowned Mesoamerican scholars, starting with Charles Étienne Brasseur de Bourbourg , and including Edward Herbert Thompson and Augustus Le Plongeon , formally proposed that Atlantis
8979-540: The dominant power on the continent, and their ancient Temple-Cities (the greatest of which are Itza and Hexoatl) can be seen deep in the Jungle. Despite their bestial appearance, the Lizardmen are actually staunch opponents of Chaos and protectors of Order, although they are often apathetic towards the other races and hostile to those who trespass on Lustria. The wildlife of Lustria is dominated by large reptiles resembling dinosaurs and pterosaurs , and large insects which form
9102-404: The east and west is quite limited, and Grand Cathay is fairly isolationist. For the videogame Total War: Warhammer III , Games Workshop has worked together with British developer Creative Assembly to create background information for Grand Cathay, so that the faction may be included in the game. Various tunnels, caverns and entire cities, lie beneath the Old World, World's Edge Mountains and
9225-737: The existence of Atlantis were Strabo and Posidonius . Some have theorized that, before the sixth century BC, the "Pillars of Hercules" may have applied to mountains on either side of the Gulf of Laconia , and also may have been part of the pillar cult of the Aegean. The mountains stood at either side of the southernmost gulf in Greece, the largest in the Peloponnese, and it opens onto the Mediterranean Sea. This would have placed Atlantis in
9348-505: The extent of which was a thousand stadia [200 km; 124 mi]; and the inhabitants of it—they add—preserved the remembrance from their ancestors of the immeasurably large island of Atlantis which had really existed there and which for many ages had reigned over all islands in the Atlantic sea and which itself had like-wise been sacred to Poseidon. Now these things Marcellus has written in his Aethiopica . Marcellus remains unidentified. Other ancient historians and philosophers who believed in
9471-402: The fact that the details were told through stories that "details animosity levels between orc and goblin and the importance of shamans." He also noted that "The armies list is split between the different types of orcs and goblins, as well as monsters' allies." Bigelow concluded that the book has "excellent line drawings and action illustrations as well as [its] practical game value [...] well worth
9594-431: The first civilized race to walk the Warhammer world. Brought into creation by the Old Ones, the Elves showed a natural talent for magic and superlative martial skill. The once thriving civilization of the Elves was torn asunder many thousands of years ago by a bitter civil war, resulting in the sundering of the race into three distinct kindreds: the evil, twisted Dark Elves, the proud, noble and magical High Elves who continue
9717-487: The fullest and truest sense, a continent. Now in this island of Atlantis there existed a confederation of kings, of great and marvelous power, which held sway over all the island, and over many other islands also and parts of the continent. The four people appearing in those two dialogues are the politicians Critias and Hermocrates as well as the philosophers Socrates and Timaeus of Locri , although only Critias speaks of Atlantis. In his works Plato makes extensive use of
9840-622: The game Warhammer, but was formulated as a distinct setting with a world map in the second edition. The Warhammer World borrowed considerably from historical events and other fantasy fiction settings. The Old World is recognisably Europe approximating to various historical periods including the Renaissance - the Empire being set over what was the Holy Roman Empire - medieval France, Roman Italy and Celtic Britain . Many events are lifted and modified directly from history, including
9963-713: The homeland of the Caucasian race would contradict the beliefs of older Esoteric and Theosophic groups, which taught that the Atlanteans were non-Caucasian brown-skinned peoples. Modern Esoteric groups, including the Theosophic Society, do not consider Atlantean society to have been superior or Utopian—they rather consider it a lower stage of evolution. The clairvoyant Edgar Cayce spoke frequently of Atlantis. During his "life readings", he claimed that many of his subjects were reincarnations of people who had lived there. By tapping into their collective consciousness ,
10086-605: The island of Atalantes [translator's spelling; original: " Ἀτλαντίς "] which was greater than Africa and Asia, as Plato says in the Timaeus, in one day and night was overwhelmed beneath the sea in consequence of an extraordinary earthquake and inundation and suddenly disappeared, becoming sea, not indeed navigable, but full of gulfs and eddies. The theologian Joseph Barber Lightfoot ( Apostolic Fathers , 1885, II, p. 84) noted on this passage: "Clement may possibly be referring to some known, but hardly accessible land, lying without
10209-474: The island of Atlantis on the authority of Solon is not a figment." The term " utopia " (from "no place") was coined by Sir Thomas More in his sixteenth-century work of fiction Utopia . Inspired by Plato 's Atlantis and travelers' accounts of the Americas , More described an imaginary land set in the New World . His idealistic vision established a connection between the Americas and utopian societies,
10332-487: The island to teach philosophy. The philosopher Crantor , a student of Plato's student Xenocrates , is cited often as an example of a writer who thought the story to be historical fact. His work, a commentary on Timaeus , is lost, but Proclus , a Neoplatonist of the fifth century AD, reports on it. The passage in question has been represented in the modern literature either as claiming that Crantor visited Egypt, had conversations with priests, and saw hieroglyphs confirming
10455-523: The main food source of the Lizardmen. There is also various human, elven colonies along the coast, and undead (resulting from shipwrecked vampires) dominate The Vampire Coast in the east. In Lustria's west there is the volcanic Spine of Sotek mountains, and to the west of that is the more arid west coast. To the east of Lustria, across the Great Ocean, lies the Southlands. To the north, across an isthmus, lies Naggaroth. Nehekhara, also called "The Land of
10578-682: The moats, and were covered with brass , tin , and the precious metal orichalcum , respectively. According to Critias, 9,000 years before his lifetime a war took place between those outside the Pillars of Hercules at the Strait of Gibraltar and those who dwelt within them. The Atlanteans had conquered the parts of Libya within the Pillars of Hercules, as far as Egypt, and the European continent as far as Tyrrhenia , and had subjected its people to slavery. The Athenians led an alliance of resistors against
10701-410: The most susceptible to the corrupting influence of Chaos. Most of the featured human nations are based in the Old World (analogous to real world Europe ): The Empire ( Holy Roman Empire ), Bretonnia ( France and Arthurian Britain ), and Kislev ( Slavs of Russia , Poland , and Ukraine ). Further east of them is another powerful human civilization known as Grand Cathay (corresponding to China ).There
10824-442: The mountain, making a route to the rest of the island. They dug a great canal to the sea, and alongside the bridges carved tunnels into the rings of rock so that ships could pass into the city around the mountain; they carved docks from the rock walls of the moats. Every passage to the city was guarded by gates and towers, and a wall surrounded each ring of the city. The walls were constructed of red, white, and black rock, quarried from
10947-424: The name Crantor but with the ambiguous He ; whether this referred to Crantor or to Plato is the subject of considerable debate. Proponents of both Atlantis as a metaphorical myth and Atlantis as history have argued that the pronoun refers to Crantor. Alan Cameron argues that the pronoun should be interpreted as referring to Plato, and that, when Proclus writes that "we must bear in mind concerning this whole feat of
11070-552: The nineteenth century Atlantis revival" and is the reason the myth endures today. He unintentionally promoted an alternative method of inquiry to history and science, and the idea that myths contain hidden information that opens them to "ingenious" interpretation by people who believe they have new or special insight. Helena Petrovna Blavatsky , the founder of the Theosophists , took up Donnelly 's interpretations when she wrote The Secret Doctrine (1888), which she claimed
11193-513: The nomadic Mongol Empire , as well as some of the cavemen and Neanderthal tropes. The Ogres also have a race of slave Gnoblars (relatives of Goblins), and are said to be always hungry, valuing food as much as gold. This area of the Warhammer World is equivalent to East/Southeast Asia. It is not greatly developed in the published games or fiction, but there are human civilizations there, specifically Ind, Grand Cathay, and Nippon (which are equivalents of India , China and Japan respectively). To
11316-422: The northern portions and along the shore and encompassing a great plain in an oblong shape in the south "extending in one direction three thousand stadia [about 555 km; 345 mi], but across the center inland it was two thousand stadia [about 370 km; 230 mi]." Fifty stadia [9 km; 6 mi] from the coast was a mountain that was low on all sides ... broke it off all round about ...
11439-495: The ocean (equivalent to the Atlantic) to the west of the Old World, and east of the New World. It draws inspiration from Atlantis , Melniboné and Numenor . The Annuli Mountains run through the centre of the island. The capital and largest city of the High Elves is Lothern, located at a strait connecting the outer Ocean and Ulthuan's Inner Sea. Politically, the island is divided up into 10 Kingdoms, although they all owe loyalty to
11562-466: The other hand, nineteenth-century amateur scholars misinterpreted Plato's narrative as historical tradition, most famously Ignatius L. Donnelly in his Atlantis: The Antediluvian World . Plato's vague indications of the time of the events (more than 9,000 years before his time ) and the alleged location of Atlantis ("beyond the Pillars of Hercules ") gave rise to much pseudoscientific speculation. As
11685-491: The peasant classes worship the polytheistic gods of the rest of the Old World, particularly Rhya. Bretonnia nominally includes the forest of Loren, although in reality most Bretonnians fear and avoid the Woodland Realm, and have many superstitions about it. Kislev is a cold land, north of the Empire but south of Norsca. It is primarily based on Russia , with some references to other Eastern European countries, such as
11808-466: The philosopher Timaeus also describes this Earth as surrounded by the Ocean, and the Ocean as surrounded by the more remote earth. For he supposes that there is to westward an island, Atlantis, lying out in the Ocean, in the direction of Gadeira (Cadiz), of an enormous magnitude, and relates that the ten kings having procured mercenaries from the nations in this island came from the earth far away, and conquered Europe and Asia, but were afterwards conquered by
11931-425: The pillars of Hercules. But more probably he contemplated some unknown land in the far west beyond the ocean, like the fabled Atlantis of Plato ..." Other early Christian writers wrote about Atlantis, although they had mixed views on whether it once existed or was an untrustworthy myth of pagan origin. Tertullian believed Atlantis was once real and wrote that in the Atlantic Ocean once existed "[the isle] that
12054-467: The price to anyone who wishes to campaign." Living underneath much of the known world are the Skaven, diabolical ratmen living in a subterranean dog-eat-dog Machiavellian society, called the "Under-empire". They are divided into clans such as Clan Eshin, master assassins, or Clan Skryre, master engineers. It is believed that they are so numerous that if they worked together they would be able to destroy
12177-533: The pseudoarchaeologist Augustus Le Plongeon traveled to Mesoamerica and performed some of the first excavations of many famous Mayan ruins. Le Plongeon invented narratives, such as the kingdom of Mu saga, which romantically drew connections to him, his wife Alice, and Egyptian deities Osiris and Isis , as well as to Heinrich Schliemann , who had just discovered the ancient city of Troy from Homer 's epic poetry (that had been described as merely mythical). He also believed that he had found connections between
12300-454: The races that are described in this book, which includes other "greenskins" as well. The book includes background information, illustrations, and game rules for these races. The Orcs and Goblins represent a generic Dark Ages warband army with little internal cohesion and discipline, and relying on the ferocious charge and individual fighting skills rather than organized generalship. In issue 203 of Dragon #203 (March 1994), Bob Bigelow liked
12423-587: The rest of the world. Most cities of the Dwarfs are underground, and many Orc/Goblin settlements are as well (the Night Goblins are especially known for being cave-dwellers and rarely come to the surface during daylight). In ages past, the Dwarfs built the Underway , a great system of highways, mines and settlements which stretched huge distances between their great underground fortress-cities. Today, much of
12546-516: The rights for comic books. Boom! Studios have been working on a series of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 comics, written by Dan Abnett and Ian Edginton . The first was the Warhammer 40k strip Damnation Crusade , but this was followed by one in the fantasy universe Forge of War . When this was finished, they started a new series located in the Warhammer Fantasy universe, called Warhammer - Condemned by Fire . This series features
12669-522: The river delta region lies the frontier human settlement Pigbarter. East of the Dark Lands lie the Mountains of Mourn and Ancient Giant Lands, extremely high mountains with a cold climate, which resemble the Himalayas of the real world. This region is inhabited by fierce monsters resembling pleistocene megafauna . The brutish, semi-nomadic Ogre Kingdoms dominate here. They are primarily based on
12792-426: The same vein. Other occultists followed the same lead, at least to the point of tracing the lineage of occult practices back to Atlantis. Among the most famous is Dion Fortune in her Esoteric Orders and Their Work . Drawing on the ideas of Rudolf Steiner and Hanns Hörbiger , Egon Friedell started his book Kulturgeschichte des Altertums [ de ] , and thus his historical analysis of antiquity, with
12915-571: The sea, its inhabitants fled to western Europe; but Ammianus, in fact, says that "the Drasidae (Druids) recall that a part of the population is indigenous but others also migrated in from islands and lands beyond the Rhine " ( Res Gestae 15.9), an indication that the immigrants came to Gaul from the north (Britain, the Netherlands, or Germany), not from a theorized location in the Atlantic Ocean to
13038-457: The setting began with the release of a game simply called 'Warhammer' in 1983. The Warhammer world drew inspiration from Tolkien 's Middle-earth , but also from Robert E. Howard ( Conan the Barbarian ) and Michael Moorcock , as well as real-world history, particularly European history . What is recognizable as the Warhammer World began with the expansion material to the first edition of
13161-639: The south lies the Hinterlands of Khuresh (which is inhabited by Nāgas ) and Lost Isles of Ethlis, equivalent to Southeast Asia . Grand Cathay is the largest human empire in Warhammer Fantasy, ruled by the Celestial Dragon Emperor and Moon Empress, who are immortal dragons able to shapeshift into human form. They delegate most governing of Cathay to 5 of their children, who are also immortal shapeshifting dragons and each rule
13284-596: The south-west. Instead, the Celts who dwelled along the ocean were reported to venerate twin gods, ( Dioscori ), who appeared to them coming from that ocean. During the early first century, the Hellenistic Jewish philosopher Philo wrote about the destruction of Atlantis in his On the Eternity of the World , xxvi. 141, in a longer passage allegedly citing Aristotle's successor Theophrastus : ... And
13407-421: The standards or criteria. The Flemish cartographer and geographer Abraham Ortelius is believed to have been the first person to imagine that the continents were joined before drifting to their present positions. In the 1596 edition of his Thesaurus Geographicus he wrote: "Unless it be a fable, the island of Gadir or Gades [ Cadiz ] will be the remaining part of the island of Atlantis or America, which
13530-463: The story, or, as claiming that he learned about them from other visitors to Egypt. Proclus wrote: As for the whole of this account of the Atlanteans, some say that it is unadorned history, such as Crantor, the first commentator on Plato. Crantor also says that Plato's contemporaries used to criticize him jokingly for not being the inventor of his Republic but copying the institutions of the Egyptians. Plato took these critics seriously enough to assign to
13653-660: The surrounding area as his fiefdom . Atlas's twin Gadeirus, or Eumelus in Greek, was given the extremity of the island toward the pillars of Hercules. The other four pairs of twins—Ampheres and Evaemon, Mneseus and Autochthon, Elasippus and Mestor, and Azaes and Diaprepes—were also given "rule over many men, and a large territory." Poseidon carved the mountain where his love dwelt into a palace and enclosed it with three circular moats of increasing width, varying from one to three stadia and separated by rings of land proportional in size. The Atlanteans then built bridges northward from
13776-420: The temple of Neith the column, completely covered with hieroglyphs, on which the history of Atlantis was recorded. Scholars translated it for him, and he testified that their account fully agreed with Plato's account of Atlantis" or J. V. Luce's suggestion that Crantor sent "a special enquiry to Egypt" and that he may simply be referring to Plato's own claims. Another passage from the commentary by Proclus on
13899-571: The two first-person shooter games in the Warhammer Vermintide series, Warhammer: End Times - Vermintide and Warhammer: Vermintide 2 , among many others. Warhammer is notable for its "dark and gritty" background world, which references a range of historical cultures, and is populated with a variety of races such as humans , high elves, dark elves, wood elves, dwarfs, undead , orcs , lizardmen, and other creatures familiar to many fantasy/role-playing settings. The development of
14022-410: The underway is in ruins and highly dangerous. Many former Dwarf cities and Underway sections are now occupied by Night Goblins and Skaven (a race of evil, intelligent anthropomorphic rats, about the size of a human). The Dwarfs, Skaven and Orcs/Goblins are locked in a constant three-way war for control of the underground. Ulthuan is a ring-shaped island continent, controlled by the High Elves. It lies in
14145-517: The wealthy knightly nobility, and the peasants who live in poverty and squalor, with very low class mobility . The nobility are supposed to follow a code of chivalry, and a small number eventually complete religious pilgrimage, becoming virtuous Grail Knights. However the majority of the upper classes are fiercely oppressive towards the peasants. The main god of the nobility is the Lady of the Lake, although
14268-594: The west lie the Black Spine Mountains, home to outcast Dark Elves called Shades, and the dry west coast. To the north, Naggaroth borders the Chaos Wastes and the Dark Elves have constructed a system of Watchtowers to defend against Chaos incursions. Lustria is a tropical southern continent equivalent to South America . Most of the continent is covered in extremely dangerous tropical rainforest full of poisonous and venomous creatures. The Lizardmen are
14391-460: The world, however their innate predilection for cowardice and betrayal makes long term cooperation unlikely. Besides these, there are the Undead, who are a result of the black sorceries of the first necromancer, Nagash, in the long distant past. His legacy has left the Tomb Kings, who are the resurrected armies of the first human civilisation, in the hot desert lands of Nehekhara to the south of
14514-427: Was equal in size to Libya or Asia" referring to Plato's geographical description of Atlantis. The early Christian apologist writer Arnobius also believed Atlantis once existed, but blamed its destruction on pagans. Cosmas Indicopleustes in the sixth century wrote of Atlantis in his Christian Topography in an attempt to prove his theory that the world was flat and surrounded by water: ... In like manner
14637-494: Was not sunk (as Plato reports in the Timaeus ) so much as torn away from Europe and Africa by earthquakes and flood... The traces of the ruptures are shown by the projections of Europe and Africa and the indentations of America in the parts of the coasts of these three said lands that face each other to anyone who, using a map of the world, carefully considered them. So that anyone may say with Strabo in Book 2, that what Plato says of
14760-461: Was originally dictated in Atlantis. She maintained that the Atlanteans were cultural heroes (contrary to Plato , who describes them mainly as a military threat). She believed in a form of racial evolution (as opposed to primate evolution). In her process of evolution the Atlanteans were the fourth " root race ", which were succeeded by the fifth, the " Aryan race ", which she identified with the modern human race. In her book, Blavatsky reported that
14883-663: Was originally founded thousands of years ago, when the Warrior-King Sigmar Heldenhammer (a Conan the Barbarian and Charlemagne -type figure) united several bronze-age tribes, and allied with the Dwarfs, to face the greater threats of Orcs and Goblins, Undead and Chaos. Sigmar has since become the primary god worshipped in the Empire, representing justice and strength, although there are also other important ones such as Ulric (god of wolves, winter and battle), Shallya (goddess of mercy and healing), Rhya (goddess of harvest and family) and Morr (god of death and
15006-399: Was possible for the travelers of that time to cross from it to the other islands, and from the islands to the whole of the continent over against them which encompasses that veritable ocean. For all that we have here, lying within the mouth of which we speak, is evidently a haven having a narrow entrance; but that yonder is a real ocean, and the land surrounding it may most rightly be called, in
15129-414: Was somehow related to Mayan and Aztec culture. The French scholar Brasseur de Bourbourg traveled extensively through Mesoamerica in the mid-1800s, and was renowned for his translations of Mayan texts, most notably the sacred book Popol Vuh , as well as a comprehensive history of the region. Soon after these publications, however, Brasseur de Bourbourg lost his academic credibility, due to his claim that
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