Bloodwrack Medusae

"Stripped of their beauteous forms by the goddess Atharti, Medusae know nothing but pain, torment, regret and anguish."

—The Medusae of Ghrond^[2]

Bloodwrack Medusae (sing. Medusa) are horrid half-humanoid, half-snake creatures that have served the whim and desires of Morathi, the Dark Elf Hag Queen of Naggaroth, for many thousands of years.

Role

It is said that the the Bloodwrack Medusae were Druchii Sorceresses of Ghrond who used their magics and blood-feasting rituals to become more beautiful than even the gods. In so doing, they came to the attention of the Elven goddess Atharti, who is vain beyond measure and suffers no mortal competition.^[1a]

In retribution, the goddess of pleasure stripped the upstart mortals of their beauteous forms and caged them in pain-wracked, serpentine bodies. Even this punishment she deemed insufficient, and so she reduced their minds to be little more than those of beasts. Atharti left only one sliver of awareness to her victims, enough that they might always remember with torment the beauty and power they had once possessed.^[1a]

Morathi, who alone had accounted her comeliness in no need of magical enhancement, drove her former sisters from Ghrond's walls. She then gave thanks to Atharti for delivering a punishment well-earned, and set about replenishing the Dark Convent's ranks. Now the Bloodwrack Medusae are bent to serve Morathi's needs once more, though in a manner entirely different to that of their former lives. When a great campaign beckons, the Hag Sorceress sends warriors into the caverns below the Spiteful Peaks and the squalid lairs therein. Those who survive return to Ghrond with prisoners in tow -- Bloodwrack Medusae, their claws bound and their faces masked.^[1a]

At Morathi's direction, the captives are chained to Atharti's great Bloodwrack Shrines and propelled by Dark Magic to the very forefront of the assembled armies. A Bloodwrack Medusa's gaze is a fearsome weapon; should a victim's eyes lock with hers for even a second, his lifeblood violently rebels, flooding from every pore until his body collapses into a pool of its own gore.^[1a] Not all Bloodwrack Medusae are goaded to war atop monolithic shrines, however. Some emerge willingly from their lairs and follow the scent of blood to war. They are unreliable allies who pay no heed to any battle plan, seeking only to share their own torment with their luckless victims.^[1b]

Notable Bloodwrack Medusae

• Siren of Red Ruin - Once one of the most beautiful Sorceresses of Ghrond, the Siren’s malicious wails channel her anguish into blasts of pure, unbridled hatred.

Videos

Total War WARHAMMER 2 - Introducing... Medusa

Miniatures

A Bloodwrack Medusa (8th Edition)

Detailed look at a Bloodwrack Medusa. (8th Edition)

Notes

Due to the description of Sirens in Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: Imperial Zoo, Bloodwrack Medusaes may be one of the many types of that species. Is important to note that the source book is written as a diary of a Human who took many information from sailors and citizen of the Old World.^[3a]

Sources

• 1: Warhammer Armies: Dark Elves (8th Edition)
  • 1a: pg. 48
  • 1b: pg. 50
• 2: Total War: Warhammer II (PC Game)
• 3: Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay 4th Edition: The Imperial Zoo (RPG)
  • 3a: pp. 86-87

Gallery

Portrait of a Bloodwrack Medusa as depicted in Total War: Warhammer II.^[2]