The Land of the Great BearThe land of Kislev lies to the north and east ofthe Empire. The further east one travels thedense forests give way to open steppesstretching to the foothills of the Worlds EdgeMountains. The winters of Kislev are harshand cruelly long and for months the land isgripped by snow blizzards and ice. Thetownships of Kislev are mainly built of timberfor stone is rare and only the most importantof the cities have stone buildings and walls. Inthe ancient capital city of Kislev the massivewhite buildings are topped by vast gildeddomes and decorated with golden statues andgargoyles. It has been said that Kislev is a poorcountry filled with rich people. It is certainlytrue that the people that live in thisbeleaguered land have an outlook on life thatstrangers often find surprisingly positive. ForKislev is a country under constant threat ofinvasion. Armies of savage Norse oftenventure into Kislev, raiding and pillaging, andto make matters worse Kislev lies right on theborder of the Chaos Wastes, so that any Chaosincursion passes through the land (and itspeople) first.

To aid them in their struggle against thesemurderous foes, the Tzars of Kislev haveforged strong ties with the Empire. Thisalliance benefits both countries, as the rulersof the Empire have long understood thebenefit of a northern bulwark against the tidesof Chaos. Both countries have a tradition of

sending troops to aid the other in times ofneed, and in fact the Gryphon Legion, prideof the Kislevite nobility, was formed as asymbol of the unity between the twocountries. This knightly order is made upentirely of Kislevite nobles, but is garrisonedand trained in the Empire.

Despite the constant threat of invadingarmies, the people of Kislev sing and danceand play as much as or perhaps more than thepeople of any other country in the Old World.Some say that their relative happiness derivesfrom their love of strong drink. Whether thisis true or not, Kislevites certainly do enjoytheir spirits, and in fact many of their peopleattribute almost magical qualities to that mostfamous of Kislevite drinks – vodka.

A Kislevite warband represents a group ofindividuals from this unique northern realm.Kislevites tend to be quiet in the face ofstrangers, but they hold much joy in theirhearts. In fact they are loud and boisterouswhen amongst their own people. Kislevitesare known to be extremely brave warriors,and they hold a loathing for Chaos that ismuch stronger than most of the peoples ofthe Old World. While many citizens of theEmpire may remain ignorant to the initialsigns of a Chaos cult, Kislevite citizens willimmediately seek out any signs of depravityand cleanse the infected individuals withsword and flame. Keep these things in mindwhen you play a Kislev warband. Most citizensof Kislev have lost homes or loved ones to thewarriors of Chaos, and they realise thatanything less than constant vigilance couldlead to their downfall. They are thereforeunrelenting in their resolve against theirancient enemies. Give the forces of Chaos noquarter, and expect none in return.

Special RulesMay Hire: A Kislevite warband is allowed thesame selection of Hired Swords as the HumanMercenary warbands from the Mordheimrulebook.

Ancient Enemies: Kislevite warbands maynever ally (see the ‘Multiplayer Rules forMordheim’ article from the Town Cryer formore details on warband alliances) with anytype of Chaos Warband. This restriction

Kislevite Warband

14

pertains to the following warbands: Possessed,Beastman, Skaven, Dark Elf, Chaos Dwarf, andany other warbands the players judge to besufficiently ‘chaotic’.

Choice of WarriorsA Kislevite warband must include a minimumof 3 models. You have 500 Gold Crownswhich you can use to recruit and equip yourwarband. The maximum number of warriorsin the warband is 15, though some buildingsin the warband’s encampment may increasethis.

HeroesDruzhina Captain: Each Kislevite warbandmust have one Druzhina Captain, no more, noless!

Bear Tamer: Your warband may include asingle Bear Tamer.

Esaul: Your warband may include a singleEsaul.

Youths: Your warband may include up to 2Youths.

HenchmenWarriors: Your warband may include anynumber of Warriors.

Cossacks: Your warband may include anynumber of Cossacks.

Streltsi: Your warband may include up to 3Streltsi.

Trained Bear: Your warband may include upto 1 Trained Bear. Note however that aKislevite warband may not include a TrainedBear if it does not first include a Bear Tamer!

Starting ExperienceDruzhina Captain starts with 20 experience.

Bear Tamer starts with 10 experience.

Esaul starts with 8 experience.

All Henchmen start with 0 experience.

Special EquipmentVodka(35+2D6 gc / Rare 8)Kislevites live in a harsh land under constant

threat of invasion. While this has instilled aseriousness in these people, it has not dilutedtheir love of celebration one bit. If anythingtheir love of revelry has increased with thehardships they have had to endure, as theyhave learned that life is fleeting, and anyexcuse to enjoy what they have been given isnot to be squandered. One of the products ofthis love of life and celebration is a strongalcoholic spirit called vodka. It is also one ofthe country’s most famous exports, thoughmost inhabitants of the Old World find it tooharsh for their palates. Kislevites take suchenjoyment in this drink and regard it assomething almost magical. Mothers give vodkato their families to ward off sickness and tokeep them warm in the long winter monthsand warriors indulge both for luck andcourage. Outsiders often scoff at the reputedproperties of this liquor, but it must be saidthat a Kislevite army that is well supplied withvodka certainly fights better and in higherspirits than one without.

In game terms, vodka is a one-use item ofequipment that a Kislevite Hero may give tothe warband before the start of the game.Every warrior in the warband receives +1Leadership (up to a maximum of 10) for thatgame. In addition because of its nullifyingalcoholic effects every warband member musttest against their Toughness before the start ofthe game – a failure resulting in -1 Initiativefor the duration of the game.

Kislevite Heroes Only

Bear-Claw Necklace(75+3D6 gcs / Rare 9)

Bears are widelyregarded as sacred inKislev, and a necklacemade of their claws(or sometimes theirteeth) is considered

magical and reputedto have magical

powers.

A warrior wearing a bear-clawnecklace receives some of the strength andwild ferocity of the bear it came from. Awarrior wearing a bear-claw necklace becomessubject to Frenzy.

Kislevite Heroes Only

15

Tales of vodka-swilling, gruff men of Kislevby roving scribe Mark Havener

Kislevite skill tablesCombat Shooting Academic Strength Speed

Druzhina ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓

Esaul ✓ ✓ - - ✓

Bear Tamer ✓ - - ✓ ✓

Youth ✓ ✓ - ✓ ✓

KISLEV WARRIOR EQUIPMENT LISTHand-to-hand Combat Weapons

Dagger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1st free/2 gc

Mace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 gc

Hammer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 gc

Axe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 gc

Sword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Morning Star . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 gc

Double-handed weapon . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 gc

Halberd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Spear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Missile Weapons

Throwing Knives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 gc

Shortbow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 gc

Bow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Crossbow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 gc

Pistol . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 gc (30 gc for a brace)

Duelling Pistol . . . . . 25 gc (50 gc for a brace)

Armour

Shield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 gc

Buckler . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 gc

Helmet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Light Armour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 gc

Heavy Armour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 gc

STRELTSI EQUIPMENT LISTHand-to-hand Combat Weapons

Dagger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1st free/2 gc

Mace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 gc

Hammer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 gc

Axe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 gc

Sword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Morning Star . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 gc

Double-handed weapon . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 gc

Halberd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Spear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Missile Weapons

Bow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Crossbow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 gc

Pistol . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 gc (30 gc for a brace)

Duelling Pistol . . . . . 25 gc (50 gc for a brace)

Handgun . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 gc

Armour

Shield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 gc

Helmet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 gc

Light Armour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 gc

Kislevite Equipment ListThe following lists are used by Kislevite warbands to pick their weapons:

Kislevite Warband

16

17

Kislevite Warband

1 Druzhina Captain

80 gold crowns to hireDruzhina are the minor nobles of Kislev.During times of war these nobles form theirown regiments in a Kislevite army, and theylook most impressive with their ancientarmour and weapons, as most of these prizedartefacts are handed down from father to son.Druzhina are rich enough to afford their ownhorse and battlegear, and they must be readyto fight for the Tzar when called upon. Inreturn for this they are allowed to own landand are given a break on their annual taxes.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

4 4 4 3 3 1 3 1 8

Weapons and Armour: A Druzhina Captainmay be equipped with weapons and armourchosen from the Kislevite Warrior equipmentlist.

SPECIAL RULESLeader: Any warrior within 6" of the DruzhinaCaptain may use his Leadership characteristicwhen taking any Leadership tests.

Inheritance: When the Kislevite warband isfirst created, the Druzhina Captain is allowedto purchase one item from the KisleviteWarrior equipment list at half the normal cost.This item represents a treasured familyheirloom that has been passed down throughthe generations. Losing an ancestral item isconsidered very disrespectful and if the item isever lost (e.g. from a Robbed result on theSerious Injury chart), the Captain MUSTreplace it with a finely-made substitute asquickly as possible or risk being haunted bythe angry spirits of his ancestors. To replacean ancestral item, the Captain must purchasethe same item of equipment at 150% of itsnormal price. This higher cost represents thefine detail and valuable materials used in theitem’s manufacture. Until the item is replaced,the Captain suffers a -1 penalty to all tests androlls to hit.

0-1 Bear Tamer

35 gold crowns to hireSince ancient times, bears have featured inKislevite myths and legends. Kislevites have adeep respect for these mighty beasts, andgather to see the trained specimens thataccompany travelling circuses. The powerfulmen that train these bears are known simplyas Bear Tamers, and the best of them are

widely renowned amongst the people ofKislev. Bears can be trained for martialpurposes as well, and Bear Tamers are oftenrecruited into the armies of Kislev, where theyenjoy a special status among the soldiery.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

4 3 3 4 3 1 3 1 7

Weapons and Armour: A Bear Tamer may bearmed with weapons chosen from KisleviteWarrior equipment list.

SPECIAL RULESBear Handler: A Kislevite Warband thatincludes a Bear Tamer is allowed to purchasea Bear as a henchman. This bear has beentrained to follow the Tamer’s commands, andso will automatically pass its Stupidity testswhen within 6" of the Bear Tamer (even if theTamer has been Knocked Down or Stunned).

0-1 Esaul

35 gold crowns to hireEsaul is an ancient Cossack term that means‘Best Warrior’, and was traditionally given tothe most powerful fighter in the tribe. Theword has survived the generations, and todayit is an honourary title given by a chieftain tohis personal champion, though it is also usedby Gospodar warriors as a more familiar termfor an experienced veteran. Most Kislevitecities contain at least one grizzled veteranamongst the ranks of their professionalsoldiery who has been affectionately labelled‘Esaul’ by his men.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

4 4 3 3 3 1 3 1 7

Weapons and Armour: An Esaul may beequipped with weapons chosen from theKislevite Warrior Equipment list.

0-2 Youths

15 gold crowns to hireStrong, strapping lads from the countrysideoften join a band of daring adventurers tomake their fortune.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

4 2 2 3 3 1 3 1 6

Weapons and Armour: Youths may beequipped with weapons chosen from theKislevite Warrior Equipment list.

heroes

18

Kislevite Warband

henchmen (bought in groups of 1-5 models

Warriors

25 gold crowns to hireThe Gospodar tribe make up the bulk of thepeople of Kislev, and they are generallyconsidered the most civilised of the peoplesof this harsh realm. Gospodars are people oflarge stature with blonde or red hair. Theirwomen are well known throughout the OldWorld for their fair-skinned beauty. Gospodarwomen have the same rights as men, and areallowed to rise to positions of power; in factthe most powerful of the legendary Ice Magesof Kislev are all female!

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

4 3 3 3 3 1 3 1 7

Weapons and Armour: Warriors may beequipped with weapons and armour chosenfrom the Kislevite Warrior equipment list.

Cossacks

30 gold crowns to hireCossacks are nomadic tribesmen who live inthe far north of Kislev. They are always thefirst to encounter any Chaos invaders from thenorth, and so have long fostered a bitterenmity with the servants of Chaos. Cossacksare renowned for their riding skills, and theirfavoured weapons are the scimitar (sword)and spear.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

4 3 3 3 3 1 3 1 7

Weapons and Armour: Cossacks may bearmed with weapons and armour chosen fromthe Kislevite Warrior equipment list.

SPECIAL RULESHate Chaos: Years of bitter struggle againstthe forces of Chaos have left their mark on theCossack people. Cossacks are subject toHatred against all forces of Chaos (e.g.members of any warband the players wouldapply the Ancient Enemies special rule to).

0-3 Streltsi

25 gold crowns to hireFirearms were first introduced to Kislev byPrince Boydinov of Erengrad. Though verypopular among his people, the prince wasconsidered quite eccentric (it was he thatinvented the mad game called KisleviteRoulette). Despite initial superstition as timepast handguns have been accepted as essentialweapons of war. In his legacy the prince had alarge portion of his wealth set aside for theestablishment and upkeep of a regiment ofhandgunners. The regiment continues to thisday and its members are known as Streltsi.Soldiers from other cities in Kislev, mostnotably the capital, are sent here to train inthe use of firearms with the Streltsi.

In addition to their knowledge of handgunsStreltsi are also trained to use a small halberdcalled the berdiche. In fact the berdiche andhandgun are the most widely recognisedsymbols of the Streltsi. In combat Streltsi areable to use their berdiches as rests for theirhandguns, increasing their accuracy andmaking for a deadly weapon combination.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

4 3 3 3 3 1 3 1 7

Weapons and Armour: Streltsi may be armedwith weapons and armour chosen from theStreltsi equipment list. Note that Streltsi arethe only Kislevite Warriors trained in the useof handguns.

SPECIAL RULESGun-Rest: A Streltsi warrior armed with bothhalberd and handgun may use the halberd asa gun-rest. The warrior receives a +1 on his‘to hit’ roll with the handgun, as long as hedid not move that turn (this applies even ifthe warrior has a skill that allows him to moveand shoot with his handgun – he must notmove if he is to rest the gun).

19

Kislevite Warband

0-1 Trained Bear

145 gold crowns to hireBear Tamers often bring one of their sacredbears with them when they prepare to enterbattle. These great beasts respect little, and ittakes years for a human to win their trust andobedience. The effort to train one of thesecreatures is well worth it however, as one cannot hope for a more loyal friend or useful allywhen things turn bad.

Profile M WS BS S T W I A Ld

6 3 0 5 5 2 2 2 6

Weapons and Armour: None, other thantheir claws and teeth!

SPECIAL RULESTrained: A bear doesn’t care about thewarband’s mission or enmity for otherwarbands – it’s just following the orders of itstrainer. Sometimes it gets bored waiting fororders; for this reason Trained Bears aresubject to the rules for Stupidity. If given‘special attention’ by its trainer, it will mind abit better, so a bear is not required to takethese Stupidity tests if the warband’s BearTamer is within 6". In fact this is the onlymember of the warband the bear will listen to;a Trained Bear will never use the warbandleader’s Leadership for any tests it is requiredto take. It may use the Bear Tamer’sleadership if within 6" of him however. Notethat the warband cannot control the bearwithout a Bear Tamer. The Trained Bear maynot be used in any game in which thewarband's Bear Tamer does not take part (andthis means that if the warband does notinclude a Bear Tamer at all, the warband mustkeep the bear staked back at camp until theyhire a new one!).

Fearsome: A charging bear is a very scarysight indeed! A Trained Bear causes Fear.

Bear Hug: If the Bear hits the same enemywarrior with both of his attacks in the sameround of combat, the player may choose tomake a single ‘Bear Hug’ attack instead ofresolving the attacks normally. If this option ischosen, each player must roll a D6 and addhis model’s Strength to the roll. If the Bear’stotal is higher or the totals are equal, theopposing warrior takes a single automaticwound with no armour save allowed. If theenemy warrior’s total is higher, the warriorhas broken the Bear’s hold and suffers nodamage from the attack.

Fiercely Loyal: Such dedication is built intothe relationship between Bear Tamer and bearthat if his trainer is injured, a bear will oftenstand over the body to protect it, or even dragthe trainer’s body to safety. As long as his bearis not taken Out of Action during a game, aBear Tamer ignores the following results onthe Serious Injury table: ‘Sold to the Pits’,‘Robbed’, and ‘Captured’ (and ignoreequivalent results in settings such as Lustriathat have their own special Serious Injurytable). If any of these results are rolled for theBear Tamer, treat the result as a ‘FullRecovery’ instead.

Animal: Trained Bears are animals and do notgain experience.

Sample WarbandWhen creating a warband I normally start withthe models I place the highest priority on. Ialways purchase a leader first, as the warbandhas to have a leader and this is the figure thatwill most closely represent me as the warbandcombats others for wealth and glory. After thisI purchase any henchmen that I really want totry out, and then I look at filling out myheroes and the rest of my warband. So Andreiwas purchased first, and I gave him someancestral armour, a pistol and sword. I figuredthe bulk of my warband would have very littleequipment, so the Druzhina should have acouple expensive items to really make himstand out. The ‘Inheritance’ special rule reallyhelps here!

After Andrei was purchased, my next prioritywas a Trained Bear. Bears feature prominently

20

Kislevite Warband

in the history and religion of Kislev, and it justwouldn’t be right not to include one. Besides,if you want to strike fear into your opponents,there are few models better suited to do this!

Next I focused on filling out my heroes. Inormally try to purchase as many heroes aspossible when I start a warband, as this givesme the best chance to get good Explorationrolls. However, this time I had allowed myselfa little extravagance in the purchase of a bear,and this along with the expensive warbandleader severely limited the amount of gold I’dhave to fill out the warband. So I left the Esaulin Kislev and purchased a Bear Tamer and twoYouths. The Bear Tamer is a requirement if Iwant to use the bear, and the Youths arecheaper than any of my henchmen!

On to the henchmen, and by this time I wasstarting to run pretty low on funds. With thisin mind I decided to purchase Warriorsinstead of Cossacks. Warriors lack the HateChaos special rule of the Cossacks, but theyare still decent henchmen and the five goldcrown savings each would help me to possiblybuy another warrior. I included four withclubs and daggers, but looking at the gold Ihad left and how many warriors were in myband, I figured I could do some shuffling andstill get the warband to a good starting size. Inormally like to start out a new warband withat least nine members, as having one morethan a multiple of four gives you one more

that has to be taken Out of Action before youstart testing for Rout. So I dropped one of theWarriors and added a Streltsi with his specialequipment (handgun and halberd) in hisplace, and upgraded the remaining Warriorsto swords instead of clubs.

As the warband progresses I plan to add inthe final hero, and add some Cossacks as well.If I earn sufficient gold, I would like topurchase the maximum number of Streltsi astheir unique skills can make for a fearsomesupport of my close combat troops.

Kislev WarbandAndrei Padinov, Druzhina Captain 110 gcHeavy Armour (Ancestral Item), Sword, Pistol,Dagger.

Boris Schaunov, Bear Tamer 45 gcSword, Dagger.

Ivan, Youth 25 gcSword, Dagger.

Stephan, Youth 18 gcClub, Dagger.

Igor,Trained Bear 125 gc

Valery, Josef and Alexi, Gospodar WarriorsSword, Dagger. 105 gc

Anatoly, Streltsi 70 gcHandgun, Halberd, Dagger.

Total: 498 gc

Kislevite concept sketches by Mark Bedford

MAIL ORDER

☎ UK 0115 91-40-000 USA

1-800-394-GAME w

ww.gam

es-workshop.com

Mail Order can supply individual models . Just give Mail Order a call if you require a specific model.

KISLEV PACK A – ONE CAPTAIN/CHAMPION £4.00

KISLEV PACK B – THREE HENCHMEN £7.50

KISLEV PACK C – THREE YOUTHS £7.50

KISLEV PACK D – TAMER & BEAR £10.00 KISLEV WEAPONSModels are supplied with a selection of the

following weapons. Enough are included in

each pack to arm all of the models.

Pack contains a random selection of one of the above models

Pack contains a random selection of three of the above models, two that can be armed

with halberd or hand weapons and one that can be armed with a missile weapon

Pack contains a random selection of three of the above models, two that can be armed

with halberd or hand weapons and one that can be armed with a missile weapon

Pack contains one bear and bear tamer

Example

Example

Example

CrossbowHand Weapons

Halberd

Kislevite WarbandFrom the skilled hands of sculptors Mark Harrison and Seth Nash we bring you the Kislev warband. The Kislev

range is supplied in packs. Each pack contains a random mix of between 1-3 models and a set of weaponsthat are used to arm the models in the manner you choose. The Kislevites are available through Mail Order

and from the Games Workshop online store – see details on the right.