Gorthor is a historical character and a major antagonist in Warhammer Fantasy Battle.
He was considered to be the greatest, most infamous Beastman to have ever lived. While it was customary for the Beast-Men to raid human settlements out of hatred towards them, Gorthor stood out in that he believed that he was chosen by the Chaos Gods to lead the Beastmen into his race's glorious victory, plundering, violating and killing as many beings in their way as possible. Hence, he was dubbed the "Chosen of Chaos Undivided" and would create a reputation that would exceed Beastmen expectations and evoke fear and dread towards any who speak of him, years after his ultimate defeat and death.
Personality[]
The Beastmen are well-known for being ravenous and brutal creatures, courtesy of the Chaos Gods's designs. Like all others of his race, Gorthor was a beast as figurative as he was literally, taking enjoyment out of killing and raping his victims, destroying towns and settlements out of inherent hatred and defeating and putting down rival Beastmen as a showcase of superiority.
However, for a race that is defined by their one-track-minded goal towards eradicating anything that looked civilized, Gorthor had one trait that distinguished himself from the rest of his race; vision and determination. The vision that he was favoured by the Chaos Gods and that he was to lead them to victory. To that end, Gorthor became convinced that he was above every other Beastmen and sought to prove it. To do this, he violated whatever ethical rules the Beastmen had established, especially the killing of a shaman, which he used their hides to fashion a hypnotic cloak that would bind any unwilling Beastman into his services.
Gorthor also wanted to expand upon the Beastmen's reputation and did this by creating a massive army to attack and deprive large settlements. His actions would lead to the decimations of Ostland and Hochland, an action that Gorthor took with stride as he felt that this would be a perfect appeasement for the Chaos Gods.
Thanks to being convinced by a prophecy, Gorthor went out to be the most fearsome, warmongering and bloodthirsty Beastman there could be. He was ruthless even by his own race's standards, being willing to kill members of his race that were considered sacred and not being afraid of butchering his rival Beastmen if they dared to fight against him. All this led to Gorthor becoming feared by the other Beastmen, which furthered his reputation. Nearing the end of his life, Gorthor killed millions of people and other races and left massive pieces of lands in utter ruins. His reputation survived his death, with Gorthor being seen as the most dreaded and callous Beastman to have ever lived and many of his kind seeking to replicate his accomplishments.
History[]
Gorthor first gained his reputation in the Middle-Mountains where he received visions of the Beastmen having finally defeated The Empire and Mankind and the world was covered in black skies and ruined cities. This, alongside his leadership skills prompted him to amass a gigantic Beastmen army. To do this, he approached and killed any rivals who opposed him and even took to breaking his own race's laws by killing and flaying the Bray-Shamans, using their hides to create a cloak that hypnotized unruly Beastmen into his services. He spent months preparing for a grand invasion.
Gorthor led his newly created army to the province of Ostland, fully intent on completely obliterating it. Leading a force filled with Razorgors, Gors, Minotaurs, Cygors, Ghorgons and Beast-men of all types motivated by their disgust towards Mankind, Gorthor's army butchered countless mean, women and children, topped towns and castles beyond recognition and the Beastmen asserted their dominance and reputation, sparing a single man so that he could run off to tell others about what Gorthor had done in an attempt to incite panic and fear.
Soon, Gorthor would see himself being challenged by an Orc Horde. Seeing that the Chaos Gods see him as worthy and that they were blocking his way towards his goal, Gorthor led his army in a great battle against the Black Orc's army. He personally battled against the Black Orc, with both of them declaring their convictions of being dominant. A vision from the Chaos Gods told Gorthor that the Black Orc was a potential usurper in the destruction of Mankind. His determination further fueled and driven, Gorthor killed the Black Orc and then ordered his Beastmen to kill every single Orc that was left, with them immediately taking notice and attacking their unmotivated and frightened enemies until the entire battlefield was littered with the corpses of a giant Orc army.
However, this battle was alerted by human followers to the Empire, who went to alert their then-Emperor, Mikael Ludendorf, about the situation surrounding Gorthor. In a short time, while Gorthor went on to plunder Ostland, Mikael took to assembling as many forces as he could have in Hochland as the Beastlord was making his way south to the city of Hergig, intending on invading and slaughtering the entire populace.
To motivate his troops, Gorthor promised them a massive fillet of human corpses to take for themselves as he and Mikael were to begin the battle against each other in the outskirts of Hochland. The Beastlord himself, however, wanted to savour Mikael for himself. There was a siege for more than 3 weeks, but on the following day, Gorthor had managed to succeed in crashing into the borders of Hergig. The Beastmen wasted no time in finding and killing anyone they could find, and a brutal battle ensued between the remnants of the city, who despite being weakened by malnutrition and injuries stood their ground at all costs and the bloodthirsty Beasts of Chaos who were insanely dedicated to getting what they wanted. The Battle of Hergig raged on for three days and three nights, with the Beastmen managing to remain victorious and driving out their enemies out of the city for them to burn to the ground. However, Mikael was not among the victims of the massacre, for he had retreated to plan out one last attack. A councillor for Mikael, who suggested to surrender was sent to Gorthor who promptly devoured him when he refused to betray his master.
It took days before Mikael and Gorthor resumed their battle, this time using whatever troops they had left from their previous battle. However, the battle was interrupted by the Knights of the Order of the Blazing Sun led by Grand Master Heinrich who proceeded to suddenly plough through and cut down whatever Beastmen in their way. In desperation, Gorthor took to climbing up a shattered statue and call upon the Chaos Gods to grant him strength and victory. Upon the arrival of Mikael, Gorthor sent in many of his troops towards the Emperor before finally deciding to confront and battle Mikael himself.
Gorthor and Mikael battled for nearly an hour as their own troops clashed against each other and watched their leaders fight simultaneously. In the end, Gorthor had the upper hand, destroying his enemy's shield and impaling him with his spear. Prematurely thinking of victory, Gorthor did not anticipate what would happen next, for Mikael used the last of his strength and breath to strike his sword against the Beastlord. In that instant, Gorthor stooped to the ground, slain mutually by his killer. Upon notice, the Beastmen panicked and quickly began to flee, completely free of Gorthor's manipulation and motivation.
Trivia[]
- Gorthor's death is dependable on different editions, though his killer being Mikael Ludendorf remains consistent. The Sixth Edition claims that Mikael destroyed Gorthor's weaponry before dealing the finishing blow, though Mikael himself would succumb due to his injuries and exhaustion. In the Seventh Edition, Gorthor fatally stabbed Mikael, who then used the last of his strength to slit the Beastlord's throat.
- Gorthor's name is a reference to a title held by Sauron, namely Gorthaur the Cruel. The similarities stem from the fact that the two of them are sadistic warlords, though Gorthor's main aim was destruction whereas Sauron desired total control instead.
