| “ | I am Khorne's chosen, the Murder God's own sacred executioner. Today, his eye is on you. Show him prowess! | „ |
| ~ Skulltaker's pre-battle Speech |
Skulltaker, or U'zhul is a Lesser Daemon of Chaos, a Herald of Khorne that is legendary among daemons and feared by all warriors of note. Called the Hero Slayer and Blooded Wanderer, he is one of the very, very few daemons to bear the honor of being named Khorne's Champion.[1] He is a Khornate Fiend, aptly named for taking the skulls of the most worthy foes to either present to Khorne or attatch to his cape, the cloak of skulls. Skulltaker is a character from Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40k.
Overview[]
Characteristics[]
| “ | Arrogant and bloodthirsty, he only respects those who dare to face him in battle. Weaker enemies are swiftly dispatched, their skulls claimed without honour. His true glory lies in defeating powerful foes, cementing his reputation as a fearsome champion of Khorne’s ideals of strength, dominance, and unrelenting warfare. | „ |
| ~ Omens of Destruction: Introducing Skulltaker[2] |
The Skulltaker leading an army.
Skulltaker is similar to a typical Bloodletter, only he is larger as Heralds of Khorne are known to be. He also wears significantly more clothing, namely his trademark cloak of skulls. Splayed out over what appears to be leather, the skulls are tied to the cape by bloody sinew or else impaled upon one of the spines coming out of the cape. Skulltaker's horns are thick and curling; two skulls are fitted into where they curl, both marked with Khorne's skull-rune. His englongated head is covered with a brass-and-iron helmet of sorts decorated in skulls. His eyes are pitiless and the same color as burning coals.
He is described as arrogant and bloodthirsty, but willing to extend the honors and rituals of single combat to foes he deems worthy before taking their skulls. The Skulltaker is unusually cruel in battle, prefer to dominate his enemies by shattering all their bones and making them completely helpless before him before finally ripping off their skulls.
The Skulltaker is popular amongst other Bloodletters. They do not challenge him or dispute his status as legend or leader, and not because of his title of Khorne's Chosen Champion.[3]
Warhammer Fantasy[]
| “ | Khorne shall have his tribute, but the worthy are mine to reap! | „ |
| ~ The Skulltaker[4] |
The Skulltaker with a skull.
Wandering the realm of chaos and the chaos wastes, U'zhul the Skulltaker is the finest of Khorne's bloodletters. He goes from stronghold to stronghold in search of the mightiest warriors to battle and will demand their best warrior be sent against him. Should someone be foolish enough to actually comply, Skulltaker dismounts his Juggernaut Kuhl'tyran, salutes his enemy, and then charges forward to duel them in single combat. He is unusually cruel, preferring to shatter the bones of his foes and then burn the very flesh from their skulls with fire that generates from his hands. Victorious, the skull is tributed to Khorne or added to the grim cloak of trophies the daemon wears at his back. The skull cloak is enchanted and frustrates enemy spellcasters, protecting it's wearer from cowardly magic.[5]
It is said that he knows every weakness of every enemy. Thusly, battles are bloody and brief. He wields the Slayer Sword, a Hellblade formed from a shard of Khorne's own wrath. Along with being composed of cherished skulls of foes slain, Skulltaker also takes a portion of the strength of those he kills. He is uniquely allowed by Khorne to keep some of those skulls for his own, rather than tributing them as is typical, and is so mighty as to command the response of the Dark God's themselves. Skulltaker has only been known to have been defeated once: when he battled Sigmar during the earliest days of the fledgling empire. He bears a scar upon his brow, a mark of his failure to kill the God-King of the Empire. Because of this, Skulltaker takes particular delight on killing Sigmar's heirs, as daemon memories are long and they rarely think to forgive.[6]
Warhammer 40,000[]
When Skulltaker was first created by Khorne, his first act was to decapitate the nearest creature: another Bloodletter. Such was the start of a career of battle and decapitations and when U'zhul took his 888th skull, Khorne chose him as an entrant into the Skullpit, proving grounds for all aspiring Bloodletter Champions. Here, the Daemon was unmatched, beheading all challengers and recieving no injuries in return.[7] Thus Khorne named him his Sacred Executioner and he earned the title of Skulltaker. As hordes of enemies clash against each other, the Skulltaker only has eyes for the strongest enemies on the field. He has fought alongside Angron, felled the Ork Grimsnag, and even slew seventeen Eldar Exarchs during the Haranshesmash battles. All races have tales of the Skulltaker and all are recounted with terror.
Skulltaker in 40,000.
Skulltaker only offers a quick death to the unworthy; those they face him are killed with slow ceremony, dismembered and dispoiled before finally being slain. Uttering the Eight Words of Sacrifice, the daemon burns the flesh from their skulls then twists the head from it's neck, holding it aloft victoriously. This he repeats upon worthy foes, until there are no more. He then returns to the Brass Citadel and presents his trophies to Khorne. Most of them Kharneth takes, but the Blood God begrudgingly allows those who truly challenged U'zhul to remain in the Skulltaker's possession. These the Daemon weaves into his cloak, a rare pause before further butchery. However, Skulltaker's bloodthirster eventually stirs once more and he rides off again onto the battlefield.[8]
When he goes to war, it is at the head of the Cohort of Blood, a gathering of the Legion's most murderous bloodletters. He is regarded by other Bloodletters as the pinnacle of their kind.[9]
Quotes[]
| “ | Other Khornites fear my presence, so I cannot imagine what it does to a mere mortal. | „ |
| ~ U'zhul the Skulltaker |
| “ | One scar is enough. For that, Sigmar's whelps will pay in full. I do not believe in half-measures. | „ |
| ~ U'zhul the Skulltaker |
Trivia[]
- According to the book Blood for the Blood God, The Skulltaker was once a mortal man and is not a Bloodletter but a Daemon Prince who resembles a Bloodletter. His mortal name was Vrkas. However, the Daemons of Chaos army books claim that his existence began as a daemon. In Warhammer III, U'zhul muses on whether or not he was a mortal in some other life, perhaps hinting at the books.
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Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ Total War: WARHAMMER III - Skulltaker – Omens of Destruction
- ↑ Meet the Skulltaker | TOTAL WAR: WARHAMMER III
- ↑ Total War: Warhammer III (PC Game) - Omens of Destruction DLC
- ↑ Total War: WARHAMMER III - Omens of Destruction Announce Trailer
- ↑ The Liber Carnagia: Book of Blood (Warhammer Fantasy)
- ↑ Daemons of Chaos 8th Edition (Warhammer Fantasy)
- ↑ Codex: Daemons of Chaos 8 Edition (Warhammer 40,000)
- ↑ Codex: Daemons of Chaos 4th Edition (Warhammer 40,000)
- ↑ Codex: Daemons of Chaos 8 Edition (Warhammer 40,000)