Chaos

Chaos in Warhammer Fantasy is a general term referring to the corrupting, mutating power of magic that originates in another dimension called the Realm of Chaos and blows into the world like a wind.
Chaos can refer to the following:
* The Chaos Gods from the lore, the 4 major ones being Khorne, Nurgle, Tzeentch and Slaanesh
* The various Chaos-aligned races (see below)
* Chaos Corruption which is spread by the above
* The Chaos Invasion that happens in certain campaigns
* The Realm of Chaos AKA "Chaos Realms" which appear in the lore and in (so far) one campaign map
See below for more details.
==Chaos-aligned races==
Chaos can refer more specifically to the races who are aligned with the power of Chaos. These races tend to be hostile to non-Chaos races, but especially hate those races which uphold civilization and order.
The main Chaos races:
* Warriors of Chaos
* Beastmen
* Norsca
* Khorne
* Tzeentch
* Slaanesh
* Nurgle
* Daemons of Chaos
Races which are sometimes considered to be Chaos-aligned:
* Skaven
* Chaos Dwarfs
* Cult of Pleasure (a playable faction of the Dark Elves race, led by Morathi)
==Chaos Invasion==
In the Old World and Mortal Empires campaigns, there is a Chaos Invasion to provide an end-game challenge.
==Chaos Corruption==
Chaos Corruption is a nefarious force which affects provinces in TWW1 and TWW2, changing and mutating the landscape and causing various penalties or bonuses depending on race/faction. In Total War: Warhammer III, Chaos corruption was expanded into 5 types: Chaos Undivided, Khorne, Nurgle, Tzeentch and Slaanesh corruption.
==Realm of Chaos==
The Realm of Chaos (also known as "the warp" and "the aether") is another dimension beyond the Warhammer world. The Realm of Chaos is home to gods, malevolent daemons and the souls of mortals. The Realm of Chaos does not follow the physical laws of our universe, and thus when the Realm of Chaos seeps into the Warhammer world it is perceived as magic. To put it another way, the Realm of Chaos is the source of all magic in Warhammer Fantasy. Due to the unpredictable and corrupting nature of the Realm of Chaos, all magic use (even by well-intentioned spellcasters) is tainted by Chaos and inherently dangerous. This is represented in the game as miscasts, though in the lore spellcasters will sometimes accidentally open portals to the Realm of Chaos, summon Daemons, or spontaneously explode.
In Total War: Warhammer III's The Realm of Chaos campaign, the Realm of Chaos appears on the campaign map and factions can send armies there to fight and achieve campaign objectives.
==The Chaos Gods==
The Chaos Gods, also known as the Dark Gods or the Ruinous Powers, are powerful deities which dwell in the Realm of Chaos and command daemonic servants. The Chaos Gods represent fundamental aspects of our nature and draw power from the emotions of mortals. As such, they can never be truly defeated. However, their followers may be stopped, at least temporarily. There are four main gods:
* Khorne, The Blood God - god of rage, hatred, slaughter, bloodshed and war
* Tzeentch, The Changer of Ways - god of hope, ambition, change, schemes, deception and magic
* Nurgle, The Lord of Decay - god of despair, disease, rot/decay, resilience, stagnation, and inevitable entropy
* Slaanesh, The Dark Prince - androgynous god/goddess of excess, obsession, sensation, perfection, art and hedonism
The blessings of the four main Chaos Gods are represented in Total War: Warhammer and Total War: Warhammer II via Marks of Chaos. In Total War: Warhammer III, there are playable factions centered around each of the four gods.
The Chaos Gods are served by various horrors known as the Daemons of Chaos.
There are also two minor Chaos Gods:
*The Horned Rat - God of the Skaven, representing the decay of civilisation, unending tide of clever and evil rats, unending hunger of rats. Clan Pestilens worship the Horned Rat in his aspect as the bringer of plagues, not unlike Nurgle.
*Hashut - God of the Chaos Dwarfs, who represents darkness, fire, industry and cold hatred.
Lesser-known Chaos deities:
* Zuvassin - the Undoer.
* The Great Beast - the Great Beast is said to be the joint aspect of all four chaos gods.
Category: Warriors of Chaos
Category: Beastmen
Category: Norsca
Category: Lore
Category: Chaos