Winds of Magic

## General Research

### Winds of Magic: First Glance

Grandmaster Tamia spent six years examining the eight raw components of the Warp that Warp Break Down releases. Unsurprisingly she has found that they match the eight Winds of Magic that the Skink Priests use, though so far she has not been able to make use of them herself. She has however noticed that they seem to be significantly more stable than conventional Warp, which should make creating more complex and long lasting powers with them far easier then it is for those that use the pure Warp.

### Winds of Magic: Basic Teachings

Xavier spent half the last decade learning the basics of the Winds of Magic from the Skinks. He found that each of the Winds of Magic covers an area both wider and more focused then your current disciplines, with being elemental, metaphorical and mental. From what he can tell a different mindset is needed to wield each of the eight winds, and that while it is possible to learn how to wield multiple Winds, combining them is a bad idea, and you would have to start from the beginning with each Wind. It is possible to mix all eight Winds to get what the Skinks call High Magic but that is a nearly entirely forgotten art, with only Areatha having achieved it since the death of the last Slann.

### Winds of Magic: Using the Winds

Grandmaster Xavier spent the last eight years working with a mix of his best psykers and new trainees learning how to use the Winds of Magic from the Lizardmen. He was able to successfully make use of the Wind of Fire, and among his subordinates there are those who are able to use all of the Winds of Magic, though so far none have been able to use multiple winds. From what Xavier can tell the winds are mostly compatible with your existing traditions, and the trainees had no real advantage in learning how to use the winds.

Currently your psykers can only use the Winds on Avernus, or after someone else has broken down the Warp for them. According to the Skinks however this will change as they develop a greater mastery of wind magic, with a skilled user able to draw the Winds out of the Warp anywhere that touches on their winds concepts.

### Cataclysm Magic: Basics

Grandmaster Xavier tells you that he now has a basic understanding of the underpinnings of Cataclysm Magic. He tells you that Cataclysm Magic makes use of a combination of self-propagating spell forms and calling on an echo of the spell that has been carved into the Warp itself to allow spells of incredible power to be cast by psykers that could never successfully channel them. He judges that every major psyker has enough strength to use Cataclysm Magic, though the incredible precision and control needed to successfully cast them and the often lethal consequences for failure ensures that only your greatest psykers will be using Cataclysm Magics.

## Wind Specific Research

### Ghyran, the Wind of Life

**Winds of Magic (Ghyran):** Ghyran, the Wind of Life, is the Green Wind of Magic. Ghyran is the Wind of Life and draws power from life itself, as well as the calmer aspects of nature including the earth. While a user of Ghyran can attack foes with summoned plants and have the earth itself rise up against them, its main uses are supportive rather than aggressive. Ghyran wielders are second only to the Priests of Isha when it comes to healing being able to heal all physical wounds, even death if you act fast enough. This Wind is also highly effective at boosting allies, especially boosting their defences, which when combined with its healing can make even unarmoured humans surprisingly durable.

### Azyr, the Wind of Heaven

**Winds of Magic (Azyr):** Six years ago High Grandmaster Ridcully finished his studies of Azyr, the Wind of Heavens and the Blue Wind of Magic. The Winds of Heaven draws its power from the skies and the void above them, and from the unknown mysteries including the mysteries of fate. While Azyr can be used to attack with bolts of lightning, gusts of wind or even gaps of pure void, its primary uses are elsewhere. A skilled user of Azyr can see and alter omens of Fate, giving a level of Foresight and Fateweavng second only to the seers of the Eldar. More importantly, the combination of mystery and the heavens allows for an expert wielder of Azyr to guide a ship through the Warp, allowing them to Navigate. This ability will most likely work in concert with the Third Eye of the Navigators, and if Navigators prove able to learn the Lore of the Heavens their abilities should increase massively.

**Azyr Navigators:** Much to your joy Aria found that with a few years of training all but the youngest of the Navigators sent by House Norn were able to pick up the utter basics of Azyr. While it will take some time to spread the training this will with time allow for all Navigators to make use of the Wind of Heavens, which will hopefully allow them to guide ships through the Warp with greater speed, precision and safety.

### Hysh, the Wind of Light

**Winds of Magic (Hysh):** Hysh, the Wind of Light is the White Winds of Magic. Hysh draws its power from light, as well as concepts like truth, the passing-of-time, and purity. Hysh can be used to unleash deadly beams of light, to adjust the flow of time for certain people and similar uses but its true strengths are purification and mental defence. A wielder of Hysh will find all of their abilities far more effective when unleashing them against the dark, most commonly Chaos in all its forms, and is unrivalled when it comes to protecting or cleansing, people or areas against mental attacks and taint in all its forms.

Aria expects that Hysh will see heavy use among those that expect to fight the forces of Chaos, such as the Psy Hunters, and to a lesser extent all of your battle psykers, though not to the point of dominating any orders.

### Chamon, The Wind of Metal

**Winds of Magic (Chamon):** Xavier has finished his examinations of Chamon, the Wind of Metal and the Yellow Wind of Magic. Chamon is the Wind of Metal and draws power from logic, as well as metal and technology. Chamon can be used to attack, unleashing bolts of molten metal, but its true focuses are transmutation and enhancing technology. A Chamon wielder can effectively use a more temporary version of the Remnant Discipline of Transmutation, though their powers find it easier to affect metal. When it comes to boosting technology Chamon can provide temporary boosts in a similar manner to technology, or can be used as it is being made to notably increase its quality.

Xavier expects that Chamon will soon come to be the dominant discipline of the Psyker Artisans of the Imperial Trust, and efforts are already underway to determine if it is compatible with technomancy.

### Ghur, the Wind of Beasts

**Winds of Magic (Ghur):** Six years ago Xavier finished his studies of Ghur, the Wind of Beasts and the BrownWind of Magic. The Winds of Beasts draws its power from wild animals and chaos, not Chaos, there is a major difference, in equal measure. As such it is impossible to truly tame, with a user instead having to direct it to achieve their desired ends. Ghur can be used to summon animal constructs or to disrupt the workings of technology, but its greatest powers lie in augmentation. A skilled wielder of Ghur can massively boost the strength and toughness of his allies, or change their shape into that of a mighty beast. In war Ghur would be most valuable in the hands of your psyker attaches, who can use it to boo the soldiers around them, while outside of war Ghur is effective for making connections with wild animals, and is how the Lizardmen gathered many of the warbeasts that they can deploy.

### Shyish, the Wind of Death

**Winds of Magic (Shyish):** Four years ago High Grandmaster Ridcully finished his studies of Shyish, the Wind of Death and the Purple Wind of Magic. The Wind of Death draws its power from death and endings. Shyish is one of the most lethal winds of magic and can be used to drain the souls and life of foes and bring endings to all that they face. Shyish is most effective against those that consider themselves beyond the grip of death, whether this is due to the immortality of demons, undead or other causes, and more then any other Wind is able to cause True Death. A skilled user of Shyish can drain and seal souls and lifeforce, terrify even those foes who are considered above fear and similar feats. In general Shyish is considered to be more effective at killing single powerful foes rather then great hordes, though it does have several spell of widespread devastation.

Shyish is expected to be a common wind among your battle psykers, especially the Psy-Hunters who mostly deal with lone foes and demons.

### Aqshy, the Wind of Fire

**Winds of Magic (Aqshy): X**vier finished his studies of Aqshy, the Wind of Fire and the Red Wind of Magic. The Wind of Fire draws its power from both fire and passion in all of their forms. Aqshy is one of the most lethal winds of magic and in war can be used to summon and control firestorms. Aqshy is not limited to what you would consider pyromancy, however, with wielders also being able to inflame passions, bolster courage and similar feats. While well suited to all forms of warfare it is in slaying hordes that Aqshy truly comes into its own.

Aqshy is expected to be a common wind among your battle psykers for much the same reason that pyromancy currently is.

**Use of Cataclysm Magic (Aqshy)-** Aqshy is one of the most lethal winds of magic and in war can be used to summon and control firestorms. Xavier spent a few years studying exactly how to use the Wind of Fire to make up the spell forms needed for Cataclysm Magic, and learning about the Cataclysm Spells that the Lizardmen will teach you for this lore.

First and simplest is Volcanic Eruption, which creates what is effectively a volcanic eruption where the caster directs, causing a massive amount of damage to those hit and rendering the area challenging to cross until the magma cools.

Next is the Mantle of Flame, which cloaks allied forces with a mantle of flame rendering them immune to fire based attacks and burning those that approach them while it lasts.

Finally there is the Sea of Fire, which quite simply floods a wide area in fire, devastating lightly and moderately armored foes.

### Ulgu, the Wind of Shadow

**Winds of Magic (Ulgu ):** Xavier finished his studies of Ulgu, the Wind of Shadow and the Grey Wind of Magic. The Wind of Shadow draws its power from deceptions, confusion and mysteries in all their forms. Ulgu is a wind built around deception, stealth and illusion and as such will be a major boon to your more shadowy organisations and formations. A skilled user of Ulgu can fog and deceive the senses of their foes, both natural and warp based, manipulate solidified shadows or evens step through or drag foes into a realm of shadow. Ulgu is the wind best suited for stealth operatives of all stripes, though its grander illusions can be rather effective on the battlefield and like all winds, it can be used effectively to great effect.

Ulgu is expected to be the main wind used by your infiltration regiments, kill teams and other stealth based psykers.