To most in the Mortal Realms, the Idoneth Deepkin are nothing but a myth – a story of daemons from the sea, told to frighten little children into obedience. The truth is far more terrifying, for when the Idoneth Deepkin emerge from the ocean depths, they come to claim the souls of the living. Theirs is a tragic tale. In the Age of Myth, not long after the dawning of the realms themselves, the Mage God Teclis and his brother Tyrion awoke in the realm of Hysh, newborn divinities of aelfkind. Together with the other aelven gods, they hatched a plan to avenge themselves on Slaanesh – the gluttonous Chaos God who hungered most strongly for aelven souls.
They captured and imprisoned the Dark Prince, and using an arcane tool known as the Ocarian Lantern, Teclis drew countless lost aelven souls from its belly, one by one. These spirits were distributed amongst the aelven gods, and Teclis used his portion to craft the ideal aelves of his imagination, naming them Cythai, or the Awakened. Yet, somehow, they were flawed – none of the Mage God’s attempts to purify their tarnished souls bore fruit, and eventually the Cythai fled their father in fear, hiding from his scrying gaze in the oceanic depths.
Corroded by exposure to the Dark Prince, the Cythai’s souls suffered a withering degradation that cut short their aelven lifespans, or afflicted them with a sadistic madness called the mallachi. In a bid to master this sickness, they developed methods of soul-transfusion to keep it at bay – though this requires a regular harvest of fresh souls, gathered during lightning raids on land dwellers. The enclaves named themselves the Idoneth, meaning ‘extreme seclusion’ or ‘desperate measures’.
Overview
As the eight realms fell into the grip of Chaos, the reclusive Idoneth were forced to take part in the war. Though they often fight alongside duardin, aelven, and human allies, the Idoneth Deepkin make for fearsome but extremely fickle allies – as their primary goal is always the survival of their own kind.
Only a handful of Idoneth are born in every generation with fully-formed, ‘noble’ souls. These join the elite ranks of the Akhelian warriors, or enter the conclaves of sages known as the Isharann. Most, however, are born as Namarti – sightless and short-lived aelves whose life force must be topped up through the transfusion of fresh souls.
This caste system is as inhospitable as the depths at which the Idoneth live, and is reflected in the ways they do battle. Namarti auxiliaries unquestioningly follow the word of their callous Akhelian commanders and Isharann soul-guides, fighting with discipline and skill, and all three aspects work tougher in deadly unison.
The Idoneth must periodically leave their enclaves and travel the whirlways of the sea to maintain their supply of souls. Their approach is always shrouded by the ethersea, a spectral echo of the watery depths that is conjured and maintained by the Isharann.For enemies this arcane swell is akin to being trapped in the true ocean – movements are impeded and sight curtailed. For the Idoneth, however, it’s a home away from home. Namarti bound from the gloomy depths while Akhelians riding great Allopex sharks and other marine megafauna swim though the very air. They hit hard, like the incoming tide itself, fading just as fast and leaving naught but destruction and stolen memories in their wake.
Battle Traits
As Raiders of the Deep, the Idoneth strike deep into the battlefield under the cover of their oceanic magic, exploiting their hit-and-run talents as Ethersea Voyagers. You can deploy an entire regiment seemingly out of nowhere, ready to cut down your hapless foes.
When these elusive aelves do attack, they mimic the destructive ebb and flow of the Tides of Death. These provide four abilities that progress with each passing battle round – at Low Tide, their units advance under the cover of mist, before surging in Flood Tide, pre-empting their waterlogged foes at High Tide, and then melting away during the Ebb Tide.
Battle Formations
The raiding parties of the Idoneth Deepkin employ a variety of specialised tactics. The Akhelian Beastmasters are cold-hearted aelves with a particular mastery of the undersea beasts they ride into battle. They make full use of the instincts of these Ferocious Predators, adding 1 to the hit rolls of all Companion weapons.
Other battle formations employed by the Idoneth Deepkin rely on the superlative sorcerers of the Isharann, the Namarti auxiliaries who hurl themselves into combat to protect their Akhelian masters, or the devious hit-and-run tactics of an ambushing soul-raid.
Arcana and Incantations
Idoneth children are examined at birth by Soulscryers, who induct those with a potent talent for magic into the Isharann. These arcanists use their powers to safeguard Idoneth society in the hostile depths – shaping souls, directing the ethersea, and exposing enemies to the full harshness of the ocean.
When the flow of battle demands a tactical retreat or reposition, the Lore of the Deeps further enhances the mind-boggling mobility of the Idoneth Deepkin, as the Isharann conjure a Steed of the Tides to transport their forces wherever they need to be.
Unit Focus
When the Idoneth Deepkin must apply the greatest force they can muster, they summon an Eidolon of Mathalann using the souls of their dead kin. This avatar of the lost aelven sea-god has many faces, and the Aspect of the Sea represents the nature of the vast ocean in both its limitless embrace and overwhelming horror.
These supernatural apparitions radiate the Tranquillity of the Abyss, calming the minds of their allies and removing negative modifiers from their control scores. When the tide needs to turn, they can summon Vengeful Waves to batter their foes, making it impossible for them to receive commands, and cast a Tsunami of Terror that leaves enemies vulnerable.
Isharann Tidecasters accompany Idoneth armies to war, for as Masters of the Ethersea, they bend the oceanic magic that surrounds such raids to their will.
Each turn, a Tidecaster can further enhance the ethersea’s effects, with a choice of three benefits. An early Creeping Mist prevents enemies from shooting at anything more than 12” away, and a Surging Stream ushers the Idoneth forward – particularly useful at Flood Tide – while a Spiteful Riptide harms enemies who attempt to retreat even if they would normally ignore damage when doing so.
The Idoneth Deepkin harness not just the elemental power of the sea, but also its more vicious inhabitants. Mind-leashed and ridden by Embailors who tap into the predatory instincts of their mounts, an Akhelian Allopex is a ferocious killer.
These Bloodthirsty Predators only become more terrifying in battle once they smell blood in the water, and their sharpshooting riders use their harpoons and net launchers to pin down Ensnared foes, hampering your enemy’s fastest beasts.
The Akhelian Ishlaen Guard instead ride smaller and more agile Fangmora Eels into the fray. They excel at pinning enemy units in place by neutering their offensive output, while simultaneously gaining extra protection from their Galv-shields.
The Word from the Studio
Jimbo: “From their hiding places in the depths of the ethersea, the Idoneth Deepkin launch terrifying raids upon their unsuspecting targets. Adept at manoeuvring and repositioning, the Idoneth are at their most dangerous when making precision strikes at the weak points of the enemy defences.
“Thanks to their swift movement and boons provided by the Tides of Death ability, an Idoneth Deepkin army is hard to hit and even harder to pin down. If they are fighting an enemy that can keep up with them, the Akhelian Ishlaen Guard and Akhelian Leviadon can provide these slippery sea-dwellers with a bulwark on which to break their enemies.”
Spearhead Spotlight
When the Idoneth Deepkin need to conduct a subtler incursion, they launch a Soulraid Hunt. Led by an Isharann Soulscyrer, these smaller forces are adept at swift and targeted strikes. Two five-model units of Namarti Thralls pin enemies in place, a raging Allopex savages bigger obstacles, and noble Akhelians of the Morrsarr Guard charge in to deliver the coup-de-grace.
The Tides of Death accompany the Idoneth even on these smaller-scale raids, providing a (tweaked) buff for all four of Spearhead’s battle rounds. This progression of abilities is perfect for getting your Namarti Thralls in combat, where they can decimate foes with their lanmari blades. These weapons have different specialist abilities when wielded against both INFANTRY and MONSTERS, giving you a tool for any occasion.
Tomorrow we are trading the swift, cruel aelves of the Idoneth Deepkin for the inexorable advance of disease and decay, as the Maggotkin of Nurgle infect the next Faction Focus article.
