Recently I found myself in a bit of a predicament, a pirate themed predicament. I have an abiding love for dark elf corsairs and found my dedication to Slaanesh wavering as I read through the Idoneth battletome and Scourge Privateer rules. I wanted pirates, coastlines, ships, and ports. The advice given to me was “just make your Slaanesh army pirate themed.” And that’s what I did, but it took me a day or two to reconcile the two together. Admittedly, it’s not too far off from the original pleasure cult concept, but breaking down the original material did take some mental effort, like breaking cement to pour a new foundation.

Nagh Kython Khyrkanashaith ~ Pale Serpent Cult of Pleasure

Thanharath, the Lord of Slaanesh’s new name, roughly means “subtle/hidden ambition,” something that an “exile” aelf mother might realistically name her child, especially if he was a ****** of nobility. Along that vein, I imagine Thanharath taking to the sea with the scourge privateers to earn gold and glory, and a measure of freedom from his mother’s expectations.

During the course of his voyaging about Ulgu, pillaging the forces opposed to Order and capturing great beasts, Thanharath’s moral character is tested by an encounter with a seeker host on the hunt for Slaanesh. The daemonettes are routed, but he and his crewmates are hard pressed to let the memory of it alone. Sensing an opportunity, a herald within the shattered host tracks the privateers back to their home port, infiltrating the community as aelven refugees lost in Ulgu’s mists.

After a short time, and several ventures upon the shadow sea, the privateers return home to find the port covered in strange fog and eerily silent. A desperate cry from the captain as his head in bound up in the Talunhook of an Idoneth soulrender signals the ambush. The privateers fight desperately against the sea aelves, making bloody progress out of the docks and into the streets. The Slaaneshi herald, under the assumed name of Fiannagh, guides the besieged crew into a fortified house where the last of the port’s populace wait for the next attack. Privately, Fiannagh reveals herself, and his bound mother, to Thanharath, and offers to drive off the Idoneth if he will embrace the worship of Slaanesh and complete the ritual that will summon their salvation.

With a shrug, Thanharath sacrifices his mother to Slaanesh. The Idoneth raiders are ill prepared for the daemonic forces that spill from the fortified house, and their bodies line the streets as the enchanted mist rolls back out to sea.

Conversion plans:

Thanharath Serpentsworn ~ Lord of Slaanesh on Daemonic Mount

The model will use the mounted Lord of Slaanesh as a base, but replace the torso, arms, and legs with corsair parts, especially the corsair champion head with the serpent motif. The shield will be replaced with a drakespawn knight shield bearing another serpent. I plan to use wood plank basing for this and the rest of the army.

Elthyirah Blisscutter and the Kython Khalirii ~ Hellstriders

Slaanesh mounts, drakespawn rider legs and shields with serpent icons, spears, hellstrider standard, and corsair bodies, arms, heads and trumpet. Elthyirah will be given the hellstrider champion claw spear and a daemonette head to show the extent of her corruption and devotion.

Fiannagh’s Host ~ Herald of Slaanesh and Daemonettes of Slaanesh

Herald mounted on a steed of Slaanesh, using bits from the seeker chariot kit, and daemonette kit. Paint scheme for Slaanesh daemons will reference salt water crabs and other sea creatures to tie in with the corsair theme of the army. Not much conversion needed, they already have claw hands.

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That fills out my first 500 points, and allows me to drop the black dragon kit from my earlier plans. I just need to get a box of corsairs, two drakespawn knight boxes, and the mounted Lord of Slaanesh box to finish out (excluding extra bits and bases). To lead into the next 500 points, I may just do a simple doomfire warlock conversion for my mounted chaos sorcerer, and there’s Wrath and Rapture on the horizon.