Bonesinger

From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
Jump to: navigation, search

Bonesingers, or in older editions Musicians,[5] are Asuryani who master their innate abilities to psychomorphically[7] manipulate wraithbone as adherents to the Path of the Bonesinger.[2] Bonsingers cultivate and tend groves of wraithbone, forming the living material into useful shapes.[12a]

Overview

Bonesinger from Craftworld Il-Kaithe.[11]

Bonesingers are tasked with the construction and maintenance of Eldar structures and machinery. They do this through the psychic manipulation of wraithbone, shaping and moulding it into various items. While wraithbone naturally repairs itself, the process can be accelerated by the psychic abilities of a bonesinger.[2] Through the application of their psychomorphic talents, bonesingers accelerate the formation of psychotropic crystals around the wraithbone. Due to these psychic engineering methods, any Eldar construction resonates with sympathetic psychic energy.[8] To the Aeldari mind, there is little distinction between technology and nature, and psychoplastics such as wraithbone are one such material that straddles that line.[12b]

A fragment of wraithbone could be used to seed the growth of a new object, installation, device or repair an existing one. Sometimes a bonesinger uses telekinesis to hold a fragment in place while they sing to the psychoplastic, moulding the seeded wraithbone fragment until it takes root and begins to grow into the desired form. The older the wraithbone is, the slower it takes to alter its growth to match the pattern of the new desired form. Even a webway gate can be produced over time via this method.[10]

Bonesingers use their spirit stones to psychically create and manipulate wraithbone, which glow brightly in their hands, and have their own sets of Eldar runes which function as templates and patterns for the various devices and structures they grow from psychotropic crystals.[7] They also employ a psychic tool called an Isitha Kasra, which, though silent, enhances their concentration and boosts their psychic powers by storing additional energy.[1a]

While a single bonesinger can conjure crudely simple shapes of wraithbone, such as a basic spear in a matter of seconds, the material is comparatively weak and brittle compared to the super-material it can become. The process of cultivating wraithbone can be swift or slow depending on the complexity and size of the shape. Creating something like a wraithlord takes time and skill to shape its many intricate mechanisms. Groups of bonesingers, given enough time, can use their arcane voices to craft shapes stronger than voidship hulls.[12b] A bonesinger might inadvertently entwine intense emotions, such as overwhelming grief and sadness, into the wraithbone. This could give a creation, such as a wraith construct, an uncomfortable aura.[12c] The few humans who have spent time in the presence of Bonesingers find their songs haunting and hard to forget.[8]

In battle, bonesingers accompany Eldar vehicles such as Dreadnoughts and War Walkers, using their abilities to repair and maintain these machines amidst the chaos of combat.[1a]

Design Schools

Bonesingers, as the designers of vehicles, titans, and spacecraft, will spend decades discussing the different styles of design which could deliver the troops and weapons they design for. In this way different aesthetic traditions have emerged, known as "Design Schoools",[Note] which spread to Asuryani across the galaxy.[14]

These design schools will hold different sway on different bonesingers within a craftworld across time, and the dominant school will change and evolve over time as competing schools demonstrate their aesthetic vision suits their forces better, and even ancient designs may be revived – however, never included in these debates are the weapons themselves whose characteristics were set long ago and agreed upon by all.[14]

Bone Seers

Bone Seers are Eldar who have become so immersed in the Path of the Bonesinger that they cannot leave it, similar to the Exarchs of the Aspect Warrior Path or the Farseers of the Path of the Seer. They serve as mentors and master craftsmen, capable of constructing the Isitha Kasra and performing advanced repairs on damaged vehicles.[1a]

Bonesinger Psychic Powers

Iyanden Bonesinger.[8]
  • Bone Song: A psychic wave which allows vehicles to self-repair.[1b]
  • Conjure Wraith: Rapidly call a simple wraithbone shape into existence.[12b]
  • Preservation: A protective light surrounds an Eldar vehicle.[1b]
  • Repair/Ruin: Assist a piece wraithbone in returning to its form or disrupt the shape, breaking or severely damaging it.[12b]
  • Shape/Reshape: Guide and coax an existing piece of wraithbone. More time spent manipulating the piece allows for more complex shapes.[12b]
  • Song of Swiftness: Allows an Eldar Vehicle to hasten its speed.[1b]
  • Spirit Talk: Takes control of an Eldar Wraith construct.[1b]

Notable Bonesingers

Images

Trivia

TriviaScrollTrans.png

The following information is not to be regarded as officially sanctioned and/ or is not written from an in-universe point of view. A detailed explanation of the term "Trivia" as used in the Lexicanum can be found here.

Development History

Among the earliest releases for Eldar in Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader were the pre-packaged Eldar Command Group, modelled by Jes Goodwin[6], which provided command unit options to the (at the time exclusively) Corsair eldar forces. Among the sprues included in the command group was 071419/40, listed in the catalogue as "Musicians".[5]

These musicians would not receive rules until the Citadel Journal 13 article Eldar Bonesingers, which would introduce the concept of Bonesingers, the Path of the Bonesinger, and the Bone Seer.[1a] Bonesingers would see a new miniature in 2005 released as a direct-only model from the Games Workshop Webstore, and would be included in Dawn of War the same year.

Note

Design Schools were included in Epic: Swordwind (2005) as an in-universe explanation for the difference in Eldar vehicle designs between early Epic and Warhammer 40,000, and the later redesign of eldar vehicles for Epic 40,000 which brought the Epic-scale miniatures into line with those of Warhammer 40,000.

See also

Sources

Fanatic-Logo.jpg

This article or article section is based on information from a Fanatic Press publication such as Fanatic Magazine or one of its predecessors (e.g. The Citadel Journal, Necromunda Magazine, etc.). These publications regularly featured articles submitted by hobbyists, and as such, their content may or may not be in contradiction to established background lore.

Fanatic-Logo.jpg

This article or article section is based on information from a Fanatic Press publication such as Fanatic Magazine or one of its predecessors (e.g. The Citadel Journal, Necromunda Magazine, etc.). These publications regularly featured articles submitted by hobbyists, and as such, their content may or may not be in contradiction to established background lore.

External Link

Retrieved from "https://lex.124811.xyz/mediawiki/index.php?title=Bonesinger&oldid=727890"