The Old World from Warhammer Fantasy has perished in the “End Times,” and literally so. The greatest blame lies with a power-hungry vampire – and his wounded ego.
The “End Times marked the end of classic Warhammer Fantasy – at least until it was revived with “The Old World” a few years ago.
The End Times are a very controversial topic among fans. Most prefer to act as if they never happened. This is not only because the entire setting was left behind to market the new Age of Sigmar. Many are simply disturbed by how “out of character” some figures are perceived to behave.
One character comes off particularly poorly, as he betrayed everything and everyone – even when the survival of the world was at stake. His name: Mannfred von Carstein.
The most cunning vampire of all
Mannfred is part of a powerful dynasty of vampires, the Von Carsteins. They ruled over Sylvania, a province in the east of the Empire. When Karl Franz was crowned its ruler, Sylvania had already belonged to the vampire counts for hundreds of years.
His exact origins are unclear. However, it is known that he was one of five vampires who conducted a bloody power struggle for the rule of Sylvania. In the end, only he and his insane blood brother Konrad remained. Mannfred then disappeared for a while and left the rule of the province to him.
Mannfred preferred to hone his necromantic skills. He traveled to Nehekhara, the land of the tomb kings – an entire civilization of the undead. There he researched in the tombs of ancient lich priests. At the end of his journey stood Nagashizzar, the fortress of the greatest necromancer of all time. At this place, his magic became exponentially more powerful.
After Konrad was destroyed during an unsuccessful campaign into the Empire, Mannfred seized the opportunity and returned to Sylvania to claim the throne. To make the Empire believe that the danger from the undead had passed, he kept a low profile for the first years – Mannfred was far more cunning than other vampires, and certainly more than his bloodthirsty brother Konrad.
From commander to the greatest traitor in the world
During the End Times, Mannfred assisted in the return of Nagash, but only reluctantly. The powerful lich was supposed to help stop the latest and largest invasion of Chaos, which threatened to destroy the world. Mannfred would rather serve than be destroyed (even though his loyalty was dubious). He should at least serve as one of Nagash’s powerful Mortarchs.
However, in later negotiations with the remaining enemies of Chaos, Nagash disposed of his unreliable servant by making him the scapegoat. The vampire was locked in a cage of roots that drained his power. Enraged, Mannfred backstabbed his former allies and betrayed them to Be’lakor, a powerful daemon prince, who promised him freedom in return.
However, Mannfred did not actually join the forces of Chaos, even though he pretended to. His plan was to pit them against each other and then pick up the pieces in the end. He did not yet know that the leader of the Chaos invasion, Archaon the Everchosen, was planning a great ritual for the complete destruction of the world.
This ritual could still have been prevented, as a powerful mage of the Empire named Balthasar Gelt was conducting a counter-ritual. It only failed when Mannfred literally stabbed the wizard in the back in a final act of betrayal. The doom of the world was sealed.
The End Times are just one chapter in the grand story of Warhammer Fantasy – and not the only time the world stood on the brink of destruction. There have been many more such events. You can find out about the most dangerous ones here: Here are 5 threats that nearly wiped out the world of Warhammer Fantasy – and one that succeeded
