[version 1.4]

DECLARE YOUR LOYALTY!When the campaign begins, playerspledge their army’s allegiance to a non-player character we call a Figurehead,and fight for the Coalition rallyingbehind them.

SHAPE THE STORY!Each turn, the GM will be able to SubmitReports for games of Soulbound onbehalf of their gaming group. Reportsare the result of a session you’ve played,where your characters performed somemission related to the conflict in LakeBykaal. You may then allocate it to theNarrative Path that corresponds to theoutcome of your mission.After each turn is over, we enter thosereports into our game engine and,before the start of the next turn, we postan Unfolding Narrative update depictingyour actions and their impact on thestory as seen through the eyes of ourNPC Figureheads.

Due to the unique nature of this globalcollaborative storytelling event, and thecurrent situation regarding socialdistancing, you don’t need to physicallyplay games against other people toparticipate. So long as you’re sharingyour game results, short stories andhobby projects, you’ll still be aninvaluable cog in our collective warmachine.

YOU DECIDE THE OUTCOME!Ultimately what sets Animosity apart themost is the open-ended nature of ourplayer experience. Team Animosity hasno intention of “railroading” you; wemay set the stage but your charactersare the actors and this is your story totell!Furthermore, each campaign is linked toits predecessors, creating an ongoingfan-written continuity. No matter yourlevel of participation, your contributionswill influence Animosity Campaigns foryears to come…

For almost a decade, Animosity Campaigns brought cooperative storytelling and intense map-based strategy on a grand scale to Warhammer players around the

the world. Today, Team Animosity is working to reinvent this incredible experience for Age of Sigmar and a new generation of hobbyists and gamers.

https://animositycampaigns.com/about/

REPORTING SOULBOUND SESSIONS FOR ANIMOSITY II

GMs are the ones who tie togethertheir own group’s story towhatever is going on at LakeBykaal. As such, they will be thepoint of contact with Animosity.We ask that only GMs (notplayers) submit the Play Reportfrom their team’s mission, for thatsession, and applicable choice ofNarrative Path.Players in the grup can still submitmore Reports of course, using allthe other categories available inAnimosity II. They can even submita Narrative Writing about theircharacter’s mission, or a paintedmodel of their character.

In Animosity Campaigns, your group of characters will be affiliated with one of several Coalitions, working for the Figurehead that leads it (or one of their underlings).

As a GM, you can make use of story hooks below, to lure your group of players quickly and effortlessly to Lake Bykaal, involved in the action, on time for Animosity II!

Or you can come up with your own plot!

These story hooks assume that your group can be either a Binding, or just a group of hard-bitten handyfolk (as per the Grim & Perilous rules, in pg.296 of the Souldbound Corebook).

Lake Bykaal

The frozen lake lies in a very remote partof Shyish, in a deep large valley thatstretches for thousands of miles. It is anicy afterlife for sailors and hunters oflarge sea creatures, who lost their liveswith their hunt unfinished, and theirsouls now sail the ships that cross the icysurface of the lake. Much of the regionhas been settled by chaos tribes. A newrealmgate, the Ghyrplunge, has openedonto the lake, from the recentlyrediscovered city of Amasya in Ghyran.

Official Request

Your group, due to good standing orduties performed, is contacted bymessengers of someone ofimportance. The message can bearthe seal of Admiral Anruil‘Brighteyes’ of the SigmarsmachtExpedition, or any of the prophetsand religious leaders of ThePilgrimage. Even the enigmaticPerpetual alliance may request yourassistance, for Starmaster Zectoka’smission is too important and yourgroup is the right one for the job. Inany case, your particular talents havebeen requested for a mission toShyish. Either instructions have beenincluded for you on how to get therequickly, or passage has beenarranged for you.

Riches and Opportunity

Stories of fabled Amasya, holy city ofthe Gods and lost since the Age ofChaos, are spreading through theFree Cities of the Mortal Realms.Many see this as an opportunity forreligious repentance and search formeaning… and fiery zealousreconquest of the new lands beyondin Shyish, obviously. Many others, ofcourse, see the commercialopportunities, either in finding lostrelics or in selling services to thegrowing garrison.

Blackmail or Curse

Your group has gotten themselves ina pickle, and are in a tight spot. As achoice for repentance, a way to payoff a debt or to have a curse lifted,they are tasked with a mission toLake Bykaal in Shyish. This worksespecially well if the group is notmade up of Soulbound characters.

A Sacred Conquest

The lost holy city of Amasya has beenfound! The place where Sigmar firstforesaw the creation of his Pantheon,as he bathed in the Ur-River. Place ofpilgrimage, where the devoted of thePantheon of Order came to beinterred upon death, and be closer totheir Gods. Followers of Sigmar,Allarielle, the Duardin Gods,Gorkamorka, the Aelven Gods andeven Nagash came here. This is amomentous occasion, and manyprophets and ministers of the Godsare mustering in The Pilgrimage. Fora new realmgate has opened inAmasya, leading to a backwater ofShyish still filled with Chaos defilerssince the last age. This is a primechance for your group to prove theirworth to the Gods, and rallybelievers.

An Ominous Prophecy

Your group has come into theknowledge of a dire prophecy, visionor portent. Maybe someone hasgifted this knowledge to you, perhapsa dream from a God worshipped byone of the characters, or the latestacademic gossip from the seers of theCelestial College of Magic. Somethingdire to the Mortal Realms may cometo pass in a remote lake in Shyish. Anancient destructive force, lockedaway for eons, has now been steppedfoot there…

Search for a Lost Soul

Someone important to the group, orthe group’s patrons or employers,has died. This can be a recent death,or someone deceased decades orcenturies before. This person’s soulhas come to rest in Lake Bykaal inShyish, accordingly to how they livedtheir life and died (hunting a seabeast). They hold extremely valuableinformation, or hold high sentimentalvalue, to the group or their employer.Particularly, of those souls of Deepkinelves felled in battle against deep seabeasts that could not be recovered,many are devoured by Slaanesh andtheir daemons… but others may findtheir way to this underworld…

For Coin and Blood

A lot is going on at Lake Bykaal. BasaltLord Qarang Sarn and IrkutThousandeyes “the Spineless”,Varanguard of the Everchosen, haveled their armies through theGhyrplunge realmgate. They are inpossession of a TeclianEnlightenment Engine, crafted by theAelven God himself, and many otherspoils from Amasya. They have agrand plan in the works, and areoffering good coin and mighty boonsto those who would fight for them. Itis also a prime opportunity to getclose to them, and have a chance tosteal (or sabotage) the Engine.

The Sigmarsmacht

Expedition

The Delegation from Hammerhal Ghyrahas successfully annexed Amasyapolitically, and wishes to secure itsborders (you can find the details of whathappened here). Especially with so manyDestruction warbands running around inBykaal now, as well as the forces of theVaranguard Undivided. They wish toenlist capable people to join AdmiralAnruil’s Expedition to Bykaal, to securethe realmgate and investigate theregion. They might be assigned as scouts(particularly to try and secure Tsatrayacitadel), stationed to patrol theRealmgate, or investigate any of thelocations of the Lake for Lord-CelestantShinzong’s missing Stormcast Eternalvanguard.

The Pilgrimage

To the Blessed of the Gods, the recoveryof Amasya is a monumental event.Though not all Gods place as much animportance on it, some may wish to usethis opportunity and guide their Blessedor Soulbound there to stake a claim. ThePilgrimage, led by Arali Heartsbane ofthe Temple of Khaine, includes humans,aelves, and duardin but also someOrruks, Grots and Ogors and even aFlesh-Eater crusade, all marching for theglory of their Gods.

The Pilgrimage is very much a vehicle ofrevenge against the forces of Chaos, asBykaal is in a remote region away fromNagash’s main armies, and has beenpopulated only by scattered Chaos tribesfor the last Age. It is also where thesurvivors of the Horde of Rot and Rageas well as the Varanpact escaped afterthe war in Amasya, carrying the spoils ofthe holy city to Bykaal.This is a unique opportunity for glory andacclaim in battle, for the characters, andnew conquests for the forces of Order.

Animosity Campaigns are all about strange alliances in strange times.There may be many reasons why your group of players may end up supporting one

Coalition over another. However, we understand most player groups may already be composed of characters

native to the Free Cities of the Mortal Realms, and as such may be less likely to support certain… unsavoury Coalitions.

Below are some of the reasons such characters may work for any of the Coalitions.

https://animositycampaigns.com/animosityi/

The Perpetual

The machinations of the Seraphon are,as always, unscrutable. So when yourgroup is approached by a retinue ofskinks, and their priest wishes to hireyou all for a mission, the group’smembers realize the dreams they’vebeen having were not a coincidence.The group is warned that something verydangerous is about to happen, andinvolves a long-dead godbeast. Becausemany other powers are marching onLake Bykaal, this complicates thesituation. They need someone who canact without drawing attention, andprevent the trespassers from tappinginto the hidden secrets of the Lake. Theyare forewarned, though, that theundead forces under Reikenor theGrimhailer will be assisting them, whoalso have a stake in keeping the situationstable on that corner of Shyish.The star-lizards may even be willing togive the group a ride to Bykaal on theirstar-vessels.

The Soulmuncherz

Your group is approached by membersof the secretive Deepkin aelves, whohave a proposition for you. This may beparticularly likely if your group has anyIdoneth aelves in it, or are somehowexperienced in soul magic or relatedphenomena. They say they aredesperate, and are on a mission mostsacred from Soulscryer Dyrnawen‘Silverfish’ of the Void Trenches.They have found important soulsprecious to the Idoneth, hidden at LakeBykaal, and have put in march a greatplan to recover them. They have set up alarge force of empoweredSoulMuncherz, formed of Orruks, Grotsand Ogors, to find and recover these lostsouls. You are to travel to Bykaal, andfigure out where these souls are: youwill be endowed with the ability tocapture such souls as well. While theSoulMuncherz scour the whole region,your group is to find out how these soulscan be released from Bykaal. It seems astrange alliance but the proud Deepkinpromise an eternal debt of gratitude toyour group if you will assist in thisendeavour.

‘Here I am, brain the size of a planet, and they ask me to take

you to Shyish. Call that task satisfaction? Because I do not.’

- Starmaster Ma’arVinn,of the Fangs of Sotek

The Undivided

The Undivided of Chaos scoured all ofthe sacred places of the aelves inAmasya, looking for clues about theirMagic of Sealing. They now hold anuncorrupted Enlightenment Engine ofTeclis in their hands, a not-so-secret factto those who fought the war in the holycity. Word has spread, and the chance touse the power of the legendary artefactis a unique opportunity worth risking lifeand limb. Your group may be tempted bythis power, whether to share in it if theyrise sufficiently in the Varanguards’ eyes,or to steal it for themselves. Asinconvenient as it may sound, there aresome secrets of the Mortal Realms thatare worth serving the will of Chaos for afew months.The Undivided are certainly hiringmercenaries, and are paying well:several groups of them have beenspotted, so telling who is and who isn’tworking for the Chaos lords at Bykaalcan be uncertain. Characters could alsobe “working” for the Varanguard as anundercover mission to infiltrate them,and disable their plot once they rise highenough to get closer to the Engine.

The Wretched

The Oracle of Humility and the Oracle ofPeace have held the bickering Chaostribes living around lake Bykaal in asemblance of balance for the lastcenturies. They have also long held thesecrets of the Lake in their backyard,and know where many are. Many relicsfrom the Age of Myth may still lieundisturbed here, the locals being toopowerless to either salvage them orunderstand their full potential.As the Undivided and the rest of theseintruders plow into Lake Bykaal, theyhave called in ancient favours and darkpacts. As a result, many descendants ofthose who long ago have trafficked withChaos may find themselves branded andcompelled to travel to Bykaal, and fightagainst the enemies of The Wretched:members of your group may be amongthem. Resisting such curses is difficultand potentially fatal. These pacts mayalso shackle souls that may be valuableto the group of players, and thusblackmail them into doing service forthese lords of Chaos. It is possible thatsuch a curse may be broken in time.Alternatively, the group may be trying touncover some long-lost relic or secret,that has lain hidden in Bykaal forcenturies, and is using this opportunityto barter with them for aid in locating it.There is no shortage of unscrupulouscharacters willing to turn a blind eye tothe plight of erstwhile allies, if thatmeans recovering a long-lost heirloom orresolving some ancient grudge.

The Mortal Realms are big and sprawling, and your group of characters playing a Soulbound campaign can be anywhere at this point.

To get them quickly to Lake Bykaal to play in Animosity II – The Burning Winter, we have thrown together a list of possible ways to get there quickly.

Realmgates are our friends.

The Ur-River

The Ur-River is thought to be themost ancient of all watercourses inthe MortalRealms, and the most enigmatic. It isbelieved to have no headwaters andno outlet, instead crashing endlesslyfrom one realm to the next, its courseconstantly shifting as it perpetuallygrinds a new path through theRealms. It can often be followed forleagues, sometimes even acrosswhole continents, but it will alwaysdrop off the edge of the world. Someof these cascades are stableRealmgates, used for trade, travel,and war.A tributary to Amasya is now beenstabilized, and ships can be sailed tothe city from Ghyran. And, for thosebraving the trip through theGhyrplunge realmgate, into Shyishand Lake Bykaal on the other side.

Traveling Routes

Amasya is the talk of Free Cities in theRealm of Life, and many haveprepared to travel to the city.Caravans, airships, and well-mappedrealmgate routes in Ghyran lead closeenough to the city, now that the pathhas been revealed. Travel throughthe Ghyrlunge realmgate to Bykaal isavailable to all those wishing to makethe trip.

Minor Realmgates

Word about Amasya travels fast, androutes to this newly discovered landin Shyish start to become a hotcommodity. Realmgates connectingdifferent realms are not rare, butmost aren’t large enough to permitthe passage of armies, or open to adestination that is strategic oreconomically useful. That’s whybattles over large, strategicrealmgates are so heated.However, there are many small, out-of-the-way realmgates that can bemade use of. For small groups oftravellers, able to find their way andfend off beasts and bands of savages,a bit of realmhopping can take themvirtually anywhere. To Lake Bykaal,such realmgates can take the form ofa dense fog bank on a frozen lake, awhirlpool, an icy cave, or an oldshipwreck. Several small realmgatescan be found in Bykaal’s map.

Hitch-hike on a Star Vessel

If the group is working to further thegoals of The Perpetual, StarmasterZectoka will arrange for a Star-vesselto pick up and deliver you to LakeBykaal, a rare honour indeed.

Ride the Lightning

If your group is composed entirely ofStormcast Eternals, you can deploydirectly from Azyr to Lake Bykaal byriding the lighting down to Shyish.

https://animositycampaigns.com/setting/

So what exactly can players expect to find in this Lake Bykaal? What can GMs use to describe this location, and prepare adventures for their players within it?

The Animosity Campaigns website has detailed descriptions of the locations in Lake Bykaal, which are currently being updated:

To help GMs tailor their Soulboundadventures to the situation happening atLake Bykaal at the moment, we sharehere a bit more context and details onhow to bring it to life.

A Shyishan Afterlife

Lake Bykaal is an afterlife in Shyish,the Realm of Death. This means theplace came to be due to the belief ofthose whose souls came to this partof Shyish: dead whalers and otherhunters of sea beasts. As such, thesupernatural rules of the place areconnected to that belief. The souls ofthe dead are always sailing out in thelake, and only set foot on land afterthey catch prey, normally one of themany large sea creatures that live inlake. Where they come to shore, tostrip down their catch, may also be ofsignificance. Both these sailors andthe sea creatures are dead souls:they are in Bykaal because it is intheir nature. They are creatures witha physical body, but their eyes arehollow, and their psychologicalbehaviour is tied to the supernaturalrules of this afterlife. The sailors arefated to forever hunt on the lake, yetnever catch the greatest of prey, thespirit of the Ur-whale. The whale, onits part, is fated to never escapethem.

https://animositycampaigns.com/setting

The Locals

Many mortals came to live on theshores of Bykaal during the Age ofMyth, descendants worshipping theirancestors long-lost at sea, who built aculture for themselves here. Thiscivilization was shattered during theAge of Chaos, and invading tribesmoved in. The locals were eitherslaughtered, converted toworshipping the Dark Gods, orescaped to live in the fringes of thelake, some turning to feed on thedead. Only a few tribes remain today,mixed together with descendants ofthe original settlers. Most pay only lipservice to the Gods of Chaos in oneform or another, but much of theirlifestyle and culture has been taintedby association with Chaos. They liveon the margins of Chaos worship,their lives ravaged and takenadvantage of by those blessed withthe dark gifts. The mountain peaks,and hollows underneath them, areinhabited by Skaven and Beastherds,who extract tribute from them.

The odd turnip-growing people of Bolyany fields.

A Valley Under Siege

As of now, several armies march onLake Bykaal, and its otherwise eeriestillness now is becoming a warzone.GMs should keep in mind that severalwarbands and warships are on themove, and groups of playercharacters traveling around Bykaalmust be wary of this, or riskstumbling onto a large enemy force.They might have to move betweenbattlelines, no-man’s land, or sneakthrough enemy camps. It is possiblethat not all warbands will present anaggressive attitude against a smallgroup, depending to which Coalitionthey belong. While GMs are free toimagine potential alliances betweenforces of different Coalitions,brokered during a game session, weencourage them to actually seek outplayers in that Coalition on ourDiscord channel, and orchestratesuch an interchange with their army.

Tsatraya Citadel

The largest settlement in LakeBykaaal, the ruins of Tsatraya lie onthe high cliff of Uyar Point,overlooking the whole valley. Thepath up to the city is very treacherousand narrow. Unlike other locations inBykaal, nobody seems to live inTsatraya: its lighthouse only a darkspire in the falling snow, and its

large buildings are broken down andeerily silent. Its narrow and debris-filled streets will prove a difficultchallenge to any army trying to movein. A stone quay lies at the base ofthe cliff, presumably leading up to thetown.The significance of its location has notbeen lost on the Figureheads of eachCoalition, and scouting teams arebeing assembled to investigate.

Under the Rock and Snow Several settlements on Bykaal appear to hide large underground strutures, of difficult access to some of the larger armies marching in.An ancient Stormvault seems to have been revealed under Old Dyunsk, and there are deep catacombs running under the crypts of Bysuud. And in the storm-rent valley of Poznyy, the mad locals live underground in extensive cellars... Getting advanced information about these hard-to-get places is a priority for any Coalition, and small groups of agents are the best for that task.

Wait! but how is a GM supposed to prepare

these gaming sessions, when they don’t

know yet the secrets hiding in the story?

We are counting on you to make some of them up.Team Animosity has a few surprises and plots set in advance, but remains at all timesflexible. We want our players and GMs to help us tell this story, and flesh out thedetails we already seeded around Lake Bykaal. They are only a starting point.The details you develop about the places in Lake Bykaal, the people that live there,and the stories you weave between Coalitions, will be added and blended togetherinto our Unfolding Narrative.

COLLABORATIVE STORYTELLING• Read upon the details revealed on the website, for the Setting of

Lake Bykaal, and each turn in the Unfolding Narrative update;

• Share the narrative details and high points of your gaming sessions,

and how they affect the story, in your Report;

• Interact with other Animosity players in the Discord server, and

discuss how you can feature their army in your gaming session, or

arrange for alliances and threats!

• Team Animosity will pick up on these things and use them as the

moving pieces of our story. These flesh out the major backbone that

is the larger story arc dictated by the Narrative Paths made in the

Reports, guiding each Figurehead’s road of conquest.

This project is not-for-profit, completely unofficial and in no way endorsed by Games Workshop Limited.

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