Even a fantasy world can pay respect to great warriors of old - through Chaos.
As long as Warhammer has existed, the threat of Chaos has assailed every other faction. Striking out from the frozen north of the Chaos Wastes, these powerful warriors descend on the settlements of others to pillage and raze to their heart's content, all in service of their dark gods.
While several tribes strike out from the Wastes, three great tribes stand above the others: the Norsca, the Kurgan, and the Hung. Each has a basis in a real-world group of warrior-conquerers, so here's a quick exploration of the historical influences of the Great Chaos Tribes.
Norsca
As you can probably guess from their name, the Norsca tribesmen are based on the Norse raiders of Scandinavia, Denmark, and Sweden. Described in Warhammer canon as tall men caped in furs and horned helms, the Norscan peninsula that these warriors call home borders both the Sea of Claws and the Kraken Sea (see the map below). As such, the warriors conduct their raids from mighty dragonships, striking coastal towns before moving inland. Most of the greater chaos invasions of the Old World have been led by Chaos, and a Norscan Warlord led the wa...
