Clan Moulder

Clan Moulder is one of the four primary Skaven clans. The Dr. Frankenstein of the two mad scientist ratmen clans, the other being Clan Skryre. Primarily spend their resources using Warpstone-based magic and technology to mutate things through a regime of twisted surgery, crafting giant monsters and beasts of burden which are then sold to other clans for more slaves and Warpstone. The base-material for such abominations is almost always members of their own race taken from the slave caste (due to xenophobia/fear of being turned on), although there have been one or two exceptions -- in Storm of Chaos, they did experiment with transplanting human brains into Rat Ogres to create more intelligent monsters. Both the military leaders and the priests of their race, the Gray Seers, will still pay through the nose for their creations.

Their home is a Skaven city called Hell Pit, that exists somewhere near underneath Kislev, where they utilize Warp radiation in their experiments as well as abduct mutants from above for inspiration.

If Skweel Gnawtooth and the Gotrek & Felix character Skitch are anything to go by, runts and physically weak skaven in Clan Moulder can actually have a chance of a reasonable lifespan (by skaven standards) instead of just being devoured by their kin while they are still very young. However, these feeble skaven must be talented in some form useful to Clan Moulder. Being physically weak but otherwise average doesn't cut it, even in Clan Moulder.

Although not explicitly stated, the female Skaven which are mutated into giant boob-covered wombs are most likely a product of Clan Moulder.

Ironically, despite their importance to Skaven society, Clan Moulder has always been the most under-appreciated of the four primary Clans. This may be because, after their initial release of the Skaven, Games Workshop wanted to try and remove them from their roots as a splinter of the Beastman sub-faction of Chaos, and "Big Gribbly Beasts" is kind of Chaos' thing, so they can't promote Clan Moulder and avoid the Chaos comparisons.

Some of Clan Moulder's known creations include:

• Giant Rats: As the name suggests, these are just ordinary rats, but bloated up to a much, much bigger size.
• Wolf Rats: Variously described as either a more specialised and aggressive form of giant rat or an actual rat/wolf hybrid, these voracious pack-hunting rodents are far more dangerous than common rats. At least one sourcebook throws them a nod by claiming they were abandoned due to being unstable.
• Rat Ogres: Skaven transformed into huge, hulking, dim-witted brute versions of themselves, these are the most iconic of Clan Moulder's creations and have survived unchanged through every single edition. Whether or not they are actually skaven/ogre hybrids is unknown.
• Hell Pit Abomination: The most recent monstrosity to be added to Clan Moulder's unique arsenal in 8th edition, these are shapeless, many-headed rodent hydra-things that are known for their ability to seriously fuck things up.
• Rat Squigs: A fusion of rat and squig.

Notable Skaven

Lord Malkrit- the founder of Clan Moulder, Malkrit was the pioneering Lord of Decay that not only discovered how to make the disturbing beasts of Skaven society, but also discovered (and forged) the Skaven stronghold of Hell Pit in the dangerous territory of Troll Country in IC circa -1450.

Lord Verminkin- the latest of Clan Moulder's leaders, Verminkin has ever been focused on creating the most dangerous of beasts (like his forbears before him). His approval of the mass construction of Hell Pit Abominations, while costly for his clan, has produced even higher profits.

Throt the Unclean- one of the nine lords of Hell Pit, Throt is a talented Master Mutator who is apparently mutated and fat, so fat that he is qualified to be the Skaven's very own Grom the Paunch. Much of what's wrong with Throt's physical appearance and mutation has to do with the life time of exposure to warpstone. One of the mutations sped up his metabolism, making him so hungry 24/7 that he has to carry snacks or any creature's body parts with him. He is also credited for being the father of many clan Moulder's clan rats as well as having lifespan longer than a typical skaven, all thanks to warpstone mutations.

Skweel Gnawtooth- is perhaps one of the greatest Packmasters within Clan Moulder. The majority of Packmasters seem to drive their charges but Skweel seems to guide creatures, rather than simply lashing them forward. To Skweel, Giant Rats and Rat Ogres are not barely controlled feral beasts, but trained animals eager to do their master's bidding. Fun fact- he was the runt of his litter (a death sentence, for most Skaven), but normal rats protected him for some strange reason, perhaps suggesting a mystical skill to his work.

Ghoritch - a former Chaos Champion of Khorne, until he screwed up one of Archaon's plans and was given to Throt as experiment fodder. Throt stuck his brain in a cyborg Rat Ogre body for giggles and Ghoritch ripped 'n' tore his way out of Hell Pit. He impressed the other Hell Pit lords so much that they offered him a job, and he was eventually named Castellan of Hell Pit, being the leader of Clan Moulder's standing army. Throt's really jealous of his creation's success.

Clan Moulder Armies

Because 6e was awesome, the skaven army book for that edition included a variant "Great Clan" army list, allowing players to represent a "purer" skaven force based on the various Great Clans. To follow up this awesomeness, White Dwarf #311 included a variant of a variant, with the Hell Pit army list; whilst the Clan Moulder army list from the Skaven army book represents a Clan Moulder force marching to war, the Hell Pit army list represents the particularly gribbly and monstrous legions mustered by Clan Moulder whenever somebody is stupid enough to attack the Hell Pit itself.

Such info is long gone... but, lucky for you, 1d4chan is awesome! We've gone ahead and logged the details here for you now.

Clan Moulder Army

Army Special Rule: Vermintide

Unlike a normal Skaven army for 6e, Giant Rats count as the Mainstay Unit of a Clan Moulder army. Your number of Mainstay Units restricts the number of other units you may have. For example, you must take at least 1 unit of Giant Rats before you can take any other (non-character) units in your army, and you cannot have more squads of a given unit type than you have squads of Mainstay Units - for example, if you have only 3 squads of Giant Rats, you cannot then take 4 squads of Clanrats.

Lords: Master Mutator, Grey Seer

Heroes: Chieftains, Master Moulders, Harbingers of Mutation

Core Units: Giant Rats, Clanrats, Skaven Slaves, 0-1 Stormvermin, 0-2 Rat Swarms (a swarm upgraded to Plague Rats counts as a Special choice)

Special Units: Night Runners, Rat Ogres

Rare Units: Gutter Runners, Warplock Jezzails, Plague Monks, Poisoned Wind Globadiers, Warp-Lightning Cannons, Plague Censer Bearers, Dogs of War

Master Mutator: These fearsome skaven are the Clan Eshins equivalents of Chieftains, skilled in the arts of both battle and taming beasts. A Master Mutator has M6, WS6, BS3, S4,T4, W3, I7, A4 and Ld7 for its stats, costs 130 points, and is armed with a hand weapon. It may choose up to 100 points of Magic Items from the Common and Skaven lists, and can take magic items marked "Clan Moulder Only". It may purchase a Whip for +9 points, a Great Weapon for +6 points, and Light Armor for +3 points. It has the special rule of Beastmaster.

Harbinger of Mutation: Akin to the Warlock Engineers of Clan Skryre, Harbingers of Mutation are a lesser form of skaven mage who have the ability to mystically commune with and control verminous beasts. A Harbinger of Mutation has M6, WS3, BS3, S3,T3, W2, I4, A1 and Ld6 for its stats, costs 65 points, and is armed with a hand weapon. It may choose up to 50 points of Magic Items from the Common and Skaven lists, and can take magic items marked "Clan Moulder Only". It may purchase a Whip for +6 points,and has the special rule of Beastmaster. A Harbinger of Mutation is a Level 1 Wizard who knows the Vermintide spell.

Defenders of Hell Pit Army

Army Special Rule: Master of the Teeming Legions

Your army MUST include either Ghoritch or Throt the Unclean as your army general, as only these skaven have both the power and the fearful respect to try and wrangle Clan Moulder's ratmen and its hideous monstrosities into battle.

Army Special Rule: Vermintide

Unlike a normal Skaven army for 6e, Giant Rats count as the Mainstay Unit of a Clan Moulder army. Your number of Mainstay Units restricts the number of other units you may have. For example, you must take at least 1 unit of Giant Rats before you can take any other (non-character) units in your army, and you cannot have more squads of a given unit type than you have squads of Mainstay Units - for example, if you have only 3 squads of Giant Rats, you cannot then take 4 squads of Clanrats.

Lords: Master Mutator, Grey Seer

Heroes: Chieftains, Master Moulders, Harbingers of Mutation

Core Units: Giant Rats, Clanrats, Skaven Slaves, 0-1 Stormvermin, 0-2 Rat Swarms (a swarm upgraded to Plague Rats counts as a Special choice), Rat Ogres, Throtlings, Wolf Rats

Special Units: Armored Rat Ogres, Mutant Rat Ogres, 0-1 Augmented Rat Ogres, Flayerkin

Rare Units:Troll Pack, Aberration, Burrowing Behemoth, 0-1 Chimaerat

Throtlings: Named for their most prolific creator, Throtlings are grotesque abominations that Clan Moulder's flesh-warpers create in their spare time by melding various creatures and scraps of still-usable meat together, producing skittering little monsters that are as mad as they are hideous. A throtling unit consists of 1 or more packs (a pack consists of 6 throtlings and 1 packmaster), with a cost of 40 points per pack. Throtlings have M6, WS3, BS0, S3, T3, W1, I4, A1 and Ld2; they count as being armed with a hand weapon, whilst their packmaster has a hand weapon, a whip, and light armor. Throtlings have the special rule Mixed Unit, Loss of Packmasters, and Cause Fear.

Wolf Rats: The largest, swiftest, fiercest and most voracious of the Giant Rats produced by Clan Moulder are kept for the clan's personal use. A wolf rat pack consists of at least 5 wolf rats, at a cost of 6 points per model. They have M9, WS3, BS0, S3, T3, W1, I4, A1 and Ld5 and count as being unarmed.

Armored Rat Ogres: Well, what do you think they are? They're Rat Ogres that've been deemed valuable enough to give them some protection. Base rat ogre stats, but they cost 65 points each, have a 5+ armor save, and count as wielding an additional hand weapon.

Mutant Rat Ogres: Whilst the Rat Ogres are Clan Moulder's greatest success, they can't be happy with what they've got, and they are forever tinkering with various attempts to make them even better. Mutant Rat Ogre packs are success stories. Mutant rat ogres have the same stats, cost and unit size as normal rat ogres, but lack the Stupidity rule and they must take two of the following mutations (which, incidentally, don't apply to packmasters unless stated otherwise):

• Powerhouses - Grants +1 Strength at a cost of +10 points per model.
• Quadrupedal - Grants +1 Movement at a cost of +5 points per model, also affects the Packmasters.
• Resilient - Grants +1 Toughness at a cost of +12 points per model.
• Extra Extremities - Grants +1 Attack at a cost of +10 points per model.
• Brain Transplant - The rat ogre's Ld increases to 7 and its WS to 4 at a cost of +5 points per model. These smarter rat ogres no longer need packmasters; the unit has no packmasters and so does not have the Mixed Unit or Loss of Packmasters rules.
• Trolblood - The rat ogres gain Regeneration at a cost of +15 points per model.

Augmented Rat Ogres: Born of alliances with Clan Skryre, these rat ogres are the result of rare experiments within Clan Moulder of performing cybernetic augmentation on their rat ogres. Costing 60 points per pack, and with a unit maxing out at 5 packs, these rat ogres have +1 Strength on their baseline counterparts (S6, in 6e) as well as a 4+ armor save. For +40 points, one augmented rat ogre can carry a warpfire thrower; this uses the teardrop-shaped template when firing instead of rolling an artillery die.

Flayerkin: Grotesque experiments at mixing skaven and humans to create expendable wall-climbing seige troopers conducted by Throt the Unclean, this unit also appeared as a Hordes of Chaos unit during the Storm of Chaos event. Flayerkin units number 5 to 20 models, at a cost of 14 points per model. They have M4, WS4, BS3, S4, T3, W1, I4, A1 and Ld7. They wield their climbing claws (two hand weapons) and can upgrade one model to a Wall-Creeper (+1 Attack, +1 LD) for +14 points. They have the special rules of Scouts, Killing Blow, Skirmishers and Human Chains - flayerkin can climb walls as if armed with grappling hooks, ignore the penalties for attacking over defended obstacles, and non-mounted units may scale a wall that has been climbed by a flayerkin as if a ladder has been placed against it - up to 5 flayerkin can "stack" on the same segment of wall.

Troll Packs: These are... well, ordinary trolls. They have none of the breed options given to trolls found with Orcs & Goblins, but their stats are pretty much the same; what's different is that there's a skaven packmaster for each troll in the unit.

Aberration: The hideous failures of overambitious or overly crazed fleshcrafting experiments gone wrong, aberrations weren't fortunate enough to die from their ungodly transformation, and now seek death in battle as a release from their torment. They cost 60 points per model and have a unit size of 1, but you can take up to 2 aberrations per Rare Unit slot. Aberrations have M6, WS3, BS0, S5, T5, W4, I1, AD6 and Ld4, and they are Unbreakable.

Burrowing Behemoth: Clan Moulder breeds enormous rat-things as living digging engines to expand the tunnels of Hell Pit in a vain attempt to keep up with the demand for space. But those self-same giant diggers can be loosed on the battlefield. A burrowing behemoth has M8, WS3, BS0, S6, T5, W6, I3, A5 and Ld5. One behemoth may be taken per Rare Unit slot at a cost of 215 points. They have the special rules of Cause Terror, Stupidity, Large Target, Unit Strength 6, and Tunnelling.

Chimaerat: Rarest and perhaps one of the most horrifying of Clan Moulder's experiments, the chimaerat is the clan's attempt toe emulate the terrifying hydras of the Druiichi. The process is horribly unstable, but every so often, a talented beastmaster pulls it off, creating a many-headed rat-thing that vomits warp-fire over its enemies. A chimaerat costs 185 points and has M5, WS4, BS0, S6, T5, W6, I4, A6 and Ld7. Its Unit Strength is 5 and it has the special rules of Cause Terror, Stupidity, Large Target, and Warpfire Breath (breath weapon that is Strength 5 and causes a Panic test in any unit that suffers a casualty from it).

Gallery

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  The Skaven take on the theme of "heavy support".

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  Science can never go "too far".

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  Female Skaven.

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  Clan Moulder's new fall 2522 model.

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  The same model in a sleek red paintjob. Goes fastah' as a bonus.

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  Moulder on the march.