Skald, The Shattered

Once thought to be a desolate wasteland, the frozen expanse to the western tundras of Norska have since been revealed as the final resting place of the ancient Ice Elementari, Skald. What was once thought to be towering glaciers piercing the arctic sky are, in truth, the colossal, frozen ribcage of the shattered titan. His remains, scattered across the tundra, bear witness to an ancient and tragic battle between elemental might and divine intervention.

In ages long past, during The Aeonic Struggle, Skald clashed with Borealis, the Warden of Winter. Their battle raged across the polar reaches, splitting mountains and freezing entire seas in its wake. Ultimately, Borealis triumphed, entrapping Skald within a colossal glacier, sealing his form in ice so impenetrable that not even flames of The Nine Hells could melt it. His body became the tundra itself, his ribs forming icy peaks, his spine a frozen ridge stretching for miles, and his shattered skull a monumental ice cavern known as the Maw.

After the Chosen of Khaos felled Heran Lightfall and an awakening Skald, the Tribes of Khaos - united under Varaghast Ghuul - performed a sacrilegious feast upon the remains of Skald, consuming his frozen flesh and essence to gain his primordial strength. In the doing so, a Khaos Rift tore open the fabric of reality near Skald’s frozen skull. It is said that this act of defilement—driven by the ruinous powers—completed Skald's transformation into a shattered entity, scattering his elemental essence into the cosmos and fueling the Rift's chaotic energies. The glacier's icy stillness was replaced with swirling maelstroms of frost and blackened skies that howl with the voices of the damned.

Today, Skald, The Shattered, is both a cursed monument and a battlefield. His frozen ribcage forms a towering gateway to the Rift, where ice and chaos intermingle in unnatural harmony. The Khaos Rift spews forth ruinous energies, altering the tundra into a battlefield for Frost Giants, chaos warbands, and revenant monstrosities. Those who tread too near risk either being consumed by the Rift or falling prey to the ravenous chaos beasts that hunt these icy wastes.

For the Tribes of Khaos, Skald’s shattered remains are a grim totem of power. For the Unknown tribes not aligned with Khaos, the site is a cursed place to be avoided at all costs. The frozen skeleton of Skald is a testament to the power of the ancient Elementari and a grim reminder of the destructive ambition that drives chaos forward. To the Fyrashan Spirit Seers and Talons of the Timeless Tome, the site represents a potential gateway for greater chaos, one that must be sealed to prevent the Prime Plane’s utter ruination.

Even as the ice shifts and cracks under the weight of the Khaos Rift’s pull, the haunting image of Skald’s broken form looms large over Norska—a symbol of the eternal struggle between creation and destruction.