# Egrimm van Horstmann



## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

I have just finished reading the latest Warhammer Heroes novel, _Van Horstmann_ by Ben Counter, and as discovering this novel was the very first time I read about Van Horstmann and learned who he was it has made me sure of one thing.

Van Horstmann needs to be brought back for WoC 9th edition. Who here agrees with me?


LotN


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## Barnster (Feb 11, 2010)

I really thought he would have appeared in the latest book, and they would have released a lovely new chaos dragon for Baudros, like they did for Karl Franz

I've not read the latest book but he was a favourite of mine way back in the day alongside Aekold.


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## Orochi (Jan 28, 2009)

Agreed, him and Aekold bring back some good memories.


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## effigy22 (Jun 29, 2008)

I love Van H, but he has a similar background to Archaon. 

Used to be a high ranking member of the empire, learns a dark secret, goes a bit insane and tries to burn the empire down.

however, warriors of chaos with lore of light would be pretty sweet.


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## Lord of the Night (Nov 18, 2009)

effigy22 said:


> I love Van H, but he has a similar background to Archaon.
> 
> Used to be a high ranking member of the empire, learns a dark secret, goes a bit insane and tries to burn the empire down.
> 
> however, warriors of chaos with lore of light would be pretty sweet.


Actually the book has changed his background quite a bit.




Now he was an Imperial, not sure if he was noble or not, and he had a sister named Lizbeta van Horstmann. One night when he was a child they were trying to get out of a rainy forest and hitched a ride with a noblewoman, who was insane and used them both in her experiments. She was trying to get into the Light Order and wanted to test new ways of determining purity, so she stuck Van Horstmann and his sister into a pit of snakes assuming that they would spit out the corrupted. Van Horstmann survived, his sister did not. He swore revenge on her and her lover who was a Light Mage and so desperate for her love that he didn't say anything about her experiments, and instead used their findings to advance his position.

He infiltrated the Light Order, helped exorcise a Daemon from Emperor Wilhelm II's daughter Astrid, and achieved a Magister position. He fostered fighting between the Colleges behind the scenes, got the Grand Master killed in a duel with the Gold College's Grand Master because of an incident he started and then framed the Gold Order for, started a plague in Altdorf to forment unrest and get the Light Order to choose a new Grand Master more quickly, he was chosen, and then stole the Key of Isha from the Light Order, a key that can open or close any door permanently, and used it and his magic to create a room that he then sealed his tormentor in, a Light Order instructor named Albrich, and in that room Albrich does not age, need to eat or sleep and is cursed to watch Altdorf grow forever and realise how insignificant he is. And he infected the noblewoman, Albreda, with a plague that will make her live for centuries, bedridden and dying painfully the entire time.

Baudros was just the method of his escape and was not the reason that Van Horstmann infiltrated the Light Order, he was just something useful to Van Horstmann who only bartered for a ride to Norsca on the Daemon-Dragon's back in exchange for releasing him, and after that Baudros was free to do what he liked. But before he gets away a gambit by Tzeentch results in the dragon remembering his true name, by hearing it. The dragon Splinterwing cripples Van Horstmann with his breath before Baudros the Daemon reasserts his influence and signs Van Horstmann up for eternal servitude to Tzeentch. Van Horstmann's body is ruined, charred to a crisp, so they pull a Darth Vader and have him sealed into his life-supporting armour forever. And thus Egrimm Van Horstmann is born.




LotN


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