Slaanesh, The Lord of Pleasure[]
Description[]
Slaanesh is the Lord of Pleasure, the Power of Chaos dedicated to the pursuit of hedonistic pleasures and the overthow of all codes of decent behaviour. He reigns in a vast and luxuriously appointed palace in the void, where favoured followers litter the floors, indulging themselves in all forms of perverse pleasures of the flesh.
Slaanesh takes the form of a bisexual humanoid, male on the left side and female on the right, with an unearthy, unnatural, and almost disturbing beauty. Two pairs of horns rise from his/her flowing golden hair and he/she dresses in a mail shirt fringed with velvet. His/her right hand holds the magical jade sceptre which is his/her greatest treasure.
Symbol[]
The symbol of Slaanesh combines the conventional symbols for male and female, although it is seldom worn openly by his/her followers. In its place, they often wear items of jewellery bearing erotic motifs. Followers dress in robes which are often opened to leave the right side of the chest uncovered, a requirement of many of the rituals involved in his/her worship. Pastel and electric shades are the chief colours, although white is often used as well. These colours are also sometimes carried over into everyday wear, although they may be modified to fit in with current fashions. Regardless of any other considerations, all Slaanesh followers wear garb of sensuously high quality.
Number[]
Six is regarded as the number of Slaanesh and this is reflected in many small and large things by his/her followers. For example, secret worshippers of Slaanesh will always meet in groups of six (or some multiple of it). The Daemonettes, the Lesser Daemons of Slaanesh, often fight in units of six as well.
Worship[]
Slaanesh is not a god of warriors and his/her worship is strongest in the cities of the Old World, especially among the upper classes of Bretonnia and in parts of Estalia and Tilea. Some worship Slaanesh under his/her own name, seeing the worship of Chaos as a supreme decadence, while others worship the Lord of Pleasure unknowningly, under a variety of names and guises.
The worship of Slaanesh takes the form of great orgies involving every vice and perversity and the highest members of his/her cults have altars and shrines concealed in their homes, which can be taken apart and hidden when not in use. The principle of indulging every whim and vice makes Slaanesh the most popular of the Chaos gods among the population of the Old World. It is not uncommon for his worshippers to spend the holidays of other deities in any orgy of worship for the Lord of Pleasure.
The worship of Slaanesh is not popular among the nonhuman races, although it is not unknown for some Elves to follow this Chaos god. Unlike many of the other Chaos gods, the various cults of Slaanesh maintain friendly relations with each other and a worshipper of Slaanesh may always be sure of a friendly reception from other followers in a new town.
Friends And Enemies[]
Slaanesh has a neutral attitude to many of the gods of Chaos and is generally too caught up in his own pleasures to be interested in alliances and co-operation. Particular enemies are the followers of Khorne, whose belief in pain and death is completely opposed to Slaanesh's principle of a life of unrestricted pleasure. Followers of Nurgle and Tzeentch, the other two Powers of Chaos, are subject to Slaanesh's usual neutral attitude.
Cult Requirements And Tenets[]
All are welcome in the cults of Slaanesh. The only requirements are an unswerving dedication to the pursuit of pleasure and a willingness to explore every possible vice and perversion to this end. This must be done regardless of any conventional codes of decent behaviour or any law. It is only possible to incur the displeasure of this god by showing some remaining trace of moral scruples.
Spell Use[]
The spells available to followers of Slaanesh are listed in the Spell list.