Sons of Behemat, The Legacy of the Titans

Ever since the Mortal Realms came into existence, colossal creatures known as Godbeasts have roamed the vastness of the eight realms, their origins stretching back to a time long before the Age of Sigmar.

Ymnog, the Grandfather of the Gargants

The history of the gargants begins with Ymnog, a gigantic Godbeast whom the gargants call the First Titan and regard as the grandfather of their race. His story has been passed down from generation to generation through the oral traditions of the tribal matriarchs, becoming increasingly mythological and exaggerated over time.

As is often the case with gargant tales, the story is filled with exaggeration and fantasy. It is said that with a single blow, Ymnog split the land into several continents, and that, to satisfy his immense hunger and thirst, his colossal height allowed him to devour celestial bodies and drink the world’s first ocean dry. After such a feast, he needed to rest and lay down to sleep. Simply by settling upon the ground, he reshaped the geography of the realms, creating valleys, chasms and mountains. Rivers formed from his drool, while his thunderous snores echoed across the land like storms.

As he digested his enormous meal, great stones that he had swallowed throughout his travels remained within his belly. From among them, three creatures slowly began to take shape.

Behemat, Gorg and Ama-Gorag were born within the entrails of Ymnog. As they grew, they realised that they were trapped inside something enormous and began devising a plan to escape. Within Ymnog, they brewed a powerful drink intended to give him such terrible indigestion that he would vomit them out.

They climbed up his oesophagus, but when they finally reached his mouth, Gorg and Ama-Gorag began fighting over the drink. Their struggle caused Ymnog to awaken and snap his jaws shut, trapping them inside. Behemat, who had managed to escape, began hammering at Ymnog’s teeth, shattering some of them but failing to force open the jaws of the grandfather of giants. So colossal was Ymnog that the fragments of his broken teeth crashed to the ground and became mountains.

Behemat eventually escaped his father’s wrath and began wandering across the Mortal Realms.

Long after Behemat had escaped the jaws of Ymnog, during the Age of Myth, Sigmar encountered the furious Godbeast during his journeys across the Mortal Realms. The reason their battle began has been lost to history, but Sigmar, being the warrior god that he was, was never one to shy away from a fight. Thus began one of the most spectacular battles of the Age of Myth.

The clash was cataclysmic. The landscape was utterly transformed by their struggle, and neither combatant appeared to hold a clear advantage. It was not until Sigmar unleashed one of his deadliest weapons: the Great Bolts, twelve mighty bolts of lightning said to be capable of destroying entire nations, or even gods.

The devastating barrage brought both the battle and Ymnog’s life to an end. Among the gargants, however, this act would be remembered very differently. Passed down from generation to generation, the slaying of the First Titan became known as a great betrayal and an act of profound dishonour on Sigmar’s part, sowing a hatred and enmity towards the God-King that would endure among the gargants for ages to come.

Behemat, the World Titan

Behemat, meanwhile, grew to take the place once held by his father. In time, he became known as the World Titan, and from him, much as had happened with his own birth, smaller gargants began to emerge, giving rise to what we now know as the Sons of Behemat.

During his travels, Behemat encountered someone who could truly match him: Gorkamorka, with whom he developed a fierce rivalry. The two constantly competed against one another, each trying to outdo the other through increasingly absurd displays of strength and endurance. Eventually, Gorkamorka, knowing the fate that had befallen Behemat’s father, set him a far greater challenge — something not even Ymnog had managed to achieve: defeating Sigmar.

Behemat challenged Sigmar several times, though it took some time before the God-King finally accepted. Their confrontation took place in Ghyran, where Sigmar and Behemat fought a battle of truly epic proportions. Eventually, the God-King struck the World Titan with Ghal Maraz, knocking him unconscious. Behemat then fell into a deep slumber that would last for millennia.

While their progenitor slept, the gargants spread throughout the Mortal Realms. Although they can be found in almost every realm, Ghur is considered their ancestral home. Its savage nature, abundance of enormous creatures and simple law of the strongest perfectly suited their way of life. There, the gargants began gathering into tribes and roaming vast territories in search of food, plunder and opportunities to prove their strength. As their society developed, they established fixed social structures and hierarchies, becoming considerably more civilised than the gargants we know today.

The Age of Chaos and the Realmgate Wars

With the coming of Chaos came the systematic destruction of everything gargant society had achieved. Their tribes were slaughtered or scattered, and many of their stories were lost forever. This helps explain why the gargants encountered in later ages appear far more primitive: much of their ancient culture disappeared during the Age of Chaos. Many were also enslaved and turned into living engines of war in service to the Chaos Gods.

All the while, Behemat remained asleep. Archaon, fully aware of the destructive power possessed by the World Titan, sought to bring him under his control. During the Realmgate Wars, the Everchosen attempted to awaken the World Titan through sorcery and turn him into a weapon against Sigmar. His plan was to use Behemat to smash open the gates of Azyr, allowing him to invade Sigmar’s realm directly, destroy the God-King and ultimately claim dominion over all the Mortal Realms.

The forces of Order understood that if Archaon succeeded in controlling Behemat, it could spell the end of civilisation itself. They therefore moved before the forces of Chaos could complete their plan and sought to destroy the World Titan.

Behemat finally began to awaken, but before he could fully rise, the Celestant-Prime intervened. Wielding Ghal Maraz, he unleashed a devastating blow upon Behemat, finally bringing the reign of the World Titan to an end.

Thus, Behemat met his ultimate fate during the Realmgate Wars. Yet the echoes of his death had a strange effect upon the gargants scattered throughout the Mortal Realms, causing them to grow larger and larger and eventually giving rise to the mighty Mega-Gargants.

Some even claim that one day, another World Titan will rise from the ranks of the Sons of Behemat…

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