Kaela Mensha Khaine is the Aeldari god of war, murder, and destruction, and one of the only two Eldar gods to survive the Fall. He exists now as shards lodged inside the craftworlds, each one an Avatar that wakes to fight when the Eldar go to war.
Who Khaine is
Khaine is the Aeldari god of murder, violence, strife, destruction, and war. He’s one of the ruling triumvirate of the old pantheon, alongside Asuryan the Phoenix King and Vaul the Maker, and he’s second only to Asuryan in power. He’s also the most violent and reckless of the gods.
“Kaela Mensha” isn’t really part of his name. It’s a title meaning roughly “bloody-handed”, and it refers to the blood that drips forever from his hands. That blood is Eldanesh’s, and it’s a mark of shame Asuryan put on him.
- Also called: Khaine, the Lord of Murder
- Domain: murder, violence, strife, destruction, war
- Status: shattered, but not destroyed
- Surviving Eldar gods: Khaine and Cegorach the Laughing God
How he survived the Fall
When Slaanesh was born during the Fall of the Eldar, Khaine fought her in the warp. He survived through sheer might, which is more than most of the pantheon managed. Slaanesh was too exhausted to finish him off, so she shattered him into fragments instead.
Each shard came to rest inside a craftworld, and from each one an Avatar of Khaine took root. The Eldar still wake these walking fragments of myth to unleash fury and destruction in battle.
Khaine in Aeldari myth
In the Tears of Isha, the Aeldari are born as mortal children of Isha and Kurnous. Lileath dreams that Khaine will be torn apart by a great mortal army. When Khaine finds out, he starts destroying the Aeldari, and Isha’s weeping reaches Asuryan. The Phoenix King raises a barrier to save the few survivors, which splits mortals and gods apart forever.
The Doom of Eldanesh follows from that. Khaine kills the hero Eldanesh out of jealousy after Eldanesh denounces him, and in some tellings that act kicks off the Eldar’s War in Heaven. Asuryan is so appalled that he curses Khaine, making his hands drip with Eldanesh’s blood for eternity so nobody forgets what he did.
Khaine today
Khaine lives on in fragments lodged within the craftworlds, and it’s from him that Aspect Warriors derive their aspects. Each Aspect Shrine channels a different facet of the war god, which is why they fight so differently from one another.
Some scholars think Khaine is really a manifestation of the Eldar’s racial passion for battle and warfare, rather than a separate entity. The sources don’t settle the question, so treat it as an in-universe debate rather than a fact.
Key facts
- Kaela Mensha Khaine is the Aeldari god of war, murder, and destruction
- “Kaela Mensha” is a title meaning “bloody-handed”, not part of his name
- He’s one of only two surviving Eldar gods, the other being Cegorach
- Slaanesh shattered him into shards during the Fall instead of killing him
- Each shard became an Avatar of Khaine inside a craftworld
- Aspect Warriors draw their aspects from Khaine
FAQ
What does Kaela Mensha mean?
It’s a title, not part of his name. It translates roughly to “bloody-handed”, after the blood of Eldanesh that drips from Khaine’s hands forever.
How did Khaine survive Slaanesh?
He fought her in the warp and survived through might alone. She was too exhausted to kill him, so she shattered him into shards instead.
What are Avatars of Khaine?
They’re the fragments of Khaine that came to rest inside the craftworlds. The Eldar wake them to fight, and each one is a walking piece of the war god.
Who killed Eldanesh?
Khaine did, out of jealousy, after Eldanesh denounced him. Asuryan cursed him for it, which is where the bloody hands come from.