The flying Vimanaga or Looming Arks are a rare sight even within the confines of the Hinterlands, for the Naga will only call for their full activation when a protracted war with foreign powers is imminent. It is unclear if the Vimanaga were named in mockery of the hallowed Vimana flying chariots fielded by the Land of the Thousand Gods, though their sheer destructive power rivals the mightiest aerial craft of Ind. Shrouded in thunderclouds or hovering ominously as a dark silhouette in the sky, they serve as a reminder to the far flung enemies of the Blood Naga that they are not beyond reach.
The Vimanaga were created at the height of the Great Chaos Incursions by the Naga Queens of the future Twin Snakes and Emerald Delta marga, who laid out the schematics after a decade-long sojourn into the Southern Chaos Wastes. Under instructions from their Coiling Deity, the Snake Men plundered the vaults of the temple-cities in Khuresh and repurposed the technology of the Old One into hideous designs, corrupting the occult mechanisms through infernal knowledge drawn from the Aethyr.
Outwardly the Vimanaga is a patchwork construct of jagged metal, pulsating flesh, crackling Warpstone, whistling cylinders and garish relics fastened together by magic, bearing the vague outline of a massive fighter kite. Its fuselage and wings are forged from the retrofitted remains of Old One ships and arcane engines scavenged from the depths of the Lost City and other temple-cities overrun by the Serpents of Khuresh. The craft’s hull is covered in tattered flowing pennants and adorned with chiming bells and gongs, as well as the remains of previous quarries. Unusual fins made of hide and indeterminate fabrics, reminiscent of the sails on Cathayan Junks, jut unevenly from its hull. Three to nine tails composed of razor fibers coated in powdered warp-glass stream behind the aircraft for stability, giving the whole aircraft an ominous slithering motion in flight.
Cocooned within the plated fuselage is a semi-living engine of malevolent consciousness that grants the entire craft motive thrust. The controls of the Vimanaga are slaved to this engine and Pannaga Chieftains are required to bend the machine to their will if their brood is to deploy the craft effectively. The engine is ravenous however and demands regular sacrifices in exchange for cooperation, perfectly willing to absorb the souls of nearby Snake Men if its needs are not met. Thus, captives from the lesser races are fed to the engine's steel tentacled-lined furnace maw before and after every flight in order to placate it.
Despite its cobbled-together structure the Vimanaga is remarkably durable, functioning primarily as a mobile operations platform and assault aircraft in times of war. The Vimanaga is held aloft by roiling vapours of magic, moving ponderously one moment then erratically the next. At night it hovers in place high in the firmament, bathing in the malignant light of Morrslieb as its body automatically repair any damage taken in the day.
In battle the Vimanaga customarily carries a full complement of Jakular fighters along with its bonded Kobra Lord, who cling onto the deck guardrails and trophy-hooks. The Pannaga are the only Snake Men caste with the strength of will to interact with and guide the eldritch engine as it seeks fresh souls to feed upon. The Jakular, completely adapted to airborne combat, delight in the Vimanaga’s capacity to drive the lesser races out into the open with its weapons, where the soaring serpents can more easily dive-bomb their prey from above. They also appreciate the craft for its speed in breaking through enemy fortifications, presenting the Jakular with the glory of shedding first blood.
When engaged in aerial combat without its crew of Snake Men, the Vimanaga will strike out with the bladed spurs protruding from the sides and underside, along with the slicing ribbon-tails whipping around the aircraft, reminiscent of the cutting strings on the fighter kites of Ind. While the Vimanaga can contend with aerial foes - as its daemon engine grants the craft the speed and deftness of a Tzeentchian Screamer - they were built with the intent to slaughter ground targets. The craft approaches its prey while cloaked in a cloud of Ulgu. As it soars overhead and reveals itself, the Vimanaga sends out a shuddering discordant wail that fills those below with terror. The craft then bombards the enemy with bolts of Dhar from its daemon-faced figurehead and ordnance housed within its rib-like nacelles, from shells of corrosive acid to explosive canisters imbued with the firestorms of Aqshy. A dimensional aperture positioned on the bottom of the craft allows the Vimanaga to drop a spiraling disc called the Old Night's Gift, brought into play against particularly dense formations or strong foes. Upon impact a brightly-coloured explosion occurs which shatters the ground, hurling all those caught in the blast directly into the Realm of Chaos.
The Vimanaga are extremely difficult to replace if destroyed in battle, as the pillaged Old One mechanisms required to build new craft have been exhausted within the Hinterlands. Due to this and the considerable upkeep in souls required to operate these vehicles, the Blood Naga have kept almost all of them disassembled in their laboratory sanctums, their hungry engines kept inert by complex rituals in glyphic vaults until the direst of circumstances permit their deployment once again. Though scores of these flying war machines were seen all over the ancient skies during the Mahayuth, the containment of the Snake Men's powerbase to Khuresh and attrition from innumerable conflicts have reduced their active numbers significantly. Now their greatest numbers either lie dormant in the monastery-assembly of Sawan Hill or can be found escorting the Twin Snakes' nomadic temple-arena of Kaahyarnan.
The Amaranthine Lotus marga is known for its Kris Wing, a great crimson Vimanaga that is one of the very few to be kept constantly active. It suffers no Pannaga handler, as the undying spirit of the Universal Queen’s eldest daughter is rumoured to possess the Ark. The craft is known to disappear into the Realm of Chaos for years before reemerging during a Storm of Magic to wreak havoc upon the nearest settlement or army.
The Kris Wing self-repairs faster than every other Vimanaga, is armed with the Read Lead Marga's unique coilguns and carries a payload of reality-warping Blood Deluge. Instead of normal Jakular, the Kris Wing carries a troop of Shyish-cursed Soaring Serpents. These shade-snakes are sent into the midst of the foe with the lambent signal lights of the Vimanaga, materializing back onto the deck of the craft once the slaughter is done. In spite of its apparent independence the Kris Wing acquiesces to the beckoning rites of the Bloodshot Saint and can be infrequently spotted flying above the campaigning armies of Slann Reap.
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