Vergeltungswaffen: Literally “Repayment (Payback) Weapons,” often translated as “Vengeance Weapons.” A series of advanced weapon projects designed to destroy cities in Britain (and ultimately the United States as well) from Europe. The V-1 cruise missile and the V-2 ballistic missile were the only V-weapons to enter service, but many more were planned.
Victalen: An advanced alloy developed for the skins of Haunebu and other saucer craft. Rumored to be an early form of aerogel layered with metal.
Vril (aircraft): Third-generation flying disk aircraft developed by the Vril Society. Despite early successes, the Vril series was superseded by the Haunebu project.
Vril (energy): First mentioned in Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s 1871 novel The Coming Race, vril was the name the Nazis gave to the universal energy that combines heat, gravity, and electromagnetism.
Vril Society (Vril Gesellschaft): An esoteric group researching vril and claiming psychic contact with an extraterrestrial Aryan civilization.
Waffen-SS: Literally “armed SS,” the military branch of the SS organization and the Third Reich’s elite troops.
Walhalla (Valhalla): The codename for the Nazi moonbase.
Wunderwaffen: Literally “wonder weapons,” this term was applied to a wide range of advanced Nazi technology, including jet aircraft, the V-weapons, and other projects. Hitler hoped that the Wunderwaffen could turn the tide of the war back in Germany’s favor.
Author
Graeme Davis is also the author of the Dark Osprey titles Knights Templar: A Secret History and Werewolves: A Hunter’s Guide. A long-time fan of history and mythology, he studied archaeology at the University of Durham, and has worked in the games industry since 1986. He has contributed to many hit tabletop and electronic games including Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, Vampire: the Masquerade, and Kingdoms of Camelot: Battle for the North, the iTunes Store’s top-grossing free app of 2012. He lives in Virginia with his wife Jamie, who is also a writer.
Illustrator
Darren Tan grew up drawing spaceships, dinosaurs and the stuff of his imagination, which was fuelled by movies and computer games. Following a brief stint in 3D animation, Darren now works as a digital concept artist and book illustrator.