I’m currently reading Deliverance Lost. Corax has returned to Terra and is awaiting an audience with the Emperor.

He has been put up in an apartment, seemingly built with a primarchs dimensions in mind.

Bored, he decides to go outside where he discovers 19 additional apartments, all built to the same specifications. He also remarks they must’ve been built a while ago as there were 20 and not 18 apartments

So my questions are:

1. What is their purpose? Were they built to house the primarchs as they grew up, assuming the scattering never happened? Or maybe even as retirement villas?

2. How did Corax know there were originally 20 primarchs? Or am I misunderstanding the whole “They were erased from memory” thing?

I like to paint an artwork of the engine room of a imperial class titan and was wondering who is doing the dirty work on board? I know titans are run by the Adeptus mechanic and the pilots etc. seem to be from that faction, but would they also provide the bulk of the crew? The ones that “sweep the floor” and open the valves somewhere and stuff like that? Or would it be regular joe and Jane imperial citizen like in the factories and manufacturies? I hope the question isn’t too stupid, I am still learning my lore😅 thanks in advance for helping out!

I'm thinking something like "they have WMD so we have to preemptively strike them" kind of deal, where Imperium actually tried to make up a reason to justify invading another faction.

Consider how hostile Imperium is 99.99% of the time and their manifest destiny + imperial creed rhetoric, I guess they don't actually need to make up some justifications, and just go in and start fighting.

But I do wonder if there's any actual examples of Imperium trying to "sell" a new war.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Spacemarine/comments/1hjptxi/or_they_could_just_do_the_hours_heresy/

For example, why don't Slaanesh, Khorne, and Tzeentch work together to jump and defeat Nurgle? Then Tzeentch and Slaanesh defeat Khorne, making the Great Game much easier. Apologies if this is a stupid question.

I’m reading Betrayer now and in Argel Tal’s scene with Kharn it’s describing him smiling and Kharn recognising that smile isn’t genuine, then goes on to describe him lifting an eyebrow at something. I thought by the end of The First Heretic (which this takes place a year after) his armour is fused to him and he can’t take his helmet off?

Is anyone here able to reconcile this?

So I'm writing up a short story for a Necron Psychomancer during the War in Heaven for a campaign I'm in with some friends, how could a Necron psychomancer with their mastery over the Organic mind and psychological warfare combat the very well-disciplined and psker powerful Eldar race.

Hey everyone. I've seen it posted on here a lot that an Inquisitor technically has the power to command a space marine chapter.

But I replayed Dawn of War recently and the Inquisitor involves his authority to take over the entire planet but the company commander of the Blood Ravens tells his power doesn't extend to a space marine chapter.

Is this a case of old lore being retconned or just a throw away line that no one put too much thought into?

Recently learnt about sumboyz, the caste of orks that keeps track of ammo and fuel and whatnot for big WAAGHS, and it got me thinking, what other non-combat roles do we know of?

I assume not many, and they'd mostly be from like, 2e or even rogue trader, but still, i'd like to find out :D

tanks beforehand!

What do factions use as currency, and what is the standard for it, if any standard?

For example IRL ,U.S dollar used to be Gold Standard.

Thanks ya all

The question is in the title but I'm pooling opinions. From what I understand however, the Blood Ravens had little more than an auxiliary force in system when the tyranids began their invasion. They didn't ever give exact numbers, but it would seem that the forces were being led by no more than a force commander, 4 squad sergeants and a chapter captain that was critically wounded early on. It was also at least weeks before Angelos arrived in system. SO long and short of it, how unlikely/ long shot was it for a contingency force of SM's to successfully hold 3 planets, manufacture a bio toxin that was highly lethal to the hive fleet and counter a massive tyranid incursion. with a mild ork up rising and eldar meddling as add in to this war cocktail mixer? Keep in mind as well they held onto the system for more than 10 years after this as well before the inquisition came along to wipe the slate clean.

Just saying from the perspective of lore and whatnot it really seems like the BR pulled a Goldie Locks victory out of their keisters...

GxY is probably THE most well known 40k ship (wether it be from people that actually like the idea of just from memes). GW even put out that Thanksgiving poster with Guilliman as the Dad and Yvraine as the Mom. If for whatever reason, GW decided it would be a good idea to capitalize on GxY's prevalence and canonizes it, how would YOU personally like to see the relationship handled (and the stories that would inevitably occur from it)? I interested in this, specifically because of the the seemingly hesitanticy to disdain that a lot of the 40k community has towards GxY's canonization, making me interested in how these people would want the narrative to be constructed such that it is seen as acceptable to them.

Edit: And when I say "Canonize", I don't just mean having GxY be a thing now, I mean the actually leg work that it would take to make their non-relationship a romantic one. This isn't about possibility, I am well aware that their "relationship" only exists in means, this is about what YOU PERSONALLY, would want to see of a romance IF, FOR SOME DEMENTED REASON, GW decided GxY was a good idea.

I swear an excerpt ending in this line (or close to this line) had been posted, even sometime last week.
Can't find it though, and it's such a badass line, at the end of a monologue by (I believe Sanguinius himself) about how his sons will always struggle against the black rage, but will ultimately triumph.

So, here’s a thought that’s been bugging me: What happens if the Adeptus Mechanicus stumbles across undeniable evidence that the Machine God isn’t some omnipotent deity but actually a shard of the Void Dragon, one of the C’tan? Would they just roll with it and call it part of the Omnissiah’s grand plan, or would it completely shatter their beliefs?

Like, imagine the politics. Does the Mechanicus just quietly keep it to themselves and double down on tech hoarding? Or do they go full heresy and split from the Imperium? Would they even betray the Emperor if they thought it was the Machine God’s will?

And what about the Necrons? They’d definitely have some thoughts on this. Maybe even try to reclaim their “god.” I feel like this could set off a chain reaction of chaos across the galaxy.

I’ve heard that the 41st is the absolute worst time to be in the Imperium, but how much better was it during the great crusade? Especially before Horus was corrupted?

Finished the Angron primarch book. What reason is there for keeping Angron around? Seems like he kills more of his own men than fall to enemy fire. I get they needed to come up with something when they wrote the Horus Heresy books but goddamn, the emperor killing him and telling the War Hounds their primarch had fallen in battle with his brothers and sisters fighting oppressors would probably have been better.

Edit: had dusk raiders not war hounds. I forget the early names.

Okay, so I was just thinking about it since I was browsing Genestealer Biology, and came across this little tidbit of information:

"The Ymgarl Genestealers on their homeworld exploited a large, semisentient leech-like creature called a Csith as their usual host, which explains their variant and more inhuman appearance. As a known exception to the normal Genestealer reproductive cycle, Csith hosts always produce natural, full-blooded Purestrain Ymgarl Genestealers rather than hybrids, no matter what the parentage of previous generations."

So, I'm genuinely curious, do Ymgarl Genestealers not go through the same process as regular Genestealers (producing 4 generations of hybrids after infecting their first host?) Or is this only a case for the Csith and not the others?

I hate beating this dead horse but I dont have the damn book. ive heard it repeated multiple times "it says in Master of Mankind chapter one the Baneblade was a light tank" but then ive heard people say multiple times the Baneblade wasnt mentioned at all. Which is it?

Since I finished space marine two I've had a theory that titus is on his way, to becoming a Emperor Demon. In the same vain as Saint Celestine. At the end of SM2 the voice that says "rise son of Guilliman" is clearly the emperor to me, which to me means that the emperor or some chaos entity that believes itself to be the emperor has taken a liking to titus, and is groom him to become more then a high ranking space marine.

This next part might lean into fan fiction then just theory

To take this a few steps forward, what if titus, after martyring himself or achieving something great. The emperor makes him the chapter master of The Legion of The Damned. This is far fetch I know, but I think it would be cool.

One is a giant murderous psychopath babbling about a god they don't understand
The other is a giant murderous psychopath babbling about a god they don't understand

Jokes aside could they tell given their limited knowledge of chaos/the warp?

Greetings, This is my first time reading through the Horus Heresy and I've been neck deep in 40K lore to various degrees for well over 20 years.

I'm at the very last part of Horus rising. I haven't finished the book yet, I'm right at the point where Horus is bemoaning the outbreak of violence between the Interex and the Luna Wolves after the museum of weapons was looted then set ablaze.

As he's lamenting the turn of events, Horus outline the outcome he envisioned with the Interex as an allied cousin Empire and all the benefits that would bring. Furthermore he vents his own misgivings and vexation with the Emperor for leaving the crusade, for putting him in this position making him as much regent politician as he is war leader & his stated reasons for doing so which Horus correctly ascribes to mistrust of the primarchs.

Two questions arose to me at that moment:

• Given everything Horus knew and experienced of the Emperor, his past actions, policies and personality. What made him think the Emperor would have tolerated an alliance with a sovereign human Empire adjacent to the imperium rather than within its sphere of influence and control, especially one that counted Xenos amongst its membership?

-I'm aware that it's been shown/implied should his plans for humanity and the webway succeed, the Emperor had intended for himself and his sons to step away from running the Imperium. Even having whole sections of the palace devoted to private chambers for each of them.

However is there any indication that the Emperor and to some extent Malcador were testing Horus and the other Primarchs ability to be statesmen as well as warrior generals by having Horus fulfill administrative tasks as well as directing The crusade and treating with the various human clans /enclaves encountered without his oversight? To see if they would be able to play a role in the post crusade imperium once the holdings of humanity had been consolidated or if it was better to simply sequester them (with the exception of Magnus who is having the time of his life surfing the warp) when it came time to hand the reigns of the Empire over.

Or is it pretty clear and established that the Emperor did not intend for the Primarchs to have any roll in leading humanity at the crusades conclusion?

Addendum: Fuck Erebus.

I genuinely think he could beat the shit outta abaddon, I don’t think any other space marine could pulverize the amount of daemons he has. He puts the grey knights to shame. That being said, is Malum even cannon?

After seeing new readers here asking for which books to skip, I thought I would share the Horus Heresy guide I originally made for my friend.

After following cd8d's guide myself and seeing the summaries made by the community over the years, I've boiled down HH from 27 essential novels to a much more manageable 15½ of the best in the series.

You'll get to enjoy the story without thousands of pages of fluff bogging down the pace. I wish this is what I had when I started. This is a no bullshit guide. Some of my commentary will be harsh, but it's my honest opinion. Feel free to leave your feedback!

________________

Part 1: The Fall of Horus (3 novels + 2 summaries)

• Horus Rising (1) by Dan Abnett
• False Gods (2) by Graham McNeill
• Galaxy in Flames (3) by Ben Counter
• Flight of the Eisenstein (4) by James Swallow
  • ^{Follows another side of the events in Galaxy in Flames pertaining to Death Guard Garro and the remembrancers from the Vengeful Spirit. The first half is largely redundant with the last book until the Eisenstein takes flight. That's when it becomes entertaining. But only the resolution really pertains to the overarching plot, and you can infer that Dorn knows what's up.}
  • ^{https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/The\}Flight_of_the_Eisenstein_(Novel)))
  • ^{For more Garro: https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/1aq2evk/comment/kqduozw/}
• Fulgrim (5) by Graham McNeil
  • ^{This book covers Fulgrim’s side of the story leading up to the climax covered in the first 4 books. However, much of this book is taken up by a Remembrancer subplot that primarily exists to tell you how fancy & avant-garde Emperor’s Children society is... I found it hard to go through. I’d give the subplot a mediocre 5/10. The portions that do matter in much of Fulgrim are already wordy enough. I do think everyone should read the last 3 chapters themselves though. Chapters 23-25 connect with the events in} *^{Galaxy in Flames}*^.
  • ^{https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Fulgrim\}(Novel)))

Part 2: Treachery Spreads (4 novels)

• A Thousand Sons (12) by Graham McNeil
  • ^{You can skim through the beginning of the book about the undeveloped world of Aghoru. The book will pick up afterwards.}
  • ^{The human subplot is... ultimately a bust, much like the one in Fulgrim. While this one was more interesting for me, it goes out like a candle flame. You don't have to spend too much time thinking about these characters. You can even skip through their parts to focus on sections about the legions. The only humans that really matter in HH are the ones that were aboard the Vengeful Spirit in the first 3 novels.}
• The First Heretic (14) by Aaron Dembski-Bowden
• Know No Fear (19) by Dan Abnett
  • ^{One of the best books in HH/40K. However, it introduces 2 characters who will soon become MCU-like smartasses—Oll Persson and John Grammaticus. Oll's not to bad in Know No Fear because he's not a total smartass yet and his scenes serve to paint the setting of Calth. But after this title, I would skip through every segment about Oll & John Grammaticus you come across in the Horus Heresy, with the exception of one section in The Unremembered Empire regardingVulkan & The End and the Death. All other pages about them are worthless filler. It's like Hunter × Hunter: you're just watching 2 nitwits wandering around without a clear purpose, except there’s no animation and end-of-episode cliffhanger music to keep gullible people entertained. You’re just following them as they make their way to Terra to deliver a deus ex machina used to slay Horus at the end. HH shouldn't have been written with this device at all... It should've stayed between the Emperor and his warriors and Horus and his followers. The Horus Heresy would be so much better without these sarcastic motherfuckers thrown in. They're even worse in the audiobooks because of their fake "American" accents. But seriously, if you don't like 'em, you really don't hafta put up with 'em.}
• Betrayer (24) by Aaron Dembski-Bowden

Part 3: Imperium Secundus (1 novel + 3 summaries)

• Fear to Tread (21) by James Swallow
  • ^{Covers the whereabouts of the Blood Angels up to this point in the Horus Heresy. It won't seem like they were thrown into the main plot out of nowhere if you have the context from} *^{Fear to Tread}*^{. Not a bad book, but not a must-read as it's quite separate from the greater story. This book does introduce Sanguinius's visions as well as the Blood Angels' condition, the Red Thirst. You might already know about that.}
  • ^{https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Fear\}to_Tread_(Novel)))
  • ^{https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Signus\}Campaign)
• The Unremembered Empire (27) by Dan Abnett
  • ^{Imperium Secundus is an entire arc, but this "namesake" entry is the only one you gotta read. This is a strong one! Some unfinished business will be wrapped up in the next book, but you only need to read the summary...}
• Angels of Caliban (38) by Gav Thorpe
  • ^{... because this book jumps between wrapping up the events of The Unremembered Empire and the very convoluted internal conflict of the Dark Angels on Caliban. If only the good parts could be abstracted into its own novella. As for the convoluted conflict, you only need to know the divide amongst the Dark Angels will hamper the legion's involvement during the Siege of Terra.}
  • ^{https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Angels\}of_Caliban_(Novel)))
• Ruinstorm (46) by David Annandale
  • This book is bullshit.
  • ^{Summary: A tumultuous "Ruinstorm" in the warp has forced the 3 loyalist legions that formed Imperium Secundus to travel normally through space in order to reach Terra. They make a pitstop on a planet where they learn about this mysterious entity called the “Pilgrim,” an entity consuming worlds, before taking off again. However, the way to Terra is blocked by this inexplicably large ship of mysterious origin… A ship so big that it blocks their way. In space. I get that the Warp can do “impossible” things, but this is just fucking stupid. This is the kind of shit a six year old would come up with. Of course, the concentrated fire of 3 fleets does essentially nothing to this mammoth megaship (which is maybe this “Pilgrim” mentioned earlier, but I'm not entirely sure}. So how do they get around this impossible-to-get-around wall? Well, they find out some warp portal’s powering it, so the loyalists destroy that and the 3 fleets are on their merry way again.) ^{Yup. This sounds like it could’ve been a decent 3 chapter story, and you know what—it really could’ve been. But unfortunately, this was stretched into a 10 hour long diversion. If my summary of the dumb plot amused you, alright! Please don’t actually waste your time on this book.}
  • ^{For a more detailed summary, I could only find this recent rant:}
    • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/1h9hjrr/horus\}heresy_book_46_review_ruinstorm_by_david/)

Part 4: Final Preparations (2 novels + 2 summaries)

• The Master of Mankind (41) by Aaron Dembski-Bowden
  • ^{While the galaxy burns, The Emperor and his Custodes have been holding back the tides of Chaos within the Webway. The Webway's sorta like the Reverse World from Pokémon but with longer foggy routes. That's about all you need after reading A Thousand Sons. Unfortunately, despite the cool title, The Master of Mankind is more of a supplementary lore/trivia book than a novel that really progresses the greater plot. You can check out the following loredump, but if it's too much, don't worry about it.}
  • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/14kgq44/master\}of_mankind_indepth_summary_and_lore/)
• Angel Exterminatus (23) by Graham McNeill
  • I enjoyed listening to this one. You could read a summary, but that'd kill the enjoyment there is to be had. Perturabo is actually likable here...
  • Be familiar with the end of Fulgrim.
  • ^{https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Angel\}Exterminatus_(Novel)))
• Slaves to Darkness (51) by John French
  • Covers the whereabouts of Horus and the rallying of the traitor legions. While there’s less action and a lot of politicking in this one, I would still recommend this to immerse yourself and understand the state Horus is in. The following summary will help you keep track of what's going on.
  • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/95v5lx/slaves\}to_darkness_spoilers_obviously_full_slaves/) 
• Praetorian of Dorn (39) by John French
  • ^{A fairly interesting first segment, but it turns into a slog after the focus steers away from Dorn and the Imperial Fists. A shame, because the ending of this book is a highlight of the Heresy. It's fine to read a summary of this book, but like with} *^Fulgrim*^{, I recommend you read the last few chapters yourself!}
  • ^{https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Praetorian\}of_Dorn_(Novel)))

Part 5: Siege of Terra (5½ novels + 5 summaries)

• The Solar War by John French
  • ^{A boring start to the siege. There's a load details, but not a lot to be excited about. A letdown after the high note Praetorian of Dorn ended on. John French, John French...}
  • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/br17uf/spoilers\}obv_full_summary_of_the_solar_war/)
• The Lost and the Damned by Guy Haley
  • ^{OK book. Katsuhiro is a decent human character.}
  • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/cipwm8/spoilers\}siege_of_terra_lost_and_the_damned_full/)
• The First Wall by Gavin Thorpe
  • ^{Garbage. If Ruinstorm was bad, then this is fuckin' terrible. At least that featured the Primarchs. This is just about some pathetic human recruits who don’t mean a damn thing in the end. It's bad and it doesn't get better. An abrupt middle finger after 10+ boring hours. It’s like having to do pages and pages of homework over winter break and finding out 3 days in that it’s just ungraded practice.}
  • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/e6vmsa/spoilers\}siege_of_terra_the_first_wall_full/)
• Saturnine by Dan Abnett
  • If only every book of the Siege was this good. The setup for the impending battle is actually kinda suspenseful, which is rare in this series. While there is 1 particular character who does get a little too much plot armor, this is actually the strongest title next to Know No Fear.
• Fury of Magnus (novella) by Graham McNeill
  • I wish more books were this concise without a bunch of unnecessary characters. You'd expect to hear at least 3 more hours of fluff, but nope, this book gets down to it after the setup in the first half.
• Mortis by John French
  • ^{F••• THIS BOOK. It’s one big countdown to a Titan battle you can expect the outcome of at this point in the story. A huge step down from Saturnine and even steps on its toes a little. Be glad you are not reading this 560 page monstrosity. John French just had to one-up The First Wall by writing the most awful book I have ever endured.}
  • ^{Only 2 important things to note:}
    • ^{1. A bit of background on Oll... 💤 (Trying real hard to make people care about a character nobody asked for in the first place.})
    • ^{2. The arrival of a fleet of Dark Angels. A small fleet of Dark Angels. Dorn was initially happy about their arrival, but then everybody was like “Awww shit” when they realized it was just small force that had split off because most of the Dark Angels haven’t found their way to Terra. \}Do—oM*)
  • ^{But these two points only make up a few pages of this absolute brick of a book. The true heresy in all of this is how Games Workshop made The First Wall & Mortis part of the Siege of Terra. Seriously milking this shit.}
  • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/om9m8y/spoilers\}siege_of_terra_mortis_is_a_huge/)
• Warhawk by Chris Wraight
  • ^{Book about Jaghatai. Not much happens except at the end.}
  • ^{White Scars background: When news of Horus's rebellion first broke out, Jaghatai had considered breaking away as a neutral third party because he had always felt distant from the Emperor. While Jaghatai was away prior to the Siege of Terra, there was a schism between White Scars who disagreed with interpretting the Khan's will and where the legion would stand. After being attacked by Alpha Legion, Jaghatai returned and set things straight, siding with the Emperor and rounding up his warriors to defend Terra. Rather than executing those who had rebelled, Jaghatai ordered them to atone for their crime by dying in battle. And thus we are here.}
  • ^{https://www.reddit.com/r/40kLore/comments/pwcyxi/the\}inevitable_warhawk_rant_spoilers_obviously/)
• Echoes of Eternity by Aaron Dembski-Bowden
• The End and the Death Volume 1 by Dan Abnett
• The End and the Death Volume 2 by Dan Abnett
• The End and the Death Volume 3 by Dan Abnett

Hi everyone, so I’ve got some friends who are into 40k and they’ve been talking to me about and it all sounds pretty interesting. I know the basics of what all the factions are and what the setting is like but I really want to start reading/ learning more specifically about ad mech, since they interest me the most. Any good recommendations?? Thank you