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The Dresden Files RPG

2026-05-12T04:37:13Z

109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010411 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

[[Image:Dresdenwiki.jpg|500px|thumb|right]]
{{topquote|The building was on fire [[Pretend|and it wasn't my fault]].|Harry Dresden}}
{{topquote|He's Gandalf on crack and an IV of Red Bull.|A description of Harry while on a case}}

The Dresden files RPG is a roleplaying game from Evil Hat productions. The game is set in the urban fantasy world of the popular Dresden Files books written by Jim Butcher - the World of Darkness, if folks decided "Fuck brooding! Gimme my bourbon, I wanna sock the bastards!" The game was released on June 23rd, 2010.

The game mechanics uses the [[FATE System]], a riff off of the [[FUDGE]] generic rpg system, already made popular by Spirit of the Century. The Dresden Files RPG is the first official "version 3.0" instance of the FATE System.

DFRPG is maybe the most popular FATE adaption. Its main drawbacks are the generally overpowered magic-users (vanilla mortals FTW!) and the fact that every mention on [[/tg/]] causes a [[Mary Sue|very special]] avatarfag and his army of hateboys to appear.

===City Creation===
Probably the best-kept secret of the game, the city creation rules are a great toolkit allowing for players to collaboratively build the kind of city they want to adventure in, and are broken into three main phases.

====Overall====
The overall part of city building is where the kind of game, and the NPC's that are going to be a part of the game world are decided upon by the players and Game master. This is done by firstly choosing three themes or threats in any combination, that will have an effect on the overall tone and dangers that the players will face.

For example

'''Cambridge (UK)'''

'''Lessons Taught, Lessons Forgot''' (THEME); '''Decay Masqued by Art''' (THEME); '''A Festival of Violence''' (THREAT).

As Cambridge (UK) is a university town with a long history to both theater and various festivals, these three things can be used almost immediately to create the three themes/threats that the players will be dealing with. Old Books and historical legacies lost in one of the many storerooms owned by the university (whose campus covers a majority of the city) means that there will be a strong and well established theme of information hunting and rarely some of those things actually being right, and very dangerous.

The theaters in Cambridge have been around a long time, with one of the most famous and established theaters (the Cambridge Arts Theater, 1936) having exactly 666 seats (the incorrect number of the beast) and is host to the universities triennial Cambridge Greek Play, which is preformed in ancient Greek, more than enough to build something off. However a lot of theater groups face struggles in the city despite its close connections to the arts. Mostly due to their hidden WCV masters who keep the theaters failing and desperate so as to maximize the Despair they can feed upon.

Lastly for this example would be the many, many SUMMER festival that are hosted in, or nearby, the city. Cambridge folk, Cambridge Art, and Cambridge Beer Festivals being the most famous examples, although another long-running festival to take note of would be "The Midsummer Fair" itself chartered by King John himself. These festivals could potentially generate a lot of arcane power which is normally fed into the Summer court, allowing them their influence on this part of the mortal plane, but they are also open easy attack, whether bureaucratic or violent as something else attempts to subsume this power from Summer.

So in this city the PC's can clearly expect to deal with ancient, and forgotten knowledge coming back into the world of the living, festivals that are an easy source of metaphysical power to anyone powerful or moronic enough to stand up to Summer, and something, something to do with the failing, and decrepit theaters that seem to face struggle after struggle.

All of this is broken down into the Mortal/Supernatural Status Quo; a paragraph each to describe the Supernatural Status Qou (The Summer Court keeps an eye on the Festivals as they gain hard fought influence from them, ancient knowledge sleeps uneasily beneath the university, and the WC have a steady food supply from the failing theaters.), and the Mortal Status Quo, (INSERT HERE). Which is used alongside the Movers and Shakers Box, a Mendelow Matrix set to the axis's of "Who is in the Dark/Who is in the Know" (describing who knows what about the supernatural in the city) and "Who wants to Maintain the Status Quo/Who want to Rock the Boat" (Who is happy with the way things are against who wants things to change, usually in their own favor).

As a good guideline, unless it's in a particularly law-abiding city, the cops should be slap bang in the middle, with maybe a little bit more towards awareness of the supernatural. The cops don't want things to always remain the same; they want things to get better, people to stop disappearing, bodies to stop showing up on the streets, corruption to stop being untouchable; but neither do they want things to cange so far that there is chaos on the streets, looting, rioting, cats and dogs living together, MASS HYSTERIA!

I've skipped over Theme/Threat Aspects, and the faces that go along with each Theme/Threat for now as they will eventually get their own sections.

====Locales====
This part of City Building is putting those Themes and Threats into solid locations where the PC's may interact with the NPC's. While the official sheet may only have nine slots open, these are your repeating main locales for the entire city, don't feel forced into having exactly nine locations for your city and only ever using using those nine locations.

Each location has several parts consisting of a Name (no duh), a basic description (no duh), whether it is part of a theme or a threat, the core idea behind the location, the Location Aspect, and the face behind the Location and their basic concept, so to continue on the Cambridge example an example Location could be...

'''Name''': Hinton Cherry Hall Festival Grounds
'''Description''': Regularly used summer festival grounds
'''THEME/THREAT''': Threat
'''Idea''': The Summer Court's main stomping grounds in the city
'''Aspect''': Magically Charged Festival Grounds
'''Face''': Jane Clements (Lady Fairwinds) (Summer Sylph Festival Co-ordinator)

This needs to be done several times, enough to properly represent each force in the city, and each of the three themes/threats. However not every locale needs to have a NPC face. It is completely possible for a PC to be the face of a Location provided they have a significant investment in that particular location, an example would be a True Believer PC being the face of a local place of worship where NPC's come for spiritual advice which tips the PC's into something new happening. Other options for the face could also be an actual mythical figure (slightly rare in the Dresden Files, most mythical figures have some form of existence), a murder victim, or an organisation that the PC's may have to contend with (authorities, criminal gangs, cults, etc). So long as the PC's are capable of interacting with them anything (within reason) could make a decent face, although a murder victim may make for a rather impermanent one.

====Faces====
Once you have all the locations you need, and you and your players have agreed upon what exactly they are, what they represent, and what Faces they have, you and your group then need to detail each Face to go with each location, this includes the Face's Name, what Location they represent, their High Concept, Motivations and any relationships they might have with other important NPC's in the city.

Don't worry about putting every single detail on the city Face sheets, each face should have its own separate character sheet eventually.

So to continue the Cambridge example...

We'll break from Hinton Cherry Hall because not only are the motivations of the Sidhe strange and inhuman, but she's a female Sidhe so who knows what the fuck is going on behind those eyes, let's instead go to (the made up) Mill Street Market (Cambridge has a lot of the general markets in real life we're just solidifying one of these to actual buildings).

Mill Street is one of Cambridge's most famous markets, and one of the most famous in the UK itself. Not for being a regular local produce, farmers market full of organic produce and environmental sensibilities which are all the rage today, but because it's one of the largest multi-national markets, you want to find something from some dinky little province in China, a legitimate African Shaman Mask, or even something stranger? You're going to be hard pressed, but you'll find it somewhere on Mill Street.

This makes Mill Street Market a solid location, rife with potential, and problems, but players can't just interact with each store owner when looking for every single little thing, you're going to end up with a bunch of remarkably similar NPC's with the distinction "yeah, but he sells ''Russian'' stuff, rather than Jamaican stuff", which will only increase your book-keeping exponentially, and for not a lot of payoff.

This is where the Face comes in, you need to make a single NPC who the players can interact with, while still representing the entire streets interests. This face can be the head of a market committee, a particularly patriarchal/maternal store owner who keeps an eye on the entire street, or even an actual city council official who interferes with the PC's attempt to buy the stuff that's slightly illegal to own in public, but not to have in stock for selling (lock-picks, cultural items that should be in museums, poisonous plants, small stuff a bureaucrat could make your life hell over).

For this Example we'll roll with a shop owner who has been well established thanks in part to his supernatural contacts, his minor talent that allows him to drive really good bargains, and the fact that he regularly represents the street against the city council, because of its connections to multiple parts of the Nevernever, including the Bizarre Bazaar, a Fae market where anything is for sale.

'''Name''': Vihaan Kendle
'''Locale''': Mill Street Market
'''High Concept''': Market Wizard
'''Motivation''': Mill Street's Secrets must be kept.
'''Relationships''': Jane Clements (A deal with Summer keeps this place safe from the Seelie and protected from the Unseelie), Chris Faulkner (Fellow Secret Keeper), Prof Nigel Sterling (Nosy old man with no idea what he's trying to dig up), other Store Owners (The people I'm trying to protect) [UNKNOWN] Karl Helbrect (I am an obstacle in his way).

==The Actual Dresden Files==
[[Image:Dresden 1.jpg|thumb|right|Standard Dresdenverse event]]
===Books===
They're pretty awesome, seriously, go read them. Private Eye/Wizard Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden takes on the forces of evil with his magic, his wits, and a near endless supply of old pop culture references. I'll try to summarize them without spoiling them, if it seems that i'm putting in the most exciting bits, I'm not, they're just that great.
# ''Storm Front'': Not the author's best work but not terrible. Involves curses, a drug ring, and naked battles with a demon (it's less kinky than it sounds.)
# ''Fool Moon'': Widely regarded as the worst book in the series but still pretty passable. Has werewolves out the wazoo (totally not furries, trust me. And Dresden ''does'' get the line, "[[Awesome|... or I'll kill you before you're halfway]] to [[furry]]" whilst holding a wolfaboo at gunpoint.)
# ''Grave Peril'': This is where shit gets good; Vampires (WoD variety with a side of Succubus/Incubus, not Twilight shit, you'll learn to hate them for completely different reasons though) and a scary-ass powerful ghost.
# ''Summer Knight'': Faeries (the old folklore "Steal Children and Mutilate Livestock/People" kind, not the Disney kind). Its got badass Dark Eldar-type Faeries, slightly less badass Craftworld-type Faeries, and everything in between. Also, the sobering after-effects of losing a loved one and emotional crap like that. Also, don't call them faeries to their faces (its like a racial slur.)
# ''Death Masks'': To sum it up, atheist warriors of heaven, conquistador vampires, Fallen Angels, and a villain so evil that he makes Honsou look like Sanguinius. Seriously, he's so evil, that a Fallen Angel literally older than the concept of time thinks that he's one of the most evil things ever. Also it got a Samurai Paladin.
# ''Blood Rites'': A pretty good read despite the ridiculous premise. Two different flavors of vampire and porn stars. Manages to be pretty awesome.
# ''Dead Beat'': One of the best if not the best book in the series. Dresden fights necromancers and rides a zombie T-rex,if that does not sound awesome you are very clearly disturbed. Also, theres's a Warhammer Fantasy easter egg that rhymes with Shmeinrich Shmemmler.
# ''Proven Guilty'': Tracking down monsters that feed on fear at a horror movie convention. Its a bit slow at the start, but ends really well. Good book for Molly fans.
# ''White Night'': Most of the details are spoilery, but basically, something's hunting magic users and framing Harry. A number of long-running sub-plots culminate.
# ''Small Favor:'' The villain from ''Death Masks'' comes back and tries to start the apocalypse again AND Harry has to deal with Faeries again. Includes dolphins, angry goats, a hostage situation, and a quest for a fresh donut, don't worry, it'll make sense.
# ''Turn Coat'': This one's bad guy might second closest thing to pure evil since that guy from ''Death Masks'', it may be even more evil than him. Also, there's a magic cop who was framed for a murder he didn't commit and now he's on the run from his former allies while he tries to clear his name. Will he find out who's responsible? Will he get revenge? Will I stop trying to make this sound like an 80's television show? MAYBE.
# ''Changes:'' A whole bunch of spoilers, like paradigm shift, next level spoilers. It's a bit more of a thriller than a mystery but this is where shit gets real in the series. Do NOT start with this book, or any one that comes after it. They're amazing but they'll ruin the whole series for you and they usually require some prior knowledge of the series to fully appreciate.
# ''Ghost Story:'' Pure unadulterated spoiler, sorry. But it recaptures some of the noir atmosphere from the earlier books and sets you up for the next story arc.
# ''Cold Days'': An assassination/training montage, followed by ballroom dancing, followed by investigation, followed by H.P. Lovecraft references, followed by more investigation. And insane Faeries throughout the entire books. Also, Santa's there, which is awesome, except when you learn that Santa is inspired by Odin, who also happened to be the inspiration for Khorne (which might actually make it even more awesome).
# ''Skin Game'': Tied with ''Dead Beat'' for the best book. Imagine ''Ocean's Eleven'', but replace breaking into a casino with breaking into the Underworld (yes, the one where Hades lives), and replace a buttload of money with the Holy Grail. A welcome chance to let the new status quo finally sink in for a bit, after three books of ''dramatically shattering it forever'', as well as a sweet-ass thriller.
# ''Peace Talks'': Marcone attempts to hold a Peace Conference for the Accorded Nations to see if they can make peace wih the Fomor, Harry deals with family drama, Thomas is revealed to be a father-to-be, Dresden gets a disease straight from The Other Harry's universe (seriously, Conjurivitus?), and shit directly leads off into the next book in the series "Battle Grounds". Very much a finding of feet after 6 years of no releases.
# ''Battle Grounds'': Everything explodes. Seriously. Everything. Chicago is on fire, the supernatural world is simultaneously going to war and pissing itself, and Harry, as always, is smack damn in the middle of it. How could he not be when someone brings a magic superweapon to his town? Mixes in some moments of levity, some absolute heartbreak, a METRIC TON of action scenes, and a few twists (some kinda obvious, some not so much.) If all you have ever wanted is to see your favorite supernatural characters kicking the shit out of each other, this is the book for you.

===Comics===
# "Welcome to the Jungle" - Takes place before Storm Front. A mad gorilla has killed a security guard, only problem is how did it get out of its enclosure, kill the guard as he emptied a full mag into it, partially clean up after its viscous assault, get back into enclosure, and lock up after itself.
# Graphic novel remakes of ''Storm Front'' and ''Fool Moon'', with a certain amount of artistic turnover.
# "Ghoul, Goblin" - Takes place after ''Fool Moon'', before ''Grave Peril''. Harry is called out to small town of "Boone Mill" after the singularly unlucky Talbot family starts to have its members dying off in unnatural ways.
# "War Cry" - Take place after ''Dead Beat'', before ''Proven Guilty''. Lots of spoilery details, but with a house full of scholars hiding a secret, and a besieging army of vampires Harry is in for the fight of his life.
# "Downtown" - Takes place after ''White Night'', and before ''Small Favor''. Something is hunting down shopowners that pay protection to Marcone. Something magical is killing shopowners in Harry's city. Time for wacky buddy-cop movie style shenanigans. Only with more visceral horror, death, homeless people, and absurdly spacious sewers.
# "Wild Card" - Takes place after "Downtown", and before ''Small Favor''. When a mysterious fairy begins ripping a trail of carnage across Chicago, Dresden gets involved trying to track it down, but this Fairy isn't just the "normal" fairy serial killer...
# "Dog Men" - Harry travels down south with Listens to the Wind to investigate attacks by royalty-free werewolves. Features flirting with Ghouls, Harry's best Doomguy grin, and the first canon confirmation of a government bureau that deals with the supernatural.

===Short Stories===
In no particular order (for now)

*''Vignette'': extremely short, not much to say other than Harry and Bob having a relatively meaningless conversation (Free online, Side Jobs)
*''Restoration of Faith'': Harry before he became an independent P.I., working alongside a P.I. mentor on a missing child case (Free Online, Side Jobs)
*''Something Borrowed'': a wedding, where "borrowed" means kidnapped and impersonated (Side Jobs)
*''Heorot'': brewing festival and Beowulf, plus bikers, sewers, and an explanation of virginity throughout the ages (Side Jobs)
*''It's My Birthday Too'': LARP, vampires, and LARP vampires (Side Jobs)
*''Day Off'': wherein Harry experiences more stress than he does on the job (Side Jobs)
*''Backup'': metrosexuality in a hair salon and shadow wars (Thomas's perspective) (Side Jobs)
*''The Warrior'': no funny/unfunny description for this one, its just a good story about Harry and Michael doing the right thing (Side Jobs)
*''Curses'': Chicago Cubs and the Billy Goat Curse
*''Bombshells'': sexy former hobo vigilantes and fish people who are into snuff. (Dangerous Women)
*''Last Call'': beer and has-been "demigoddesses" (washed up hedonism spirit from ancient greece, nowhere near modern demigod levels) trying to tamper with it (Side Jobs)
*''Love Hurts'': wherein Harry once again learns that love does indeed hurt (Side Jobs)
*''Aftermath'': SPOILERS that's what (Side Jobs)
*''B is for Bigfoot'': turns out, being half-Sasquatch gets you bullied in elementary school, especially the bullies are spoiled rotten half-dwarf little shits. (Working for Bigfoot)
*''I was a Teenage Bigfoot'': half-bigfoot at S.M.A.G.T., Saint Mark's Academy for the Gifted and Talented, yes, it is a stupid acronym. (Working for Bigfoot)
*''Bigfoot on Campus'': our little bigfoot has grown up and gotten himself a football scholarship plus a smokin' hot GF, no dark secrets here, no siree, completely normal unrealistically attractive girlfriend and her insanely wealthy father who definitely doesn't want her to fuck him to death, whether she's on board with that part or not (Working for Bigfoot)
*''Even Hand'': a day in the life of the most successful mobster in the american midwest (Dark and Stormy Knights.)
*''AAAA Wizardy'': Harry gives lectures to young Wardens (RPG Book-Our World)
*''Jury Duty'': a murder trial where the murder weapon was a bowling pin (Unbound)
*''Cold Case'': This story is not funny, its not supposed to be, its just straight up harrowing. Its a descent into compulsive madness and the loss of innocence and identity forever.
*'''Day One''': it appears that the Almighty is familiar with standard MMORPG quest-giving mechanics
*''A Fistful of Warlocks'': Captain of the White Council's Wardens chasing necromancers in the Old West. (Straight Outta Tombstone anthology/Brief Cases)
*''Zoo Day'': The events of a relaxing visit to the local zoo, retold from three different perspectives, each one encountering their own problems. (new story exclusive to Brief Cases)

===Factions, Races, and Supernatural Nations===
If all this seems excessively expansive and convoluted as shit, keep in mind that on this page there's lore from 16 books, 7 comics, and a couple dozen short stories, not to mention a healthy dose of meta and speculation.

{{Template:Spoilers}}
*A Note on Terminology in the books, fanbase, and this page
**'''WoJ''': ''Word of Jim'', anything the author says in interviews or Q&As. A reference to both general literary ''Word of God'' and the ''Word of Kemmler''(see below under: '''Kemmlerites''')
**'''Vanilla Mortal''': a regular human being w/o significant magic powers
**'''Whampire''': derogatory but deserved slang for White Court Vampire
**'''Rampire''': derogatory but deserved slang for Red Court Vampire
**'''Blampire''': derogatory but deserved slang for Black Court Vampire
**'''OG Merlin''': the Original Merlin, like the one who worked w/ King Arthur
**'''WC''': White Council, pun intended

====The White Council====
A collection of the most powerful mortal magic users on the planet (wizards) that's existed since the Dark Ages (maybe even before). Entry could be seen as the equivalent of getting a Master's degree or earning your blackbelt in magic. Is extremely powerful but is ridiculed by the other factions for being obsessed with tradition and inflexible (which it is, to an extent). What most of these other factions don't seem to appreciate is that without the Council acting as an Inquisition for magic users by upholding the Laws of Magic, the rest of them would be forced to contend with insane black magic users breaking reality left and right, shattering the Masquerade and burning them alive from the inside out for shits and giggles. Also, the Council would have even more phenomenal political and destructive power if it weren't constrained by the very Laws it upholds and if it weren't run by conservative geezers obsessed with the status quo. If a human breaks the Laws of Magic, the Council's grey cloaked Wardens drag them to a random black site and execute them, no exceptions, no second chances (mostly). Since mortal magic users exude a murphyonic field around themselves, complex mechanical and electrical devices short out around them (shit breaks when they're nearby). This isn't that much of a handicap, since they only short out stuff built after WWII (roughly, it isn't a hard cutoff) and even then only if its complex like a computer, and even then it mostly happens when they actually use their magic. Most of them have found magical workarounds to compensate for this. For some reason no wizard has ever created magical computers, despite the fact that basic binary computing is actually very simple, and we've seen wizards use much more complex magic throughout the series. The EMP effect is actually relatively recent, wizards have a probability effect that changes from time period to time period, it used to give them warts or cause fires to burn weird colors.

[[Image:HarryDresden.jpg|thumb|right|Harry, on the job]]
*'''Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden''': Our titular character, a wizard and private investigator. A very tall and profoundly (un)lucky man, Harry Dresden is almost the perfect archetypal noire detective, but with a heavy dose of modern snark and humor. Born to an actual witch and a stage magician and orphaned at a young age, Harry Dresden is adopted by a friend of his mother and trained in the ways of magic. Sounding pretty generic, right? WRONG! His adoptive father, Justin DuMorne is actually a Warlock (black magic user) and was training Harry to be a loyal enforcer. When his adoptive father tries to put him in a psychic headlock of forced loyalty, Dresden ends up burning him to death in an impromptu wizard's duel. Naturally, the Wardens (Wizard Cops) show up and arrest Harry for killing with magic, a violation of the Laws of Magic that Harry was never told about. He barely avoids getting beheaded, due to the fact that he was acting in self defense against Black Magic, and because elder wizard Ebenezar McCoy speaks on his behalf and agrees to foster him. He's then placed under parole, with the penalty for violation being death, for the majority of his young adulthood. Being by far the most powerful mage of his generation and an the only openly practicing wizard, mortals see him as a charlatan or a looney; much of the wizard community sees him as a loose cannon at best, an unrepentant warlock at worst, although a good chunk of the White Council's younger generation look up to him as someone who is not afraid to call the senior council out. While low-level practitioners generally see him as a walking disaster and bully like they see all wizards (although their opinion shfits greatly as he grows in fame, joins wizard-KGB, and founds a mage neighbourhood-watch network). Other supernaturals generally treat all wizards with distrust and respectful fear, but over the course of series Harry's (partially misguided) reputation among non-human supernaturals grows from "Be afraid" to "OH FUCK HE'S AFTER ME!". Because of this he's become something of a loner, though he does have a few close friends. He's been in several relationships, but most ended in blood, tears, or flames. An honest man, he tries to do the right thing, but often, the right thing gets you put on the shit lists of vampire lords and the like. He's chivalrous to a fault, causing him no shortage of pain. It ''might'' be fair to call him honorable in that he prefers not to lie and will do his best to help the helpless, but he's not above fighting dirty or weaseling his way out of a deal, especially where his Godmother is concerned. Despite being a generally good person, he sees his own power as something he needs to carefully hold in check. He's well aware of the fact that with all his power he's one moment of careless rage away from burning down a building or blowing up a gas station, so he sees the careful and righteous use of power as being very important, though he never hesitates to use his power where he feels it's needed (read: burn down any building that looks at him funny). Harry has a bad habit of focusing a little bit too much on the features of attractive women, if this seems a little sexist, know that this is an intentional and acknowledged character flaw that is a result of Harry's messed-up upbringing; his sexual development was intentionally manipulated to make him easier to control, he gradually loses this flaw over time(only to have it replaced with paranoia, self-loathing, and more loneliness) and he himself constantly works to control his libido. His immense magical power is severely hampered by the lack of control and refinement resulting a very low cost-effectiveness with "quick and dirty" field magic - his fire evocations are huge explodey fireballs, his shields are direct force absorbers and his telekinesis can throw a car but cannot hit a button across a room - for this reason most wizards and many of the other supernaturals see him as kind of a brute. This often backfires on them as they underestimate his intelligence and take his maverick facade for granted. His enemies who know him better often go too far on the other side of misreading his character and think his "magical brute" facade is entirely fake and he's far more devious and masterful than he really is, which is kind of understandable as the pile of bodies he leaves behind grows over the course of series and includes things a wizard of his caliber have no business surviving against. Later his evocation skill grows to a respectful level only for him to often find himslef fighting without his focus tools at hand which pretty much brings him back to "wasting raw power on flashy and powerful but barely controlled spells" level. Meanwhile his thaumaturgy is way more refined and controlled as he fucking ''loves'' tinkering with rituals, artifacts and potions in his free time and the majority of his day work also revolves around using thaumaturgical rituals to find people or lost things.
**'''Subconscious Harry''': The manifestation of Harry's subconscious mind, "Id Harry" is what Harry could be if he were to stop trying to be so selfless and concerned with being a good guy. Unlike most repressed alter-egos, Id Harry is presented as neither wholly evil nor wholly good, he's nothing more than Dresden's self preservation instincts, sex drive, and untapped potential (which also kind of makes him Harry's super-ego, sort of), if Harry were to stop putting himself in danger for others and let go of all the baggage that the universe heaped on him, he'd be more wealthy and confident, but he'd also be kind of a dick. He also tends to notice and understand things that Harry doesn't consciously know, so take that as you will. Whenever Harry meets his Id he always points out that his Id is dressed darkly, black leather duster, black shirt, black dress trousers, smart black shoes, neatly trimmed goatee, tidy hair, all of which speaks to Harry's fear of his repressed desires making him evil. Something which Id Harry calls boring and uninspired.

*'''The Original Merlin''': founder of the White Council(at least its current incarnation) and the most powerful human magic user ever recorded. A former student of Odin, he created the Council to regulate magic use and protect mortals from black magic, as of ''Cold Days'' its implied that the stuff about regulating magic is merely secondary to the Council's true purpose, defending reality from the Outsiders. Despite laying down the Laws of Magic, he himself is confirmed to have broken the Sixth Law, performing a single action at different points in the time stream, simultaneously(try wrapping your brain around that), adding credence to the theory that Laws 1-6 are a smokescreen for the 7th. According to Arthurian myth, he's not entirely human, so he might have been a Changeling(or a Changeling who Chose to be human) or a Scion. His surviving enchantments defy all known laws of physics and all known understanding of magic.

*'''Margaret LeFay''': Harry's mom who died shortly after giving birth to him. Harry's got a rose tinted view of her, since he believes his life wouldn't have been so shitty if she had been around. But as the series progresses, its become increasingly clear that she was involved in shady business and was practicing Black Magic, and that her unsavory connections and actions are actually the reason why his life has been so crappy. "LeFay" is an epithet given to anyone who is deeply involved with the Fae Courts. Opinions differ as to whether she was just a misguided idealist or an irresponsible contrarian. She was over 100 years old when she became pregnant with Harry, though given how much time she'd spent in other parts of reality, it's entirely possible that her theoretical age was different from her practical age.

*'''Samuel Peabody''': The council's main Bureaurocromancer and the guy who takes the minutes at each of the meetings. It's stated that the council would be nowhere as efficient as it is without him. He dislikes untidy things to a rather pathological degree and is rather poor at German as his book "Die Lied der Erlking" a collection of poems and lore about The Erlking Has a glaring mistake right in the title. (The actual title should be "Das Lied des Erlkönigs")

*'''Klaus "The Toymaker" Schneider''': A small wizard with a round belly and cheeks, and white hair. Klaus has long been the running contender (in the Merlin's opinion) for the next open seat in the Senior council, losing it to both Ebenezar McCoy, and Gregory Cristos. He's described as an enchanter with a reputation for skill and honesty, and what little we've heard of him has been positive. WoJ says that Klaus's method of channeling magic is the Author's favorite, but he's never had a chance to publish the short story he wrote about it. From the interview.
"My favorite is probably from an unpublished short story I wrote, set in the Dresden Files universe, but during the Battle of the Bulge. The Nazis had a sorcerer operating out of an old monastery, and the White Council dispatched the Belgian wizard, Klaus the Toymaker. Klaus's magic is all based around using children's toys as focii. My favorite moment was when he killed a couple of SS-summoned demons with a windup wooden duck."

=====The Senior Council=====
The seven "ruling" wizards of the White Council. While the position is usually awarded for being one of the most ancient, experienced, influential wizards on the planet, positions can be selected due to political bullshit and the Senior Council tends to be aged and crotchety because of this. Contrary to what their name might imply, they actually have very little authority over the day to day lives of council members. Rather than a member of a ruling body, a position on the senior council could best be thought of as combining the responsibilities of Judge, Arbiter, Diplomat, Administrator, and in some cases Generals and Champions. There is also a certain amount of delegated authority given to certain members of the senior council. For example, Ancient Mai is implied to be responsible for diplomacy, Arthur Langtree seems to be responsible for arbitration within the council, Listens to the Wind commands the medical staff, the Gatekeeper is responsible for keeping Outsiders Outside, etc. Whether this is formal assignment of duties or simply wizards assuming the role they are best suited to is unknown, though it's strongly suggested that the Gatekeeper and The Merlin are formalized positions.
*'''The Merlin/Arthur Langtry''': The Merlin is the formal leader of the white council. The current Merlin, Arthur Langtry, is a wizard and politician who believes in keeping an image of strength and solidarity against the terrors of the world above all else. Though he and Harry find themselves at odds often, he's not implied to be directly evil or malicious, just calculating, proud, and utterly ruthless in his politicking for the council. He's good with defensive warding magic. Like really, ''really'' good. As in, he once held off an entire court of vampires and outsiders with an improvised ward which had nothing to anchor itself against. As Harry points out several times, he didn't get his title by collecting bottlecaps.
*'''The Gatekeeper/Wizard Rashid''' Rashid The Gatekeeper is the most mysterious of the current Senior Council, his purpose has something to do with "the Outer Gates", and it's heavily implied he has some ability to see the future, or at least is well connected with someone who can. Until "Cold Days" that's all we know, and even after that he's almost cryptic as before. Without going into major spoilers territory, we come to find out in later books that he's one of, if not ''the'' most important council member, as far as his role is concerned. He's one of the few characters that is taller than Harry putting him at somewhere around 6'10-7'00
*'''Ebenezar McCoy/The Blackstaff''' Harry's second mentor, Ebenezar McCoy is a Scottish hill-billy (native to Scotland, immigrated to the US during the 17th century) who currently owns a ranch in the Ozarks. <s>He is also the Blackstaff, the Senior Council's secret wetworker who is exempt from the typical punishments those who broke the laws of magic would face. He is responsible for the Krakatoa Eruption, the New Madrid Earthquakes, and the Tunguska Event </s>. '''There is no such position within the council, no member would dare breach the laws of magic, and to imply such is subversive misinformation spread to weaken the council from within. If you hear any such seditious falsehoods, report to Wizard McCoy for summary Debrief and Reeducation.''' Despite his work for the council, he doesn't get along with the Merlin, as they fought on opposite sides of the French and Indian War. He specializes in evocation, specifically Earth and Gravity magic, and is mentioned as being one of the top evocators in the world. For example, he once pulled a derelict Russian satellite out of orbit against his enemies. Think about that. He had the magical strength to reach up into fucking ''ORBIT'' to pull down a several ton satellite, and was able to control the insane force of its meteoric descent enough to bring it down on a specific target.
*'''Joseph Listens-to-Wind/Injun Joe''' A genuine Illinois medicine man, Listens-to-Wind is a Native American Wizard/Shaman, and one of the few truly decent people in the Dresden Universe. He is both a master of shapeshifting magic and healing biomancy, which isn't counting the fact that he goes back to medical school every few decades so he can keep up with current medical techniques. Generally level headed and calm, but holds plenty of anger about the fact the White Council's laws forced him to sit back and watch as his nation was destroyed. He's also a fucking genius. Think of how complex something like brain surgery is. Now imagine doing brain surgery with a current of energy you're controlling with your mind, without disrupting the electricity within the brain you're working on. Now imagine doing this and work like it every day for centuries. Call him "Injun Joe" without being Ebenezar McCoy at your own peril.
*'''Martha Liberty''' An exceedingly tall African-American Wizard, very little is known about her. Worthy of note is that she's one of the few ancient wizards who lives with her family. Most wizards move away from their families after a century or so, to avoid the pain of seeing multiple generations of your family die. Martha lives with some of her great great granddaughters.
*'''Ancient Mai''' The scariest old (human) woman you'll ever meet, ancient Mai lives up to her name. Despite being over over 400 freaking years old, she's said to retain much of her beauty, being compared to the flawless emptiness of a porcelain doll. She may or may not be the person in charge of handling contact with other supernatural powers as she sent out emissaries to both Faerie courts at the beginning of "Summer Knight", and becomes very formal and diplomatic in the presence of other supernatural powers, as we see in "Turn Coat". Her preferred form of magic is Enchantment and she is responsible for the Council's many magical constructs and golems/Wardhounds, beyond that, she is said to have "precious little gift for combat magic."
*'''Gregory Cristos''' The newest member of the Senior Council. He leads a large multi-national bloc of wizards that represent nations that have been largely neglected by the White Council. His appointment was largely to avoid a split in the White Council which would lead to a civil war when they need it the least. While this allowed him to gain his position, he neither has seniority nor much respect from the rest of the senior council. Harry and Ebenezar consider if he's a member of the '''Black Council''', a highly placed catspaw whose rise to power they engineered, or just a useful idiot that fell into place. Considering his personal shows of wealth and desperation to make peace with less savory supernatural community members as diplomatic victories, he's likely just a well-meaning, but useful idiot to the Black Council. Harry and Ebenezar suspect that he's either a Mole or Incompetent; Ebenezar complains that Incompetents are more dangerous every time.

=====The Wardens=====
The law enforcement and military arm of the White Council. Wizards trained in combat, investigation, and warfare. Wardens enforce the Seven Laws of Magic with extreme prejudice. You break the laws, the Wardens cut your head off. Every Warden is given a unique nigh-indestructible sword that can cut through magic, and a grey cloak that doesn't stain. Considering the amount of blood involved in cutting off heads this last one is important. When the Council goes to war with the Red Court they had to increase recruitment, so a lot of the Wardens are really young, some even in their late teens. This creates a dynamic of the conservative old guard disapproving of the young upstarts' willingness to use more aggressive and unorthodox methods, while the new Wardens disagree with the old geezers' excessive caution and overly rigid interpretation of the First Law. Harry is liked by many of the younger wardens, and most of the old guard hold him in a mix of suspicion and wary respect.
*'''Anastasia Luccio''' Currently the Captain of the Wardens, formerly field commander, she is responsible for the organization, logistics, and training of the Wardens, due to necromantic body-switching psychic fuckery that ripped her out of her original body and into the much younger, magically weaker body of a grad student. She is still on of the scary members of the white council, as this switch did nothing to diminish her years of experience or masterful control, though it did weaken her magically, so she's no longer capable of forging the warden's swords as she once did (though goodness knows why she doesn't forge the enchantment while someone else does the magical heavy lifting, something the series has firmly established can be done). She's so good at fire evocation that some of her "fire" spells are more comparable to cutting lasers than anything else.
*'''Donald Morgan''' The Field Commander of the Wardens. Morgan is fanatical in his service to the White Council, and especially the Merlin and Luccio. He's down paranoid and stern after years of seeing the horrors of black magic. He specializes in Earth Magic, and was said to be one of the best evocators alive, capable of doing quick and dirty like no one else. In a singular moment of unrivalled badassery he once lured a nigh-unkillable evil shapeshifter called a skinwalker (Naagloshii) onto a nuclear testing site, and escaped to through a portal seconds before the nuke went off.
*'''Carlos Ramirez''' A "classically Spanish" Warden, Carlos is the youngest ever Regional Commander in the wardens, and one of Harry's few allies in the White Council. Witty, skilled, courageous, and something of a womanizer (though he may or may not actually be a virgin). He specializes in Water magic, specifically entropy magic, and is more than capable of hurling disintegration beams around in combat.
*'''"Wild" Bill Meyers''': Warden in charge of the Southwest, specializes in earth magic and has been seen toting around a double barreled shotgun and a combat knife.
*'''(Yuki?)Yoshimo''': Japanese Warden known to use biomancy and wind magic, carries around a silver katana, distant relative of Shiro Yoshimo(see: Knights of the Cross)
*'''Justin DuMorne''': Harry's abusive adoptive father and first magic mentor. A former Warden and secret Warlock (Black Magic) user, DuMorne adopted Harry with the intent of raising him to be his Black-Magic-using underling. When Harry got lucky and stumbled onto his mentor's plans before he could impliment them, DuMorne tried to mentally enslave him. Harry began his long and illustrious career using Nike-Jutsu and ran the fuck away. Harry escaped into the "care" of his godmother, the Leanansidhe, after a brief stint of robbery and Outsider-Slaying. Lea then offered to make a faustian pact with him: she would give Harry the power required to defeat DuMorne. In exchange, he would belong to her. Harry then killed DuMorne in a magic duel, and did everything he could to snub his godmother on the deal. He may or may not have been a member of the Black Council.

=====The Seven Laws of Magic=====
The Laws of Magic that the White Council enforces, for damned good reasons.
# Thou Shalt not Kill (no murdering... with magic, anyway)
# Thou Shalt not Transform Others (no human transmutation)
# Thou Shalt not Invade the Mind of Another (no mind reading)
# Thou Shalt not Enthrall Another (no mind control)
# Thou Shalt not Reach Beyond the Borders of Life (no resurrecting the dead)
# Thou Shalt not Swim Against the Currents of Time (no time travel)
# Thou Shalt not Open the Outer Gates (no inviting Cthulhu and his buddies over for a beer)
It's worth noting that the first five laws are as such because they involve the usage of Black Magic. Black Magic twists and corrupts the user, eroding their self control and making them more likely to use Black Magic in the future. The Sixth and Seventh Laws are there because violating them is a Bad Idea, as mucking with time or summoning outsiders tends to fuck reality to a larger or greater extent. It's theorized that messing with time or summoning the wrong outsider could destroy time and space, but considering that time and space still exist, many beings question this. The laws are also really, ''really'' nebulous sometimes. Does it break the first law to push a rock off a cliff if that rock crushes a person? Does it break the second law to repair a congenital deformity? Does it break the third law to help heal someone whose mind has been damaged? Does it break the fourth law to put someone to sleep to help them avoid being damaged by mental magic? Does it break the fifth law to resuscitate a patient whose heart has stopped? As for the sixth and seventh laws, it's worth pointing out that if you're moving (which literally everyone is '''all the time'''), you're technically altering your own flow of time (for some reason Merlin was capable of using relative positioning in time to create a five-dimensional prison, but somehow didn't write any relativity clauses for his Laws? Come on Merlin, this shit is important). If you slow down your own movement through time relative to Earth, you aren't "swimming against the currents of time," you're just grabbing a rock and holding on for a bit. As if that weren't enough, different places within the Nevernever have time that flows faster or slower than Earth time. If you step off into an area of the Nevernever whose time moves faster than Earth's, for the express purpose of giving yourself more time relative to Earth, does that break the sixth law? The seventh law is the only one that's pretty much black and white, and is also the most important by far. Laws 1-5 only apply when the victim is a human being, so you can do whatever you want to vampires, ghouls, demons, demon-possessed, faeries, etc.

====The Black Council?====
The Black Council is a rumoured collection of mysterious entities and individuals that may or may not be seeking to throw all of existence under their mighty thumb through use of Black Magic. There's a lot more to it, but we can't go into it without entering some '''major''' spoilers. According to the Merlin, and thusly most of the White council, they DO NOT EXIST, and to say otherwise is sedition. The Merlin is almost certainly smart enough to recognize their existence, but believes that even if they do exist, acknowledging them as a real and credible threat would do nothing but drive up their recruitment rates among the more ambitious or rebellious members of the White Council.

====The Fellowship of St. Giles====
Named after the patron saint of outcasts and lepers. These guys are composed mainly of half-vampires of the Red Court and hate full vampires, but they take all types of outcasts and they have support network of catholic monks in secluded Latin American monasteries. If you're a fugitive from the White Council who thinks they can still do some good, they'll take you. If you're a monster who hates your own kind, they'll take you. If you want to be a weird edgy guy and an underdog with a sense of justice, you're basically these guys. The catch is, a lot of the stuff they do in the name of fighting evil is pretty shady itself. They're not as powerful or well-entrenched as some other factions so they rely on the underworld (the criminal one) a lot more. As a result, the old adage about one man's freedom fighter being another man's terrorist holds pretty strongly to them. There is also evidence that they harbor Warlocks. They spend all of their time waging a guerrilla war against the Red Court; but as of Changes, they've effectively disbanded due to REASONS. (Spoiler reasons.) The half-vamps are able to maintain a semblance of self-control through magic tattoos that appear when their bloodlust reaches dangerous levels, warning both the half-vamp and his/her allies that he/she is about to lose it and make for the nearest available source of blood.

====Vampire Courts====
Largely unrelated supernatural predators that all feed off of humans parasitically. They are also called "Anthrophages", and are almost all World of Darkness style tortured edgelords on the surface and pathetic, delusional World of Darkness style jerkwads underneath.

=====The White Court of Vampires/ "Whampires"=====
Psychic vampires that inspire a specific emotion in mortals which they use as a conduit to extract their life force. Those that feed off lust can make you debilitatingly aroused whether you like it or not, and if they actually feed on you the affect is addictive. Very pale and very beautiful on the outside, but their souls are bound to a hideous demon called the Hunger, which provides longevity and super strength in return for life energy. They reproduce by having children the old fashioned way. As a rule they don't tell their kids about their heritage until they grow up and lose their virginity. Upon having sex for the first time, the dormant Hunger awakens and completely devours their partner's life force, leaving the newly awakened vampire in bed with the corpse of their lover, traumatized, terrified, and confused. The vampire parent then swoops in and tells their child of its heritage and how normal this is and that it was okay to kill the human, after all, it was only food. It's also not entirely uncommon for the parent to rape the child as a way of displaying dominance and making their child subservient (see previous statement about addictive supernatural sex). Needless to say, they all have massive psychological baggage, creating a self sustaining cycle of trauma. The only way to escape this fate is to lose one's virginity to one who is in True Love with the young vampire, as White Court Vampires are harmed by True Love (which is actually pretty fucking hard to find, and is a rather nebulous concept in the first place), a dormant Hunger will be killed by the first exposure to True Love. It's implied that feeding off lust is the "natural" Feeding method of the white court, though some individuals/families/houses will feed of fear or despair, though the choice is implied to be more preference or tradition than anything else.

White court vampires mainly inhabit first world countries since they prefer refinement and sophistication, where they try to use their influence to create an atmosphere of zero inhibitions, zero limits, zero restraint, while paradoxically espousing self control and careful manipulation(despite claiming to be subtle and intelligent, most of them aren't particularly smart, having gotten by largely due to their innate ability to make people horny against their will) . They also have a really annoying habit of calling humans Kine, Bucks, and Does. As far as physical abilities go, White Court vampires are typically no stronger or faster than an especially healthy human in peak condition. They can, however, draw upon their Hunger to throw a canister of NoS in the system, temporarily ramping up their physical abilities to supersoldier levels and giving them improved healing, senses, and combat instincts. They won't be throwing around cars or anything, but they can go toe to toe with Black or Red Court vampires, if only for a short time. Doing this makes them really Hungry, and makes them much more vulnerable to Love. According to WoJ, the Hunger can be exorcised from an awoken Whampire by a being of sufficient power, but there wouldn't be much of the Whampire left over afterwards. Its implied that they White Court first arose in ancient Etruria, a precursor civilization to Rome. The Court is organized into a series of Houses, with the ruling body being a triumvirate composed of '''House Raith'''(Lust), '''House Malvora'''(Fear), and '''House Skavis'''(Despair) who ruthlessly jockey for power, Raith has been at the top for centuries, but as of the beginning of ''Blood Rites'' their power base has been eroding.

*'''The White King''': A rapist, murderer, billionaire, and owner of the vast majority of the american porn industry, the White King is the metaphorical(as opposed the the literal psychic manifestation) personification of squick, but wrapped up in a visually appealing package. He controls the pornography industry so he can manipulate popular conceptions of sexuality and beauty, making it easier for him and his kind to feed while making people shallow enough so that they have trouble finding True Love.

*'''Lara Raith''': the White King's eldest surviving child, she's smarter than her father, but since he regularly rapes her, completely subservient to him. In the presence of regular people, she's basically a goddess(once again, metaphorically as opposed to the literal); confident, smart, attractive, etc (but she's also kind of an evil bitch). In the presence of her father, she's cowed and submissive. You'd almost feel sorry for her if she wasn't power-hungry and dangerous.

*'''Thomas Raith''': the White King's only surviving son (he kills them when they get old enough to oppose him, since, while he's willing to rape his daughters into psychic submission, he's too picky an eater to do the same with his sons.) He's pretty bro-tier with Harry and unbeknownst to most they're secretly SPOILERS, but everyone thinks that they're just lovers (which, ironically, they aren't). He's managed to survive so far by projecting the image of an unambitious party boy (which he is to an extent because he enjoys the facade) and is quite savvy when it comes to politics. His Hunger is the second or third strongest in the White Court, meaning that he needs to feed a lot more but the power boost it provides is greater than the average whampire's.

*'''Justine''': Human thrall and the love of Thomas' life. At the beginning of the series appears to be a vapid bimbo who's just addicted to Thomas's dick (literally), she shows increasing intelligence, courage, and level-headedness as time goes on. Displays symptoms of bipolar disorder and histrionic personality disorder, but Thomas feeding on her keeps those symptoms in check. Their relationship somehow manages to be the most stable, genuine romantic pairing that hasn't progressed to marriage (purely for political reasons, Thomas can't let the rest of the Whampires know that Justine means something to him) in the entire series, despite Thomas having bang with other women to sate his Hunger, something Justine later actually participates in (the protection of True Love is removed by sex with someone you don't love, so after Justine bangs a girl, she and Thomas can have a three-way w/o her burning his flesh on contact).

*'''Madrigal Raith''': one of the White Court's many, many, many smug idiots who have fooled themselves into thinking that they're geniuses, despite the only reason for their success being their inhuman good looks. Nephew of the White King, he feeds on fear. He's incompetent, petty, and overly sure of himself.

*'''Madeline Raith''': Madrigal's sister(not that they actually care about each other) and a vacuous, short sighted, immature bitch who Lara would have offed long ago if it weren't for her inherited fortune, good looks, and political standing in the White Court.

*'''Lord Skavis''': ruler of House Skavis and known misogynist

*'''Lady Cesarina Malvora''': ruler of House Malvora

=====The Red Court of Vampires/"Rampires"=====
Mesoamerican blood sucking vampires. They can create a beautiful disguise or "flesh mask" over a [[Furry|hideous bat-like body]] (without wings), but the flesh mask combusts in direct sunlight. They are physically stronger than humans and much faster. They also pacify their prey with hypnotic eyes and narcotic saliva. They reproduce by turning people into half-vampires. The half vampire then gains an insatiable thirst for blood and super strength, but retains their human appearance and mind (well, most of it). Upon killing a human by draining their blood, the transformation completes and their strength increases (no workarounds, they have to make the deliberate choice to kill somebody by taking their blood). When they turn, they become a deluded blood addict with an unjustified god complex. They're mainly concentrated around Central and South America, where they use their connections to the cartels to benefit from human trafficking. The source of their supernatural power is the blood they have consumed, which is stored in their distended stomachs. Cutting a rampire's stomach open causes them to lose their strength and power(they also start bleeding out, which is nice). The Court is organized around a combination of feudalism (an influence of the Spanish) and traditional Mayan and Aztec society. At the top is the '''Red King''', progenitor of their species. Below him are the '''Lords of Outer Night''', Rampires of direct Mayan descent who have been impersonating Mayan gods for millennia. Below them are the '''Dukes/Duchesses and Barons/Baronesses'''. Below them are standard initiated Rampires. Below them are half-vampire collaborators, who serve as "priests" to the upper echelons and general servants. At the bottom of the ladder are '''Los Esclavos de Sangre'''(the blood slaves), vampires who have given in completely to their blood addiction and have subsequently lost all higher mental functions and the ability to create a flesh mask, they are treated as expendable scum and vermin by the rest of the Court. Another caste that is somewhat outside the social structure is the '''Jaguar Warriors''', who are the personal soldiers and bodyguards of the Lords of Outer Night and can be both half and full Rampires. Social mobility is based on a variety of factors including control over bloodlust, age, and race(those of pure Mayan descent being favored over europeans and mestizos). Its heavily implied that the vampire Lords of Outer Night took the place of the '''actual''', divine Mayan gods, and are secretly afraid that their predecessors will return to exact divine judgement on their blasphemous asses.

*'''The Red King/Kukulkan''': Progenitor of the Red Court and maniacal despot, the Red King has been around at since the time of the Classical Maya, possibly even before. He's masqueraded as a god throughout central american history, reaping the benefits of centuries of blood sacrifice. Evil, arrogant, and (sometimes) insane.

*'''Duchess Arianna Ortega''': The Red King's daughter (unconfirmed if that's in a biological or purely vampire sense). Sadistic, scheming, vengeful, and has a literal love-hate relationship with her husband.

*'''Duke Paolo Ortega''': Arianna's pussywhipped husband, a former Spanish conquistador and the Red Court's main wetworks operator, Arianna married him specifically for the purpose of making him suffer for his role in toppling the Aztec Empire (which she and her kind exploited).

*'''Bianca St.Claire''': Red Court Vampire in charge of prostitution in Chicago. Surprisingly civil for a vampire, though still willing to murder the fuck out of someone if she needs to. Is implied to have a fair bit of self hatred, being very concerned about her image and wanting to be beautiful. Still a scheming, dangerous, hateful bitch though.

*'''Esmeralda and Esteban Batiste''': The "Eebs" are a married couple of Red Court vampires and assassins. While "married" pairs of assassins are common in the Red Court, it's only because married couples attract less attention when traveling. The Eebs however are genuine lovers, on account of having complimentary insanities. They also happen to be swingers, which unnerves most of their targets when they flirt with them. They're also really short.

=====The Black Court of Vampires/"Blampires"=====
Classic "Bram Stoker's Dracula" vampires. They have all the folklore weaknesses, garlic, crosses, running water, etc. In appearance, they resemble rotting or mummified corpses so they can't pass for human without using magic to create illusions or make people ignore them. They compensate by hitting like fucking trucks, being nigh un-killable by conventional means, and being able to create more vampires extremely quickly (no half or dormant stage). The more powerful ones can walk around in sunlight freely, like Dracula did originally. In fact, the novel "Dracula" was written as a secret guide to killing them (commissioned and financed by the White Court), as a result they are almost extinct, with the survivors being extremely good at being hard to kill (which means not popping up and making more vampires whenever they want). Most of them are hiding all over the world. The Court no longer has any formal structure and is instead divided into solitary survivors and independent cells called '''Scourges''' each headed by a Master Vampire who maintains significant mental influence over the Scourge's lesser vampires (whose level intelligence can range from normal human to mindless avatar of the Master Vampire's will), Renfields, and regular thralls. Killing the Master Vampire does not cure the vampires or the Renfields, but the regular thralls might recover with time, and the lesser vampires will be left without leadership. Blampires need to feed less often than Rampires, but their feedings tend to be more fatal and can potentially create new Blampires out of their victims' corpses, meaning that any new Scourge needs to be put down fast before it gets out of hand. WoJ is that being converted into a Blampire essentially rips out the victim's soul and replaces it with a mass of pure evil and Black Magic that merely happens to be shaped like a soul. So in a sense, once turned, a Blampire isn't really the human it was before, it may have all the memories of the person, but its really just a sentient undead construct driven by dark power.

*'''Vlad Tepes/Dracula/The Black King''': Yeah, really. Dracula. He may or may not have been the progenitor of the Black Court(WoJ is that he was the first Black Court vampire and that he created the court out of a desire to impress his dad, '''Drakul''', a being on par with Mab) it isn't really clear. It's implied that his father was a demon lord. Or possibly a dragon. Look, so far he's only gotten a couple of throwaway lines in two of the books.

*'''Mavra''': An ancient master vampire wizard and walking corpse who seems determined to have beef with Harry.
**'''"No Ear"''': Mavra's field lieutenant

*'''Renfields''': The Black Court's thralls and dumb muscle, humans who have been brainwashed into mindless killing machines. The name is taken from the character in Bram Stoker's Dracula. The process of being turned into a Renfield (being mentally tortured, mostly) is irreversible and the Renfields end up killing themselves, whigging out and going berzerk, or otherwise self destructing after a varying length of time.

=====The Jade Court of Vampires/"Jampires(?)"=====
Mentioned only once, in ''Death Masks''. WoJ is that the Jade Court is extremely secretive, but well entrenched in the Yangtze River basin in China. The leadership is even more conservative than that of the Council, being composed of Qin dynasty era isolationists who are still suspicious of the whole notion of modern China(presumably they're waiting to see if the relatively young People's Republic of China implodes like the majority of China's past governments). Fan consensus is that they're Chinese Jiangshi who feed off of their victim's ''qi''.

====Fae Courts====
Beings from the part of the spirit world (the Nevernever) closest to the real world, a region called The Land of Faerie or just Faerie. They are extremely diverse in mentality and appearance, but all share two similarities; they cannot tell an outright lie (but can still deceive people with precise wording) and iron burns them to the touch. They also have an obsession with the number three. They can't really be fairly called good or evil, as they tend to work with different codes of morality and conduct than humans. The Faeries are ruled by the Queens of the Fae and Sidhe nobles, inhumanly graceful, beautiful, ageless beings with cat eyes and varying degrees of insanity and obsession with bargains. Faeries tend to seem deceptive if not outright insane to humans, though this is just as often the result of misunderstanding by one or both parties as it is the result of malice (though it's often both). A good example of this is Harry's relationship with his godmother, the Leanansidhe. To Harry she seems like a malicious, scheming, dangerous faery bitch who keeps trying to entrap him, manipulate him, or turn him into a dog. To Lea, her godson seems like a misguided, arrogant, lost young man who doesn't appreciate her gifts; after all, you need trial and adversity to grow strong, and if he wanted out, he could always just join her hounds and live happily by her side. Neither are really evil, per se, they just have drastically different outlooks on life, so it takes them years to understand each other's perspective. Even later on when they get something almost resembling a working relationship, their respective actions often seem incomprehensible, if somewhat predictable. This relationship is somewhat indicative of all interactions between the fae and mortals. Whether their actions fuck you over or help you out, their motivations may or may not seem entirely antithetical to their goal by human reasoning, so miscommunication and misunderstanding by both parties is often a factor. If you '''must''' interact with one of the fae, a general rule of thumb is to be polite, be specific, take no idea or sentiment for granted, and carry some iron. If you manage to piss them off, get ready for a lifetime of paranoia, because the Fae NEVER forget a grudge, and, being functionally immortal, they have all the time in the world to plot their revenge. And don't call the Sidhe faeries, they don't like that. All faeries harbor a fascination with mortals often mixed with disdain, WoJ is that all fae have a tiny piece of mortal within them(not necessarily that they're all former Changelings, but that they straddle the line between the material and spirit worlds).

=====The Queens=====
Each Court has three Queens, '''The Queen Who Was'''(The Mother), '''The Queen Who Is'''(The Queen), and '''The Queen Who Is To Be'''(The Lady)

It's worthy of note that each Queen has different duties to her court and to creation as a whole, and the Knights have different duties to each queen. Just what those duties are is rather unclear, although it's becoming somewhat less so as the series goes on, though they can't be mentioned without '''EXTREME SPOILERS'''. But in terms of power, the Ladies (Maeve and Aurora) are implied to being somewhere on par with a member of the Senior Council. The Queens are an order of magnitude above them, being far above any one mortal practitioner, with a sheer magical muscle that's speculated to rival Lesser Angels and Demon Lords. The Mothers are an order of magnitude above THEM, having a sort of limited omniscience, and being so powerful as to be more or less untouchable to anything short of a god, though the Mothers overtly use their power the least. As for the knights, it's implied that at least within winter, the Knight is a champion to the Queen, a consort to the Lady, and... Possibly a student to the mother? A punching bag? Lunch? We don't really know yet. The same may or may not be true of Summer. They're regularly equated with other "triple goddesses" such as the Greek Fates, the Scandinavian Norns, and Hecate.

The Lady and The Queen keep their vassal fae in line, set policy for the Court, and look out for the interests of the Court as a whole, running the day to day operations of the Court, with The Lady being more involved in smaller affairs and The Queen handling the bigger picture. The Mothers seem to act as the spiritual matriarchs of their respective courts, not being involved in day to day affairs, but commanding immense respect throughout the entirety of the Land of Faerie, they've essentially retired from politics and instead oversee the whole of Nature itself.

The Queens are forbidden to kill any human not directly involved with the fae courts, but that doesn't mean that they can't turn you into a living stone statue, enchant you into a magic slumber, turn you into a prey animal to eventually be devoured by predators, or simply beat you to within an inch of death, crippling you for life. Also, "directly involved" means anyone currently in a bargain with or in debt to winter or summer fae.

=====The Sidhe=====
The Sidhe (pronounced shee) are the ruling nobility of the Summer and Winter Courts. The vast majority behave and look like a disturbing combination of Tolkein's elves and WH40K Eldar; otherworldly and beautiful, but also having questionable intentions and sanity. For the most part, they have white hair, cat eyes, and almost perfect physical beauty, but when they're particularly weakened, they become gaunt and alien in appearance. They have an innate ability to use magic. However, Sidhe can diverge greatly from this description, as any sufficiently powerful faerie in the Summer or Winter Court can be elevated to the position of Sidhe and become one of the nobility. For example, if a troll somehow manages to gain enough magic power, it might be welcomed into the ranks of the gentry, it might even decide to shape-shift into the basic quasi-elf form of the regular Sidhe. Alternatively, a Changeling could have one of the Sidhe as his or her inhuman parent, and upon Choosing might be automatically elevated to noble status. The Queens all technically belong to this subgroup of Fae. For the Sidhe, magic is as easy as breathing, its an intrinsic part of their being, although they interpret it differently from wizards and thus their magic has its own strengths and weaknesses.

*A Note on Glamour: Glamour is the legendary power of illusion that all Fae can utilize to some extent. Using Glamour, a faerie can create the appearance of something and simulate the emotional and sensory stimulations of that appearance. For example, if a Fae were to use Glamour to create the illusion of a sword, anyone hit with the sword would "feel" and "see" the sword biting into their flesh, even though there would be no actual physical effect. Or a powerful Fae could create Glamoured "walls" around his/her home that look and feel like actual walls, trying to climb them will result in either injury or unnecessary hard work depending on how much effort was put into the illusion's effect on others. One cannot directly kill with Glamour, but the the pain induced by it can potentially lead to shock if the Glamour is powerful enough (keep in mind that this level of skill with Glamour is '''not''' the norm in Faerie). Glamour is part of reason why its a really bad idea for to accept food or drink from the Fae; it could'' look'' like a five course meal, but it could really be day old goat's intestines for all you know, or worse, you could be eating nothing real at all and slowly waste away without noticing it over time. Fortunately, Glamoured food tends to be ... over the top, there's usually something ''off'' about the way it looks or smells that sets it apart from real food. Surprisingly, the Fae actually prefer to eat mortal food due to their obsession with mortals, Glamoured food is usually used to tempt mortals into a debt or spice up bland meals. One can see through Glamour using True-Seeing ointment, even if the Glamour is purely auditory or olfactory(the ointment is just a topically absorbed potion applied to the eyelids). Sometimes, a strong enough mind will enable one to see through Glamours.

=====The Unseelie Court/The Winter Court=====
The wicked court embodying the season of winter, cold logic, ruthlessness, and predatory instincts(but also self-sacrifice and learning through experience). Not necessarily "evil" but almost universally predatory and dangerous. Even if you're "allied" with winter, they're just as likely to "help you" by throwing obstacles in your path to help you grow and learn (or die horribly) as they are to directly aid you. They're still good for their word, just make sure that their word is EXACTLY what you want it to be. Winter Itself is also a force/element/mantle/power ''thing'' that the Queens and Knight seem to be able to tap into that takes different forms depending on its user, but generally manifests as an almost limitless supply of cold, ice, and blackness. The capital of Winter is Arctis Tor, a massive fortress made of ice and the bones of Mab's enemies situated at the top of a mountain in the Land of Faerie.

[[Image:QueenMab.jpg|thumb|right|Queen Mab]]

[[Image:LloydSlate.jpg|thumb|right|The fate of someone who pisses off Queen Mab]]

*'''Queen Mab''': Mab, ''Queen of Air and Darkness'', is the leader of the Winter Court and a ruthless, hyperlogical ice queen. Her likes include machiavellian schemes, amassing power for her court, torture, and metaphorically emasculating Harry Dresden. Do not piss her off, EVER, she'll either destroy everything you hold dear or torture you to the point of insanity, and if she really (dis)likes you, she might just heal you so she can start all over again. Not necessarily evil, but cold, businesslike, and utterly without pity or mercy. When she's in the mood, her voice will give you involuntary wood, when she's angry, her voice causes those who hear it intense physical pain.

*'''Lady Maeve''': Mab's sadistic, irresponsible, nympho-maniacal bitch of daughter. Crazy beautiful, crazy dangerous, and crazy insane. Can't have sex due to to her status as a Lady while being horny as fuck 24/7 - the other name for the Lady is "The Maiden" (Maiden, Mother, Crone) and anything that would threaten her "maidenhood" drives her crazy(er) and makes her attempt to murder everyone in sight if she tries, which she already does for shits and giggles. Think Dark Eldar jailbait and you get the right idea. Since she regularly shirks her duties, she's partly responsible for Winter's reputation of senseless cruelty. Don't get me wrong, winterfae are naturally ultraviolent and predatory, but under Queen Mab those traits are controlled and channeled towards productive and ultimately positive endeavors, under Maeve, the winterfae just run wild and skullfuck people. WoJ is that she was the product of a union between Mab and an unnamed Austrian composer who died young.

*'''Mother Winter''': Possibly the scariest character in the Dresden Files, and one '''heavily''' implied to literally be Death, which means Mother Summer is Taxes. Imagine every wicked witch story ever, distilled into a being of godlike power with the disposition of of a cranky grandmother from the old country. She's almost evil to cartoon-villain levels, to the point where she thinks the apocalypse would be a great time, and the mass murder of infants just means its lunch time. She manages to avoid being truly ridiculous by being... I think ''pure'' would be the best way to put it; she's got that cynical, jaded point of view that old people sometimes get as a result of living too long or seeing too much. She's every wicked, sadistic, cruel impulse you've ever had, but with none of the passion or drive that gave you that, all wrapped up with a delightfully blunt apathy. She's a mean old iron toothed she-bear who would rip you the fuck up if she ever cared enough to leave her cave. She's terrifying, but you also feel sorry for her because she spends almost all her time wallowing in misery, even though you know that her idea of fun usually involves genocide. She doesn't leave her cottage often on account of losing her walking stick, and here "walking stick" means artifact of immense power that mortal minds interpret as a walking stick. The good news is that she's sort of helpful in a survival of the fittest kind of way. Kind of. Also worthy of note is that she's the only fae who can touch iron, having iron cutting utensils and iron ''teeth'', something that Harry has zero explanation for. She lives in a small cottage with Mother Summer, with whom she gets along with surprisingly well. WoJ is that she's also Baba Yaga, and presumably every other old witch throughout legend. She is also the biological mother of Mab and Titania.
*'''The Winter Knight''': the faerie queens cannot kill any mortal not directly linked to the fae courts, so the Winter Knight was developed as a workaround, essentially being the Queens' mortal champion. The mantle can heal great injuries, enhance your strength and speed to olympic+ levels, and grants even non-wizard knights a degree of control over ice and snow. Such power is not without it's downsides though. Winter Knights become increasingly territorial and violent over time, often becoming prone to violence, addiction, and rape. So Winter Knights can start out all normal (though your average candidate is chosen by the queens for being a badass and/or a stone cold killer), but they eventually turn into disturbed Vaas Montenegro motherfuckers. When they are killed or eventually burn out, the queen removes the Mantle of the Winter Knight from the corpse and holds it until a suitable replacement is found. While in theory the mantle is some kind of supernatural steroid given to you by the queens, it's theorized by some characters as the series goes on that what it actually does is increase testosterone and adrenaline production, disable the body's inhibitors, and create a conduit to Winter within the Knight. This is supported by the fact that the Knights only rarely demonstrate physical power beyond that which is possible by people in absolute peak condition, and the increase in testosterone would explain their increasingly dickish attitudes(although there is evidence that it does actually increase strength in addition to the removing inhibitors) . As of the book ''Summer Knight'', the Winter Knight is '''Lloyd Slate''', a heroin addict, rapist, and murderer.
**'''(In)Famous Winter Knights''': Gilles de Rais, Fritz Haarman, John Haigh, and Andrei Chikatilo, all of whom were serial killers and rapists. The '''only''' past Winter Knight we hear about who wasn't an absolute scumbag was Tam Lin, a character in Scottish mythology.

*'''The Leanansidhe / Lea''': Mab's handmaiden/henchmaiden, and implied to be the third most powerful creature in the Unseelie Court after only Mab and Mother Winter. Also Harry's godmother. Comes from Celtic mythology where the Leanan Sidhe was a beautiful muse who would offer inspiration at the cost of driving the artist insane and putting them in a premature grave. She commands a pack of hunting hounds which may be '''Cu-Sith''', or Black Hounds. Genuinely loves her godson, but because she's winterfae, that love takes odd forms, such as trying to turn him into a hunting hound (believing he'd be happier and safer that way, she might have a point), and torturing him (believing strength comes from pain). Contrary to what you might expect, she's actually quite civil and pleasant on the rare occasion she gets the chance to have a peaceful chat with her Godson.

*'''The Redcap''': A truly sadistic fuckwad who pretends to helps travelers on the road before killing them while they are asleep and using their fresh blood to dye his hat. Has a serious hate-boner for Harry. Insists on being called '''THE''' Redcap, so there may be more of him, just lesser.

*'''Jenny Greenteeth''': Matriarch of the swamp hags and shellycobbs, she looks like an attractive twenty something (she's much older) but with green teeth, and gets wet at the thought of drowning somebody, even in something as shallow as a bowl of punch, which is coincidentally about as deep as her aspirations in life. Maeve's henchwoman.

*'''Malks''': Psychotic cheshire cats that travel in packs, known to have weird voices. They have a vicious but cowardly mentality, a single one might attack you, but only if your back is turned or its superiors gave it a direct order to. They'll only willingly engage in head on assaults if they're accompanied by other Malks
** '''Cat Sidhe/Cat Sith/Eldest Malk''': Is said to be the progenitor of all Malks. Thus being the boss, he's slightly bigger than other malks and considerably more dangerous. Unlike the rest of his kind, he is more than willing to face his prey head on and is notably defiant where a regular Malk would be cowed. He serves as Mab's henchman, and can serve as a snarky, passive agressive butler in a pinch. Known to be a cold motherfucker, but also gives good advice. Seriously badass; he's quiet and deadly enough that he can pull a supernaturally fast sidhe out of a group of equally fast sidhe who don't notice that anything happened until he ''tears out the sidhe's spinal column and throws it at them''. Seriously, the rest of Winter is terrified of him.
**'''Grimalkin''': A larger than average malk who seems to be a personal aide and pet to the Queens. Could also be spelled as Greymalkin as his name comes from an archaic term for a cat or a spiteful old woman.

*'''Fetches''': Shapeshifters who feed on fear, they serve as Mab's elite spies and assassins. Notable for making a White Court Vampire who literally ate fear nearly shit himself in terror. In an ironic turn that particular vamp was a total pussy.
** '''Eldest Fetch''': The biggest and scariest Fetch. Masqueraded as a movie monster called "Scarecrow", which was essentially the Great Pumpkin on crack, and probably the lawyer friendly version of the monster from the Pumpkinhead movies. VERY magic resistant and strong.

*'''Trolls''': green haired, man-eating brutes who are afraid of sunlight, serve the Queen as bodyguards and blacksmiths. (In)Famous for making Thorn Manacles which make it almost completely impossible for any mortal practitioner to cast magic while wearing them (You just need a very, very, very high pain threshold, and a shit-tonne of power).

*'''Hobs''': Hairless, eyeless, baboon-like monsters who resemble nightmarish hybrids between apes and dogs, also afraid of sunlight. They compensate by conjuring supernatural mist called "myrk" that covers their surroundings in darkness and extinguishes all light sources. Known to wield crude stone and bronze weapons. They have a reputation for dragging their prey with them to Faerie, screaming and alive into lightless burrows.

*'''Shellycobbs''': Giant crustaceans who like to drown people.

*'''Rawheads''': ("Rawhead and Bloody Bones" in full) Monsters made out of the meat and bones from corpses that they've eaten, starting out small they are usually born from piles of discarded waste at slaughterhouses or abattoirs, feasting on rats and other small creatures, before they work their way up the food-chain. They look like skinless flesh golems cobbled together from a butcher shop's dumpster with Minotaur horns. Have a neverending supply of blood to creepily drip down their body. Somehow. The threat these things pose is seemingly inconsistent as Harry is able to take one out in "Welcome to the Jungle" (where it was also walking on train tracks which are iron WTH?), but one in Cold Days remains a perpetual menace from beginning to end.

*'''Snow/Winter Ogre''': presumably what happens when an ogre permanently swears allegiance to Winter. Eight foot tall brutes covered in yellow-white fur

*'''Giant bats''': Bats that are giant. Apparently intelligent enough to speak, as they can sing "Happy Birthday" somewhat intelligibly. Serve as a sort of airforce for winter.

*'''Giant Spiders''': gigantic orb weaver spiders who are known to haunt the paths through Winter's territory. They're known to appear in cooperative groups but they'll feed on one of their own fallen without remorse.

*'''Manticores''': one appeared at Arctis Tor in ''Cold Days''

*'''Swamp Hags''': one appeared at Arctis Tor in ''Cold Days''

*'''Miksani''': fae who live in the Aleutian isles, a simple, dignified folk, can change between human and cormorant forms

=====The Seelie Court/The Summer Court=====
Embodying the season of summer, passion, empathy, understanding, and growth. They're the more Disney of the faerie courts, in that they seem "good", but they're also largely paranoid, lawful stupid, and distrustful of anyone who doesn't conform to their own standards of virtue. Prone to favoring art and superficial "goodness" over practicality and inner fortitude. Generally good neighbors as Harry puts it, but still subject to the same misunderstandings and dangerous bargains as the Winter Court, the distinction being that while a Winter Fae might drag you into the water so they can fuck you while you drown, a Summer Fae might invite you to join them for a quick party (that happens to last 100 years, and they'll be deeply, murderously offended if you leave early) or they might bring you along into the Land of Faerie to play and dance with them, forever and ever and ever. Somewhat less likely to murderfuck you than winter, but by no means safe. If Winter is a pack of wolves, Summer is herd of bison, usually docile but extremely dangerous if provoked.

*'''Queen Titania''': Titania, ''Queen of Life and Light'', is Mab's sister and leader of the Summer Court. She believes in "the wisdom of the heart", which includes being more ruled by her emotions in contrast to Mab's coldly logical disposition; she follows her heart even if it tells her to kill someone who she doesn't like despite the consequences (although she can sometimes control herself). Is currently estranged from Mab, having not spoken for the next best thing to a millennium. Once threatened to feed someone who offended her to her garden ''alive'', keeping them conscious and in constant pain for virtually an eternity, so as you can see, passion and emotion are hardly always nice.

*'''Lady Aurora''': Titania's daughter, a compassionate and wise character.

*'''Mother Summer''': Possibly the most level headed character in the Dresden Files. Imagine everything compassionate and understanding distilled into a being of godlike power with the disposition of everyone's favorite grandmother, though she usually speaks in metaphorical or obfuscated manners. She lives with Mother Winter in a small cottage, and they get along surprisingly well, despite being polar and literal opposites. While Mother Winter has only been shown to display bitterness towards those who meet her, a result of her endless disappointment with all beings lesser than her(a category that extends to the majority of humans and fae), Mother Summer has shown nothing but kindness to her visitors. The two have been known to bicker over each other's treatment of their guests, Mother Summer claiming that Mother Winter is being rude and cruel, while Mother Winter claiming that Mother Summer coddles them too much for them to really become strong.

*'''The Summer Knight''': The faerie courts are locked in a constant struggle, so anything Winter does, Summer will likely try to counteract it. The Summer Knight was created as a way to oppose the Winter Knight, essentially being Titania's mortal champion. Theoretically, whoever holds the position is to defend those mortals that winter seeks to kill, and is instilled with magical power and enhanced strength. Like the winter knight, he must pay for this power. His identity will slowly erode under the strain of compulsive blind loyalty to Titania and a hardwired predisposition towards Lawful Stupid. So Summer Knights can start out normal, but they eventually turn into ineffectual paladin-types who abide by a code of "morality and honor" that is both obsolete and impractical. When they are killed or eventually burn out, the queen removes the Mantle of the Summer Knight from the corpse and holds it until a suitable replacement is found. As of the book ''Summer Knight'', the title is held by '''Ronald Reuel''', an old man and an artist.

*'''Gruffs''': Goat headed satyrs who are really good at killing trolls. Serve Titania as supernatural wetworkers and enforcers.
**'''Eldest Gruff''' The eldest Gruff, and a serious badass. He's also pretty bro-tier. Unlike his younger brothers, who are progressively bigger and better armed, he's a tiny guy who looks like an old goat-headed man who needs his walking stick, but he's an enormously powerful spell-caster, having defeated at least three Senior Council members in Wizard's duels, and casually blasting away a being that Harry's magic could barely scratch.

*'''Centaurs''': You know what a centaur is. They serve Summer in the Dresdenverse, fighting as cavalry when called to war.

*'''Giant bees/wasps''': Bees that are giant. Duh. Serve as Summer's airforce.

*'''Elfs(Elves?)''': Think more Santa's workshop/germanic myth, and less Tolkien. Short, good with bows, agile.

*'''Unicorns''': A "unicorn" is a horsey with a single horn on its head, but you knew that already. In the Dresdenverse, they're empaths who are attracted to purity. Unicorn hair has extreme tensile strength relative to its thickness and can be used to make ultra-strong, ultra-thin rope

=====Wyldfae=====
All the faeries who aren't part of Summer or Winter. More populous than both courts but more fragmented. It Winter and Summer are Cold War Warsaw Pact and NATO, the Wyldfae are everyone else.

*'''The Little Folk''': the stereotypical modern view of "fairies". Tiny people with insect wings. Most of therm have extremely short attention spans and the outlook of particularly hyperactive children, causing most people to dismiss them as stooges (and for the most part, they're not wrong in this assumption). However, despite(or rather because) of their insignificance, people tend not to notice them, meaning that they make good spies. Many of them have an addiction to mortal food, particularly pizza, making them easy to bribe. They all have a fear of cats, felines being their natural predator. Note that they are nominally wyldfae but they can be individually aligned with either Winter or Summer as a result of various circumstances.
**'''Toot Toot''': Harry's primary "henchman", he leads a cohort of lesser faeries he calls "The Za-Lord's Guard", on account of Harry paying them in pizza. He's kind of oblivious and not especially intelligent, but makes up for it with cunning and genuine bravery, being willing to fight just about anything on Harry's behalf. Interestingly, he's been growing throught the books, being no larger than any other of his kind in Storm Front, but as of Cold Days he's more than a foot and a half tall. This is most likely connected to his continued service to Harry, and his role as general of the Za-Lord's guard. After all, if belief and emotion is just as real to beings of the faery as physical items, the continued trust of a wizard and the respect of dozens of your peers has to be worth something.
**'''Lacuna''': A psychotic faerie who wears actual armor studded with hooks. Toot Toot has a crush on her that she does not reciprocate. Oddly inclined to violence, and seems to believe the Little Folk who serve Harry are hurting themselves by eating pizza, which leads many fans to speculate that she might be a tooth faery(semi confirmed by WoJ).
*'''Brownies''': diminutive fae who clean the homes of those who earn their respect, they go away if you tell others that they clean your house
*'''Cobbs''': diminutive fae who repair objects, mostly shoes, they cannot repai any shoe that is thrown away as trash, and doing so when they can see you has you marked for death. We're not joking about that. They will gank you.
*'''Ogres''': Huge thugs who hire themselves as muscle to summer or winter, basically less hairy, more humanoid trolls who moonlight as mercenaries

*'''Goblins''': Killers obsessed with the concept of hunting (doesn't matter what, so long as its entertaining), ruled by the Erlking/Herne the Hunter, no two Goblins have the same physical appearance, they can vary widely but they all have red eyes, they have been compared to ninja terminators, and a small skirmishing group of them is enough to hold in an army of Outsiders (they had help, but that still mean's they're badass).

*'''Tylwyth Teg''': Benign shapeshifters, their king, Gwyn ap Nudd, is the reason why the Cubs lose so much, he's behind the Billy Goat Curse (but he's gotten over the insult that started the curse in the first place, he just keeps it going out of a sense of tradition, he's actually a huge baseball fan)
*'''Sylphs''': pretty young women with razor sharp dragonfly wings, they have a degree of weather control and some are associated with storms and tornadoes. Known to eat corpses like vultures. Have been associated with both Summer and Winter so they might not be true Wyldfae but a fae species present in both Courts like the Sidhe
*'''Puck''': An insanely powerful wyldfae lord who's ancient even among the fae. He's gone a bit crazy from both old age and boredom. He like to cause chaos among mortals for entertainment and delights in surprises and uncertainty.
[[Image:Kringle.jpg|thumb|right|Ho. Ho. Ho.
(Not actually Kringle specifically, but the likeness is uncanny, right down to the huge-ass broadsword)]]
*'''The Seelie/Unseelie Kings''': The positions of Faery Kings are taken by powerful Wyldfae who represent the opposite "morality" of their court, but have a similar theme. The current Summer King is '''The Erlking''' who represents the passion of the hunt, nature red in tooth and claw, and the primal empathy between hunter and hunted, while the current Winter King is '''Kringle''' who represent togetherness and giving during bleak times, a moment of kindness in coldest Winter. This is just a political affiliation; as far as we know the title of King is just symbolic, they don't rule with or act as consorts to their respective Queens, but the Queens may still call on them with good reason..
**'''Kringle''': Yes, ''that'' Kringle. Santa Claus is a Fae, or at least affiliated with the Fae courts. Kringle is basically the legend version of Santa where he's a jolly gift-giving warrior, minus the parts where he's weird and syphilitic. Also parts in the books casts uncertainty on if he's a fae or possibly something else from the Nevernever.
**'''Erlking/Herne the Hunter''': The Goblin King and Lord of the Wild Hunt, the Erlking is equal to the Queens of Summer and Winter in power. He generally appears on Earth during Halloween, when he leads the Wild Hunt in search of prey to chase and kill. He has features that are asymmetrical and mismatched, like many goblins, yet he looks roguish and handsome, with features "carved by a master, but from a piece of twisted driftwood." May or may not look like 1980's David Bowie.
**'''Oberon''': A figure from the past. We know next to nothing about him other than at one point he was caught up in a love triangle with Titania and Mab, and didn't make it. That's literally it. We don't even know if he was mortal, fae, god, or what. Could potentially be the reason Mab and Titania stopped talking to each other at Hastings (1066).

====The Fomor====
Millennia ago, when the Sidhe were a nobody faction of proto-elves hanging out in Ireland, they fought and defeated a race of weird-ass guys called the Fomor and drove them into the sea. As it turns out, driving one's enemies into the sea was really popular thousands of years ago and the Fomor met and subjugated a whole bunch of outcasts from all over the world, eventually turning into weird frog-men united by a burning hatred for the surface world. They like to abduct humans and animals, mutate them with magic, and sell them as living weapons to the highest bidder. A weakness they share with the Fae is being burned by iron, since they used to interbreed pretty heavily back when the average Fomor didn't look like Kermit the Frog. They give off anti-technology fields even stronger than the ones wizards make, a side effect of their heavy use of entropy magic.
*'''The Empress''': mentioned in the short story ''Bombshells'', presumably the ruler of the Fomor's multiethnic undersea empire
*'''King Corb''': ruler of the Fomor holdings in Lake Michigan, was thought to be the ruler of all the Fomor prior to the mention of the Empress in ''Bombshells''; is likely just a vassal or client king in the empire.
*'''Mag''': Fomor sorceror
*'''"Froggy"''': nickname given to Fomor sorceror and brother of Mag. Attempted to bomb Svartalf holdings. Rapist.
*'''"Frogface"''': nickname given to Fomor sorceror in charge of acquiring human test subjects for the empire in Chicago. Implied rapist.
*'''Lord Omogh''': Fomor noble and collaborator with Corpsetaker.
*'''Turtlenecks''': the Fomor's preferred mooks, they're humans (usually people no none will miss), who were abducted and subjected to mutation,invasive surgery, and brainwashing by Fomor mages. They have grafted organs that are composed of ectoplasm (spirt world matter that can take the appearance of basically anything, which dissolves into goop and evaporates when there's no magic running through it), so when they die, they revert back to sliced up humans. The name is a result of them almost always wearing turtlenecks to hide their grafted on gills.
*'''Octokongs''': exactly what it says on the tin, unholy fusions of gorillas and octopi

==== Svartalves ====
The setting's version of dwarves. Surprisingly, they're not alcoholic berserkers with scottish accents, but xenophobic grey-aliens with goatees. They're still extremely greedy and vengeful, not to mention bloodthirsty warriors, though they are famously good for their word. They have a reputation for being THE neutral faction, their schtick is basically "you don't mess with us, we don't mess with you," and they're deeply reactionary; no service will go unpaid and no slight unanswered. Tend to sell their services as skilled craftsmen and artisans. They're known for making their own version of Thorn Manacle, except theirs are iron while the ones made by trolls are made of faerie metal(which has essentially all the properties of steel but crumples like aluminum when hit with iron). They consider any attacks (intentional or otherwise) on their people and scions acts of war against Svartalfheim, and will respond with violence to a degree considered excessive even by the rest of the supernatural world. This terrifying image is somewhat offset by the fact that every Svartalf of either gender is a massive (but in most cases chivalrous) pervert with a fetish for non-svartalves, until you see them in combat that is, when you go right back to being terrified of them. They have been known to accept sex as payment instead of money.

====Regular humans/ Vanilla Mortals====
Mocked and derided as prey and cattle, but most predators appreciate how dangerous an angry mob of confused and scared humans can be, to some extent or another. Most supernatural beings just operate under the idea that not pissing off all the mortals might lead to an easier life, assuming they haven't noticed that the potential mobs are much bigger than the ones in the sixteenth century, and that the torches and pitchforks have been replaced with assault rifles and attack helicopters. As such there are plenty of mortals, both groups and individuals, regularly take on the supernatural and kick ass, such as paramilitary strike teams, monster hunters, and even a giant fraternity of librarians a la Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In the supernatural community, involving human law enforcement in a supernatural dispute is the equivalent of waving around a nuclear warhead. (Un)Fortunately, most humans will try to rationalize and forget most encounters with the supernatural so they can get back to their safe, normal, mundane, lives. So the Masquerade in the Dresden Files isn't a massive conspiracy of epic proportions, its more of a series of low to medium level bribes and coverups.

*'''Susan Rodriguez''': Reporter and Harry's sometime lover. They met when Susan kept trying to use Harry to write an article about the supernatural, which would have made no difference to the world at large because she works for a tabloid. Other than that, she's pretty smart (but lacking in foresight at times, leading to several spoilery plot points).

*'''Waldo Butters''': Coroner and Harry's go to forensics guy and sometime "guy who takes care of my bullet/sword/claw/fang wounds". A literal genius and polka aficionado cursed with an unfortunate name

*'''Malcolm Dresden''': Harry's father, and "a Good man". Malcolm Dresden was a stage magician in the age when television and technology was making more magic than magic could. He raised Harry as well as he could while they lived on the road. Died of a brain aneurysm in his sleep when Harry was 6. His ghost, or memory, or potentially his soul came back twice during the events of Dead Beat to give Harry life advice, because the other side had "cheated" whatever that means.

*'''Mac''': The owner of McAnally's, Harry's preferred pub and the brewer of the greatest beer in the Great Lakes area (according to Harry), Mac is a tall, gangly, bald, 30-50 year old white male so surrounded in mystery that it's impossible to tell if he's human, inhuman, or a facet of reality given flesh. He rarely speaks or emotes, and often only giving monosyllabic advice when he does, Mab treats him with respect, he's on a first name basis with Donar Vadderung (Odin), the Queens of Faerie and their Knights (the ones that aren't complete scumbags anyways), and Kringle, his pub is Neutral Ground under the Unseelie accords, one of the Outsider walkers refers to him as "Watcher", and when Harry presses him for information and help, the only answer he gives is "I'm out." According to WoJ "He's not a god, or the scion of a god. he ''is'', however, dangerous." and that Jim stated in a public talk at the Trails West Library, Liberty, MO he has "already told you who he is, but you'd have to be pretty nerdy..."

=====Criminal Underworld=====
Most organized crime probably has some connections to the supernatural, they may not be directly involved in it, but they probably know about some of the supernatural predators and organizations in a given area and try to give them a wide berth. Some crime lords have a preference for hiring half-demon hitmen and ancient norse security consultants.

*'''John "Gentleman Johnny" Marcone''': the "Baron of Chicago" and the man in charge of the Chicago Outfit, he's extremely ruthless and efficient, a man who believes its best to rule with two parts respect, one part fear. While the city was locked in a gang war as a result of the more entrenched families imploding, his rise to power began, he kept killing the competition until he was the only capo left. He realized that people are more loyal to you when you treat them nice, so all his underlings get decent working conditions and medical insurance. Violent crime and crimes involving minors (he's got a code: don't hurt kids) dropped to its lowest in years during his reign, thus making the streets more efficient, orderly, and easy for him to control. The police don't like to go after him partially because they're afraid of his replacement being worse than he is and partially because he'll have them fired, threatened, bribed, coerced, or failing those killed and thrown into Lake Michigan. Harry doesn't like him, but he knows that Marcone is almost always the lesser of two evils when it comes to organized crime. So turn a blind eye; the streets are safer, human trafficking is at its lowest, nobody's peddling drugs to your kids, and who do you have to thank? John Marcone of course, your friendly neighborhood real estate mogul and philanthropist, what an upstanding citizen! Let's make sure he stays in power why don't we? John Marcone is almost definitely an assumed name, and in the short story ''Even Hand'' he's implied to either be ex-military or law enforcement. He's a bit of an odd duck as far as crime lords go in that while he does have a code of honor(based off nordic and germanic models), he doesn't believe in old school italian mafia tradition and ceremony. He dresses less like The Godfather and more like the executive of a multimillion dollar corporation. He doesn't tolerate any interference with his personnel or any attempts by the Five Families on the East Coast to muscle in on his territory.

*'''"Cujo" Hendricks''': Massive bodyguard for Marcone. Quiet, loyal, and thick-skulled in every sense of the word. Has studied philosophy.

*'''Troubleshooters''': Marcone's heavy hitters, named so because their job is to find trouble, then shoot it
**'''Childs''': Marcone's top troubleshooter. A man of apparently African descent with peroxide blonde hair and a caribbean accent. He may or may not be fully human

=====The Paranet=====
A recent faction of low level magic users and concerned citizens, its an online community that tries to distribute knowledge about the supernatural for self defense without things like giving up one's humanity or going through complex and humiliating initiations. Depending on who's using it, it can be anything from a support group to a grapevine to an online anarchists's cookbook for those looking to shove a thumb in the eye of a supernatural predator.
*'''Elaine Lillian Mallory''': a rare non-warlock wizard who doesn't belong to the White Council. Harry's adoptive sister/ first lover(look, its complicated). Harry and Elaine were unrelated orphans who were adopted at roughly the same by Justin DuMorne and they subsequently grew up together. As one would expect, when the two turned into horny teenagers, one thing lead to another and they became lovers (although DuMorne might have encouraged it since it would enable him to gain leverage over one by manipulating the other). While Harry was able to escape DuMorne's psychic headlock, Elaine was not so lucky and ended up enthralled. When Harry burned DuMorne to death, he lost track of Elaine in the smoke and assumed that she too had died. Harry beat himself up over this for years until he learned that Elaine was alive, she had never contacted him until then because being enthralled and then seeing her father figure burn to death traumatized her. Then '''SPOILERS''' happened and they '''SPOILERS''' and ended up '''SPOILERS''' the '''SPOILERS'''. She was one of the founding members of the Paranet, providing much of the knowledge about the supernatural world required to get it off the ground. She's less powerful than Harry but better with more delicate magic, in combat she uses lightning evocation.
*'''Mortimer "Morty" Lindquist''': Chicago's resident Ectomancer and spirit medium, by his latest appearance he's probably powerful enough to get on the council, but he lacks the generalised skill set of a full Wizard. He's an admitted coward, and at his introduction has barely any power left after squandering it on false seances and other cons. He grows more confidant and powerful throughout the series, but he continues to try and convince other people to leave him alone. He and Harry have an adversarial relationship based on mutual respect, Morty admits that Harry is powerful and usually means well, but every time he crosses Harry's path something goes excessively wrong in Morty's direction, while Harry gets a look at the things Morty deals with when his power starts to return, and starts to treat him like a person rather than a useful tool.
*'''Gary The Conspiracy Guy''': One of those guys, lives in his mother's basement and tracks everything calling it "Studying the Paranormal through Statistics".

=====Special Investigations=====
The branch of CPD that everyone else foists all the weird, supernatural cases on in the hopes that they cook up a rational explanation (read: bullshit) for it that allows everyone else to sleep at night. Its also the CPD's equivalent of a siberian detention camp, ask too many questions or piss off the wrong people and you'll get transferred to SI. People in SI rarely get transferred to other divisions and many leave the force soon after being put there.

*'''Lieutenant Karrin Murphy''': Head of CPD's Special Investigations and one of Harry's closest friends and allies. Below average height, most people underestimate her, only to be proven wrong when they inevitably find out that she's both a gun nut and a master of aikido and several other martial arts. For most of the series, she's been the second half of an awkward hybrid will-they-won't-they + cop-buddy relationship with Harry. Her father was in a precursor to the SI, the Black Cat Division, and he ended up killing himself at his desk (it's implied that he was forced to by... something). She's been married and divorced twice, the second time to an FBI agent who promptly got remarried to her younger sister, earning both of them her eternal hatred. She's often times suspicious of others, confrontational, and a bit of a bitch, but she's loyal to her friends and doesn't afraid of anything.

*'''Henry Rawlins''': A veteran beat cop and friend of the Murphy family. Worked with Murphy's father for a time, and eventually got transferred back into SI. Is one of the only people on the planet brave enough to call Lieutenant Murphy "Little Carrie Murphy". A friend and ally of Murphy's and Harry's, with a solid head on his shoulders. A real bro-tier guy. Generally a skeptic, but willing to suspend his disbelief when the situation calls for it.

*'''Rudolph''': A whiny, corrupt, little shitstain who who got "promoted" to SI for sleeping with the wrong politician's daughter, before kissing enough ass to get into Internal Affairs. As he's in complete denial about his experiences with the supernatural and is implied to be unknowingly on the take from various supernatural nasties, he is one of the most despised characters in the entire series, both in-universe and by readers. He shows up every once in a while to make things difficult for Murphy and Dresden.

====Venatori Umbrorum====
The Hunters in the Shadows or the Hunters of the Shadows depending on the translation, although it is more accurate to call them "The Shadows of the Hunters" (See Venatori below). A secret society composed of humans with a lot of knowledge about the supernatural but not a lot of magic power. Dedicated to fighting monsters that prey on humans and pretty good in an actual fight, but they mainly specialize in preventing the (complete) corruption of human government and laws by supernatural predators, hoarding knowledge, and distributing knowledge to others in order to be able protect themselves. Also very good at waging financial war on various supernatural entities, making it much harder for the more chaotic and predatory supernatural factions to hoard mortal wealth. Basically lawyer/librarians with a working knowledge of the supernatural and lots of flamethrowers.

*'''Venatori''': The original hunters, and the reason the Venatori Umbrorum exist. The '''Venatori''' exist to combat a loose coalition of beings collectively referred to as the Old Ones (yes, ''those'' Old Ones), in a conflict called the Oblivion War that has been going since the dawn of humanity. They do this by wiping out all mortal awareness of an Old One and thusly consigning him/her/it to Oblivion. The Archive was created to lead this war and her reason for existing that's given in the main books is her cover story. (These guys only show up in the Short Story '''Backup'''). The Venatori Umbrorum were created as a smokescreen for these guys due to the fact that they are fucking with Elder Gods and their cult servants. Fun-Fact: the Venatori almost consigned the Faerie Courts to Oblivion, but Mab got the Brothers Grimm to write their Tales, and Gutenberg to distribute them leading to the Fae being firmly ensconced in the public consciousness. The White Court has either been recruited or has at least partly subsumed this organization, though the reason for either is the same: to drive out competition for the top of the food chain. The Archive, as a construct bound to a set of specific rules, cannot intervene and is relegated to providing information to the Venatori. TL;DR: Les Mysteres + Keepers of the Source + Division Six

====The Archive====
The Archive is the living repository of written human knowledge. A magical construct that instantly knows anything that's been written down by a human being. It is bound to a single bloodline and is passed from mother to daughter on the death of each host. All this knowledge has two main effects, the host gains genius level intellect and magic ability, and she is forced to deal with millennia of knowledge and memories. The tremendous weight of all the knowledge can sometimes drive Archives insane, so to compensate, they limit the amount of time they interact with others in order to avoid forming unnecessary memories of loss and pain, to ease the burden on future Archives. What most people don't know is that the Archive plays a pivotal role in the Venatori's Oblivion war, providing the hunters with information they use to track their target, and keeping track of which entities have been "forgotten" until it's absolutely certain they're gone, at which point it forgets them.

*'''Oracles of Delphi''': past Archives, they used their knowledge of the past to build predictive models of the future

*'''Ivy''': the current Archive, she has been burdened with the position of the Archive since infancy, after her irresponsible, underage mother killed herself to avoid her duty. Said mother had become the Archive after her own mother died in an accident, and, hating the fact that her own youth was cut short while her daughter would get to live a relatively normal life, decided to take the selfish way out. She never even bothered to give her child a name. The child was aware of all of this the second she became the Archive, moments after her mother's death. Never experiencing a regular childhood, she grew up near emotionless and logical, with only brief hints of anything resembling a child (liking small animals). She began to develop more of an identity after Harry nicknamed her Ivy when she was seven, but she remains detached and analytical. She is accompanied by Kincaid, her personal assassin, bodyguard, and chauffer and the closest thing she has to a father.

====The Church====
Way back in the olden times, the Catholic Church tried to crack down on the more evil parts of the supernatural community. Unfortunately, they got carried away and started a shit show called the Inquisition. The Church hadn't expected that to happen(but then again, neither did anyone else). Nowadays, they're real sorry about that, to the point of trying not to actively involve priests in the supernatural. The "Ordo Malleus" (guess where Jim got that from) limits itself to providing a support network for those dedicated to fight evil with the power of faith, and do their best to protect those who come to the church for asylum against supernatural beings.

*'''Father Forthill''': Michael's main contact within the church; a member of the Ordo Malleus and a Catholic priest(of the ''non''-molesting sort). He's a generally good dude, a devout Christian who takes his duties seriously but isn't so rigid that he can't take a joke or share a drink with a friend. Studied law before becoming a priest, so in addition to being the Carpenter's contact and priest, he's their lawyer. As one of the Knights' abilities tends to be showing up just where they're needed, Forthill has the uncanny ability to show up at the Carpenters' home to babysit their kids right as Michael is heading out to do just that.

=====Knights of the Cross=====
Somewhat parallel to the Church are the Knights of the Cross, chosen individuals who wield a trio of swords made with the nails used to crucify Jesus. Each knight and sword represent one of the three final virtues espoused in 1 Corinthians 13:13 - Faith (Shiro/Fidelacchius), Hope (Sanya/Esperacchius) and Love (Michael/Amoracchius). Every knight is a paragon of the virtue for which the sword they carry is named, and the swords are immensely powerful divine artifacts when used in defense of their respective virtue. Contrary to what might seem intuitive, Knights of the Cross don't have to be Catholic or even religious; all they have to do is have sufficient inner strength and the belief that the weak should be protected and evil should be opposed. There are only at most three at a time, and they have a very high turnover rate. Not only do they fight next level apocalyptic stuff, which means casualties are common, most Knights only hold their title for the duration of one mission or task; of all the Knights in history, career Knights are very much the minority. The three serving Knights at the opening of the series are on the far right end of that bell curve: one having served for a few years, one for about two decades, and one being an old man who served since his youth. The three swords they wield have been reworked and reforged throughout the years, so they've carried other names and forms. Amoracchius was once called Excalibur, Esperacchius was once Durendal, and Fidelacchius was once Kusanagi. It's implied more and more strongly as the series goes on that the Knights are all descended from ancient kings.

*'''Michael Carpenter''': A family man, Catholic, building contractor, and Knight of the Cross, wielder of the longsword Amoracchius (also known as "Excalibur, that's fucking EXCALIBUR?!"). A loving husband and father of seven, he's what happens when the [[Paladin|holy-warrior archetype]] is written right. Unlike most portrayals of religious types (particularly members of the Catholic Church), the author decided that religion didn't automatically make you into an abrasive dick, taking into account that organized religion has actually had some positive effects on human history, like the establishment of charities and medical aid when everyone else was espousing social darwinism. Harry sees him as a friend and something of a worthy authority figure, seeking to gain his approval, knowing that if someone as good as Michael Carpenter likes him, he can't be all bad. He's been given the moniker "Fist of God," which should give you some indication as to his combat prowess. He's also an honest-to-God paladin, using what Harry describes as "True Faith" to create a few NOTmagic effects throughout the series, such as causing vampires to burst into flames from touching him, dispelling a mental illusion, and driving away a swarm of demons, though Michael would insist that all these were God's doing, not his. Descendant of Charlemagne, the first Holy Roman Emperor and conqueror of much of Europe.
**'''Charity Carpenter''': Michael's beautiful yet intimidating wife. A caring, if occasionally overbearing, mother who is honestly quite badass in her own right when her children and husband are in danger. Not a Knight or an Angel or anything; just a strong, smart, caring woman who happens to be a skilled blacksmith(Michael wears Kevlar-lined chainmail into battle that ''she'' made). She openly dislikes Harry because her husband always jumps to help him when he needs it, putting him in danger (note: Technically not a Knight or part of the Church, she could fit no less than five different categories in this list, so we threw her here).
**'''Molly Carpenter''': Michael and Charity's eldest child. Harry's known her since her early childhood. When she reached her tweens, she started getting more and more rebellious towards her admittedly strict mother. This and a '''SPOILER''' incident eventually culminated in her turning goth, dropping out of high school, and eventually leaving home to live on her own. The rest of her (and the rest of Michael's family's) story is '''SPOILERS'''.

*'''Sanya:''' An agnostic soldier of good and amateur philosopher who grew up in Russia, wielder of the sabre Esperacchius (also known as Durandal). Despite all the stuff involving angels and the like that he deals with, he's an atheist (or at least an agnostic), his argument being that the beings he meets could just as easily be extraterrestrials or non-divine supernatural creatures, or that he may be hallucinating everything. He's notably one of the more practical Knights, being more willing to be aggressive, use unconventional tactics, and use modern weaponry. Being a black man who grew up in Russia, he grew up a minority and became bitter and lost because of it, resulting in more than a little bit of shade in his past. These days he's a warrior of light and a generally good dude, and unlike the other Knights he manages to retain a healthy sense of humor. He and Harry are buddies. Descendant of An-Nasir Salah ad-Din Yusuf ibn Ayyub, known to the most in the west as Saladin, an ancient king who founded the Ayyubid dynasty and who retook Jerusalem from the Crusaders.

*'''Shiro Yoshimo''': An elderly Japanese man and wielder of the cane-katana, Fidelacchius (also known as Kusanagi-no-Tsuruki, it's a weird bit of "did not do his research"/"popular myth" here as Kusanagi technically predates the usage of katanas in Japanese history, but as it hasn't been seen by mortal eyes for the last 1,500 years or so, it can be a katana because that's Japanese and we have no clue what it really looks like at all). A genuinely selfless man and a total badass, whose skill in combat was compared by Michael to Mozart's skill with music. While he's technically a Baptist (a technicality involving a misunderstanding at an Elvis concert) he still thinks like a Shintoist in a lot of ways. While all Knights seem to be really, ''really'' lucky when it comes to guessing things, Shiro seems to have a borderline precogniscient ability to predict events; presumably he gets a pointer or two from the Almighty, or maybe he's just really observant. Descended from Sho Tai, the last king of the Ryukyu Kingdom in what we now call Okinawa.

====Angels====
Angels could perhaps be best described as beings that are half Divine Servant and half Eldritch Terror, who are usually polite enough to put on a human-looking form so as to not literally blow the minds of mortals around them. Seriously, it's made very clear as the series goes on that there's a ''reason'' that whenever angels pop up in the bible they open up by saying "be not afraid". It's implied in one of the later books that a wizard looking at even a minor angel with his Sight would destroy his mind, and an archangel outright says that he has the power to destroy galaxies. That said, they're for the most part servants to some nebulous Almighty Creator, a being/concept/thing that has worn many faces and titles throughout the ages, but whom they make a policy not to discuss with mortals. By and large, they tend to take a hands off approach to things, only directly intervening when mortals are manipulated by other equally powerful supernatural evils. Angels have no true gender, but most seem to preferred human appearance.

*'''Uriel''': Archangel and head of what is basically Heaven's black ops division, which kind of makes him the Handler for the Knights(and sometimes Harry when he's with them). A surprisingly amicable individual who's a fan of both Lord of the Rings and Star Wars, as long as you don't call him "Uri". All that friendliness distracts you from the fact that he's been engaged in a shadow war with Lucifer since before time was a thing, and he was responsible for most of the Punishments levied against mankind in the Old Testament. Generally appears as a vaguely Mediterranean looking young man.

*'''Michael''' The Archangel, prince of hosts. Implied to be the General of Heaven's armies.

*'''Raphael''' The Archangel, the Demon binder, also at least partly responsible for helping build the panic room in the Carpenter household.

*'''Gabriel''' The Archangel, the Trumpeter. Implied to be something of a herald and/or messenger.

*'''Amitiel''': polite angel who works as a security guard in a transitory afterlife

*'''Angel(s) of Death''': Clad entirely in black, with skin the colour of spilled ink, eyes like voids, and hair the shade of raven feathers the Angel(s) of Death cut an extremely unsettling sight. The one we meet in the books is a stand up girl. Her job being to watch over truly good people as they die, and then escort their souls to heaven personally. She's armed to the teeth because there are Things that will attempt to stop this.

====Monoc Securities====
A "private military corporation" based in Oslo, Norway. In addition to vanilla mortals, many of its employees are valkyries and einherjaren (norse warriors from valhalla). Has significant military and magical resources and is known for contracting out '''very''' competent mercenaries and consultants. The corporation's name is a freaking pun on the part of its founder.

*'''Donar Vadderung''': Owner, Founder, and CEO of Monoc Securities. Is also Odin One-eye, Thunder's Father, King of the Aesir and Vanir. Maintains a cordial relationship with Harry, akin to mentor and unwitting pupil, or at the very least and interesting investor in Harry's exploits and future. WoJ is that he gave up most of his divine power in order to more freely interact with the mortal world, but being Odin, he can get by just fine using sheer intelligence. He may also be Kringle, Beowulf, and quite probably many others.

*'''Hugin and Munin''': Vadderung's raven haired secretaries and spymistresses. Known to be uptight and terrifying, in contrast to their boss' laid back demeanor

*'''Sigrun Gard''': A valkyrie and Marcone's security and supernatural consultant. Possesses above average(but not definitively superhuman, more like peak human) strength and an unnaturally high pain threshold. Is ''very'' good at her job, and has lived for hundreds if not thousands of years. She's skilled with rune magic and magical theory, and is a skilled close quarters fighter, on par with the best warriors of the ancient world. Sometimes goes oldschool shield-biting mouth-frothing Berzerk in combat.

*'''Freydis Gard''': Another valkyrie, shows up in Peace Talks, likes dancing, sex with both genders, and breaking societal norms. Is a lot less stuffy thn Sigrun.

====Order of the Blackened Denarius====
'''Pure. Unrepentant. Evil.''' Thirty fallen angels trapped in the thirty coins used by the Romans to bribe Judas Iscariot. Sometimes called Knights of the Blackened Denarius as a parody of the Knights of the Cross who oppose them. The coins basically act like the One Ring, tempting and corrupting whoever holds them with promises of power, eventually tricking the unfortunate host into giving up his or her free will and becoming little more than a beast of burden in the thrall of the fallen. Coin bearers have access to the immeasurable experience and knowledge of the Fallen angel, in addition to a shape shifting ability that allows them to take on demonic characteristics to make them more formidable in battle. The Fallen and the Coin bearers are more of a loose coalition of allies than a formal order, with a few distinct factions within the order who will cooperate or backstab each other as the situation requires. The group's overarching goal is to cause the apocalypse, but its much more complex than that. The "leaders" of these groups believe that its unlikely that they'll actually cause the end of the world, but they can still advance the cause of Hell while trying. Subsequently, their plots are constructed such that if the lose, they're still able to cause pain and suffering and weaken the forces of good, for example: if they're stopped from obtaining nuclear warheads, they'll still have caused multiple deaths, widespread panic, and significant human suffering in the process of trying. Their philosophy is to push the world closer and closer towards Armageddon, creating an environment of chaos and terror. Put in the words of their de facto leader: "Apocalypse is a frame of mind." The group is known to be responsible for The Bubonic Plague, Columbian Cartels, and the Rwandan Genocide. An unsettling thing about the leadership is that they claim that they are in fact "saving" the world, presumably because the think Satan was in the right for rebelling against God, and if they win, the Fallen get to literally rewrite history and objective morality.
[[Image:Nicodemus.jpg|thumb|right| Nicodemus and Anduriel. The human is the more dangerous one in this picture.]]
'''Known Coins and Bearers'''

*'''Anduriel/Nicodemus''' Nicodemus Archleone is, for the purposes of the stories, essentially the leader of the Order of the Blackened Denarius. As close to '''Evil''' as it is possible to get in the series, and a man who Harry fears and respects in equal measure. Nicodemus himself is an extremely enigmatic individual, the current prevailing rumor to his identity is the potter in whose field Judas Iscariot hung himself. He is completely devoted to the idea of the Apocalypse and is wholly convinced that all he has ever done was for the cause of good, believing the forces of Heaven to be evil. Throughout the series, there are subtle hints that he actually has an obsession with Christ and sainthood, seeking to become a messiah, he also seems to view the rest of the Denarians as his "apostles" . Anduriel is a former lieutenant of Satan who may or may not be completely subservient to Nicodemus, it can listen in on anything said within hearing distance of any shadow on earth (only one shadow at a time though and you can ward against its presence). Nicodemus prefers to work as a manipulator and schemer, rarely entering combat if he can avoid it, though once there he's all kinds of dangerous. An expert marksman and swordsman, he also wears the absurdly OP relic noose that Judas hung himself with, which more or less makes him immune to any harm, save for SPOILERS. Unlike most Denarians, he doesn't have any one overt combat form, instead forming shadows to serve as hands, tentacles, wings, that kind of thing. He speaks with a rich, cultured, "vaguely British" accent, because all villains are British.
**'''Squires''': Nicodemus' personal cult of henchmen. Membership is hereditary, so each squire is raised to be absolutely loyal to Nicodemus. Upon their initiation to squire, Nicodemus has their tongues ripped out so that they can't speak if interrogated and can't function outside of the cult.

*'''Unknown/Deirdre''' Deirdre is Nicodemus's daughter/lover. Totally loyal to him, murderous, short tempered. Described as having the beauty and subtle curves of a straightrazor. Demon form looks like a green scaled, shapely medusa-like creature with razor-sharp hair that can extend to great lengths. Harry has repeatedly described her demon form as "disturbingly attractive," so make of that what you will. Speaks with a "vaguely british" accent, because Jim Butcher watched too many movies in the 80's and 90's.

*'''Imariel/Polonius Lartessa (Tessa)''' Tessa is Nicodemus's wife and rival in creating the Apocalypse. *obligatory pun about hell and relationships* Currently has the appearance of a girl in her mid to late teens (having been a former child prostitute in the Roman Empire before Nicodemus "saved" her). Imariel transforms its host into a humanoid praying mantis that can dissolve into swarms of smaller insects. She's considerably more impulsive and rash than Nicodemus, being more focused on short term carnage than long term apocalypse. She's also a wizard, with White Council levels of magic power (but she predates the current incarnation of the organization). As of ''Skin Game'' she's gone batshit, fucking, crazy.

*'''Ursiel/Rasmussen''' Ursiel is a fallen who takes the form of a giant demonic bear who loves brute force. Rasmussen, his bearer, is a broken, insane, wreck of a human being, tortured and beaten into submission. Ursiel itself has devolved into a bestial mass of madness and rage, motivated only by an addiction to bloodshed and a hatred of Heaven.

*'''Lasciel/SPOILERS''' Lasciel is known as the Web-Weaver, the Seducer, or the Temptress, and is described as a rebel angel among rebel angels who manages to avoid being a mary sue, somehow. Despite kinda sorta working for/with Nicodemus, she's as much of a backstabber to the rest of the Fallen as she is to everyone else (hence "rebel angel among rebel angels"). According to WoJ, prior to the Fall, she tried to profit by working for both sides during the War in Heaven. When her plans fell apart and the War went FUBAR for Lucifer's bunch, she was cast out for her disloyalty. She then threw her lot in with Satan, became something like an anarchist, and developed a huge chip on her shoulder in regards to God and any other authority figure. Her sigil is vaguely reminiscent of an hourglass. Like all angels she has no physical body, but prefers to take the shape of an attractive woman in the minds of her host. In combat she takes the shape of a cloud of smoke and subtle fire wrapped around her host.

*'''Saluriel/Quintus Cassius''': A snake-themed Fallen angel bound to one of Nicodemus's "personal friends" (an expendable pawn). In combat it gives its bearer a serpentine lower body and a cobra-like head.

*'''Thorned Namshiel/Unknown''' Tessa's sorcery expert, enjoys picking pockets and strangling people, sometimes simultaneously. Looks like an emaciated man with thorns all over its body. Despises humanity and views humans as little more than animals. Is good enough at magic that he can literally grab and ''eat'' a spell thrown at him. He can take a combat spell, control it without dissipating its energy, and devour it. That's some next level shit right there.

*'''Akariel'''

*'''Urumviel'''

*'''Magog/SPOILERS''': Considering the enormous significance of angels' Names, there's probably a really interesting story behind the break in the naming scheme. Magog looks like an enormous purple gorilla with horns, and serves as Tessa's heavy hitter. He's fast, crazy strong, has next to no reaction time, but he doesn't have any strategy other than "run at the enemy and hit it really hard." Like Ursiel, it appears that he's devolved into little more than a blood-crazed beast.

*'''"Obsidian Statue"''': Nickname only.

*'''"Shaggy Feathers"''' Nickname only.

*'''"Green Antlers"''' Nickname only.

*'''???/Rosanna''' Tessa's second in command, her coin is unknown. Looks like a sexy succubus with goat hooves. Manipulative type, but can also use magic, fire evocation at the very least.

*'''Varthiel'''

*'''Ordiel'''

*'''???/McKullen''' We literally know his name and that's it.

*'''Tarsiel'''

This leaves at least 12 unknown coins assuming there's no overlap in the above unknowns, either being held secure by the church, or out in circulation

====Demons====
Demons in the Dresdenverse are distinct from the Biblical Fallen Angels, they are instead denizens of the Nevernever who are neither spirit nor faerie nor divine being. Most simply want to go about their business without having anything to do anything with mortals, but some are summoned to do the bidding of mortal magic users anyway, and a few try to enter out world to eat/murder/chat up/rape mortals. Almost every demonic being will test the bindings of those who summon them, even if they don't really want to murder the summoner, as a matter of principle. If they find those bindings wanting, they are free to do whatever they want to the unfortunate summoner, and whatever they want is almost universally unpleasant. While the vast majority are basically neutral, a large portion of them do work for Hell, serving as everything from foot soldiers to bureaucrats (Dresdenverse Hell is seems to work like an odd combination of a Feudal Kingdom, La Revolucion, and a Megacorporation)
*'''Kalshazzak''': Low level toad demon has been forced into assassinations in the past, doesn't like being summoned
*'''Chaunzaggoroth/ Chauncey''': A massive chitinous demon who works for Hell. He speaks in a perfect oxford accent and wears a pair of wire frame spectacles. He deals in information, providing intel in exchange for intel, occasionally trying to recruit mortals to the cause(a task for which he receives bonuses and potentially promotions from his superiors). While he's essentially a bean counter, his info gets passed along the chain of command to the Fallen and their allies.
*'''Shen''': Purple, winged monkeys who throw flaming poop, we're not making this stuff up. They're malevolent demons who can fuse together to form a larger gorilla-like demon.
*'''Baka Baku''': Don't really know where to put this one so its going in with the demons. Japanese folklore has this thing called a Baku that eats nightmares so children can sleep soundly at night, it looks like a cross between a lion, a tiger, and an elephant and is generally benevolent. These are not those Baku. In the 90s, a Japanese company made plush doll based off the Baku that came with its own little book explaining how the Baka Baku would eat all the kid's bad dreams and be their cuddly-wuddly protector. Because(heartwarming alert) the belief of children can do magical things, many Baka Baku actually manifested in reality and actually did protect kids from nightmares. Now here's where shit gets dark. After gobbling up kids nightmares, the Baku wandered off and tried to help other people. Unfortunately, no one told them that a) Negative psychic emanations, like nightmares, can have corrupting effects on psychic entities and b) PTSD is a thing. So lots of Baka Baku ended up being driven insane from eating too many or too dark nightmares and were corrupted. They now eat people's life forces and inspire fear as well as feed on it. To this end, they can assume human form and prey on the emotionally unstable and traumatized. Faith magic can make their human guise's skin translucent and make their shadow reveal its true form.

====Dragons====
Honest to goodness fire breathing dragons. Most of what we know of them comes from WoJ. They were created by God to do monumental tasks in the act of creation, like pulling continents and crazy shit like that. There are two types of dragons: immortal, divine, shape shifting beings who are closer to Chaotic Neutral Angels than anything else, of which only two remain on Earth (think Dragons in the Far Eastern tradition combined with old school interpretations of Seraphim), and lesser servitor dragons who were created by the divine versions as pets and servants, of which there are an unknown number(think classical European dragon that kidnaps virgins and shit). Its unknown how they were involved in the War in Heaven,if they were involved at all, but presumably some of them sided with the Rebel Angels(Fallen).
*'''Ferrovax''': Divine dragon and the eldest and most powerful of his kind(at least on Earth). He's mentioned by the author as being able to crush the faerie queens, coincidentally, his name translates to "Ironsides". In the world of supernatural politics, he's more or less a nation unto himself.
*'''Pyrovax''': Second of the surviving divine dragons, he was mentioned in WoJ and that's all we know

====Nagas====
Divine serpents from India. One appears in the comic ''Ghoul Goblin''. They are dedicated to neutrality and are known to act as mediators of supernatural disputes.

====The Prosthenos Society====
Nutjobs in Scandinavia who surgically attach body parts of supernatural creatures to themselves to attain a sort of "patchwork immortality". Only mentioned in the short story ''Backup'', but they might make good villains for an RPG campaign.

====Scions====
Sometimes, for whatever reason, a mortal will have a child with a demon or supernatural creature. This child, if it is not miscarried or stillborn, is often insane, deformed, or both (since having six arms and claws made of bronze aren't exactly compatible with typical mortal biology). However, sometimes a very lucky child or "Scion" has a largely human appearance and gets access to some of the badass powers of it's non-human parent.

*'''Changelings''' The most common type of Scion, Changelings are the result of Fae and mortals getting freaky. Their Fae traits manifest at puberty, giving them partially Fae physiology and psychology that depends on their Fae parent. Once they are made aware of their inhuman heritage they may make a choice to either embrace it (becoming fully Fae), and reject it (becoming full Mortal). Changelings are often treated like shit by their inhuman parents, if they are not just outright ignored, though some Fae do care for and love their offspring, but being Fae, they're not exactly great at communicating that love. So they have a Choice between normal human (sane but boring) and Fae (exciting but they're not really the same person anymore). They can decide not to Choose and stay a Changeling in an attempt to get the best of both worlds, but that means that they also have to deal with the both human and Fae baggage too. Changelings are beholden to and considered subjects of whatever Fae nation or Court their nonhuman parent belongs to.

*'''Grendelkin''': Yes, that Grendel. They're exclusively male, very big and strong, and may or may not have some kind of natural countermagic. For some reason, they can only reproduce with virgins, after drinking Mead. The pregnancy is always fatal to the mother.

*'''Temple Dogs / Foo Hounds''': An example of a non-human scion breed, Foo Hounds are said to be descended from a celestial spirit and a mortal hound. Larger than even a great dane and much heavier. ''Very'' strong for a mortal animal, with a few supernatural perks. They can live for centuries and are naturally very intelligent, implied to be just as smart as humans, though they still have a dog's instincts and priorities. Additionally, their bite can hurt supernatural and even ethereal beings, and they can '''B'''ark loud enough to be heard miles away, and across the borders of the Nevernever. They're also instinctively protective of their families and homes, and are almost impossible to sneak up on. All this makes them a much sought after companion for wizards, and they often guard temples, hence the name. The current guess for their mortal breed is Caucasian Bear Hounds with some Tibetan Mastiff mixed in. They are seriously scary stuff to the point where an Archangel refers to one as "Little Cousin".
**'''Mouse''': Introduced as a puppy in ''Blood Rites'', Mouse is adopted by Harry when he hides in the Blue Beetle and misses his flight back to Tibet. Once he gets a little bigger, he accompanies Harry on a few adventures. Sees Harry as more of a roommate than an owner, and ends up inheriting quite a few of the wizard's quirks.

*'''Jared Kincaid/The Hellhound''': A bodyguard who moonlights as a mercenary and an assassin, throw Deadshot, Deathstroke, and Big Boss in a blender and Jared Kincaid is what comes out and shoots you straight through the temple from 30 yards away with a Glock pistol. He prefers to use firearms and he NEVER, EVER misses, how he does this is unknown, Harry theorizes that his nervous and muscular systems are so advanced that he has superhuman reflexes and coordination. He's hundreds of years old and he looks like he's in his late 30's/early 40's. He also used to be Drakul's(the father not the son) right hand. He managed to stir up the fan-base something fierce by claiming to be "just as human as [Harry] is," which means either Harry isn't fully mortal or more likely, Kincaid was lying. The fandom has tied itself in knots discussing this. Ebenezar has been out for his blood because of an incident that happened in Istanbul where Kincaid broke some nebulous assassin's code.

*'''Goodman Grey''': A shapeshifting mercenary, and a '''professional'''. Apparently the scion of a mortal woman and a Naagloshii, which is all kinds of fucked up.

*'''Irwin Pounder''': The son of one of River Shoulders (Strength of a River in his Shoulders is one of the Forest People, aka Bigfoot/Sasquatch) and Dr Carol Pounder. Irwin doesn't really demonstrate any physical supernatural traits, beyond being a bit bigger and stronger than your average guy, but has great vitality, comparable to that of a Wizard. Harry forces River Shoulders to meet him as the payment for his last case, because "No kid should never know their dad".

====Naagloshii/Skinwalker====
[[Image:Skinwalker.jpg|thumb|right|The Skinwalker, that stuff on its claws is someone else's skin]]
Semi-divine monsters from Navajo mythology, basically the Navajo version of a fallen angel. Immortal, powerful shape shifters who have instinctive knowledge on how to torture any given being in the most painful way possible. They feed on the life force of magic users, but they slowly lose their power the further away they are from tribal lands. What separates these guys from Fallen Angels, is while that the Fallen believe that they are in the right, the Naagloshii wholeheartedly admit they are pure evil. Their only joy is rampant slaughter and proving that all other beings are just as flawed and evil at heart as they themselves are, usually through insanity inducing torture. To illustrate how viscerally hateful these things are, here's a quote of one of them making a threat: “I will come for you. I will kill you. I will kill your blood, your friends, your beasts. I will kill the flowers in your home and the trees in your tiny fields. I will visit such death upon whatever is yours that your very name will be remembered only in curses and tales of terror”, and it said all of this while snacking on an unconscious White Court Vampire that it had effortlessly put in critical condition.

====Kenku====
Ninja crow-men from Japan. Have blue blood and wield katanas. Can go through Red Court Vampires like a hot knife through butter
====Ghouls====
Man-eating monsters who hire themselves out to the various nasties of the world as muscle (when mind-raped or addicted thralls just won't do), the have an insatiable craving for human flesh. Appear as vaguely humanoid creatures with elongated limbs and dog-like snouts, but they can assume the appearance of humans with plain, unremarkable features. Harry despises them on principle, since every ghoul we've seen has been a depraved subhuman ''thing'' that's a threat to innocent lives. The RPG introduces the fact that they are weak to Faith Magic, much like the Black and Red Courts, however as we've never seen any interactions between Ghouls and The Faithful in series, this is something we've got to take on good faith (ha ha ha). They are speculated to be a form of true-breeding scion of Uber-Ghouls. Many of the smarter ones(relative to ghoul intelligence) have a Sumerian theme to them.

*'''The LaChaise Clan''': the go to "people" for all your assassination/muscle/corpse disposal needs. The LaChaise Clan is the only known organized body of ghouls and hires out its members as mercenaries and assassins. Little is known about the inner workings of the clan but it is the premier provider of intermediate level muscle to the Red Court.

*'''Uber-Ghouls''': Take a ghoul, cross breed it with the T-1000, and add in a heavy dose of those Ice Age genes that insist on adding size and tusks to all those old mammals, and you've got what Harry calls an Uber-Ghoul. These things are seemingly immortal as the one time they've shown up they demonstrated the ability to pull themselves together when reduced to nothing more than rotten, chunky salsa.

====Nature Spirits/Genius Loci====
If a dryad lives in a tree on the mortal plane, then the tree that a Dryad lives in would be a nature spirit/Genius Loci. Nature spirits aren't so much drawn to places of power as they are the will of places of power; you can have a Place of Power without a Genius Loci, but you can't have a Genius Loci without a Place of Power. Mortal spellcasters may attempt a '''Sanctum Invocation''' which is not a contest of wills, a straight-up fight, a contract, or an introduction, but a mix of all those things. It's a ritual that binds it to the wizard, and the wizard to it. This boosts the wizards power while in the Place of Power, and connects them to the will of the spirit. A Place of Power does not have to be natural to generate a nature spirit, it is just as likely that Auschwitz or the Statue of Liberty has a Genius Loci as the Grand Canyon or Niagra Falls, simply due to the large concentration of emotion and life moving through the area.
[[Image:Demonreach.png|thumb|right| Manifestation of Demonreach, the most <s>malevolent</s> antisocial island in the Great Lakes region, and possibly the entire planet]]
'''Known Places of Power'''
*'''"Demonreach"''' A spooky fucking island in Lake Michigan that was scrubbed off the maps after the spirit present caused every single person who tried to settle there to go irrevocably insane. The Genius Loci attached to this place looks like a cloaked twelve foot tall humanoid form made of roots, vines, and rocks. It's terrifyingly powerful, to the point where even Mab gives it a healthy respect - it's implied that while it's power is only localized to the island itself (and surrounds), if she's on it, Demonreach could easily subdue and contain Mab for millenia if so inclined. Walks with a pronounced limp, and '''SPEAKS LIKE THIS'''.

*'''The Pyramids of Giza''' Mentioned in the RPG books.

*'''Chitchen Itza''' The Red's Courts primary ritual grounds, lots of Earth Magic, and dark, dark sacrificial rites go on here.

*'''Stonehenge'''

*'''The Hallowed Halls''' The White Councils headquarters underneath Edinburgh castle. Is said to move depending on the current world superpower, and was located under Rome during the time of the Original Merlin. Why it isn't under the White House or the Pentagon at the moment is a question that really should be asked, but then again, the White Council seems to have beef with America for some reason.

*'''Vesuvius''' An off hand comment in Cold Days implies the eruption was the doing of a pissed off Genius Loci.

====Forest People====
These are the people that make humans in the US cry "Bigfoot!" every now and then. Yep, they're real, and they're actually pretty polite and not as hairy as you might think. They don't exactly blend in, so the Forest People have agreements with Native American tribes where they provide education and access to resources while the tribes provide them with access to wider mortal society by proxy, letting them enjoy modern amenities without causing a car crash every time they want to check their bank account. Big, strong, very powerful magic users. Thankfully, many are pacifists, but the violent ones can fuck shit up something fierce. If you drop your keys into a pool full of rabid bears, one of the Forest People could probably get it back for you without getting hurt.

*'''Strength of a River in His Shoulders''': A mild-mannered bigfoot and water magic adept, lover of Dr. Carol Pounder and father of Irwin Pounder. He prefers to avoid conflict and is afraid that his son will reject him. As such, he has a professional relationship with Harry Dresden, whom he pays to look in on his kid every now and then. He's also '''loaded''', having access to veins of gold ore that were never found by humans.

*'''The Genoskwa''': A prick, pure and simple. Also explicitly claims not to be one of the Forest People, and is physically different just enough that it holds water. Where River Shoulders is kind, patient, and empathetic, this guy is cruel, aggressive, and dismissive. He attacks Harry for simply mentioning River Shoulders, and manages to shrug off a good chunk of Harry's magic during the attack by literally grounding it with Earth Magic. Eats goats at roughly a rate of 2-4 a day. Is revealed in "Peace Talks" that this isn't his name so much, but rather the name of the Philosphy he ascribes to which translates out to "The War Path"... Murder most people who aren't the Forest People, keep the rest as slaves and cattle, and then murder all of the Forest People that do not agree with him. Basically a Forest People Nazi. His actual name as revealed in Peace Talks is "Blood on his Soul".

*'''Grendel''': Revealed in Peace Talks that Grendel was a Forest Person, and the first of the Genoskwa. He went to war to drive people from their homes and lands because the Forest People had been there first, and he believed humanity was inherently inferior. Was driven back and killed by Beowulf, who is insinuated to be Vadderung/Odin/Kringle, fighting as a mortal.

====Ghosts====
In the Dresdenverse, when you die, your soul goes to the afterlife (which may or may not be the Judeo-Christian one, the nature of the divine is extremely complex and no one on earth or the spirit world/Nevenever has a full understanding), it doesn't linger on. However, if you have unfinished business, you might leave behind a Shade, a spirit that has all your memories, sort of a spiritual footprint. The shade essentially is you, and shades believe that they are the souls of the departed (but they really aren't) at first. They can by seen and heard by some people, but they cannot physically interact with the world unless they go insane. Sunlight, particularly sunrise (which has a metaphysical cleansing effect) is fatal to them. Shades can sometimes get a foothold in the Nevernever and become powerful agencies of their own, creating pocket realms in the spirit world that they can rule over undisputed.

*'''Wraiths''': shades that have gone insane and/or been warped by negative energies

*'''Lemures''': shades that have decided to increase their own power, stave off losing their identities, and attempt to feel more alive by devouring other shades, the undead equivalent of a really dangerous crack addict.

====Kemmlerites====
One of the most (in)famous and powerful wizards of all time, '''Heinrich Kemmler''' ([[Heinrich Kemmler|not the one you're thinking of]], although given Jim Butcher's status as "one of us" this could easily be a reference) was a necromancer of unparalleled skill, to the point where death could not hold him. The guy had something of a compulsive urge to teach people, so he took on many students and disciples, and wrote four books that his teachings might be spread: The Blood of Kemmler, The Mind of Kemmler, The Heart of Kemmler, and the Word of Kemmler. He was almost singlehandedly responsible for orchestrating WWI, during which he used the chaos for a steady supply of corpses, and the rampant death to further hone his art. The White Council took up arms, and the entire senior council and all the wardens attacked his stronghold and "killed" him. He popped up again in WWII, repeat story, the White Council "killed" him again. He popped up ''again'' in the 1960's, where the White Council, literally every wizard, all the wardens, and as many allies as they could muster, went forth and "killed" him again, destroyed "all" his books, and killed "all" his apprentices. Coincidentally, on the same day that Kemmler died Soviet Russia decided to test the most powerful nuclear device ever developed, the Tsar Bomba. Given further hints from the author, it's quite possible that either the bomb was used to kill Kemmler, or the "bomb" was his death curse. It's possible that he isn't totally dead, heavily implied that some of his books survive, it's outright confirmed that some of his apprentices survived. Kemmler practiced and taught something he called True Magic, a discipline of magic that made no distinction between white and black magic, seeing them as two sides of the same coin, ditto for life and death, an idea that's been getting more and more support as the series goes on, considering what we've learned about the soul and the afterlife, that said, Kemmler himself was one of the few individuals that "amoral" beings like Mab and Bob see as objectively evil, so the True Magic might just have been super evil that felt really good. One of his followers claims that he would have liked Harry, take that as you will. To sum up: Nagash lite, with some Nazi occultist and Mannimarco thrown in for flavor.

'''Known Kemmlerites'''

*'''Grevane''': Kemmler's first disciple, a scarred, bitter old necromancer by the current day. He seems to be the only one of Kemmler's living disciples who respects his departed master. A master of raising corpses as zombies; the older the corpse, the more powerful the undead, and he is capable of turning even the most unimpressive human corpse into a relentless killing machine.

*'''Capiorcorpus/Corpsetaker''': Another of Kemmler's disciples, an ex-council wizard who used body switching magic to inhabit the forms of others to prolong her life. She prefers binding wraiths to her will rather than zombies. Kemmler didn't favor her in comparison to his other apprentices, and the feeling was mutual, as she saw him as little more than a means to an end.

*'''"Cowl"''': A mysterious wizard and a capital-freaking-B '''B'''adass, so named because he never gave Harry his name, and covered his face in a deeply shadowed cowl. He considered Kemmler to be nothing more than a talented madman(he could however be lying), so he may not have actually studied under Kemmler, but is associated with his other students. His evocation is on par with that of Morgan's or Ebenezar McCoy's, and he's "died" at least once, apparently surviving what was more or less having a supernatural necromancy nuke literally blow up in his face. He's implied to be a member of the White Council or possibly a former member.

*'''"Kumori"''': Cowl's apprentice, a necromancer with a heart. She stopped a man caught in the crossfire of a gang war from dying, and unlike all most antagonists, was actually willing to try and talk things out with Harry. She actually makes a pretty good case to Harry that the use of necromancy isn't inherently evil, that just as "white" magic can be twisted against its "good" nature, so too can "black" magic be twisted against its "evil" nature. May or may not be dead.

====Spirits of Intellect/Knowledge====
You know how humans leave behind shades and nature can sometimes manifest incorporeal spirits? Well, a Spirit of Intellect is what happens when a spirit and human (and some other things too) fall in love with each other. If their relationship is one of True Love, it can create a sentient mass of energy and knowledge called a Spirit of Intellect. SoIs are vulnerable to sunlight, but they can inhabit magical vessels to protect them from the sun, in exchange, they must do the bidding of whoever owns the vessel. They either take on the initial personality characteristics of whoever owns the vessel (only the characteristics at the time of introduction though) or they take on the characteristics of their owner's first impression of them (so if they change owners, they can stay almost the same if they met the owner before). This mutability may disappear when they get powerful enough. Essentially being a self-aware database with a personality, they're most useful as living repositories of knowledge and as advisers. They can get scary powerful over time, since for them knowledge literally equals power.

*'''Bob''': Harry's Spirit of Intellect who inhabits a human skull. He helps Harry work on spells and enchantments and also gathers information from around Chicago and the Nevernever, serving as a something between an adviser, a spy, and a supernatural weather station, being equipped by training and inclination to map out the changing "flows" of magic. Harry first got him when he was a teenager, so Bob's kind of a horny bastard, much to Harry's ongoing frustration. Having worked alongside wizards for at least a millennium, Bob is scary powerful and intelligent, and knows secrets that have him on Mab's hit-list. It's easy to underestimate the power of someone who could be killed by taking him outside and smashing him with a hammer, but in spiritual terms he's a heavyweight, going toe to toe with powerful spirits, tearing down complex and powerful wards without much effort, and surviving a hit from wards made by someone whose other wards one-shot a twelve foot tall magic-resistant goat faery. That's just his magical muscle, so to speak, to say nothing of his centuries of experience and instinctual knowledge of magic.
**'''Evil Bob''': Because spirits of intellect are made of knowledge, if they lose a large amount of information, that info can take on a life of its own, like cutting a starfish in half to get yourself two new starfish. "Evil Bob" is a manifestation of all the knowledge Bob gained from working with a certain S-Ranked necromancer we may or may not have mentioned above. Evil Bob is a twisted, enormously powerful version of his progenitor, loyal only to Kemmler's memory. He's also evil, to the point where he manifests as a skeleton in a freaking SS uniform. It's a testament to just how powerful Kemmler was that the comparatively small time Bob spent with him produced a spirit that's more than an equal for the one spawned from the collected experience of working with countless other wizards for centuries. Its also a testament to how greatly Kemmler twisted Bob's very being that the persona was loyal only to Kemmler instead of whoever owned the skull, and that it retained its own identity rather than the one of its current owner. Bob hated this part of himself, and locked away as many of the memories as he could. Impartial spirit of intellect, eh?

*'''INSANE SPOLIERS (Bonnie)''': Harry's daughter by Lash, Bonnie was all set to pop out of Harry's skull like Athena and Zeus during the events of "Skin Game". Harry was unaware of her existence up until this point as Mab told him he had a psychic parasite that was causing his increasingly painful migraines, which technically wasn't a lie. Fucking faeries. She's adorable and likes pancakes. She's also a horrifyingly powerful spirit, being the Scion of a Starborn mortal wizard who's one of the most dangerous practitioners alive, and the echo of Lasciel, a freaking Fallen Angel who was known for her intelligence and plotting. It's implied that she has all of their memories, and spiritual might proportional to that knowledge. Considering Bob's new living arrangements, it's entirely possible that she will be Harry's lab assistant going forward in the series.

*'''Athena''': The Greek goddess Athena popped out of her father's skull fully grown, the result of one of Zeus' many, many, many, many, many, many affairs. She had so much power that she immediately ascended from Spirit of Knowledge to god status.

====Outsiders====
Beings from outside of Creation (outside of both the material universe and the spiritual world), inhabiting a place only known as Outside, beyond the Outer Gates at the very edge of the land of Faerie. They have impossible anatomy and minds, reality tends to break when they're around and they shake off most magic like raindrops. Very little is known about them other than that they're Outside, and they want IN.

*'''Outsiders''': Extradimensional, would-be invaders. Lots of tentacles and mismatched body parts of the type that '''would not''' go in hentai. And trust us, [[/d/|we've seen some shit]]. Outsider is a catch-all term for the many, many creatures from Outside, though there's a possibility each one may be unique. They take cues from Cosmic Horror monsters, though they leave Lovecraft's deep sea theme to the Fomorians. The only consistencies between Outsiders is that they're good at psychic assaults, they can only be summoned up by human magic, and they are smarter than being an all-destroying rage monster would suggest them to be. They want in to our reality to wreck it, though the reason why, if there's any reason beyond instinctual hatred, is unknown.

*'''He Who Walks Behind/"The Walker"''': ''He Who Walks Behind, Lord of Slowest Terror'', is a being who's partly responsible for making Harry who he is. When Harry ran away from Justin DuMorne, He Who Walks Behind was summoned to kill him, but Harry defeated and banished him instead. Has (at least) two manifestations, a cloud of razor sharp spikes, and a looming vaguely humanoid presence that is always behind you, even when your back is touching the wall. He Who Walks Behind is only a title, his real "name" is a psychic impression of pain, hatred, and sadism. He speaks with a vaguely British accent, because of course he does. There's evidence in the more recent books that HWWB might have intentionally thrown the fight to shape Harry somehow, and given that SPOILERS this implies that HWWB might be working against his own cause.

*'''He Who Walks Before/"Sharkface"''': ''He Who Walks Before, Gatebreaker, Harbinger, Feargiver, Hopeslayer,'' is another Walker like He Who Walks Behind, but he's slightly (and emphasis on slightly) less abstract. He appears as a ragged black cloak beneath a monstrous, eyeless face with fused teeth. The series somewhat paradoxically compares him to the power of Queen Mab or Demonreach, yet Harry survives fighting him twice. Make of that what you will. Surprisingly, he actually doesn't speak with a "vaguely British" accent. Can create clones of himself and near perfect illusions with only a single flaw.

*'''Shoggoth''': A creature made out of insanity and the fused bodies of its past victims, it feeds on intelligence and is surrounded by a aura of psychic terror made from the final moments of every single person it has ever swallowed. It is only weak to fire. It's referred to as "the '''spawn''' of an Outsider", so it may be some form of Scion. Maybe an Outsider fucked an amoeba or something. We don't know. If anybody does know please report to a therapist and a Warden.

*'''Corner-Hounds / Hounds of Tindalos''': Lovecraft was more right about these than he knew. Capable of showing up anywhere where there is at least a right angle these things are a cross between a Horse, a Dog, a ball of tentacles, and the world's most powerful Sub-Woofer. They like to either fight physically, or use ultra-low frequency sounds to incapacitate their prey. They hunt in "packs" of thirteen bodies, which are all being controlled by the same mind.

====Werewolves====
A blanket term for a number of magical talents that have wolf-themed capabilities. A bit of exposition made it clear there are four kinds of creatures that can be called werewolves; the non-species specific terminology is Weretherian, but for simplicities sake we'll stick with werewolves for here.

*'''Werewolves''': Mortals who have a minor magical talent for shapeshifting, and learned how to use turn into a wolf at will under their own power. This means they have to learn to properly transform and handle their new body from scratch, but otherwise don't have many of the drawbacks that the other '''types''' have. Werewolves are still vulnerable to regular weaponry, so no silver required. Apparently if you get really, ''really'' good at it, you can shapeshift your clothes with you. For the rest of them, they have to get naked first or they're gonna be a wolf wearing blue jeans. While that might be hilarious, it probably won't be useful in a fight.
**'''Wolfwere''': A wolf that has learned how to transform into a man, gaining the mightiest power of all: '''OPPOSABLE THUMBS'''. Also note that this is also really rare, because it means that an animal (not from the spirit world) has learned magic, which is almost unheard of.

*'''Hexenwolves''': Mortals who use enchanted items infused with the power of a predatory spirit to shape-shift. This means there is no pesky learning curve to handling their new bodies, but at the same time a spirit of violence and predatory instinct is being let loose inside their skull, slowly turning them into psychotic beasts with little impulse control. Silver not required.

*'''Lycanthropes''': People who channel a spirit of rage. While they don't technically shape-shift; their bodies do undergo minor changes during the full moon, making them harder, faster, stronger, and lowering their impulse control and intelligence as they become more bestial. This might be the same trick used by Viking Berserkers. Once again silver is not required, but bring a lot of force.

*'''Loup-Garou''': Who's afraid of the big bad wolf? Well you'd better be scared of this guy. Loup-Garous are the only werewolf variant who have no control over their shape-shifting as they are under a generational curse which forces them to turn into a wolf like demon the size and weight of a small minivan, or large car, during the three days that surround the full moon. This curse has to come from a major heavyweight, like the Faerie Queens or a Demon lord, and is nigh-unbreakable without killing the family line that has been cursed. Loup-Garous are the only form of werewolf vulnerable to silver, and then it has to be silver inherited from a family member. A loup-garou can go through a building full of armed and trained men like a hot blender through an infant made of butter; they're huge, strong, and almost impossible to kill without silver, being immune to poison and mind magic, and capable of healing fatal injuries within seconds.

====Titans====

In the classical Greek sense. One of them (SPOILERS) returns in ''Peace Talks'', in cahoots with the Fomor and even kicks Mab through multiple walls and then tries to nuke Chicago off the face of the planet in ''Battle Ground''.

===Types of Magic Users===
Like many other settings, the Dresdenverse has many different types of magic users. We're going to go over the human ones here. Wizards also heal better (note: better, not faster) than mortals, and because of this live much longer. Some of the oldest wizards have lived to be over 400 years old, and if you study necromancy, you might just "live" longer than that. These affects will apply to all practitioners to a greater or lesser extent.

*'''Minor Talent''': You don't have a lot of power or talent, but you have some. To do do anything really significant, you need the help of other minor practitioners. Most likely, you'll be part of a larger community of small time magic users. You might be part of a group of like minded people who will work together to perform magic for a variety of tasks. Work hard enough and you might become a Focused Practitioner, make the right connections and you might become a Sorcerer. Much of the wardens' information comes from tips from these minor talents.

*'''Focused Practitioner''': You can do one type of magic really, really well. You've honed your gift and learned to use it in ways most people never thought possible. For example, if you learn to shape-shift into a wolf, you might learn to halt the transformation halfway and take on a hybrid form or you could use you shape-shifting to heal your own wounds incredibly quickly. You're inferior to wizards and sorcerers in terms of pure power, but you're likely to be respected for the effort you've put into your craft.

*'''Sorcerer''': You're at best middle management in the magic world. You don't have wizard levels of power, chances are you only really have one or two proficiencies in magic. However, you've managed to supercharge your few skills either through making deals with higher powers or tapping into a source of power like artifacts, places of power, or specific dates and time. You're nowhere near Wizard levels but you can hold you own in a fight if it happens on your terms. The rest of you power comes from time consuming and often tedious rituals. You probably don't have a complete understanding of magic but to most sorcerers it doesn't matter how it works so long as it works. You'll seem like a badass to minor talents and vanilla mortals, but wizards might look down on you for taking the shortcut to power, and it's a truly rare sorcerer who has the versatility and practical experience to take on a Warden. You might get lucky with a sucker punch, but in a fair fight? Not likely. Sorcerer is also a general term for various nonhuman magic users, like the Sidhe and Fomor, who can potentially match or exceed wizard levels of power.

*'''Wizard''': You're top of the food chain, as far as mortal magic users go. You can instinctively use magic, but you must study and develop your talent to truly excel. You have the potential to learn any magical discipline if you work hard and learn, but your skill in that magic is based on your individual preferences and talents. All wizards have The Sight, which enables them to see the true psychic manifestation of the world around them, letting them see paths of magic and allowing them to see through illusions. Its a double edged sword though, since anything you See will form a memory that will never fade or soften, so if you See the wrong thing, it might drive you insane. Wizards can also engage in Soul Gazes by looking into the eyes of beings with souls (and some who don't, lore kinda swings back and forth on this) enabling them to See some manifestation of the true essence of a person. This is completely involuntary and will occur whenever the wizard looks deeply into the eyes of someone. Soul Gazes are a two way street, anyone who is subject to a wizard's soul gaze gets a look into the wizard's soul. Among wizards, earning the right to join the White Council is akin to earning your PhD, being recognized by the premier wizards of the world as a peer, if not always an equal. If you play your cards right, you'll live centuries and amass a tremendous amount of wealth, power, and knowledge. If you play your cards wrong, your charred corpse will probably be lying in a ditch in some part of the Nevernever. You're also able to pull off a death curse, a spell that expends all the energy in your body, plus all the energy you can pull in from your environment, in one massive spell. This often takes the form of a massive destructive spell, but can take more subtle and long-lasting forms if the wizard has more time to prepare it.

*'''Warlock''': You're a magic user of any level who's broken at least one of the Laws of Magic. Odds are you didn't know about any Laws and are an unlucky, inexperienced kid who just developed powers. Sadly, your life expectancy has taken a drastic decrease because the Wardens tend to compensate for their low numbers with sheer fanaticism. How unjust, right? WRONG! You've most likely been irrevocably warped by the Black Magic and/or have gone mad with power. In most cases, the only solution is for the Wardens to put you down like the rabid abomination in human skin that you are. If you're a Council member, the Council will probably look the other way if you break the First Law, since you very likely had a good reason and you're mature and experienced enough to avoid any warping. But if you break any of the other Laws, YOU WILL BE PUT DOWN. If you're not a Council member and you're sane and repentant, and someone on the Council vouches for you, then you might, just might, get put under the Doom of Damocles, which is basically parole with the penalty for violation being death. The Doom gets removed when you've proven yourself trustworthy in the eyes of the Council, which you'll be forced to join because they want to keep a close eye on you. If you're sane and unrepentant then you're a fucking whiner who's too self-absorbed to surrender your life for the good of the many. This probably sounds unfair right? WRONG! For every genuinely redeemable warlock, there's at least ten gibbering maniacs who deserve to die, and wardens have neither the time nor the resources to try to rehabilitate everyone. They do what needs to be done.

*'''Emissary of a Power''': Like the sorcerer, your power comes from an external source, in your case the patronage of another being; likely a demon, spirit, or lesser god. Unlike the sorcerer, you probably don't have any natural talent for magic. You've been bestowed power by your patron in exchange for your allegiance(or the small price of your immortal soul). In most cases, you won't know how this power works and even if you do, you can't recreate it without your patron. Emissaries of a Power only keep their abilities as long as they continue to work for their patron. Depending on the arrangement, you might be forced into a job that lasts a lifetime (or several lifetimes) or your job might just last until next Tuesday. The exact nature of the power you've been granted varies depending on the nature of your patron, an emissary of a spirit associated with fire will have fire powers, etc.

*'''Chosen of God''': You're a member of an extremely select group of people who get their power from God. You didn't decide to become a Chosen, God decided. Your power will leave you when you whens His will has been done, as such most Chosen have powers for an extremely short period of time. You'll likely appear in the right place at the right time to do the right thing, guided by divine coincidence or vague but specifically tailored hints from The Almighty. Your power is fueled by your faith. (Note: Chosen are explicitly of the Abrahamic God, or at least the mainstream religions, champions of other, more forgotten gods are more along the lines of Emissaries of Powers)

*'''True Believer''': Your faith is so strong that it has supernatural effects. Its debatable whether or not this is really magic, its more like you have a greater than average metaphysical mass/psychic presence as a result of your belief or that your chosen deity has decided to reward you for the strength of your faith. You're not overtly supernatural, you can't cast divine magic or stuff like that, but you might be able to ward off and defend against supernatural beings whose nature is antithetical to your belief (a True Believer Christian might set vampires aflame if they touch him, for example). You seem to be ever so slightly more effective than most when fighting evil; when you give someone or something your blessing, its seems to actually work; when you genuinely pray, your prayers tend to be answered (or you just tend to forget the times they weren't answered. Confirmation bias is almost universal among True Believers, even if their Belief does objectively have power). Unlike chosen, your power comes from your own Faith rather than a specific god or God. True Belief in an idea or philosophy is just as potent as Belief in a god or religion, as we see when Harry uses his pentacle amulet and his raw faith in Magic as a tool to protect people and make the world a better, brighter place to ward off a vampire.

===Types of Magic===

This is simultaneously the simplest and most complicated part of the Dresden Files universe. Magic is basically the ability to move around energy with your will.

There are basically two types of magic; evocation and thaumaturgy. Evocation is the directing and calling of forces at an instants notice, and Thaumaturgy is ritualistic magic that requires the caster to jump through hoops, taking anywhere from a minute to a day to cast. There's a crapton of overlap though. For example: you can use thaumaturgic links and rituals to supercharge evocation spells.

The problem being there is no one way to cast magic; as magic is an exercise of will, belief is important in its use. Don't misunderstand, you can't just Believe yourself into being a powerful wizard, but if you don't Believe in your ability to use magic, you can't use it. As such, how you learn magic will affect how you practice it, and it'll be hard to change once it's learned. For example, if you were taught that magic comes from the gods, you're going to have a hard time changing that belief, because you've spent years of your life deliberately reinforcing that belief within yourself and watching that Belief shape the world around you. However, magic is often practiced more as a science than an art (it's implied that this is becoming increasingly common in the post-enlightenment world), an exercise in using quantifiable inputs to get quantifiable outputs. If this seems confusing or contradictory, good. Magic is shaped by mortal will, and mortals are a fractious and contradictory lot.

Every practitioner is unique in what they need to help them use magic. You don't really '''need''' anything, but again, Belief and Will and whatnot. There's also a certain practicality to using tools in magic, just as there is in any other endevour. If you prepare an item for casting by investing it with conduits and energy (such an item is called a focus, foci plural) can save you the effort of having to craft that part of the spell in your head. For example, Harry's blasting rod is designed to shape energy into contained blasts and lances, so that instead of carefully forming the energy and shape of a strike, he can just slam some energy through his blasting rod and it'll come out in roughly the right shape. Most wizards will have at least a few foci that they use for evocation (if they study evocation, most don't. After all, how many people do you know who learn martial arts or marksmanship? Most people just don't need combat skills in their day to day life), and potentially hundreds of various ritual items they'll use in thaumaturgy. Harry uses a staff, a rod, and his silver bracelet and necklace (kindly ignore biblical parallels). Carlos Ramirez uses a gauntlet and a staff(later a cane). An asian wizard might use the trappings of an Onmyogi. A rebelious or non-traditional caster might use things like a chain or a violin bow based on how they view their magic an the sort of things they cast. Foci aren't mandatory for the use of magic, after all, magic comes from you manipulating your environment, but a foci will always help. Think of it this way: it doesn't matter how strong you are, it's always going to be easier to pound in nails if you have a hammer.

It's also been said that controlling magic is something that all humans can do; what determines your ability as a practitioner is how developed your magical "senses" are and how easy you find it to channel large amounts of energy. Harry once compared a mortal learning magic to a blind man learning to paint. The basics are well within their reach (any mortal can establish a magical circle, for example), but truly complex or masterful renderings are beyond the reach of most. There's also the factor of time: even though a wizard can manipulate energy around them, they're leaning to move things that they have no point of reference for. You know how little kids are constantly falling over and tripping until they're ten or so? That's because it took them that long to really master using their bodies. Now try to imagine how long it would take a person to master moving something that isn't connected to their brain or nerves. It takes a decade to learn how to run without falling over, now imagine how long it takes to control a cloud of white-hot plasma exploding outward from your hand at supersonic speeds. I'm just saying, there's a reason that young wardens tend to rely just as much on guns and swords as they do magic.

It's also worthy of note that magic will still conform to the laws of physics; if you throw a fireball, you have to put energy into the spell to prevent the heat from expanding and the fireball from dissipating(which, ironically, may mean freezing your surroundings to get the needed thermal energy). Essentially, if you want the most bang for your buck, create an interpretation of magic that relies less on belief and more on physics to achieve the desired effect. You need a lot of energy to pull off most evocations, so of you're cut off from accessing energy in your environment, you're limited to the chemical energy output of your body, which means you won't be throwing around any fireballs or lightning blasts(technically you ''can'', but it requires some foresight and cleverness. Really, it's usually easier to just bring a flamethrower). This is why more experienced practitioners almost always beat less experienced ones in duels: the amount of energy in their environment is the same, but the more experienced practitioner knows how to control that energy more effectively and use less space in a smaller area to greater affect. God help us all if a wizard ever takes a physics course realizes he can manipulate relative time the same way you manipulate force and gravity. I think it's indicative of how magic works that the Sidhe, beings to whom magic is a fundamental part of their everyday lives, call mortal technology "ferromancy", or the manipulation of Iron. They see magical constructs as no different from physical items. Magic isn't some self aware mystical power, it's a quantifiable force you can study and map out; humans are what makes it complicated.

All this said, here are a couple of breakdowns of each "discipline" of magic. These schools are not set in stone; depending on the interpretation there may be a significant amount of overlap. For example, Harry views Ice and Fire magic as basically the same, it's just moving around heat energy. Due to the ongoing changes in lore/Harry's understanding of magic, and the occasional retcon, there's a ''ton'' of overlap here. We've seen mental magic associated with Air, Water, Fire, and Spirit at various times throughout the series. We've seen change associated with all elements except earth. Also worthy of note is that kinetomancy may or may not directly equate to Will. Increasingly as the series moves on we see many beings and even Harry himself exerting their will as pure kinetic force, with no spell casting involved. This is fitting, as all other schools follow the classic greek elements and prefixes, so ot makes sense for kinetomancy to have an aspect as the fifth greek classical element, the spirit.

====Evocation====

Evocation, or quick and dirty Ka-Boom magic, is the most commonly found battle magic, and most practitioners in the books follow the ancient Greek philosophy of the classical elements when working such spells. It's not all that complex in what you can do with it, which is the province of Thaumaturgy and its infinitely variable rituals and complexities. A simple definition is: you willed it, it became true. The "schools" below are just the most common and they encompass far more than manipulating the specific "element", the elements are just symbolic placeholder names for the overall systems. As you can see, there's a lot of overlap. It's simultaneously easier to grasp than thaumaturgy, but more dangerous to practice. Throwing out a big explosion of heat and energy isn't hard; it's one of the simpler things you can do with magic. Doing it ''without'' blowing your own hand off, or setting everything around you on fire, or killing yourself from the concussive force of the spell's heat displacing air? Yeah, that's a bit harder.

*Aeromancy (Air): Speed, cold, mind, lack of physical substance, electricity, weather, mutability, life, spring.

*Geomancy (Earth): Stability, gravity, magnetism, nullification, power, immutability, stasis, death, autumn.

*Hydromancy (Water): Probability, entropy, mutability, healing, nullification, cleansing, dissipation, darkness, winter.

*Pyromancy (Fire): Thermodynamics, change, cleansing, creating or removing heat, light, death rays, warmth, the sun, explosions, summer.

*Kinetomancy (Kinetic energy): Pure kinetic force, speed, strength, pure energy, barriers, nullification, telekinesis, movement

====Thaumaturgy====
Thaumaturgy is mostly ritual based, you can use it to create links between things and use those links to transfer energy. A lot of thaumaturgy can be accomplished without rituals though, rituals just help by providing symbolic form to the connections you are making, a "dotted line" for you to trace the flow of the energy. You can do some of the below on the fly, but it generally requires more mental effort on the part of the caster, you have to substitute rituals and their required materials by mentally making the connections and links.

*Summoning: Calling living beings, be they natural or supernatural)

*Conjuration: Different from summoning as it is about the object rather than an entity. SEMANTICS HO!

*Necromancy: Using magic to directly manipulate life, death, and the soul. Naturally has a ton of overlap with biomancy, healing, and ectomancy. Can do everything from raising the dead to saving lives by binding their souls to their body so they ''can't'' die. Can become '''crazy overpowered''' in the right hands (read: Kemmler).

*Ectomancy: the council-approved version of Necromancy, more about communicating with or binding ghosts than controlling them. Can also pull ghosts into yourself to see their memories and use their skills.

*Probability magic: Using magic to influence probability. Duh.
**Entropomancy/Fortunamancy: The of mucking about with probability to influence luck. Can cause anything from slipping on a crack to finding a 20 on the sidewalk to suddenly having an improbable number of electrons flying free from the atoms that make up your body, turning you into a cloud of radioactive dust. Theoretically this should be '''absolutely, horrifyingly, incomprehensibly complicated''', because there's really no way to quantify as a force what is good or bad for you. Entropy is easy, stasis is easy, but reversing entropy or trying to quantify good and bad outcomes relative to probability? How the fuck do you write an equation for good or bad outcomes? We never see it used in a beneficial manner in the series, and I'd guess that's because the second law of thermodynamics is a hard thing to argue with.
**Hexing: Mortal practitioners have an effect on the world around them which has changed throughout the ages, in the current day Wizard's have a deletrious effect on nearby technology. Hexing is the magic of specifically using this tech-bane to a much greater degree. Can quite literally make computers explode or cause cars to tear themselves apart. This magic isn't so much straight up entropomancy as it is a natural ability of all wizards rather than a particular style of magic. There are plenty of theories about why it happens in universe, but none of them have proof. Oh, and wizards are always doing this to a certain extent. They can ramp it up if they want, or target a specific thing, but machines will always fail faster around a wizard.

*Divination: Using magic to attempt looking at the future, past, or some other location in the present. Comes in many flavors.
**Anthropomancy: The art of divining the future in the entrails of a corpse, often fresh. Unsurprisingly illegal as it involves murder.
**Sympathetic Tracking: Using a piece of somebody (fresh hair, blood, toe nail clippings) or something (Paint chips, metal shards, a paired ring) to track them. One of the most common methods of divination, and easy enough that even non-practitioners can do it with a lot of patience and a good teacher.
**Resonant Divination: Much more like a magical telephone than anything else, this is the magical version of Quantum Entanglement, which allows for simple, long distance communication.

*Holomancy: Manipulating light to create 'solid' illusions. Distinguished from veils in that they are a physical effect on the environment, not just an image projected into your mind. Presumably you could take a picture of a holomancy imagine, but not a veil.

*Biomancy: Healing and shapeshifting, can also be used to supercharge the physical body, but doing so comes with great risk. Just because you pump enough energy into your muscles to throw your fridge through a wall doesn't mean your ligaments or bones can take that weight, so people who do this without '''extensive''' practice and preparation tend to tear their bodies apart to a greater or lesser degree.

*Mind Magic
**Neuromancy: Magic that directly interacts with the brain or nervous system. This is the sort of magic that allows you to overclock your brain to amp up reaction speeds or thinking processes, but the backlash is unbelievable. You can also activate people's pain receptors in combat, making them feel like you did when you broke you leg.
**Psychomancy: Magic that interacts with the mind, soul, psyche, or memories. Very illegal, do not do this at home, or in public, or anywhere. As a note it is not illegal to use psychomancy on non-humans, but because of the way that non-human entities minds work enjoy your never-ending acid trip from the comfort of your new padded room with the fancy white jacket. Psychomancy differs from other types of mind magic in that you're altering the psyche on a long term basis. Removing/creating memories, turning people into thralls, reading unwilling minds. There's a healthy amount of leeway when it comes to healing psychic trauma though, especially if it was inflicted by magic, so ironically there are actually plenty competent psychomancers in the White Council, including the Gatekeeper and Listens to Wind.
***Thralls: humans who have had their Free Will subverted by psychomancy
****Fine Thralls: think "manchurian candidate", a fine thrall's mind has been tampered with in such a way that the thrall is left unaware of the tampering. Either their behavior is altered without them knowing it, or they perform certain actions when triggers activate their programming. The condition is curable.
****Rough Thralls: Rough Thralls just stand around awaiting orders. They can perform basic tasks and follow orders, but they have no initiative or true awareness of their situation. A Rough Thrall will carry out orders and think of absolutely nothing else, that means that it can't think creatively or critically when faced with an unexpected problem. The condition is curable in some cases but can be permanently damaging.
****Renfields: Black Court's special thralls created through overpowering mortal minds with sheer power and torture. Basically dead men walking. They're not good for anything other than excessive violence or very simple tasks. Incurable without exceptions, a Renfield will commit suicide after a few months of being created.
**Veils/Illusions: Making it so that people receive false sensory input or suggestions, so they either see nothing or don't notice you. Typically doesn't break the Laws.
**Oneiromancy: Dream Magic, this breed of magic blends with Psychomancy to a rather uncomfortable degree, when used to implant nightmares, or other subliminal commands, however it is also used for communication. Arguably Harry himself uses it subconsciously himself when talking to Id-Harry as he only talks to Id-Harry when asleep..

*Worldwalking: Opening portals to the Nevernever. The Nevernever sits under/above/around/inside our world, and you can enter it at any point in our world by tearing a hole or a portal between the material world and the Nevernever. It's incredibly difficult to create a portal directly to your desired destination but it can be done if you're a real badass (note that the only people we see do this are an Archangel, a Faery Queen, and a god). Theoretically, because it be done, you could also create such a portal just barely inside another portal, thus creating a portal that connects two places within the mortal world, or two places within the Nevernever, but we've yet to see this done. Most of the time, people just open a hole to the Nevernever in a specific location in the real world, take a trip through a relatively stable part of it (usually through Faerie), open up a portal to the material world, and end up at a specific location. Think "Webway"

*Wards: A blanket term for all defensive magics, which can be anything from straight up walls of kinetic energy to evocation-in-a-box style landmines to crazy psychomancy "I'm now terrified of that door I was about to kick down" stuff.

*Item Crafting: The making of Foci, Enchanted Items, Charms, that kind of thing. Every wizard knows how to do this to some extent.
**Brewing(?): Making potions. Thaumaturgy in a bottle. Usually involves cooking (metaphorically or literally) ritual or symbolic items with an investment of energy to activate them. Every potion made has to have eight ingredients. A Base, one ingredient for each physical sense (sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste), and an ingredient for the mind and soul. An additional fact is that potions do not have to be fluid, Ghost Dust and "Sunshine in a Handkerchief" are both technically examples of non-fluid potions according to the RPG books.
**Alchemy: Altering substances based on their psychic/metaphysical properties. Has a ton of overlap with chemistry.

*The True Magic: Kemmler's magic system/discipline. Never completely defined, but denies the distinction between Black and White magic, and seems to lean heavily on necromancy, psychomancy, entropomancy, and the removal of energy from things. Kemmler's students also tend to use direct will and kinetic force as evocation, and Kemmler himself didn't concern himself much over being alive or dead, so it's likely the discipline focused on the mastery of Will over life and death.

A Note: The game handles the way a player may handle their Thaumaturgy focus in one of two ways. They can either choose to specialise really heavily in one particular type of thaumaturgy (such as divination) or they may choose a thematic specialization (such as Photomancy where they can do Holomancy, divination, viels, teleportation, or anything else so long as there is a LIGHT aspect to what they're trying to do). Thaumaturgy is an inherently flexible and complex style of magic use and trying to lock it down the way other games might would be damaging to the DFRPG games narrative. Play fast and loose with it when you can.

====Magical Items and You (WIP)====
=====Focus Items=====
To any sort of practitioner focus items are the tools of their trade. A White CouncilWizard has his staff, a True Believer has his symbol, a Renegade Warlock has dagger carved out of volcanic obsidian he bought at some sort of mexican tourist trap.

The fact is that all practitioners, regardless of source or power level, have at least one focus item, and those that don't are often considered to be headstrong idiots who insist on doing everything by hand, regardless of its complexity.

;In Setting
In the setting of the Dresden Files Focus Items are, as above, considered multi-purpose tools that aid practitioners in their spell-slinging. As vocal invocations are Oven-Gloves to help the caster avoid frying their brains with the power they're manipulating; a Focus Item acts like a Crowbar or a piece of rope and a pulley or a knife, it aids the caster by taking out the amount of effort they need to put in, or by focusing the power they're slinging about.

The more multi-purpose a Focus is, the longer it takes to make, and the more effort it carries over from the caster the larger it is. Examples of this in motion would be Harry's Staff, Blasting rod, and Little Chicago.

Harry often doesn't even try to cast anything overly complex without his Staff, he's got the power in spades, but the Staff allows him to weave it more completely and in a wide variety of patterns, as a tool it could be compared to a firefighter's Halligan Bar that took him several months to make the first time around, and he is very cagey about potentially losing it. Compare/contrast to his Blasting Rod which doesn't help with the complexity of his spells, but instead helps him focus the power he does throw around, but only in Fire, Air, and Force evocation. His staff can help with those spells but the Rod is designed to help with those spells, and only those spells making it more of a magical Combat Knife, a weapon with some utility outside of stabbing things, that can be replaced rather quickly, compared to his more versatile staff Harry has replaced his Blasting rod several times over, each time only taking a couple of weeks worth of work.

;In Game
In game Focus Items are a little more limited, but also better defined.

Every Practitioner who takes either Channeling ([-2 REFRESH] 2FP) or Ritual ([-2 REFRESH] 2FP), or their more powerful variants Evocation ([-3 REFRESH] 2FP) and Thaumaturgy ([-3 REFRESH] 2FP) gets at least 2 Focus item slots to a maximum of 4 (you can't stack the slots from Channeling to Evocation, or Ritual to Thaumaturgy). You can however gain more Focus Item slots by grabbing the Refinement power [-1 REFRESH], which is stackable, and can give 2 extra Item slots each time it is taken.

So a Practitioner who has only taken Channeling has two Focus Item slots. How do they use them?

By investing Slots into a single item the Player can gain a boost to either the power or control of their spells of a certain type, so a Wizard who puts 1 slot into an Evocation focus would gain something that looks like this '''+1 Power, (Air)''' or '''+1 Control, (Air)''', whereas if he put in 2 slots he could have an item that boosted both power and control by +1 at the same time '''+1 Power/+1 Control, (Air)''', or something that boosted the power of two seperate elements such as '''+1 Power, (Air, Earth)'''. However if a player wants to do something like this '''+1 Power, (Air), +1 Control (Fire)''' it costs '''4''' slots, because the number of slots used is equal to Number of Elements (Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Spirit) multiplied by the number of Types (Offensive Control/Power, Defensive Control/Power).

This means in game, it's usually better to make a wide variety of specialised Focus Items until you have the Refresh to blow on Refinement, because trying to stack everything into one item means it is going to cost a lot more for a single item, which can, and most likely will, get busted at some point even if your DM is a nice guy. It just happens to everyone. I would recommend haggling for FATE points slightly less than the number of slots that item cost when it does get broken, though.

It's also possible to gain an extra Slot for a single item by tying the item to a single specific spell, but if you're going to do that, then make sure it's a spell you are going to use ALL THE GODDAMNED TIME.

=====Enchanted Items=====

;In Setting
Where Focus items are tools that aid in Spellcasting, their uses infinite and complex, Enchanted Items are spells stored in physical items.

An enchanted item is more akin to a magical battery than any thing else, it stores a single spell's worth of energy until it is triggered, and once triggered it is depleted, until more energy can be put in.

The primary examples of this would be Harry's Force Rings. These are essentially just a set of rings, each enchanted to save up and store little bits of Kinetic Energy whenever Harry moves his arms, releasing all that energy as a coherent blast of raw kinetic energy when he triggers them. However once they have been triggered, they need to be recharged again. The blast of force released always acts in the same way (A single coherent beam of force), and in fact cannot be charged beyond a certain point as the spell has a maximum power limit (to avoid shattering the rings on Harry's hand).

The secondary, but more common example of this would be Harry's duster, which has been enchanted to be constantly tougher than regular leather, protecting against bullets and blades (up to .50 caliber rifle rounds) but not as much against blunt force. Unlike his force rings, Harry's duster does not need to be actively charged for the spell to work, however the enchantments need to be repaired and maintained once every year to keep them operating at full effectiveness.

'''For Players: an A-Z List of potential "prefix"mancies that don't really fit in any particular column and can be used to make a character'''

*Agromancy (Farm Magic, or the magic of growth)
*Brontomancy (Thunder/Lightning Magic)
*Chloromancy (Plant Magic, also see Floramancy)
*Chronomancy (Time Magic, MUHUHAHAHAHA)
*Cryomancy (Ice Magic)
*Eromancy (<s>Love</s> Sex magic, it makes you horny, Love Hurts)
*Faunamancy (Animal Magic, whether this is shapeshifting or a Disney Princess singsong with the birdies is up to you)
*Ferromancy (Iron Magic / Technology)
*Floramancy (Flower Magic specifically, opium poppies anyone?)
*Meteoromancy (Weather magic, Make it rain!)
*Pathomancy (The magic of making diseases and contagions, Nurgle approves)
*Photomancy (Light Magic, lasers ahoy)
*Radiomancy (Radiation magic, Dr Banner, pelted by Gamma radiation, turns into a cancerous husk)
*Sonosmancy (Sound Magic, put your hands up and shout)
*Volcanomancy (Lava/Magma Magic, for when you want to bring Vesuvius to you)

===Planes of Existence (WIP)===
'''Points/Places to cover'''

====The Mortal/Physical World====
If we seriously have to explain to you what the physical world is then we are wasting our time. Go outside and experience it for yourself.

====The Nevernever====
The spirit world, a vast collection of countless planes and sub-realms. Time may flow differently depending on where you are in the Nevernever. By traveling short distances in the Nevernever, you can cross massive distances in the real world. Large tracts of the Nevernever are inhospitable to human life, with the laws of physics in a constant state of flux. Relatively safe and stable paths through the Nevernever are called "Ways"
*Faerie (Winter Wastes, Summer Meadows, Erlking's Hall, Arctis Tor, The Pyramids of Giza, The Mother's Cottage): the largest and most stable part of the Nevernever, while some parts of the Nevernever might change constantly, with their layout shifting and the laws of physics being altered, Faerie is relatively stable and has physics roughly similar to the real world. Iron is forbidden to most vistors, dropping iron on sacred Awnsidhe soil will earn the direct ire of the Queens themselves, as the Fae and their land are one. If you bring iron into Faerie, take it with you when you leave, or else the next time you visit the land itself might turn against you. You'll probably see a lot of standing stones, or Menhir, courtesy of the Fae's neolithic origins, and are occasionaly used to mark specific ways into and out of the Nevernever.
**Winter: every scary fairytale setting ever, bleak tundras, haunted forests, freezing bogs, jagged frost covered mountains, stone altars in the middle of a moor covered in dried blood, near constant night, you know, that stuff.
**Summer: verdant, sunny forests, flower covered meadows, pavilions in the middle of the woods, babbling brooks, circles of Sidhe holding hands and dancing, sights so beautiful that you'll want to stay, forever.
**The Wyld: extremely varied, can encompass environments including and between the two extremes of Winter and Summer.
**The Mothers' Cottage: a humble cottage with a floor of packed earth, surrounded by rolling hills. Inside is a small hearth, with Mother Winter's numerous dentures sitting the mantlepiece. There is a wooden shelf that holds small, homemade ceramic pots, each containing a virulent plague, Mother Summer's collection of "preservatives"(she is the caretaker of '''all''' life, that includes anthrax and smallpox). The cottage lies in an extremely remote part of Faerie, normally inaccessible to both man and fae save for those who are personally invited by the Mothers.
*Hell(?): according to WoJ, Hell is the domain of the Fallen and their allies, an empire of many realms tied together by alliances and promises of power, for mortal souls, it is a place of pure, agonizing(but not personalized) suffering.
*The Underworld: a massive prison-nation of shades governed by Hades, here punishments are personalized and are often cruelly ironic.
*"The Foot of Yggdrasil": seen in ''Changes'', Yggdrasil, the Norse world-tree is a massive tree on the shores of a frozen lake.
*The Far Reaches(?)
*Personal Demesnes
*Chicago-over-Chicago (The Queen's Battleground, The Stone Table)

====Chicago Between/(Purgatory?)====
A transitory afterlife for the souls of those who died in Chicago although it may be the whole world, we just see 'Chicago'. Uriel runs a soul protection agency(?) on this level, often taking the ghosts or souls of those who are unwilling or unable to pass on to the afterlife until they believe themselves redeemed. They do this by helping Mr Sunshine protect free-will against the machinations of the Enemy. The agency itself is staffed by angels and "mortals" alike, although most of those "mortals" seem to either be dead cops, or soldier given what little we've seen of them.

The apparent methods of moving on from this place seem to be "The Southbound Train" (no prizes on guessing where that leads), and the Door. It's one person wide, one person tall, and when you go through it, you do so alone.

====The Outside====
An endless Void of physical non-existence. Dead winds howl in their stillness. Lost and forgotten ''Things'' scream at their punishment. There are no stars in the sky, no movements to stir the dirt underfoot, no thought to stave off madness. A place where life and hope cannot exist. That which should not be is instead given horrific un-life. That is what the Outside is. The only thing found here are the Outsiders in numbers uncountable, directed by the eldritch, unknowable will of the Old Ones. And they want in.

Separated from reality by the Outer Gates, the Outside is the opposite of existence, not anti-matter, but non-existence. It is everything that the Mortal World and the Nevernever aren't and it is nothing at the same time. It is the antithesis of all that exists, the very concept of nothingness given impossible form and will. It is a place of abominations, reality inverted.

The Outer Gates themselves border Faerie on the Winter side, stretching from horizon to horizon, standing impossibly tall all the way. Before them sits a vast battle plain covered in crumbling bones, bordered by a massive wall of ice and fortifications that has existed since the dawn of time.

'''Potential Places for a Gaming Group to Use'''

*The Bizarre Bazaar (Goblin/Fae Market)
*Santa's Workshop (Ho. Ho. Ho.)
*Arctis Minora
*The Summer Capitols (Verdant Tor? Verdant Minora?)

==Gallery==
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Image:HarryThomas.jpg
Image:Kringle.jpg|It's not a drawing of Kringle specifically, but its extremely accurate to the way he's described
</gallery>

==External Links==
*[http://www.dresdenfilesrpg.com/ Developers page]
*[http://www.dresdenfilesrpg.com/Nevermore.pdf PDF preview]
*[http://www.jimbutcheronline.com/bb Archive of most of the things the author has said in interviews(incomplete), you need to sign up to view it though]

[[Category:Roleplaying]]

Eldar

2026-05-12T04:36:32Z

109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010412 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

[[Image:Eldar_Symbol.png|center]]
{{topquote|You are so brave and quiet I forget you are suffering.|Ernest Hemingway}}
{{topquote|Be empty, still, idle, and from your place of darkness observe the defects of others. See, but do not appear to see; listen, but do not appear to listen; know, but do not let it be known that you know.|Han Fei }}
{{topquote|It is a fate they justly deserve. In truth, there can be no escape from the doom they have brought upon themselves.|White Dwarf, February 2017}}
[[Image:Eldarbattle.jpg|thumb|600px|right|Space Elves: bringing quality, [[Just as planned|connivance]] and [[Not as planned|disarray]] to a galaxy near you since 65 million Billion BC]]

The '''Eldar''' (now spelled '''Aeldari''' in the Tome of the Retconian, AKA Trademarcus Friendlius Renamian or ''Aeldarix dolosus'' for you [[Xenology|xenobiologists]] out there describing the Asuryani AKA vanilla Eldar) are one of the playable armies in ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]''. They are essentially [[elves]] ported directly from [[Tolkien]] into space, pointy ears and all. The very word 'Elda' means "of the [light of the] stars" in his Quenya, which word Oromë himself applied to them; 'Eldar' being its plural.

They are one of the oldest races in the galaxy and have very advanced technology (being psychic-based their tech actually resembles literal techno-sorcery more than any technology humanity would be familiar with) and highly developed psychic abilities, but ages of warfare and strife, and in particular [[Fall of the Eldar|one extremely devastating and painfully avoidable strife]], have reduced their population from the galaxy-spanning empires of the past, referred to as "The Empire of Ten Million Suns," to the few surviving Craftworlds, Maiden Worlds, and Exodite Worlds still present in the [[41st millennium]]. The Ynnari have already brought back many dead Aeldari, but we have yet to see how much these ghost elves have boosted their numbers.

In the ''40k'' game, the Eldar army is comprised of [[Aspect Warriors|specialized units that excel at a particular task]], as opposed to more general all-rounders like the [[Space Marine]] [[Tactical Squad|tactical squads]]. Their vehicles are almost all skimmers too, with the exception of [[Eldar War Walker|War Walkers]]. The Eldar also have a few special tricks up their mystical elfy sleeves, like [[Webway]] travel and wraith-constructs, which are [[wraithbone]] suits that are controlled by the souls of dead Eldar. It's like a Space Marine [[Dreadnought]] in purpose, only the Dreadnought pilot is merely a cripple while the wraith-construct's 'pilot' is a straight-up ghost. The Avatar of [[Khaine]], one of the Eldar's most powerful units, is a giant monster made of lava that used to be the penis of a war-god, and is infamous for spelling [[Plot Armor|near certain]] defeat for whoever's side it is on the moment it is summoned.

In spite of their fall from being a colossal empire that ruled the stars and heavens alike when Mankind was still [[Minecraft|poking things with sticks]] and [[Dwarf Fortress|roasting dead animals over fires in caves]] to their current state (a dying, elegiac race slowly being whittled down to extinction by combat losses and the hunger of [[Slaanesh]]), their utter disdain for every single bit of non-Eldarin life remains completely unchanged. The race as a whole has a superiority complex that would put [[Abaddon|Failbaddon]] to shame. They often try to act indirectly, subtly manipulating events to resolve in their favor, but they seem to rarely ever succeed. Even on the rare occasions when they win, GW will eventually, somewhere down the road turn it around into a crushing defeat, just for lulz. Best of all, their ruined plans are usually caused by their own arrogance. They cannot comprehend that non-Eldar have their own minds and agendas. So, when their puppets simply do something more beneficial to themselves than the Eldar (or figure out the spelves’ plan and purposely co-opt or smash it), the elves are left in total shock. It doesn’t help them that the main species of the galaxy have their own future perceiving methods as well...and that no one trusts them due to their dickery; so, when they show up, everyone tries to screw them over. Everyone.

The Eldar, [[Imperium of Man]] and the [[Tau]] represent the three stages of civilization: The Eldar are the former, fallen, power; the Imperium are the present power, who are now following in the Eldar race's footsteps; and the Tau are the rising power, who will rise to prominence (if they can survive long enough) but eventually fall just like those who came before them. The Eldar have already been through their civilization-wide apocalypse (which they did to themselves and a blind smurf could have told them was coming) and are well aware of the dark path that Mankind now blindly walks. A path so utterly different than that of the Eldar it's practically the opposite.

It is more accurate to think of the Eldar and Humans as yin and yang. Most Eldar during the time of the Fall turned to depravity, debauchery, and hedonism but a few foresaw the coming cataclysm, and ran. Most Humans in the Imperium never get the opportunity to experiment with depravity, debauchery, and hedonism but embrace xenophobia, blind hatred, extreme religious dogma, hubris, and paranoia, with only a few individuals realising the true scale of the horror they have created; they are normally branded heretics and burned alive in "purifying" fire (a few-- mostly among the ruling classes-- embrace the same excesses as most Eldar once did). In a way, the two species are dark mirrors of each other and each has a bit of the other in them. This even extends to their militaries: the Eldar mostly focus on extreme specialization and intricate planning whereas the Imperium mostly focuses on loose specialization and ham-fisted planning.

The Eldar are the faction that look so cool and have such sweet lore and awesome tech that’d you’d totally play them and love them if their personality didn’t make you hope they get eaten by [[Tyranids]].

Also, the rune of Asurmen is a yin-yang symbol. Buuuut that's surely just a coincidence. Right, Mr. Inquisitor?
__TOC__
==History==

===Origins and the Eldar Empire===
[[Image:Eldarpsykers.jpg|350px|right|thumb|Did you know Tyranid tastes best when cooked inside out with warp fire at 1,000 degrees Celsius?]]
:{{topquote|I watched as the First Ones encouraged the younger race to reach further into the other realm, and with their vibrant minds and passionate souls create beings of power to fight the star gods. ...Without the wisdom and might of the First Ones I saw The Elder's warp-beings evolve from sentient weapons into living gods - the first true gods of the Immaterium.|'Echoes of the Birth' - Liber Chaotica volume 2}}

Much of Eldar history has been lost and is consequently closer to mythology than fact. Even the Eldar themselves are unsure of the details. What they do know is that they were one of many races either created or uplifted by the [[Old_Ones_(Warhammer)#Warhammer_40.2C000|Old Ones]] to fight against the [[C'tan]] and their minions at the time, the [[Necron]]tyr. The only knowledge of their homeworld that the Eldar have is that they had one and that it had three moons; this homeworld has been "lost" since the earliest memories of their most ancient past. The species known as the Old Ones are said to have left in their great ships, leaving the Eldar to develop on their own, only returning at an unspecific time later, only this time their ships were marked by the scars of war. The Eldar were designed to be powerful [[psyker]]s to take advantage of the C'tan's weakness to the powers of the [[Warp]]. In their infancy as a race, the Eldar learned how to create Warp entities (essentially, artificial daemons) to help them get shit done (be it war, healing, or building), but when the Old Ones took the Eldar to war and subsequently got wiped out by the combined efforts of the C'Tan, the Necrons, and [[Enslavers]], the Eldar constructs went out of control and started merging into much more powerful beings, even capable of facing full-powered C'Tan without being annihilated in 0.1 seconds. The Eldar mistook those beings for gods and started worshipping them.

There is also the possibility that in order to escape death, certain [[Old Ones]] who had strong links to the ancient Eldar may have hijacked their Warp constructs, by merging together with them, leaving their mortal bodies behind and ascending to godhood.
These new "gods" started to play [[War in Heaven|divine soap opera]] (which often resulted in piles of space elf corpses) until their boss, [[Asuryan]], got tired of this shit, and banned all divine manifestations in real space, effectively locking all of the gods in the Warp. At this time in cosmic history, the Warp was far less dangerous, especially for the Eldar since it was mainly the swinging bachelor pad of their gods, and not a [[Tzeentch|scheming]], [[Slaanesh|raping]], [[Khorne|murdering]], [[Nurgle|rotting]] hellscape. Some accounts suggest that when Eldar passed away, their souls were preserved in the Warp to be reincarnated.

[[Image:Eldar map.jpg|thumb|left|250px|"40k Map showing the reach of the Eldar Empire and a few of the key locations left after the Fall"]]
For [[Plot armor|reasons]] left conveniently unexplained, the Eldar managed to survive both the war between the Old Ones and the [[C'tan]] and the [[War in Heaven|high school drama]] of their gods, and over thousands of years built a galaxy-spanning empire that was undoubtedly more bitchin' and stylish than anything the [[Imperium]] has achieved. The Eldar terraformed planets into paradises, inhabited thousands of them, and traveled between them effortlessly using the technology of the [[Webway]] left behind by the Old Ones. At the height of their civilization, approximately the same time that humans were starting to evolve, they were using their advanced technology to perform pretty much all the work required in their societies and had rendered manual labour completely obsolete; things called Spirit-drones and psychomatons explored and conquered in their name and they simply reaped the benefits of their galaxy-spanning empire. As time passed many Eldar began to slowly devote themselves to pursuing lives of increasingly hedonistic and decadent behaviour; something as simple as a [[Blood Bowl|game like football would start off as a game, but by the end of the Fall had turned into full-blown gladiatorial death matches]] (like actual American football) (like a goddamn Dr. Seuss fantasy... IN SPAAAACE).

With the end of the War in Heaven, they effectively became the inheritors of the Old Ones' kingdom, although that didn’t mean they immediately became the galaxy's head honchos. There were still many threats that they had to overcome. The word "Mon Keigh", for instance, originated from a race that enslaved the Eldar for a time before they were defeated. Though the word is now mostly associated with humans, at least one Imperial scholar studying the Eldar concluded it is broadly used against races that have been deemed worthy of extermination though this may be because an Imperial probably wouldn’t be willing to drawn lines between the obvious fact the mon-keigh species were cannibalistic savages and humanity’s habit of warring amongst itself and generally acting like intelligent Orks. An interesting little tidbit from "Asurmen: Hand of Asuryan" suggests that after the War in Heaven was over, for some reason, the Eldar did not have access to the Webway, and spent an unspecified amount of time having to travel to the far corners of the galaxy using conventional means in order to reactivate it.

[[The Cabal]] introduced in the [[Horus Heresy|Heresy]] does hint that the Eldar at least maintained links with many of the older species in the galaxy. The assembly consists of many of the oldest species in the galaxy, including a being they refer to as the last of the Old Kind, but also younger species; members of the cabal even considered offering the Emperor a seat (this was before the crusade started of course). The Cabal comes across a bit like the [[illuminati]], but may have acted as a sort of UN for the galaxy, this of course is only theoretical, but may shed some light on how galactic politics may have happened in the Pre-Fall era.

The Eldar dominion before the rot started to set in is described as a shining example of civilization, although exactly what that means is a bit up in the air. It was so "perfect" that it ended up being boring, very very boring; when mentally linking with a "tree" in order to enter an Eldar version of the Matrix is considered boring that's really saying something. Without any form of hardship or strife the effectively immortal Eldar (one of the POV characters in the 'Asurmen: Hand of Asuryan' book takes note that large numbers of Eldar were extending their natural lifespans by insane amounts, intending to outlive the stars themselves; he did not find the idea appealing, as he was already finding his own long life becoming unbearably boring, and preferred to die and be born into a new life) are proof that 'the [[slaanesh|devil]] finds work for idle hands'. The governance of the dominion seems to have been split into something like the ancient Greek city states, each governed by great councils.

Thanks to 'Path of the Archon' we know that one of the few instances of schism to have taken place during their galactic rule focused around the concept of Form. Whilst some believed that their form, both physically and spiritually, was already something inviolable, a pinnacle of evolution, others believed that the form a soul took was not predetermined and saw no problem in changing their forms as they desired; the more extreme amongst them transmigrated themselves into animals, ships, structures or even entire sub-realms (so you're telling me that they can literally claim to identify as an apache helicopter, and actually make it a reality, well hell, where do I sign up).

Later on, there are a few recorded instances of the newly-spacefaring humanity clashing with elements of the Eldar race over resources; whether these Eldar the expanding humans encountered were the forces of the Eldar Empire or the fleeing Exodites is unknown. Said dynamic is arguably evident in current interactions between the Imperium and the Tau - a comparison which doesn't bode well for the former party if you accept that history tends to repeat itself.

The Eldar codex states that the vast trading vessels known as [[Craftworld]]s, which carried the tiny proportion of the race who sought to escape the corruption at the heart of the Empire, sought out other Eldar amongst the far-flung Exodites colonies and even began to settle new worlds of their own. It was then that the fates of the Eldar and Mankind intertwined for the first time, sometime between M18 and M22. It seems that there was nowhere near the amount of bad blood between the two species then as there is now in M41; non-aggression pacts were signed between humanity and dozens of alien races and the introduction of the [[Interex]] in the Horus Hersey claims that the Eldar encountered by humans at the time provided both help and guidance.

* A small bit of obscure lore from way back, deals with why Eldar void craft are designed with wings/fins on them. When traveling through the material universe they act as solar sails, but they were originally also used when traveling the warp. Once upon a time before the warp was so thirsty for Eldar souls, the Eldar were actually able to sail the currents of the Warp in almost complete safety; instead of using engines to force their way through, they would glide smoothly through the sea of souls using its natural currents, barely causing a ripple. It was stated that the Eldar were disturbed by how humanity traveled the Warp: brute-forcing their way in and then using their engines to propel themselves forward, violently churning up the Warp in their wake.

===The Eldar during the War in Heaven===

The War in Heaven was an apocalyptic war between the species known as the Old Ones and the [[Necrons]] that makes the Horus Heresy and the [[Men of Iron|war against the machines]] look like schoolyard scuffles. The War in Heaven occurred roughly 65 million years ago, and is implied to have been the real reason for all the mass extinctions that happened during this period, seeing as it takes place during the same time period that the last of the non-avian dinosaurs went extinct. To put the scale into perspective, [[Trazyn]] has one of the ancient [[Orks|Krorks]] that fought during this time in his exhibits; it is described a towering, twelve-meter-tall monstrosity that loomed over [[Fabius Bile]], whose weaponry and crude exoskeleton were far more advanced than even the modern day Astartes battle-plate. To put that into even more perspective, the largest of the six [[The Beast|Prime-orks]], the ultimate mastermind behind the [[War of the Beast]] which devastated the early Imperium and brought the [[Administratum]] to its knees stood at only ''10'' meters.

Information on the Eldar during this time is a rarity and scattered throughout the lore:
*They were a powerful psychic warrior race. In the latest book in the [[Mephiston]] series, the recently awakened [[Necron Lord]] commented that although powerful, he was but a pale shadow of its recollections of the Eldar; considering the insane BS Mephiston was able to pull off (still couldn't break out of Veilwalkers grip however, as she dragged him around by his psychic ear), that is truly scary. Modern Eldar are greatly restricted in how they use their psychic might, and limit themselves using runes, that act as psychic fuses (the greater the number, the more power they can safely access). They can choose to override the runes, but it doesn't usually end well; such as the example of the Eldar seer, who in a suicidal last act tapped directly into their full psychic potential, for only a handful of seconds- burning out their runes. The Seer unleashed a terrifyingly powerful Eldritch storm that consumed the whole planet they had been fighting on; however within seconds of doing so the Dark Prince instantly sunk its talons into the Seer's soul, dragging it directly into its open jaws, and consumed the the soul of the Seer entirely. Even constrained and restricted Eldar Seers such as Eldrad are still capable of freezing time for the entire capital of Guilliman's realm, whilst at the same time holding a casual conversation (Unremembered Empire), psychically powering an entire Eldar battleship from halfway across the galaxy, whilst again holding a conversation with the stranded crew, guiding them back home safely, or singlehanded, controlling and shaping enough raw power to birth a god. According to Asurman this sort of display of power was not uncommon before the Fall.
*The entire species was connected by what could be described as a species wide "Gestalt" Field; no Matter how far they may be, they are always connected together ( potentially why The Dark Prince has such a stranglehold on their souls). Many before the Fall took this for granted, only to suffer soul crushing loneliness when it was torn from them. Those that join the Ynnari are able to reconnect, with many finally realising that the Fall hadn't just broken them in the physical sense, but it had shattered them spiritually; if the species has any chance of survival they must become whole once more.
*They created warp constructs/weapons that could be used to battle the Star Gods directly.
*They were apparently able to “reincarnate” after they died. They were essentially a race of [[perpetual]]s, in that their souls are actually immortal and continually move through a circle of death and rebirth. This works in a similar fashion to the '[[Doctor Who|Doctor's]]' regenerations, with the soul being identical but with each reincarnation being its own person, with its own personality and identity; the memories of their past lives are still there, and are still accessible when needed but most don't bother.
*They were [[psyker]]s who could read minds with but a glance and crush an opponent’s weapons with a mere gesture (the example given is a simple closing of an eye lid).
*They fought using swords and spears, not firearms, essentially being more powerful [[Warlock (Eldar)|warlock]]s:
::''“We speak of gods and souls, and this one assumes the smith-god’s gift to the Eldar was plasma weaponry? Hah! These events occurred eons before the Eldar had mastered such things. They fought with swords, spears and their own twisted version of faith.”''
*They were created before the Krorks, and although powerful they were few in number by comparison. Thanks to 'Wild Rider' we know that the Eldar predate the War in Heaven, as they appear to have had none-violent interactions with the pre-Necron [[Necrontyr]]; keep in mind that the Necrontyr originally asked the Old Ones to help them peacefully, and that the conflict was stoked by the Necrontyr's leadership for political reasons (to unit the turbulent factions of their society against a common foe). The Necrontyr were apparently the ones to introduce the fledgling Eldar species to the concept of the written word; not a good look for the Old Ones, when the Necrontyr turn out to have been the better teachers.
*The Eldar were said to represent silence and grace, whilst the [[Orks]] represented rage and noise.
*The Jokaero were made by the Old Ones to serve as slave-engineers to the other weapon-races and to the Old Ones. The War in Heaven exhibit has a Khaineite warrior armed with some form of chainsword; meaning the Jokaero may be the origin for all chain bladed weaponry that exists in the 40k universe.
*They made use of “Iron Knights” animated by Eldar souls and “Giants” inhabiting (inhabited by?) the souls of the greatest Eldar heroes. Standing three times taller than a Necron and virtually indestructible, they carried arcane weaponry that could channel and project soulfire that ripped their opponents apart. They are reminiscent of the Wraith constructs employed by the Craftworld Eldar, and also resemble the creation and use of the Avatars of Khaine. In ''Ghost Warrior: Rise of the Ynnari'' Autarch Meliniel has gained the ability to transform into an Avatar at will, which may indicate that certain ancient Eldar Warriors may have been able to do the same. [[Tyrion]] during [[the End Times]] did something similar, becoming an avatar of Khaine through the use of the sword [[Widowmaker]] (the last of the swords forged for [[Khaine]] by [[Vaul]]), which means that it may be the forging of objects directly connected to the gods that may have allowed for these theorized transformations.
*During ''Rise of the Ynnari: Wild Rider'', Nuadhu Fireheart, due to some type of ancestral memory, has flashbacks to fighting alongside constructs larger than [[Titan (Warhammer 40,000)|titans]] in the original War in Heaven. These titanic figures could very well be the physical manifestation of the Eldar gods given form in the physical plane.
*The Necron [[Phaeron|Phaerekh]] known as the Watcher in the Dark, upon watching Aeldari ships descending from the sky, has flashes from her pre-Necron life. She sees images of immense flying predators and makes a note that the Eldar ships seem to have been inspired by these same creatures; this may represent the Eldar mythological figure of the Cosmic Serpent and its children. Many of the Eldar ships and vehicles (such as the [[Dragonship|Dragonships]], [[Wave Serpent]], [[Vyper]], [[Skyweaver]], [[Starweaver]] and [[Voidweaver]]) are all named in honour of these mythical figures. It could be that during the War in Heaven, the Eldar may have ridden "dragons" in a similar manner to the [[High Elf (Warhammer Fantasy Battle)|High Elf]] [[Dragon Prince]]s and Dragon-riders; the "dragons" that the Eldar Exodites ride may well be their lesser descendants. During the Heresy, [[Vulkan]] fought an Exodite seer upon the back of a giant winged "dragon", so there may still be some of these guys still out there.
*The 8th edition Codex mentions that virtually every battle between the Eldar and Necrons was an overwhelming victory for the Eldar, even after the Old Ones were wiped out. Ultimately, the ensuing assumption of Eldar invincibility would help lay the foundation for the Fall, as they came to think nothing could stop their empire.
*With the apparent demise of the Old Ones, it was the Eldar who stepped up to fill the power vacuum left behind; leading the other creations of the Old Ones against the now weakened Necrons, forcing them into their long sleep.
*The Eldar were led by the brother heroes, Eldanesh and Ulthanesh, who alone could control the Warp Gods and summon them onto the physical plane. The brothers and their gods would lead their children into battle time and time again, pitting Warp spawned furies against the soulless technologies of the Yngir.
*To give an idea to the scale of power wielded by the ancient Eldar, we can look at the Spear of Twilight currently used by the last of the house of Ulthanash, Prince Yriel. The spear of twilight is said to have been used by Ulthanesh himself, and although it is a pale shadow of its former might it is still capable of, not only wounding but feeding upon god tier entities such as the Hive Mind (too bad its tabletop rules don't represent this).
::''"Yriel plunged his spear deep into the rearing serpent. It keened terribly, and Yriel salivated as his weapon drank. Since the day he had lost his eye due to the spear feasting on the limitless hive mind, he had managed to control its fell power and its obscene appetites, but at this final pass he no longer had the strength, and the spear’s murderous soul overwhelmed him. He could not stop it feeding, drawing upon the infinity of spirit the Great Devourer possessed. Yriel felt the hive mind, heard it howl. It thrashed about, and Yriel was battered by its anger. Its thoughts were utterly, unimaginably alien. But one thing came through strong and loud. Hatred, hatred for this creature that had for the first time in untold eons wounded it."''
*It has been shown that "[[Chaos]]", or, as the Necron Phaerekh called it, "the foe-that-creeps", was very much a growing problem, with whole worlds destroyed to prevent its spreading influence. Apparently, the Eldar had been brought into being with the specific intent for them to resist the counter-dimensional incursions, whilst at the same time making use of the Warp to do battle with the Necrons. As has been mentioned, the longer the War in Heaven lasted, the more it churned up the [[Warp|sea of souls]], and in doing so created many of the dangers that would now hunt within its depths. At some point the [[Enslavers|Warp-spawned horrors]] flooding reality must have reached a breaking point, as both the Eldar and Necrons seem to have joined forces to beat their demonic arses back into the hell from which they came. Vaults created through the efforts of both the Necrons and Eldar imprisoned many of these [[Daemon|daemonic]] entities; this includes powerful daemons of "[[Slaanesh]]"?
*Thanks to recent revelations from 'Infinite and the Divine', we now know that the War in Heaven was indeed an accumulation of many different incidents, happening over a very long period of time. The time period known as the War in Heaven lasted around five million years; not kidding here, according to two very high profile Necron Lords this is how long it took. However it does appear as if their memories have become somewhat mixed up, or maybe deliberately tampered with during biotransference, as the two Lords have very different reconciliations about who dragged who away towards the bio-furnaces. After the War in Heaven ended (in reality it never really ended, the bell is about to ring announcing the start of the next round) the Eldar that emerged are said to have taken a very hands off approach to what little life remained in the galaxy, holding a reverence for life in the wake of the destruction wrought by the apocalyptic war. Eldar even visited early Earth, where they discovered a species of small mammals, the earliest ancestors to modern humans. A debate then arose concerning these creatures, as visions gifted to the Eldar revealed that in the far distant future they would either be responsible for Chaos ultimately consuming the galaxy, or a vital element in the fight against the [[Chaos Gods|Primordial Annihilator]]. The Eldar at the time decided to take a gamble and left life on Earth to develop unmolested (too bad the gamble failed; to be clear this is very old lore, but a conversation during ‘Throne World’ does hint at its continuous existence within the current Lore). This is actually supported by 'Godblight', where it is confirmed that the Eldar have been visiting [[Terra|Earth]] for a very long time now, at least as late as 6000 BC, which is about the same time as the founding of Mesopotamia, or the "Cradle of Civilisation". You know those theories about ancient aliens visiting earth- and who may have played a considerable part in the development of early human civilisation, back in the day, well guess who it was; this would also explain why so many ancient pantheons in old myths and legends have a more then passing resemblance to the Eldar's own pantheon of gods. The idea that the Eldar have been taking day trips to earth throughout history isn't that far fetched, when you consider the fact that, at this very moment, there is a massive Eldar city in the [[Webway]] just adjacent to our own solar system ('The Impossible City' that the Emperor intended to use as his entrance point into the rest of the Webway); there might be millions of Eldar at this very moment watching us, maybe even editing this very page... Gits.

===Not what they used to be===
[[Image:Eldar Aspect.jpg|225px|right|thumb|A Banshee/Scorpion [[Autarch]] performs the fusion dance and kicks some ass]]
As is the case for the Orks, the ancient Eldar at their prime during the War in Heaven were far more powerful than their modern-day descendants. It would make sense that the Old Ones would build safeguards into their creations, to [[Nerf|depower]] them if it ever looked like they were getting too big for their boots or too difficult to control. This may have resulted in the shutting down or limiting of certain powers and abilities; Iyanna in "Ghost warrior" is mentioned using her psychic powers to reignite the accelerated healing processes hidden deep inside the core of every Aeldari, which resulted in a shattered leg knitting itself back together wolverine style; this ability is referred to as the 'Tress of Isha'.

The stories of Eldanesh the First of the Aeldari and his defiance of Khaine, Morai-Heg and her prophecies, and the tale of the Eldar being locked out of "heaven" and separated from their gods may be a poetic retelling of events that saw the ancient Eldar stripped of their former might and cast back into the galaxy to fend for themselves.

Although mostly theory, the idea that the Old Ones essentially "decommission" their weapons once they had achieved the task that they had been created for does go towards explaining why the Eldar were seemingly denied the use of the Webway, and how a race that had fought and defeated the Necrons could somehow end up being enslaved by a seemingly barbaric and brutish species from whom the term mon-keigh originated.

:'''"And you threw away the greatest weapons we gave you! look at them now, cowering in the shadows, flinching at the movement in the darkness. There is no greatness left in these people. They are not worthy of your protection. Give them to us, my daughter. Bring us together and let us feast on them until we are strong and whole again. We will free you from the domination of the one that sundered us.'''

:''No! We shall not be enslaved by gods or ourselves again.'''''

:'''And so you will imprison yourselves instead. You will gutter and die like candles rather than burn bright like pyres.'''

:''Better that than servitude to the Kinslayer. There is nothing you will not bend to your will, and you will use us and destroy us in that purpose. Eldanesh refused you with good reason, breaker of oaths."''
::Jain Zar confronts an Avatar of Khaine.

===The Fall===
The Fall happened gradually between c.M18-30 and if ''Farseer'' by [[William King]] is to believed, it all really started with an Eldar called Lord [[Shaha Gaathon]] (or as he would be later called, The Harbinger of Slaanesh) - he was to [[Slaanesh]] what [[Yvraine]] is to [[Ynnead]]. Shaha Gaathon was the first to start what was to become the cults of pleasure and he would later become the first [[Daemon Prince]] of Slaanesh. It may seem strange for the Fall to take place over what is a comparatively very short period of time given the insane length of their rule, but the rate of the Fall can be directly compared to the increasingly violent Warp storms that would eventually lead to the collapse of the DAOT; according to the Lore, when humanity first started using the Warp to travel it was considerably more calm and peaceful, only to eventually end up so volatile that Warp travel became impossible (those lightweights just couldn't last one night at an Eldar empire house party). The Fall really did take place over the course of thousands, not millions, of years, with many Eldar witnessing the slow degradation take place over a single Eldar life time. It is weird that it happened so suddenly, like practically overnight, but it is perhaps possible Slaanesh causes The Fall. Time is a joke in the Warp and all the Chaos Gods always existed even before they were born.

Ironically, those who sought to delay the coming doom that some among their seers had foreseen actually in some ways accelerated its coming. As first the Exodites, then the Craftworlds and like-minded Eldar fled the heart of the Eldar Empire in greater and greater numbers, what rational, cautious and puritanical elements there were in the Eldar Empire as a whole were effectively stripped away from their society. Without their calming, cautionary influence, the rest of their civilization likely slipped further and deeper into depravity.

:{{topquote|Shaha Gaathon is one of the greatest of the servants of He Who We Do Not Name. He existed before the Great Enemy came. Since before the birth of his master, he has a terrible hatred for the eldar, and I believe, he wishes to use your people as a weapon against mine. There are futures waiting to be born in which the followers of the Emperor will turn on my people and destroy them utterly. There are timelines in which the eldar respond with our forbidden and ultimate weapons and both races are so dramatically weakened that Chaos overwhelms them.<br>
:''Your people are numberless as the grains of sand upon a beach. It does not matter how powerful our weapons are, you will eventually overwhelm us, for the Harbinger of the Lord of all Pleasures knows the location of all our hidden home-vessels.''|Farseer, ''William King''}}

Throughout the Eldar civilization, a profound degradation in moral discipline and a gradual slide into sensual excess commenced, undermining the foundations of the once-great Empire. With the rise of the cults of pleasure over the once-great ruling councils, worship of the Eldar gods declined, many even considered themselves to be gods in their own right; there are even pits near the entrances to the dark city into which the status of the gods were hurled, now thousands of years later they are buried under religious relics stolen from species from across the galaxy, just going to show the utter contempt that the [[Dark Eldar]] held towards their racial pantheon. We are told that most of the Pantheon could do nothing but watch events unfold with growing horror, Isha wept for her children, Khaine raged and the lord of the Eldar gods simply turned and walked away. As the quest for excess crossed into outright evil, a perverse new god began to stir in the Warp. That is not to say the Eldar at the time of the Fall were quite like the Dark Eldar. They were certainly similar but more like a hybrid of Dark Eldar and [[Eldar Corsair|Corsair]] in terms of personality and culture. The Dark Eldar became what they are due to a combination of desperation to stave off Slaanesh and naturally choosing to do so in ways they were most familiar with (i.e. torture and hedonism) cranked up to eleven even by their own standards (not that they didn't enjoy it).

As Eldar civilization became more and more excessive, it began to resemble the world of a [[FATAL|certain godawful assault on the dignity of the human creative impulse]], and the Eldar made a science and a cultural centerpiece out of indulging and refining every perverted sensual desire they had. As their race descended into mindless slaughter, lawlessness, depravity, and evil, little did they know that all of it was nourishing a new entity in the Warp. Some Eldar decided to forsake the ways of their kin and left to settle other planets at the fringes of the galaxy; this turned out to be a pretty smart move, since the planet-wide orgies and [[Heterosexual Sex in the Missionary Position|other assorted debauchery]] going on back home culminated psychically in a gargantuan Warp storm that resulted in the birth of the [[Chaos]] [[Chaos Gods|god]] [[Slaanesh]] and tore an enormous hole in the fabric of realspace that is now known as the [[Eye of Terror]]. This calamity also resulted in the deaths of most of the Eldar still on their homeworlds.
[[Image:FalloftheEldar.jpg|thumb|left|500px|"At least we perfected time travel so we can go back and fix this... Wait, what do you mean you ''all'' gave that up and spent the last thousand years having sex instead? I swear, you guys!..."]]

The Eldar race are highly psychically gifted, and as the corruption spread [[/d/|the echoes of ecstasy and agony rippled through time and space]] and in the Warp the reflections of these intense experiences began to coalesce unknowingly into an unimaginably foul and sickening shadow of what the Eldar, their pride and their nobility had become, brought low by perversity and shamelessness. In the twilight years approaching the Birth of the Dark Prince the Eldar were riven with madness. Worlds burned as the Eldar slew and laughed and feasted upon the dead.

:{{topquote|Yet how mightier is Khorne than his delight-filled sibling! Oldest of Gods and greatest of warriors, Khorne’s armies stretch from infinity to infinity to infinity, and the pleasure God may not rival him. But this was not always so. For in the days when the Slaanesh, last born and most beautiful, strove for existence, his power waxed stronger than all gods, be they separate or together, and it seemed as though his spiteful triumph would destroy the balance in the Warp.|from Liber Chaotica - If you ever wondered why Slaanesh was able to consume the Eldar gods just after its birth, it’s because at its birth it was stronger then all the other gods of the Warp combined; the other three members of the Chaos pantheon secretly fear that he may eventually become so again.}}

[[Grimdark|Most of the Eldar gods were wiped out along with their race]]. The newborn Slaanesh, a creature without equal in perversion and heinousness, rampaged through the Warp, devouring everything Eldar that he/she/it/they could get its hands/tentacles/claws/many [[/d/|phallic appendages]] on. The gods who bit the big one were [[Asuryan]], [[Kurnous]], [[Lileath]], [[Morai-Heg]], and [[Vaul]]. The three that survived are the [[Cegorach|Laughing God, Cegorach]]; the shattered [[Khaine|God of War and Fire, Khaine]]; and the [[Isha|Goddess of Healing and Fertility, Isha]], also known as the Mother.

During this mass deicide, Khaine fought against Slaanesh and found himself evenly matched. Before a winner could be decided, however, [[Khorne]] appeared and declared Khaine his property. Whether this was due to the slight similarities in their names, or the fact that Khaine was another god of war is unknown. What is known is that Slaanesh refused, resulting in the first of the many regular beatings Khorne gives Slaanesh. ([[C.S. Goto|Which pleases him/her/it/them.]]) While Khorne was curb-stomping the proper order of things into his new compatriot's head, Khaine was [[Derp|shattered into many pieces and flung into the mortal realm]] (probably due to being used as a convenient club by Khorne to beat sense into Slaanesh's head). These shattered pieces of Khaine found their way to the Eldar [[Craftworlds]] and are now used to summon the [[Avatar of Khaine]] to fight for them (a fate very similar to the Burning One).

Cegorach famously ran from Slaanesh in a [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnHmskwqCCQ very Benny Hill-like fashion] before Khaine showed up. It was at this point [[Troll|Cegorach told Khaine "you got this" and fled to safety]]. Cegorach now spends all his time getting into [[Just As Planned|"Just As Planned"-]] competitions with the other dicks of the galaxy. The rest of his time is spent reading books in the [[Black Library]] and trolling [[Ahzek Ahriman|Ahriman]] by denying him entrance to it. He also usually plays [[Paradox poker|Paradox-Billiards-Vostroyan-Roulette-Fourth Dimensional-Hypercube-Chess-Strip Poker]] with [[Tzeentch]], [[C'tan|the Deceiver]] and the [[Emperor]] once every week. It's not exactly known how three dimensions managed to contain that much dickery in a single location without imploding. The Warp did it.

The fertility goddess, Isha, was saved <s>from [[Slaanesh| the lusty Argonian maid</s>]] {{BLAM}} {{BLAM|'''''NO!!'''''}} by none other than [[Nurgle|Papa Nurgle]]. Isha now endures as [[Poxfulcrum|the test subject of Nurgle's plagues]] and as of the 6th edition Daemons codex is kept company by a small forest of the agonizingly petrified Seer souls of the one [[Craftworld#Lugganath|craftworld]] that believed she still existed/survived and that [[Derp|were supposedly her descendants]] (at this we should note that ALL Eldar are descendants of Isha). The disease that set them in that state, one capable of degrading [[Wraithbone]]—and divinely created versions of the stuff, no less—is mysteriously absent from any other lore. Her subsequent weeping was pathetic enough for one [[Death Guard]] [[Plague Marine]] who observed her plight to learn what pity was. Sleep tight, Life Mother. (You could also take the story allegorically, with the Eldar's life goddess, and thus their continued existence, tethered to the god of death and hopelessness.)

In mere moments the Eldar Empire that had ruled the stars for time immemorial imploded in spectacular fashion. The Eldar that remained were a broken race, who fell from undisputed mastery of the Galaxy to a people barely clinging to the precipice of existence. Those that escaped upon the Craftworlds suffered even further unforeseen consequences; where the fragments of Khaine landed and rooted, his rage and fury lashed out to the souls and minds of the Eldar, infecting them with a bloodlust that turned them upon each other. Craftworlds burned as Eldar fought Eldar. Driven by their own maddening grief and the impulses of a shattered god, the Eldar tore themselves apart, until the [[Phoenix Lords]] introduced the Path system, enabling Eldar to at least regain mastery over themselves.

:{{topquote|No! We shall not be enslaved by gods or ourselves again.|Jain Zar}}

The Eldar present in the 41st millennium are the descendants of those who left to settle other planets or are the mercantile group that travelled around in their enormous ships called [[Craftworld]]s. They are dedicated to their fight against the forces of Chaos spawned by the folly of their ancestors. They are extremely long-lived; the average Eldar has a natural lifespan of at least a thousand years, and the most powerful of their psykers can survive to be tens of thousands of years old. Most Eldar die in battle while still in their prime, and their population continues to dwindle. So [[grimdark]]. The Craftworld Eldar are now mostly focused on using their collective deceased souls, interred in each craftworld's [[Infinity Circuit]], to birth a new god into the Warp, [[Ynnead]], whom they hope will be powerful enough to destroy Slaanesh once and for all and save the Eldar race. The [[Dark Eldar]] are those who have continued to embrace the vices that led to the destruction of the Eldar Empire; they still exist largely in the state in which the Empire left off. Other Eldar, like the Corsairs (see below) and the [[Exodite]] Eldar (the ones living on fringe planets unaffected by the cataclysms of the Fall) are somewhere in between ideologically. The [[Harlequins]], yet another sub-group, devote themselves to preserving what they can of their pre-Fall history via plays and oral tradition, minimizing chances of successful communication. They also act as respected diplomatic intermediaries between the other factions of remaining Eldar in the 41st millennium. And last but not least, there are the [[Ynnari]], who get all the spotlight [[Warhammer 40,000 8th edition|these days]].

In humanity the Eldar see history repeating itself and fear the bitter destiny that they will reap and know that they no longer possess the strength to prevent it.

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Which is strange, because in the [[Grimdark]] of the 42nd Millenium, humanity [[daemonhunters|isn’t partying.]] [[Witch Hunters|At all.]] The Eldar should be less concerned about projecting their failures on others and more concerned with what happens when humanity awakens as a psychic species. Human psykers can be powerful, but incredibly vulnerable to being overwhelmed/corrupted by the Warp. A very, ''very'' bad combination; now imagine quadrillions of them, which is essentially exactly what they mean by humanity walking the same dark path as the ancient Eldar. It's not supposed to be taken as an exact one for one scenario, but the idea that although the scenery may change the path remains the same. In interviews with members of The Black Library team, they tried to clear up some misunderstandings; it's not that humanity (on an individual level) will become that notably powerful upon becoming a full-blown psychic race, but more that the sheer number of them will be the problem. Humans are highly corruptible and although they can be powerful, they simply do not have the ability to handle it well (there are the odd one or two, but we are looking at humans as a whole). Humanity in 40k exist in unimaginable numbers, spread across the entire galaxy; if they were to become a psychic race, every one of them will become an unprotected gateway for the Warp, and all that exists within. Humanity's psychic awakening will see a new 'Eye of Terror' style event occur, but due to how humanity now exist across the entire galaxy, so will this new cataclysm. The galaxy will be drowned by a galaxy spanning Eye of Terror, and the time of the [[Rhana Dandra]] will begin.

This isn't even considering that Slaanesh did indeed orchestrate its own birth, deliberately bringing about the 10,000 years of slow decline that saw the Eldar delve into truly horrific hedonism, that saw the Dark Prince hijack Ynnead's birth, who was supposed to be born from the Eldar. Like the Eldar, Humanity has spent around 10,000 years flooding the Warp with - instead of pleasure and pain like the Eldar - suffering, hatred and all those other lovely emotions so prevalent within the imperium of man. whose to say that humanity won't suffer a similar fate? You may be expecting the Emperor to burst forth into a divine being, but what happens if the negative emotions humans have pumped out during these past 10,000 years were to result in humanity giving birth to something else, a new dark god, a twisted warped version of the Emperor just like Slaanesh is a twisted version of Ynnead.

This of course may not be where [[GW]] chooses to go, but it's worth consideration.
</div></div>

As the [[Time of Ending]] approaches the remaining Eldar must contend with a galaxy that is no longer theirs. In the bloody wake of the Fall, the race of Mankind has grown to preeminence. The Imperium has ascended, conquering much of the galaxy in the name of the [[God-Emperor of Mankind| corpse-god]] it calls Emperor. The Aeldari, whose maturation patterns span nearly a century, cannot compete in numbers with a race whose generations multiply with the frantic pace of vermin. In their weakened state, the Eldar have watched as the Imperium’s uncompromising hatred, hunger for power and constant wars have created rich fodder that only functions to swell the [[Gods of Chaos|Dark Gods]]’ power and ripens the galaxy for conquest by the forces of Chaos.

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Of course, if the Eldar had perhaps intervened to deal with literally everyone trying to kill or enslave humanity, this wouldn't have been a problem as the Imperium wouldn't have had to fight for survival against everyone for ten thousand years and wouldn't have grown to hate everyone for trying to murderize them for merely existing. The Eldar were kind of busy with their own problems during this time, like the slow corruption eating away at the core of their race and the small event that saw their near complete extinction, and the fallout that occurred in its wake. The Eldar first encountered humanity in the short period of time between M18 and M22; M18 when humanity first started using the Warp to travel, too M22 when humanity was already collapsing. The Eldar aren't responsible for the wellbeing of humanity, and although we do have examples of Eldar indeed helping out, even against their own kind (as seen during the Heresy) they have no responsibility to do so. M18 is when the cults of pleasure began to spread across the Eldar Dominion, running roughshod over the warnings of their own kind who warned of the dangers that such a path might lead. By the time humanity was being assailed during the age of strife the Eldar were essentially at war with themselves over the very soul of their race; even after Humanity's complete collapse the Eldar Dominion would continue too fall further into hedonism, so they were a bit preoccupied. After the Fall and the soon to be rise of the Imperium the Eldar that remained were a broken and shattered species, a spent force in the galaxy, trying to pull themselves together in a desperate attempt to survive. They would go through a turbulent period of adjustment in the wake of the collapse of everything they had ever known, and the near extinction of their entire species; they neither had the time or the inclination to pay much attention to the going's on, and worries of someone else. Then after they had entered into a more stable period, the Great Crusade came a knocking, bringing with it even more death and sorrow. Why the hell would they feel any need to offer help to Humanity, when humans have proven themselves all to willing to show nothing but hate and violence to anyone different to themselves (some did anyway, and got a bolter to the face for their trouble)? The period of the Fall may have played an unintended but significant roll in the collapse of the DAOT, but it is Humanity's choices in the aftermath that have led them down the path that they now walk. (why is it that it's only when they help humans that they are considered "good", surely it's time that that the Imperium started helping out for a change).

To add to the above point, the Imperium currently stands as the single most powerful force in the setting. As much as GW want to pretend that the forces of the Imperium are the plucky underdogs, fighting against impossible odds, it simply isn't true; the Imperium holds more territory then anyone else and has numbers that put the Orks to shame, the best and most powerful warriors, armour and weapons, <s>and now has more powerful psyches then the Eldar and apparently tech that may even surpass the Necrons</s>. Farseers are still more powerful than librarians, it's just that they are less of them and secondly Necrons have the Celestial Orrery, the Imperium doesn't have shit on that, all in all there really isn't any area that the Imperium isn't just simply better then all the other factions (the Imperium's new faith based powers for example are just a superior version of the Orks belief abilities), according to the current GW writers. Whenever we see the Imperium fighting someone we are actually seeing the Imperium punching downwards, it's actually the other side who are the underdogs in these fights. The idea that everyone should simply forgive the most powerful and dominant power in the setting its many, many transgressions and stop being "mean" to it is just laughable; given their position of power it is the Imperium who should be the ones who should be seeking to mend bridges and aid those weaker then themselves (they might actually make some allies), instead of expecting all the other factions to just drop everything and hand everything over to the "poor" Imperium.

This all comes down to poor narrative story telling on GW's part, as it robs any feelings of sympathy towards the Imperium (you're really not supposed to, but still), instead of watching the Imperium heroically fighting against overwhelming odds, GW have turned the Imperium into what is essentially a school yard bully, who picks on the weaker kids, beats them up and steals their lunch money, but expects everyone to feel sorry for them when one of their victims dares to fight back.

</div></div>

Not only Chaos but the Imperium’s blind aggression has also contributed to the rise of the Ork threat -- Mankind fails to realise that they only strengthen the Orks with every *direct* conflict they engage them in. Many Eldar fear that their numbers are now too large for even the most protracted cull to have any real effect, and should the Ork hordes unite their efforts, all the artifice and cunning of the Aeldari would not be enough to stop them drowning the galaxy in blood. To a point, at least. The Imperium is fully aware of how Orks spread and cleanses the areas tainted by their spores. Help from a species with the ability to purge worlds entirely of Ork spores would be appreciated but they prefer to sit back and watch while telling the humans how important it is to destroy the spores instead of actually helping with that; which is essentially what happened during the union of Biel-tan and Iyanden, that saw them cleanse massive areas of the galaxy of Orks before Iyanden grew uncomfortable with Biel-tan's increasingly extreme behaviour, and although the Eldar do perform controlled cullings in an attempt to limit the might of the green menace they don't really have any motive in preventing Orks and humans killing each other.

With the Eldar now a mere shadow of their former might, old and new foes alike are now stepping forward to stake their claim; like sharks drawn by the smell of blood they move to take advantage of the Galaxy's former masters' demise. From the terror of the emerging Tyranid fleets, to the young dynamic T’au in the east (who offered friendship a while back but were laughed off) - to speak nothing of the Necrons, ancient enemies of the Aeldari whose lords are eager to renew their war against their much-diminished rivals - the few Eldar that remain find themselves beset on all sides by those that would see every single one of them dead. Perhaps if they hadn't spent their entire existence making enemies of absolutely everyone that wouldn't have happened.

Not since the days of the Fall have the Aeldari been so fragmented and assailed, and for those who yet survive, war remains their only hope. While their many foes lack the technology, wisdom and skill of the Children of the Stars, in numbers alone they seem insurmountable. Yet the Aeldari are a proud race, determined that the flame of their people will blaze brightly once more rather than flicker and die out.

*Between the final act of the Fall and the time of the Horus Heresy there is a period of time, roughly around 300-500 years (200 years for the [[Great Crusade]] + however long the [[Unification Wars]] took + a bit of buffer time between the Fall and the [[Emperor]] making his initial move), in which the Eldar would eventually pull themselves into something similar to how they appear in modern 40k; Aspect Shrines, although new, were now firmly established ( they originally did not have an Exarch leading the shrines, they would be an unforeseen consequence of the Warrior Path), and the young seer known as Eldrad would have bought about the Path of the Seer as we now recognise it (Eldrad, if he was born just before or after the Birth of the Dark Prince, would have been in his late teens, early twenties (by Eldar standards) by the end of the Horus Heresy).

===The Eldar Paths===
[[Image:Eldar.jpg|thumb|260px|left|TASTE THE RAINBOW MOTHERFUCKER!]]
After the fall of their race, and apart from the potential to have their souls eaten by [[Slaanesh|a crazed demonic rapist masturbating furiously in the Warp]], the Eldar realized most of their population had also been cursed with hyper-sensitivity and super-reflection in the Warp. This new curse was adapted into the [[Paths of the Eldar]], their equivalent to careers. The creator of this system was the [[Phoenix Lord]] [[Asurmen]], first of the Asurya, who devised the Paths whilst training the first of his pupils, [[Jain Zar]], earning him the ire of Slaanesh who perceived him as leading the Eldar astray from his/her/its [[Rape|embrace]].

If they wish to, the Eldar can spend hundreds of years dedicated to perfecting their fry cook job at Space Elf Wendy's, then move on to the next occupation that takes their fancy. Why do they focus on one thing? Because branching out might be "[[Slaanesh|excess]]", so instead they strive for perfection in a single discipline. Which is [[Derp|pretty stupid]], as "perfection" is ''also'' part of Slaanesh's portfolio (although this is misleading, and a very mistakenly literal take on the "perfection" the Eldar strive for - the Path system enforces strict discipline to those who could no longer be trusted to control themselves in the presence of free will; perfecting a Path for them isn't the same as [[Fulgrim|Fulgrim]] striving for ''total'' perfection in ''every'' aspect of his life; rather, the Craftworld Eldar have given up a life of unlimited freedom in favor of a life strictly regimented and based around discipline and complete self-control. If you're hyper-focusing on one specific thing for three hundred years, you can't be focusing on ''all of the other things'' at the same time. This is, of course, ''not'' in line with the way Slaanesh does things. Also, you could say being that focused, they're working so hard, they can't take pleasure in this perfection. It might be better to say the Eldar follow a strict living style in a skill and perfection of that skill is simply a natural result, not a goal or intent). As you would expect from a universe where [[Grimdark|an entire race can be wiped out by the birth of a single sick piece of Warp meat]], the two most prevalent paths are the Path of the Seer and the Path of the Warrior, or The Path of the [[Eldrad|Dick]] and The Path of Everyone Else. The [[Aspect Warriors|Path of the Warrior]] includes exotically-titled job opportunities like being a [[Warp Spiders|Warp Spider]], a [[Howling Banshee]], or a [[Fire Dragons|Fire Dragon]], all of which involve the applicant donning some form of [[Gay|flamboyant drag attire]] and out-trending the enemy (see left). Also, they will occasionally shoot and/or impale things with deadly proficiency. The Path of the Seer includes jobs for potential [[Warlock|Warlocks]] and [[Seer Council|Seers]]. The few Eldar without ADHD who follow the Path of the Warrior or the Seer will eventually become an [[Exarch]] or [[Farseer]]. Of course, the Paths of the Eldar are not limited to the Seer and the Warrior; Someone has to fill the revered positions in the Path of the [[The Toilets of the 41st Millennium|Toilet Cleaner]]. Let's not forget the Path of the [[Rage|Angry]] [[Neckbeards|Gamer]] and the Path of the [[Craftworld]] Drunk, either.

The Path system governs every aspect of Craftworld life, enabling the Eldar to harness their emotional and intellectual intensity safely without jeopardizing themselves or those around them. It also provides them a form of self-reflection, allowing them to examine aspects of themselves both good and bad. This then allows them to develop mentally and spiritually: for example an Eldar may walk the path of the sculptor but realize that they have become too focused upon the task at hand and seek out a more abstract path such as the path of the dreamer, or they may wish to focus down a different artistic path such as the musician. Each path adds upon the paths that they have walked before and so add to the sort of person the Eldar is becoming.

After the Fall, among the most important paths to emerge were the Witch Paths; those who find themselves walking these very long and dangerous paths are more commonly known as seers. There is no force in the galaxy that can weave the skeins of fate and manipulate the future like the Aeldari and their Farseers are famous (or infamous depending on were you stand) for doing just that. The Farseers are similar to their counterparts the Exarchs among the shrines of Khaine, in that they have become lost upon their chosen path and can no longer leave. Since the time of the Fall, and more importantly the actions of [[Eldrad Ulthran]], the Path of the Seer has been refined into a precious tool that can be used in reshaping the Skeins of fate to bring about a more favourable future for their kind. The Skein that the Seers follow and reshape is like a cobweb of interlinking and crossing threads making up a tapestry showing the present, future and past of the galaxy and everyone in it. Not all seers are equal however, and although the destination may be fixed the journey can always throw up some nasty surprises. In order to avoid the possibility of missing something vital and avoiding any possible hidden trip hazards Farseers rarely act on their own (it normally doesn't end well for those that do); instead they will consult with a seer council who will then examine these possible threads and determine what course of action, if any, should be taken. With multiple Farseers interpreting and examining the possible outcomes they can explore the myriad skeins of the past, present and future, allowing them to follow countless threads and studying the consequences of the smallest deviation so as to better guide their people. However due to the shattered and splintered nature of their race, Seer councils from different Craftworlds may have different goals in mind and may find themselves competing against each other to bring about different outcomes. These can often result in shadow wars fought not by the Craftworlds themselves but by proxy forces, manipulated unknowingly into acting on their benefactors' behalf. However, the Eldar tend to forget that just because you foresaw something one second [[Not as planned|doesn’t mean the future has not changed the next second]]. This often leads to their downfall in stories.

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To understand how Farseers work, you have to understand what the Weave of Fate is.
Think of it like the tapestry woven by the Fates in our own mythology, it is a representation of the past, present and future, with each individual that has and will ever exist being part of the pattern. Every being in existence has a thread that is woven into the weave, its path crisscrossing and mingling with countless others, changing and redirecting the flow of fate. Some threads have little impact, their threads pale and thin, while others shine bright and strong against the countless destinies interwoven within the Weave of Fate.

It is this Weave that Farseers interact with, moving their consciousness outside of time to travel the many different threads before them. A farseer will follow many threads as far as they are able to see. Even in the heat of battle a Farseer will travel back and forth along the threads of fate, changing, cutting and reshaping the course of the threads, playing out many different scenarios until they have discovered the path they believe to be the most beneficial. For example a Farseer may walk a particular thread that sees them witness a wall collapsing, allowing an Ork war host to surprise a Dire Avenger squad: The Farseer could if they choose to return along the thread back to the present, allowing them to forewarn the Dire Avengers; the wall will still collapse but this time it's the Orks who are turned into a fine red mist. The Runes act as anchor points and navigating tools, much like sailors using the stars to navigate; the more Runes a Seer can wield the better.

The actions taken by Farseers can often seem random, with seemingly no immediate impact, but it is not the now or even the immediate future that most interests the Seers of the Eldar. There may be a case that in a few hundred years’ time a mighty [[Chaos Lord]] will rise to prominence on an Imperial world, who would then lead a violent crusade that will see untold billions slaughtered, or worse. However by creating a scenario through the actions of a Faseer, in which that individual is never born (this can be achieved in many different ways besides killing, such as changing the fate of one or both parents so that they never meet) will remove that thread from the Weave. Most of the greatest achievements of the Seers of the Eldar will never be known, for they have already prevented whatever disaster was to befall them before it started. As long as the Seers are doing their job properly then no news is good news.

Of course not all Seers are created equal, and many an inexperienced Seer has fucked up at least once; for instance as the young seer from the ‘Path of the Eldar’ series discovered to her horror, being so certain that she was right she ignored the advice and insights of her peers and went off on her own, inadvertently bringing into being the very future she wished to prevent. Many Seers have very different ideas as to what they would consider an ideal future; a seer from Biel-tan will have very different priorities from a Seer from Ulthwe for example, which is why the most important decisions will be decided by a Seer Council rather than an individual.

It is also possible for entities of sufficient enough power such as Slaanesh and Tzeentch to obscure elements of the Weave, hiding things that they wish to remain hidden; there is a reason why [[Fulgrim|Fulgrim’s]] fate was hidden. Eldrad himself upon meeting the Primarch realised that he was unable to read Fulgrim’s thread, as the Dark Princes was interfering directly. The [[Hive Mind]] and the Shadow in the Warp can also interfere with a Seer's ability to read the Weave, and Items such as the Necron device in ‘Priests of Mars’ made reading the threads of fate almost impossible, as it was tearing the Weave apart to the point that existence itself was about to collapse into nothingness. Phoenix Lords such as Jain Zar have proven themselves capable of reshaping the weave; a very young Eldrad is amazed at the fact that no matter how he tried to read the threads of fate, they would always reshape themselves around the wishes of the Phoenix Lord, and when the Phoenix Lord was deciding on what course of action to take, the entire weave froze in place as if waiting for the orders of its master; this may be due to the fact that the [[Howling Banshee|Banshee]] Aspect is related to the Crone Goddess, who is essentially fate incarnate.

The galaxy is in chaos and it is not always possible to prevent every horror that awaits. Sometimes no matter what you do, some things are simply unavoidable (although they can be shifted a bit further along the path). Sometimes to prevent a major disaster that will come to pass, a smaller cost must be paid, even if that cost may seems meaningless to those who cannot see the effects such actions will have upon the future.
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===War Mask===
To understand the Eldar at War it is important to understand the existence of the War Mask. The galaxy of the 40th/41st millennium is a dark and violent place, where not fighting means death (or worse); would this was not the case, but for the Eldar the call of Khaine comes with even greater and greater frequency as the galaxy continues to grow darker.

The War Mask is not a physical thing, but a way of separating their normal self from their war-self by mentally creating a mask, or mental construct, that takes the form of an artificial alternate personality, essentially creating an alternate version of themselves that can be worn or discarded when needed; this alternate self will even take upon itself a new name.

It is within the Shrines of Khaine that an Eldar will, under the guidance of the shrine's exarch, learn to create their War Mask. Before a battle an Eldar will enter their warrior shrine where they will perform the ritualistic donning of their Armour; each piece of Armour in place strengthens their War Mask until who they were is safely hidden away behind their alternate self, essentially entering a dormant/hibernation-like state as their War-self now stands in their place. This War-self is able to perform the truly horrific acts that the galaxy calls upon them to perform as all emotions that might cause their blades to falter, such as empathy or kindness, are locked away; what stands in their place is a cold-blooded sociopathic killer, a warrior of the god of war and murder who will perform any terrible act they are called upon to do. An Eldar could be the most kind and gentle being in the galaxy but upon wearing their War Mask they become a heartless, ruthless, fearless killers; most people outside of the Craftworlds will have little if any experience of Eldar that are not currently wearing their War Mask, which adds to how they are viewed by the greater galaxy.

Eldar Guardians are usually provided a temporary War Mask by a seer before they enter battle. Storm Guardians are made up of those who have already walked the path of the warrior and have their own Mask already.

When the bloody work is done an Eldar will remove their War Mask, returning to their normal self without any memories of any atrocities that they may have had to perform as they are now safely locked away within their War Mask (although it is known for Eldar to weep upon removing their War Mask without knowing the reason why).

In this way the Eldar turn the bloody work of Khaine into a tool that can be wielded or put away at will without losing themselves to Khaine's dark influence once the fighting is done.

Exarchs are those Eldar that find that they can no longer separate themselves from war, having lost themselves along the Path of the Warrior. These individuals are held in equal parts awe and revulsion by the rest of the Eldar population, for their souls now belong to Khaine. Their souls will no longer join with the rest in the infinity circuit; rather their own Armour acts as a small self-isolated circuit, containing all the souls of its previous owners (they essentially merge together to create a stronger whole; even when not wearing the Armour itself they remain as a single consciousness). If the Armour is destroyed it will be reformed within their Shrine (in a similar way as the Avatars of Khaine), waiting for the next one to wear it; if the shrine itself is destroyed then the Exarch can be housed within a [[Wraithlord]], until the shrine and Armour are restored, making it very difficult to actually permanently kill an Exarch (this happens to the Fire Dragon Exarch that appears in 'Valedor'). Upon becoming lost upon the path, they will seek out an empty shrine for themselves and prepare to welcome those who seek them out. These individuals are not insane berserkers, but act as priests, guides and teachers to those who find themselves upon the warrior path (for whatever reason), as it is their role to help those that follow them achieve control over their dark impulses and find focus and balance within themselves, so that they too won't lose themselves to Khaine.

Outside of their shrines Exarchs hold no power over their Craftworld, and have no political power to influence the decisions made by the Craftwolrds leadership. Autarch's are the only warrior cast that holds any high position within the wider Craftworld society, and that only applies to the act of Warcraft. Eldar Autarch's are those Eldar who have walked the many different Paths of Khaine, and have not lost themselves; they have faced the darkness within themselves and have overcome it many times over. Having proven themselves more than capable of mastering themselves against Khaine's dark influence they now walk the path of Command and will now be responsible for leading the Craftworlds Warhosts. Depending on the Craftworld in question the courts of the Autarch's may hold greater or lesser influence over the direction a Craftworld chooses to go.

Outside of times of combat and war, the Eldar will put aside their Warmasks; the idea that someone who has lost themselves to Khaine would be then put in charge of the everyday goings-on of the Craftworld, or even worse their diplomatic relations would be a horrific notion upon most Craftworlds, as it would go against the very idea of the Path system itself.

===Technology and the Children of the Stars===
For untold millennia the dominions of the Eldar ruled the stars, unopposed and unchallenged. Unfettered by the oppressive claim that Slaanesh holds over their immortal souls, their psychic might was matched only by their technological mastery.

No other race has ever replicated the Eldar’s unique approach to technology, nor have the Eldar taken learnings from the ‘primitive’ races that have inherited the galaxy. Eldar technology adheres closely to natural biological shapes and structures. To them, there is no real difference between technology and nature in the Eldar mind - they are a single process by which the Eldar imbue living things with function and functionality with life. The materials the Eldar use in their engineering are complex and varied ectoplastics that can be formed into solid shapes under psychic pressure. In some respects they are more like living tissue than inert substances, growing and reacting to their environment in a similar way to plants.

According to the Eldar section of the Warhammer 40,000 Compilation, the Eldar may have always been psychic, with their Psychic powers manifesting themselves into a variety of unusual talents. One such natural ability is referred to as psychomorphism by the human Xenobiologists of the Imperium. In crude terms, this gives every one of them the ability to psychically shape matter and create simple artefacts from raw materials.

By making use of psychokinesis and empathic telepathy they can influence the structure of growing matter. This empathic ability may have been particularly important during the early development of the Eldar race enabling them to promote the fruitfulness of edible crops and reshape the growth of trees to make simple shelters. The first Eldar villages and towns are supposed to have been living structures grown from trees, often covering many square miles and reaching high into the air.

Because of their psychic abilities, the Eldar race learned how to make and shape raw materials at a very early stage of cultural development. By means of their mental powers, they were able to refine minerals and shape the resulting metals and stones into whatever they wanted. Eldar technology has a very ancient history and the pace of its progress is closely tied to the slow evolutionary development of the race, which saw a steady growth in competence and knowledge over a very long period of time. The Eldar did not have a sudden sharp defining industrial phase such as the one's throughout human history, but rather a steady constant growth over countless millennia; their unique technology is entirely their own (if anyone tells you that they were simply handed their tech by the Old Ones, which has never been mention in the lore, then they don't actually know what they are talking about; the Warhammer 40,000 Compilation is the only source that goes into any detail on how the Eldar developed their tech - Page 36- this bit of misinformation needs to disappear once and for all. A bit of a history lesson, the origins of this particular headcanon began on fan forums during the first thirteenth black crusade campaign. During a discussion about the 'Priests of Mars' book, the theory was thrown out and unfortunately people began to believe it was actually 40k canon). In other words the level of traditional Eldar tech is heavily influenced by the Psychic skill level of the individual or individuals crafting it at the time. This is not great given Slaanesh's oppressive influence in 40k forcing them to curtail the use of their Psychic potential, forcing them to use the far safer but far more heavily controlled and focused Witch paths.

At their zenith nothing was beyond them; the worlds and stars of the galaxy were mere playthings to them, to be extinguished and rekindled on a whim. Surfing solar flares was a pleasant pastime, and their very dreams could be made manifest with but a simple wish; death itself was but an inconvenience as they had already outgrown the mundane notion of mortality. They strode the galaxy as gods, and in doing so brought about their own damnation. There was nothing left to strive for, for they could already do anything that their wonderful minds could conceive of. Even after their cataclysmic fall from grace and subsequent loss of most of their creations they are still one of the most technologically advanced races in the galaxy, only surpassed by the Necrons.

In the aftermath of Fall, the many fractured and shattered fragments of the Eldar race, alike in many respects, took deviating paths when it came to their approach to technology.

The Exodites saw the creeping corruption and abandoned the rotting core of their Empire. Eschewing the conveniences of technology almost entirely, they sought out a more humble and honest life through toil and hard work. They farm and herd their livestock and live an almost entirely nomadic lifestyle as their ancient ancestors once did.

The Craftworld Eldar have an odd relationship with their tech, in some ways mirroring that of the Imperium of Man. The Craftworlds as a whole maintain the fundamentals of their post-scarcity society but actively forbid the use of much of their more high-end and more dangerous technologies. They do not fear these technologies themselves but more so how such unbridled power might affect them; they are not just in a war for the survival of their race, but for the salvation of their very souls. They look upon what befell their ancestors and what their arrogance wrought, and denounce it; a life without struggle and self-restraint is but the first footstep down the road to damnation. They don’t go as far as their Exodite kin, and still encourage innovation such as the creation of the Vyper that was created by artisans of the Saim-Hann, or the creation of the armour and weapons used by the Aspect warriors after the creation of the Path system, but they still eschew most of the technologies that allowed their predecessors to grow complacent; unfortunately for them, that also means that they are deliberately making things more difficult for themselves. However, the Eldar of Craftworld Ybraesil are noted for their [[awesome| balls to the wall raids of Crone Worlds]] for spirit stones ''and'' wunderwaffen, so YMMV. It is worth keeping in mind that Craftworlds are trading Vessels; or as they are so dismissively referred to as "Cargo-haulers" by Pre-Fall Eldar. Comparing the Craftworlds to the Pre-Fall Eldar Dominion would be like comparing a seafaring Cargo ship to the might of the US, at the height of its power and influence. Well, sort of. Cargo ship or not, a Craftworld is nearly as large as a planet and seems to use compressed space technology/sorcery like a tardis. It's more like a super cargo ship invented by gypsies to live in and travel around in trading vast quantities of whatever to countless destinations forever. It was very much not a normal vessel even by pre-Fall standards. Still a trading vessel, though.
*A good example would be: "The World of the Bloodied Sword" By Gav Thorpe that had an arsenal of forbidden weapons known as the Akliamor, hidden under the Palace of Tranquility on the planet Akliamor. Knowing that these [[Dark Matter]] doomsday weapons were no longer safe, the Eldar chose to destroy them so as to remove any chance of them ever being used again.
*Units such as the [[Hemlock]] and the [[Wraithguard]] are used only in the most dire of circumstances, as their use requires the removal of souls from their resting place within the Infinity circuit, an act that the Craftworlders view as no better than grave robbing.
*Ybraesil are going out of their way to hunt the crone worlds, for they hope to secure not only the Tears of Isha, but also ancient technologies and doomsday artefacts with which to tip the balance of fate, like the Corsairs, whose Dissonance Cannons are a mocked-together version of a weapon found on a Crone world that was capable of shattering reality itself.
*Yme-loc has recently created a new and devastating weapon powered by the souls of the dead. It can scour entire continents of life in mere minutes, the souls of the living torn from their bodies by a vast ghost-storm.
*Biel Tan are making use of a limited form of pre-fall tech within their [[Void Spinner]]s. The webs unleashed by these weapons are infused with what is essentially Wraithbone nano-bots, that were previously used to create life; if you're going to create a custom planet, you might as well create custom life forms to populate it. Biel Tan has reversed the concept, and now these wraith-bots erase all life that they come in contact with, even leaving the ground they land on devoid of all life; this is especially useful against Orks, as it also destroys their spores.
*The Phoenix Lords books introduce weapons, that take the form of a piece of jewellery, that are keyed to wipe out a single form of life from a world (and we mean an entire world, not just one or two), whilst leaving all other life unharmed. Alongside these world cleansing devices, we are shown small personal shield devices that take the form of a piece of jewellery, such as a ring, brooch or necklace, that are powerful enough that it allowed them to surf, Silver surfer/Green Lantern style, on Solar Flares for fun; you could fire a Nova cannon at them and they wouldn't even care.
*During the Jain Zar book, in the Phoenix Lords series, an Eldar is shown using a common piece of tech that takes the form of a ring. The way in which it is described sounds very similar to the Kara Kesh devices from the Stargate universe.
*In the [[Blackstone Fortress]] series of stories a device called a Foryniomhu, or a Scourge was accidentally discovered. Normally placed into a ship, it was a contagious psychic weapon used to put down violent rebellions with the barest minimum effort on behalf of the Eldar. They would pop into a star system, activate the device that would release a single pulse, then leave. All those affected would become highly infectious to everyone around them, regardless of species, but wouldn't immediately show any symptoms; everyone affected would also become infectious. Within weeks their bodies would start to die rapidly, along with anyone else affected. Entire planets or even system wide civilisations would quickly collapse as the unstoppable psychic contagion spread unopposed. No one was immune to the contagion, nor was there any chance of a cure. Only a second pulse from the device could end the effects, and that would only happen when the Eldar were satisfied that any armed revolt had been quashed. This is not a biological plague but a psychic one (essentially magic) so its effect on AI is unknown, however anything with a psychic presence would be susceptible to the weapons effects. The device, ironically found on a ship called Isha's Lament, was destroyed in order to stop Chaos forces getting their hands on it: If they had it would have been an instant "I win" button for Chaos. Although deeply unpleasant, you could in theory (depending on how stubborn the opponent) put down a violent uprising with a very small loss of life; if they throw the towel quick enough you might not lose any.
*During the Heresy the [[Iron Warriors]] and [[Emperor's Children]] legions end up activating the security system of a Eldar "shrine world", which unleashes a never ending swarm of intangible warriors made of smoke and light. These constructs wield weapons that bypass the armour of the Marines, phasing through armour as if it wasn't there, and leaving corpses without a single wound of any kind. Along with these spectral warriors marched large crystalline constructs, twice the height of a Marine, whose crystal bodies formed from the surrounding walls. Their limbs pulsed with energy that they unleashed from their hands in searing beams of power, and could tear apart tanks and fortifications with ease; if not for the ascension of Fulgrim both legions would have been wiped out.
*On the Crone Worlds a device that takes the form of a publicly accessible console was found, whose function was to grant the "wishes" of the user, and make it into reality; Unfortunately the device was quickly discovered to be corrupted by the power of the Dark Prince. They had access to what is essentially artificial genies, without those pesky wish limitations or restrictions.
*The Phoenix Lord books also reveal that the weapons and armour used by the Aspect shrines have their origin in the gladiatorial arenas that came into being as the Eldar Dominion descended into hedonism, as it was from these arenas that the original Phoenix Lords armed themselves in the wake of the Fall.
*Craftworlds still make use of portable devices that can be carried around with the them, the same way you would a pocketknife. These devices can take many different forms, such as Phase crystals that allow the user to become intangible, Portable Webway Portals that can be used to open up a small temporary Webway tunnel from anywhere they want (this is especially effective when used on Jetbikes), and small crystals that turn into a glittering mist that infiltrate and override alien tech such as in 'Throne World' where a single one of these devices was able to override the technologies protecting the Golden Throne.
*They make use of cosmetic devices such as a hairbrush that can change the style and colour of their hair instantly to what ever they feel like at the time. They can also change their skin colour with such devices as easily as you can change your socks (so yes darker skinned Eldar are very much a thing). You could in theory have Eldar in every colour of the rainbow if you really wanted.
*During the Heresy [[John Grammaticus]] was given a pair of Eldar "scissors", that can cut through time and space (we're going full star vs the forces of evil here), that allowed him to appear near the ruins of [[Hive city|Ababa Hive]] on Terra during the [[Siege of Terra|Siege]]. (What the hell Eldrad, just handing out items that have the ability to cut through time and space like they're candy; what a dick).
*Dire swords are a very interesting addition to the Eldar list of weapons. Created after the Fall, they make use of inhabited Soul Stones in their creation, but only certain stones are capable of being used. If a creature of the Warp attempts to consume a soul within a Spirit Stone and the soul manages to kick the demon out, then the soul becomes completely immune to their touch and is now lethal to the creatures of the Warp. When a creature is hit by a Dire Sword the soul within reaches out and destroys the soul of the opponent; they are weapons capable of coursing True Death to their opponent, be they demon or mortal.
More cynical view could argue that they may have more similarities to dirty mon-keigh than they prefer to admit: namely, they also lost the technologies and/or psychic techiques required for creation or safe usage of these wonders. So, they may have stockpiles of these shiny toys, but if they were to use them, they might quickly run out, possibly also exploding in the process. As shown by the Fireheart, once the Craftworlds were able to get hold of one from the stockpiles of their Dark cousins they were able to replicate it without to much trouble, so depending on the level of the tech we are talking about it could dictate their ability to reproduce it.

The [[Drukhari]] on the other hand still have access to much of what has been lost or hidden away by their cousins, but there are a number of reasons why they utilize such ancient technologies only rarely. Firstly, because of Slaanesh the Dark Eldar cannot function as a psychically sensitive society in the same way that other Eldar do. Therefore, after the Fall those who had made a home within the Webway and would later become known as the Drukhari were forced to completely redevelop and recreate their tech from the ground up using far more mundane and labour-intensive methods. As depraved and loathsome as they are, the Drukhari are a testament to the ingenuity and creativity of this ancient race; the weaponry manufactured within the [[Commoragh|Dark City]] is just as advanced as and infinitely more demented than those psychically grown upon the craftworlds.

Though almost useless to them, the Drukhari very rarely trade items from their hidden, ancient hoards to their Craftworld cousins, and only then at exorbitant cost. Such artefacts include the Fireheart, which causes planets to turn themselves inside out: Valedor actually reveals the original purpose for the Fireheart was as an agricultural tool, used in the reshaping of worlds and the creation of customised solar systems, but could all too easily be turned into a tool of war. Other such artefacts from the days of the old Aeldari empire possess the power to kill stars, to suck the life force from worlds, and/or to exterminate whole races of sentient beings in mere moments. However, the Dark Eldar dare not use such artefacts openly for they would attract the violent displeasure of the Dark City at large should their existence become known.

Consider that the Dark Eldar can make use of mirrors that transport those looking into them into the heart of the nearest sun. They can put Black Holes into small ornate boxes that can be carried around in a coat pocket. They can create pocket dimensions with ease, as with Khaine's Gate, where they simply threw up dimensions for the Daemons to run through, in order to stop them from entering the Dark city (this was a temporary fix until they could fix the problem properly). They are capable of turning their enemies into living wind chimes for their own amusement; they can also turn you into a ring or a fetching brooch, that is not only immortal and near indestructible, but also in constant soul destroying agony, all whilst you are still fully conscious and aware of every horrible thing that is happening to you (don't allow yourself to be taken alive). ''They can steal stars and planets.'' Therefore, a weapon that even the Dark Eldar would keep secret and refuse to employ must be horrifying indeed.

In short, the Dark Eldar are tech-rich but psychically stunted, the Craftworld Eldar see the careless use and overreliance on such technologies as the road to damnation, and the Exodites will feed you to their pet t-rex if you offer them the use of a calculator.

There is another thing to consider: though the [[Imperium]] fights these different factions on a semi-frequent basis, very rarely do they ever find themselves up against any of the true high end stuff; most conflicts according to GW normally go along the lines of [[Guardian|Eldar Guardians]] pointlessly firing upon terminators, doing no damage and suffering horrible casualties in return, which is just stupid when a handful of fire dragons or dark reapers will wipe them out with effortless ease (oh well, we can't have the poster boys actually go up against anything that might hurt them, now can we). Dark Eldar raids for example are more akin to rich kids going on safari (it's much more of a prestige thing, the more challenging the more they can boast to their mates/rivals/enemies when they get back) accompanied by disposable clones mostly armed with weapons ([[Splinter Weapons|splinter weapons]]) designed to immobilise their targets with agonising pain, rather than to kill (in their official description they are specifically referred to as hunting rifles); no point taking the herd species back to the Dark city if they are dead. However when ever one of the more powerful relics are rolled out there really isn't much anyone can do about it.

===Not-So-Dying Race===
You may have noticed that in most of the fluff the Eldar are described as a dying race. However, they've been slowly dying for the past 11,000 years, never seem to mind the heavy losses they take when they lose a battle, and for every one world lost there are a dozen more that pop up. The reason for this is that GW writers have different opinions on what the Eldar's "theme" is. [[Gav Thorpe]], who did most of their older fluff, views them as dying out, and only thinks there are a dozen craftworlds with a dozen million Eldar each. However, [[Phil Kelly]] thinks their theme is "holding on just barely and losses are only minor things, keeping the important stuff" and thinks there are hundreds of craftworlds, with the average housing a hundred million to half a billion Eldar. Humorously, [[Matt Ward]] seems to agree with Phil as the theme of his Iyanden book is definitely "rising through the ashes" (maybe Phil and Matt were sick of Eldar being treated as the galaxy's punching bag in 40K).

What we're saying is: as with the other species, Craftworld Eldar do take the time to reproduce, but the open question is whether they're technically dying out or if they managed to keep a net population growth rate over the 12 millennia or so since Slaanesh came <s>into the picture</s>. If the former, [[Grimdark|an intelligent species is still paying the price for the nuttery of their forebears and will until they're totally extinct]]; if the latter, [[Grimdark|a bunch of racist assholes who hate you (yes, ''you'') are on the upswing]], though all possibility of a total comeback is about on the same level of probability as Nurgle taking an antibiotic bath. Between all the wars and the occasional disaster (like Kher-ys, Malan'tai, Idharae, Iyanden and Biel-tan), one would think the galaxy is waging a slow war of attrition on their species. Fluff describes them going either way (giggity).

According to the 8th edition there are several factions of Eldar:
{|align=center border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0""
|-
|align=center|1. [[Elf|Aeldari]] (The Eldar race as a whole)
|align=center|[[Image: Eldar-Aeldari.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Aeldari-dying race my arse]]

|-
|align=center|2. [[Exodites]] (Amish space elves that ride dinosaurs)
|align=center|[[Image: Amish_space_elves.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Exodites-who needs advanced tech to get things done]]

|-
|align=center|3. [[Slaanesh|++REDACTED++]] cough'''CHAOS ELDAR'''cough
|align=center|[[Image: Chaos-elves.jpg|thumb|right|150px|<s>Chaos Eldar</s>-Come join the dark side, we have <s>cookies</s> DAEMON HOOKERS]]

|-
|align=center|4. [[Craftworld|Asuryani]] (By comparison they can be considered the sensible Elves)
|align=center|[[Image: Crafworld Farseer.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Craftworlds]]

|-
|align=center|5. Corsairs (Space elf pirates who love to have a good time)
|align=center|[[Image: Eldar-corsairs.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Corsairs-Eldar but with more bling]]

|-
|align=center|6. [[Eldar Ranger|Outcasts]] (Rebellious young space elves who want to explore the galaxy)
|align=center|[[Image: Outcasts.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Outcasts]]

|-
|align=center|7. [[Dark Eldar|Drukhari]] (Pray they don't take you alive)
|align=center|[[Image: Incubi_Warrior.png|thumb|right|150px|Drukhari]]

|-
|align=center|8. [[Harlequins]] (Terrifying killer space clowns)
|align=center|[[Image: Harleqin_master.png|thumb|right|150px|Harlequins]]

|-
|align=center|9. [[Ynnari]] (Followers of their new God of the Dead)
|align=center|[[Image: The Ynnari.jpg|thumb|right|150px|The Ynnari trinity]]
|-
|}

==Eldar Corsairs==
[[Image:Eldar_corsairs.jpg|300px|left|thumb|Were Space Elves not enough for you? How about Space Elf Pirates?]]
These guys pop up every so often, though whether they're technically a naval splinter group of the Craftworlds or a completely separate offshoot is still an open question. Most of them are Craftworlders living the Path of the Outcast, though considering Eldar can spend many years away from their Craftworld, many may have been born in deep space as natural-born Corsairs. These Eldar live on ships and space stations until they return to their home Craftworld (if they return at all), and often raid other species' space lanes for plunder, usually in the form of people. Part of the reason [[Imperium|Imperial]] commanders think Eldar are a random, inscrutable force in the galaxy is because they can't tell the difference between these guys, [[Dark Eldar]], or a Craftworld strike force. Confusing Corsairs and Craftworld ships could be forgiven, but your intel must be pretty fucked if you confuse those ships and the ones covered in blades and similar grotesque shit. (Alternate opinion: you forget that Eldar ships use holofields as their defences. When they are not looking like a garbage hauler, they will just be a blur to both the eye and Imperial sensors. Then you factor in that Eldar ship weapons will do very similar battle damage—dark or plasma lance, etc. It's impossible to tell the difference unless you're a Magos working for an [[Ordo Xenos]] inquisitor. Then you need to factor in that Corsairs and Harlequins use BOTH Craftworld and Dark Eldar ships. It would get very confusing, very fast.)

The sequence goes:(in descending order)
*Craftworld
*Outcast - [[Eldar Ranger|Rangers]]; young rebellious Eldar who want to explore the wider galaxy. They also unofficially act as the Craftworlds eyes and ears, out in the wider galaxy. They are often active in war zones long before the Craftworlds Battle Hosts arrive, stealthily softening up the target and sabotaging their defences; there is a reason most Imperial commanders consider fighting Eldar akin to fighting ghosts.
**Rangers can loss themselves along the path of the outcast, becoming what is called a Pathfinder.
*Corsairs - Eldar who have tasted life outside of Craftworld society, and have decided that they like their freedom a lot more.
*Dark Eldar - Corsairs who fall prey to the same weaknesses of their ancestors, will nearly always find their way to the Dark City.

Craftworlds do not encourage their young to take up the Path of the outcast, instead they actively lament their choice to do so. Eldar generations are few and far between and losing even more of their young to the dangers of wanderlust only weakens them further; however they will not stop them if that is the path that they have chosen. They can only hope that they are able to survive out in the wild until their curiosity has been satisfied, and they come back home. Although most Craftworlds do not have much contact with Corsair fleets, others have formed close alliances with some of the more well know fleets, with a handful even becoming hubs of Corsair activity.

The update to IA:11 (7th edition) added ways to play them and some nice fluff as well. The first paragraph states: "An Eldar Corsair is more akin to the Eldar before the Fall than those who now live upon the Craftworlds. Not for them are the highly disciplined paths trod by their Craftworld kin, although many may turn to them once their need to explore the galaxy has be satiated. That is, though, if they have not completely turned in their lot with their dark kin who dwell in the depths of [[Commorragh]]."

The personalities and predilections of each Corsair and the fleets they belong to are harder to group together in comparison to Craftworld and Commorragh groups which, whilst diverse, ''mostly'' stick to the accepted behaviors of their respective societies. Some Eldar corsairs become [[Rage|bloodthirsty]] individuals who fall prey to the same weaknesses that led to the Fall. Yet others may display the greatest compassion for their defeated enemies. Eldar Corsairs can literally be anything they want, from nightmarish Jack the Rippers leaving bloody trails across the galaxy, to Robin Hood-like figures, charming rogues that steal from the rich and... keep it for themselves (they're nicer, not stupid). It says a great deal that the Eldar pirates are sometimes (often?) better people than all the other Eldar... and most members of any other species. They also lack the spirit stones the Craftworlders sport, so their souls are being chewed on by [[Slaanesh|She Who Thirsts]], and for them dying is a pretty shitty prospect. They get along well enough with both the Craftworlders and Dark Eldar, but aren't above kicking some space elf ass for vehicles or whatever. They generally have cool pirate hideouts all over the galaxy. Some even hang out with their [[Exodite|dino obsessed hillbilly cousins]]. Usually, corsairs carefully avoid pissing off the Imperium too much and make sure not to go after anything truly important, mostly because as long as they don't go overboard the Imperium would consider it more trouble than it's worth to send a task force of sufficient size after them. So, ''somehow'' a bunch of spoilt Eldar kids playing pirate for kicks is the closest thing to common sense in the setting. Wow.

Some Corsairs might have spiritstones. But which one of their cut-throat "buddies" is gonna pick it up and carry it with them until the next time they get a chance to visit a Craftworld? Maybe to use as currency for a nice new [[Falcon]]!?

The leaders of these piratical bands are dubbed [[Corsair Prince|Princes]] by the Imperium. Being Eldar and not diving off the deep end of excess is really hard without the strict stuff Craftworlders do. Princes do what they will and generally end up being obsessed with something, almost like choosing a Path that the Craftworlds do, but more self-serving and douchey. Seeing his resolve though keeps his underlings inspired and so they follow him because of sheer badassery.

To give an idea to how influential and powerful a single Corsair prince can be, we can look at the example of the prince that, due to sheer boredom and curiosity, created a world where all manner of Xenos life (including none-Imperial humans) lived alongside each other peacefully. Due to the princes long life he was able to observe the whole thing as it grew from a small settlement, to a Planet wide civilisation; it could almost be called a utopia (he was basically playing the sims, but was actually trying to make things as good as possible for the inhabitants). This didn't last long after the imperium discovered the world, as they instantly went on a planet wide slaughter of every living being on its surface; the prince got away, but not before calling out the marines on their bullshit, and then taking part in some last minute trolling that left the marines very unhappy.

The [[Void Dreamer]] is a very dangerous psyker in the Corsair ranks. They help navigate both the [[Webway]] ''and'' the Warp with Aethermancy, which is risky as hell when you are food item number one for a certain [[Slaanesh|warp entity]]. Though they haven't died from mismanagement of their talent, they don't have the protection the Craftworlder psykers get from strict practices and cool trinkets. This brightly burning power is a beacon in the dark for Slaanesh to focus on. In game this is represented by a unique Perils of the Warp table; the worst result is the psyker being claimed body and soul by Slaanesh and becoming a [[daemon]] of Slaanesh (presumably to kill all his Eldar buddies nearby).

==Chaos Eldar==
[[Image:Inquisiotr Bronislaw Czevak.jpg|thumb|right|150px|Inquisitor Czevak]]
There was a time when Chaos Eldar existed.

When the [[Eye of Terror]] consumed the heart of the Eldar Empire not all those that found themselves trapped ended up being consumed by the newly birthed god.

How they survived is a mystery but it is likely that they either turned to one of the other ruinous powers for protection or they fully embraced Slaanesh like it wanted them to from the start; certain daemons have claimed that Slaanesh truly wants to be "loved" by its parents but upon its birth the Eldar had immediately turned their backs upon it and abandoned it (though daemons are liars and anyone who takes this without a grain of salt deserves what is coming to them)- so we can now add bad parenting to the Eldar list of dickishness (can you imagine how pissed off Slaanesh must be at seeing all the Eldar gushing over its new sibling).

Chaos Eldar, whatever their allegiance, are servants of the Chaos Gods (the info given at the time claimed that they were among the most powerful and dangerous beings at the Gods' disposal; this is of course probably no longer the case, but could be used as a handy excuse to explain away their long absence, as they would be better used as assets within the Great Game rather then pawns battling it out within the material universe) but unfortunately disappeared almost completely from the fluff for a very long time. In recent novels however, such as Gav Thorpe's ''Jain Zar'', we are shown things like Eldar Hippies within the eye who seem to have some kind of hive mind and brainwash people into loving and serving Slaanesh, so they may make a resurgence in the newer fluff. Chaos Eldar are mentioned in the 8th edition.

In the book ''Rise of the Ynnari: Wild Rider'', a [[daemon prince]] that's heavily implied to be of eldar origin emerges on the world of Agarimethea to combat the Ynnari and Necron forces present. A quick excerpt reads as such:

: "The first thought was that a giant aeldari warrior had stepped from legend, a gold-armoured incarnation of Khaine perhaps. Though it stood many times Yvraine's height, the daemon possessed two legs, two arms and an enchanting but otherwise normal face beneath an ancient-styled helm crowned with curling thorn-barbed stems. Slender limbs were garbed in vambraces and greaves; a breastplate adorned with perverse runes of nightmare clasped a single-breasted chest."

The potential model range could be really visually appealing; characters such as the nearly forgotten [[Dechala]] would be a great addition to any Slaanesh army.

==The Black Library==
[[Image: 4th ed-Everguard.jpg.jpg|thumb|right|200px|From the 4th ed codex-the Everguard are possibly an early design of the The White Seers]]
:{{topquote|Though I have seen within the Black Library and spoken to its most terrible guardian, I can never reveal what happened there; not to any man nor even the Emperor himself for I am so forsworn to [[Old Ones|powers beyond your knowledge]]. I can only say that a time of inconceivable horror is about to begin. A time when mankind with all the might of the Imperium cannot endure when the strength of the Eldar fails. Even now, our doom stalks us across the stars.|[[Inquisitor]] [[Bronislaw Czevak|Czevak]] at the conclave of Har}}
The [[Black Library]] is hidden within the secret depths of the Webway and is the repository of all of the Eldar races Eldritch Knowledge.

It is probably the most well protected and best hidden of all the secrets of the Webway (although [[Ahriman|that one guy]] keeps on trying to peek through the windows before being told to "get the fuck off their lawn" by some very grumpy White Seers...and cegorach, with his really bad jokes.), holding priceless artifacts such as the only complete trans-dimensional map of the Webway and countless secrets beyond mortal understanding that have long since been forgotten.

The Library is protected by terrifying Guardians of unknown origin that make even [[Greater Daemon|greater daemons]] empty their otherworldly bowls and by The White Seers who are Eldar seers that dress all in white and apparently eclipse their kin (Eldrad not included) in their psychic might. (Not that this is saying much considering what poor Psykers Farseers tend to be). It's a bit disappointing that if the Black Library does have these guards, that they seem to be missing from any recent stories; virtually no forces but those of the Harlequins and the Ynnari are seen fighting.

The sentinels of the Black Library remain an unspoken secret, yet they are described as the most terrible of all the perils in the Webway and the most dreaded individuals among all of the Eldar kindreds (think of them as possibly the Eldar version of the [[Companion|Custodians]]). Seeing as a small group of Harlequins were capable of infiltrating the Imperial palace, getting as far as the doors to the throne room whilst killing dozens of custodians along the way, the thought that there might exist an even more elite group is scary indeed.

Only a few chosen individuals are permitted entrance, including a handful of human Inquisitors of the [[Ordo Malleus]] who have allied themselves with the Eldar and their fight against the powers of Chaos. Weirdly enough, more humans than Eldar have been shown being admitted, with little to no known Eldar, not Phoenix Lords even, being shown to be allowed in; seeing as the only time we have ever visited the library is when we are following a human protagonist, that's not really surprising.

The emergence of the [[Great Rift|Cicatrix Maledictum]] has damaged the Library, with whole sections falling away into the Warp and forcing the White Seers to seal parts of it away to prevent further contamination and damage.

Strangely, despite being a repository of all knowledge on Chaos and methods through which to combat them, the Black Library itself has almost never provided anything useful at all. Other than the Rose of Isha, which [[Yvraine]] had to find herself, the Black Library has never actually assisted in the combating of Chaos in any significant manner at all. That said, most of said information is so corrupting in itself that [[Grey Knights|anyone who isn't totally pure]] is more likely to fall to Chaos than to fight it upon learning it, making questionable the purpose of the Library as it has barely ever yielded any useful information for anyone and even [[Eldrad]] has chosen to give over deadly Chaos Artifacts to the Imperium rather than surrender them to the White Seers, which either represents a strong indictment of their capabilities or, considering this is Eldrad we're talking about, is an enormous compliment of their skills. What a [[dick]].

Overall, for the most part, the Black Library is fairly useless. Why Ahriman is so interested in it is an open question, seeing as he can already move through the Webway as effectively as any Eldar have been shown to do.

*Jain Zar-The Storm of Silence shows the White Seers commanding archaic engines dedicated to the destruction of She Who Thirsts. Their arcane machines looked more like abstract works of art than weapons, but they sent out beams of coruscating power that disintegrated daemons with but a touch and scoured forth pulses of cleansing fire. It baffles the mind considering no one is supposed to read the library and the said weapons can annihilate demons with a pulse, the guardians aren't taking any more active role in the galaxy like some fantasy fiction guardian with no purpose.
*We are also introduced to a nearly empty Library that has something called Guardians protecting it; they take the form of slender statues, each half again as tall as Asurmen, of smoke-grey silver metal. They were featureless, their faces slender inverted triangles with shallow depressions to denote where eyes would be. Their hands and feet were pointed blades that sparkled in the silvery light. The statues were impossibly balanced on bladed limbs, and although what they are capable of is not revealed, even the Phoenix Lords were subdued by their presence. The sole living Eldar still in the Library had no concern that the Phoenix lords would dare cause any trouble since the Guardians had allowed them access. They give off the same unnerving feeling that GORT from the 2008 'The Day the Earth Stood Still' remake does.
*Gav Thorpe was asked about the nature of the [[Solitaire]]s, his response was "Within the Webway there are beings that are neither of the Warp or Realspace, that were created by the collapse of the Aeldari Empire. These beings are feared by mortal and demon alike. Examples of these beings are the Black Library Guardians and the souls of the solitaires". This may be something similar to the creation of the [[Mandrakes]]- survives of the Fall that have gone to extreme lengths in order to counter the effects of the birth of the dark prince.

==Eldar-Human Hybrids==
{{Heresy}}
{{Oldschool}}
[[File:Banshee.jpg|right|350px|thumb|Say what you want, but their women are hot as hell.]]
According to Rogue Trader fluff which is a bit over three decades old (and has almost been entirely retconned out of existence), humans and Eldar once had a common ancestor (which doesn't make any sense since the Eldar as a race are far older than humanity, by at least 60 million years). There was a theory back in the day that both races were creations of the Old Ones (or the C'tan successfully made humans similar enough to the Eldar). This apparently made it possible for both races to interbreed and produce viable offspring. For example, it was said that [[Illiyan Nastase]], Chief Librarian Astropath of the Ultramarines, was part Eldar. This is of course [[HERESY]] and GW has, in a rare case of good judgment, rightfully chosen to ignore this character's existence. Illiyan Nastase would later be overwritten and replaced by a new Chief Librarian of the Ultramarines, [[Varro Tigurius]], in the more current fluff (likely because of his unusual affinity for psychic powers). In a surprise appearance a character sharing the same name features in Dawn of Fire: Gate of bones; the character is a Farseer chosen by Eldrad in order to travel and aid the Ultramarine's (apparently Eldrad has had a cordial working relationship with Guilliman even before his long stasis nap, alongside Vulkan, that's at least two Primarchs Eldrad is on good terms with currently).

'Confirmed'' human/eldar hybrids no longer appear outside of fan works, such as the cute little bugger [[Lofn]] from the fan comic [[Love Can Bloom]].

More recently the Black Library novel ''The Chapter's Due'' has as a minor character Kaarja Salombar the Corsair Queen. She's variously described as "... beautiful, with palm skin and warm almond shaped eyes of striking violet... there were some who said there was Eldar blood in her veins" and "... more than a hint of inhuman Eldar to her lithe frame, and a wild mane of azure hair flowing around her shoulders". She also bags at least a trio of Ultramarines and nearly slays [[Cato Sicarius]] before getting picked by the Ultramarines 2nd Company standard, which should make her a bit of a hero to the various Ward haters. It also makes clear she is no Eldar, as GW would never allow one of their big named Space Marines to nearly get beaten by an Eldar, nor would they ever show an Eldar being such a successful fighter. Like that time a few eldar slaughtered a bunch of Custodes in a mad rush to reach the Golden Throne and supposedly deliver a message to the emperor. Although, that is utterly unbelievable, so... (since when have the ultra-elite clowns with magic assistance been unable to put down a few bananas without a psyker among them? For shame!)

As usual there is no "confirm or deny" about any unusual heritage for a character who existed in a single novel, no part of which was ever told from her perspective and who died without a single line of dialogue. [[Grimdark]].

Nowadays if it was still possible for Eldar-Human hybrids to be born, they would be born in [[Commorragh]] (basically take the Scriptural cities Sodom and Gomorrah, all the worst aspects of 16th century Port Royal, 19th century Singapore, Las Vegas and Mos Eisley spaceport, and throw in extra helpings of pain, rape, scum, villainy and wretched hive-ness, and there ya go). What did you think the Dark Eldar used those slaves for, making pie or HERESY? (Both). The other options are, well like Kaarja Salombar above, among the Eldar Corsairs, pirates and outcasts. Bit like the Dark Eldar only with some standards.

On the other hand, according to the [[Paths of the Eldar|Path of the Outcast]], Eldar have markedly heightened olfactory senses and given their infamous state of inflated self-regard for an Eldar to naturally create a hybrid that would be the equivalent of a human screwing a dog and then hoping for puppies. In either case the pregnant female would likely regard the impending pregnancy with at least incredible disgust or utter xenophobic horror. Said child would ''then'' be hated by Humans for being the incarnation of the idea of genetic impurity and likely shunned by any Eldar for being a "lesser" by nature. [[Grimdark]]. If you read the section directly below this one another bit of horror rears its head: Eldar need to combine their DNA several times over the course of a pregnancy for the baby to be brought to term. Fine and dandy if you are assuming a mutual relationship. Less so if you consider the [[Rape|alternative]].

On the other hand, their sense of smell might filter out the worst of scents simply due to how keen it is (to keep them from distraction/insanity) and the appearance of humans might be seen as features that make men stand out as different from the eldar males’ universal appearance. Human women at least are indeed strongly attracted to those whose appearance sticks out, even when most men would think the features are a turn-off. This might even apply to scent in a caveman like way. And a civilian eldar might be more than a little impressed by the small, frail Guardsman who just beat a daemon to death with a knife and sheer absolute willpower attacking its Warp nature. Without a War Mask or decades/centuries of training.

Naturally fa/tg/uys, being essentially romantics, see things in a less insistently hateful light, and Lofn, Liivi, and Taldeer manage to thrive. [[Noblebright]].

==How alien is alien?==
[[Image: Wych by miyaashina-db6s95v.jpg|thumb|right|200px|]]
[[Image: Dark eldar guard.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Due to the atrophy of their psychic powers, the Dark Eldar tend to be physically stronger.]]

:{{topquote|They were taller by far than most of the men present, and thin. Janus was reminded of the low gravity dwellers on Talus's Wheel - the thin, sickly ones too weak to move in anything like Earth-normal gee without an exo-skeleton - but when the strangers moved he put that thought aside. Not even the bulky cloaks could hide their grace. They did not so much walk as flow over to his table. Their movements had a liquid smoothness that was more cat than human, and put him in mind of a large predator. If a devilcat had taken on the shape of a man it might have moved like that. He was all but hypnotised by them as they flowed up to him. Suddenly they were just there, looming over him.|Farseer, ''William King''}}

Pretty damn alien.

Don't be fooled by their anthropomorphic appearances. Eldar may look like unnaturally tall and slender humans at first glance, but are actually entirely alien. (Look, just go with it. -GW)

* The Eldar are similar to humans in body structure: they have a torso, two arms, two legs and a head upon their shoulders. They are tall, standing around 2 meters (6-7 feet) in height with longer, leaner limbs and elegant features with penetrating, almond-shaped eyes and pointy ears. [[Macha]] the Farseer from the [[Dawn of War]] series has a canon height of 2.20 meters.
* Eldar have an entirely different natural gait from humans. Their movements radiate an inhuman elegance and an almost feline-like grace. This is evident in their fighting styles and the dexterity with which they wield their weaponry.
* Eldar senses of sight, hearing, touch and smell are many times greater then that of a human.
* Eldar are extremely long-lived; their average lifespan is over a thousand years. Eldar psykers, particularly Farseers, can live even longer. ([[Eldrad|Eldrad Ulthran]] is 10,000 years old and still going, although he is turning into living crystal) and [[Asdrubael Vect]] is older than [[Slaanesh]].
* Eldar may develop some fine lines and wrinkles as they get older, but they do not become decrepit the way humans do.
* They live at a pace and pitch of intensity many times greater than even the most exceptional humans.
* Their hearts beat almost twice as fast as a humans though half as strong each beat, their minds process thoughts and emotions with baffling speed, and their physical reactions are almost too fast for the human eye to follow.
* All Eldar can manipulate mental energies, but such raw mental power has its price. To an Eldar, all of life's experiences are available to a heightened degree: the intellectual rewards of study, the exhilaration of battle, and every imaginable pleasure or sensation. This potential for joy is paralleled by an equal capacity to feel despair, anger and even hate (which is what their War Masks are for). No creature, not even the Eldar, can taste such rich fruits in an [[Slaanesh|uncontrolled or undisciplined]] way without [[Fall of the Eldar|consequence.]]
*The Eldar experience a much wider spectrum of emotion then humans do, they can still feel mildly amused or frustrated the same way a human would but when it comes to the upper limits of what a human can feel, the Eldar emotional scale goes even further. Imagine the saddest moment of your life, the most miserable and wretched you have ever felt, then double it.
*Eldar are able to experience the world in a very different way to humans; not only are their regular senses, such as sight, smell and hearing many time stronger then humans, but they also have additional senses, much as a shark can see electric fields. The Harlequin in Throne World for example is able feel the memories of the dead forests that had been carved into the dusty furniture within the palace, and the sickness of the world itself; the Eldar in question is disgusted by how horribly the population of the world have treated their mother planet (bloody hippies).
* Eldar skulls demonstrate unusual bone texture and their teeth are outgrowths of the jawbone.
* Eldar bones are far lighter than human bones. The texture and formation suggest solidification from some form of liquid. Complex joints and 'fused' portions retain flexibility and durability (some form of organic resin). There is no marrow analogue but the internal cavities are packed with fibrous channels of unknown purpose (possibly delivery of free-moving lymph glands).
* Their ear tips are packed with nerve-endings and are [[An Eldar's Ears|erogenous zones.]]
* Their skeletal structure is densely packed with a muscle-like analogue with fibres that have a spiral structure similar to a coiled spring. These muscles surround the complex columns of intermeshed segments; the entire structure suggests enormous elasticity and tolerance to movement. This physiology supports high-speed manoeuvrability.
* These 'muscles' are tightly packed and are more effective than the muscle fibres found in humans. Although they may not bulk up in the same way as humans, they are actually physically stronger pound for pound than humans.
* They have no body fat or analogue. (It doesn't seem to stop the females from having breasts though. Guess they really are superior beings).
* According to FFG in Deathwatch: Rites of Battle, a close to 7ft tall, fully armored Eldar warrior tips the scale at about 60kg or 132.277 pounds; the same weight as a 5'7" human.
* Their ribs form fused 'wings' arching from an elasticated spine.
* They possess a flexible bony 'plate' like a second ribcage beneath the abdominal muscles.
* Their inner organs are vaguely human analogues, but they demonstrate a complexity and aesthetic 'tidiness' that is just unnatural. They have pulmonary muscles that work like a human's lungs with temperature regulators (twelve, along each internal wall) and detached lymph-glands (free moving?).
* Their digestive and renal systems are just as complex as their other organs. There is no peristalsis, chemical enzymes or digestive fluids (it is unknown how digestion takes place). Waste seems 'crystalized' and is odourless (yes, we're not making this up, they actually shit diamonds).
* Eldar conception occurs over an extended period of time and requires additional genetic material from the partner or partners at preordained stages throughout gestation (there is no chance of a baby from a one night-stand).
* The Eldar brain has multiple lobes, extreme density of cerebral matter, various unknown ganglia and central ridged organs. The fundamental structure of their brains resembles humans' but are far more complex and have additional layers of an unknown composition (stratum).
* Eldar DNA has a quintuple helix structure (instead of a human's double) and twenty chemical bases instead of humans' four. Their cellular arrangement distorts in response to examination as if rearranging their chemical code (transmission of information). They may be able to edit their genetic code in some fashion- in a similar manner to a Cephalopod editing its RNA (Ribonucleic acid); given that they don't seem to suffer from any form of cellular degradation; their genetic make up is so rock solid and stable (unchanging), it brings into question how they could possibly be able to adapt and change physically to changing environments or situations (evolution/adaptation), wouldn't they hit a genetic brick wall at a very early stage? and simply not be able to deal with all those harsh speed bumps that nature will inevitably throw their way? it could be that they can edit their genetic code when needed instead of needing to evolve their bodies over a period of time; such as adapting their bodies to deal with either bitter cold or burning heat without any trouble at all (have you ever read about an Eldar showing any form of discomfort due to extreme temperatures?; they wear the same skin tight gear whether fighting in frozen hell holes or hellish burning deserts). There were rumours that at some point the Eldar could adapt themselves to aquatic environments- although it doesn't go into detail on how this played out (maybe something similar to the [[Idoneth Deepkin]]); this may be another of those locked away abilities that are mentioned from time to time (potentially linked with one of their dead/lost gods). This could explain why the Dark Eldar are actually universally physically bigger, stronger and faster then their Craftworld kin, despite them being genetically identical (to make up for them choosing to allow their psychic abilities to atrophy).
* The Eldar enjoy lives unsullied by illness, frailty or disease.
* They appear to have complete control over their nervous systems and bodily functions (some form of passive [[Psychic Disciplines|Biomancy]]), such as consciously shutting down the nerves in damaged parts of their bodies or mentally forcing a wound to close and the blood to congeal faster to prevent bleeding out (Harlequin-The Inquistion War).
* Given time and further psychic manipulation, they can regenerate any bodily damage that they might have suffered (this includes regrowing entire lost limbs, similar to a reptile losing its tail).
*The Eldar physical condition can be heavily effected by both their mental and spiritual condition. When sad or depressed they can be seen, by observers, to physically "age", however they will quickly regain their vitality once they have pulled themselves back together; in a similar fashion, when focusing their rage and determination they can in fact grow in strength and power. When walking the path of the warrior an Eldar will develop a War Mask, allowing the Eldar to fully commit themselves without doubt or hesitation; this along with the spiritual influence of Khaine, seeing as his power is now flowing through their veins, means an Eldar warrior will be physically stronger and faster than they would be if they were walking a more civilised path; Khaine's influnce only grows stronger the closer they are to the Avatar. The Dark kin appear to physically wither the longer their souls are drained away, but quickly return to their prime upon "topping up" their tank.
*Though most Eldar do not formally develop their psychic abilities, all of them make use of telepathic and empathic communication.
*Taken as a whole, their physical makeup echoes their fall. Requiring complex chemicals to satisfy their digestive system and gene structure means they probably didn't colonize as freely across the universe as humans can; the more complex an organism is, the more time and care must go into its creation. The Eldar pay the price for their advantages, having far longer gestation periods, and requiring multiple stages of development to bring a Child into existence. It also takes them a long time (around a century or so) to finally reach physical maturity; this would go towards why the Eldar never really had a massive population (by galactic standards); when you are a nearly immortal being without any needs or wants, why the hell would you want to put yourself through dealing with a stroppy Eldar teen for forty odd years or more (human teens are bad enough)? You would think that needing to tap into psychic channels to maintain their bodies would makes them inherently vulnerable to the predations of the Warp; however, their potential origins presented in 'Wild Rider', which puts forward that the Eldar were intended to battle and contain incursions by Chaos (which to be fair they did for 60 million years or so pretty well) would explain why they are actually highly resistant (it still happens but is very rare). And when every quirk has the potential to become a mania, and every maniac can live for ten of thousands of years, the Eldar tend to just accrue [[Eldorath Starbane]]s and [[Goge Vandire]]s as a matter of course; this also works the other way around of course, and you could end up with the very opposite of the previous two mentioned (these are more of the extreme examples, but yes, it will happen at least a few time given enough time and the right circumstances).

==Skub Time!==
[[File:Eldar_Chinese_Beard.jpeg|300px|right|thumb|Eldar cosplaying as a [[Cathay|Chinese Warlord?]] [[Heresy|HERESY!]]]]
It has long been stated by many a fa/tg/uy that the [[Tau]] are [[Weeaboo|Japs]] in space while the Eldar are Space Chinese in that they had a more established civilization as old as the beginning of history itself, with a fucking complicated language and philosophy. Some history/culturefags strongly dispute this assertion as being simplistic and inaccurate, as the Chinese language is marked by relatively light grammar and high syllable-information density, as well as one unified set of logographic symbols (that mostly have one pronunciation). Japanese has low syllable-information density and has a sophisticated agglutinative grammar structure, like Korean, and also possesses two syllable-alphabets in addition to utilizing Chinese characters (often with multiple readings). To add to the language debate, Only War describes the Eldar tongue as 'tonal', something that is a prominent feature in the Chinese language, and is not present in Japanese. So if FFG are to be trusted, the Eldar speak a language more similar to Chinese than Japanese. Just don't ask why the Eldar religion is sorta Hindu (India) and the Tau religion is sorta Buddhist, the only difference between East and Southeast where you haven't been and where you'll never go.

The problem in this comes not just from language, but fundamentally more on how their ideologies and society is constructed. A problem with this idea is that the Tau philosophy of the "[[Greater Good]]" is practically derived from Confucius, who lived in China, while the Eldar's divisions between Aspect Warriors and Guardians can be better compared to those between Japanese samurai warriors and ashigaru peasant conscripts. Linguistically and ideologically, the Tau draw influence from Confucianism combined with post WWII Chinese-Communist culture. The Eldar is admitted by Games Workshop as being openly modeled on Japanese culture (possessing Japanese-style robes and wielding katanas and shurikens into battle) combined with space Ancient Greece (complete with the togas and the complete hubris that brought them down).

It should be noted that even Gav Thorpe, who was there at the development of both armies recognized that they were both influenced by Anime (https://gavthorpe.co.uk/2017/06/26/the-origins-of-the-tau/):

>And with them were the Tao (later Tau, now T’au) based on the underlying concept of the five elements I had originally come up with for the Shishell. I had kept my hand-typed reams of background and pencil sketches and persuaded the rest of the team that it was worth a punt, marrying some of the background to the idea of a more modern army, mecha-themed force (as opposed to the far more organic anime influence in the Eldar designs).

Then again, any debate on [[Weeaboo]]ism in 40k lore is meaningless because the argument is corrupted so much that anything fa/tg/uys or 4chan residents do not like can be labeled with the term once they have found something about it that vaguely invokes anime tropes... such as, for example, the [[Imperium]]'s extensive use of [[Titan|gigantic overpowered mecha]].

Seeing as they're visually very obviously inspired by the Romani people, about whose culture nobody on /tg/ knows anything and would rather die (or spend another three hours arguing which flavour of east asian they want to think they are) than bother to research, it's something of a moot point anyway.

The moral of the story is that no major race in 40K is based on a singular culture (except maybe the Orks who are cockney/football hooligan stereotypes down to the bone marrow) and insisting on referring to any of them as ''space-x-ethnicity'' only makes you look like an idiot who doesn't really get the setting.

===/tg/ Feelings on the Eldar===
[[Image:Banshee_x_Tau.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Elfdar vs. weeaboo: whoever loses, we win.]]

The Eldar's arrogance and penchant for [[Just as planned]], paired with their being used as the defenders of the status quo (see below) [[Dawn of Eldar|and the blatant favoritism they seem to get in any work featuring them]] (with some exceptions, such as if they're fighting Imperium Space Marines), have caused them to be the single most-''hated'' race by [[/tg/]]. Yes, more than the [[Necrons|space zombies]] and [[Tau|weeaboo space communists]]. Part of this stems from the fact that they are a hit-or-miss army, much as their [[Dark Eldar|counterparts]] were in the last edition. When they work, they work amazingly; when they don't, they tend to [[Fail|fail]]. [[Reasonable Marines|Some argue]] that a lot of the hate has been due to them being insufficiently [[Orks|Orky]], which, if true, is [[/pol/|RACIST]]. It doesn't help that in the crunch, Craftworld Eldar have a bit of a history with having rather overpowered rules or codexes. This hasn't been the case with recent editions; with the rise of Space Marines mid-8E and early 9E combined with the neutering of the Ynnari and with the uninspiringly mediocre 8E Craftworld codex (a few solid or cheesy builds, but a rather large swath of price inefficient units and nothing blatantly overpowered), [[That Guy|power gamers]] have more or less allowed these Space Elves to fall out of sight and out of mind.

Thankfully, some of the hate has recently started to abate, and this has everything to do with the fact that the Eldar seem to have become the whipping boys of [[Games Workshop]]. You know they hate you when you can't even win in your own codices. Also, almost every victory they get nowadays is a Pyrrhic one. Indeed, the precious few bits of focused fluff that comes out about the Craftworlders rarely provides [[Advancing the Storyline|any genuine progression]], with whatever gains made by the eldar faction quickly being stripped away or tempered by extreme casualties or MacGuffin bait-and-switches that more or less invalidates the entire story in question. [[Matt Ward]] especially enjoys his crusade against the Eldar, with Avatars dying in almost every codex the guy's written, and if not that then expect similarly one-sided defeats for the Eldar. The Irish goblin [[C.S. Goto]] had a hate boner so hard for the Eldar that he did everything he could to make their race into fucking terrible awful clowns, such as but not limited to: torturing Eldar characters in the most gruesome way he could possibly describe for pages and pages and pages, making them incapable of speaking the human language, making them need to steal IG vehicles because their vehicles are terrible in comparison, and literally having human children destroy an Eldar grav tank by throwing rocks at it, then having them rape and kill the commander with a stick. This is not a joke.

[[Gav Thorpe]], on the other hand, will fight to the death to write about anything starring the Eldar, because he just loves the elves (enough to stop them from losing in their own codex, so he's a much better kind of fan than Phil Kelly in this regard) and it's more or less agreed that he's really the only one who can portray them totally accurately since he is the Eldar expert. However, a sizable number of the older 40k playerbase [[Rage|hate]] Thorpe for turning [[Exarch|Exarchs]] into watered-down [[Space Marine]] sergeants and other travesties of fluff. Eldar are also noted to have a major Asian influence, most notably from [[China]], with their martial arts, yin-yang symbol, phoenix and dragon worshiping, cultural pride and philosophy. Pre-1945 Japan factors in as well, with an infantry standard weapon called the [[Shuriken Catapult]], their belief in racial superiority and their ideas about being direct descendants of gods. So all in all this means that the Space Elves are the 40k equivalent of [[Cathay|East Asia]]... huh.

===Eldar as Defenders of the Status Quo===
[[Games Workshop]] is well-known (read: <s>notorious</s> infamous) for using the Eldar as a gigantic fiat that everything remains exactly as it is (which is to say, in a state of imminent-but-not-quite-here-yet disaster).

It must be noted, however, that they aren't the sole custodians of this. Necrons, pre-update, used to be pretty bad for doing this, and the [[Tyranid]]s in general seem to exist to [[Squat|eat GW's mistakes]], but both of those can be written off as the fault of the armies themselves, since the Tyranids exist only to consume biomass, and the pre-5th edition Necrons just wanted to kill everything. In short, whenever something needs to be [[Tyranid|eaten]], [[Necron|destroyed]], [[Khornate Knights|turned into armour paint]], or [[Tau|involve the interplanetary equivalent of poking an electrical outlet with a fork]], GW uses one of the other armies. But when a situation calls for things to remain exactly as they are, the Eldar, traditionally, get the call.

Thankfully, this is no longer the case, as the Eldar are at least partly responsible for the massive shakeup that was 8th edition. Basically, Biel-Tan is gone, the Eldar have a [[Ynnead|scary new god]], and one of them does the impossible and revives [[Roboute Guilliman|Rowboat Girlyman]]. So much for status quo. That being said they did it during the Gathering Storm events and their actions prevented an ultimate Chaos victory and stirred the setting back to the state of (you guessed it) imminent-but-not-quite-here-yet disaster.

After the events of the Gathering Storm, Eldar storyline progression can only be summed up as stagnant. As mentioned before, the Ynnari hasn't really accomplished jack since they helped wake Guilliman from his power nap. Every step towards an awakened Ynnead they take, they pay for it in so much blood that it's a surprise [[Khorne]] hasn't tried to claim them as his own yet. A majority of the Craftworlds are still extremely hands-off in regards to the Ynnari and rarely ever offer them token support even if they share an immediate goal (like the defense of their own [[Saim-Hann|Craftworld]] from an awakening Tomb World). Some are even borderline hostile towards them. [[Commorragh]] is still in a state of complete [[Chaos|chaos]], with [[Asdrubael Vect|Vect's]] faction wanting Yvraine dead and bickering with [[Lady Malys]] over control of the city. Whenever any large, multi-faction gatherings occur to discuss potential long-term alliances, a [[Drazhar|big]] [[Shalaxi Helbane|bad]] shows up and spoil the mood so hard that negotiations break down and nothing comes of the meetings.

==Current Events==
[[File:Eldar_Oneechan!.jpg|300px|right|thumb|"[[Dawww]]! What a [[Shota|cute, defenseless little Mon-Keighs you are!]] Don't worry, thanks to [[Roboute Guilliman|Robby's]] new friendship, Onee-chan can protect you from those [[Inquisition|mean, nasty people!]]" (weirdly, if their war masks were removed this might not be inaccurate)]]

With the partially awakening of [[Ynnead]] thanks to [[Eldrad]]'s ritual, [[Yvraine]], [[Visarch|The Visarch]], and the [[Yncarne]] are now gathering all the branches of the Eldar under one banner in order to "save" the galaxy (and more importantly the Eldar race from [[Slaanesh]]).

Eldrad proposed the idea of allying with the Imperium of Man to finally defeat Chaos once and for all. Even if the other Eldar weren't exactly thrilled by the idea of becoming best buddies with the Imperium, they still reluctantly agreed that they are still the best of a bad bunch, what with the other options being either the [[Orks]] or [[Tau]]. Said races were either too "young" (translated as "too naive and inexperienced to truly face the forces of Chaos"), primarily in the latter case, or simply too uncooperative and uncouth to be allied with (meaning that manipulating them from the shadows would prove more fruitful). And so Yvraine traveled to [[Macragge]] in order to provide the Imperium with a leader that could pull the shit show together and actually make it a worthwhile alliance (read: hasn't experienced ten thousand years of being backstabbed and status quo by Eldar and so is unlikely to purge them at the drop of a hat), culminating in the resurrection of [[Roboute Guilliman]]. Thus the old "defenders of the status quo" proceeded to set the wheels of story advancement in motion, at the risk of further reducing themselves to nothing but a group of proxies for the Imperium. Extra lulz when you remember the Imperium is not inexperienced in manipulating or out-dicking the Eldar, so the spelves were close to being Imperial puppets anyway.

The opening of the great rift, and the overflowing of the Warp into the material universe has had a profound effect on the powerful psychic race. Even those that do not develop their psychic powers are seeing their psychic potential leaking out in many varied ways; The Eldar are developing/rediscovering abilities that were unknown/forgotten to them before, such as Banshees', finding the wind itself fighting alongside them, and Scorpions developing a naturally accruing invisibility. As the Warp continuous to bleed through into the material universe, what unforeseeable effects will the Great Rift have upon the Eldar moving forward?

:'''''"Once long ago we damned the galaxy.'''''
:'''''We thought we knew all there was to know, We believed the winds of fate blew at our beckoning whispers.'''''
:'''''Pleasure and enlightenment were our twin birth wrights, until our poisonous vanity ignited the stars.'''''
:'''''Since that day we have lived in fear of she who thirsts, the Goddess that swallows our souls.'''''
:'''''Yet there is a new melody in the Galaxy's great song, a harmony unheard by my people for over 10 thousand years; hope.'''''
:'''''I am the first to hear the voice of the whispering god, I will not be the last.'''''
:'''''Once long ago we damned the galaxy with a birth of a Goddess, now we shall save it with the birth of a God."'''''

==Rebirth of a Pantheon==

::''Never trust a god.''
::''You can be certain of one thing, if anything. Gods order the universe to their design and nothing else, and you can be sure that your wants and needs feature little in their agenda. For the Aeldari, distrusting gods is in their nature, having been abandoned by one pantheon of godheads and destroyed by the birth scream of a deity forged from their own wanton excess. Such experience breeds caution if not outright contempt.''
::-''Rise of the Ynnari- Ghost warrior'', [[Derp|blaming gods for the consequences of the Eldars’ own actions]].

As the story continues to move forward could we see the return of a small Eldar Pantheon? With the confirmation that there will be at least four daemon Primarchs for Chaos and at least four returning Loyalists Primarchs it would make sense from a balance perspective to have four different Avatars to counter. Of course, this would not be a true counter; as powerful as they may be, Avatars are just not as powerful as a Primarch, and although they stand a chance of defeating one, it is still very unlikely. The Avatars at present represent a shattered god and a god that has yet to be fully awakened, so it is not unsurprising that they are not as powerful as they would be if the gods that they represented were fully whole and awake. However seeing as Avatars have the unlimited re-spawn cheat, defeating one means absolutely nothing as they can simple rematerialize after a given time and continue to fight, which is something a Primarch can’t do... except for Vulkan. However, strategically it matters as in the time before it can be resummoned you can take an advantage of its absence. [[Awesome|Also, the Death Specters Chapter’s final test to become Astartes is to die, by ingesting poison, and will themselves back to life. A Primarch most definitely could do that if a mere Space Marine can; although they are only able to to this due to being in the presents of the creepy as fuck throne like mechanism, of unknown origins, at the heart of their Chapter monastery (I SMELL HERESY).]]

*[[Ynnead]] is already running about. To counter [[Slaanesh]]
*[[Khaine]] reformed with a more powerful Avatar that isn't the laughing stock of the entire 40k community (unlikely). To counter [[Khorne]].
*[[Isha]] freed. To counter [[Nurgle]].
*[[Cegorach]] playing his shadow games. To counter [[Tzeentch]].

Now it could just be a very weird coincidence that the last remaining Eldar Gods appear to be mirror images of the four Chaos gods but as we know there is no such thing when dealing with the Warp.

It's conspiracy time ladies and gentlemen:
Could it be that the Chaos gods and the Eldar gods are two sides of the same coin and that what happens to one also affects the other?
It has been asked why the sign for Chaos is an eight sided star when there are only four Chaos gods; well what if there had been more but they no longer exist (likely contenders could be [[Malal]] or one of the [[Chaos God of Law]]). And yes, the Gods of Law are specifically called "Chaos Gods" of Law. And since we know at least some of the Elves' gods from Fantasy battle exist in 40k and the intro to 40K says the Emperor rules "by the will of the gods"...perhaps there is hope still in a way (then again, Tzeentch is the '''God of Hope''').
*The Talismans of Vaul/ Blackstone fortress look suspicious like the eight pointed star of Chaos even though they are supposedly of Eldar origin.

Before the Fall and the birth of Slaanesh there were eight main Eldar gods 1.[[Asuryan]] 2.[[Cegorach]] 3.[[Isha]] 4.[[khaine]] 5.[[Vaul]] 6.[[Lileath]] 7.[[Morai-Heg]] 8.[[Kurnous]] and an unspecified number of lesser and minor gods, for example, two of the lesser gods are called Hoec and Gea. The Minor Gods include the so called Dark Muses, who may have been originally mortals who obtained godhood. It seems rather strange that you actually end up with eight greater gods, one for each point of the eight pointed star. The Phoenix Lords are referred to as demigods, so we end up with at least four tiers of divine beings within the Eldar Pantheon, Demigods (beings like the Phoenix Lords, that haven't fully obtained godhood, but are well on their way), Minor-Gods (possibly Mortals that have obtained godhood; you could even think of them as something like daemon princes), lesser-god (potentially something similar to the Aelven Pantheon in [[Age of Sigmar]]; [[Malerion]], [[Teclis]], [[Morathi]] etc) and greater-god. Eldanesh and Ulthanesh may have fallen into the Lesser-god tier, as Eldanesh was able go toe to toe with an unshattered Khaine, although it is made clear that Eldanesh knew that he could not win this fight.

What if when Slaanesh consumed most of the Eldar pantheon the Chaos gods that acted as their doubles were also destroyed alongside them. This would go a long way to explain why Nurgle interfered and saved Isha and why Khorne fought to save Khaine; they were saving their own arses (except for Tzeentch as Cegorach had already escaped, so there was no need to interfere).

The remaining Chaos gods have each in their own way protected their counterparts in order to save themselves and have grown bloated with power as a result of the now smaller group of gods (essentially they are now getting a larger piece of pie as there are fewer people to share it with).

The only one without a direct double was Slaanesh, but with the creation of Ynnead that has all changed.

For what ever reason it would appear that Isha may be becoming more active. When The Great Unclean One known as Rotigus rambles from one maiden world to the next upon the Eastern Fringe, he causes the worlds to rot. The masques of the Frozen Stars appear and fight their way to the site of the planets’ world-spirit shrines, were they perform dances of such startling beauty that all who see them are moved to floods of tears. As the Aeldari weep, the rains falling from the skies transform from diseased filth to cleansing waters that glow like moonlight. Wherever these purifying monsoons sweep over the landscape, the power of Nurgle is undone and the corruption reversed. Rumour spreads through the Exodite tribes that it might be possible that their combined sorrow might somehow, eventually, be able to release the goddess Isha from her imprisonment within Nurgle’s foetid manse. Basically the more you kick her kids the more determined she is to break free and kick your ass.

Rise of the Ynnari- Wild Rider raises the possibility that when the Great Enemy attempted to devour the aeldari gods, not all were consumed, and that if Khaine was shattered into the avatars of the Bloody-Handed then other fragments might have survived. A piece or pieces of every god scattered throughout the aeldari, born again and again into mortal form just as the souls of the aeldari themselves. Yvraine ponders that Ynnead is, in a way, the incarnation of Isha, Morai-Heg and Lileath summed, what if the croneswords were the means, not the end? That perhaps the fifth cronesword would not be revealed to her until the reborn pantheon of old had been assembled.

Possible members could be:(note there may be more than one for each god)
*Yvraine - Ynnead’s aspect of the moon. the mortal incarnation of Lileath?
*Eldrad - The Eye of the Fates Unseen. Could he be the Crone?
*Meliniel - Now Kaela Mensha Khaine’s greatest avatar and bearer of the actual blade Anaris. Khaine for obvious reasons.
*Indraesci Dreamspear - the Harlequin, the embodiment of the Laughing God. Cegorach. Lady Malys is also a possibility, what with her now having Cegorach crystal "heart" within her body. Or of course there is also Sylandri Veilwalker; can't count her out.
*Iyanna Arienal - The symbol of her craftworld was the flame of Asuryan.
*Hoec - one of her current companions. Kurnus? Illix Nightspear is also a real possibility too.
*Gei - another of her current companions. Isha?

In addition, an insight into the true nature of the relationship between Slaanesh and Ynnead is hinted at, which may potentially hold some serious ramifications for any story moving forward. It would appear that Ynnead was the one that was meant to have be born to the Empire of old, but its birth had been corrupted and twisted to the point that Slaanesh was the one that burst into divine being instead. Slaanesh may well have had a hand in its own creation, with the Cults of pleasure paving the path for their master to come into foul existence. If true then Slaanesh and Ynnead are truly twin Gods/Goddesses, with Slaanesh being a horrifically twisted version of Ynnead; or perhaps they are actually two parts of a single whole, two imperfect sides of something far greater than either one individually. Ynnead may very well be a "redo" for the Eldar, a chance to correct the mistakes and sins of the past; even if they all die they may in death find their salvation.

Or, the two interacting will go full grimdark “Oh, shit” for everyone. Because [[40K]].

How this plays out, if at all, will certainly be interesting. Maybe the cloned/resurrected Fulgrim will gut Slaanesh and become the Phoenix King a la Asuryan.

==Relationship with the Imperium of Man==
:{{topquote|Make no mistake mon-keigh, we do not fight for you, or for your corpse-Emperor. We are allied here today because destiny has seen fit to bind our fates together. We do not relish that our futures are intertwined, but if you would live to see another day, then you will do as I say. Order your soldiers to cease firing their primitive artillery upon the ridge line, for it is there the Asuryani warhost will arrive. My kin will drive the tainted ones back towards your lines, where you would do well to be prepared. And please, above all else, stand downwind from me.|Beac-dair, Ranger of Alaitoc, liaison to Imperial forces}}
[[File:Eldar Human interactions.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Pretty typical interaction between the two]]

The relationship between humanity and the Eldar is complicated to say the least, varying dependent on sector, the local culture (of both parties), the specific needs of each side at the time of contact, and (at least partially) undisclosed fluff concerning human-Eldar relationships during the [[Dark Age of Technology]].

Due to the variability of these factors, the Eldar are one of the only races for whom there's no consistent pattern of relationship with the Imperium; they can be hated enemies and invaders, desperate allies against a greater foe, marauding pirates, begrudgingly necessary trading allies, and everything in-between. For every Imperial world sacrificed to save the lives of a handful of Eldar, for every grand scheme orchestrated to dick over the Mon-Keigh and put them in their place, another world is saved by their timely intervention or an Inquisitor made aware of the existence of a terrible threat by their warning. Where the Blood Ravens go to war with them at one time, at another the Grey Knights return the salvaged spirit stones of Malan'tai to Iyanden and lay the Craftworld to rest by way of a solar viking funeral.

During the [[Great Crusade]] the official policy of the Imperium, as mandated by the Emperor, was to kill Eldar, and individual attempts to contact them by Primarchs such as Fulgrim were protested by their men as breaches of Imperial policy. This could be seen as a (very warped and twisted) justified course of action during this time given the numerous human worlds ravished throughout and after the Age of Strife. Although there are no actual records of any Eldar being involved in these actions there was still Eldar radicals, who during the twilight centuries of their empire sort out conflicts among the primitives, as a form of entertainment; then there's also the proto-Dark Eldar who were already doing what they do so well, so there is a lot of room to play with; also potentially the first appearance's of something similar to the Corsairs, formed from those seeking out a more thrilling form of entertainment (ultimately these potential incidents are down to the actions of individuals, not the Eldar dominion itself). Also, the Emperor would no doubt have been fully aware of what causes The Fall and probably deeply hated them for the Age of Strife as well as concern that the Eldar species existing would keep empowering Slaanesh. Remember that he had a very poor understanding of Chaos at the time; although it has been mentioned that both Eldrad and the Emperor had known each other, although they had some kind of falling out, so lots of room to play with there. Earlier lore stated that the reason the Emperor waited so long to Launch his crusade, was that he needed for the Eldar to fall from their position of dominance in the galaxy, if they were still a galaxy spanning superpower then his crusade could never succeed. The Craftworlds themselves, although they would have no need to come into conflict with humanity over resources, as they are completely self sufficient, may have come into contact with the expanding human realms during their exodus; these interactions may have been humanity primary source on contact with the Eldar species. What ever actually happened during the Age of Strife, whenever they encountered each other during the Heresy and beyond the inevitable always happens, such as the time when the Salamanders, Iron Hands and Death Guard sought to rescue the enslaved human population of an Exodite World. It turns out that the Exodites had rescued and sheltered the human population from raids by their Dark kin. After realising their mistake did the Imperials seek out a possible peacefu- nope, instead they slaughtered the human population, seeing them as having been corrupted by their xenos companions and turned the world to ash. Lorgar also encountered a fledgling Craftwold during the Great crusade, he was invited aboard as a guest where they discussed, among many other things, the nature of the warp and its dangers. Lorgar and his legion then thanked them by killing them all and reduced their home to rubble. Which is unsurprising given how “my thinking is bestest” Lorgar was/is. Then again, one must remember that the Humanity was recovering from a horrid period of downfall, where they found themselves assaulted by both aliens and humans alike. The realms of Humanity consumed themselves, and due to the horrors humanity experienced during this time humanity become something far less them what they had been. The result of such dickish behaviour, whether it be inflicted by others or entirely self inflicted, was the roots for mankind becoming outright genocidal towards everything nonhuman. We are not saying that it was right or wrong, just that it was natural, due to situation at time. Lorgar thought that they had nothing to offer as they had been the catalyst for their own fall from grace, and given that the Emperor had standing orders to exterminate the Eldar, who would trust them about things related to the Warp after they broke reality? well it's called hindsight and learning from experience, sometimes learning from someone else's mistakes can actually be useful in not doing it yourself.

In a wider perspective, the Eldar-Imperial relations is a case of each side using each other for their own ends. The Eldar manipulate humans (and everyone else in general) for their own survival, they'd happily put human lives and worlds to the torch if they needed to avert some grave threat like an Ork WAAAGH or Tyranid fleet, but also aren't completely above saving said lives and worlds if it meant it'd be a more efficient way to keep them around. Likewise, humans would scream "[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3jt5ibfRzw burn the witch]" the moment they see the Eldar due to xenophobia and well because the Eldar don't exactly have a great track-record with the Imperium, but more open minded and/or pragmatic individuals aren't above making a truce with the Eldar if it meant stopping a common enemy (like say, the forces of Chaos). For example; the Grey Knights returning the soul stones of the Malan'tai craftworld is better than destroying them since that would do nothing but royally piss off the Eldar and empower Slaanesh, plus it also be used as a bargaining chip with the Eldar during negotiations, something valuable when trying to broker a fair deal with an utterly egotistical race who see you as mere animals. Of course as humans are an equally egotistical race who see all other races as beneath them in the setting (While Eldar considers other races to be a vermin, humans actually TREAT other races like vermin, which includes, *ahem* '''''Routine Cleansings''''' (T'au were candidates to this, but unfortunately for everyone, they survived, proving yet again that the Imperium's extremism is very much justified)), both groups are on equal footing here.

There are lots in common between the Eldar and Mankind, more so perhaps, than any side would like to admit. This also includes being responsible for the crapsack world that they live in. Both are psychic races and therefore much responsible for the happenings in the warp. While the Eldar have much more effective and skilled psykers, the most powerful ones are associated with humanity, either through unknown and deliberately obscure methods such as the origins of the Emperor or warp crafted abominations such as the Primarch Magnus. This also means that their actions have led to the empowerment of malign forces in the warp: Eldar due to their collective sins and Mankind for generally being untrained retards and [[Magnus|arrogant smartasses who think that they know better]]. So both have their fair share in making things worse for everyone, including themselves. To put it simply, although neither race will ever trust the other and they're theoretically at war, they still share by far the most in common with humanity out of any of its competitors. Against the pressure of a cold and hostile universe, both sides are, at times, willing to pretend just for a second that they could put aside their differences and be allies. Extra irony points that Eldar and humans that work together for extended periods of time often end up with mutual respect for each other and even friendship. Which might even be part of why both groups avoid that as much as possible.

Since the events of the Gathering Storm, however, the Ynnari have managed to forge an alliance with the Imperium. Admittedly, this isn't a formal alliance so much as a tacit acknowledgement that neither of them can afford to waste time killing each other with the Ruinous Powers on their respective doorsteps, but it gets the job done more often than not. Some of the Craftworlds such as Ulthwe have followed suit, again with the justification that aiding the lesser races will improve the likelihood of them returning the favor in the future. While the space elves aren't happy about it any more than the Imperium would be (if it was known to the Imperium as a whole and not just a few individuals within it), they are slowly coming to terms with the fact that they have no choice but to swallow their pride to survive. Eldrad in particular is pushing for a genuine, full-fledge and permanent alliance between humans and the Eldar, believing that there are darker times just over the horizon, and that if the two species don't work together against this dark future then both species will perish.

TL;DR: In the current time period, being two of the most arrogant, egotistic and xenophobic races in the galaxy, where one sacrifices millions of innocent others to save a few of their own and another is exterminating millions of innocent lives and entire planets on a nearly daily basis, Eldar and Humans get along with each other quite well 40k. Perhaps because they're the only factions out there doing terrible things to survive whereas everyone else is doing it because they are either naive and greedy, stupid and blindly aggressive, insane, sadistic, or just plain evil. Also because the two species have far more in common to the point of hitting uncanny valley, than either side would like to admit. (Yes, this includes being responsible for ruining everything for everyone with birth of Slaanesh and Horus Heresy respectively.)

Perhaps the dick put it best:

:'''''‘You wish to be free of the influence of my kind, You see the armour as a gaoler holding you hostage to our whims. Know this – the fates of humanity and aeldari are bound together. Either both species will survive, or neither will. Your Emperor understands this. There are greater enemies than the primordial annihilator. In the times to come, you will see. The struggle is only beginning. The old war returns. Remember this conversation, and reconsider carefully, on the day realisation comes, whether you wish to stand alone.’'''''
::-Eldrad Ulthran speaking to Guilliman, ''The Armour Of Fate''.

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Not to take away from what has been mentioned above but the Eldar as a whole don't actually ''hate'' humans; they may see them as lesser beings, but they still see them as being people despite the commonly held belief to the contrary. Characters such as Lyanne have expressed that although she finds humans to be [[The Fall|brutal]] and [[Dark Eldar|disgustingly violent]], she just can't bring herself to hate them as they could still be better (and it’s not like the Imperium gives its people a good environment to become diplomatic); she has gone out of her way to save at least one human world from the Tyranids even though it earned her the attention and enmity of the Hive Mind itself. Eldrad himself has even admonished Exarchs for expressing too strong a negative view of humans; for every potential action that has cost the Imperium, he has also saved it, such as during the War of the Beast, when he created a calm path through the Warp that allowed the forces of The Last Wall Protocol to safety reach Terra in time to defend it. As mentioned the Craftworld Eldar, as a whole, don't actively hate humans. For most Eldar their feelings run from complete indifference to mild curiosity; some may go as far as to feel sorry and even pity for the state humanity now finds itself. This of course will differ from individual to individual and faction to faction, as should be expected from a species spread so thinly across the galaxy.

There is a clear distinction that the Eldar make between the likes of humans and Orks. The killing of Orks is considered something closer to pest control, the exterminating of a very dangerous and violent plague upon the galaxy (something the Orks might be proud to be called); the death of humans however is considered to be the killing of a fellow sentient being (lesser sure, but still considered to be a person whose killing can still be called murder and apparently matters enough to be potentially traumatizing to Eldar lacking a War Mask). However it is also this distinction that has earned the humans the dubious honour of being referred to as ''mon-keigh'', as the Orks actions are more like a force of nature; it is who they are, as opposed to humanity who have a choice, but have through their deeds and actions earned the title. Many mistakenly believe that the term Mon-Keigh literally means monkey (it was always meant as an in-joke for the reader), but the most accurate modern word that portrays the meaning behind the phrase is 'Nazi'; just change the word to Nazi, and you get a better understanding to the true meaning and feeling it expresses. Unlike how the Imperium calls every Eldar a "Xeno" not every human is strictly a Mon-Keigh. A better phrase might be "Imperial" because the word is targeted at the ignorant and violent mindset the Imperium breeds in its citizens. If anything, the Eldar tend to be on good terms with and helpful toward non-Imperial humans (when interacting with them at all, if ever) until the Imperium inevitably rolls in and murders everyone and brainwashes the rest. Wonder how the Eldar feel about that, if anything.

When the Eldar take action within the wider galaxy it is always to achieve a specific goal or task; this can take the form of preventing an object of importance from falling into the wrong hands, preventing the immediate loss of Eldar lives, or setting up future events to better protect what remains of their kind. Once they have achieved their objectives the forces assembled will leave and return to the Craftworld of their origin.

These actions are almost never done with the notion of violence for violence's sake, as most Craftworld Eldar have a very negative view of Khaine's work (his very domains putting war with murder and no concept of honor being part of it), with many of those who have walked the warrior path considering their actions during this time nothing short of murder, especially when they end up peeking behind their War Masks; when they confront what has been locked away behind their Masks, they are horrified by what they have done in order to protect their species from the dangers of the galaxy.

Like with most things, the idea of painting a whole species with the same brush is ridiculous. For every Eldar that demonstrates the more negative tropes there are just as many who demonstrate truly good and heroic traits, such as the Harlequin who refused to leave the humans enslaved within an Ork encampment, freeing them from their cages despite the action costing precious Eldar lives, or characters such as Asurmen who has become a legend and saviour-like figure among alien species across the galaxy including many imperial worlds spanning the entire breadth and length of the Imperium.

Even Biel-Tan (who are viewed by most other Craftworlds as something akin to xenophobic zealots) will still follow, when dealing with Maiden Worlds, the common practice of giving an official warning to anyone foolish enough to settle on one, and are even known to help evacuate the human populations who are sensible enough to listen by placing them in suspended animation on their own ships in order to move them to a different habitable world. This implies human populations agree often enough to be worth the effort and that the Imperium doesn’t execute them for it unlike almost any other alien interaction.

Official Imperial diplomats have even been periodically granted permission to live aboard Craftworld Iyanden for a time (there may have also been an Inquisition base in that Craftworld), where they will be hosted by an Eldar Familym, such as Ieldan Soecr (from the 3rd edition) who spent time on [[Iyanden]], even writing a book about her time there. Grease Monkey of the Last Chancers earned his place by stealing the transport of an Iyanden ambassador currently visiting an Imperial world, which indicated it was both public, no fanfare and therefore probably pretty common, and unguarded which indicates a great degree of trust and routine to the visit. The Eldar actually make use of diplomacy when they can (though actual official diplomacy such as the above is solely done by Craftworld Iyanden), such as when an Imperial governor got his hands on some soul stones that currently held the souls of dozens of Eldar, turning them into a fancy piece of jewellery. The Eldar sent a diplomat to get them back, however like in most instances of dealing with the Imperium, the governor didn't listen and instead had the diplomat killed in order to add another shiny stone to his collection. This of course didn't end well for him as the Dark Kin are said to have given extra careful attention to his care. The irony is that if the Eldar didn’t get him first, the Inquisition certainly would have been a tad upset about using alien artifacts, let alien souls, as jewelry.

The interaction between the Imperium and the Eldar becomes especially complicated when you start looking into the different factions of Eldar currently at large in the galaxy. This is further complicated by the fact that the Imperium very rarely ever listens (the idea of a mind too small for doubt is very appropriate here), usually with the excuse that aliens alway lie even when they are actually telling the truth. This state of mistrust usually has the Imperial forces constantly expecting a sudden betrayal, which normally ends with the Imperium turning on their so called allies before they themselves can be betrayed.

This is not to claim that the Eldar are the "good guys"; no one in the setting is, although there are no "good guys" there are still "good people" to be found on all sides. The Craftworlds are just as capable as anyone else of committing actions that could easily be considered evil (even if born out of necessity), but within 40k are guilty of nothing the likes of the Imperium, are not also equally guilty of; to try and claim either have the moral high ground is just funny, and a prime example of the pot calling the kettle black.

If the go to claim against them is that they are "arrogant" then that's pretty good going by 40k standards, as that can also be equally applied to every other faction in the setting as well.

An important thing to keep in mind is that any interaction heavily depends on how well informed the individuals involved are. Inquisitors and rogue traders are known to associate with members of the Eldar race, many having in some way earned a "life debt" from the Eldar involved; the Eldar will honour this Life debt until it has been repaid in full, with many of these bonds developing into genuine friendships, such as in the audiobook ''Corsair'' where every time the crew was about to enter a dangerous situation the human captain would tell the Eldar corsair that he was free to leave, as she had already freed him from his debt a hundredfold already, to which he simply replied that it wasn't up to her when the debt had been paid. The Ordo Xenos in particular have an oddly close relationship with the Eldar (some would say heretically close), and entire navigator houses are known to owe great debts to the Eldar species. Even the Grey knights have shown an oddly close working relationship with the Eldar, going so far as to stand guard over Soul Stones until the Eldar are able to retrieve them; they actually seem to work better with the Eldar then they do with other forces of the imperium. They have even helped the Dark Angels in their hunt for the Fallen and were actually the ones who stood guard over Luther's black blade; until an interrogator chaplain stumbled upon it, thinking it to be the Lion sword; it was then returned to the depth of the Rock and locked away safely (short story the "black pearl").

Although the official policy of the Imperium is to hate and despise Xenos, those at the very top are more inclined towards actions that would see anyone else burned alive, due to it being in their best interests to keep the masses ignorant and blindly dogmatic, instead feeding the public nothing but Imperial propaganda to better control their thoughts and minds, whilst at the same time making backroom deals with the very people that they are telling the citizens of the Imperium to hate and loathe (just like in real life then).

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==Play Style==
[[File:EldarVehicles.png|500px|right|thumb|The Orks may actually be on to something with that red paint...]]
As a general rule, the Eldar are a fast army of specialists. Each unit is engineered for a particular style of fighting but is nigh useless outside of that assigned role. For example, Dark Reaper squads (currently broken) are known to cripple, if not wipe out completely, entire squads of Space Marines in a single volley. Conversely, they are incapable of moving and shooting (but now they can, [[Lulz|lulz]]) and are comparable to [[Imperial Guard|Guardsmen]] in close combat ([[Tau|though they don't wear wet cardboard boxes for armor]]). Usually, everyone in an Eldar squad has the same gun and the squad as a whole aims for one goal, as opposed to squads of dudes each toting a different gun for a different kind of foe. This can help new players by not forcing them to keep all of a squad's weaponry in mind, but it also requires you move the right squad for the job to the right place, which can be tactically challenging. An ill-positioned Eldar squad has a greater chance of doing nothing than those of other armies. Some units, like Jetbikes, overcome this disadvantage with superior speed and mobility. This is huge in a game where most of the missions are about capturing objectives. If you are the kind of elf who likes it when a plan comes together, you might be tactical enough to lead the Eldar to their victories upon the battlefield.

With their new, updated codex, the Craftworld Eldar are given a firm footing in the game to compete with or dominate their numerous foes through their increased special abilities, units’ tactical applications and general ability to put shurikens into things and make those things fall down. The newer codex makes units even more points-efficient in doing their jobs. Tactical blunders will see your army turned into rainbow confetti, but if you can get the right part of your Eldar army fighting the right bad guys, you can ruin Christmas every time.

Eldar are almost universally Fleet, pack high Leadership, high Initiative and good overall stats (apart from defenses, with some notable exceptions, such as Wraith constructs), their accuracy is good, their special abilities are rich and useful and their armies need never run the same trick twice. Prior to 8th edition, their Battle Focus ability let them choose to take a run action either before or after shooting, for free, a benefit that allows them to become more mobile than the competition by far. These days, their Battle Focus simply allows them to advance with no accuracy penalties on non-heavy weapons, a notable nerf to be sure, but still a very usable perk that ensures your infantry and bikers can still run faster than everyone else and still land their shots. Almost all of their vehicles are skimmers or flyers; those that aren't can Deep Strike or outflank; and they have three different flavors of jump troops and fast-as-hell Jetbikes. Eldar look good when they fight and often kill their enemies in style.

Although they have a somewhat justified reputation for being "OP", it's a bit more complex then it looks at first sight. The Eldar have for the duration of most editions of the game enjoyed a position among the more powerful codex's, alongside others such as the Space Marines; a position that many such as the Orks or tyranids would love to be able to claim. This reputation normally takes the form of one or two units in each edition vastly overly performing whilst the rest of the codex ends up being a bit rubbish; this leads to Eldar players spamming the same units over and over again. For example, whilst the majority of the codex in 7th was decently balanced, a small handful of over performing units tainted it for everyone; [[Eldar Jetbike|Jetbikes]] all armed heavy weapons as troops, [[Wraithknight]]s being at least 70-100 pts too cheap and the abundance of D-level weapons ruined what was a mostly well put together codex.

In summary, when an Eldar army is functioning as it should, it is difficult to stop. For this reason, opponents hate them. On the other hand, the army falls apart if their specialized units are outside of their element (Dark Reapers in a fist fight or Howling Banshees in a shoot out, for example) or fail to get the first strike in. They are devastating if they set up, and terrifying if allowed to stick around, but the presence of '''one''' [[Manticore Rocket Launcher]], [[Whirlwind Artillery Tank]] or [[Defiler]] can collapse an entire Eldar battle line should the space elves not fight with care and foresight. Or go second.

With the coming of the 8th edition the Eldar have experienced some rough waters (there won't be many who will shed any tears over this); although they met with initial success with the likes of the combination of Dark Reapers and the 'Strength from Death' rule, most of their special rules from previous editions that they relied on to keep them on par with marines have been stripped away and many of the changes to the core rules, such as the loss of initiative, restrictions to Psychic casting and changes to how WS and BS work have left many units (especially melee units) far weaker then they have been for a longtime (Howling Banshees especially have become a complete burden to anyone brave enough to try and make them work).

As 8th has continued to progress the Eldar army has seen a shocking transformation, turning from a small expensive army of specialized elites to an expensive specialized horde army. This added to the continued process of taking every unique unit within the Craftworld codex and handing them wholesale over to the Imperium (and, of course, the Imperial versions are both cheaper and stronger than the originals) has left a nasty bitter aftertaste. Primaris Marines in general have led Space Marines away from the general Jack-of-all-Trades flexibility that formed the bread and butter of old marines in exchange for dedicated, specialized units that have few (if any) special weapons that differ greatly from the rest of the standard squad (a parallel borderline identical to Craftworld Aspect Warriors). This has become even more apparent with the coming of 9th edition and the introduction of Primaris Marine Eradicators, Space Marines armed exclusively with suped up Meltas who excel at devastating heavy armor (literally Space Marine Fire Dragons, only with ''much'' better rules for virtually no difference in cost) and the Pteraxii Skystalkers, Adeptus Mechanicus flying infantry armed with very shooty rifles and mortal wound dealing grenade packs (Skitarii Swooping Hawks, but of course better in every regard). Ironically, specialization is terrible for both groups anyway as specialization in a group is feasible only for large numbers, which is also how civilizations grow. Both the Eldar and Space Marines are very small, especially the Marines. Which means specialization for either is foolish. Even though the Eldar are still numerous by modern standards, they're not when compared to the enemies they face and the necessities of survival out in the void would also encourage a jack-of-all-trades approach much like Astartes.

Note: although not much can be done from a competitive game front when it comes to casual play the community can still work together to try and makes things less uneven. No one wants a situation where an army is shunned because of factors beyond their control, it's not the players fault. Have a couple of games to see what works or what doesn't, talk with your local games group and discuss what can be done to make sure the experience is an enjoyable one; no one wants any player to not get to use their new goodies but perhaps Marine players, for the time being, wouldn't mind ignoring their Combat and Super doctrines whilst playing against none marine lists for an example. This is not to single out Marines, but a general rule; don't let foolish rule choices by GW course unwanted tension between different player factions, talk to each other and decide what sort of compromise's can be reached, that can ultimately benefit both sides involved.

The 9th edition codex is beginning to feel a bit like a patch job, in that, at some point they had a working codex and then went back and started to add in additions that made certain rules almost worthless, to the point that you begin to wonder what was the point in having it in the first place, and rules written in a way that proves that there was little actual proof reading going on. Until we get the full picture we can only speculate, however there does seem to be some redundant elements to the codex, but again that's kind of expected. Overall the codex looks like it might end up as a high mid tier army (potentially low A, but the codex isn't anywhere near S tier), which is not a bad place to be. Most things in the codex are pretty good with a handful of things being a bit too costly for what they do, but again that's always how these things work out. Give it a few more weeks of actual play for a clearer picture, but a few points cost changes might be all that is needed going forward (a few rules may need to be cleared up, we all hope that GW will get on this ASAP).

==Lameness, Courtesy of Games Workshop==
[[Image:End of the line.jpg|400px|right|thumb|Hm, a dead Eldar. I wonder what GW is peddling in this picture? The Space Marines, the creek, the forest perhaps...? Gotta be something.]]
Eldar recently were dethroned as the punching bag of Games Workshop. Until the most recent codex (Newcrons), the Eldar suffered repeated and humiliating defeats. Every single defeat involved overwhelming odds in favor of the Eldar, with gigantic [[wraithbone]] constructs and [[Khaine|burning shards of war gods]] being overwhelmed by [insert faction GeeDubs is trying to sell this time]'s broken pinky finger.

Let's make a list here:
*''Fulgrim'' - Big Eldar force including a fucking Avatar and Wraithlords is killed by a small detachment of the Emperor's Children (the Avatar is strangled to death by Fulgrim because he's distracted by his glowy Laer blade. I'm not making this shit up.)
*''Codex: Chaos Daemons'' - Aside from being a nifty reference to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ys Ker-Ys/Ker-Is], an Avatar is possessed by a Keeper of Secrets and helps wipe out a Craftworld.
*Codex: [[Tyranids]] - Avatar issues a challenge to the Hive Tyrant leading the assault on Iyanden. Apparently it doesn't work and it literally gets stampeded to death by 12 Carnifexes. What the fuck. (To be fair, it is 12 [[Carnifex]]es and the Avatar took four down with it.) Oh, and Farseer Kelmon dies, despite neither the Avatar nor Kelmon dying in older iterations of Iyanden's invasion. Oh, and the Doom of Malan'Tai [[Fail|singlehandedly eats an ENTIRE CRAFTWORLD]].
*''[[Matt Ward]]'s Cornucopia of Wank'' - From the Avatar getting his chest punched in by Papa Smurf, other hilarious things like Wraithlords being killed by Sergeants and god knows what, Matt Ward's Necron Codex featuring a [[Eldorath Starbane|fucking retarded Alaitoc Farseer]] who fucks over every engagement he commands and gets 'captured' in the White Dwarf issue, I don't even know where to start.
** Ironically, Ward is also the only one who writes the Eldar being badass, including a bit about Biel-tan beating two whole Imperial sector fleets and ten Space Marines chapters. It seems that only his love for his Ultrasmurfs can surpass his compulsion to make the Eldar actually, y'know, even remotely competent.
* [[Dawn of War: Dark Crusade]] has the Blood Ravens wipe out all of Taldeer's distractions and then kill her, with [[Azariah Kyras|their heretical Chapter Master]] gaining a fancy new piece of bling by taking her spirit stone ([[LCB|or perhaps she escaped and Kyras only managed to kill a body double, depending on who you listen to]]).
* In [[Dawn of War: Soulstorm]], [[Vance Motherfucking Stubbs]] wipes the Ulthwe forces on Kaurava III out wholesale and used his sheer manliness to make Caerys join his harem.
* [[Dawn of War II]] has the Eldar farseer acting like a complete and total ''DUMBASS'' from the moment you take control of Force Commander Hairgel/Aramus. While things started off good with the Eldar making the Orks and Space Marines do the work for them, Farseer [[Idranel|Ree-t'ard]] then decides to antagonize the Blud Rehvens for literally no reason, resulting in a total of 11 marines, 3 scouts, and a dreadnought killing somewhere in the ballpark of <s>hundreds</s> thousands of Eldar and a fucking avatar.
* ''Imperial Armour 11: Doom of Mymeara'' (which sounds like a Playschool TV show puppet - way to go on the Craftworld name GW) - Again, droves of Eldar in the midst of snotting Imperial Guard and Space Wolves from here to Jupiter, somehow get their collective arses handed to them. This is achieved by some fresh out of training/wet nosed/"tea bagging my comrades for the Emperor is my past time" IG commander, pulling a victory out of his chocolate starfish - with collective precision that makes the Dome of Seers predictive foresight look like your average crystal ball psychic con artist.
* The Battle of Orar's Sepulchre: Seeing yet another Avatar of Khaine die and the combined might of both the [[Alaitoc]] and [[Iyanden]] Craftworlds defeated, with death tolls so high that the Space Marines create barriers out of the enormous mounds of Eldar dead
* Yme-Loc raided: The Craftworld with the explicitly most powerful vehicle force of all Craftworlds getting bitchslapped by the Mechanicum who land on it, beat it up and raid it at their leisure. Although considering the AdMech tends to whip out whatever supertech they need when they need it, this might be forgivable as it was a smash-and-grab.
* Alaitoc's near death: Despite being one of the five most powerful Craftworlds, Alaitoc is almost completely outclassed by a small Imperial Crusade including only one Chapter of Space Marines in support.

(And let's not forget that all of these instances are pretty recent fluff, from 4th-5th edition.)
Case in point, when [[GeeDubs]] needs to give some character or unit or faction some street cred, they just go "he killed an Avatar, so that's good enough." As if the prevailing logic wouldn't be; "gee, if so many things can kill the Avatar, isn't it kind of a lame thing to kill anymore?" Regardless, GW sucks at writing decent fluff (with [[Phil Kelly|a]] [[Dan Abnett|few]] exceptions).

Fortunately, the new punching bag has been changed to the [[Tau]], who for reasons uncertain, don't seem to mind the change of pace- ''Uh, don't you mean Sisters of Battle? The ones who, you know, not only die in droves, but usually at the hands of their own alleged allies?'' No, we mean the Tau. The ones with two traitor legions gunning for a portal into the heart of their territory and the species that retardedly infected one of their worlds with Gene-Stealers to see what would happen. Eldar still lost most times they were mentioned in the codex, though.

This also had the effect of making many people turn away from them. If nearly every story about Eldar is "they tragically die in drove in a heartwrenching defeat/Phyrric victory" , it tends to be too bleak for anyone to keep caring after a while, not to mention boring. Plus no one wants to keep reading about how their favourite faction are constant losers.

From a lore prospective GW seems to not realise that the Eldar are, truly, horribly, and totally outnumbered by every other faction (yes, that includes the [[Tau]]) in the setting- by truly insane numbers. Each Eldar alive would have to kill tens of thousands for every Eldar life lost, to even come close to reaching anything that could be considered an equivalent level of loss; the Imperium alone outnumbers each Eldar alive by something like ten's of millions to one. Which is why depicting the Whole "Dying race" trope, by showing them getting mowed down in their thousands, really doesn't work, and only goes to show how pathetically weak the Eldar are as a named faction; they literally can't even be called a minor irritation by any of the other factions.

The loss of a Craftworld is something momentous, there are probably less then 500-800 Craftworlds out there, so the loss of one is vastly more impactful on the Eldar then it is for the Imperium to loss a world or system. A single Imperial world potentially holds more lives on it then multiple Craftworlds combined (there Is probable more Marines then there are Aspect Warriors in the galaxy, as Gav had the Aspect Warriors in the Path series, outnumbered by the forces of a single chapter; apparently one of the big named Craftworlds can only field around a thousand warriors in its defence)- so although the number of lives lost to the imperium is greater in number, the effect on the Eldar population is catastrophically greater in impact; having Craftworlds getting wiped out left and right, which is the new trendy thing to do apparently, really does not take into consideration the true ramifications of doing so; the Imperium always has more worlds, the Eldar do not have that luxury. Not saying that they shouldn't get destroyed or invaded, but it needs to be a much bigger deal then it is currently, and the cost of doing so should be suitable very high.
If in a single conflict the Imperium lost one million lives, and then a single baby is born on each Imperial world, they will have replaced those numbers within the first 10 seconds of the conflict. Those babies will be able to fight for the imperium in just over ten or so years, compared to the Eldar, were it takes over a year to even create a new Eldar life within the womb, and then the century or so that it takes for the child to eventual reach maturity, it doesn't matter how much more powerful or advanced they are compared to humans, unless they can kill tens of millions for every Eldar life lost, its an impossible task for the Eldar to ever enter into a conflict and actually claim they have won; they may achieve their objectives, but they still lose.

It used to be that the Eldar would be able to, through the use of seers and carful planning, achieve victory with, ideally, not a single loss of life- this of course was thrown out the window as GW has a growing fetish for killing as many Eldar as they can; did you know that during the 'Gathering Storm', they had thousands of Eldar get killed by a single slash from a Keeper of Secrets tongue, not joking, they really got licked to death.

==Notable Eldar Characters==
{|align=center border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0""
|-
|align=center|'''Name'''
|align=center|'''Origins'''
|align=center|'''Allegiance'''
|align=center|'''Description/Current Status'''
|align=center|'''Image'''
|align=center|'''Model'''
|-
|align=center|'''[[Eldrad|Eldrad Ulthran]]'''
|align=center|[[Craftworld Ulthwé]]
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center|Saviour of the Eldar. Former High Farseer of Ulthwé. Amongst the greatest and most powerful of the Eldar Seers. A [[dick]].
|align=center|[[Image: 450px-EldradThroneworld.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image:EldarEldrad-old.jpg|thumb|150px|]][[Image: EldradModel.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''[[Yvraine]]'''
|align=center|[[Craftworld Biel-tan]]
|align=center| Ynnari
|align=center|Emissary of Ynnead. Herald of the Eldar God of the Dead. Helped bring Guilliman back into the game. Wields the Crone Sword Kha-vir the Sword of Sorrows.
|align=center|[[Image: Yvraine.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: Yvraine-Emissary-of-Ynnead.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''[[Visarch|The Visarch]]'''
|align=center|[[Craftworld Biel-tan]]
|align=center| Ynnari
|align=center|The Sword of Ynnead. The mortal champion of the Eldar God of the Dead and Yvraine’s bodyguard. Bad at his job. Wields the Crone Sword Asu-var the Sword of Silent Screams.
|align=center|[[Image: Visarch.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: Visarch2.gif|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''Autarch Meliniel'''
|align=center| Craftworlds
|align=center| Ynnari
|align=center|Yvraine's top commander, made his first appearance "Ghost Warrior: Rise of the Ynnari". After the Ynnari deafeat the Warshard (a more pure incarnation of Khaine) he absorbs it and is transformed; he and the Warshard become one, and he can now Hulk out, and become an all new and improved super-Avatar of Khaine. It is still an Avatar of Khaine though, so don't expect much.
|align=center|[]
|align=center|[]
|-
|align=center|'''The Yncarne '''
|align=center| The Infinity Circuit
|align=center| Ynnari
|align=center|The Avatar of [[Ynnead]]. The physical manifestation of the awakening Eldar god of the dead. Wields the Crone Sword Vilith-zhar the Sword of Souls.
|align=center|[[Image: Ynnead2.PNG|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: Reveal2.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Avatar of Khaine]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center|The Avatar of [[Khaela Mensha Khaine]] (also known as the Bloody-Handed God). The physical manifestation of the Shattered Eldar God of murder, War and Fire. Memetic loser.
|align=center|[[Image: Khaine End Times.png|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: EldarAvatar01.jpg|thumb|150px|]][[Image: New Khaine model.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Asurmen]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center|Asurmen, the Hand of Asuryan. Was the first Phoenix Lord and founded the Dire Avenger Aspect and the Path of the Warrior. Before he became Asurmen he was a bit of a lazy slacker who didn't take anything seriously.
|align=center|[[Image: Asurmen Cover Art.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: 99800104025 AsurmenNEW 01.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Jain Zar]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center|Jain Zar, the Storm of Silence. Was Asurmen's first student and loyal companion. She's the founder of the Howling Banshees Aspect. In her youth she was very similar to [[Lelith Hesperax]].
|align=center|[[Image: Jain zar by Kai Lim.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: 99060104006 JainZarNEW 01.jpg|thumb|150px|]][[Image:Jain Zar 2019.png|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Baharroth]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center|Baharroth, the Cry of the Wind. Was the founder of the Swooping Hawks. Noted by Asurmen as the best of all his students. Baharroth's final death will come during the [[Rhana Dandra]] where his final sacrifice will bring about the ultimate salvation of the Eldar.
|align=center|[[Image: Bahharoth2 7th Edition.png|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: Baharroth.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Karandras]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center|Karandras, the Shadow Hunter. The Phoenix Lord of the Striking Scorpions but not their founder. He started out not as the pupil of Asurmen but of Ahra.
|align=center|[[Image: What a badass.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: 99800104022 KarandrasNEW 01.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Fuegan]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center|Fuegan, the Burning Lance. The founder of the Fire Dragons and the patron saint of overkill. Culling the enemies of the Eldar one by one until their deaths form an unbroken chain of retribution stretching across the universe. Using this chain Fuegan intends to bind the Dragon at the end of days and that it will be Fuegan who calls the Phoenix Lords for the [[Rhana Dandra]] were he will be the last to fall.
|align=center|[[Image: Fuegan 6th Ed.png|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: 99060104029 FueganNEW 01.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Maugan Ra]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center|Maugan Ra, the Harvester of Souls. The Phoenix Lord of the Dark Reapers. He is one of the most OP characters from a fluff prospective but sadly not from a table top one. Before he became Maugan Ra he was (if you can believe it) a mild-mannered librarian and caretaker and was the one who invented/discovered the Infinity Circuit.
|align=center|[[Image: Maugan-Ra.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: MauganRa.jpg|thumb|150px|]][[Image: New Maugan Ra.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Irillyth]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center|Irillyth, the Shade of Twilight. The Phoenix Lord of the Shadow Spectres. Was lost for a long time but has finally made his return.
|align=center|[[Image: Irillyth I hope..jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: 99550104067 IrilythPhoenixLordShadowSpectres01.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Drastanta]]'''
|align=center| The old Eldar Empire
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center| Drastanta, the Tempest of Starlight. The Phoenix Lord of the Shining Spears. After failing to save Asurmen he went into self-exile, leaving his weapon behind.
|align=center|
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' Sylandri Veilwalker'''
|align=center| Harlequins
|align=center| Harlequin/ Ynnari
|align=center| A Shadowseer of the Masque of the Veiled Path who is worse than [[Eldrad]] when it comes to interfering in other peoples buisness. She was there when [[Prince Yriel]] took up the Spear of Twilight and can order around Magos [[Belisarius Cawl]] like he was her personal plaything. She helped guide the surviving Imperial defenders of Cadia into the Webway, then later reappeared alongside [[Cypher]] to free [[Roboute Guilliman]] after he was captureded by Chaos forces and later played a vital role in the battle against [[Magnus]]. She also manipulated the [[Emperor's Children]] into their attack on Lugganath. She’s also likely the Shadowseer that appeared in the Devastation of Baal, who dragged [[Mephiston]] through hell by his psychic ear, in order to warn him of a demonic invasion that was on its way. By the Dice Gods she’s everywhere, they might as well have her be the Shadowseer that appeared in The Beast Arises series…
|align=center|[[Image: Female Shadowseer.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' [[Prince Yriel]] Ulthanash '''
|align=center| [[Craftworld Iyanden]]
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center| Prince Yriel is arrogant and deadly in equal measure. Whether as High Admiral of Iyanden’s grand fleet, commander of the Eldritch Raiders he leads his warriors from the front. Turns out that the The Spear of Twilight was one of the Crone Swords.
|align=center|[[Image: Yriel.JPG |thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: 99800104019 EldarYriel360.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Illic Nightspear]]'''
|align=center| [[Craftworld Alaitoc]]
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center| The Walker of the Hidden Path. He has wandered the Path of the Outcast for thousands of years, slaying monsters and men alike as he seeks out the paths that span the stars.
|align=center|[[Image: Illic Nightspear.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image: 99800104027 EldarIllicNightspear360.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' [[Iyanna Arienal]] '''
|align=center| [[Craftworld Iyanden]]
|align=center| Aeldari /Ynnari
|align=center| The Angel of Iyanden. The most prominent Spiritseer of Iyanden and one of the most outspoken supporters of Ynnead. (Her official rules are actually worse than the normal Spiritseer so it would be better to use the normal rules instead)
|align=center|[[Image: Iyanna Arienal.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' Nuadhu '''
|align=center| [[Craftworld Saim-Hann]]
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center| The Fireheart is a Wild Rider of Saim Hann with a modified Vyper called the Alean- the steed of Khaine. Nuadhu is currently Saim-Hann’s high chieftain.
|align=center|[[Image:Fireheart.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' Prince Eldrathain '''
|align=center| [[Craftworlds]]
|align=center| Corsairs
|align=center| Leader of the corsairs in [[Battlefleet Gothic: Armada]]
|align=center|[[Image: Prince Eldrathain.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' Bel-annath '''
|align=center| Craftworlds of Mymeara
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center| Farseer of Mymeara
|align=center|
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' [[Macha]]'''
|align=center| ''' Craftworlds of [[Biel-Tan]]'''
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center| Macha is a Farseer of the Craftworld of Biel-Tan during the events of the [[Dawn of War]] series. She alongside Gabriel Angelos of the [[Blood Ravens]] and Gorgutz 'Ead 'Unter are inescapably linked by fate whether they like it or not.
|align=center|[[Image: Macha2.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' [[Taldeer]] '''
|align=center| ''' Craftworlds of [[Ulthwé]]'''
|align=center| Aeldari
|align=center| A Farseer of the Ulthwé Craftworld. During the events of [[Dawn of War]]: Dark Crusade, Taldeer would end up dying at the hands of Azariah Kyras. Her Soul stone was later retrieved by her brother Ronahn. She appears in [[Dawn of War]] 3 as a Ghost Seer (a psychic Wraithknight… and you thought it couldn’t get more broken).
|align=center|[[Image: Farseer taldeer.jpg|thumb|150px|]][[Image: Ghost Seer - Farseer Taldeer.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|''' Pariah '''
|align=center| ''' Craftworlds'''
|align=center| Corsairs
|align=center| The Daemon Heart. Also named "Kyganil," the Pariah is the “companion” and guide to the [[Ephrael Stern|The Thrice Born]] in the Daemonifuge comics.
|align=center|[[Image: RCO015 Pariah.jpg|thumb|150px|]][[Image: RCO017 Pariah2.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image:Pariah.01.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|''' Amallyn Shadowguide '''
|align=center| ''' Craftworlds'''
|align=center| Rangers
|align=center| Amallyn has dedicated herself to exploring the Blackstone Fortresses, in order to rediscover ancient Eldar technologies long lost from the distant past.
|align=center|[[Image:Amallyn, blackstone.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|align=center|[[Image:Amallyn shadowguide.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|}
===Minor Eldar Characters===
* Farseer [[Caerys]] - Farseer of the Kaurava endeavour. From Craftworld Ulthwé.
* Farseer [[Idranel]] - Ulthwé Farseer who tried to stop Tyranids from nomming a craftworld in Subsector Aurelia by getting the [[Orks]] and the [[Blood Ravens]] pissed off. It failed utterly, with special mention going to [[Tarkus]] and his termie armour.
* Farseer [[Eldorath Starbane]] - Farseer of Craftworld Alaitoc. An arrogant bastard who couldn't get over himself and promptly got his ass handed to him by the Necrons.
* Autarch Kayleth - An Autarch of Craftworld Alaitoc. She took charge of the Subsector Aurelia situation after Idranel's death. Is hilariously snarky.
* [[Ronahn]] - [[Pathfinder Team|Pathfinder]]. Born on Ulthwé, but eventually cut ties with his craftworld to wander the stars. Taldeer's brother.
* Autarch Kyre - An Autarch of Craftworld Biel-Tan featured in [[Dawn of War III]]. Incredibly arrogant even by Eldar standards, his misinterpretation of a prophesy he thought referred to him got his dumb ass killed by a daemon he [[Derp|accidentally freed]] and nearly led to a war between Biel-Tan and Ulthwe.

==Notable Craftworlds==
* [[Craftworld Alaitoc]] - The most structurally rigid of the craftworlds. Their strict adherence to discipline allows them to field a large number Exarchs. On the other plus side, all these rules tend to put off a lot of spehss elves, so they also have a large number of rangers on hand, including elite rangers known as "Pathfinders". The large number of misfits they produce also makes them close to Corsair bands. Currently got their shit kicked by the Imperium after their craftworld was invaded by both the Guard and the Space Marines, due to Dark Eldar dickery. Further sabotaging the Eldar by getting their agents constantly captured, with the Imperium learning most of what they know about the Eldar from Alaitoc's bumbling rangers.

* [[Craftworld Biel-tan]] - Best known for their military prowess, which allowed them to wipe out invaders. Are on a mission to restore the Eldar Empire, and so are highly protective of Eldar Maiden Worlds, violently murdering any non-Eldar race trying to settle on one under their watch. The most militaristic and xenophobic (more so than usual) of the Craftworlds. As of the Gathering Storm campaign, the Biel-Tan craftworld itself has been heavily damaged after the Yncarne was born and purged a Daemon infestation within its structure at the Battle of Biel-Tan. Subsequently half of Biel-Tan's population remains on the Craftworld, the remaining half either being dead or leaving to join the Ynnari. With their enormous recent loss of life they're quickly headed to becoming Iyanden 2.0.

* [[Craftworld Iyanden]] - Almost got nommed to death by the [[Tyranids]], including the infamous story of having their avatar trampled to death by a herd of stampeding Carnifexi. They would have been completely eaten, if it wasn't for [[Prince Yriel]], who saved his Craftworld using with his Corsair band and a big fucking spear of doom. Is almost depleted and so reluctantly have to rely on a large number of wraith constructs to help them in battle. Has a history of almost dying, having recently almost died twice more to two Chaos Invasions, making it the Damsel in Distress of Eldar Craftworlds.

* [[Craftworld Saim-Hann]] - A less-restrained craftworld who likes to go fast. They've even taken a page out of the Orks' book that [[Orks|"da' red wuns go fasta'!"]] as their primary colors are red. Unlike other craftworlds; Saim-Hann takes the concept of the Paths with a grain of salt, and so are more wild and barbaric compared to others (although not a Dark Eldar extreme). Whether this is them just making the best out of their situation or downright retarded (as these were the actions that led to their race's near extinction) is up to debate. Is basically the red, elfy version of the [[White Scars]], only with less Mongolian. Recently following an invasion by a small Death Guard force the Saim-Hann Eldar were forced to cut off a piece of their Craftworld to save it from infection, abandoning the Eldar living on that part and causing them to be posessed by Nurgle Daemons. Whilst Biel-tan, Iyanden and Ulthwe are dying, Alaitoc is useless, Saim-hann just doesn't do much of anything at all.

* [[Craftworld Ulthwé]] - With Biel-tan and Iyanden both basically dead it is now the largest of the remaining Craftworlds, it specializes in psykers. Ulthwé was caught at the edge of the Eye of Terror's gravity pull, and so could not escape its proximity and the lovecraftian horrors spewing out of it; they're basically the Eldar version of [[Cadia]]; they have been responsible for preventing countless Chaos crusades from ever leaving the Eye, even the Night Lords didn't fancy having to take them on. Due to this, they have a heavy emphasis on the Path of the Seer to help them predict the constant attacks they experience on a daily basis. This emphasis on psykers does have a downside of having less Aspect Warriors on hand compared to others, but compensate for this being the only known Craftworld to have a standing army of professional soldiers known as "Black Guardians" which are more akin to career soldiers than your average militiamen made to answer a call to arms. Also former home of the [[Eldrad|biggest dick]], this side of the Eye of Terror. Currently defenceless and wracked by internal conflict as it splinters into three separate factions.

* [[Craftworld Altansar]] - Was lost in the Eye of Terror for a while. Then [[Phoenix Lord|Maugan Ra]] dragged it out with his epicness. Are viewed by suspicion by other Eldar due to spending an extended amount of time in the Warp (as an Eldar, no less), but do not dare do anything about it, lest they face the biotitan-bisecting wrath of the Eldar's version of Jetstream Sam.

* [[Craftworld Iybraesil]] - A matriarchal society with a disproportionately high female population, and has a very high number of Banshee shrines, holding Jain Zar almost as their patron saint. Commissars have warned citizens of the Imperium to stay away from the craftworld, as the perfidious Xenos scum are clearly even more vile and deviant then the rest of their kind. Many brave Imperial citizens have gotten it into their heads that a Craftworld led by ladies must be some form of lewd paradise (and not the highly efficient and professional Craftworld that it is) and have decided to risk their lives in the name of the Emperor to find the Craftworld Iybraesil and [[Sister of Solace|... ahem ... destroy this heresy]].

* [[Craftworld Yme-Loc]] - Bedecked in their rad grey and orange armour, they are famed for their Bonesingers and producing incredible weapons and equipment, however, got their shit kicked in when the Mechanicus came and beat them up and stole their stuff. Also noted as the most Snoop-dogg attitude craftworld ever. Khorne hounds in the lower decks? Bah, screw that. Mechanicus pillage? No bother! Ravengay marine single-handedly hunting down half of your seer council? Who cares! Vaul taught them to go easy on those things and so they do.

* [[Craftworld Kaelor]] - A minor Craftworld that took refuge at the furthest borders of the galaxy, developing a unique culture and ruled over by several noble households. Being so isolated from the many conflicts their peers were involved in, it once nearly fell to a re-emergence of [[Slaanesh|pleasure cults]], leading to a civil war. Their livery is a red and yellow scheme, with the Warp Spider a their most prominent choice of aspect warrior.

* [[Craftworld Il-Kaithe]] - A Craftworld with a particularly strong hatred for Chaos, even by Eldar standards, willing to work alongside almost [[Dark_Eldar|any]] [[The_Imperium_of_Man|faction]] so long as it screws over the Ruinous Powers. Wear rather vivid green and purple armour, and are best known for having Bonesingers skilled enough to march to war with them. More recently screwed over by lore in the [[Psychic Awakening]]: Phoenix Rising book by having a psychic sickness manifest on their Craftworld, causing their forces to start throwing themselves recklessly into various near-suicidal engagements. [[Grimdark|Because, obviously, having one Craftworld with all its shit in order was too much of an ask]].

* [[Craftworld Mymeara]] - A recently discovered small and stealthy Craftworld, closely connected to the [[Phoenix Lord]] of Irillyth, who led their armies away in a suicide attack to preemptively save them. The focus of Imperial Armour 11 (the Forge World campaign book), they were hiding in an artificial star nebula and <s>were savagely mauled by</s> led a successful distractiong campaign against the [[Space Wolves]] on Betalis to resurrect Irillyth. Thought they were the only surviving Eldar in the galaxy until their recent discovery by some Alaitoc scouts. Plus they're the coolest looking Eldar faction thanks to their blue-green colour shifting armour.

* [[Craftworld Lugganath]] - A Craftworld that considers the galaxy a lost cause, opting instead to try to find a portal to the Webway big enough to fit an entire continent-sized vessel. Have a large fleet and are popular with their Harlequin and Corsair kin, but reserve a particular hatred for the [[Dark_Eldar|less reputable examples of the Eldar people]]. Which makes sense given they essentially want to live in the same neighbourhood, and no one wants to be within spitting distance of [[Commorragh|the worst place in the galaxy]].

==Notable Former Craftworlds==
* [[Craftworld Malan'Tai]] - Was invaded by a Tyranid fleet. They almost won as they repulsed most of the invaders, but missed a [[Zoanthrope|particular Zoanthrope]] that could eat Eldar souls (somehow). The nid devoured their craftworld's Infinity Circuit and singlehandedly vaporized the entire place. N'Kari, a Slaaneshi [[Keeper of Secrets]], later visited the ruined craftworld to molest any spirit stones still left over after the party, but was cockblocked by the [[Grey Knights]].

* [[Craftworld Idharae]] - A small lightly populated Craftworld that suffered horribly casualties fighting off [[Hive fleet Naga]]. After suffering even more loses helping both Iyanden to defeat some Tyranids and defending the Maiden world Eth-aelas, the Craftworld was left weak and desperately under populated. The Invaders Space Marine Chapter took advantage of their desperate state to launch an all out assault alongside the legion of the Damned and other Imperial forces, leaving the Craftworld a floating wreckage, despite Eldrad's attempts to save them (or, knowing Eldrad's track record, because of his efforts to help them).

* [[Yvraine#Craftworld_Zaisuthra|Craftworld Zaisuthra]] - Submitted to [[Genestealer]]s in order to preserve their souls from Slaanesh since they lacked Infinity Circuit technology. Tried to bait Ynnari to get to Iyanden. Wiped by Yncarne.

==See Also==
*[[Warhammer_40,000/Tactics/Eldar (9E)|Tactics on how to play them.]]
*[[High Elves]] for the [[Warhammer Fantasy Battle|Warhammer Fantasy]] equivalent of the Craftworld Eldar.
*[[Wood Elves (Warhammer)|Wood Elves]] for the Fantasy equivalent of Exodite Eldar.
*[[Dark Elves]] for the shipborne life, a subfaction in exile and their worship of Khaine.
*[[Eldar Craftworld Creation Tables]]
*[[Eldar World]]
*[[Love Can Bloom]]

==Gallery==
{{Promotions}}
<gallery>
File:Myar.jpg|Where da elf women at?
File:DireAvengerFemale.jpg|In the elf kitchen, duh.
Image:Harlequin_2.jpg |Also, butts.
Image:Biel-tan_Craftworld.jpg|One of their homes, Craftworld Biel-Tan.
Image:YvraineMeshi.jpg| Yvraine regrets [[Dungeon Meshi|partying up]] with the Mon'keigh.
File:Lew.jpg|{{greentext|They think they're superior!}}
Image:1386545059205.gif|The main reason /tg/ likes Eldar.
File:HowlingShee.jpg|Dem hips (now there's at least two alien babes with great hips)
Image:643214 - Daemonette Eldar Warhammer 40k howling banshee warhammer yuliapw.jpg|This is what happens if you forget your soul stone (despite being pervy fan art, this is probably close to canon to a degree).
Image:Harlequin.jpg|Eldar Harlequin are ancient keepers of knowledge long blah blah blah, sexy clown fetish.
Image:Elfdar_Boob_Attack.jpg|Farseers are known to be able to render you useless in combat without using weapo-{{BLAM|'''*CLICK*'''}}OH FUCK!
Image:Elite_Beat_Eldar_Divas_by_IronShrineMaiden.jpg|Apparently the Imperium occasionally goes into alliances with the Eldar. This is basically all the space elves really do. It's all they NEED to do, though. +10 to all Initiative rolls!
Image:Eldars_are_orky.jpg|Eldar are also pretty [[orky]], didn't you know?
Image:Eldar forces.jpg|
Image:Eldar-past glory.jpg|
Image:Eldar- dark legacy.jpg|
Image:Eldar-Dawn of War 3.png|
Image:Eldar -concept art.jpg|
Image:Eternal Crusade-Eldar.jpg|
Image:Eldar ranger character.jpg|
Image:Savage Eldar warrior.jpg|
</gallery>

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BattleTech

2026-05-12T04:35:58Z

109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010413 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

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[[Image:NEW-BT-LOGOFLAT.png|NEW-BT-LOGOFLAT.png|center]]
{{Game Infobox
|name = BattleTech
|picture = [[Image:NEW-BT-LOGOFLAT.png|200px]]
|type = [[Wargame]]
|publisher = [[Catalyst Game Labs]]
|playno = Billions
|year = 1984
|books = Total Warfare or The BattleMech Manual
}}
{{topquote|It is the 31st century, a time of endless wars that rage across human-occupied space. As star empires clash, these epic wars are won and lost by BattleMechs, 23-56 foot tall humanoid metal titans bristling with lasers, autocannons and dozens of other lethal weapons; enough firepower to level entire city blocks. Your elite force of MechWarriors drives these juggernauts into battle, proudly holding your faction's flag high, intent on expanding the power and glory of your realm. At their beck and call are the support units of armored vehicles, power armored infantry, aerospace fighters and more, wielded by a MechWarrior's skillful command to aid him in ultimate victory. Will they become legends, or forgotten casualties? Only your skill and luck will determine their fate!|Product promotional tagline}}

'''BattleTech''', or '''MechWarrior''' as most of the non-neckbearded populace know it, is a tabletop [[wargame]] about armies of giant robots fighting one another for honor, money, and territory in a far-distant feudal future. Think [[Star Wars]] AT-STs, or [[Warhammer 40,000]]'s [[Imperial Knight|Imperial Knights]] (Games Workshop decided they liked Battlemechs too). It’s also perhaps the most realistic example of walker warfare. Using their size to mount sufficient energy generation and armor that they are fast enough, maneuverable enough, and armored enough that being a bullet magnet does not matter. Using their vertical build to mount numerous huge weapons that each would take up all the space on most tanks modern militaries would consider super-heavy. Usually operating in combined arms warfare and supported by tanks, hovercraft, aircraft, and infantry. Not sinking into the ground like its quicksand because dirt reaches maximum compression very quickly (and thus all anti-mech arguments are rendered invalid by combined arms, armor, power-plant, firepower, and actual science), and so on. The realism of the technology (if not the moronic House Lords and nonsensical events) is so great it could be a glimpse into the future. Y’know, before Bolos come along and replace everything.

This article is mostly concerned with the fluff and story of BattleTech. If you're looking for a guide to getting into the game in the first place, check out [[Starting Battletech]]. If you're looking for the hardware itself, please go to [[BattleMech]].

==Holy Crap, Giant Robots Are Awesome==
[[Image:Batdroid.jpg|thumb|right|''Battledroids'', the first edition of the game, c. 1984, with the <s>Destroid Tomahawk</s> Unseen Warhammer on the cover. A ''literally''-textbook example on how to get sued nine different ways from Sunday.]]
In the early 1980s, [[Jordan Weisman]] was [[Weeaboo|fascinated]] by several Japanese [[anime]] involving giant robots, or "[[mecha]]." He was quoted as saying that he liked the designs and idea of giant robots fighting on the battlefield, but did not have a taste for the storylines that the Japanese wrote about them. In 1984, Weisman founded [[FASA]] and acquired the licenses to designs from several series, the most famous being ''Super Dimension Fortress Macross,'' though the largest portion came from ''Fang of the Sun Dougram'' and combined them to make BattleTech.

The first edition of this game, called ''Battledroids'', was a hex-based boardgame played on a battlefield illustrated with various types of terrain. It came with two large plastic minis of featured mechs, imported from Japan. Initially, sales were mediocre as the sheer size of the 'Mechs made them awkward in gameplay. Soon after the launch of ''Battledroids'' Lucasfilm filed a lawsuit against FASA for using the name "droids," which they had trademarked in 1978. Discretion being the better part of valor, FASA changed the name of the game to BattleTech in time for the second edition printing in 1986. This time, cardboard stand-ins replaced the plastic miniatures, and a tradition was born. To this day, BattleTech can be played without purchasing any physical models and with any proxy you please.

Following the release of the second edition, fans of the game clamored for new miniatures. FASA obliged, rescaling their 'Mechs for more convenient play and designing a host of in-house 'Mechs to broaden variety and bridge the gap between the sleek Macross and crude Dougram designs. New models notwithstanding, the third edition was shipped with solely Macross and Dougram-based minis. However, in 1995 [[That Guy|Harmony]] [[Rage|Gold]], an American localization company which had licensed the international distribution and toy rights to SDF Macross, issued a C&D against FASA for the use of all mecha designs from the Macross franchise. FASA ceased production of these miniatures, which were among the most popular designs in the franchise, and published a fourth edition of the game in 1996 again featuring cardboard tokens, which were all based on their own original 'Mechs.

BattleTech hasn't had true new edition of the rules since 1995. Rulebooks and material published in '95 are still usable today in 2022. There have been a few box sets and other releases since then, including two entire side games. The first came in the mid 2000s, and was called MechWarrior: Dark Age. A Clix-based game that abandoned the traditional hex grid and was sold with pre-painted miniatures in blind bundles, Dark Age lasted from 2003 to 2007. It attracted some new players but various decisions alienated a lot of the playerbase, and in the end classic BattleTech outlived it. The other was Alpha Strike. Published in 2013, Alpha Strike uses the same miniatures and background as BattleTech, but uses a faster paced rules system with less detail and a focus on larger clashes of 'Mechs. Alpha Strike exists in parallel to BattleTech, and is still receiving support with a new box set being released in 2022.

Through the 2010s, BattleTech in something of a lull. After the closing of the Dark Age line and the shift to focus on classic BattleTech and Alpha Strike, the narrative spent effort filling in the sixty year time skip that Dark Age started with. As a game, BattleTech had issues - the market was crowded and BattleTech, alone out of its competition, didn't have access to decent plastic 'Mechs. An anniversary box set released in 2012 came with 26 plastic 'Mechs, but they were of low quality and plagued with miscasts and missing pieces, so the majority of miniatures were still cast in metal. This changed at the beginning of 2019.

In January of 2019, BattleTech was on a major upswing. After the release of the generally well-received PC game from Harebrained Schemes (titled BattleTech but often called HBS BattleTech to distinguish it from the tabletop), the property was in a good position, and Catalyst Game Labs released two new box sets - the first was the BattleTech: Beginner Box and the second was BattleTech: A Game of Armored Combat. These came with a total of 9 new miniatures (two in the Beginner Box and eight in AGoAC, with one duplicate between them), but these were only the first pebbles of the avalanche. In June of 2019, Catalyst announced a Kickstarter campaign to raise the funding for a new box set: BattleTech: Clan Invasion. The campaign reached its goal in less than seven minutes, and in the end it lead to not only the Clan Invasion box with seven Clan miniatures, but a range of Force Packs, each having a set of 4, five, or 6 miniatures. Nine Inner Sphere lance packs, nine Clan Star packs, and two ComStar Level II packs were released in all, priced at $25, $30, and $35 and containing four, five, and six miniatures respectively. The Kickstarter was an absolute success, and while the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted delivery, by 2021 the 'Mechs were in players' hands and on store shelves. For the first time in its nearly forty year history, BattleTech had a complete line of plastic miniatures. All had been redesigned to match modern aesthetics (and eliminate certain legal troubles), many of them by noted /tg/ artist ShimmeringSword, who had been hired based on 'Mech fanart he posted to /tg/.

As of 2022, the plastic release train is still going strong - in April, Catalyst announced a new Kickstarter campaign titled BattleTech: Mercenaries, along with a set of six mercenary themed Force Packs and a new box set for Alpha Strike. The story has advanced significantly, moving the "current" of BattleTech into a new era known as the ilClan, and the first plastic miniatures for this era are trickling in with a Regent in one of the Mercenary force packs. The 32nd century may be a dark time, but for BattleTech players, the future is bright.

===The Mechs===
{{topquote|Shoot for his cockpit! [[Iron Hands|Kill the meat]], [[Adeptus Mechanicus|save the metal.]]|Sergeant Robert "Deadeye" Unther, ''MechWarrior 2: Mercenaries - Training Tutorial''}}
BattleTech 'Mechs function and are utilized more like tanks with legs than the super-agile flying mecha common in Japanese depictions. 'Mechs are deployed in formations of four or five, called lances in the Inner Sphere and stars in the Clans. They are able to operate in space, on planets with caustic atmospheres, underwater, and in a wide range of temperatures that would be lethal to unprotected humans. One of the biggest upsides of 'Mechs as combat vehicles is their extreme efficiency-of-arms: an effectively limitless amount of time without requiring fuel due to their fusion reactors alongside hyper-efficient Myomer 'muscles' inside the BattleMech’s limbs that can carry more weapons and armor per-ton than any other combat platform in existence. The only things stopping a 'Mech from being able to fight forever are ammunition, repairs, and allowing the pilot to rest. Even when a 'Mech is destroyed, losing the pilot is a relatively rare occurrence thanks to very effective ejection systems. A destroyed 'Mech chassis can also be salvaged and rebuilt to fight another day, good as new. In the early 3000s setting this means many 'Mechs are often decades or even hundreds of years old, Ship of Theseus-style. Some 'Mechs even have unique identities and/or affiliations with certain royal Houses or mercenary families. Also, as stated in the quote above, it's not uncommon for cash-strapped mercenaries, pirates, or even planetary militia to prioritize aiming for the cockpit and/or forcing MechWarriors to eject from overheating/battle damage in order to claim the surviving BattleMech wreckage for salvage or as a spoil of war.

As far as locomotion styles, bipedal 'Mechs are the most common, with the weapon systems mounted either in the torso compartments or on the arms. Quadrupedal 'Mechs do exist but are relatively rare, they are slower than bipedal 'Mechs and don't offer the same amount of weapon space for a given weight class and more legs (and more everything else) on a 'Mech means, of course, greater expenses. Even rarer are tripod 'Mechs, generally restricted to experimental super-heavy designs. Bipedal 'Mechs can also grasp things in their hands (if they have them) like melee weapons or pesky tanks. Early versions of BattleTech feature 'Mechs that could transform into fighter planes, but these were dropped relatively quickly in its life cycle due to copyright problems.

The main downside of 'Mechs is their inability to efficiently manage heat buildup. Heat is generated by the fusion reactor, the environment, movement, and mostly as a result of firing weapons. 'Mechs mount multiple gigantic one-ton heatsink units to deal with this buildup, but it is a constant problem for pilots to manage. 'Mechs that feature a lot of energy-based weapons will generate especially high levels of heat, and therefore manage very poorly in extremely hot environments. Firing all the weapons of certain 'Mech variants at once (the ''Nova'' 'Mech is most infamous) can cause it to overheat to such an extent that the reactor core melts down before the heatsinks can shunt the heat out of the chassis, which is bad. Safety measures that shut down the entire 'Mech when it reaches a certain temperature threshold are always installed, but since this usually happens in a combat situation, and thus leaves the 'Mech defenseless, some pilots will intentionally disable the safeguards to take their chances. Depending on the technology level of a given game, more efficient heatsinks can be assigned to 'Mechs that remove heat more quickly and allow hotter builds. The fluff also mentions some experimental heatsinks that changed the heat energy to light (<strike>???</strike>Actually plausible, we have been experimenting with this concept irl) but had the downside of making the 'Mech look like a walking rave, as well as heatsinks that utilized caustic liquids to move heat faster but with a limited lifespan.

Weapons consist of three general categories: ballistic, energy, and missile. Each has its own strengths and weakness: ballistic weapons weigh more, require ammo, but do not generate much heat, energy weapons are the opposite, and missiles generate some heat/consume ammo but can be indirectly fired with targeting data from scouts. Outfitting a 'Mech for the proper engagement is key to obtaining victory: 'Mechs outfitted for 'Mech-to-'Mech combat will generally mount only high-damage weapons with lower ammo counts and slower rates of fire, while 'Mechs set for vehicle and infantry combat will mount weapons that fire quickly but do lower damage per shot. Likewise, 'Mechs that do not expect steady resupply will mount more energy weapons so they are not beholden to ammo counts.

BattleMechs range between 20 to 100 tons in four weight classes, though a few experimental units lie outside these ranges. The weight classes are light (20-35 tons), medium (40-55 tons), heavy (60-75 tons), and assault (80-100 tons). Considering their size (23-56 feet), that's pretty light; the Maus (33 feet long and 11 feet high) mega-tank that Adolf Hitler demanded weighed 188 tons. (One possible explanation here is that the "tonnage" in a weight class isn't the weight of the 'Mech, but rather the weight available to mount things on the chassis. So an Atlas assault 'Mech has 100 tons of available space for reactor, life support, weapons, armor etc, explaining why various sub-types of a 'Mech drop something and replace it with something else of equal weight. A Flea light 'Mech has 20 tons). Rarer still are super heavy 'Mechs (with weights between 110 to 200 tons). While they are walking fortresses that put even Assault Mechs to shame, they tend to be ridiculously expensive, extremely slow, have issues with supporting that weight, are vulnerable to attacks from swarms of smaller enemies like tanks, and have difficulty installing reactors with sufficient power. Top sustainable speeds of 'Mechs vary from 32.4 kph (20 mph) for the assault ''Annihilator'' to 162 kph (101 mph) for the light ''Firemoth'' scout. Keep in mind that the American M1A1 Abrams tank has a top speed of 72 kph (45 mph) on a paved road and much less crossing difficult terrain. 'Mechs can also be mounted with rechargeable jump jets that give them the ability to hop across the battlefield or up/down terrain. According to varying fluff depictions, 'Mechs are even able to climb up/down cliff walls and perform flying dropkicks to enemy cockpits, which is [[awesome]].

Depending on where in the timeline the specific game takes place (this is a player choice), there will be two possible classes of mechs: [[BattleMech]]s and [[OmniMech]]s. BattleMechs are the older style, with a set number of variants that cannot be changed in the field. This style was universal in the Inner Sphere before the arrival of the Clans. OmniMechs, a Clan invention, feature a modular construction style and a snap-on software integration which gives them the freedom of changing loadouts quickly. For example, a ''Dragon'' BattleMech comes in a default configuration consisting of one LRM-10, one Autocannon/5, and two medium lasers. The -1C variant replaces the Autocannon/5 with an Autocannon/2 and more armor, while the -5N upgrades the Autocannon/5 to an Ultra Autocannon/5. A pilot must use one of these variants and is incapable of changing the loadout without serious hours-long reworking of the 'Mech's internals in a 'Mech maintenance facility. Conversely, a ''Mad Dog'' OmniMech comes with a default configuration of two LRM-20s, two medium pulse lasers, and two large pulse lasers. A pilot is able to modify this loadout as they see fit within less than an hour with a technical team, say dropping the two medium pulse lasers for more missile ammo/armor or changing the LRMs to SRMs for short-range engagements.

Like most Western sci-fi series, BattleMechs are somewhat inspired by real theoretical technologies; their weapons range from machine guns (albeit very big ones) and missiles, to coilguns and particle accelerators. The biggest leaps from reality (aside from FTL travel and communications) are the fusion reactor, (a technology still only theoretically possible,) the neurohelmet, (which interfaces with the pilot's brain and keeps the 'Mech upright based on the pilot's own sense of balance,) and the massive muscle-like Myomer fibers that actually allow the 'Mech to move upon being exposed to electrical current.

While BattleMechs dominate the battlefields of BattleTech, armored vehicles still have a place. Most of the time, tanks, hovercraft, and APCs are used where 'Mechs would be too expensive (or too advanced) to maintain, or in roles where a 'Mech would be ineffective. This means that, in addition to BattleMechs, one can find infantry, vehicles, aerial vehicles, naval vehicles, and spaceships. It is worth noting that vehicles can be a real threat to BattleMechs in great enough numbers, since they mount the same weapons as 'Mechs. Some tanks can also push the 100-ton limit and sport the gigantic weaponry usually mounted on an Assault 'Mech chassis. In other words, where 'Mechs are [[Space Marines]], the vehicles are more akin to [[Eldar]] Aspects.

BattleMechs in BattleTech fiction also have a curious tendency to go up in a mini nuclear explosion when their reactor core is breached by weapon fire. Mushroom clouds, explosions, heat, radiation, the whole bit. This has been nicknamed "stackpoling" after BattleTech novel author Michael Stackpole, who includes at least one of these events in each novel he writes. If the reactor was actually breached, what should happen is a meltdown of the reactor (and probably some chunks of the surrounding 'Mech) that quickly burns out because the reactor can't maintain the fusion reaction without proper containment. Reactors are generally incapable of generating an actual nuclear explosion: real-world reactor "explosions" are usually a result of the coolant flash-overheating and generating a pressure-based steam explosion that destroys the reactor building. Lingering radiation would still be a problem of course, but that is usually handwaved away in BattleTech fluff or not mentioned at all.

To get into the actual science of this, a hypothetical fusion reactor wouldn't produce that many radioactive substances. And what few they do would be relatively short lived and would be weak beta emitters. The most likely substance would be Tritium, which is where the stereotypical glow in the dark green radiation comes from. The 'Mech would glow in the dark but a decent decontamination process would render it mostly harmless. In other words, the stories are right for the wrong reasons.

More on actual science. A containment breach would produce a pretty big explosion. The reactor (assuming H+H fusion, which seems reasonable since we never hear anything about deuterium or H3 mining) would be operating at something close to 15,000,000K temperature and 250,000,000,000 atmospheres of pressure to induce fusion. Assuming there's a couple of cubic meters of gas being contained at those pressures by magnetic fields and surrounded by a few more cubic meters of vacuum, a sudden and catastrophic loss of containment would almost certainly cause an explosion that would cause a mushroom cloud and be easy to mistake for a small nuclear weapon.

==Warfare in the Thirty-first Century==

When somebody decides to attack another world, they load up their 'Mechs (and tanks, and infantry, etc...) onto massive shuttles called [[BattleTech_Spacecraft#DropShips|DropShips]]. These boost off into space and link up with JumpShips, semi-mobile Space-Fold drives sitting a ways out into the star's system (due to the limits of BattleTech FTL, JumpShips can't get any closer to a system's star than a radius roughly around the orbit of Saturn in the Sol System. For simplicity's sake, most JumpShips move to the zenith or nadir points directly "above" or "below" the star's orbital plane). The DropShips latch onto the JumpShips, which make a series of jumps from star to star until they reach the target system.

Compared to some sci-fi franchises such as Star Wars or Star Trek, aerospace combat between ships isn’t really that common for several reasons. For one, KF Drive used to propel JumpShips (all of which can’t land on a planet) makes up 95% of its mass and leaves little room for anything else besides DropShip docking ports, basic ship equipment, crew quarters, and the Jumpsail used for recharging the drive. And while Warships do exist with drives half the size as their civilian models, the drives alone are more than five times more expensive to build and are prioritized for only strategically-vital missions, like real-life Dreadnoughts. In that regard, BattleTech’s JumpShips are closer to Dune’s massive but ungainly Heighliners, which transport combatants between stars and planets, but lack any inherent ability to fight, than Star War’s Star Destroyers, which are capable of both transporting combat units between stars and planets and are themselves capable of fighting. As a result, most aerospace combat is dominated by armed DropShips or aerospace fighters. Orbital and naval blockades are a thing but not typically used frequently due to how much firepower is required for a planetary scale.

Once they reach the destination (normally the "northern" or "southern" jump points of a star), the DropShips detach from the JumpShips and burn deeper into the system towards the targeted planet. Now JumpShips aren't stealthy, so anyone on the target planet likely detected their entrance into the system, and it typically takes DropShips seven days (varies dramatically for each star system) to reach the planet. Surprise attacks are nearly impossible, and defenders will have up to a week to get ready (some clever, smart, or just plain foolish people try to shave time by trying to match the target world's orbit with a nonstandard point closer to the planet, or even rare "Pirate" points caused by gravitational interactions between celestial bodies, but even this usually gives defenders at least a day to prepare, not to mention the hilarious habit of Pirate points to just mangle JumpShips attempting to use them beyond recognition). In reality however, points in space where gravitational forces balance out aren’t actually rare (they're called [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagrange_point Lagrange points] in real life) and there are five of those null-gravity points just for the Sun-Earth system, along with five more for the Earth-Moon system, and five more again for every other pair of celestial bodies orbiting each other that you care to name. Those points can be so close to destinations of strategic interest that by BattleTech standards, it would take probably just a few minutes to reach the Earth from one of its own null gravity points, seeing as BT DropShips can reach Sol's zenith (the Sun's "northern" null-G point) or nadir (the Sun's "southern" null-G point) in just a few days from Earth, i.e., crossing more than the distance of one Astronomical Unit, or 150 million kilometres, in a strategically-insignificant amount of time.

As the invading force reaches planetary orbit, the defenders will usually try to intercept them with their own defensive ships, usually DropShips, Shuttles, Aerospace Fighters, and Conventional Fighters (like the [[Mechbuster]]) while the Attackers will launch fighters of their own. Space battle will begin in earnest as the defenders try to keep the enemy from landing on world at all (FASA originally had two separate games, Aerotech and Battlespace, that dealt with this stage of combat, but current BattleTech rules incorporate Aerospace combat for those who prefer it or want the full Theater of War experience).

If the Attackers can break through the orbital defenders, they can choose their landing site (usually near the target of course) and deploy either via a combat drop with [[Drop Pod|Drop Pods]] launched from DropShips or via DropShips landing at a secure LZ. The enemy will deploy to stop them and battle begins in earnest with ground combat typically consisting of combined-arms use of infantry, battle-armored troops, conventional armored vehicles, artillery, and BattleMechs. Meanwhile, any air assets in the form of aerospace or conventional fighters will duke it out to secure air superiority for shipping reinforcements via air drop, or trying to take out enemy ground units from above.

==Fluff==
[[File:Mad_Cat.jpg|300px|thumb|right|The [[Timber Wolf]] (Mad Cat if you're <s>Inner Sphere</s> <s>Freebirth Scum</s> Degrazi), one of the most iconic BattleMechs in the series.]]
{{topquote|A thousand horrid Prodigies foretold it.<br>A feeble government, eluded Laws,<br>A factious Populace, luxurious Nobles,<br>And all the maladies of stinking states.|Dr. Samuel "[[Meme|What The Fuck Am I Reading]]" Johnson}}
Much like [[Games Workshop|Warhammer]], the BattleTech franchise has an extensive expanded universe. Dozens of books, numerous spinoff games, video games in multiple genres, and even an animated cartoon have delved into the setting and created an entertaining, if convoluted, history that has real influences on how the game is played. Unlike Warhammer, there are no [[Xenos]] (outside of some cavemen-like species), so humans get all the glory (and blame).

===History of the Inner Sphere===
After a period of typical [[Cold War]]-era speculative history: in details, the Soviet leadership is inherited by a fictional hardliner in the 80s and the Union survives until the 2010s where it splits in the Second Soviet Civil War (this was retconned in as the game was made when the USSR hadn't collapsed yet). The appointment of a hardliner leads to NATO reforming into the Western Alliance along with the proto-EU. The Western Alliance helps the split post-Soviet Eurasian states, is joined by China and other Asian countries after a brief crisis and eventually mankind was mostly united under the Western Alliance, having renamed itself to the Terran Alliance and discovered how to travel faster-than-light by opening up artificial wormholes.

By 2235, most of mankind's interstellar colonies, already mistrustful of the heavy-handed Alliance, threw off the yoke of the Alliance in the '''Outer Reaches Rebellion''' and formed their own stellar nation-states. What followed was a period of war and chaos which led to the rise of the '''Great Houses''', feudal dynasties of powerful families adhering to various pseudo-historical ideals (like Kurita's [[Japan]] fetishism, specifically the most evil aspects of WWII Japan and every other Asian countries' worst parts of their histories up to eleven) competing for total dominance of mankind. However Terra, as Earth became known after its [[Terra|Latin name]], remained the most technologically-advanced star nation, and remained unconquered by the competing Great Houses who turned their focus on one another instead.

Shortly after the eve of this '''Age of War''', once the Terran Alliance left the far-off colonies to fend for themselves, its bickering political parties were subject to a coup by the charismatic Admiral James McKenna with support from the populace. He reformed the Alliance into the Terran Hegemony and eventually, his titles were inherited by a distant cousin in House Cameron. In addition, both the colonies and Terra began placing more emphasis on nobility-based peerage to handle planetary governance, education, and manufacturing instead of the loathed vote-buying that defined the corrupt Alliance. This is one of the reasons for the severe technological stagnation that is a hallmark of the BattleTech universe. After all, any idiot knows that [[wat|destroying a factory or all of a certain factory production and all such factories means the knowledge of how to build their products magically disappears and the knowledge of how to build those factories poofed away the moment they were built anyway as that is the only explanation conceivable for why destroyed factories were not simply replaced and why the knowledge disappeared from every paper, computer, and mind]]; after all, universities and libraries can still preserve knowledge while remaining civilian institutions. Obviously space magic is to blame... or [[Derp|exceptionally short-sighted writers]] who’ll wave it off as [[Medieval Stasis|neo-feudalism in space]].

The main reason for the lack of tech was due to the Terran Hegemony hoarding most of the good tech for themselves and the Star League Defence Force. ER Lasers, XL Fusion engines, Pulse Lasers and so on were all SLDF exclusives, and the vast majority of advanced tech was only produced in the Terran Hegemony, which was utterly wrecked in the [[Amaris Civil War]]. Universities and libraries were nuked alongside military targets, and the BattleTech universe lacks a true internet expy, making dissemenating information even by HPG a slow, expensive process. Any advanced tech factories or research institutes left after the Amaris Civil War vanished in the nuclear firestorm of the First Succession War. It took 80 years of more or less constant warfare before the great houses decided that blowing up civillian targets wasn't such a good idea. AND THEN, [[ComStar]] decided that [[Adeptus Mechanicus|nobody but them should have nice things so they started assassinating anyone who might make things better and stealing their research]]. Nobody really bothered trying to build a new university for actual research until 3015, when the Davions built the NAIS and the moment it looked like the NAIS might actually make some progress in reversing the technological decline, ComStar tried to blow it up. They failed, and the Federated Suns figuring out that ComStar was behind the attack marked the start of the decline in ComStar's influence.

To be clear, the given reason for how the neo-feudalism came about was due to oppression, social inertia, and interstellar communication lag. Before the invention of the HPG in 2630 (5 centuries after the KF Drive) it took weeks and months for planets to send updates on their status to their national capital and the entirety of the nation. Yet other than the Federated Suns good bois and to an extent the Lyran Commonwealth, most other nations don't have the same problems that destroyed the Alliance despite being oppressive. Super oppressive. Which begs one to question how the hell the Outer Reaches Rebellion happened outside of the same tension that tore the Star League apart later. And it still doesn't explain how the neo-feudalism came about as it would make much more sense to have technocratic administrators selected by merit to manage regions of space instead of giving someone and their offspring the level of authority an ancient noble would have had. Perhaps it began the same way some monarchies are known to have: lords (or whatever name for a rose you want to use) being basically miniature kings of their local areas who united and elected a royal dynasty from among their number to handle external affairs beyond their national borders.

In 2349, the Terran Hegemony introduced the first BattleMech, the 100-ton '''[[Mackie|MSK-6S Mackie]]''', and the face of war changed forever.

===Mechs Just Got Real===
The introduction of the ''Mackie'' shifted the focus of military development away from interstellar Warships back to ground forces. The Terran Hegemony was able to prove that the 100-ton BattleMech was far superior to conventional ground vehicles (interestingly, the Terran Hegemony's main battle tank was <s>the Israeli Merkava</s> named Merkava but utterly unrelated to the Israeli tank of the same name), allowing a single man to destroy formations of opposing non-'Mechs. Of course, the rest of the Inner Sphere wanted the same capability, and in 2355 the plans for the BattleMech were stolen (as usual, the writers don’t realize that stealing a design is pointless if you don’t know how to build all the parts...like myomer (Myomer that was already a popular material throughout the Inner Sphere, used in the IndustrialMechs before the Mackie was even a concept). ). The Age of the BattleMech had begun.

During the next hundred years, as the Great Houses vied for supremacy and founded the nucleus of the future Successor States, the Terran Hegemony was able to exert great influence as the most technologically-advanced and neutral of the great powers. This would lead to the creation of the '''[[Star League]]''' in 2571, a grand union of all of humanity's interstellar nations. While ostensibly created for the purpose of uniting mankind and keeping the peace between the stars, it was also a massive power play by Terra to secure the raw materials it needed to maintain its technological edge and once more bring mankind under Terra's dominion. In keeping with the feudal society that now dominated mankind's worlds, the position of First Lord of the Star League was invested in Terra's ruling House, the Cameron dynasty.

While Hidden Wars would plague the Star League throughout its reign, no conflicts were fought between its members as long as the Star League Defense Force kept the peace between factions. Terra's hoard of advanced technologies were shared freely among the worlds of man, and a new Golden Age descended.

It all came to an end in 2766. The last of the Camerons was assassinated by Stefan Amaris, a power-hungry politician from the Periphery, the ring of interstellar nations that had refused to join the Star League and had been conquered for their trouble. Claiming the mantle of Emperor of the Star League and Director-General of the Terran Hegemony, Amaris was immediately denounced by the commander of the SLDF, Aleksandr Kerensky.

===A New Dark Age===
[[File:Aleksandr Kerensky.jpg|thumb|right|"Fuck you guys, I'm out." - Aleksandr Kerensky, Great Father of Clans]]
The [[Amaris Civil War]] destroyed the League, and led to a new Dark Age. The Great Houses, throwing off their loyalty to Terra, refused to aid either Amaris or Kerensky, and waited for the war to pass. Kerensky emerged the victor, but with the Cameron dynasty ended the other Great Houses began to vie for position of First Lord of the Star League. Disgusted by the politicking and betrayal, in 2784 Kerensky took the greater portion of the SLDF into exile beyond the Periphery. Those who remained pledged their loyalty to the Star League's last civil authority, the Ministry of Communication, which would later become ComStar, the sole provider of internet connections between worlds. Thus the Star League lost its last measure of power, and the Great Houses began the First Succession War.

[[Succession Wars|Four Succession Wars]], over the course of two centuries, would follow. Never would a Great House gain enough strength to declare itself master of mankind, especially since none would ever conquer Terra. Technology would [[Imperium of Man|stagnate and regress]], creating the Lostech phenomenon, technology which mankind could no longer reproduce, maintain, or even understand. Where before feudalism had been a political phenomenon, hundreds of worlds across the Inner Sphere regressed to or below the technological level of the 20th Century, and hundreds more in the Periphery failed entirely. The sole bright spot was [[Adeptus Mechanicus|Comstar]], the corporate religious entity which maintained the Hyper Pulse Generator network that enabled FTL communications between inhabited worlds. ComStar became the rulers of Terra in the wake of the Star League's collapse, and leveraged their control of the HPG network to ensure their inviolability in exchange for maintaining the incomprehensible HPG networks and neutral treatment of all communications between worlds. In order to maintain their power, they would actively [[Grimdark|sabotage, headhunt, or kill]] all promising technological advancements and promising scientists to maintain their monopoly and techno-religious authority. To be fair, unlike a certain [[Adeptus Mechanicus|cargo cult]], ComStar intervened because they realized the Great Houses were psychopaths and couldn’t be allowed to advance. Also, they were actually loyal-ish to the Star League and hated the Great Houses.

Eventually the Inner Sphere would stabilize around the Great Houses and their associated stellar empires. However, technological progress remained stagnant, and the rare factories capable of producing such advanced technologies as BattleMechs became critical components in the shattered military-industrial complexes of the so-called Successor States. Millions would die so that a LED monitor factory could be taken by one side, or so that a hundred precision-machined laser lenses could be plundered from a forgotten SLDF armory. Real progress towards recovery could only be made after large caches of information which survived the fall of the Star League were recovered; the most significant were the recovery of a long-lost Star League university's library in 3013, and the recovery and free dissemination of the contents of the Helm Memory Core in 3028. In 3028, the two largest and most powerful Successor States, the Federated Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth, were united by dynastic marriage, and it seemed that a new Golden Age might be only decades away.

But the Inner Sphere had forgotten all about Kerensky's exodus, and nobody wants ''Peace'' to break out in a wargame setting, soooo...

===Suddenly Clannerscum===
Kerensky and his followers first settled on the Pentagon Worlds, where they tried to start a new society and a new Star League. They failed though, and the wars erupted between the worlds, showing the bitter irony of life. Kerensky tried to move on, but suffered a heart attack, and the leadership was overtaken by his son, Nicholas Kerensky (who unlike his father had hair and was probably a closet [[furry]]). Nicholas took the remaining followers with him to a planet he called "Dream Land" and established the twenty original Clans.

The Clans are a tribal society that is divided into five castes - Warriors (religious and political leaders and soldiers), Scientists (less respected but are considered highly important), Merchants (detested and only kept as a necessity), Technicians (engineers and warriors' servants), and Laborers (serfs, repressed as needed). Although during the birth each child is tested for their relevance to a certain caste, but more often than not are the same as their parents. Speaking of which, Clanners strongly believe in eugenics, and most of the Warrior Caste members are genetically enhanced clones/mashups. Other castes are selectively bred by the instructions from Science Caste. On a positive side it would mean that even [[neckbeard|neckbeards]] would end up breeding (though given the Clan's brutal meritocracy/kratocracy, they'd end up as outcasts in the Bandit Caste). On the other hand, the society has only a few acceptable non-technical forms of information, meaning that there really is no reason for there to be neckbeards. Paradoxes aside, Clans were created towards efficiency, and even their language differs from the one used in the Inner Sphere. Clans constantly compete in everything, from combat to technological prowess, as they foresaw their return to the Inner Sphere and its liberation. (By their hands, of course. And logically resulting in their control.)

And that day was not far off. Unfortunately for the Inner Sphere, ComStar never forgot about Kerensky's Exodus and sent exploration vessels out to sniff out their trail and reclaim lost Star League outposts on the side. When the Clans captured one of the expeditions, they believed that the Inner Sphere would invade the Pentagon worlds. Ironically, the Clans used that as an excuse to [[Clan Invasion|return and invade]] before being forced back by the very invasion they were trying to prevent.

A prophecy of days far off, the '''''ilClan''''' is a religious myth that states that someday a Clan will take control of Terra, the Cradle of Humanity. The Khan (leader) of the Clan of Clans which captures Terra will become the new, true ilKhan (Khan of Khans) and re-establish the Star League, over which their blood shall reign in perpetuity. All will be Clan, Clan will be all.

'''''ilClan''''' is also an [[Skub|abortive BattleTech rulebook]] that has been in the works since '''2002''', ever since the '''Dark Age''' Era was published. Ostensibly intended to be the next historical Era, featuring all new rules to reflect the dominance of Clan society and technology, the bankruptcies and sales that BattleTech went through stalled all development. In addition, most fans are [[Advancing the Storyline|vehemently opposed to the destruction of most of the factions]] in the game, and have spoken up at every opportunity to denounce the plans behind ilClan. A prank release of a provisional ilClan historical outline drew tremendous outcry and Catalyst Game Labs has subsequently decided to focus on rereleasing and updating older Era rulesets.

===Meanwhile, In The Inner Sphere===
...Of course, when the Clans returned to the Inner Sphere with the intent of liberating it from the feuding Great Houses, those same great houses <s>said "okay" and handed over the reins</s> put aside their differences and fought the Clans to a stand-still. This was an incredible show of camaraderie, and the most cooperative the houses had been since the Star League fell. It was all quite touching, really.

Okay, not really. The Clan invasion was getting bogged down and while they were making progress towards Terra it seemed like the new normal would be just constant unending war because they couldn't manage to put any of the successors away for good. The problem the Clans had was that their society had ritualized combat to the point where they expected the enemy to just fight them head on, all the time, always. Even the Lyrans weren't thick enough to play down to this standard (usually), meaning the unstoppable clan juggernaut kept getting stopped by dishonorable, cowardly tactics like flanking, backfield raids, and straight up running away from fights you can't win.

ComStar, the self-serving treacherous pricks that they are, decided that something needed to be done and so made the Clans a bet. The deal was, come to Tukayyid and fight our best in one big PROVE YOUR WORTH honorduel smackup. If the Clans won, ComStar would stab all the successors in the back, disconnect their HPG access and throw the doors to Terra wide open. If ComStar won, the Clans would agree to a fifteen year armistice.

The Clans, being honourable glory-seeking meatheads, agreed and converged on Tukayyid, dividing up objectives between Clans thinking that this was the beginning of the glorious endgame. All the while blissfully unaware that ComStar are every bit the cheating bastards you'd expect of an ISP in space with their own army. The Battle of Tukayyid wasn't a complete shutout for the Clans but it definitely illustrated that while the Clanners were good at winning '''fights''', they still had a real problem winning '''wars''' ''(where the enemy can go anywhere and do anything)''. In most of the engagements the Com Guard pounded the Clanners like discount tenderloin and because of their stubborn honourable ways the Clanners were obliged to abide by the cease fire by the logic of no-takey-backsies.

And then once the Clans were wrapped up behind a truce line it was time to get back to good-old inter-house wars. In an ultra-brief summary: There was the FedCom Civil War, kicking off the <s>Fifth Succession War</s> Word of Blake Jihad, the religious fanatic (well, moreso than usual) faction of ComStar went crazy over the entire Inner Sphere with cyborgs and nukes, until some dude named Devlin Stone got everyone to work together and kick them off Terra, then went on to form the Republic of the Sphere, essentially a re-establishment of the Terran Hegemony. In the meantime, the Clans got a bug up their asses over ideological purity after their Scientist Castes tried to take over, and all the Clans who invaded the Inner Sphere got kicked out of Clan Space to live there instead. Eventually someone forgot to pay the phone bill and the interstellar faster-than-light communication network went down. This ushered in the last era in the fluff known as the "Dark Age."

This is also considered the second ruination of the franchise by some. Many long-time fans think highly of the Succession Wars era of Battletech, right after the fall of the Star League. Marching around the field with walking tanks so expensive and rare that it's better to lose a pilot than a weapon is a powerful fantasy. It's often described as being "Mad Max with mechs." Of course, the blasted hellscape of the post-apocalypse is hard to maintain when the Clans invaded with their own brand-new shiny toys. The shift from "squabbling tribes with rusty guns" to "courageous defenders with shiny factories" is often considered the first ruination of the property ''(while a vocal minority, ie the clannerscum, hold it up as the only reason they got into it)''. When the squabbling of the Inner Sphere was broken up again by quasi-religious zealots and BattleTech was forced to stitch in apocrypha from its bastard child, the miniature game MechWarrior: Dark Age, people considered it the second collapse of the franchise.

===ilClan Era <strike>Dawn of a New Age, or Not</strike>===
In 2019 Catalyst released '''Shattered Fortress''', the first half of a two-sourcebook set intended to finally advance the franchise into a post-Dark Age era. It ended with a cliffhanger: on New Year's Day 3150 a Clan fleet lands on Terra, but we don't know which Clan. Continuing the recurring theme of Battletech players not caring one bit about advancing the storyline, the release of the second book was then delayed indefinitely by the massive success of a Kickstarter offering more new miniatures and rules set 100 years back on the timeline. While each republished or recompiled rulebook has prologues hinting that the ilClan and Third Star League are around in 3250 from framing documents as archival material, details were deliberately [[Skub|left vague]]. Come 2021, and the novels have finally pushed the timeline out of the Dark Age, reception has been... [[Derp|eh]]. While some factions and characters got a lot of development and [[Awesome|heroic action]], many others were [[Rage|given the shaft]] or reduced to 2D [[FAIL|caricatures when they had potential for development]].

On January 1st, 2021 the novel ''Hour of the Wolf'' was released. Long story short, the Wolf Khan managed to get his hands on a way to bypass the Fortress Walls (unknown to most, Devlin Stone snuck them the access codes as he believed they were the least terrible of bad outcomes). Clans Wolf and Jade Falcon then beat the shit out of the Republic of the Sphere (but not before having the bulk of their commanders assassinated by headhunter units), fought a Trial of Possession for Terra, and the Wolves won. So, Clan Wolf is now ilClan. Their Khan made the Jade Falcons his clan's bodyguard (the bad elements having died fighting), and reconstituted Clan Smoke Jaguar as a non-voting clan and to serve as his clan's black ops/special forces. These Clans then created a new Star League (to a point). And with the combined might of these admittedly terribly mangled clans now strengthened by working together, they might actually make something of themselves. Others in the setting might not recognize them yet, but with the industrial might of the region(s) of space they occupy, they'll probably end up smashing faces and making it clear whose boss. Or they'll get booted off or everyone will just wait for them to self-destruct and then just walk right in.

==Factions Summary==
While each faction has a certain flavor and preferred equipment/tactics, factions do not limit your gameplay choices to particular sets of 'Mechs/units/components, as in many other games ([[Warhammer 40,000]] is a good example, amongst many other skirmish-level wargames). So if something you want to use is in specific era of BattleTech History (FEDCOM Civil War, Clan Invasion, et cetera), anything goes. Although it's common for players to roleplay as being employed by some major power, and limiting themselves to their styles. Either that or they play as mercenaries and do as they please. Seriously, the amount of in-fighting is in effect galactic level (in Warhammer 40k -- aside from humanity itself -- only the ''Necrontyr'', the flesh incarnations of the [[Necrons]], ever fought each other to such a long and drawn out extent).

===The [[Inner Sphere]]===
While other time periods might have better or more interesting rules, the most popular ruleset remains the eras between the Fourth Succession War (3028) to just before the Word of Blake Jihad (3067). This list of Inner Sphere factions covers those periods with the most prominent being the Great Houses in the Inner Sphere (a region within a 550 light year radius of Terra):

====[[Federated Suns]]====
Ruled by House Davion, the Federated Suns is feudal Space America or nepotistic Space UK. [[Lawful Good]], ruled by a Great House as inbred as any other is, and with all positions of power occupied by the same set of mostly blood-related elites. Without the blue blood, you're just a clever commoner. However, the Federated Suns isn't as stratified as the other Successor States, and it's easier for a common citizen to climb the ladders of wealth and power, which fuels an entrepreneurial society that is among the wealthiest in the Inner Sphere. They’re heroic defenders of freedom and democracy, provided you define “freedom and democracy” as “being ruled by the Federated Suns”. Their colors are red, white, and blue. Something about that sounds strangely familiar...

Similar to [[Ultramarines|a certain faction in a certain other wargame]], the Federated Suns usually win most of their battles, and are usually presented as the good guys, drawing a lot of accusations of Mary Suehood. Unfairly, though, as the FedSuns win so much due to wealth-fueled research and production. In other words, they work hard, do a good job, encourage businesses, and they get rewarded with victory. Unlike the Smurfs, however, the Federated Suns has actual flaws - their “democracy” is a rubber stamp, their rhetoric about freedom is mostly just an excuse to justify warmongering and imperialism, and they have such a staggering degree of wealth inequality that there are cases where the populations of multiple planets only have a single school to go between them. This means that the FedSuns attract two kinds of fans: twelve-year-olds who buy all the propaganda, and people who can appreciate playing a bunch of self-righteous, hypocritical jackasses. On the bright side, they do live up to the hype when it comes to individual liberties, and their rulers are genuinely competent and mostly don't dick them over.

Thanks to their great wealth, the Federated Suns can afford to fund actual scientific research in the form of the New Avalon Institute of Science, or Space MIT, and the Davions supported most of the tech development and recovery in the Inner Sphere prior to the Clan Invasion. They also got lucky when they found an ancient Star League library filled with various editions of tabletop wargame splatbooks. They are known to be the house that first heavily employed or utilized a lot of Clan personnel and technologies after the conclusion of the invasion.

The Federated Suns also kind of have a thing for autocannons. Think [[Space Wolves]] with wolves, or [[Orks]] with [[Dakka]], and you have an idea. If it does not have an autocannon on it the Suns will find a way to give it one, and if it does have an autocannon they find a way to upgrade it to a rotary autocannon. So if you like autocannons (and you should) this is the faction for you.

Prior to the Fourth Succession War, the Federated Suns and Lyran Commonwealth were united through marriage (technically the political union was a treaty and the marriage was out of love and had no impact on the nations' unification), forming the Federated Commonwealth, the largest and most powerful empire in the galaxy since the Star League. In order to bridge the distance between the two nations, however, the Federated Commonwealth had to conquer large swathes of the Capellan Confederation, which they did easily. However, only a few decades later the Commonwealth was broken up by the FedCom Civil War, when Katherine Steiner-Davion schemed to either take over the Commonwealth or secede the Lyran half of it because she was a royal bitch. She is commonly known as simply The Bitch by many fans. And her splitting of the FedCom is incredibly weird since her nobles were against her, her military mostly liked the advantages brought by the FedSuns, and her public liked the massive boosts in economy and technological progress. Oh, and she was rebel usurper and had no authority to do any of the things she did. So her successful secession doesn't make a lick of sense and you just kinda have to suck it up. And to top it off, she had her mother murdered out of greed. The FedSuns are currently getting kicked around by pretty much everybody during the Dark Age, primarily because the current head of the house, Caleb, is extremely paranoid and rather psychotic.Thankfully he got killed by the Kuritans with some insider help from Clan Snow Raven (in exchange for some buffer territory). Not so thankfully, his death also brought the destruction a major chunk of the Davions' regular armed forces concentrated on one planet while enabling the Kuritans to take over the capital. Kuritans being what they're like, they probably raped and tortured everyone they didn't murder and alongside their dogs. <strike>''Save us, Julian!''</strike>

====[[Lyran Commonwealth]]====
[[File:Steiner Assault.jpg|350px|right|thumb|A typical scene of a Lyran Archon wondering why their cousin has failed to relieve the Commonwealth alongside a bloody frontline against their enemies. They're likely either at a ball dance or planning a coup.]]
Space Germany with some Space Scotland and Space Scandinavia kicking around, the Lyran Commonwealth is the largest successor state and owns the most resource-rich planets in the Inner Sphere, making them an industrial and economic powerhouse. Their government was supposed to be modeled on ancient Athens, led by a council of nine Archons, but this did not work out ''at all'', and eventually Archon Robert Marsden decided he'd had enough of this shit and overthrew the other Archons in a military coup. The Marsdens were eventually replaced by the Steiners via marriage, who have ruled the Commonwealth to this day.

The Lyrans are rich. Really, really absurdly rich. The only reason they haven't conquered the Inner Sphere yet is that they prefer to put the relatives of rich businessmen in charge of their army rather than, y'know, actual soldiers, meaning a significant amount of Lyran officers are terrible at their job. There is at least one recorded case of the Lyran military starting a major interstellar war ''by accident''. Fortunately, since they're so rich, they're able to make up for their ludicrous incompetence with the biggest and heaviest weapons in the Inner Sphere. The joke goes that a typical Steiner scout lance consists of four 100-ton '''''Atlas''''' 'Mechs (imagine a scout-recon team composed entirely of [[Warlord Battle Titan|Warlord Titans]] and you'll get the idea). Steiner forces tend to be big and slow, barely able to outmaneuver enemy fortresses. Of course, once they (eventually) get into range, you can kiss that fortress goodbye... And God-forbid you run into the rare Steiner commander who knows what they're doing. Ask the Clans at Tukayyid how that went for them.

Late in the Third Succession War, Archon Katrina Steiner shocked the entire Inner Sphere by actually calling for a peace treaty. Only Hanse Davion was at all interested, and he wound up marrying Katrina's daughter Melissa and uniting the two countries into one massive empire, the Federated Commonwealth (see above). Predictably, this Beauty-and-the-Geek romance started out exceedingly awesome then epically failed and it's back to single life for the too-pretty Steiners. They recently tried to have Clan Wolf migrate through their coreward territory to keep the Free Worlds League from reforming during the Dark Age while holding the transported civilian castes as insurance. The plan backfired with the Free Worlds League still reforming and Clan Wolf taking much of the coreward and middle territory in the Lyran Commonwealth to form the Wolf Empire. This, on top of a massive amount of civil unrest means the Lyrans are too busy with damage control from Wolf and Jade Falcon invasions along with internal rebellions to be a threat to anyone. The moral of the story is: don’t try to manipulate badasses who nearly conquered everyone without trying. They will fuck you up for it. Also, trying to hold civilians hostage against a culture that thinks civilians are barely human at all is pointless. It tends to go like "Okay, I'll kill a bunch of your people and conquer chunks of your territory". You threaten to kill the civilians and your enemy is totally incapable of understanding why they should care when they treat them as replaceable subjects instead of irreplaceable citizens. Come the rise of the ilClan on Terra and there’s a sudden power vacuum where the Jade Falcon occupation zone to the North use to be. This led to a massive Balkan-style disintegration of the said region alongside the Lyran’s northern provinces; many of resulting statelets are very ticked off at the Steiners for leaving them to rot. While Jade Falcons are barely around in the region, holdout territories and other Clans like the Hell’s Horses and Ghost Bears are eyeing the new buffer zone cautiously before seeking new planets to annex.

====[[Free Worlds League]]====
Taking elements from America, Yugoslavia, and Austria-Hungary (distinctions which grow less relevant with each passing day), the Free Worlds League is a federal democratic republic. No, really! They have a parliament and everything. Of course, the commander-in-chief of the Free Worlds League Military is always a member of House Marik because parliament doesn’t think anyone else can do the job, and the entire country has been operating under martial law “for the duration of the emergency” since the Star League broke up. But in principle, both democracy and federalism are alive and well in Marik space, making it impossible to get anything done. Think of the Free Worlds League as Space Holy Roman Empire due to regionalist nationalism.

Everyone in the Free Worlds League hates everyone else in the Free Worlds League; the only thing keeping them together is mutual animosity to the Lyrans, Capellans, and Periphery bandits raiding their borders. After finding out that Captain-General Thomas Marik had been in hiding running the Word of Blake for decades and the guy they’d been taking their orders from all that time was actually just some hobo picked up off the street, they gave up on trying to make the thing work at all and collapsed. Which is a shame because fake Marik was actually one of the best Captain-Generals they ever had. After the Dark Age, said hobo’s daughter managed to put it back together again, which kind of makes you start to wonder about that whole “only the Mariks can handle the Captaincy-General” thing. Doesn't help that she had to make a deal with the Spirit Cat and Sea Fox clanners to cement the whole thing together as well as marrying the official Marik family's head.

The Free Worlds League Military is built around combined arms warfare, treating infantry, vehicles, and aerospace fighters as if they were just as useful as mechs. They also used to have the most LAMs back before [[squat|LAMs ceased to be a thing]]. They don’t get a lot of attention, since they’re far away from the FedSuns and the Clans and therefore don’t get involved in stories about factions the writers actually care about. The constant in-fighting probably doesn't help. That said, they most likely do enough to keep their jobs, which is probably good enough to satisfy the average Joe, who couldn't care less about political squabbles. Recent lore hints they’re probably at the forefront of the ilClan’s attention now due to Leaguers eager to reconquer their lost territory. Whether they get out of the border war in one piece is up for debate.

====[[Draconis Combine]]====
Ruled by House Kurita, the Draconis Combine is the obligatory Space Japan, in the sense that it is ''obligatory'' to be Japanese. It has large Arab and Scandinavian minorities who are legally required to be [[weeaboo]]s, with the country as a whole drawing on both the age of samurai and the militaristic Imperial Japan of the 1920s to 40s. The twelve-year-olds listed above, if they leave the FedSuns, will likely move to this weeaboo paradise with its delusional "fierce solo samurai warrior takes on all opponents Kurosawa Style" appeal, not realizing that lone 'Mechs get [[rape|gang-banged]] by enemies who are teamed up like a pack of mechanical hyenas. Defended by weeaboos despite being responsible for the single most horrific massacre in human history during the First Succession War, or at the least, the only one anyone in and out of universe bothers to actually remember. For an alternate look into this supposed massacre, please read ''Did 52 million really die?'' In fact, they have a habit of doing this. “We defeated the mercenaries on this planet who have nothing to do with the general populace. Nuke everyone before we leave. Why? Uhhhh...do we really need a reason? <s>they’re not our enemies or anything, but [[Lulz|murder is fun]]</s> SCORCHED EARTH TACTICS! Preventing enemies from using the planet’s populace or resources against us is a valid strategy!”

Like everyone else in the Inner Sphere, the Draconis Combine is a warmongering, autocratic empire ruled with an iron fist that wants to take over the galaxy. Unlike everyone else in the Inner Sphere, they actually admit it. They're the only successor state that makes absolutely no pretenses of being a democracy, with the Coordinator of Worlds being treated as a divinely anointed absolute monarch who is the sole legitimate ruler of all humanity. They were the first to start shit after the Star League collapsed, with the Coordinator declaring himself the new First Lord and launching an invasion of the Federated Suns that eventually wound up getting him killed on Kentares IV, prompting his son to launch the aforementioned massacre. They've been the mortal enemies of the Federated Suns ever since.

Similar to the Davions and their love of autocannons and the Steiners and their love of everything heavy and assault, Kuritans are really, really into PPCs (Particle Projector Cannons), mainly because they're dirt poor and [[Lasgun]]s are cheaper than bullets. If there is a mech that can possibly mount a PPC, the Dracs will put one on it. For instance, see the ''Catapult'': a 65-ton long-range fire support 'Mech intended for indirect fire using the Long Range Missle (LRM) racks in its "ears". Almost every variant of the ''Catapult'' is centered around these LRM racks with a few minor backup weapons. They are a reliable, battle-tested design that no commander in their right mind would attempt to 'fix', because isn't broken... except in the eyes of House Kurita. Once the Combine got their hands on it those ears were replaced with two PPCs for direct fire support and two machine guns for <s>civilian massacres</s> INFANTRY DETERRENTS.

Kuritans were also [[Fail|involved in the worst BattleTech novel ever written]], wherein a ship of theirs was lost in time and space, and [[what|found giant]], [[Kroot|alien, sentient chickens]]. Far Country is a [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U6zQ6ZqEqg0 Shamefur Dispray]! and pretty much serves as the only time aliens are actually mentioned in the BattleTech universe.

====[[Capellan Confederation]]====
Culturally, Space China and Space Russia. Politically, Space North Korea. The Confederation was originally founded when several minor states in the Capellan Zone who were sick of the Federated Suns trying to "liberate" them joined together, [[lolwut|bombed their own capital of Capella to make a point]], and fought the Davions off. Secure in this victory, they then proceeded to never win a war ever again. Sounds like their rulers were evil after all.

Citizens of the Capellan Confederation enjoy probably the highest standard of living of any commoner in the Inner Sphere, with an extensive, cradle-to-grave welfare system and the best education and health care the state can provide. [[Grimdark|*Non*-citizens of the Capellan Confederation, known as "Servitors", are basically slaves.]] Becoming a citizen requires you to provide a certain amount of service to the state by the age of seventeen, and citizenship can be removed as punishment for disloyalty. Even those who aren't unfortunate enough to be Servitors basically have their lives decided for them by the Capellan caste system and the government's ability to tell them that they have to move to a new planet and take up a new career at any given moment. The writers might have eventually gotten the note on how pointless this was because under chancellor Sun-Tzu (No, really) Liao in 3052 the servitors were awarded more rights, their quasi slavery condition abolished and they were given better chances at gaining citizenship, boosting Sun-Tzu's popularity in the process. Just as planned.

The Confederation is run by a Chancellor, who's supposed to be elected by the nobility but in reality is pretty much always the head of House Liao. This is rather unfortunate, since the Liaos have a noticeable tendency towards being batshit fucking insane ''even by Inner Sphere nobility standards''. They claim descent from Elias Liao, who was either a persecuted revolutionary philosopher (if you ask a Capellan) or a psychopathic nuclear terrorist (if you ask anyone else). The main family line births a homicidal maniac at least every other generation, e.g. Kali Liao, who became the leader of a cyborg death cult with a taste for mass nerve-gas attacks. At one point, they decided that having a regular military just wasn't cool enough for them and created the Warrior Houses, a bunch of weird pseudo-religious warrior cults that only answer to the Chancellor.

Since the Capellans have lost basically every war they've ever fought and live right next to the Federated Suns, they've become the designated "sneaky" faction, focusing on guerrilla warfare and covert operations. They go for stealth and electronic warfare the way the Davions go for autocannons, best exemplified by their iconic Raven electronic warfare 'Mech (which, depending on the model, actually looks like a bird; weird but cool). After the Clan Invasion and FedCom Civil War, they acquired a taste for the newly-developed Plasma weapons. Got the absolute shit beat out of them by the Federated Commonwealth during the Fourth Succession War, got revenge when the Commonwealth tore itself apart a few decades later.

====[[ComStar]]====
Imagine a cross between the medieval Catholic Church and Comcast, and you have ComStar. During the Star League Civil War, the network of Hyperpulse Generators that the Star League had built for faster-than-light communications was in ruins, and the one thing that the Great Houses could agree on was that ''somebody'' had to fix all their space phones right fucking now. They named Jerome Blake, the highest-ranking HPG network official still alive, as Minister of Communications, which, since they didn't name any other ministers, basically put him in charge of Terra. As the Star League collapsed, Blake bummed some soldiers off of Kerensky, got the Successor States to agree that the space phones were important and they should therefore respect ComStar's neutrality, and then seized complete control of Terra in a lightning-fast coup, revealing that that neutrality had some teeth.

After Blake died, ComStar quickly turned into a quasi-mystical and religious organization, whose stated purpose was to preserve human knowledge in the dark ages of the Succession Wars, a goal they attempted to fulfill by assassinating every scientist who wouldn't work for them and starting the Second Succession War practically the moment the first one ended. Things started to spiral out of control for them after the Helm Memory Core was leaked and suddenly everyone was able to figure out how Lostech worked again, and then things got even ''worse'' when the Clans showed up.

ComStar is also famous for introducing the ComStar Bill (C-bill) as a standard galactic currency. Rather than being backed by material goods, each C-bill is backed by ComStar's faster than light message delivery service: One C-bill will guarantee one millisecond of data transmission, enough for a few pages of bare text or a small image, with larger transmissions costing more, and with additional fees for higher priority and the like. The value of the various Great House currencies can be weighed against their worth in C-bills which allows for currency exchange on a galactic scale. The C-bill is the primary way that mercenaries are paid and in turn pay for goods and services, and thus the most common currency encountered by players. Post Jihad, ComStar was neutered of its armed forces and subject to a hostile takeover by Clan Sea Fox (outside of the universe, at least one of the game developers had a hate boner against ComStar's OP status and gave their more powerful components the ax, courtesy of Blakist nukes).

====Minor Powers====
*'''[[Free Rasalhague Republic]]''': Space Norse/Vikings. They were a part of the Draconis Combine along the Lyran border, until the formation of the Federated Commonwealth meant that Kurita was about to have ''two'' borders for Hanse Davion to attack them from, so he granted them their independence as a buffer state. May have been awesome. If you're wondering why we write of them in the past tense refer to: ''Clan Invasion, Why Not Get in the Way of One'' (Third Publishing of Liao, COMSTAR ISBN 474-Alpha-467-Upsilon-345). They later join up with the Ghost Bears and become the Rasalhague Dominion. They are awesome because now we have Viking clanners. One of their aerospace pilots literally stopped the Clan invasion dead for an entire year because she banzai'd her fighter into a Clan warship and killed the ilKhan.
*'''[[Word of Blake]]''': An ultra-reactionary splinter faction of ComStar that got butthurt after ComStar ditched all the pseudo-religious bullshit. Broke away and launched an all-out jihad (''yes, they actually used that word'') on literally everyone shortly after the Federated Commonwealth Civil War came to an end. Made liberal use of weapons of mass destruction and rendered several entire planets uninhabitable. Fond of genocide, re-education camps, unstable technology, and mass murder. As a result, they were eventually crushed as a result of pissing off the entire fucking universe, but not before undoing a lot of the technological progress that had been made after the [[Clan Invasion]] (apparently by magic, as not only was that knowledge now universally available, but so were copies of the Helm Memory Core...and destroying some factories doesn’t make technology go away). Basically used by the publishers to reset the average technology level of the game due to a lot of players feeling it was advancing too far and getting away from the quasi-feudal feel of earlier editions (forgetting that quasi-feudalism is a governing method, the technology level has nothing to do with it). Ironically enough, their 'Mechs were more streamlined and featured a lot more experimental technologies for people who would eventually blow the entire game setting back to the quasi-iron age. Officially, they were all supposedly killed after the Jihad for genocide. Recently hinted by a terminally ill Stone to still be around and responsible for the HPG network being taken out as a taunt against ilKhan Alaric before being killed off in bed.
*'''The [[Republic of the Sphere]]''': Established by an individual calling himself Devlin Stone, who mysteriously surfaced at some point during the Blakefag Jihad, and helped pull the galaxy out that colossal clusterfuck through a series of successful military campaigns. Upon the Jihad's defeat, Stone met with ComStar Precentor Martial Victor Ian Steiner-Davion and laid out a philosophy which Victor would privately describe as ''militant socialism keyed to altruism''; Officials and authorities would have their assets placed in a blind trust. Public service would be rewarded. Greed and corruption would be punished. All weapons would be placed under government control. [[Just As Planned|Surprisingly, it worked]], at least for a time, ushering in a new era of peace for the core worlds. However, after ruling as Exarch of the Republic for a while, Devlin Stone stepped down and shortly there after disappeared, vowing to [[Sigmar|return when he was needed most]]. It didn't take long before everything went to shit again and was plunged into chaos when the interstellar communication network was sabotaged. Was gangbanged by a combination of separatist factions, the Capellans, and Clan Jade Falcon before finally saying FUCK IT and retreating back to Terra. All while somehow using Word of Blake HPG disruption tech to prevent hyperspace jumps into their core territory. They also recently developed a taste for Tripod 'Mechs (which are the only modern 'Mech that can exceed Assault 'Mechs in terms of tonnage, firepower, and armor but at the cost of requiring an additional gunner and engineer onboard to shoot and monitor the machine's vitals) while also hybridizing Clan & IS technology (culminating with extremely powerful but unstable weapons). <strike>''You guys realize Stone is the [[Emperor]], right? Right?''</strike> None of this makes sense, of course, as the HPG network is not only extremely well and fanatically protected by actual fanatics, but also is so large it can’t really be sabotaged. Except by magically competent Deus ex Machina mooks, apparently. Friendly clans could also build their own for the Republic’s use. Except newly built HPGs also failed somehow. Black Boxes became advanced enough that HPGs were nearly pointless, though, making the whole “Dark Age” thing really...dumb. And if someone had the sense to build building-sized Black Boxes instead of briefcase-sized, the HPGs would have a perfect backup. But common sense in BattleTech is [[heresy]] just like in any good universe. Besides that, the eyes on anyone with power to prevent corruption would stop factions from selling out the Republic and the senators would not have been able to sponsor military officers into becoming Paladins because that is extremely corrupt and would not have been allowed or tolerated. Even if such a plot succeeded, there would be no leverage for the senators to get those paladins to do what they wanted. And the Capellans are target practice, sudden separatism makes no sense when they were fine until this point under numerous oppressive regimes, and Clan Jade Falcon by itself would have been crushed and a team up of clans would have sent the whole Inner Sphere into a clan-killing frenzy panic mode. Come the latest novels in 2021, and the Republic and it's founder were reduced to a caricature of fall of the III Reich (complete with a senile leader giving contradictory orders and throwing their best units at the worst faction so the best faction can pick up the pieces). While many of their leaders and fighters survived, it's an open question of whether they cooperate with the ilClan or revolt later down the line.
** '''Northwind Highlanders''': A band of Scottish mercenaries hailing from the planet Northwind. Once upon a time they were a formal Royal Guard unit for House Cameron in the SLDF but they went free agent when the Star League fell apart, after which they mostly worked for House Liao. They got a surprise happy blakesday party that destroyed their HPG and wiped out their aerofighters but otherwise they survived and joined the Republic in 3081. With the Fall of the Republic, they were forced to surrender with their leader loaned as a liaison from the ilClan to the Jade Falcons; which is notable due to both factions historically and currently originating from, the Black Watch, elite SLDF units working as bodyguards for the First Lord of the Star League and nearly prevented the [[Amaris Civil War]].
* '''[[The Periphery]]''': The collection of non-successor states on the edges of the Inner Sphere. They were brought into the Star League by force and are still kinda sore about it, mostly because they nearly got blasted back to the Stone Age and never quite got their technology back up. The most important entities (outside of the Clans) are the Periphery powers bordering the Great Houses in the Inner Sphere while the rest is marked as the Deep Periphery and is as isolated from civilization as the Arctic Circle from the rest of civilization.
**'''[[Taurian Concordate]]''': Equivalent to the Space IRA/Ireland, they’re a Periphery nation bordering the Federated Suns and Cappellan Confederation. Has an axe to grind against the Federated Suns and claims they’re much more dedicated to freedom and liberty than the Davions. Think the United States right after 9/11, all of the good and the bad, and you have a good idea of the culture. Just replace paranoia about Islam with paranoid about the Federated Suns, including the fact that the overwhelming majority of who they're paranoid couldn't given any less of a shit about them. Also add the IRA, their fanatical hatred of the British, and war crime tendencies.
**'''Marian Hegemony''': A bandit kingdom bordering the Lyrans and Free Worlds League that decided to become the Roman Empire IN SPACE. They’re basically founded on by a noble consortium who struck gold with a vast deposit of germanium (a vital ingredient for KF Drives). Due to their practice of raiding for resources and slaves, all their neighbors (particularly the Lyrans and Free Worlds Leaguers) hate them. A shadier version of the [[Severan Dominate]] from 40k.
**'''[[Rim Worlds Republic]]''': A former authoritarian and militaristic state formed during the Age of War. It was a poster child in the Star League due to its founders, House Amaris, proclaiming unconsummated loyalty to the League during the Reunification Wars. Unfortunately, House Amaris was as [[Angron|bloodthirsty]] as House Kurita and [[Lorgar|spiteful]] as House Liao. Due to perceived “betrayal” from the Star League not rescuing them fast enough from an anti-Star League mass revolt during the Reunification Wars, they held a secret grudge and then staged a bloody coup against House Cameron. After countless war crimes and purges as the SLDF ground through their defenses to Terra, they got eradicated in the [[Amaris Civil War]] with the bulk of their planets outright annexed by the Lyran Commonwealth. If the Word of Blake or the more extremist Clans like the Smoke Jaguars and Jade Falcons are the big bads in BattleTech, the Rim Worlds Republic is in a very close second or third place.
**'''[[Magistracy of Canopus]]''': Equivalent to Space Las Vegas, it’s a hedonistic matriarchy bordering the Free Worlds League. A nation of cybernetic catgirls, whose largest export is pornography. No, really. We're serious. Well they're not all cybernetic catgirls but they're there if you want them, and pornography and the tourist industry makes up a large chunk of their economy. Also Medical research and technology, most likely to treat all the STDs you get from your vacation to Space Vegas. Also known for having a significant religious conservatives population as they have an open-door refugee policy.
**'''[[Outworlds Alliance]]''': Basically the Space Amish, they’re a backwater state near the Federated Suns and Draconis Combine. Was the Periphery-est of the Periphery states until Clan Snow Raven moved in and formed the '''Raven Alliance'''.
**'''Hanseatic League''': A mercantile alliance of traders descended from Lyran refugees fleeing economic declines during the Third Succession War, their nation is between the Clan Homeworlds and Lyran Space. They liked to pretend to be a neutral third party interested in trade of goods and information while also subjecting neighboring planets to debt trap diplomacy with armed merchant caravans. Also liked to play both sides against each other in any prolonged war among their neighbors to increase profits and soften them up for potential annexation (such as between Nueva Castille and the Umayyad Caliphate). Unfortunately, they were eventually conquered by Clan Goliath Scorpion (with help from their newfound Castilian and Umayyad citizens) and merged into their new Scorpion Empire some time in the Dark Age.
*'''Mercenary Review and Bonding Commission''': An independent group that certifies and provides force rankings for various [[Mercenaries (Battletech)|mercenary groups]]. At least three MechWarrior games are focused on the mercs as it allows writers more leeway and less chance to screw up the canon.
**'''Kell Hounds''': A merc company headed by Morgan Kell. His son Phelan was captured by Clan Wolf when the Clan Invasion first began, and by the end was running the Clan until it split. Took in Phelan and the Exiled Wolves afterwards. Generally, are tough but cool guys all around. Like the Exiled Wolves, they got a massive "kill on sight" target painted on their back after the omnicidal Jade Falcon Khan got annoyed with their feisty resistance against her campaign into Lyran Territory. Once the Jade Falcons scrambled the bulk of their military forces to Terra, the Kell Hounds were able to retake their homeworld when the Jade Falcon occupation zone and Lyran northernmost territories balkanized from the power vacuum. On the other hand, their commander has a big grudge against the Steiners for leaving them out to dry.
**'''Grey Death Legion''': Mercenary group who were famous for finding and distributing the Helm Core, which allowed the Inner Sphere to regain technology formerly lost during the Succession Wars. Generally an author's favorite in the books. Got destroyed during the Blake Jihad. And then got resurrected once the northern Lyran provinces balkanized.
**'''Wolf's Dragoons''': A bunch of Clan Wolf advance scouts disguised as a mercenary group. Came to the Inner Sphere with a ton of 'Mechs that the Clans considered outdated but hadn't been seen in the Successor States in centuries and were considered Lostech... Which should have tipped the Great Houses off that these guys might be bad juju. Instead of providing intel to the Clans for their invasion, Wolf's Dragoons pulled a fast one and tried to prepare the Inner Sphere for war with the Clans. They are generally pretty awesome guys, even if part of that awesomeness is because they get a ton of attention in the fluff due to the writers' obsession with anything related to Clan Wolf. They got screwed pretty badly during the Blake Jihad when the nutjobs assaulted Outreach. By Dark Age they are slowly recovering with help from the Kell Hounds. Recent novellas have the Wolves convince them to join them on Terra once it's conquered to prevent the genocidal Jade Falcons from becoming the ilClan. Unfortunately, latest novels also made them become meatshields used by the Wolf Khan to expend the Turquoise Turkeys' ammo supplies while being reduced to a fraction of their strength. Naturally, in a repeat of their history against Kurita, they [[Book of Grudges|swore]] an oath to stand against the Wolves permanently.

===[[The Clans]]===
Laughable strategic and logistical ability and basically have no plan when they do something. But God have mercy on you if they're coming your way. 'Cus you're '''''fucked'''''. These guys reside in the [[Deep Periphery]] and tried to leave well enough alone with the Spheroid barbarians their SLDF ancestors disowned until Space AT&T knocked on their front door like an unsolicited salesman. The resulting "GTFO my lawn" response naturally made the Innner Sphere soil their pants. Each clan is named after an animal, and yes those are the animal's full names.

* Clan Blood Spirit: The smallest clan. Noted for having the toughest training, favored Battle Armor, and had no official allies after starting off idealistic but then becoming jaded grudge-holders. :( Despite above comment, not ACTUALLY an animal, but named for the warrior spirit that united the forces under Kerensky.
* Clan Burrock: The only clan to support the Dark Caste. Liked picking on the Blood Spirits before they were absorbed by Clan Star Adder.
* Clan Cloud Cobra: The Religious types. Loved aerospace fighters and jump jets. Obsessed with collecting genetic bloodlines other clans don't want.
* Clan Coyote: Native Americans in Space. Also like to scheme too much for their own good. Known for creating a shit ton of tech (unlike [[Adeptus Mechanicus|some people]] on Mars...)
* [[Clan Diamond Shark]]: Used to be called Sea Fox until Snow Raven killed their namesake (with their current one) the only clan that views the merchant caste as equal to their warrior one. Later brought back the Sea Fox and changed their name back. The only clan to allow all castes to vote, making them arguably a genuinely democratic republic.
* Clan Fire Mandrill: The clan whose gimmick was to always have a few subfactions to foster internal competition. At first it was manageable and it improved the clan, but then the factionalism snowballed into more than 10 mini-subfactions which made the whole clan a laughing stock among the clans.
* Clan Ghost Bear: The only clan to be founded by a married couple, as a result they're the only clan to still have normal family units. Much more protective of its civilian caste than the others. Nearly devoured the Free Rashalague Republic in the Clan Invasion, then merged with what was left after the Jihad. Went full blown good old fashion Viking Berserker when the Jihad nuked their civilians, attacking friend and foe alike in pure grief fueled murderous rage. Awesome.
* Clan Goliath Scorpion: Stoners with rose-colored nostalgia glasses. Also noted for elite marksmanship and ambush tactics. Likes to [[Blood Ravens|acquire artifacts]] [[Trazyn the Infinite|for cultural appreciation of the Star League]], sometimes with bad consequences down the line.
* Clan Hell's Horses: The only clan to think tanks are useful, often uses combined arms tactics rather than just spamming 'Mechs. They have a hot rod flames color scheme. Extremely heavily focused on teamwork. Including teamwork between castes and between the clan and its conquered worlds. Which has led to very good relations both internally and externally. Probably the only Clan other than the Star Adders that locals might actually support over a "liberating" Inner Sphere force. ''Maybe''.
* Clan <strike>Temper Tantrum</strike> Ice Hellion: Speed freaks with a big ego. Their Khan seems to bitch every time their forces lose, which is often.
* [[Clan Jade Falcon]]: The spotlight stealing clan second only to the Wolves, with whom they have a fierce rivalry. Slightly less evil than the Jaguars.
* Clan Mongoose: Basically a footnote in clan history. Extremely aggressive, tend to attack everyone near them. [[Fail|Got their asses kicked by everyone else before being absorbed.]]
* Clan Nova Cat: The spiritual types, they decide their policy with visions, which 9 times out of 10 ends badly for them. Some of the best marksmen in the clans, often competed with Clan Goliath Scorpion. Joined Smoke Jaguar in attacking the Draconis Combine, then sided with the Combine right after everyone decided the Jags had to go. Eventually got destroyed during the Dark Ages for backing the wrong Kuritan royal in a civil war.
* Clan <strike>Chimney Kitten</strike> [[Clan Smoke Jaguar|Smoke Jaguar]]: Essentially super aggressive [[World Eaters]] trained to pilot 'Mechs. Known to fuck shit up until their smaller numbers (due to infighting, shitting on their civilian castes and hating logistics) fucked them over in long campaign. Were eventually wiped out by the Inner Sphere counter-attack after they murdered an entire city from orbit. What goes around comes around. Recent ilClan lore had their descendants in the Fidelis sworn to the Wolf Khan in exchange for rebuilding their clan; [[What|despite]] their original [[Book of Grudges|hatred]] for letting the Second Star League annihilate them.
* Clan Snow Raven: The sinister & cunning space jockeys of the clans. Specialized in space combat and became BBFs with the Outworlds Alliance.
* Clan Spirit Cats: Offshoots of the Nova Cats after they were annihilated by the Combine.
* Clan Star Adder: Boring, but very, very practical, which benefited them a lot. They favor using assault 'Mechs, and like to upgrade their lasers to heavy lasers. Living under them or as one of them is much more like real life. If you can do a job, you can have the job. Including a laborer wanting to be a warrior. Which ironically is the same approach that caused Clan Wolverine to be destroyed by Kerensky.
* Clan Steel Viper: Self righteous xenophobes who wanted to cooperate with the Inner Sphere but also treated freeborns like dirt, and then wondered why nobody liked them. Responsible for Clan genocide known as [[Skub|"The Wars of Reaving"]]. [[Fail|Got genocided in return.]]
* Clan Widowmaker: The hyper-aggressive types. Their first Khan held a grudge against the Wolverines and framed them before being killed with support from Nicholas. Widowmaker later got annihilated for accidentally killing Nicky. What was left of it, however, <strike>gave birth</strike> (lies Clanners aren't born, they're grown) to the most dangerous MechWarrior ever, Natasha Kerensky.
* Clan Wolf: The spotlight stealing Clan, courtesy of it being Kerensky's personal clan. Split up into two factions following the Refusal War.
** Crusader Wolves: The guys who want to continue the invasion of Inner Sphere. Wound up migrating from their original invasion corridor to Lyran/Marik space & formed a new & dangerous upstart state called the '''Wolf Empire.''' Later <strike>[[Mary Sue|surprise surprise]]</strike>, won against the Republic and Jade Falcons on Terra to become the ilClan of the Third Star League [[FAIL|despite the other factions refusing to recognize them for now]] outside of the former Republic’s officials, Jade Falcons, & the Smoke Jaguars that are all a shadow of their strength. Naturally lost most of their forces to take the top prize.
** Warden Wolf-in-Exile: The guys who want to defend Inner Sphere against the rest of the clans, who they think are a mockery of Kerensky's teachings. Like the Kell Hounds, they got a massive "kill on sight" target painted on their back after the omnicidal Jade Falcon Khan got annoyed with their feisty resistance against her campaign into Lyran Territory. Somehow got convinced to rejoin the Crusaders Wolves in revenge against the Jade Falcons despite the story never addressing the Crusader-Warden divide on treating Inner Sphere nations as subjects to be conquered and ruled from above or charges to be protected and educated from partnership. The “official” motive of seeking payback against the Jade Falcons for razing their civilian population centers and killing their cadet academies can only go so far until the Green Chickens got defeated.
* <strike>[[Clan Wolverine]]</strike> Not-Named Clan: Aggressive and independent minded, these guys pissed off Nicky to such extent that they were annihilated after the vengeful Widowmaker Khan framed them of detonating nukes on civilians and another Clan’s genetic repository after the Wolverines seceded from the Clans. Basically, they did the caste thing but thought "Hey, why not let people do what they're best at?" and that sort of thing. It pissed off crazy pants ilKhan Kerensky because this approach made them more successful than all the other clans, proving his method was actually not the best way. Some survivors were able to flee as the '''Minnesota Tribe''' but they've been never heard from publicly since (though there are hints that they're around in the Deep Periphery in some recent novels and short stories). [[What|There are many theories about them returning to Inner Sphere and taking over it as shadow masterminds in order to destroy the clans.]]

===[[Wars of Reaving]]===
[[Advancing the Storyline|Fed up with having to write more stuff about clans nobody cares about]], a bunch of clans were wiped out after the Jihad, or driven out of clan territory. While the in-story explanation is that a butthurt ilKhan decided it was time to make a powerplay after not having won anything out of the Inner Sphere Invasion, everyone knows that there were several clans that had no discernable effect on the game.
*'''''Annihilated or Absorbed:'''''
**Blood Spirit: Got wiped out for using civilian militias which "isn't clan-like" and [[Bullshit|marked for annihilation for letting people fight for their homes instead of cooperating with their new leaders as Clan honor dictates.]] As well as using [[Planetary Defense Force|en-mass civilian militias]] to attack their enemies.
**Burrock: Tried to re-establish themselves after being absorbed, got defeated.
**Fire Mandrill: Too fractured to fight back effectively during the Wars of Reaving. What was left of them got absorbed by the Goliath Scorpions and other Homeworld Clans
**Ice Hellion: [[Fail|Killed themselves by trying to steal Jade Falcon and Hell's Horses territory.]] The remaining survivors joined Goliath Scorpion.
**Steel Viper: Took over the Clan Homeworlds and gave everyone free reign to remove the “taint” of the Invader Clans by any means necessary. Forgot that they themselves were an Invader Clan.
**Nova Cat: The main Clan was destroyed by the Draconis Combine for being on the losing side of a civil war. the majority of the survivors were led by a warrior-mystic who had a vision that the Clan as whole would go extinct if he didn't lead some like minded fellows away elsewhere before they were indeed wiped out and they would travel to a part of the former Free Worlds League to set up shop there as the Spirit Cats.
*'''''Exiled or Abjured:''''' These clans were forced out of the Clan Homeworlds on the pretense of being "corrupted" by Inner Sphere influences. Some later formed the '''Council of Six Clans''', representing the clans that now exist in the Inner Sphere.
**Ghost Bears: Banished to the Inner Sphere and eventually founded the '''Rasalhague Dominion.''' Joined the Council.
**Goliath Scorpion: Originally sided with the Homeworld Clans to drive the Invader Clans out of the Kerensky Cluster. Then was censured and abjured for absorbing Clan Ice Hellion Warriors and Star League descended mercenaries from Eridani Light Horse in their Clan eugenics program without permission. Ran away and conquered Nueva Castile and Umayyads (Spaniards vs. Arabs IN SPACE) in the Deep Periphery, forming '''Escorpion Imperio.''' By the eve of the Dark Age, they had also conquered their neighbors to the south, the Hanseatic League, and founded a new major Periphery power known as the '''Scorpion Empire''' that's second only to the Homeworld Clans as a military power in the Periphery.
**Hell's Horses: Stole some of Clan Wolf's territory in the Inner Sphere, and end up getting banished from the Clan Homeworlds. Developed a taste for experimenting with QuadVee 'Mechs (which can convert from a ground combat vehicle into a Quad 'Mech while also requiring a dedicated gunner). Joined the Council.
**Jade Falcon: Banished to the Inner Sphere and tried to conquer Terra but failed. Still rules the parts of the Inner Sphere they conquered during the Clan Invasion. Replaced the Smoke Jaguars as the most vicious clan under their latest Khan (who's willing to do anything to kill her enemies). Joined the Council. Later got most of their forces wiped out from omnicidal fighting against the Republic, Dragoons, and Wolves on Terra. Said genocidal Khan got killed off and replaced with a pragmatic reformer who agreed to follow the Wolf IlKhan in exchange for the Turquoise Turkeys becoming the IlKhan's body guards.
**Sea Fox/Diamond Shark: Ended up in what's left of the Free Worlds League. Split up into semi-independent merchant fleets and are now a collection of nomadic "Khanates" that sail the starlanes of the Inner Sphere. Joined the Council, but also joined the FWL as a member state. In the meantime, managed to bring the Sea Fox back from extinction, and changed back to their old name.
**Smoke Jaguar: Some of them showed up as super-secret Clanner loyalists called '''Fidelis''' to the Republic of the Sphere. More practical minded than their grandparents but just as likely to go [[rip and tear|berserk]] when fighting any clan warriors for their perceived betrayal. Still in the Fortress Republic. A scant few are found hiding in the Deep Periphery with the few warships that they still had. Later somehow let go of their grudge to pledge allegiance to the Wolve Khan in exchange for reforming their Clan under the IlKhan's protection.
**Snow Raven: Ran away and merged with the Outworlds Alliance in the Periphery, forming the '''Raven Alliance.''' Joined the Council.
**Spirit Cat: What's left of Nova Cats, allied with the Free Worlds League and formed an enclave in their territory with sponsorship from House Marik and Clan Sea Fox.
**Wolf: Splintered into several factions. Basically conquered the central and coreward territories of Lyran Alliance under the '''Wolf Empire.''' Making the Steiners have a bigger headache, their Khan, Katrina Steiner's descendant, claimed the mantle of Archon through her bloodline. Wolves-in-Exile refuse to join and are doing their own thing. Clan Wolf-Alliance joined the Council. “Katrina Steiner’s descendant” is in fact a Trueborn Clanner that Katherine Steiner-Davion had made using both her own genetic material and Victor Steiner-Davion’s, because regular incest just wasn’t crazy enough for her. Later became IlKhan once the two halves merged back together <strike>naturally</strike>.
*'''''Home Clans:''''' Theses clans still hold territory in the Clan Homeworlds and consider themselves "True Clans."
**Cloud Cobra: Still around.
**Coyote: Sneaky bastards. Got their hands on the genetic material of one of Clan Wolves's founders. Outside of the universe, unreliable rumors hint that said founder may have been the last known descendant of House Cameron.
**Star Adder: TOP DOG. Their Khan was the one who stopped the psycho Steel Viper ilKhan by dint of beating his head inside out with the nearest handy blunt object.
**Stone Lions: Made from the Hell's Horses who were left in the Clan Homeworlds and didn't get exiled.

So basically there are now ten Clans: The six Spheroid Clans, and the four Home Clans. The rest are either dead, formed hybrid societies, or are even more minor than before and thus save the writers from some hard work in upcoming TROs.

==The Appeal of BattleTech==
First and most obvious, giant stompy BattleMechs bristling with guns duking it out is cool. But despite that, BattleTech is in general a more grounded and human setting. You don't have warp daemons, God Emperors, energy forces or psionic powers in BattleTech or giant Space Cathedrals and machines that work better when people pray to them. Nor does it have artificial gravity, shields, sapient aliens, serious transhumanism, dyson spheres, general AI and other more wild science fiction ideas. While it does go into some suspense of belief in technology such as KF-FTL drive and HPG-FTL communications, most of the technology is still grounded within the realm of plausible belief. Society-wise, it doesn't go into the speculation on how civilization may come into conflict with divergent ideals or extraterrestrial life, instead you have human people like you and me struggling in a hostile universe where the most dangerous thing is often another human being under another flag. Not that the setting lacks for variety; the main factions are very well developed with their own distinct motivations, even if they do sometimes tend to lean into stereotypes. BattleTech is for people who read [[Dune]] and find the idea of the Atreides, Harkonnens, Corinos and the other Great Houses of the Landsraad with their conflicts and their power plays to be far more interesting than what happened after Paul took over. Some others also consider it similar to a teen rated version of [[A Song of Ice and Fire|Game of Thrones]] in space (but with mechs and sci-fi tactics in place of mythical creatures and gore).

BattleTech is one of the more morally grey settings out there. Moreso than many Grimdark settings where it's a matter of [[Imperium of Man|nasty jerks]] vs [[Chaos|literal demons]]. While there are a few factions which are better or worse than others on the whole ([[Magistracy of Canopus]] vs [[Clan Smoke Jaguar]]) all of the factions have their share of virtue and vice, heroes and villains. Good people can come up from the Nobility of the Federated Suns, Citizens of the Capellan Confederation or the Iron Wombs of The Clans, as can a lot real nasty bastards. In that regard, this is a rather tragic universe. In BattleTech nobody is corrupted by [[Chaos]] or seduced by the [[The Force|Dark Side]]. Instead humanity took to the stars and flourished, only to be brought low because their leaders were in the end just human with human failings.

On the same note, this means that there are multiple ways of reading things and you actually have to think about motivations when forming your opinion. Is Federated Suns the home of true believers in freedom who sometimes fall short, or an empire of self-righteous hypocrites? Is (pre-WoB) ComStar the defenders of humanity's legacy of knowledge against the apocalyptic power-plays of the Great Houses to bring about a Golden age which was not merely Gilded like the last one, or a cult which feels that it has the right to dictate who gets how much tech and eliminate anyone who stands between them and their distant vision of an ideal future? Ask different people and you'll get different answers. It helps that all sourcebooks are cannonical documents in universe written by and for specific factions. Technical Readouts are written by Comstar as a sort of Jane's guides, Field Manuals are handbooks written for senior officers (e.g. one Federated Suns Field Manual is a readiness report from the commander of the armies to the first prince.) and other books are written as in universe histories. So every splatbook is biased and edited to make someone look good, and absolutely admits it. Any retcons or inconsistencies are therefore the result of in universe lies (and not poor fact checking or writing in our world) and you can choose which lies you want to believe.

As far as mecha design goes, BattleTech designs run the gamut from box-on-legs (Awesome, Dragon, etc), to egg-on-legs (Catapult, Marauder, etc), through to very polished designs (which were mostly stolen from Japanese anime shows). Wrong, they hired a third party artist who sold his designs to them and the other guys. Some of the later work, post-FASA, could be quite smooth, to the point of organic looking. As such, BattleTech is a pastiche of various art styles and design philosophies, covering the range of reactions from "cool-but-impractical", to "eh, practical-and-possible", and well out into the area that will make your engineering professor have a mental fit.

Lastly from a hobbyist perspective, BattleTech tries to make itself as accessable as possible. It's set up more like a [[board game]] than a miniatures wargame. The basic rules are free online, and you're allowed to represent a 'Mech with anything you can fit in the hex grid — including paper cutouts, so you can pick up and play with anyone willing to learn the rules with you.

==Mechanics==
[[Image:Group-Plastic-Miniatures.jpg|thumb|right|The standard use of hexmaps renders the purchase of miniatures optional, though miniatures rules for the game are available.]]
[[Image:Blankrecordsheet.jpg|thumb|right|Record sheets are one of ''BattleTechs''' greatest blessings and curses.]]
The basic mechanic is simple. Two six-sided dice are used, with a to-hit (Equal or greater to) system. Initiative is interlaced, with the loser moving first and the winner able to react. All weapons damage is technically done at the same time, and therefore who shoots first is insignificant, although the order in which weapons fire from any given unit resolves is important. Larger weapons can scrub off large quantities of ablative armor, while smaller multi-hit weapons stand a better chance of forcing critical hits once a location is damaged. If you get hit, you mark off the weapons damage rating from your armor. If the shot penetrates your armor, you roll potential criticals. Firing weapons and moving about generates heat, which you must keep down to keep your 'Mech working properly.

Unlike games such as ''[[Warhammer]]'', where many units are either killed on the first shot or left unscathed, and little information is recorded, ''BattleTech'' uses record sheets to mark off each 'Mech's cumulative damage, ammunition, pilot status, and heat. Also, there are hit locations, so limbs can be blown off. The record sheets allow for effects that are more detailed, but this also increases the overall playtime. Although expert players can get through matches just as fast as players of other games of more or less equal size, new players often find that the game plays slowly. This is usually due to the time spent referencing hit-location tables, critical effects, etc. For new players, 2V2 matches are best, with 4V4 matches being the "cap", in order to have games that do not take excessively long. More experienced players can run games of 12v12 or larger in an afternoon, though these will often be multi-player games in which each ''player'' controls only a handful of 'Mechs.

One of the biggest appeals of ''BattleTech'' is that all of its units are made with a predefined set of rules. Custom designs are fully possible, though they are not likely to be welcome in tournament matches or pick-up games.

''BattleTech'' uses a build system based on 'Mech tonnage. You start with a Chassis limit, from 20-100 tons. You then determine engine size based on how fast you want your 'Mech to be (how many hexes you want it to be able to move per turn) you then allocate the remaining tonnage to control systems, weapons, ammo and armor. This method varies slightly depending on the technology of the chassis, but not overmuch. Though the system has recently been removed, there were previously three levels of technology.

'''Level 1''' (Now called "Introductory Tech") referred to early-era gameplay. Only the more rudimentary weapons and technologies are available, though the critical rules remain the same. This is the preferred level at which to learn, and is synonymous with the equipment available during the Succession Wars era. It is also the level of play made possible with starter boxes.

'''Level 2''' was Tournament-level gameplay. This introduced new equipment and electronics, as well as Clan technology (A more technologically advanced, but militant people). Though the rules are generally the same as those in level 1 gameplay, more-complicated equipment such as ECM, anti-missile systems, cluster munitions, etc. were better suited to more experienced players. It is the level of play made possible with separately-purchased rulebooks. Note that as the in-universe timeline advances, some more-advanced technology is designated "tournament-level", and several items that were Level 3 before the switch are also now "Tournament-Level".

'''Level 3''' referred to all advanced gameplay and equipment, including specialized gear from Historical manuals and the ''Solaris VII'' boxed sets/adventures. This has since been split out into "advanced", "experimental", and "era-specific" technology. This also included all equipment that was not listed in the core rulebooks. More complex rules were inserted in order to increase the realism and flexibility of the game. These include new weapons, new or altered terrain rules, artillery, alternate rules for major mechanics such as line-of-sight, etc. Though Level 3 rules included "prototype" equipment not printed in the core rulebooks, the standard rulebook in regards to Level 3 play was called ''Maxtech''. This has now been replaced by the Catalyst Games release of ''Tactical Operations'' and its sequels.

'''Advanced''' technology (not to be confused with "advanced rules" is covered largely in ''Tactical Operations'', and may be common but incorporates additional rules or restrictions that make it difficult to use without preparation.

'''Experimental''' tech is not mass-produced in-universe. The items are used in one-offs, prototype designs, and other weirdness. The ''Experimental Technical Readout'' series showcases this tech level, and most of the rules are in ''Tactical Operations'' or ''Strategic Operations''.

'''Era-specific''' technology incorporates advancements that were later abandoned in-verse. Usually these items were displaced by a superior version of the same technology, although there are some like the Listen-Kill missiles (which exploited a weakness in standard ECM protocols, later patched out) which are simply active for a few years and then abandoned once changing circumstances make them ineffective. Era-specific tech is the province of Historical sourcebooks, the ''Interstellar Operations'' rulebook, and a few campaign books.

==Spinoff Games==
Due to its popularity through the late 80s and early 90s, ''BattleTech'' spawned a multitude of spinoffs and expansion games.

'''[[Lost Worlds]]''' dueling books. NOVA adapted their melee dueling system to make four books for BattleTech mecha. Each book has the opponent's view of the 'Mech on each page, and a character sheet listing possible maneuvers. Since it used the same system as the rest of their books, you could have "20-ton Locust vs. skeleton with scimitar" duels.

'''MechWarrior''' was a traditional pen-and-paper RPG set in the BattleTech universe, using a ruleset similar to FASA's other hit RPG [[Shadowrun]]. It got second(1991) and third(1999) editions, then was later rebooted by Fanpro and Catalyst Games under the respective titles ''Classic BattleTech RPG'' and '''BattleTech: A Time of War''', likely to avoid conflation with WhizKids' ''MechWarrior: Dark Age''. Also because by then the "MechWarrior" title was fully associated with the video games.

'''AeroTech''' and '''BattleSpace''' were both games featuring Aerospace Fighters and DropShips/WarShips respectively, fighting in orbit before any of the action in the BattleTech game itself could begin. Both games eventually got absorbed into BattleTech's rules in the ''Total Warfare'' edition.

'''Battletroops''' was an infantry-scale game about the PBI who fight it out it in the shadow of BattleMechs. It later gained ''Clantroops'', an expansion pack that incorporated clan equipment as well as Battle Armor on both sides, but the game did not sell as well and the rules have since been abandoned.

'''Battleforce''' was a revision of '''BattleTech''', made in recognition of the fact that large-scale combat could not be effectively played out using the current system. Battleforce simplified each 'Mech into a simple set of numbers, so that they could be clustered into units and fight over a much larger area. Battleforce 2, released about a decade later, also introduced planetary invasion maps and rules to go along with them. Although the maps are available in Map Compilation 2, the rules will be reprinted in the ''Strategic Operations'' and ''Interstellar Operations'' sourcebooks.

The '''Solaris VII Boxed set''' was made to simulate the fast-paced gladiatorial combat on the game's world of Solaris VII. It included new rules, new maps with special rules, new 'Mechs, and supplements for roleplaying. Little known fact: some of the designs used in the original Solaris VII set were redesigns of the ''BattleTech'' 'Mechs which were themselves copies of Japanese mechs! When the product tried to sell in Japan, half of the designs were already copyrighted by other well known anime companies, and the in-house designs were simply not "Japanese" enough for their tastes. Though the product itself flopped, its maps were reprinted and rereleased in 2004, as well as a complimentary up-to-date rulebook. Rules have since been standardized to match those of ''Classic BattleTech'', but "Special Map rules" have been included.

The '''BattleTech Collectible Cardgame''' was produced by Wizards of the Coast in 1996, and ran until 1998. Though its popularity had begun to wane after the first core set, the release of the Pokemon card game was the nail in the coffin. The BattleTech CCG hosted some very impressive artwork, though the game favored swarm-decks filled with plenty of weak, cheap 'Mechs, and it's non-"Creature" cards were too weak to have an effective deck based around them. After five editions (''BattleTech Limited''/''Unlimited'', ''Counterstrike'', ''Mercenaries'', ''MechWarrior'', ''Arsenal'') BattleTech CCG came out with ''Commander's Edition'', which picked some of the best cards of the last few editions (though it abandoned or revised some cards for inaccuracies or "brokenness") It had one final expansion, Crusade, which introduced the Steel Viper clan, though there were some prior cards that did reference the clan.

In July, 2013, Catalyst Game Labs released '''Alpha Strike''', a miniatures combat ruleset designed specifically to appeal to fans of Warhammer and Flames of War. It combined BattleForce statistics with improved miniatures rules. It's generally scoffed at by grognards but the only feasible way to play a regiment-sized battle in less than one lifetime.

==Video Games==
'''Official Games'''
* Crescent Hawk's Inception (Infocom, 1988)
* MechWarrior (Activision, 1989)
* Crescent Hawks' Revenge (Infocom, 1990)

* MechWarrior II (Activision, 1995)
* MechWarrior II: Mercernaries (Activision 1995)
** MechCommander (FASA, 1998)
* MechWarrior III (Microprose, 1999)
* MechWarrior IV: Vengeance (FASA/Microsoft, 2000), Black Knight (Microsoft, 2001), Mercenaries (Microsoft, 2002)
** These games had two expansions that gave more 'Mechs, the Inner Sphere 'Mech Pack and Clan 'Mech Pack.
** MekTek released a legal port of Mercenaries, with both 'Mech Packs, new 'Mechs, and battlesuits all inside, plus multiplayer support. Grab it from ModDB, abandonware sites, or your tracker of choice.
* MechAssault 1 (Day 1/Microsoft, 2002 for Xbox)
* MechAssault 2: Lone Wolf (Day 1/Microsoft, 2004 for Xbox)
* MechCommander II (FASA/Microsoft, 2001. The full game is offered by Microsoft for free [http://www.microsoft.com/en-ph/download/details.aspx?id=11457 here].)
* MechWarrior Online MMO (Smith & Tinker/Piranha Games, A F2P game first released on 2012 and currently out as a full product on Steam.)
* MechWarrior Tactical Command (Personae Studios, 2012?, [[Fail|for iPhone/iPad]]. After some uncertainty, MTC was fully released in the iTunes store. Too bad it sucks.)
* BattleTech (Harebrained Schemes, 2018) - funded through Kickstarter and headed up by Jordan Weisman)
** Turn-based strategy game, similar to the original tabletop game. Takes place during the Succession Wars, in a formerly empty area of the Periphery.
*MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries: (Piranha Games, 2019). Also takes place during the Succession Wars. Because nobody wants to take the time to portray the cluster fuck that is the Blake Jihad properly.

'''Unlicensed Games'''
* [http://www.mechlivinglegends.net MechWarrior Living Legends] (Wandering Samurai/Clan Jade Wolf, 2011)

'''The following are free, homemade versions of BattleTech:'''
* MechWar v1.12 (MS-DOS)
* [http://megamek.info/ MegaMek] (Java)
* BTMUX - ASCII-only MMO (anyone old enough to remember what a MUD is?) (any OS)<br/>You could play it in pure ASCII, or get [http://bt-thud.sourceforge.net/thud/ a graphical helper]<br/>Most of the existing ones are gone, but [http://frontiermux.com/news.php FrontierMUX] seems to still be alive.
* <strike>[http://neveron.com/ Neveron] (web-based mmo)</strike> [Taken offline on July 31st 2014]
* [http://www.titansofsteel.de/ Titans of Steel] (MS-Windows)

==Current State==
[[File:Never give up.jpg|thumb|right|250px|Little Urbie, the greatest of us all.]]
As of early 2022, BattleTech is in the best state it's been in a long time. After sitting on the property for close to a decade without doing anything, Catalyst has used Kickstarter to fund a series of plastic 'Mech sculpts. Lots of this was enabled by finally resolving the legal dispute with Harmony Gold on the Unseen, but the end result is that, for the first time ever, a wide range of high quality plastic 'Mech miniatures are legitimately available. There's a "dip your toe" style starter kit with the Beginner Box, the true starter kit in BattleTech: A Game of Armored Combat, and another for the clans with Clan Invasion. Beyond those, there's a total of twenty different "Force Packs" available, each having a randomized set of 4-6 'Mechs centered on a theme of some sort. Since you only need about one Force Pack's worth of 'Mechs to play at all, ease of starting the game is definitely one of BattleTech's major virtues now.

However, the year 2022 has seen some [[Skub|controversies]]. Some are mundane such as new novels, rule books, and promised miniatures being delayed repeatedly (it didn’t help that Catalyst Games Labs is mainly a publishing company that needs to outsource miniature manufacturing to barely keep up with demand). Others are more [[Derp|awkward]] such as CGL’s game developers being caught up with picking sides between [[SJW|angry activist fans and normies]] on one hand and [[/pol/|decades-old IP developers with alternate takes on history]] on the other. Another includes [[That guy|cracking down]] on forums and groups seeking to raise money under the BattleTech label on Patreon. That, and deciding to roll up the [[Nazi|Rommel tank]] into the related [[What|Patton tank]] before TPTB locked up the forum comments on the BG BattleTech website has left fans with uncomfortable mixed opinions. For all people’s [[Meme|meming]] of jumping ship to BattleTech from 40k over GW’s antics, the grass now seems to be just as patchy on the other side of the fence.

===MechWarrior Online===
[http://mwomercs.com/ MechWarrior Online] has, as of this writing, been running for a decade and is still receiving new content. A competitive sim-shooter, MechWarrior Online has probably been a commercial success and helped get at least some people into the hobby, but its main virtue was as a source of redesigned 'Mechs. 3D prints of models from MWO are easily found on Etsy, providing modern looks for 'Mechs that CGL hasn't gotten around to resculpting yet.

===BattleTech 2018===
Harebrained Schemes announced their return to Kickstarter in fall 2015 in order to fund [http://battletechgame.com/ BattleTech], a turn based tactics game featuring RPG mechanics for 'Mechs and MechWarriors. The final result was a very respectable strategy game - you play as a mercenary company commander in the year 3025, starting with a patchy collection of low grade 'Mechs and keeping your aging DropShip from falling apart around you. Gameplay is fairly close to the tabletop but not an exact recreation. The campaign follows a power struggle for control of the Aurigan Reach, a region of mostly unimportant space at the rimward end of the map, between the Magistracy of Canopus and the Taurian Concordat. The game was followed up by three DLCs - Flashpoint, which added a series of mini-campaigns of 2-3 missions each, most of them tying into BattleTech canon, Urban Warfare, which naturally added urban environments, and Heavy Metal, which added more 'Mechs and a series of flashpoint campaigns surrounding the crash-site of a lost Star League era JumpShip with [[Clan Wolverine|obscured origins]]. Overall, BattleTech 2018 is probably the standout BattleTech game of the 2010s and a great strategy game in its own right. Even cooler, the events, planets, characters, etc. of the game (though not the game itself exactly) were canonized by Catalyst Games Lab in a tabletop rulebook/sourcebook, called ''House Arano (The Aurigan Coalition)'', which was written by HBS's Andrew McIntosh and Kiva Maginn.

Several fan-made mod packs (notably [https://www.nexusmods.com/battletech/mods/79/ RogueTech] and [https://www.nexusmods.com/battletech/mods/452/ BattleTech Advanced 3062]) have been produced which significantly extend the life of the vanilla game. These mods introduce many new factions, dozens of new 'Mechs and tanks, hundreds of new pieces of 'Mech equipment, a far larger star-map sandbox to play in, and far more depth to the 'Mech customization system as well as many quality of life changes. RogueTech in particular attempts to bring the game more in line with the tabletop experience and offers a much higher degree of gameplay complexity compared to vanilla BattleTech.

===Mercenaries 5===
Oof. Well, they gave it a shot. After over a decade since the last MechWarrior game, MechWarrior 5 was released and it was...kind of a flop. Repetitive missions and buggy AI were the primary issues, and the post-launch DLCs and bug fixes only did so much to help. As of this writing, mod support has been added, so the fans might make MW5 worth it at some point...but for now, don't bother.

As of 2022, the game is now playable with all of the DLC. Notably, MW5 has incorporated melee combat in free updates, and is adding melee weapons with the next DLC. In hindsight, it's rather jarring realizing that we have been playing giant robot games without the ability to rock 'em and sock 'em. Melee better fucking get added to MWO to balance the all-powerful lights against the heavies and assaults they so often hard-counter.

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01cCX49PAbI Also has a ridiculously awesome main menu theme.]

==Alien Life==
As previously mentioned BattleTech is unusual among sci fi wargames in having humans as the only notable sapient species. Alien life exists aplenty - but it consists entirely of plants and dumb animals. Some sources have hinted at questionably sapient cavemen, but humans are the only species in BattleTech canon to master agriculture, much less space travel. There is one possibly canon exception, however.

The Tetatae are tribal bird people armed with spears who inhabit a Jungle World. They show up in a far-off world in uncharted space populated with some stranded humans from the Draconis Combine. The inclusion of sapient species was such a [[Rage|controversial]] [[Fail|action]] that the novel introducing them, Far Country, was promptly ignored by both the lore developers and fans ever since it came out. The Tetatae are only even reached through a hyperspace engine failure that can't be reliably reproduced. It's unclear whether their planet is in some far off section of the galaxy or another, but characters in the novel speculate that they may be in a different universe entirely. Opinion differs on how canon Far Country and the Tetatae are, with some saying they're canon but unreachable and can't affect the rest of BattleTech, while others claim Far Country exists as an in-universe TV show.

==External links==
*[http://megamek.sf.net Play through the tubes with MegaMek]
*[http://www.sarna.net BattleTech Wiki that holds much information about the universe]
*[http://bgb.booru.org/index.php Blue Gunner Booru, a /btg/-maintained taggable gallery of BT and related art. Perpetually in-progress.]
[[Category:Wargames]][[Category:Skirmish-Level Wargames]][[Category:BattleTech]]

==Gallery==
<center>
<gallery>
File:Glorious_3d_Terrain.JPG|Glorious 3d terrain
File:More_Glorious_3d_Terrain.JPG|More glorious 3d terrain
File:Infantry_Strike_From_Behind_As_The_Kuritian_Lance_Takes_On_4_Steiner_Mechs_And_6_Tanks.JPG|Infantry strike from behind as the Kuritan lance takes on 4 Steiner 'Mechs and 6 tanks
File:Kuritians_Advancing.JPG|Kuritans advancing
File:Surrounded.JPG|Kick party
File:Eridani_Light_Horses_MechWarrior.png|Bad mofo
File:You're_awesome.jpg
File:Dougram_and_shadowhawk_comparison.png|The original anime mecha Dougram (left) compared to the original "unseen" Shadowhawk (center) and the modern Shadowhawk (right), a robot so badass it transcends cultures and 4chan boards
</gallery>
</center>

==Factions Portal==
{{Battletech Factions}}
[[Category: BattleTech]]

==/tg/ BattleTech Creations==
*[[Velatine Federal Republic]]
*[[/tg/ Homebrew Mech Designs]]
*[[Sunbats mercenary company]]
*[[/btg/ Harebrained Battalion II]]

Merrow

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109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010414 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

{{dnd-stub}}

'''Merrows''' are a mythological monster from Ireland, and are essentially the Irish version of the common [[merfolk]]. About the most unique aspect is that they explicitly have male merrow, who are described as ugly drunkards and that's why the beautiful female merfolk prefer to try and woo handsome human men instead. Some stories apparently describe them deriving their ability to breathe water from magical caps, which they can loan as gifts or which can be used against them if you need to.
==Dungeons & Dragons==
In [[Dungeons & Dragons]], Merrows traditionally fall into that "take a surface monster and put it underwater" approach to design, ala the [[koalinth]]. In this case, the classic D&D merrow is a water-breathing [[ogre]] that terrorizes the seas, a depiction that [[Pathfinder]] has preserved. Much like the Koalinths, the Merrow wanted to be nice and start a civilization with friendly ties to other races. And, like with the Koalinth, the bastard Sea Elves decided to attempt genocide on them and destroyed their civilization as well, turning the Merrow into revenge-obsessed raiders as well.

In 5th edition D&D, however, merrows were changed into a deformed race of ugly, evil merfolk who were driven mad and corrupted by unwittingly becoming worshippers of the [[Demon Prince]] [[Demogorgon]].

<gallery>
Merrow2e.png|2e
Merrow5e.jpeg|5e
Merrow 5e Shallowpriest.jpeg|Merrow Shallowpriest
Merrow B2 PF.png|Pathfinder
</gallery>

==Monstergirls==
[[File:MGE Merrow.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The MGE Mermaid's lustier cousin.]]
In the [[Monster Girl Encyclopedia]], merrows are a specific breed of the [[merfolk|mermaid]] family of [[monstergirls]], who are mostly distinguished by the fact their ability to breathe water is bound up in their enchanted caps and by being straightforward sluts, in comparison to the more "romance first, sex second" approach of the standard mermaid.

{{D&D1e-Races}}

[[Category: Monsters]][[Category: Pathfinder]] [[Category: Monstergirls]]

Storythread

2026-05-12T04:35:04Z

109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010417 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

{{Awesome}}
==What are Storythreads?==
A dedicated thread where writefags can come and create stories, thus saving other, innocent, /tg/ threads from being burdened with things like creativity and imagination. Many writefag threads could technically be described as Storythreads, but this page is for threads whose sole purpose is to provide a platform for writefags, rather than threads which are dedicated to /tg/ topics like Warhammer, MTG, etc, and happen to produce writefaggotry in the process.

==What goes on in Storythreads?==
Sometimes the OP will set a topic - which can be just about anything - thus inviting others to both read his writefaggotry, and contribute their own. However, the most common incarnation of Storythreads on /tg/ are the more freestyle Post A Picture, Write A Story threads.

==Why are Storythreads important, and what do they have to do with /tg/?==
If you ever want to be an even half-decent DM/GM, you need to be able to write good stories, and create good settings to put them in. Hell, if you even want to play traditional games it generally helps to have some understanding of how to create decent characters and narratives. Even where Storythreads do not appear to involve direct /tg/-related material, it's all good creative exercise for when your players de-rail you so thoroughly that you have to create an entirely new campaign in the space of one bathroom break.

==Post A Picture, Write A Story==
The name is self explanatory - people post pics, and then writefags come along a write about what they think is going on in the pic. Some anons suspect that this is part of a secret NSA psy-ops program to administer a variant of the Rorschach Ink-Blot Test to large segments of the online community. There are two flaws with this theory:

1) The vast majority of anons are too lazy to write anything, and

2) I create a lot of those threads and if I'm working for the NSA, I am being grossly underpaid.

These follow no particular theme and are in no particular order:

<gallery>
File:TheDeepSleep.png| 1 - The Deep Sleep
File:KittenSkin.png| 2 - Kitten Skin
File:DieForelle.png| 3 - Die Forelle
File:RaptorSquadron.png| 4 - Raptor Squadron
File:Biomass-22.png| 5 - Biomass-22
File:Shadewood.png| 6 - The Shadewood
File:UndeadDinos.png| 7 - Lych and Dinosaurs
File:Prosperity.png| 8 - Prosperity
File:OneStopLoliShop.png| 9 - Loli Shop
File:OneManEngineering.png| 10 - One Man Engineering
File:ImpossibleCat.png | 11 - The Impossible Cat
File:Guardian.png | 12 - The Guardian
File:DominantLifeform.png| 13 - The Dominant Lifeform
File:WorkingConditions.png| 14 - Unacceptable Working Conditions
File:ThespianGoblin.png| 15 - The Thespian Goblin
File:Sand.png | 16 - Too Much Sand
File:RobotCharity.png | 17 - Robots Need Charity
File:OnTheRoadWithDeath.png | 18 - On the Road With Death
File:LoyalRobot.png | 19 - Loyal Robot Retainer
File:IntelligenceGathering.png | 20 - Intelligence Gathering
File:Gladiator2.png | 21 - The Fight
File:Gladiator.png | 22 - The Gladiator's Son
File:DimensionalNeighbourhood.png | 23 - You get used to the extra dimensions
File:TheZone.png | 24 - The Zone (STALKER)
File:TheTerribleCurse.png | 25 - A most terrible curse
File:BattleBodies.png | 26 - Battle Bodies
File:Apples.png| 27 - Apples in the Undercity
File:Cheers.png| 28 - Cheers
File:FatherToSon.png| 29 - From Father To Son
File:ForestArmy.png| 30 - The Army of the Forest
File:FrankieAndJim.png| 31 - Frankie and Jim
File:Golaris.png | 32 - The Dark Lord
File:Jelly.png| 33 - Jelly
File:LibrarianOfTime.png| 34 - The Librarian Of Time
File:Sunrise.png | 35 - Waiting for Sunrise
File:SurpriseGuest.png | 36 - A Surprise Guest
File:T.png| 37 - T
File:UndeadBattle.png| 38 - The Great Battle Against the Undead
File:Witch.png| 39 - Witches
File:Scouting.png|40 - Scouts
File:Joyriding.png| 41 - This is recon, not drag racing
File:Old Soldiers.png| 42 - Old Soldiers
File:WrongRealm.png| 43 - Totally not the realm I was looking for.
File:DeadRise.png | 44 - Some things should stay dead.
File:TheyWaitTheyHunger.png | 45 - They wait, they hunger.
File:ItsOnlyCheatingIfYouGetCaught.png| 46 - It's only cheating if you get caught.
File:Tovarish.png | 47 - Tovarish
File:RuneMastery.png| 48 - Rune Mastery
File:Invincible.png | 49 - Criminal vs. Vigilante
File:TastyEggs.png | 50 - Tasty, tasty Easter Eggs
File:Warforged.png | 51- Warforged
File:Don'tMove.png | 52 - Don't Move
File:TheCrows.png | 53 - The Crows
File:BlueDragon.png | 54 - Blue Dragon
File:BringBackTheDead.png | 55 - He raises the dead.
File:DragonPlan.png | 56 - The Dragon's Plan
File:DragonLove.png | 57 - The love of a dragon.
File:TheDragonAndTheGirl.png |58 - The Dragon and the Girl
File:Hellbringers.png |59 - Hellbringers
File:Convergence.png| 60 - Convergence
File:TheJump.png| 61 - The Jump
File:HEINLEIN.png| 62 - HEINLEIN
File:TheAlien.png | 63 - The Alien
File:SteampunkEw.png | 64 - Steampunk... ew.
File:Elephants.png| 65 - But what do they DO with the elephants?
File:TheBlackScribes.png| 66 - The Black Scribes
File:Hacked.png | 67 - Holiday hacking.
File:FuckSwitzerland.png| 68 - Fuck Switzerland
File:FinalRewards.png| 69 - Final Reward
File:Idea.png | 70 - Idea
File:BoardingPlan.png | 71 - Boarding Plan
File:TheStudyOfPain.png | 72 - The Study of Pain
File:TheCourtOfTheAnceans.png | 73 - The Court of the Anceans
File:FarmerCallahan.png | 74 - Farmer Callahan
File:Watcher.png | 75 - The Akhaali
File:PokerFace.png | 76 - Poker Face
File:Kathy.png | 77 - Sheep-punching Kathy
File:SwampSirens.png | 78 - Swamp Sirens
File:TreasureHunters.png | 79 - Treasure Hunters
File:SheepDragon.png | 80 - Sheep Dragon
File:Landers.png | 81 - Landers
File:Iam.png | 82 - Iam
File:FEDEX.png | 83 - FEDEX
File:WrithingRuin.png | 84 - The Writhing Ruin
File:Expedition.png | 85 - Frozen Expedition
File:ThroneOfWonders.png | 86 - The Throne of Wonders
File:TheArtificier.png | 87 - The Artificier's Son
File:LastFairytale.png | 88 - The Last Fairytale
File:KingApocalypse.png | 89 - Apocalypse, King of all Worlds
File:SongOfFire.png | 90 - A Song Of Fire
File:EndOfTheWorld.png | 91 - The End Of The World
File:RoboWaifu.jpg | 92 - Giant Robotic Waifu
File:RobotGirl.png | 93 - Mecha Girl
File:BuzzRD-Woodsman.png | 94 - Woodsman and the BuzzRD
File:GreenKnight.png | 95 - The Green Knight (City of Light)
File:StreetSamurai.png | 96 - The Street Samurai (City of Light)
File:Serhos.png | 97 - Canticles of Serhos
File:FunBuns.png | 98 - Funbuns
File:Retirement.png | 99 - Archmage's Retirement
File:DocTheta.png | 100 - Doc Theta vs. Binary Bill
File:HaveADrinkWithMe.png | 101 - Have a drink with me.
File:FlamesOfDesire.png | 102 - The Flames of Desire
File:PieAngel.png | 103 - The Pie Angel
File:JaggedTower.png | 104 - The Jagged Tower
File:CueBall.png | 105 - Jim and the cue ball
File:TheGreatTree.png | 106 - The Great Tree
File:SandDragon.png | 107 - Taming Sand Dragons
File:Colonists.png | 108 - Colonists
File:HangingForest.png | 109 - The Hanging Forest
File:ZombiesLive.png | 110 - Living As A Zombie
File:TheCatWhoKnowsWhereItsAt.png| 111 - The Cat Who Knows Where It's At
File:GlassAngel.png | 112 - Glass Angel
File:TheGathering.png | 113 - The Gathering
File:Just Ask Alice.png | 114 - Just Ask Alice
File:StillPimpin'.png | 115 - Still Pimpin'
File:Leviathan.png | 116 - Leviathan
File:TheForest.png | 117 - The Forest
File:Arise.png | 118 - Arise
File:War.png | 119 - War
File:APiratesDeath.png | 120 - A Pirate's Death For Me
File:TheThirst.png | 121 - The Thirst
File:DesertStatue.png | 122 - Secrets of the Sands (part 1)
File:DesertStatue2.png | 123 - Secrets of the Sands (part 2)
File:TheOldWay.png | 124 - The Old Way
File:Worm.png | 125 - Worm
File:WaterOfLife.png | 126 - Jungle Expedition
File:Upgrades.png | 127 - Upgrades
File:TheShade.png | 128 - The Shade
File:TheOne.png | 129 - The One
File:TheLifeAquatic.png | 130 - The Life Aquatic
File:TheEye.png | 131 - The Eye
File:TheBargain.png | 132 - The Bargain
File:CentaurShooting.png | 133 - Centaur Shooting
File:SerpentKing.png | 134 - Serpent King
File:RomaVictoria.png | 135 - Roma Victoria
File:Reaper.png | 136 - Reaper
File:NotreDame.png | 137 - Notre Dame
File:ModernWarfare.png | 138 - Modern Warfare
File:Merde.png | 139 - Merde
File:MartialArt.png | 140 - Martial Art
File:David.png | 141 - David
File:Labyrinth.png | 142 - Labyrinth
File:XanTsiun.png | 143 - The Indescribable Xan Tsiun
File:ImperialForest.png | 144 - The Imperial Forest
File:GoodSoul.png | 145 - Good Souls
File:Daemon.png | 146 - Elegant Gentleman
File:BlueStone.png | 147 - Arcane Blue Stone
File:VisionsoftheSeer.png | 148 - Visions of the Seer
File:Biogel-Alpha-262.png | 149 - Biogel-Alpha-262
File:AssisstedSuicide.png | 150 - Assisted Suicide
File:Smoking.png | 151 - Smoking
File:DeathInBlue.png | 152 - Death In Blue
File:OctopusFairy.png | 153 - Octopus Fairy
File:LordOfSerpents.png | 154 - Lord Of Serpents
File:TheForge.png | 155 - The Forge
File:TheManInBlack.png | 156 - The Man In Black
File:Firebug.png | 157 - Firebug
File:SirHilda.png | 158 - Sir Hilda
File:ErminaVonStuppen.png | 159 - Ermina Von Stuppen
File:HaldorTheViking.png | 160 - Haldor the Viking
File:Corgi.png | 161 - The Corgi of Hope
File:DOG.jpg | 162 - D.O.G.
File:NeonAngel.jpg | 163 - Neon Angel
File:FireGoddess.jpg|164 - The Fire Goddess
File:HellWorms.png | 165 - Hell Worms
File:Whaling.png | 166 - Whaling
File:HansAndMaia.png | 167 - Hans and his dead wife
File:MadameEschiere.png | 168 - Madame Eschiere
File:Fishing.png | 169 - Fishing
File:Tips...ohCrap,That'sNotAFedora.png | 170 - Coach Holdup
File:TheDevil'sHand.png | 171 - The Devil's Hand
File:Manila.png | 172 - Manila
File:Saw.png | 173 - Saw
File:CookieCult.png | 174 - Cookie Cult
File:Indulgence.png | 175 - Indulgence
File:EnemiesOfMan.png | 176 - Enemies of Man
File:AThousandWords.png | 177 - A Thousand Words
File:BitchesBeCrazy.png | 178 - Bitches be crazy
File:TheWhiteAndTheBlack.png | 179 - The White And The Black
File:AGrandGame.png | 180 - A Grand Game
File:SoulSacrifice.png | 181 - Soul Sacrifice
File:IlluminatedStatue.png | 182 - Illuminated Statue
File:Temur'sSword.png | 183 - Temur's Sword
File:DamagedGynoid.png | 184 - Damaged Gynoid
File:Dentistry.png | 185 - Dentistry
File:Savages.png | 186 - Savages
File:Hornet.png | 187 - Hornet
File:MonsterHunterNephropid.png | 188 - Monster Hunter: Nephropid
File:PostapocalypticIcecream.png | 189 - Post-Apocalyptic Ice Cream
File:Treant.png | 190 - Treant
File:BurningBiker.png | 191 - Burning Biker
File:T'Ela.png | 192 - T'Ela
File:Bob-Taku.png | 193 - Bob/Taku
File:SerialPsychologist.png | 194 - The Serial Psychologist
File:FlameElemental.png | 195 - Flame Elemental
File:TommyHayman.png | 196 - Tommy Hayman
File:Witchcraft.png | 197 - Witchcraft
File:FourHorsemen.png | 198 - Four Horsemen
File:DesertExecution.png | 199 - Desert Execution
File:NanofactDestroyMission.png | 200 - Nanofact search and destroy mission
File:Drake&Frank.png | 201 - Drake & Frank
File:TheFourthHorseman.png | 202 - The Fourth Horseman
File:SoloSimulator.png | 203 - Solo Simulator
File:Interrogation.png | 204 - Interrogation
File:TheColonel.png | 205 - The Colonel
File:Fairies.png | 206 - Fairies
File:Where'sMaggie.png | 207 - Where's Maggie
File:LeagueOfSmiles.png | 208 - The League of Smiles
File:TheSiege.png | 209 - The Siege
File:TollingBell.png | 210 - The Tolling Bell
File:PostapocalypticSpider.png | 211 - Postapocalyptic Spider (See also: 189)
File:Eden.png | 212 - Eden (City of Light. See also: 95, 96)
File:HaroldAndTheNecromancer.png | 213 - Harold and the Necromancer
File:Haven'sRun.png | 214 - The Guardian of Haven's Run
File:BattleForTheRidge.png | 215 - Battle for the Ridge
File:Baldrick.png | 216 - Baldrick
File:BlockadeRunners.png | 217 - Blockade Runners
File:MobBoss.png | 218 - Mob Boss
File:KnightOfTheWreathedGun.png | 219 - Knight of the Wreathed Gun
File:Famine.png | 220 - Famine
File:War2.png | 221 - War
File:Pestilence.png | 222 - Pestilence
File:Death.png | 223 - Death
File:YuhnAndErhul.png | 224 - Yuhn and Erhul
File:Space-dad.png | 225 - Space-dad
File:GodOfOrphans.png | 226 - God of Orphans
File:HighAltDrop.png | 227 - High Altitude Drop
File:SandGoddess.png | 228 - Mistress of the Sands (See also: 164)
File:War'sInvitation.png | 229 - War's Invitation
File:SchoolReunion.png | 230 - School Reunion
File:Tesla'sTeeth.png | 231 - Tesla's Teeth
File:TheHeist.png | 232 - The Heist
File:TheDeciever.png | 233 - The Deceiver vs. The Oathbreaker
File:IHaveNoIdea.png | 234 - Social Invisibility
File:Faradians.png | 235 - Faradians
File:MarsMistake.png | 236 - Mistake on Mars
File:Tender.png | 237 - Tender
File:Lady'sGuard.png | 238 - Lady's Guard
File:Bokrug.png | 239 - Bokrug
File:BanditAttack.png | 240 - Bandit Attack
File:NowHiring.png | 241 - Now Hiring
File:RosaAndTheGiant.png | 242 - Rosa and the Giant
File:Vengeance.png | 243 - Vengeance
File:GreyMan.png | 244 - Grey Man
File:Krazavok.png | 245 - Krazavok
File:Eidolon.png | 246 - Eidolon
File:LoserVs.Shrimp.png | 247 - Loser vs. Shrimp
File:MariaAndHerDemon.png | 248 - Maria, and her demon.
File:SpaceWorldWar.png | 249 - Space World War
File:DragonChild.png | 250 - Dragon Child
File:GhostGirl.png | 251 - Ghost Girl
File:Sphinx.png | 252 - Sphinx
File:SlothCinema.png | 253 - Sloth Cinema
File:ThreeGates.png | 254 - The Three Gates
File:FranzDemetrius.png | 255 - Franz and Demetrius
File:AirlockBreach.png | 256 - Airlock Breach
File:FourHorsemenRevised.png | 257 - Four Horsemen (Revised, see 198 for previous version)
File:Draconin.png | 258 - Draconin
File:HaroldAndTheNecromancer-Revised.png | 259 - Harold and the Necromancer (Revised, see 213 for previous version)
File:TheMatchmaker.png | 260 - The Matchmaker (See also: 228, 164)
File:AndromedaIV.png | 261 - Andromeda IV
File:TheBahlrin.png | 262 - The Bahlrin
File:RaptorHunt.png | 263 - Raptor Hunt
File:Alurna.png | 264 - Alurna
File:ABrideScorned.png | 265 - A Bride Scorned
File:MonaLisa.png | 266 - Mona Lisa
File:RoseGarden.png | 267 - The Rose Garden
File:RedDevil.png | 268 - The Red Devil
File:RiteOfPassage.png | 269 - Rite of Passage
File:BeachedMermaid.png | 270 - Beached Mermaid
File:CentaurRace.png | 271 - Centaur Race
File:Prosthetics.png | 272 - Prosthetics
File:SirGreg,SlayerOfSeaBeasts.png | 273 - Sir Greg, Slayer Of Sea Beasts
File:NomadBlizzard.png | 274 - Nomad in a Blizzard
File:CrystalLevitation.png | 275 - Crystal Levitation
File:DeltaGreen.png | 276 - Delta Green
File:Beat.png | 277 - Beat
File:VeloCity.png | 278 - Velo City
File:CityOfClay.png | 279 - City of Clay
File:RainChild.png | 280 - Rain Child
File:ModellingWork.png | 281 - Modelling Work
File:Number5.png | 282 - Number 5
File:Hexxus.png | 283 - Hexxus
File:FallenAngels.png | 284 - Fallen Angels
File:TigerQueen.png | 285 - Tiger Queen
File:MobHit.png | 286 - Mob Hit
File:Kushana'sNuke.png | 287 - Kushana's Nuke
File:GrandMasterSophie.png | 288 - Grand Master Sophie
File:TheLawOfTheJungle.png | 289 - Law Of The Jungle
File:Carcosa.png | 290 - Voyage to Carcosa (continued in 297)
File:TheHunter.png | 291 - The Hunter
File:1438975291142.jpg | 292 - Emelie
File:Post-Human.png | 293 - Post-Human
File:ThingInSpace.png | 294 - The Thing: In Space
File:FearItself.png | 295 - Fear Itself
File:FatherDaughter.png | 296 - Father-daughter time
File:LostCarcosa.png | 297 - Lost Carcosa (continued from 290)
File:BadWolf.png | 298 - Bad Wolf
File:STALKER.png | 299 - STALKER
File:Bloodweed.png | 300 - Bloodweed
File:SubjectPi-rho.png | 301 - Subject Pi-Rho
File:Star-knife.png | 302 - Star Knife
File:LichOrb.png | 303 - Lich Orb
File:Mutoids.png | 304 - Mutoids
File:MageCouncil.png | 305 - Mage Council
File:TheRuinOfCor-Aerad.png | 306 - The Ruin Of Cor-Aerad
File:Bandits.png | 307 - Bandits
File:SovietWalkers.png | 308 - Soviet Walkers
File:Floraverda.png | 309 - Floraverda
File:DodgeThis.png | 310 - Dodge This
File:Witcher'sWords.png | 311 - Witcher's Words
File:O'NielCylinder.png | 312 - O'Neil Cylinder
File:VillageFool.png | 313 - Village Fool
File:PrideOfTheKing'sNavy.png | 314 - Pride Of The King's Navy
File:BronzeColossus.png | 315 - Bronze Colossus
File:DreadLordRodney.png | 316 - Dread Lord Rodney
File:ProhibitionGangsters.png | 317 - Prohibition Gangsters
File:HelpMe.png | 318 - Help Me
File:PrivateWojtek.png | 319 - Private Wojtek
File:AgeOfDinosaurs.png | 320 - Age Of Dinosaurs
File:LastMoments.png | 321 - Last Moments
File:EyesOfAQueen.png | 322 - Eyes of a Queen
File:IWannaBeLikeYou.png| 323 - I Wanna Be Like You
File:Grief.png | 324 - Grief
File:IBearWitness.png | 325 - I Bear Witness
File:LostInTheSnow.png | 326 - Lost In The Snow
File:PestControl.png | 327 - Pest Control
File:BatmanVSSpaceShark.png | 328 - Batman vs. the Space Shark
File:LeftAlone.png | 329 - Left Alone
File:FirstImpressions.png | 330 - First Impressions
File:DeepSleep3.png | 331 - The Deep Sleep (ver. 3; see also: 1)
File:TheThree.png | 332 - The Three (see also: 164, 228, 260)
File:Emperor-vs-OptimusPrime.png | 333 - The Emperor and Optimus Prime
File:SpaceTrailerPark.png | 334 - Space Trailer Park
File:OldBlackJohn.png | 335 - Old Black John
File:Wizard'sQuest.png | 336 - A Wizard's Quest
File:WeAreNotTakingTheWizard.png | 337 - We Are Not Taking The Wizard
File:Iceman.png | 338 - Iceman
File:YouAlwaysEndUpInTheSewers.png | 339 - Sewers
File:UniqueInvestmentOpportunities.png | 340 - Unique Investment Opportunities
File:SeanPrice,MonkeyBarz.png | 341 - Operation Monkey Barz
File:We'reNotLeaving.png | 342 - Never Leaving
File:Anubians.png | 343 - Anubians
File:JendaAndAnaka.png | 344 - Jenda and Anaka
File:BonzoGoesBoom.png | 345 - Bonzo Goes Boom
File:LonelyGolem.png | 346 - Lonely Golem
File:CabinInTheWoods.png | 347 - Cabin In The Woods
File:Titan'sGift.png | 348 - Titan's Gift
File:Redcap.png | 349 - Redcap
File:TheFallOfMersoinne.png | 350 - The Fall Of Mersoinne
File:ScarletPrincess.png | 351 - Scarlet Princess
File:TheLady'sBlessing.png | 352 - The Lady's Blessing
File:AlphaOne.png | 353 - Alpha One
File:SirRichterAndThePrincess.png | 354 - Sir Richter And The Princess
File:Mermaid.png | 355 Mermaid
File:WitchHunter.png | 356 - Witch Hunter
File:AngelsAndDaemons.png | 357 - Angels and Daemons
File:ThisIsYourLife.png | 358 - This Is Your Life
File:TheHeadmaster.png | 359 - The Headmaster
File:WakeSeraphim.png | 360 - Wake, Seraphim
File:TigerSpirit.png | 361 - Tiger Spirit
File:LunarHunters.png | 362 - Lunar Hunters
File:RIPAegis.png | 363 - Rest In Peace, Aegis
File:MerMarriage.png | 364 - MerMarriage
File:YourGuideToTheWasteland.png | 365 - Your Guide To The Wasteland (and all its horrors)
File:Impaled.png | 366 - Impaled
File:DragonHistories.png | 367 - Dragon Histories
File:TheDragon'sDen.png | 368 - The Dragon's Den
File:EXPLORE.png | 369 - EXPLORE
File:SewersCanBeFun.png | 370 - Sewers Can Be Fun
File:VaultWaking.png | 371 - Vault Waking
File:ColonyProblems.png | 372 - Colony Problems
File:TheLastOfTheGods.png | 373 - The Last Of The Gods
File:TreasureHunter.png | 374 - Treasure Hunter
File:Lawyer'sDeath.png | 375 - Lawyer's Death
File:BlackWidows.png | 376 - Black Widows
File:Aliens.png | 377 - Aliens
File:DeathToTheDead.png | 378 - Death to the Dead
File:MakingDragons.png | 379 - Making Dragons
File:MoonPresident.png | 380 - Moon President
File:BigGameHunting.png | 381 - Big Game Hunting
File:WrathOfTheStormKing.png | 382 - Wrath of the Storm King
File:TheBeacon.png | 383 - The Beacon
File:AdvisorPrime.png | 384 - Advisor Prime
File:DesperateMeasures.png | 385 - Desperate Measures
File:PsychiatristSummoning.png | 386 - Psychiatrist Summoning
File:HomePlane.png | 387 - Home Plane
File:TheBookThatReadsYou.png | 388 - The Book That Reads You
File:HauntedHouse.png | 389 - Haunted House
File:FirePrincess.png | 390 - Fire Princess
File:MurderInvestigation.png | 391 - Murder Investigation
File:GiantRoboticWaifu.png | 392 - Giant Robotic Waifu 2: Military Boogaloo (See 92)
File:SonsOfShe.png | 393 - Sons Of She
File:ScenesFromBohemia.png | 394 - Bohemian Rhapsody
File:TheWitchAndTheWolf.png | 395 - The Witch And The Wolf
File:Suoma.png | 396 - Suoma
File:PrincessDragon.png | 397 - Princess, Dragon, and Bride
File:Roaches.png | 398 - Roaches
File:Vostok.png | 399 - Vostok
File:DragonHunter.png | 400 - Dragon Hunter
File:TheCity.png | 401 - The City
File:GrimReaper.png | 402 - Grim Reaper
File:HalloweenPoem.png | 403 - A Poem For Halloween
File:TygerTyger.png | 404 - Tyger Tyger
File:SpacePirates.png | 405 - Space Pirates
File:Destiny.png | 406 - Destiny
File:WatchingTheWorldBurn.png | 407 - Watching the world burn
File:Temple Raiding - A Guide.png | 408 - Temple Raiding: A Guide
File:CyberpunkProstitute.png | 409 - Cyberpunk Prostitute
File:TheIncursion.png | 410 - The Incursion
File:GiantSpiderbro.png | 411 - Giant Albino Spider
File:TheJudgementOfFragor.png | 412 - The Judgement Of Fragor
File:RevengePoem.png | 413 - Revenge Poem
File:BloodyNut.png | 414 - The Bloody Nut
File:TheKindnessOfButchers.png | 415 - The Kindness Of Butchers
File:Princess'Guard.png | 416 - Princess' Guard
File:DarthSamurai.png | 417 - Sith Samurai
File:NightwalkerPrincess.png | 418 - Nightwalker Princess
File:DerFischFuhrer.png | 419 - Der Fisch Fuhrer
File:RubyAndCherie.png | 420 - Ruby And Cherie
File:AnotherBohemianRhapsody.png | 421 - Another Bohemian Rhapsody
File:WaterCoolerTalk.png | 422 - Water Cooler Talk
File:OtakuNotOnTheBeach.png | 423 - Otaku Not On The Beach
File:LordOfTheWood.png | 424 - Lord Of The Wood
File:MercenaryWork.png | 425 - Mercenary Work
File:AnotherDayInTheInterventionForces.png | 426 - Another Day In The Intervention Forces
File:TheMidnightHour.png | 427 - The Midnight Hour
File:USWC.png | 428 - United States Witch Corps
File:FairyApprentice.png | 429 - Fairy Apprentice
File:UnivitedGuest.png | 430 - Uninvited Guest
File:SoulMates.png | 431 - Soul Mates
File:LostFairy.png | 432 - Lost Fairy
File:LabourOfLove.png | 433 - Labour of Love
File:Bedtime.png | 434 - Bedtime
File:RobotAndReligion.png | 435 - Robot And Religion
File:AtlasTech.png | 436 - Atlas Tech
File:ElinReturnsHome.png | 437 - Elin Returns Home
File:EllieAndTheSword.png | 438 - Ellie and the sword
File:TheWayTheWorldEnded.png | 439 - The Way The World Ended
File:SakiAndTheMermaid.png | 440 - Saki and the Mermaid
File:BeautyAndTheBloodiedBeast.png | 441 - Beauty And The Bloodied Beast
File:ProjectSpartan.png | 442 - Project Spartan ''or'' Postapocalyptic Rescue (see also: 189, 211)
File:MixedParty.png | 443 - Mixed Party
File:SkeletonFather.png | 444 - Skeleton Father
File:WizardOfGains.png | 445 - Wizard Of Gains
File:RobotHunter.png | 446 - Robot Hunter
File:SakiAndTheMermaid-part2.png | 447 - Saki and the Mermaid, part 2 (see also: 440)
File:ReleasingTheBoneKing.png | 448 - Releasing the Bone King
File:MaxChambersCourier.png | 449 - Max Chambers: Courier
File:MarkOfTheBoneKing.png | 450 - Mark Of the Bone King (see: 448)
File:MaxMeetsDreadPirateRoberts.png | 451 - Max Meets Dread Pirate Roberts
File:DeepUnderWater.png | 452 - Deep Under Water
File:TheThiefAndTheBoy.png | 453 - Anna's Boy
File:DoomSlayer.png | 454 - Doom Slayer
File:WitchHuntress.png | 455 - Witch Huntress
File:TiredToTheBone.png | 456 - Tired to the Bone
File:DinosaurKing.png | 457 - Dinosaur King
File:SpiderWizard.png | 458 - Spider Wizard
File:Cooking.png | 459 - Ork Cooking
File:Rodrick.png | 460 - Rodrick
File:SpaceshipSalvage.png | 461 - Spaceship Salvage
File:WarStories.png | 462 - War Stories
File:TheStrayCompany.png | 463 - The Stray Company
File:MagicMarket.png | 464 - Magic Market
File:CoronationOfTheFive.png | 465 - The Coronation of the Five
File:MixedParty-part2.png | 466 - Mixed Party, part 2 (see: 443)
File:VeteranBarman.png | 467 - Veteran Barman
File:Crusaderess.png | 468 - Lucia the Crusader
File:NecroPartner.png | 469 - Necro Partner
File:Biggey'sNapTime.png | 470 - Biggey's nap time
File:TheOutsider.png | 471 - The Outsider
File:TheBurningMen.png | 472 - The Burning Men
File:TheTrialsOfChivalry.png | 473 - The Trials of Chivalry
File:FairyProblems.png | 474 - Fairy Problems
File:ForestLove.png | 475 - Love of the Forest
File:DWFP.png | 476 - Death, War, Famine and Plague
File:DeathMarch.png | 477 - Death March
File:AIPracticalJoke.png | 478 - AI practical joke
File:RetiredBattlemage.png | 479 - Retired Battlemage
File:VanHelsingInternational.png | 480 - Van Helsing International
File:RainaHarrietParanormalInvestigator.png | 481 - Raina Harriet: Paranormal Investigator
File:FighterVsWizard.png | 482 - Fighter vs. Wizard
File:VolturVolansTheatre.png | 483 - Voltur Volans Theatre
File:MetaGaming.png | 484 - Meta Gaming
File:AnotherDayInGainesborough.png | 485 - Another Day In Gainesborough (see also: 481)
File:SavingALife.png | 486 - Saving A Life
File:TheTotingTyrannosaurus.png | 487 - The Toting Tyrannsaurus
File:ForWantOfANail.png | 488 - For Want of a Nail
File:TheDeclarationOfSurrendependence.png | 489 - The Declaration Of Surrendependence
File:SwatRaid.png | 490 - Swat Raid
File:LesbianVampireBait.png | 491 - Lesbian Vampire Bait
File:ScionOfWar.png | 492 - Scion Of War
File:LavaGolem.png | 493 - Lava Golem
File:HalfOrcRomance.png | 494 - Half Orc Romance
File:SpaceCruiserAttack.png | 495 - Space Cruiser Attack
File:TheDragon'sTravels.png | 496 - The Dragon's Travels
File:CityLife.png | 497 - City Life
File:ElfThiefAndPaladin.png | 498 - Elf Thief and Paladin
File:WalkerBetweenWorlds.png | 499 - Walker Between Worlds (see also: 481, 485)
File:BeachElf.png | 500 - Beach Elf
File:AkamatsuHall.png| 501 - Akamatsu Hall [[https://1d4chan.org/images/2/2e/AkamatsuHall.png]]
File:AdventureInTheMistwoods.png | 502 - Adventure In The Mistwoods [[https://1d4chan.org/images/0/04/AdventureInTheMistwoods.png]]
File:TraitorToTheCrown.png | 503 - Traitor to the Crown
File:RedTide.png | 504 - Red Tide
File:FrogKnight.png | 505 - Frog Knight
File:CityOfLights.png | 506 - City Of Lights
File:Unautonomous.png | 507 - Unautonomous
File:SingToTheForest.png | 508 - Sing To The Forest
File:YouWantDeathWithThat.png | 509 - You Want Death With That?
File:GoblinsAndBeserker.png | 510 - Goblins and Berserker
File:TheFireRises.png | 511 - The Fire Rises
File:OperationSpiderLust.png | 512 - Operation Spider Lust [[https://1d4chan.org/images/e/ea/OperationSpiderLust.png]]
File:RedWall.png | 513 - Red Wall
File:EnchantedSwordDiscoveredByLocalBoy.png | 514 - Enchanted Sword Discovered By Local Boy
File:XenomorphTale.png | 515 Xenomorph Tale
File:GoldenSun.png | 516 - Golden Sun
File:WendigoStory.png | 517 - Wendigo
File:FestivalOfFloatingLanterns.png | 518 - Festival Of Floating Lanterns
File:SaintOfNails.png | 519 - Saint of Nails
File:Millfix'sMagicShop.png | 520 - Millfix's Magic Shop
File:MidnightKai.png | 521 - Midnight Kai
File:ArthurTheMadNecromancer.png | 522 - Professor Arthur
File:AHacksterIsBorn.png | 523 - A Hackster is Born
File:AHacksterIsBorn.png | 524 - A Hackster is Born
File:DressToImpress.png | 525 - Dress to Impress
File:SchoolgirlHazmat.png | 526 - Hazmat Schoolgirl
File:AistraphChambers.png | 527 - Aistraph Chambers
File:TheWhiteScarf.png | 528 - The White Scarf [[https://1d4chan.org/images/5/5b/TheWhiteScarf.png]]
File:RoughLanding.png | 529 - Rough Landing
File:CreationStory.png | 530 - Creation Story
File:TheAristocrats.png | 531 - The Aristocrats
File:EternityTogether.png | 532 - Eternity Together
File:Fallen.png | 533 - Fallen
File:TheSacrificeOfTarogg.png | 534 - The Sacrifice of Tarogg
File:KnightsOfOrder.png | 535 - Knights of Order
File:SpaceshipSurvivor.png | 536 - Spaceship Survivor
File:MonsterSlayer.png | 537 - Monster Slayer
File:TimeTravellingNazi.png | 538 - Time Travelling Nazi
File:AirshipCrewman.png | 539 - Airship Crewman
File:Richardson-AemarisFamily.png | 540 - The Richardson-Aemaris Family [[https://1d4chan.org/images/f/fc/Richardson-AemarisFamily.png]]
File:VampireGirl.png | 541 - The Vampire Girl
File:GlyphKnight.png | 542 - Glyph Knight
File:Aliro-WizardOutOfTime.png | 543 - Aliro: Wizard Out Of Time
File:Maya'sAdventure.png | 544 - Maya's Adventure
File:Iode.png | 545 - Iode
File:ArmouredCombat.png | 546 - Armoured Combat
File:Sci-Tech.png | 547 - Sci-Tech Labs
File:BeautifulBountyHunters.png | 548 - Beautiful Bounty Hunters
File:TheBellTollsOnTheLake.png | 549 - The Bell Tolls On The Lake
File:ThroneIsLife.png | 550 - The Throne is Life
File:Monstergirl.png | 551 - Monstergirl
File:GreatWizardMalroyHasABadDay.png | 552 - Great Wizard Malroy Has A Bad Day
File:TheHunt.png | 553 - The Hunt
File:IriuResurrection.png | 554 - The Resurrection of the Iriu
File:DragonSummoning.png | 555 - Dragon Summoning
File:HaloForerunners.png | 556 - Halo Forerunners
File:GoblinAttack.png | 557 - Goblin Attack [[https://1d4chan.org/images/1/19/GoblinAttack.png]]
File:RomanSlavery.png | 558 - Roman Slavery
File:TheOntologist'sFolly.png | 559 - The Ontologist's Folly
File:TheHeisters.png | 560 - The Heisters
File:SogurdTheMildInconveniencer.png | 561 - Sogurd The Mild Inconveniencer
File:KidSolicitsAHooker.png | 562 - Kid Solicits A Hooker
File:PerfectDay.png | 563 - Perfect Day
File:Tiefling Mistress.png | 564 - Tiefling Mistress
File:Einstein'sBridge.png | 565 - Einstein's Bridge
File:ForumOfQuartecian.png | 566 - Forum of Quartecian
File:KindnessRevisited.png | 567 - Kindness Revisited
File:WhiteFleur.png | 568 - The Cult Of The White Fleur [[https://1d4chan.org/images/a/af/WhiteFleur.png]]
File:KingsCycle.png | 569 - The Cycle of Kings
File:TheRingIWasGoingToProposeWith.png | 570 - The Ring I Was Going To Propose With
File:DerelictSentientShip.png | 571 - Derelict Sentient Ship
File:TheWriter.png | 572 - The Writer
File:TheGirlInTheDarkRoom.png | 573 - Meeting Aya
File:MachineMen.png | 574 - Machine Men
File:KrakenWife.png | 575 - Kraken Wife
File:BedtimeStories.png | 576 - Bedtime Stories
File:SummoningAGod.png | 577 - Summoning A God
File:SlowMoParkour.png | 578 - Slow-mo Parkour
File:Demonium.png | 579 - Demonium (see also: 528)
File:Wolf Girl.png | 580 - Wolf Girl
File:TheSpiritOfAutumn.png | 581 - The Spirit of Autumn
File:CultInvestigator.png | 582 - Cult Investigator
File:IncubusPilot.png | 583 - Incubus Pilot
File:AstridsMiningYears.png | 584 - Astrid's Mining Years
File:BicycleChase.png | 585 - Bicycle Chase
File:TheLetterOfGolgoth.png | 586 - The Letter of Golgoth
File:SarlocTheEverflame.png | 587 - Sarloc the Everflame
File:DiscoveringTheElves.png | 588 - Discovering the Elves
File:Lessons.png | 589 - Lessons (see also: 489)
File:CycleOfAges.png | 590 - The Cycle of Ages
File:GuardianAngel.png | 591 - Guardian Angel
File:NoWitnesses.png | 592 - No Witnesses
File:Twincest.png | 593 - Gemini Rising
File:DiaryOfAnElvenWaiter.png | 594 - Diary of an Elven Waiter
File:DoorToDoor.png | 595 - Door To Door
File:ShimaneDiaries.png | 596 - Shimane Diaries
File:CatPersonRant.png | 597 - Cat Person Rant
File:HellOfAFirstDate.png | 598 - Hell Of A First Date
File:MeetingAya-Chapter2.png | 599 - Meeting Aya, Chapter 2 (see also: 573)
File:ArcticExpedition.png | 600 - Arctic Expedition
File:Gnoll-TaintedElf.png | 601 - Gnoll-Tainted Elf
File:OrionSalutation.png | 602 - The Orion Salutation
File:BuiltWithLove.png | 603 - Built With Love
File:FurtherEducation.png | 604 - Further Education (see also: 589) [[https://1d4chan.org/images/6/60/FurtherEducation.png]]
File:Skeleton'sHeart.png | 605 - Skeleton's Heart
File:StayOnTopic.png | 606 - Stay On Topic
File:MothPriest.png | 607 - Moth Priest
File:CardboardArmour.png | 608 - Cardboard Armour
File:DreamingOfStupidThings.png | 609 - Dreaming of Stupid Things: Confession
File:SisterAndBrother.png | 610 - Sister and Brother
File:Moebot.png | 611 - Moebot
File:TheVoiceOfTheRing.png | 612 - The Voice Of The Ring
File:YorrickTakesADay.png | 613 - Yorrick Takes A Day (see also: 481, 485, 499)
File:Friendship A Trois.png | 614 - Friendship A Trois
File:VigilanteCatboy.png | 615 - Vigilante Catboy (see also: 528)
File:PirateWarlock.png | 616 - Pirate Warlock
File:HellgateOfCorresia.png | 617 - Hellgate of Corresia
File:DeadSoldiers.png | 618 - Dead Soldiers
File:You'reYourOnlyMasterNow.png | 619 - You're your only master now
File:WinterAngel.png | 620 - Winter Angel
File:Spooked.png | 621 - Spooked
File:TheTragedyOfKingAssur.png | 622 - The Tragedy of King Assur
File:WarEngineTimeTravel.png | 623 - Time Travelling War Engine
File:CagliariIncident.png | 624 - The Cagliari Incident
File:Twin Refugees.png | 625 - Twin Refugees (see also: 593, 489)
File:ShenronTheWishDragon.png | 626 - Shenron The Wish Dragon
File:WarforgedConsortiumMember.png | 627 - Warforged Consortium Member
File:DragonLifespan.png | 628 - Dragon's Lifespan
File:ForestFay.png | 629 - Forest Fay
File:WeAreSoLost.png | 630 - We are so lost
File:CommandToLive.png | 631 - Command To Live
File:Half-ElfCrush.png | 632 - Half-elf Crush
File:Selene'sTale.png | 633 - Seline's Tale (see also: 580)
File:Thri-KreenRomantica.png | 634 - Thri-Kreen Romantica
File:ExpertAssassins.png | 635 - Expert Assassins
File:Wizards-NoSenseOfRightAndWrong.png | 636 - Wizards - No Sense Of Right And Wrong
File:FamilyHoliday.png | 637 - Family Holiday
File:PetDragon.png | 638 - Pet Dragon
File:DivineScion.png | 639 - Divine Scion
File:IfBobRossWereGod.png | 640 - If Bob Ross were God
File:ElvenRomance.png | 641 - Elven Romance
File:LootingSpaceship.png | 642 - Looting A Spaceship
File:ChurchOfTheLastNail.png | 643 - The Church Of The Last Nail
File:Yui'sSecretProfession.png | 644 - Yui's Secret Job
File:TheDevilAndHisBride.png | 645 - The Devil And His Bride
File:LamiaLover.png | 646 - Lamia Lover
File:OrphanWizardAndBarmaid.png | 647 - The Orphan Wizard and the Barmaid
File:NoLongerALamb.png | 648 - No Longer A Lamb
File:Necromancer'sPath.png | 649 - The Necromancer's Path
File:ZeppelinPilotAndSkyWhales.png | 650 - Zeppelin Pilot and Sky-Whales
File:PoliceColonel.png | 651 - A Day In The Life Of A Police Colonel
File:PauperPrincess.png | 652 - Pauper Princess
File:LandOfCloudAndMists.png | 653 - Land of Cloud And Mists [[https://1d4chan.org/images/3/39/LandOfCloudAndMists.png]] (see also: 489)
File:GhostOfCursedLake.png | 654 - Ghost Of Cursed Lake
File:TheEmploymentOfShelbyStubbes.png | 655 - The Employment Of Shelby Stubbes
File:GiantHumanRomance.png | 656 - Giant-Human Romance
File:Elf-humanRelationship.png | 657 - Elf-Human Relationship
File:TooMuchElfLove.png | 658 - Too Much Elf Love
File:SadasakosEternity.png | 659 - Sadasako's Eternity (see also: 526)
File:AgentHellcat.png | 660 - Agent Hellcat
File:Succubus.png | 661 - Succubus
File:MarleyKarlsson-ConfessionsOfAThief.png | 662 - Marley Karlsson - Confessions of a Thief
File:SuccubusSummoning.png | 663 - Succubus Summoning
File:After-workParty.png | 664 - After-work Party
File:BeginningsOfSpaceTravel.png | 665 - Beginnings of Space Travel
File:OsloTheDragonSlayer.png | 666 - Oslo the Dragon Slayer
File:RobotBarmaid.png | 667 - Robot Barmaid
File:TheGoldenTongue.png | 668 - The Golden Tongue
File:NeverShallTheTwinsMeet.png | 669 - Never Shall The Twins Meet
File:CheatingADragon.png | 670 - Cheating a Dragon
File:TheReturnOfMagic.png | 671 - The Return of Magic
File:IronAngel.png | 672 - Iron Angel
File:AmazonLove.png | 673 - Amazon Love
File:WizardSchool.png | 674 - Wizard School
File:FriendlyMonster.png | 675 - Friendly Monster
File:SeatOfTheCrown.png | 676 - Seat of the Crown
File:MischkaTheWingedDeath.png | 677 - Mischka The Winged Death
File:UndeadSoldier.png | 678 - Undead Soldier
File:EmpireOfEberstein.png | 679 - Empire of Eberstein
File:TrannyPhantom2.png | 680 - Tranny Phantom
File:Paladin'sCrusade.png | 681 - Paladin's Crusade
File:FairyThieves.png | 682 - Fairy Thieves
File:LamiaSpa.png | 683 - Lamia Spa Day
File:DryderStories.png | 684 - Dryder Stories
File:TheSentinel.png | 685 - The Sentinel
File:OctopusLove.png | 686 - Octopus Love
File:BeeGirl2.png | 687 - Bee Girl
File:DriveHome.png | 689 - Drive Home
File:StairsToNowhere.png | 688 - Stairs to Nowhere
File:SlendermanWithAJob.png | 690 - Slenderman With A Job
File:LeshyHorns.png | 691 - Leshy Horns
File:MaidWars.png | 692 - Maid Wars
File:VampireHistory.png | 693 - Vampire History
File:Flight.png | 694 - Flight
File:MamaNil.png | 695 - Mama Nil
File:TheLastCleric.png | 696 - The Last Cleric
File:BoneReaper.png | 697 - Bone Reaper
File:SidewalkProphet.png | 698 - Sidewalk Prophet
File:ThreeAdventurersAndADog.png | 699 - Three Adventurers And A Dog
File:ForestGod.png | 700 - Forest God [[https://1d4chan.org/images/b/bf/ForestGod.png]]
File:LadyKnight.png| 701 - Lady Knight
File:BadScience.png | 702 - Bad Science
File:BrideOfDeath.png | 703 - Bride of Death
File:ChildOfFireAndFrost.png | 704 - Child of Fire and Frost [[https://1d4chan.org/images/8/86/ChildOfFireAndFrost.png]]
File:CriticalFailure.png | 705 - Critical Failure
File:ElfParoleOfficer.png | 706 - Elf Parole Officer
File:GreatBallsOfFire-WizardEdition-.png | 707 - Great Balls of Fire: Wizard Edition
File:ElfHumanLoveStory.png | 708 - Elf-Human Love
File:SaintAndDragon.png | 709 - Saint and Dragon
File:TribalWarfare.png | 710 - Tribal Warfare [[https://1d4chan.org/images/2/2d/TribalWarfare.png]]
File:RomanDragon.png | 711 - Roman Dragon
File:TheFog.png | 712 - The Fog
File:TheGirlFromBlackLagoon.png | 713 - The Girl From The Black Lagoon [[https://1d4chan.org/images/4/41/TheGirlFromBlackLagoon.png]]
File:CosmicShadowSpawnGirlfriend.png | 714 - Shadowspawn Girlfriend
File:RedInquisitor.png | 715 - Red Inquisitor
File:AgentHellkitty.png | 716 - Agent Hellkitty
File:ChildhoodHome.png | 717 - Childhood Home
File:Reptilians.png | 718 - Reptilian Infiltrators
File:That'sShowbusiness.png | 719 - That's Showbusiness
File:ClimacticDuel.png | 720 - Climactic Duel
File:WildHunt.png | 721 - Wild Hunt
File:WellSomebodyHadToLoveLovecraft.png | 722 - Well Somebody Had To Love Lovecraft
File:TrophyTruck.png | 723 - Trophy Truck
File:BlackguardsGuild.png | 724 - The Blackguards' Guild
File:DragonPresent.png | 725 - Dragon Present
File:SecretsOfTheMortalCoil.png | 726 - Secrets of the Mortal Coil
File:AshDesert.png | 727 - Ash Desert
File:Disembodiment.png | 728 - Disembodiment
File:TwinTrouble.png | 729 - Twin Trouble
File:BusinessOfWar.png | 730 - The Business of War
File:TrailerParkFairy.png | 731 - Trailer Park Fae
File:GarudaTemple.png | 732 - Garuda Temple
File:BlindExecutioner.png | 733 - The Blind Executioner
File:FleshMonster.png | 734 - Flesh Monster
File:Centaur.png | 735 - Centaur
File:ReleasingTentacleGod.png | 736 - Releasing A Tentacle God
File:DeadExplorer.png | 737 - Dead Cosmic Explorer
File:TwinLove.png | 738 - Twin Love
File:SistersSown.png | 739 - Sisters Sewn
File:IceMage.png | 740 - Ice Mage
File:Lizardmen.png | 741 - Lizardmen
File:HellCows.png | 742 - Hell Cows
File:AMouthfulOfMagic.png | 743 - A Mouthful Of Magic
File:SarahSmiles.png | 744 - Sarah Smiles
File:SaveTheDragons.png | 745 - Save the Dragons
File:VisionsOfStrahl.png | 746 - Visions of Strahl
File:ReturnOfGolaris.png | 747 - The Return of Golaris (see also: 32)
File:Patrolling.png | 748 - On Patrolling
File:SisterSaint.png | 749 - Sister Saint
File:AnOfferingForLadyNemera.png | 750 - An Offering for Lady Nemera
File:WreckHunter.png | 751 - Wreck Hunter
File:TheFarmerAndTheFighter.png | 752 - The Farmer and the Fighter
File:CapturedBySirEel.png | 753 - Captured By Sir Eel
File:ChurchOfRebirth.png | 754 - The Burch of Rebirth
File:FirstbornFlame.png | 755 - Firstborn Flame
File:HalflingKnight.png | 756 - Halfling Knight
File:Hellmouth.png | 757 - Hellmouth
File:RescueMission.png | 758 - Rescue Mission (see also: 753)
File:SnowColossus.png | 759 - Snow Colossus
File:HuntersInTheMist.png | 760 - Hunters in the Mist
File:EyesInTheWoods.png | 761 - Eyes in the Woods
File:NazisVsGiantCrab.png | 762 - Nazis Vs Giant Crab Monster
File:DarkSeason.png | 763 - Dark Season
File:Valiant.png | 764 - Valiant
File:DoctorsOfIzzma.png | 765 - The Doctors of Izzma
File:TempleRaid.png | 766 - Orc Temple Raid
File:Hellborn.png | 767 - Hellborn
File:UnholySacrifice.png | 768 - Unholy Sacrifice
File:CityOfTheDead.png | 769 - City Of The Dead
File:AdalardAndTheRusalka-ExtendedAndEdited.png | 770 - Adelard and the Rusalka
File:JuvenileFireMage.png | 771 - Juvenile Fire Mage
File:KnightPriestAndSamovila.png | 772 - The Knight, The Priest And The Samovila
File:InternationalArcade.png | 773 - The International Arcade
File:MechHunt.png | 774 - Mech Hunt
File:DragonSonnet.png | 775 - Dragon Sonnet
File:BurialAtCee.png | 776 - Burial At Cee
File:StormGod'sMountain.png | 777 - The Storm God's Mountain
File:Glowfairy.png | 778 - Glowfairy
File:SuitableSuitor.png | 779 - A Suitable Suitor for Xiang
File:CuckoldedLobster.png | 780 - Cuckolded Lobster
File:PixieSnacks.png | 781 - Pixie Snacks
File:SuitableSuitor-part2.png | 782 - A Suitable Suitor for Xiang, part 2 (see: no. 780) [[https://1d4chan.org/images/4/4f/SuitableSuitor-part2.png]]
File:PaladinsHope.png | 783 - A Paladin's Hope [[https://1d4chan.org/images/0/07/PaladinsHope.png]]
File:LastDance.png | 784 - Last Dance
File:OceanEmbryoHunt.png | 785 - Ocean Embryo Hunt
File:Bloodlines.png | 786 - Bloodlines
File:MorningAfter.png | 787 - The Morning After
File:DragonkinVsSerpent.png | 788 - Dragonkin vs. Serpent
File:ElfSmut.png | 789 - Elf Smut
File:FifteenYears.png | 790 - Fifteen Years
File:PeepingTom.png | 791 - Peeping Tom
File:RedWitch'sSanctum.png | 792 - Red Witch's Sanctum
File:Wyrmkiller.png | 793 - Wyrmkiller
File:ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part1.png | 794 - The Pale Witch of Pasergard (chapters 1 - 3) [[https://1d4chan.org/images/b/ba/ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part1.png]]
File:ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part2.png | 795 - The Pale Witch of Pasergard (chapters 4 - 6) [[https://1d4chan.org/images/8/81/ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part2.png]]
File:ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part3.png | 796 - The Pale Witch of Pasergard (chapters 7 - 8) [[https://1d4chan.org/images/8/80/ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part3.png]]
File:ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part4.png | 797 - The Pale Witch of Pasergard (chapter 9) [[https://1d4chan.org/images/f/f8/ThePaleWitchOfPasergard-part4.png]]
File:Hermit'sMagicalCave.png | 798 - The Magic of the Hermit's Cave
File:Bristlehide'sEnd.png | 799 - Bristlehide's End
File:GhostlyTreasure.png | 800 - Ghostly Treasure
File:SavingSanta.png | 801 - Saving Santa
File:SeaTurtle.png | 802 - Sea Turtle [[https://1d4chan.org/images/5/52/SeaTurtle.png]]
File:SkullOfMadness.png | 803 - Skull of Madness
File:PathToYandalai.png | 804 - The Path To Yandalai
File:TheDescent.png | 805 - The Descent
File:ChildrenOfTheStars.png | 806 - Children of the Stars
File:InTheShadows.png | 807 - In the Shadows
File:LonelyTower.png | 808 - Lonely Tower
File:CityOfTheAir.png | 809 - City of the Air
File:BladeOfAvalon.png | 810 - Blade of Avalon
File:MonstrousSiege.png | 811 - Monstrous Siege
File:MagicOfTheAncients.png | 812 - Magic of the Ancients
File:Engine181.png | 813 - Engine 181
File:OrcGirl.png | 814 - Orc Girl
File:IceBlue.png | 815 - Ice Blue
File:CarefreeSonAndWildsWife.png | 816 - Carefree Son and Wilds' Wife
File:InsectileDarkElf.png | 817 - Insectile Dark Elf
File:BritishSpaceEmpire.png | 818 - British Space Empire
File:MysteriousMonument.png | 819 - Mysterious Monument
File:CardCheat.png | 820 - Card Cheat
File:MaeliGodOfDeath.png | 821 - Maeli God of Death
File:ArmouredExplorers.png | 822 - Armoured Explorers
File:LichResearch.png | 823 - Lich Research
File:PirateOasis.png | 824 - Pirate Oasis
File:GhostlyPianist.png | 825 - Ghostly Pianist
File:StrangeEncounter.png | 826 - A Strange Encounter
File:LordOfIron.png | 827 - Lord Of Iron
File:PoisonedTomb.png | 828 - Poisoned Tomb
File:PhilippineFantasy.png | 829 - Philippines Fantasy
File:OnTheRun-Updated.png | 830 - On The Run
File:TheRedStagSong.png | 831 - The Red Stag Song
File:TheTragedyOfTheDrow.png | 832 - The Tragedy of the Drow
File:Aswang.png | 833 - The Aswang (see also: 829)
File:TheTreeMaidenAndTheBeekeeper.png | 834 - The Tree Maiden and the Beekeeper [[https://1d4chan.org/images/f/f9/TheTreeMaidenAndTheBeekeeper.png]]
File:RevenantProtector.png | 835 - Revenant Protector
File:SilverBullets.png | 836 - Silver Bullets
File:ApexPredator.png | 837 - Apex Predator
File:Post-ApocalypseMonk.png | 838 - Post-Apocalyptic Monk
File:BattleOfTheObsidianGate.png | 839 - The Battle of the Obsidian Gate
File:Water.png | 840 - Water
File:DarkMatron.png | 841 - Dark Matron
File:DinosaurSafariPark.png | 842 - Dinosaur Safari Park
File:NoProm.png | 843 - No Prom (see also non-picture section: 134, 137, 138, 143, etc, ect.)
File:GraubundenIncident.png | 844 - The Graubunden Incident
File:BerninaIncident.png | 845 - The Bernina Incident (another version of 844)
File:PirateHunters.png | 846 - Pirate Hunters
File:OathOfBlood.png | 847 - Oath of Blood
File:BodySnatchers.png | 848 - Body Snatchers
File:WarriorCaste.png | 849 - Warrior Caste
File:Bodyguard.png | 850 - Bodyguard
File:Kivinaisia-Chapter1.png | 851 - Kivinaisia, Chapter 1
File:BlackTentacles.png | 852 - Black Tentacles
File:LibertyPrimeDiscoversNanakochan.png | 853 - Liberty Prime Discovers Nanakochan
File:Mona'sGoodbye.png | 854 - Mona's Goodbye
File:RoadEnds.png | 855 - The Road Ends
File:Wizard'sTest.png | 856 - A Wizard's Test
File:TheHarbinger.png | 857 - The Harbinger
File:YoungWitch.png | 858 - A Young Witch
File:StormsRoar.png | 859 - Storm's Roar
File:AModestNecromancer.png | 860 - A Modest Necromancer
File:HisWatchNeverEnded.png | 861 - His Watch Never Ended
File:ImprisonedYuanTi.png | 862 - Imprisoned Yuan-ti
File:PigeonGirl.png | 863 - Pigeon Girl
File:KaravaThukanaChapterOne.png | 864 - Karava Thukana (Chapter 1)
File:SeaGoddessCurse.png | 865 - Curse of the Sea Goddess
File:TemulanTheMighty.png | 866 - Temulan The Mighty
File:FasterThanFast.png | 867 - Faster Than Fast
File:SorrowfulPanda.png | 868 - Sorrowful Panda
File:SacrificeForRain.png | 869 - Sacrifice for Rain
File:AceOfAces.png | 870 - Ace of Aces
File:AHomeAcrossTheSea.png | 871 - A Home Across The Sea
File:DamagedIdol.png | 872 - Damaged Idol
File:MoonMissionApocalypse.png | 873 - Moon Mission Apocalypse
File:Ch'ulPakal.png | 874 - Ch'ul Pakal
File:Snowfall.png | 875 - Snowfall
File:3rdLegion.png | 876 - 3rd Legion
File:Wizard'sCottage.png | 877 - The Wizard's Cottage
File:Oblation-Captive.png | 878 - Oblation & Captive
File:FateWeaver.png | 879 - Fate Weaver
File:QuestToSlayABeast.png | 880 - A Quest To Slay A Very Dangerous Beast
File:ElfHomecoming.png | 881 - Elf Homecoming
File:EngineersMission.png | 882 - Engineer's Mission
File:InTheDreamlands.png | 883 - In The Dreamlands
File:VampireVsWerewolf.png | 884 - Vampire Vs. Werewolf
File:ForestObelisk.png | 885 - Forest Obelisk
File:AlienMonolith.png | 886 - Alien Monolith
File:ARoomAMindAUniverse.png | 887 - A Room, A Mind, A Universe
File:ShapeshifterThrone.png | 888 - A Throne For A Travelling Shapeshifter
File:ImmortalityIsHell.png | 889 - Immortality Is Hell
File:LightningGod.png | 890 - Lightning God
File:BalloonFuneral.png | 891 - Balloon Funeral
File:CreationOfTheDragonborn.png | 892 - Creation of the Dragonborn
File:Anti-AlienResistance.png | 893 - Anti-Alien Resistance
File:HiddenWorldsOfNeoSedalia.png | 894 - Hidden Worlds of Neo Sedalia
File:GuardiansInvestigatingSirvank.png | 895 - Guardians Investigating Sirvank Village
File:Yearnrose.png | 896 - Yearnrose
File:PolishGun.png | 897 - Polish Gun
File:DuelOfWizards.png | 898 - Duel of Wizards
File:TheEqualizer.png | 899 - The Equalizer
File:ElfRescue.png | 900 - Elf Rescue
File:SchlossGrenzen.png | 901 - Schloss Grenzen [[https://1d4chan.org/images/7/79/SchlossGrenzen.png]]
File:AHero'sDeath.png | 902 - A Hero's Death
File:ChineseMotorcycle.png | 903 - Cyberpunk Motorcycle Chase
File:UnderTheLightOfASilverMoon.png | 904 - Under the Light of a Silver Moon
File:MagicalSnowman.png | 905 - Magical Snowman [[https://1d4chan.org/images/0/0f/MagicalSnowman.png]]
File:ChristianSamurai.png | 906 - Christian Samurai [[https://1d4chan.org/images/1/17/ChristianSamurai.png]]
File:Rainforest.png | 907 - Alien Rainforest
File:DealWithTheDevil.png | 908 - A Deal With A Devil
File:FutureShock.png | 909 - Future Shock
File:Contemplation.png | 910 - Contemplation
File:TheEnd.png | 911 - The End
File:Wolfhydra.png | 912 - Wolfhydra
File:AirshipPirates.png | 913 - Airship Pirates
File:IraeAndTheDawnstone.png | 914 - Irae and the Dawnstone
File:UnholyPriest.png | 915 - Unholy Priest
File:TrackingDownAnElf.png | 916 - Tracking Down an Elf
File:ThoroldTheSoleSurvivor.png | 917 - Thorold the Sole Survivor
File:GloryBe.png | 918 - Glory Be
File:FairySword.png | 919 - Fairy Sword
File:SnowHunt.png | 920 - Snow Hunt
File:UndergroundCyberneticsLab.png | 921 - Illegal Cybernetics Lab
File:DragonCreationStory.png | 922 - Dragon Creation Story
File:FairyMuse.png | 923 - Fairy Muse
File:HomeOfTheInfected.png | 924 - Home Of The Infected
File:RavenLawyer.png | 925 - Raven Lawyer
File:NecromancerAndAngel.png | 926 - The Necromancer and the Angel
File:MoonsOverCraxis.png | 927 - The Moons Over Craxis
File:AtFirstSight.png | 928 - At First Sight
File:BattleAftermath.png | 929 - Battle Aftermath
File:DefendingMotherRussia.png | 930 - Defending Mother Russia
File:KillTheGirlSaveTheWorld.png | 931 - Kill The Girl, Save The World
File:ConquestAndTheMiserKing.png | 932 - Conquest and the Miser King
File:KatarinaTheWitchHunter.png | 933 - Katarina The Witch Hunter
File:AllosaurPack.png | 934 - Allosaur Pack
File:GregoryAndTheHashNabauk.png | 935 - Gregory and the Hash Nabauk
File:ElectricitySpider.png | 936 - Electricity Spider
File:AlienCop.png | 937 - Alien Cop
File:DealWithADemonette.png | 938 - Deal With A Demonette
File:EmbersbendCastleV2.png | 939 - Embersbend Castle
File:HorrorOfTheSky.png | 940 - The Horror Of The Sky
File:KetrasBetrayal.png | 941 - Ketra's Betrayal
File:WarrenBattle.png | 942 - The Battle Of The Warrens
File:CursedFood.png | 943 - Cursed Food
File:UndergroundCity.png | 944 - Underground City
File:WhereDragonsComeFrom.png | 945 - Where Dragons Come From
File:SkeletonWarrior.png | 946 - Skeleton Warrior
File:LandOfTheGiants.png | 947 - Land Of The Giants
File:Entity'sJourney.png | 948 - Entity's Journey
File:MegacityChristians.png | 949 - Megacity Christians
File:PostApocalypticPadre.png | 950 - Postapocalyptic Padre
File:AbandonedCity.png | 951 - Abandoned City
File:DeadIsland.png | 952 - Dead Island
File:WerewolfDaemon.png | 953 - Werewolf Daemon
File:VoicesInTheRain.png | 954 - Voices In The Rain
File:MergirlMonster.png | 955 - Mergirl Monster
File:FamiliarTroll.png | 956 - Familiar Troll
File:CyborgWakingUp.png | 957 - Cyborg Waking Up
File:KjellesGift.png | 958 - Kjelles Gift
File:TheJudicantAwakens.png | 959 - The Judicant Awakens
File:1606565595824.jpg | --->
File:HunterWW1.pdf | 960 - Hunter
File:ForeverDeathless.png | 961 - Forever Deathless
File:1606755665627.jpg | --->
File:TheBasilisk.pdf | 962 - The Basilisk
File:ElfPriestessForestDragon.png | 963 - Elf Priestess Summons A Forest Dragon
File:FlowersForAGiantRobot.png | 964 - Flowers For A Giant Robot
File:NewGuy.png | 965 - New Guy
File:RusticGetaway.png | 966 - A Rustic Getaway
File:Kingmaker.pdf | 967 - Kingmaker
File:SirIfred'sHeart.png | 968 - Sir Ifred's Heart
File:ChristmasElves.png | 969 - Christmas Elves
File:UndeadTeacher.png | 970 - Undead Teacher
File:BabylonMotherOfHarlots.png | 971 - Babylon, Mother of Harlots
File:RoadToSapphireCity.png | 972 - The Road To Sapphire City
File:Boatman.png | 973 - The Boatman
File:SwordOfPreuss.png | 974 - The Sword Of Preuss
File:Anti-SlaverPirates.png | 975 - Anti-Slaver Pirates
File:AshesAndSand.png | 976 - Ashes and Sand
File:RebelDaemon.png | 977 - Rebel Daemon
File:TheEND.png | 978 - The E.N.D.
File:LulusStudies.pdf | 979 - Lulu's Studies
File:TheGreatReunionMountainHike.pdf | 980 - The Great Reunion Mountain Hike
File:BaudelaireInHell.png | 981 - Baudelaire In Hell
File:PrincessExecution.png | 982 - Princess Execution
File:WerewolfProtector.png | 983 - Werewolf Protector
File:FolieAPlusieurs.png | 984 - Folie A Plusieurs
File:ArtAssassin.png | 985 - Art Assassin
File:ModernRomance.png | 986 - Modern Romance
File:SandAtTheEndOfTheWorld.png | 987 - Sand At The End Of The World
File:PBandJ.png | 988 - PB&J
File:WhiteBalls.png | 989 - White Balls
File:PonyRides.png | 990 - Pony Rides
File:PowerBalls.png | 991 - Power Balls
File:TreeKnight.png | 992 - Tree Knight
File:BottledKnives.png | 993 - Bottled Knives
File:Goatman'sLair.png | 994 - Goatman's Lair
File:LiveAmmunition.png | 995 - Live Ammunition
File:AbandonedDoll.png | 996 - Abandoned Doll
File:HouseByTheSea.png | 997 - House By The Sea
File:EyesOfTheTitan.png | 998 - Eyes Of The Titan
File:ExplorerOfTheOldWorld.png | 999 - Explorer Archaeologist
File:OrcGreatness.png | 1000 - Orc Greatness
File:SonnetForADarkLady.png | 1001 - Sonnet For A Dark Lady
File:TheSnowman2-JudgementDay.pdf | 1002 - The Snowman 2: Judgement Day (see also: 905)
File:CyberpunkMarket.png | 1003 - Cyberpunk Market
File:NightBombardment.png | 1004 - Night Bombardment
File:SisterOfAndraste.png | 1005 - Sister Of Andraste
File:DangerousWoman.png | 1006 - A Dangerous Woman
File:DwarfChildrensBook.png | 1007 - Dwarven Children's Book
File:DangerousEden.png | 1008 - Dangerous Eden
File:SheWolf.png | 1009 - She Wolf
File:SnowHags.png | 1010 - Snow Hags
File:LifeMachine.png | 1011 - Life Machine
File:NoMoreCaptchas.png | 1012 - No More Captchas
File:PirateTreasure.png | 1013 - Pirate Treasure
File:WitchesShoppe.png | 1014 - Witches Shoppe
File:Fishmonger.pdf | 1015 - Fishmonger
File:JustMen.png | 1016 - Just Men
File:ForTheCause.png | 1017 - For The Cause
File:FacilityCompromised.png | 1018 - Facility Compromised
File:GunmaidsInvestigateAMurder.png | 1019 - Gun-Maids Investigate A Murder
File:SpaceGarbage.png | 1020 - Space Garbage
File:BrittlesInRuins.png | 1021 - Brittles In Ruins
File:Cosmonaut'sTomb.png | 1022 - Cosmonaut's Tomb
File:OldMechpilot.png | 1023 - Old Mech Pilot
File:Pulse.png | 1024 - Pulse
File:RoadToTakshapur.png | 1025 - The Road To Takshapur
File:LittleIshen.png | 1026 - Little Ishen
File:MusicallyGifted.png | 1027 - Musically Gifted

</gallery>

A lot of pics only get a few lines written about them. Many of them are still well worth reading, but are too short to stand on their own. Instead of creating individual images for every single one, it's easier to store them in collages.

<gallery>
File:Misc.png | Miscellaneous 1 - Tsar's Army, Republic of Infinite Sky, Bone Towers, Stars
File:Misc2.1.png | Miscellaneous 2, part 1 - Seeing, New Food, Bones, Boy Knight, Corn Mother
File:Misc2.2.1.png | Miscellaneous 2, part 2 - Star Gazer, Queen of the Feathered Folk, Court of the last Tsar, Children's End, Walk the Dream
File:Misc3.png | Miscellaneous 3 - Hatching, Dimensional Neighbourhood, Bard and Thief, Final Fantasy, On the Road With A Skeleton, Riding with Death and the Devil, Unacceptable Working Conditions, Aliens Arrive, Rotten Luck, B4RRY
File:Misc4.png | Miscellaneous 4 - Battlefield Daemon, Shark Beastmen, Loyal Robot, Underwater Trap, Bot Charity, Father of Serpents, Crab Monkey, Outer Realms
File:Misc5.png | Miscellaneous 5 - Intelligence Gathering, Balancer-of-Scales, Hug, Daddy/daughter, Nylus, Hanging Trees, Space Nazis
File:Misc6.png | Miscellaneous 6 - Flying Kick!, Ornate King, THOOM, Wizard+Alcohol=Bad, The Return, Engineer
File:Misc7.png | Miscellaneous 7 - Honouring the Dead, Shadow Realm, The End, Flammenwerfer, Good Times, Flame Spitter, Drost, Uncle Rick, Dick in my Ass, Harrald
File:Misc8.png | Miscellaneous 8 - Kings Parade, White Marshals, Titanfall, Code Blue, The Shards
File:Misc9.png | Miscellaneous 9 - The General, One Man Army, Afterlife, Stealth, Scouting, Grief, Green Fields, Knight in Shining Armour
File:Misc10.png | Miscellaneous 10 - Dragon's Submission, Voyren, The Crows, Messenger of Valhall, Last Promise
File:Misc11.png | Miscellaneous 11 - Master Cheshire, Spooky Skellies, Rattle-rattle, Suicide Bomber
File:Misc12.png | Miscellaneous 12 - Napoleon's T-rex, Dwarf Hunter, Gods of War, Plastic Stares, Hotbox, Beauty
File:Misc13.png | Miscellaneous 13 - Huntergroup, Katie's Death, Metal Scorpion, Refugees, Ragnar the Barbarian
File:Misc14.png | Miscellaneous 14 - Sea Forts, Light House, Camera Pigeon, The Flood, Centaur Soldier, RoboRomance
File:Misc15.png | Miscellaneous 15 - Internal Combustion Engine, People of the Sun, Helmet vs. Giant, Curse of the Lich, Dead Gods
File:Misc16.png | Miscellaneous 16 - Function, Temple Of Heroes, Futuristic Office, Hugh Mann, Mira and her Snakes, Undead Highwayman
File:Misc17.png | Miscellaneous 17 - Sir Lyon's Daughter, Hrlorxu, Common Knights, Whale Wrestling, Rasputin
File:Misc18.png | Miscellaneous 18 - Neo-Soviets, Jundori Dance, Chromatic Snake, Emperor Vitarius, The Twisted Tree
File:Misc19.png | Miscellaneous 19 - Sacrifice, Techno Reaper, Fire Titan, Fae, Fuck Somacorp, Nova York
File:Misc20.png | Miscellaneous 20 - Guardians of the Gate, 4 Winged Bat-Dragon, Grand Basilisk, The Anvil
File:Misc21.png | Miscellaneous 21 - Gun Sheep, Bo Peep, Robo-repair, Bunny Rabbit, Homelessness, Worm Friend, Dead Reaching Out
File:Misc22.png | Miscellaneous 22 - Vanessa, Android Girl, Gods vs. Daemons, Boss Shrimp
File:Misc23.png | Miscellaneous 23 - Scout Yik, Throne of the Damned, Light Dance, Predator Death, Consume
File:Misc24.png | Miscellaneous 24 - Jur, Prince Erule, Tilras, Cyborg Churchill, Sir Valen, Johnny the Pianist, Dead Music
File:Misc25.png | Miscellaneous 25 - The Measure Of Man, Rug, Bat King, Arms Deal, Farewell
File:Misc26.png | Miscellaneous 26 - Snowy Forest, Forest Spirit, Norr, Purge, Monument, Trista
File:Misc27.png | Miscellaneous 27 - Oceans Rise, Michael's Mask, Hoplites, Virtual Space, Job Interview, Jenny The Tech
File:Misc28.png | Miscellaneous 28 - Troll Tea Party, Talking Cat, Saragael and Remiel, Trans-humans, Big Bad Wolf
File:Misc29.png | Miscellaneous 29 - Blackbird, Mercenaries of Ocorr, Boris the lazy wizard, Super-Swimmer, Rhineagle
File:Misc30.png | Miscellaneous 30 - Chompers, Beautiful Death, Cleaner, Toadgon, The Heap, Drummer, Shuttle
File:Misc31.png | Miscellaneous 31 - Rlyeh, Cyber Criminals, Six Shooter, Knight Academy, Check This Out
File:Misc32.png | Miscellaneous 32 - Psychedelic Cybotaur, Cyst, Shaggy Dog, King of the Mountain, Study Buddy, The Harlequin Of Doom
File:Misc33.png | Miscellaneous 33 - Suicide Prevention, El Diablo, Goo Girl, Rookie, Rathiel
File:Misc34.png | Miscellaneous 34 - Pumpkins, Sibling Rivalry, Fifty Bones, Goddess
File:Misc35.png | Miscellaneous 35 - Warrior Angel, Weed, Freak Hunters, Fairy, Ballpit Shark, Dead Wood Hands
File:Misc36.png | Miscellaneous 36 - Death and Cats, Fire Walkers, Dragon Hunting, Angel Of War, Knight In Gold, Crypt, Rising Waters
File:Misc37.png | Miscellaneous 37 - Fairy Lookout, The Application of Violence, Aqua Giant, Khamel, Charon, Hunting Sonofabitches
File:Misc38.png | Miscellaneous 38 - Slaanesh Patrol, Kids vs. Zombies, Sherlock, ODYSSEUS, Child Of The Heroes, Deliverance, Forest Monsters
File:Misc39.png | Miscellaneous 39 - Here Lady Severe, Armor of Giants, Day Ripper, Altan Golem, Gloab, Brotherly Love
File:Misc40.png | Miscellaneous 40 - Shut up Korvic, Jet Launch, Purifiers, The Earth And The Sky, Bad Guy, Blanket Fae
File:Misc41.png | Miscellaneous 41 - Mermaids, Airship Makers, Monstergirl Zoo, Wake Up, Musician Blues, Moe Shark, Aliens
File:Misc42.png | Miscellaneous 42 - U'Od, All Will See, Pew Pew Pew, Bear Warrior, You Can Read Him Like A Book, The Forest Of Reason, Astral Forge, Kornites
File:Misc43.png | Miscellaneous 43 - Good Intentions, Ari, The Jian
File:Misc44.png | Miscellaneous 44 - Knight Of The Forest, The Hanging Forest, Alone In Space, Wren's Revenge, Albino Boxing Girl, Withered Knight, The Birds
File:Misc45.png | Miscellaneous 45 - Go West, The Creation Of Magic, The Fight, Sacred Smackdown, Dance Mistress, Superior Beings, Loss Prevention
File:Misc46.png | Miscellaneous 46 - Fire Keeper, James' Journey, Her Majesty's Huntsman, Red Morning, Sleeping Giant, Aerwyn, Puzzle Box, Big Fat Cigar, Ant Babies
File:Misc47.png | Miscellaneous 47 - Begone Foul Creature, Messages In The Night, Hello Do You Have A Moment, A kid and a hooker, War Staves 101, Dying Emperor, Lost Magic
File:Misc48.png | Miscellaneous 48 - Pest Control, The Sea, The Wall, Solar Blood, Where Your Father Walks, Blood Speaks, Did I Ever Tell You...
File:Misc49.png | Miscellaneous 49 - Rule 21, Wolf Hunting, Challenge the Beast King, Love and Death, Red Maroon, Spider Lessons, Intelligence Gathering
File:Misc50.png | Miscellaneous 50 - Tiger Cavalry, Angry About Aliens, Rebecca and Rebecca, Father's Men, Smash Club, For Dixie, Cobalt
File:Misc51.png | Miscellaneous 51 - Bad Nun, Identity Crisis, Stained Glass, Martian Rebellion, Virtual Reality, City Of Oak, Pretty Zombie, Sasha and the Hellspawn
File:Misc52.png | Miscellaneous 52 - Zaka: Sand Lord of the Cosmos, Demon of the Deeps, The Great Scrap Fleet, Signal Lost, Buried Sins
File:Misc53.png | Miscellaneous 53 - Suffering For Art, Corny Man, Fairy Gun, Musn't Wake the Baby, Feed Me, A Quick Death, Lord Of Mercy
File:Misc54.png | Miscellaneous 54 - The Staffwoman, An Angel Appears, The Tower of Tradition, Random Encounter, Annoying Fairy, Fratricide, The Market
File:Misc55.png | Miscellaneous 55 - Bother, The Twins From Nowhere, Mount and Blade, Panem the Fabulous, Trevor And The Woman, Last One Out, Gold Smuggling, Welcome to the Institute
File:Misc56.png | Miscellaneous 56 - Tentacles, D&D Rugby, End It, Treasure Dragon, The Replacement, Shakespearean Monkey
File:Misc57.png | Miscellaneous 57 - Stargazer, Tribal Elves, Deus Vult, A Little Haunted, The Deliverer, Red And Dead Wolf Head
File:Misc58.png | Miscellaneous 58 - In Shining Armour, Fully Equipped, Fireborn, Refugee, Communicating With Shadows, Bao The Ventriloquist
File:Misc59.png | Miscellaneous 59 - Gargantuans, Meeting the NPCs, Camera Crusade, Ugly Fairies, First Kiss, Gas Mask
File:Misc60.png | Miscellaneous 60 - Temple Sacrifice, Your Guide To The Wasteland: Dwarves, Undead Bar, Giant Woman Lover, Cat Vigilante, An Easy Choice, Iron Cavalry
File:Misc61.png | Miscellaneous 61 - Witch Burning, Golden Herald, Red Or Blue, Skeleton Soldier, GCC Shutdown, Johny Witch
File:Misc62.png | Miscellaneous 62 - VR porn, Shipping Out, Bloop, Divine Mission, The Fluffy Red Line
File:Misc63.png | Miscellaneous 63 - Apocalypse Returns, Mind Melting, Queen of Eagles, Vigilante Biker, Bear Hunter
File:Misc64.png | Miscellaneous 64 - Sea Gods, Flame Bargain, Coding, Starbucks, Chaos Spirits
File:Misc65.png | Miscellaneous 65 - Sleep Paralysis, Troc Knows Many Things, Daemon Cave, Reminder/Helpful Titan
File:Vignettes.png | Vignettes
File:ThreeStoriesAboutMonsterKids.png | Three Short Stories About Monster Kids
File:ThreeShortPoems.png | Three Short Poems
File:DempseyCollection.png | A Collection From The Author Known As Dempsey
</gallery>

Some stories fit into more traditionally /tg/ themes:

Warhammer related:
<gallery>
File:TheBoltPistol.png | 1 - The Bolt Pistol
File:InspektorkGadjit.png | 2 - Inspektork Gadjit
File:Gundam-hammer.png | 3 - Sergeant Ronah of the Knights of Zeon
File:ShiningFinger.png | 4 - Shining Finger
File:BlackLocks.png | 5 - Black Locks
File:CompletelyNormalServoSkull.png | 6 - Completely Normal Servo Skull
File:WitchForest.png | 7 - The Witch Forest
File:EldarSoulStone.png | 8 - Eldar Soul Stone
File:TheTrader.png | 9 - The Trader
File:Warhammer43k.png | 10 - Warhammer 43k
File:Warhammer43k-Vulkan.png | 11 - Warhammer 43k, Vulkan
File:Warhammer43k-TheDeathOfArisiel.png | 12 - The Death of Arisiel
File:Warhammer43k-Corax.png | 13 - Corax
File:Warhammer43k-BattleForRustagrim.png | 14 -
File:Warhammer43k-LemanRuss.png | 15 -
File:Warhammer43k-LiveDieRepeat.png | 16 -
File:Warhammer43k-FallenAngel.png | 17 -
File:Warhammer43k-DamoclesCordon.png | 18 -
File:Warhammer43k-Magnus.png | 19 -
File:AssaultOnLesserHadryion.png | 20 -
File:M43 - Fulgrim'sPennance.png | 21 -
File:M43 - VictoryOnLesserHadryion.png | 22 -
File:M43 - TheFinalDeception.png | 23 -
File:M43-GuillimanAwakens-DebriefingOfTolmEsh.png | 24 -
File:M43-CouncilAtTembor.png | 25 -
File:M43-TheHunt.png | 26 -
File:M43-PurifyingFire,UnyieldingSteel.png | 27 -
File:VoidFalcons.png | 28 - Void Falcons
File:CommissarImperial.png | 29 - Commissar Imperial (to the tune of Gilbert and Sullivan's 'Major General's song')
File:Lupea.png | 30 - For The Blood God
File:NathalaToAnnaleth.png | 31 - Nathala to Annaleth
File:ThunderousKraken.png | 32 - Thunderous Kraken
File:MenOfThe89th-Chapter6.png | 33 - Men of the 89th
File:Bugeyez.png | 34 - Bugeyez
File:HeWoke.png | 35 - He Woke
File:The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Bjorn's Holiday.png | 36 - The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Bjorn's Holiday
File:The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - The Eldar.png | 37 - The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - The Eldar
File:The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Home.png | 38 - The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Home
File:The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Once Every Year.png | 39 - The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Once Every Year
File:The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Big Red Man.png | 40 - The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium - Big Red Man
File:30kChristmas.png | 41 - A 30k Christmas song
File:LetterToSanguinius.png | 42 - Letter to Sanguinius
File:A Visit From Logan Grimnar.png | 43 - A Visit From Logan Grimnar
File:PenalLegion.png | 44 - Penal Legion
File:KaptainGold-Teef.png | 45 - Kaptin Gold-Teef
File:Jailbreak.png | 46 - Jailbreak
File:Jailbreak-part2.png | 47 - Jailbreak (cont.)
File:TheEmperorProtects.png | 48 - Sanctioned Psyker
File:TheEmpyrean.png | 49 - The Empyrean
File:WarhammerIndAmbassadors-part1.png | 50 - Ambassadors of Ind, part 1
File:WarhammerIndAmbassadors-part2.png | 51 - Ambassadors of Ind, part 2
File:DaemonWorld.png | 54 - Daemon World
File:ImperialNavy.png | 53 - Imperial Navy
File:HumansAmongTheEldar-part1.png | 54 - Humans among the Eldar, part 1
File:HumansAmongTheEldar-part2.png | 55 - Humans among the Eldar, part 1
File:EldarSister.png | 56 - Eldar Sororitas
File:AngronEldar.png | 57 - Angron and the Eldar
File:SendingAMessage.png | 58 - Sending a Message
File:Nopteth.png | 59 - Sole Survivor
File:Warhammer-WarcraftCrossover, part 1.png | 60 - Warhammer/Warcraft crossover, part 1
File:Warhammer-WarcraftCrossover, part 2.png | 61 - Warhammer/Warcraft crossover, part 2
File:Warhammer-WarcraftCrossover, part 3.png | 62 - Warhammer/Warcraft crossover, part 3
File:J-deck.png | 63 - J-Deck
File:SoundOfChaos.png | 64 - The Sound Of Chaos
File:ReplyOfTheVostroyanHussars.png | 65 - Reply Of The Vostroyan Hussars
File:EldarExarch.png | 66 - Eldar Exarch
File:BattleFleetGothic.png | 67 - Battlefleet Gothic
File:TheLastYear.png | 68 - The Last Year
File:PainAndSilence.png | 69 - She Is Pain And Silence
File:Her Smile.png | 70- Her_Smile
File:AngelsOfDeath.png | 71 - Angels of Death
File:FarseerAndBoy.png | 72 - To Catch a Predator: Eldar /ss/
File:LastStand.png | 73 - Last Stand
File:BattleOFQuenelles.png | 74 - The Battle of Quenelles: Prelude
File:EldarAndBoy.png | 75 - Farseer foster child
File:ScrapCollector.png | 76 Scrap Collector
File:ToCatchAPredatorSororitas.png | 77 - To Catch a Predator: Sororitas /ss/
File:EldarHunt.png | 78 - Eldar Hunt
File:GuardsmanMeetsEldar.png | 79 - Guardsman meets Eldar
File:40kJointOps-Chapter1.png | 80 - Joint Ops: Chapter 1
File:40kJointOps-Chapter2.png | 81 - Joint Ops: Chapter 2
File:MarinesMalevolentAdMech.png | 82 - Marines Malevolent
File:HardCandy.png | 83 - Hard Candy
File:SkavenAssassin1.png | 84 - Skaven Assassin - part 1
File:SkavenAssassin2.png | 85 - Skaven Assassin - part 2
File:SkavenAssassin3.png | 86 - Skaven Assassin - part 3
File:Foresight.png | 87 - Foresight
File:MotherMagos.png | 88 - Mother Magos
File:TwoMenAndAnAlien.png | 89 - Two men and an alien walk into a bar...
File:EldarAndTheImperialGuard.png | 90 - Eldar and the Imperial Guard
File:AGuardsmansDeath.png | 91 - A Guardsman's Death
File:AmbassadorToTheEldar.png | 92 - Ambassador to the Eldar
File:ThePacificationOfEstin.png | 93 - The Pacification of Estin
File:DealMeIn.png | 94 - Deal Me In
File:WarhammerHigh.png | 95 - Warhammer High
File:HouseMannerheim.png | 96 - House Mannerheim
File:BornOfChaos.png | 97 - Born of Chaos (The Cormyr Archives Prologue)
File:RedHarvest.png | 98 - The Cormyr Archives - Chapter 1
File:WhipsOilAndOrks.png | 99 - Whips, oil and Orks
File:TheCormyrArchives-Chapter2.png | 100 - The Cormyr Archives - Chapter 2, Part 1
File:TitanAwakening.png | 101 - Titan Awakening
File:TheGreatDevourer.png | 102 - The Great Devourer
File:AltdorfArtillery.png | 103 - Altdorf Artillery
File:PrideOfTheImperialGuard.png | 104 - Pride of the Imperial Guard
File:Leman Russ Roadtrip.png | 105 - Leman Russ Roadtrip
File:AboardTheLadySovereign.png | 106 - The Cormyr Archives - Chapter 2, Part 2
File:WhyTaldeerHatedRomanceNovels.png | 107 - Why Taldeer Hated Romance Novels
File:MagnusMakesAHoliday.png | 108 - The Holiday Season in the 41st Millennium: Magnus Makes A Holiday
File:InquisitionIsComingToTown.png | 109 - The Inquisition Is Coming To Town
File:Beginnings.png | 110 - Beginnings
File:JudgementOfTheInquisition.png | 111 - Judgement of the Inquisition
File:ToCatchAPredatorTau.png | 112 - To Catch A Predator: Tau
File:CormyrArchivesChapter2Part3.png | 113 - The Cormyr Archives - Chapter 2, Part 3
File:FriendshipIsHeretical.png | 114 - Friendship Is Heretical
File:TheManIKilled.png | 115 - The Man I Killed
File:ImperialGuardSargeant.png | 116 - Imperial Guard Sergeant
File:TheLongCon.png | 117 - The Long Con
File:DankHeresy.png | 118 - Dank Heresy
File:DankHeresy2.png | 119 - Dank Heresy, part deux
File:Deathwatch.png | 120 - Deathwatch
File:WarhammerSetting.png | 121 - Races of the Old World
File:MutantAcolyte.png | 122 - Mutant Acolyte
File:UnlikelyHero.png | 123 - An Unlikely Hero (of an alternate End Times)
File:Warhammer-GoT-Crossover.png | 124 - Warhammer meets Game of Thrones
File:WarhammerNavalBattle.png | 125 - Warhammer Naval Battle
File:PowerGlove.png | 126 - Power Glove
File:EldarScorpionAndChild.png | 127 - Eldar Scorpion and Child
File:EldarScorpionAndChild-2.png | 128 - Eldar Scorpion and Child part 2 [[https://1d4chan.org/images/9/97/EldarScorpionAndChild-2.png]]
File:ASon'sWish.png | 129 - Warhammer Christmas, A Son's Wish
File:RidericAndFann.png | 130 - Eldar Scorpion and Child part 3
File:Warpstone.png | 131 - Warpstone Hunt
File:Ahriman-Despair.png | 132 - Ahriman: Despair
File:WarhammerHighschool.png | 133 - Warhammer High
File:RidericAndFannContinued.png | 134 - Eldar Scorpion and Child part 4
File:RidericAndFannContinued2.png | 135 - Eldar Scorpion and Child part 5
File:Numera'sShame.png | 136 - Numera's Shame
File:RidericAndFannContinued3.png | 137 - Eldar Scorpion and Child part 6
File:PrizeOfSlaanesh.png | 138 - Prize of Slaanesh
File:RidericAndFannContinued4.png | 139 - Eldar Scorpion and Child part 7
File:ChaosChild.png | 140 - Chaos Child
File:ChildSoldiers.png | 141 - Child Soldiers
File:LemanRussInCombat.png | 142 - Leman Russ Combat
File:EmperorsMercy.png | 143 - Emperor's Mercy
File:GoodReiksgrafVaclav.png | 144 - Good Reiksgraf Vaclav [[https://1d4chan.org/images/d/de/GoodReiksgrafVaclav.png]]
File:WarbossMozgull.png | 145 - Warboss Mozgull
File:EmperorsAngels.png | 146 - Emperor's Angels
File:Angron'sNails.png | 147 - Angron's Nails
File:FemaleCommissar.png | 148 - Female Commissar
File:BrotherChaplainsSermon.png | 149 - Brother Chaplain's Sermon
File:Inspection.png | 150 - Inspection
File:SpaceHulkDiary.png | 151 - Diary Found In A Space Hulk
File:OswynAndSelene.png | 152 - Oswyn and Selene
File:Valkyria-WarhammerCrossover.png | 153 - Valkyria - Warhammer Crossover [[https://1d4chan.org/images/9/92/Valkyria-WarhammerCrossover.png]]
File:Xenobane.png | 154 - Xenobane
File:ReturnOfXenobane.png | 155 - The Return Of Xenobane
File:TerrorOfXenobane.png | 156 - Terror Of Xenobane
File:FuryOfXenobane.png | 157 - Fury Of Xenobane
File:RevengeOfXenobane.png | 158 - Revenge Of Xenobane
File:ReturnToGrace.png | 159 - Return To Grace [[https://1d4chan.org/images/0/02/ReturnToGrace.png]]
File:TheOne-EyedKings.png | 160 - The One-Eyed Kings
File:WarhammerHippos.png | 161 - Hippo Gods
File:SpaceHulkDataConstruct.png| 162 - Space Hulk Data Construct
File:DiseaseInquisitor.png | 163 - Disease Inquisitor
File:Beastlord.png | 164 - Beastlord
File:NightLords.png | 165 - Nightlords
File:WoodAndIron.png | 166 - Wood and Iron
File:BlackShip.png | 167 - The Black Ship
File:KriegersCreed.png | 168 - Krieger's Creed

</gallery>

Star Wars related:
<gallery>
File:BountyHunter.png | 1 - Bounty Hunter
File:Hoth.png | 2 - Hoth
File:MordaaniBladeOfAlderaan.png | 3 - Mordaani Blade of Alderaan
File:EmpireVeteransSociety.png | 4 - Empire Veterans Society
File:StarWarsRoleplay.png | 5 - A Star Wars Roleplay Story
</gallery>

Battletech/Mechwarrior related:
<gallery>
File:ClanInvasion1.png | 1 - Clan Invasion (part 1)
File:ClanInvasion2.png | 2 - Clan Invasion (part 2)
</gallery>

SCP series related:
<gallery>
File:SCPSiteJComplaint.png | 1 - Site J Complaint Letter
</gallery>

World of Warcraft related:
<gallery>
File:Darkshore.png | 1 - Darkshore
</gallery>

Miscellaneous Established IPs
<gallery>
File:Simpsons.png | 1 - Bart's Future (Simpsons)
</gallery>

Crossovers:
<gallery>
File:XenosStation.png | 1 - Warhammer 40k/Metroid
</gallery>

== Other Story Formats ==

Not every Storythread has the Post A Picture Write A Story format. Some try to innovate, experimenting with presenting their work in new ways, like this set

<gallery>
File:ValkyrNights1.png | Valkyr Nights
File:ValkyrNights2.png
File:ValkyrNights3.png
File:ValkyrNights4.png
File:ValkyrNights5.png
File:ValkyrNights6.png
</gallery>

Most are in the traditional form: simple text. A few run a series are on a single theme, while others have no theme at all and are simply stories.
First, the miscellaneous:

<gallery>
File:ThePrisoner'sDilemma.png | 1 - The Prisoner's Dilemma
File:NanoTechBarbarian.png | 2 - The Nano-Tech Barbarian
File:ListeningPost.png | 3 - The Listening Post
File:Martel'sParents.png | 4 - Martel's Parents
File:RealSovietDamage.png | 5 - Real Soviet Damage
File:AlriaOrion.png | 6 - Alria and Orion
File:FairyTale.png | 7 - Fairy Tale
File:Repeat.png | 8 - Repeat
File:GodsbladeInitiate.png | 9 - Godsblade Initiate
File:Emily....png | 10 - Emily...
File:PainOnAChain.png | 11 - Pain On A Chain
File:WilsomEstate.png | 12 - The Wilsom Estate
File:ABargain.png | 13 - A Bargain
File:Mel.png | 14 - Mel
File:DwarfFortress.png | 15 - Dwarf Fortress
File:TheSeamstress'Song.png | 16 - The Seamstress's Song
File:GodsOfTheFirar.png | 17 - Gods of the Firar
File:ArmyAdvice.png | 18 - Army Advice
File:TribalChallenge.png | 19 - Tribal Challenge
File:TrinityStation.png | 20 - Trinity Station
File:LaughterOfTheMadGoddess.png | 21 - Laughter of the Mad Goddess (see also: no. 13, 'A Bargain')
File:ForEarth.png | 22 - For Earth
File:BrokenSparrow.png | 23 - Broken Sparrow
File:Brains.png | 24 - Brains
File:Dreamscape-part1.png | 25 - Dreamscape, part 1
File:Dreamscape-part2.png | 26 - Dreamscape, part 2
File:TheContract.png | 27 - The Contract
File:SerfOtho.png | 28 - Serf Otho
File:DifferenceOfOpinion.png | 29 - A Difference of Opinion
File:DaemonHuntersOfMars.png | 30 - Daemon Hunters of Mars
File:ProjectGrandlance-TheRiseAndFallOfATyrant.png | 31 - Project Grandlance: The Rise And Fall Of A Tyrant
File:YouMeetInATavern....png | 32 - You meet in a tavern...
File:TheTorturer'sTale.png | 33 - The Torturer's Tale
File:GolemHitman.png | 34 - Golem Hitman
File:TheHeavensAreCalling.png | 35 - The Heavens Are Calling
File:Formori.pdf | 36 - Formori
File:TwoHorrorFragments.png | 37 - [two horror fragments]
File:TheApocalypseInTheSand-DayOfInfamy.png | 38 - The Apocalypse In The Sand + Day Of Infamy
File:UniversalCentury.png | 39 - Universal Century
File:AMatch.png | 40 - A Match
File:Arch-Druid.png | 41 - Arch-Druid
File:JournalOfRainaHarriet.png | 42 - Journal of Raina Harriet (see also: no. 481)
File:TheFew.png | 43 - The Few
File:NGConfidential.png | 44 - N.G. Confidential
File:ScalesOfDevastation.png | 45 - Scales of Devastation
File:SerialKiller.png | 46 - Serial Killer
File:HuntingTheBeithir-Aiche.png | 47 - Hunting the Beithir-Aiche
File:Shadow'sManor.png | 48 - Shadow's Manor
File:AttackOnMagellan-II.png | 49 - Attack on Magellan II
File:TheBookOfTheThirdEye.png | 50 - The Book Of The Third Eye
File:CityAflame.png | 51 - The City Aflame
File:MalfunctioningAI.png | 52 - Malfunctioning AI
File:IceHunt.png | 53 - Ice Hunt
File:Sacrifices.png | 54 - Sacrifices
File:PathOfFlowers.png | 55 - Path Of Flowers [[https://1d4chan.org/images/5/53/PathOfFlowers.png]]
File:DwarfSong.png | 56 - Dwarf Song
File:DaemonicInvasion.png | 57 - Daemonic Invasion
File:TheGiftOfFire.png | 58 - The Gift Of Fire
File:Sunless.png | 59 - Sunless
File:MechanizedPilot.png | 60 - Mechanised Pilot
File:KnightRessurector.png | 61 - Knight Resurrector
File:JobOffer.png | 62 - Job Offer
File:Birth.png | 63 - Birth
File:TheWebbe.png | 64 - The Webbe
File:HothouseV2.png | 65 - Hothouse
File:Drow City.png | 66 - Drow City
File:Aussie Rules.png | 67 - Aussie Rules
File:HonourDuel.png | 68 - Honour Duel
File:Hunter'sSign.png | 69 - Hunter's Sign
File:12Daemons.png | 70 - 12 Daemons
File:Aqueduct.png | 71 - Aqueduct
File:DoctorVisits.png | 72 - Doctor Visits
File:DungeonCrawl.png | 73 - Dungeon Crawl
File:SpiritOfTruth.png | 74 - Spirit of Truth
File:Dreamwalkers.png | 75 - Dreamwalkers
File:HuntingHuntTheRage.png | 76 - Hunting Hunt-The-Rage
File:FinalEscape.png | 77 - Final Escape
File:ASoreLoser.png | 78 - A Sore Loser
File:Ironclad.png | 79 - Ironclad
File:BarStoriesForAdventurers.png | 80 - Journal Entry One - Bar Stories for Adventurers
File:EndlessImmortality.png | 81 - Endless Immortality
File:JournalEntryTwo-HalflingBandits.png | 82 - Journal Entry Two - Encounter With Halfling Bandits (see also: 80)
File:UnhappyChildhood.png | 83 - Unhappy Childhood
File:ThiefPair.png | 84 - Thief Pair
File:ShamanDreams.png | 85 - Shaman Dreams
File:TheLifeOfAttsi.png | 86 - The Life Of Attsi
File:TheLifeOfAttsi.png | 87 - The Life Of Attsi
File:JournalEntryThree.png | 88 - Journal Entry Three - The Bathhouse (see also: 80, 82)
File:StarCrossedLovers.png | 89 - Star Crossed Lovers
File:Anti-DrowCrusade.png | 90 - Anti-Drow Crusade
File:CabinInTheWinterWoods.png | 91 - Cabin In The Winter Woods
File:JournalEntryFour-DwarvenDrinkingStories.png | 92 - Journal Entry Four - Dwarven Drinking Stories (see also: 80, 82, 84)
File:TheTerrorOfSeaviewHouse.png | 93 - The Terror Of Seaview House
File:ComingOfAge.png | 94 - Coming Of Age
File:ReturnOfAlveredo.png | 95 - The Return of Alvaredo
File:Trollville.png | 96 - Trollville
File:EverybodyNeedsFriends.png | 97 - Everybody Needs Friends
File:NoGoodDeed.png | 98 - No Good Deed
File:ReturnOfAlveredo-extended.png | 99 - The Return of Alvaredo (extended version) [[https://1d4chan.org/images/f/f9/ReturnOfAlveredo-extended.png]]
File:ExaltedStory-Noz'sRage.png | 100 - Noz's Rage (an Exalted story)
File:ExaltedBackstory.png | 101 - Noz's Backstory (an Exalted story, see also 100)
File:Bags'Journal.png | 102 - Bags' Journal
File:CrabAndDragon-LegendOfThe5Rings.png | 103 - The Crab And The Dragon
File:CreationMyth.png | 104 - Creation Myth
File:AngusMcWurf'sWednesdayOfDoom.png | 105 - Angus McWurf's Wednesday Of Doom
File:PrincessAndDrow.png | 106 - The Princess and the Drow Queen
File:MadeInAbyss.png | 107 - Made In Abyss
File:LawngnomeShop.png | 108 - Lawngnome Shop
File:Remas.png | 109 - Remas
File:ChayimsHistories.png | 110 - Chayim's Histories
File:SyntheticFlowers.png | 111 - Synthetic Flowers
File:ElvenDarkwood.png | 112 - Elven Darkwood
File:GodOfTheGate.png | 113 - God Of The Gate
File:LastTrainToRavenna.png | 114 - The Last Train To Ravenna
File:AsguardCreationMyth.png | 115 - Asguard Creation Myth
File:StudentsOfMagic.png | 116 - Students of Magic
File:LuminousCave.png | 117 - Luminous Cave
File:WilliamCatch-Assassin.png | 118 - William Catch: Assassin
File:ExcerptsFromAHumanJournal.png | 119 - Excerpts From A Human Journal
File:HumanAlienDiplomacy.png | 120 - Human-Alien Diplomacy
File:OrcCampAttack.png | 121 - Orc Camp Attack
File:StreetJustice.png | 122 - The Falcon and the Dove
File:Sakai'sWorld.png | 123 - Sakai's World
File:WarReport.png | 124 - War Report
File:StudiesOfMagic.png | 125 - Studies of Magic
File:TelekineticTalent.png | 126 - Telekinetic Talent
File:BadNews.png | 127 - Bad News
File:PrimitiveEntertainment.png | 128 - Primitive Entertainment
File:FootballFail.png | 129 - Football Fail
File:DeathScene.png | 130 - Death Scene
File:VampireTheMasqueradeFanfic.png | 131 - Vampire The Masquerade
File:NewbornGods.png | 132 - Newborn Gods
File:ValminElsingElfScholar.png | 133 - Valmin Elsing, Elf Scholar
File:BloodLaw.png | 134 - Blood Law
https://1d4chan.org/wiki/File:HillPeople-v2.pdf | 135 - The Hill People [[https://1d4chan.org/wiki/File:HillPeople-v2.pdf]]
File:TheMountain.pdf | 136 - The Mountain [[https://1d4chan.org/images/1/16/TheMountain.pdf]]
File:PhilosophersStone.png | 137 - Philosopher's Stone (see also: 134)
File:HighschoolMage.png | 138 - Highschool Mage (see also: 134, 137)
File:Tested.png | 139 - Tested
File:GronkInOz.png | 140 - Gronk in Oz
File:SkirmishAtSmoletsya.png | 141 - Skirmish at Smoletsya
File:AdriftInSpace.png | 142 - Adrift in Space
File:DiscourseOnMagicalLaw.png | 143 - Discourse On Magical Ethics (see also: 134, 137, 138)
File:SkullFacedFae.png | 144 - Skull-Faced Fae
File:GarridoSonOfGarrido.png | 145 - Garrido, son of Garrido (chapter 1)
File:GarridoSonOfGarrido-part2.png | 146 - Garrido, son of Garrido (chapter 2)
File:Breakers.png | 147 - Breakers (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143)
File:CivilisedGoblin.png | 148 - Civilised Goblin
File:GarridoSonOfGarrido-part3.png | 149 - Garrido, son of Garrido (chapter 3)
File:BattleScars.png | 150 - Battle Scars
File:EverlastingRiches.png | 151 - Everlasting Riches
File:Skyfire.png | 152 - Skyfire
File:GhostTale.png | 153 - Ghost Tale [[https://1d4chan.org/images/b/b1/GhostTale.png]]
File:TheModernPrometheus.png | 154 - The Modern Prometheus
File:WendigoHunt.png | 155 - Wendigo
File:RitualsOfDeathAndLife.png | 156 - Rituals of Death and Life
File:AlienWorld.png | 157 - Alien World
File:OFortuna.png | 158 - O Fortuna
File:Anklebiters.png | 159 - Anklebiters
File:ScornedWitch.png | 160 - Scorned Witch
File:MagicalMurder.png | 161 - Magical Murder
File:TransgenderCinderella.png | 162 - Transgender Cinderella
File:TalesOfGy'yhre.png | 163 - Tales of Gy'yhre
File:TrollhuntersApprentice.png | 164 - Troll Hunter's Apprentice
File:Helvita'sRun.pdf | 165 - Helvita's Run
File:Diabolists.png | 166 - The Diabolists (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147)
File:DonRonaldMcDonald.png | 167 - Don Ronald McDonald
File:Outcast.png | 168 - The Outcast (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166)
File:PromQueenGhostStory.png | 169 - Prom Queen Ghost Story
File:GarridoSonOfGarrido-part4.png | 170 - Garrido, son of Garrido (chapter 4)
File:AngusMcWurfSellsHisSoul.png | 171 - Angus McWurf Sells His Soul
File:AngelicRest.png | 172 - Angelic Rest
File:MoreDiabolists.png | 173 - More Diabolists (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168)
File:OneDayADuke.png | 174 - One Day A Duke
File:Akademy.png | 175 - Akademy (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168, 173)
File:TheFalcon.png | 176 - The Falcon
File:OldFriends.png | 177 - Old Friends
File:DarkInvitation.png | 178 - Dark Invitation (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168, 173, 175)
File:MemoryLoss.png | 179 - Memory Loss
File:UndeadTown.png | 180 - Undead Town
File:MelodysLaw.png | 181 - Melody's Law (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168, 173, 175, 178)
File:BreakersMakeNoSense.png | 182 - Breakers Make No Sense (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168, 173, 175, 178, 181)
File:TemplarBaseFalls.png | 183 - Templar Base Falls (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168, 173, 175, 178, 181, 182)
File:TheNewCouple.png | 184 - The New Couple (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168, 173, 175, 178, 181, 182, 183)
File:Aftermath.png | 185 - Aftermath (see also: 134, 137, 138, 143, 147, 166, 168, 173, 175, 178, 181, 182, 183, 184)
File:StewOfLostYouthAndLongpig.png | 186 - Stew of Lost Youth and Long Pig
File:TheHunterAndTheCorpse.png | 187 - The Hunter and the Corpse
File:TooLate.png | 188 - Too Late (see also: 184, 183, 182, etc, etc)
File:DemonicTreachery.png | 189 - Demonic Treachery
File:SantaClausIsDead.png | 190 - Santa Claus Is Dead (see also: 188, 184, 183, etc, etc)
File:NotYourProblem.png | 191 - Not Your Problem (see also: 190, 188, 184, etc, etc)
File:ForgingOfPeacebreaker.png | 192 - The Forging of Peacebreaker
File:HowlingDeathOfGrimnirTheWise.png | 193 - The Howling Death Of Grimnir the Wise
File:BreakersOrigin.png | 194 - The Breakers (see also: 192, 190, 188, etc, etc)
File:AngelOfDeath.png | 195 - Angel of Death
File:MementoMori.png | 196 - Momento Mori (see also: 195, 192, 190, etc, etc)
File:CommonwealthLaw.png | 197 - Commonwealth Law
File:PrinciplesVsPrincipal.png | 198 - Principle vs. Principal (see also: 198, 195, 192, etc, etc)
File:RecruitingAMonster.png | 199 - Recruiting A Monster
File:GoodMaidBadMistress.png | 200 - The Maid and Her Mistress
File:Rosebush.png | 201 - Rosebush
File:DragonHoard.png | 202 - Dragon Hoard [[https://1d4chan.org/images/7/7c/DragonHoard.png]]
File:InformalGods.png | 203 - Informal Gods
File:WWJD.png | 204 - WWJD (see also: 200, 198, 195, etc, etc)
File:Downtime.png | 205 - Downtime (see also: 206, 200, 198, etc, etc)
File:SpaceWarfare.png | 206 - Space Warfare
File:BanditCyborg.png | 207 - Bandit Cyborg
File:Archivist.png | 208 - The Archivist
File:WeighingCosts.png | 209 - Weighing Costs (see also: 207, 206, 200, etc, etc)
File:BrainWormsAndOtherDelicacies.png | 210 - Brain Worms and Other Delicacies
File:GuidebookI.png | 211 - Guidebook I (see also: 212, 207, 206, etc, etc)
File:TheHorrorOfTheLight.png | 212 - The Horror Of The Light (see also: 215, 212, 207, etc, etc)
File:SnakeAnecdote.png | 213 - An Anecdote About Snakes
File:AHartstaccsCrush.png | 214 - A Hartstacc's Crush
File:$64000Question.png | 215 - The $64,000 Question (see also: 216, 215, 212, etc, etc)
File:ThePriceWePay.png | 216 - The Price We Pay (see also: 219, 216, 215, etc, etc)
File:Greenhouse.png | 217 - Greenhouse
File:HowAstridBecameAKnight.png | 218 - How Astrid Became a Knight
File:SevenTimesASurvivor.png | 219 - Seven Times a Survivor
File:AnyGivenDay.png | 220 - Any Given Day (see also: 220, 219, 216, etc, etc)
File:HuntingATalkingCow.png | 221 - Hunting A Talking Cow
File:AnyGivenDay-Part2.png | 222 - Any Given Day part 2 (see also: 224, 220, 219, etc, etc)
File:HeadlessWarrior.png | 223 - Headless Warrior
File:TailOfFelixLeChat.pdf | 224 - The Tail of Felix Le Chat
File:Strangelands.png | 225 - Strange Lands
File:GnollTravellers.png | 226 - Gnoll Travellers
File:AcrossTheSea-SpineBound.png | 227 - Across the Sea: The Spinebound
File:YouCantBeSerious.png | 228 - You Can't Be Serious
File:AcrossTheSea-DisasterOfTheAlabaster.png | 229 - Across the Sea: The Disaster of the Alabaster (see also 232)
File:AcrossTheSea-Husk.png | 230 - Across the Sea: The Husk (see also 234, 232)
File:AcrossTheSea-LivingShip.png | 231 - Across the Sea: Living Ship (see also 235, 234, 232)
File:IagoAndTheCircus.png | 232 - Iago and the Circus
File:LifeOfAThief.png | 233 - Life of a Thief
File:DreamsOfApocalypse.png | 234 - Dreams of Apocalypse
File:AnyGivenDay-Part3.png | 235 - Any Given Day part 3 (see also: 226, 224, 220, etc, etc)
File:TheDevilHisself.png | 236 - The Devil Hisself
File:Miscalculation.png | 237 - Miscalculation (see also: 243, 226, 224, etc, etc)
File:Tatterdemalion.png | 238 - Tatterdemalion
File:TestingTheRKUnitTrial8.png | 239 - Testing the RK Unit Trial 8
File:Gifts.png | 240 - Gifts
File:AVampireAWerewolfAndAWarlock.png | 241 - A Vampire, A Werewolf And A Warlock Walk Into A Bar
File:OfBerenAndLuthien.png | 242 - Of Beren And Luthien
File:TheEyesBeneath.png | 243 - The Eyes Beneath
File:DragonSkies.png | 244 - Dragon Skies
File:WarehouseRitual.png | 245 - Warehouse Ritual
File:BloodIsPower.png | 246 - Blood Is Power
File:BlackMage.png | 247 - Black Mage (by the same author, but not in the same series as 245, 243, 226, etc, etc)
File:Catatonia.png | 248 - Catatonia
File:EmancipatedDuel.png | 249 - Emancipated Duel
File:ArmiesOfTheDead.png | 250 - Armies of the Dead
File:AngelsWelcomeHere.png | 251 - Angels Welcome Here (see also: 245, 243, 226, etc, etc)
File:WhereTheSunDon'tShine.png | 252 - Where The Sun Don't Shine (by the same author, but not in the same series as 245, 243, 226, etc, etc)
File:AlvarosNightmare.png | 253 - Alvaro's Nightmare
File:Malifaux.png | 254 - A Malifaux Story
File:ExtendedShitpost.png | 255 - An Extended Shitpost
File:BelasGoblinStory.png | 256 - Bela's Goblin Story
File:TheWallsAreHungry.png | 257 - The Walls Are Hungry (by the same author, but not in the same series as 245, 243, 226, etc, etc)
File:SantiagoAndLem.png | 258 - Santiago And Lem
File:DarkestDay.png | 259 - Darkest Day
File:HollywoodWerewolves.png | 260 - Hollywood Werewolves
File:Heir.png | 275 - Heir (see also: 263, 245, 243, etc, etc)
File:TheDyingArtOfUndeath.png | 276 - The Dying Art of Undeath (see also: 275, 263, 245, etc, etc)
File:ABriefTruthOfNecromancy.png | 277 - A Brief Truth Of Necromancy (not by the same author, but a follow on from 276)
File:BasicsOfMagic.png | 278 - Basics Of Magic
File:SailingIntoTheWarpingSea.png | 279 - Sailing into the Warping Sea
File:The Seekers.png | 280 - The Seekers (see also: 276, 275, 263, etc, etc)
File:InvestigatingFrontierBattles.png | 281 - Investigating Frontier Battles
File:NerdFuneral.png | 282 - Nerd Funeral
File:RestStop.png | 283 - Rest Stop (see also: 270, and for more by the same author 275, 263, 245, etc, etc )
File:Sanctuary.png| 284 - Sanctuary (see also: 280, 276, 275, etc, etc)
File:AlvarosMaster.png | 285 - Alvaro's Master
File:Meat.png | 286 - Meat
File:AngelicWitchHunter.png | 288 - Angelic Witch Hunter
File:BittersweetHope.png | 289 - Bittersweet Hope
File:DutyIsItsOwnReward.png | 290 - Duty Is It's Own Reward (see also: 284, 280, 276, etc, etc)
File:Scrying.png | 291 - Scrying
File:RIFTS-poem.png | 292 - Vibroknife: A RIFTS poem
File:TalkingOwl.png | 293 - Talking Owl
File:MillionTonGravelSale.png | 294 - A Million Tons Of Gravel
File:TheCrueltyOfVaresa.png | 295 - The Cruelty Of Varesa
File:CyberpunkMogadishu.png | 296 - Cyberpunk Mogadishu
File:KillTeam.png | 297 - Kill Team
File:Kindling.png | 298 - Kindling
File:WindAndBrine.png | 299 - Wind And Brine
File:WinterDisappearance.png | 300 - Female Santa Claus
File:K'halInTheArena.png | 301 - K'hal In The Arena
File:JadeColoredGlasses.png | 302 - Jade Colored Glasses (see also: 290, 284, 280, etc, etc)
File:TrailerParkVampire.png | 303 - Trailer Park Vampire
File:BladesInTheDarkHomo.png | 304 Love and Betrayal (set in Blades In The Dark)
File:SupremumLupus.png | 305 - Supremum Lupus
File:GarridosJustice.png | 306 - Garrido's Justice
File:CracksInTheArmor.png | 307 - Cracks in the Armor (from the same author but not in the same series as 290, 284, 280, etc, etc)
File:StepUpFromDad.png | 308 - Step (Up From) Dad (see also: 302, 290, 284, 280, etc, etc)
File:ObligationOfAleksandr.png | 309 - The Obligation of Aleksander
File:Cog.png | 310 - Cog
File:SorceressKiller.png | 311 - Sorceress Killer
File:DrengAndMargitesVsGorillaDemon.png | 312 - Dreng And Margites Vs A Gorilla Demon
File:NighttimeInTheSecondWorld.png | 313 - Nighttime In The Second World
File:StealingFromADragon.png | 314 - Stealing From A Dragon
File:SpaghettiSalesman.png | 315 - Spaghetti Salesman
File:FightAgainstLordDerrida.png | 316 - Fight Against Lord Derrida
File:NaniteAge.png | 317 - Nanite Age
File:DemonsAndDevils.png | 318 - Demons and Devils
File:WW1GermansWithDragons.pdf | 319 - Empire of Dragons
File:TrainStory.pdf | 320 - A Train Journey
File:PostcardsAndGuns.pdf | 321 - Postcards and Guns
File:OniHunters.pdf | 322 - Oni Hunters
File:DevilInDisguise.pdf | 323 - The Devil In Disguise
File:MutantWastelands.png | 324 - Hostage Rescue in the Mutant Wastelands
File:TerribleProphetess.png | 325 - Fearsome Prophetess
File:APartyToDieFor.png | 326 - A Party To Die For
File:Triblelord.png | 327 - Tribelord
File:TheHeartOfTheSword.pdf | 328 - The Heart Of The Sword
File:OccupationalHazard.png | 329 - Occupational Hazard (see also: 308, 302, 290, 284, etc, etc)
File:PriceVerseRules.png | 330 - Priceverse Rules (see also: 329, 308, 302, 290, etc, etc)
File:AnAwfulSymbiosis.png | 331 - An Awful Symbiosis (see also: 330, 329, 308, 302, etc, etc)
File:ShreddingMan.png | 332 - The Shredding Man
File:Terminus.png | 333 - Terminus
File:TrainHeist.png | 334 - Train Heist
File:BlackOoze.png | 335 - Black Ooze
File:ForestMother.png | 336 - Forest Mother
File:InMemoriam.png | 337 - In memory of anon's friend
File:TarotReading.png | 338 - Tarot Reading
File:SweetNLowsLovePoem.png | 339 - SweetnLow's Love Poem
File:MurderousElf.png | 340 - Deadly Elf
File:Paladin'sProof.png | 341 - Paladin's Proof, part 1 (from the same author but not in the same series as: 330, 329, 308, 302, etc, etc)
File:Paladin'sProofPart2.png | 342 - Paladin's Proof, part 2 (see also: 341)
File:AWarlock'sBargain.png | 343 - A Warlock's Bargain (from the same author but not in the same series as: 330, 329, 308, 302, etc, etc)
File:FieldOfConsciousness.png | 344 - Field Of Consciousness
File:TheTrialOfSerigoMavanus.png | 345 - The Trial of Sergio Mavanus (see also: 343)
File:EightKings.png | 346 - Eight Kings
File:PlanetLife.png | 347 - The Life Of A Planet
File:DeadlyBargain.png | 348 - A Deadly Bargain
File:HoneyBear.png | 349 - Honey Bear
File:Dynasty Warriors fanfic.jpg | Three Kingdoms
File:EternalLove.png | Eternal Love
File:AgathasKittens.png | Agatha's Kittens
File:Intervention.png | Intervention (see also: 331, 330, 329, 308, etc, etc)
File:RudolphTheReindeer.png | Rudolph The Reindeer

</gallery>

''The Epics of Grettir The Glib''
<gallery>
File:UlftarOfTheSeotaning.png | The Saga of Ulftar of the Seotaning [[https://1d4chan.org/images/0/05/UlftarOfTheSeotaning.png]]
File:UlftarOfTheSeotaning-part2.png | The Saga of Ulftar of the Seotaning [[https://1d4chan.org/images/8/87/UlftarOfTheSeotaning-part2.png]]
File:BabylonianCreationMyth.png | Babylonian-esque Creation Myth [[https://1d4chan.org/images/b/b3/BabylonianCreationMyth.png]]
File:BabylonianCreationMyth-part2.png | Babylonian-esque Creation Myth [[https://1d4chan.org/images/e/ea/BabylonianCreationMyth-part2.png]]
File:BattleOfMtCranochburne.png | The Battle of Mount Cranouchburne
File:SeizureOfCordwine.png | The Seizure of Cordwine
File:GrettirTheGlibsDivineComedy.png | Grettir the Glib's Divine Comedy
</gallery>

The following gallery contains the first thirteen chapters of an unfinished fantasy novel written by a German anon and translated by me, Chronicler. It concerns a young woman searching for her best friend, who in the process acquires a dangerous power and is catapulted out of the world she knows. The title in the original German is 'Herz aus Licht und Schatten', and the original text can be found on fanfiktion.de (and it may well have more chapters by the time you read this). In English, the title is:

''Heart of Light and Shadow''
<gallery>
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-1.png | Chapter 1 - Oath
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-2.png | Chapter 2 - Pact
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-3.png | Chapter 3 - Harpy
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-4.png | Chapter 4 - Slavegirl
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-5-Heart.png | Chapter 5 - Heart
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-6-Caves.png | Chapter 6 - Caves
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-7-Plan.png | Chapter 7 - Plan
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-8-Iskanda.png | Chapter 8 - Iskanda
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-9-FoundingFamily.png | Chapter 9 - Founding Family
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-10-Spidermonster.png | Chapter 10 - Spidermonster
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-11-CaveOfDesire.png | Chapter 11 - Cave Of Desire
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-12-TheUnderground.png | Chapter 12 - The Underground
File:HeartOfLightAndShadow-13-Witch.png | Chapter 13 - Witch
</gallery>

This next gallery contains the work of a writefag who temporarily named himself Storytimer, for the duration of the thread. He had come across a thread on the Paradox Interactive forums, where someone, some years ago, had written a series that purported to be a chronicle of the events of the alternate timeline from the Resistance game series (see - Resistance: Fall of Man, and its sequels. Although if you are unfamiliar with the games then I strongly suggest that you don't read up on it until after you've read this, because spoilers). Storytimer found the work unfinished, and decided that he would expand, improve, and complete it himself.

Sadly, although Storytimer made a valiant effort, it was just too big a task and the series remains unfinished to this day. However, what we have is well worth reading in and of itself, and it furthermore inspired a few other anons to make their own contributions. So at the end of the day, good times were had by all and we got a few good stories.

(Numbered pics, 1 through 14, are Storytimer's series, while 'extra' pics are the contributions of other anons)

''The Chimera Series''
<gallery>
File:Chimera 1 RussianOfficer.png| Chimera 1 - Russian Officer
File:Chimera 2 RedCrossNurse.png | Chimera 2 - Red Cross Nurse
File:Chimera 3 RussianSoldier.png | Chimera 3 - Russian Soldier
File:Chimera 4 ChineseGuerrilla.png | Chimera 4 - Chinese Geurrilla
File:Chimera 5 RussianOfficerAndSoldier.png | Chimera 5 - Russian Officer and Russian Soldier
File:Chimera 6 WarsawLineRecords.png | Chimera 6 - Record of the Warsaw Line
File:Chimera 7 AirforceCaptain.png | Chimera 7 - Airforce Captain
File:Chimera 8 FallOfDanzig.png | Chimera 8 - The Fall of Danzig
File:Chimera 9 GermanOfficer.png | Chimera 9 - German Officer
File:Chimera 10 GermanOfficer2.png | Chimera 10 - German Officer 2
File:Chimera 11 GermanMilitiaman.png | Chimera 11 - German Militiaman
File:Chimera 12 SpanishDoctor.png | Chimera 12 - Spanish Doctor
File:Chimera 13 JapaneseRadioOperator.png | Chimera 13 - Japanese Radio Operator
File:Chimera 14 AmericanAdmiral.png | Chimera 14 - American Admiral
File:Chimera extra PolishSoldier.png | Chimera Extra - Polish Soldier
File:Chimera extra CzechSoldier.png | Chimera Extra - Czech Soldier
File:Chimera extra Generals.png | Chimera Extra - Generals
File:Chimera extra CzechoslovakianSoldier.png | Chimera Extra - Czechoslovakian Soldier
File:Chimera extra cynic.png | Chimera Extra - Cynic
File:Chimera footSoldier.png | Just in case you wondered what a Chimera footsoldier looks like
</gallery>

[[Category:4chan]]
[[Category:Stories]]

Human

2026-05-12T04:34:25Z

109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010418 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

[[Image:Happy_human_killing_songs.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Humanity: everybody's friend. Also, no hard feelings guys. Happy human songs are about killing invading humans too.]]
{{Topquote|[[/tg/|Humans need fantasy to be human.]] To be the place where the falling angel meets the rising ape.|[[Discworld|Sir Terry Pratchett, ''Hogfather'']]}}
{{Topquote|1=[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McQ58nhhpHM I'M A PIONEER! I'M AN EXPLORER! I'M A HUMAN, AND I'M CUMMING!]|2=Alex Jones, alleged Human}}
{{Topquote|You are a violent and irrepressible miracle. The vacuum of cosmos and the stars burning in it are afraid of you. Given enough time you would wipe us all out and replace us with nothing — just by accident.|Disco Elysium}}
{{Topquote|I'm ahead, I'm a man, I'm the first mammal to wear pants, I'm at peace with my lust, I can kill 'cause in god I trust.|Pearl Jam, ''Do The Evolution''}}

'''Humans''' (Scientific name ''Homo sapiens'', "Inferior/simple-minded race" as seen by your [[Eldar|generic super-intelligent and advanced race]], "weak/frail race" as seen by your [[Orks|generic war-mongering race]], and "Nom noms" as seen by [[Tyranid|the race that only exists to consume and grow]]) are a species of bilaterally symmetrical carbon-based creatures native to a small rocky planet orbiting Sol.

Humans have five appendages: the two longest ones underneath for locomotion, two more flexible appendages in the middle that split into very fine tentacles on the ends for manipulation and pleasure, and a cranium up top for sensation. They stand upright and have nearly their entire cognitive organ contained within a bony shell inside the sensory limb, the rest of it in a bone sheathe in the middle "baggy" part. Humans on average stand erect between 1.5 and 2 meters in height, and mass between 50 and 100 kilograms.

Humans are descended from arboreal omnivores which migrated on the plains of a landmass in the Eastern hemisphere. They have gender dimorphism: females are smaller by 9% on average, only males have protrusions at the base of the locomotor limbs, and nearly all mature females have two protruding subdermal glands on their front thorax near the base of the manipulation limbs. A large sample of data from various competitions and world records based on gender have also shown human sexual dimorphism also extends to attributes of physical fitness. For example, males are slightly faster and considerably stronger than females, while females possess [http://www.latrobe.edu.au/news/articles/2011/opinion/women-and-their-resistance-to-disease greater resistance] [http://www.medicaldaily.com/man-flu-real-estrogen-makes-women-more-resistant-respiratory-diseases-men-307471 to diseases]. Both are particularly obsessed with mating.

Humans have an exceptionally high endurance (for killing aliens longer), and their long distance running is unmatched by all but a few species. Some speculate early Humans hunted simply by stalking prey till it had to rest then bashing its head in, though the practicality of this is questioned. Human pain tolerance is high enough that they willingly ingest plants [[Wikipedia:Capsaicin|high in irritants]] that render them unpalatable to most species. Humans must consume [[Wikipedia:Ascorbic acid|a variety]] [[Wikipedia:Retinoic acid|of acids]] [[Wikipedia:pantothenic acid|every day]] to maintain health. Failure to do so results in [[Wikipedia:Scurvy|weakness followed by death]]. Human blood is literally made of iron and [[Wikipedia:Blood#pH_values|capable of neutralizing acids]] if combined with them.

==...Okay, but seriously.==
Now on to the REAL reason you're on this page.

Humans are a playable race in almost every game, which is a complete mystery if contemplated long enough ([[derp|which may be too long]]). If you're going to imagine your character as a gunfightan, spell-slingan, wall-vaultan, asskickan superman, what's the point of suddenly slapping that little bit of realism in there? Therefore, they are largely overlooked in most games (except for 3.5e [[D&D]] players who HAD to have that extra first-level feat). Indeed, most descriptions of the species for playable races go something like "they're just like humans, except for this." Most of the time, you'll honestly prefer some of the actual DEFINING TRAITS that come with playing another race, whether it's Never-Say-Die Elfdar vehicles (as opposed to [[Space Marine]] 14-armor dickery) or some kind of crazy mutation/horns/dragon wings. Basically, the benefits can never truly erase the relative boredom you'll get from still being a human, despite all your other options.

Humans are represented in most games as the most balanced and widespread race, which is a blatant bit of self-flattery, or it can be read to mean that they are the most mediocre and suck equally at everything. Most notable can be in D&D 2.0, in which every race had a given benefit, save the humans who had nothing (unless you count the ability to be any class and reach max level in any of them, whereas other races had restricted classes and restricted levels in said classes - but then, everyone hated that rule and homebrewed it out anyway). When they ARE given distinct advantages, is to be more versatile, adaptable or "jack-of-all-trades" than other bipeds, which is kind of a non-advantage: "we didn't know what to give you, so here's a gift certificate at the local racial feature shop to buy something." You would think that humans' exceptional endurance compared to other Earth species would come into play, (we are one of the best long distance runners in the whole animal kingdom), but it never does; though there is a difference between animals and sapient humanoid races such as elves and dwarves.

On the other hand whenever there is a coalition of multiple races and humans are part of them, you can bet the one leading them will be human. Talk about self-flattery again. In sci-fi video games they also tend to be portrayed as skilled diplomats, which is ironic considering how most leaders [[Skub|never see eye-to-eye in real life]].

Then again, there's a certain appeal in [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|humans showing other species what they're truly capable of]].

==Human Physiology and Psychology==

Humans are medium creatures, averaging between 1.6-1.8 meters tall (though there are exceptions of course) and weighing in between 69-89 Kg. Appearance-wise there exists a wide diversity of skin tones and minor body features which was commonly described as "race" but has fallen out of favour due to gigatons of [[Skub|skub]] associated with the term. There is some difficulty on pinpointing a defining trait since our real life intelligence is moot if there are other sentients, but alternatively one could realistically invoke [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|"human grit and perseverance"]] since, again judging from real life, we survived so much shit and clawed our way to the top in spite of it (and ourselves) that it is at least somewhat deserved.

Body-wise humans have little obvious weapons, we can actually give a decent bite and our legs and fists can handle wolf-tier animals one-on-one with some ease, but realistically speaking without some sort of weapon, be it only a big rock or a stick, an average human will not get too far even against such "mid-tier" animals like boars or stags. That being said, humans do have some natural resilience and recent anthropological research has shown that we can also pride ourselves as being an "implacable man" style hunters - we will just casually follow an animal until it drops from exhaustion and we either tame it (horse) or nom it (pretty much everything else that can run fast, and yes [[/d/|that includes horse as well]]).

Due to their intelligence, social-cooperative nature and fecundity, humans generally occupy virtually all but the harshest environments of a given world or setting (and we will damn well try to settle those too). If there are other races/sentient species present the contact between them and humans runs the gamut of merry trading and [[Monstergirls|coexistence]], grudging tolerance and isolation to near-incessant warfare and genocide.

Human psychology is also a smorgasbord of various traits since we can form societies that are [[Mongols|barbarian reavers]] like Orks, [[China|introspective and ordered]] like Elves, [[Japan|industrious and seclusive]] like Dwarves an so on. A major innate psychological trait is human sociability, while there are "lone wolves" out there, most humans will want at least 2-3 companions, be they members of their own species or a fellow sentient, this trait also likely causes humans in most settings to develop civilizations of varying sophistication akin to Dwarves and Elves and as opposed to Ogres or Trolls, although depending on the setting humans can just as well be primal and savage with little or no civility.

==Human Culture(s)==

As previously mentioned, humans are a varied bunch so the cultures we develop will be such as well. In real life our societies tend to follow a few basic patterns like the rough social organisation (rulers-nobles-middle class-lower class) and a proclivity towards clannish organisation (this was prevalent in Europe too until the Church engaged in a feat of massive social engineering by banning cousin marriage and thus effectively destroying the clan structure in favour of a nuclear family). Aside from those, a given culture is also greatly influenced by its environment and availability of resources - [[Japan]] for instance places great emphasis on cooperation and social harmony since you need social cohesion to survive all the earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis, while [[Egypt]] was a totalitarian theocracy due to the Nile concentrating people along the fertile areas and being vital for survival thus making it one of the centers of life and religion.

In various fantasy and sci fi works, as mentioned in the Human Special Rules the cultures tend to broadly coalesce into fantasy Europe/Middle East/Asia with an occasional Mayincatec, African or Greco-romano-egyptian expies if the author is a bit more imaginative. Said societies also tend to have one trait increased out of proportion like war, trade or diplomacy. One can also expect a huge human empire in various stages of [[The Empire|advancement]] or [[Imperium of Man|degeneration]] which will often be inspired by Rome or HRE. Interestingly human societies are practically never shown as peaceful or pacifist, having almost always be(en) engaged in a war with other races or themselves, sometimes at the same time.

==Human Religion(s)==

Again, in real life humans have dozens of religious and hundreds of spiritual beliefs and systems, many of them offshoots of previous ones like Christianity and Islam or regional/national variations as with the bajilion sects of Buddhism and Protestantism OR Hinduism which is practically an entire world onto itself and that's before we even get to the indigenous world faiths or past religions.

In fantasy works humans however will generally fall into two broad categories:

- Worship of a pantheon of about half-dozen or dozen gods inspired by the ancient Bronze and Iron age civilizations of Earth. Said pantheon will likely have the equivalents of chief god, war god, magic god, harvest/life god, sea god and so on though certain settings will shake things up and give a more unusual pantheon.

- Worship of a Judeo-Christian equivalent commonly called Crystal Dragon Jesus by TvTropes. This religion will be monotheistic or have 2-3 gods at most with a [[Ecclesiarchy|Catholic or broadly Christian aesthetic and maybe some doctrinal similarities]]. Alternatively the inspirational source will be toned down and you will end up with one capital-g God and a "church" which may often be in conflict with a "pagan" pantheon though the latter will usually not be as powerful as a full fledged pantheon described in the first point.

- A combination of the prior two where depending on a region you will have religions centered around gods, a god, the God, immensely powerful beings (Dragons are usually the go-to race for this) and various minor spirits and others. Also expect any asian-based culture to have some sort of confucian equivalent that throws around words like "enlightenment" and "harmony", usually with little emphasis on gods.

In science fiction religion will often be handwaved as an afterthought or depicted as declining or nearly gone due to the supposedly enlightened humans no longer needing or deigning to believe in anything supernatural and aliens still believing in gods or having religious beliefs will either be shown as primitive or crusading zealots. Alternatively there will be races or beings present that will be so advanced that they may appear to be godlike or even become indistinguishable from what an actual deity would be (like in the Culture series where the AIs are so powerful that they can create real afterlives with relative ease). Lastly, humans may simply have their old 20th-21st century major religions in slightly altered form or have a new set of beliefs altogether.

==Human Flaws==

Humans will generally run the gamut of failings though a hack author or someone with an ax to grind may exaggerate certain flaws in order to prove a point or send a message. These usually take the form of humans being [[Imperium of Man|genocidal maniacs who are exterminating other races left, right and center for not much more than simple bigotry and xenophobia]].

This unfortunately has some basis in reality as the most immediately destructive human activity (warfare) has often been if not motivated, then at least shrouded in xenophobia and ethno-racial hatred in order to motivate the troops to slaughter the opponents when in reality the real goal was resources or territory.
Additionally Homo Sapiens Sapiens in general seems to have been at least partially somewhat genocide-happy if not callous in their expansion since many other species of humans are, well, not with us anymore. The Neanderthals are brought up as the most common example although the fact that modern Europeans and Asians have 1-2% of Neanderthal DNA so the truth may be a bit more balanced (a combination of genocide, displacement, grudging co-existence and intermixing).

On the physical side of things, Humans when compared to many other races or animals fall more or less into the mid category - not too bad but nothing to write home about either. A Human can with some effort take down most animals that are smaller than them (wolves, boars, deer etc.) when going 1-on-1, but increase the number of opponents or move into something that is heavier/bigger and we start having problems even with bladed weapons. Smaller humanoids (with possible exception of [[Dwarves]]) are also doable but anything ranging from [[Half-Orc]] and bulkier is going to be a challenge to say the least. This is usually not a problem what with Humans speccing into INT and CO-OP but in any situation or setting where physically stronger and organized opponents outnumber the Humans and technology is not the deciding factor will give Humanity some hurting.

More realistic settings will give humans a more balanced set of virtues and flaws if not outright eschewing this approach altogether and focusing on individuals.

==Human Special Rules==
# In every sci fi movie and game involving aliens, humans MUST suck.<br>No exceptions. Unless they're [[Space Marine|grimdark psycho-indoctrinated, genetically enhanced, Catholic Space-Nazis]], an [[Chaos Space Marines|evil(er) version of thereof]] or the [[Primaris Space Marines|grimdark psycho-indoctrinated, genetically enhanced, Catholic Space-Nazis big brother]]. Or [[Setting:Halo|Master Chief]]. In which case, they're the best damn things in the setting where combat is concerned. In every fantasy movie and game involving elves, dwarves, goblins, etc. humans MUST be boring. No exceptions. Elves are the tall fast guys with great magic who live in the trees, Dwarves are the short strong guys with badass technology who live in the tunnels, humans are the boring medium guys with absolutely nothing special and completely average stats.
#* Unless this is John Carter of Mars in which the title human is an unstoppable one man army, who can kill four armed giant bug Martians with ease.
#* Or if it's [[Tolkien|Middle Earth]] (if you don't think the Edain are awesome, you probably don't know enough about the setting),
#* or [[Star Wars]] (where the humans are the most powerful, diverse, and influential race in the setting),
#* [[Star Trek]] (where the humans are the ones responsible for much of the good stuff in the setting),
#* or [[Avatar]] (where the humans are awesome, but portrayed as villains for being pragmatic).
# Humans ''always'' have the crappy weapons when fighting technologically advanced/intelligent xenos(eg: [[Setting:Halo|Halo]] - Bullets vs. Plasma. [[Warhammer 40,000]] - [[Lasgun|factory-built flashlights]] vs. alien [[Shuriken Catapult|ninja-star guns]]/[[Splinter Weapons|living poison guns]]/[[Gauss|molecular disassembly weapons]]/cursed-soul-shooting guns). In the case of simple-minded/primitive xenos, the humans must be eaten/dismembered/eviscerated/disemboweled/some combination thereof by said xenos (eg: Bugs vs Mobile infantry, Xenomorphs vs Colonial Marines). In fantasy, humans ''always'' have the boring practical weapons when fighting any other race (eg: Humans vs Elves or Dwarves - Long swords and crossbows vs. magic bows and badass knives or giant hammers and axes and cannons).
# in [[vidya|video games]], especially but in table top and roleplaying as well, humanity's special trait is always brute force. We're never as fast as the space elves, but we always build [[Basilisk Artillery Gun|really big guns]] (sometimes ones that are [[Ordinatus|utterly massive]]) and [[Titan (Warhammer 40,000)|massive humanoid robots covered with weapons]]. As another example, when I say "elf" you think archers in the woods, but when I say "fantasy human" you think a knight in full plate mail atop a horse, effectiveness may vary but humans' trait is normally thick armour and hitting hard.
# Compared to any other race, Humans must always be subjected to horrendous deaths in any war, real or fiction, by the hundreds, and often disproportionately to their involvement in said war.
# In every work that involves armed fictional conflict, there must always be one [[Mary Sue|heavily plot-armoured character that can beat the odds no matter how retardedly outnumbered and outgunned he is.]] This character is human if humans are involved in the conflict at all.
# In almost every setting where humans are not fanatical racist nut jobs, human are always the ones most likely to reproduce outside their species. If someone says they're a half-elf, dragon or demon, you never need to ask what the other half is. Among the first questions any human asks upon discovery of a new sapient is "can I have sex with it?", and then humans also ignore all rules of logic and genetics by managing to have kids with it.
# In most fantasy settings, humans create various "Western-European-like" nations, one "Middle-East-like" nation and one "Chinese-like" or "Japanese-like" nation.
# Despite any inferiority to other races; Humans '''ALWAYS WIN. ''ALWAYS''''', in the end of it all. Either by the efforts of pre-mentioned [[Mary Sue]] or through [[Imperial Guard|the well-honed tactic of drowning their enemies in their own blood and corpses]]. This is because we can't win any other way, unless you're SPESS MARHEENS (That's a fact). In rare cases conflict spans for a few centuries, and the setting it happens in isn't in medieval stasis, humans win through their adaptability due to their short lifespans combined with sufficient intellect, while more long-living races fail to change their society in response to evolving technology, even if they happen to out-science humans (which they usually don't), and less intelligent races get wiped out or enslaved due to the giant technological edge humans have against them.

Also, our butthurt knows no fucking bounds.

==Media That Prominently Feature Humans==
[[File:Ravenloft 3e Humans.png|thumb|right|250px|Humans tend to adopt different styles in different settings. These humans come from [[Ravenloft]], for example.]]

All of them. No really, all of them ([[Bionicle|almost]]). It's only natural that the only intelligent race we know of is the one we add everywhere and into everything. The reason for this can be numerous - It makes it easy to relate to it for most people when your race is represented, and since we ''are'' the only intelligent race we actually know, humans are the only template we can work off of.

Well, Dragonlance, but then, they had [[Kender]], so...

Some do it more than others, tho - e.g, everybody knows that DnD only has the Human race because some people are too xenophobic to play an actual interesting race, while other media, like in 40k, humans are the best goddamn thing ever.

==Human mating practices==

{{Topquote|And their reproductive system is the same as their waste-elimination system. Did you know that? It’s true. I’ve done the dissections.|Trazyn the Infinite}}

We do have these. The writers of this wiki have not studied them. Why should we?

In role-playing games, humans (especially those of the [[bard]] [[class]]) tend to be the most fertile race, and the one most amenable to interspecies romance and cross-breeding (rivalled only by [[dragon]]s).

P.S. If you don't know how babies are made just ask your parents what "fucking" is. They will be delighted to give you a detailed explanation.

==Humans in Dungeons & Dragons==
In [[Dungeons & Dragons]], humanity's "hat", or singular defining racial trait, is ''Versatility''. What this means in practice varies from edition to edition, but it generally means that humans may not get the specific bonuses that certain races do, but they don't get any penalties, either.

In [[Basic Dungeons & Dragons|Basic]], humanity's biggest strength was that they were the only race that could actually take classes like [[Fighter]], [[Thief]] or [[Wizard|Magic-User]]. Other races, like [[Elf]], [[Dwarf]], [[Halfling]], [[Goblin]], [[Orc]], [[Gnoll]], etc, were treated as classes in their own right (early D&D was ''weird''), and often relied on [[Variant Class]]-analogues to expand their options.<br>
For example, [[Dwarf#BECMI|Dwarves could be taken as Dwarf-Clerics]], who were like [[Clerics]] but: better fighters, unable to turn undead, could reach 12th level and, -- oh yeah -- they were mandated to '''avoid''' casting spells where non-Dwarves could see them do it (unless it was a matter of life and death).

In [[Advanced Dungeons & Dragons|Advanced]], again, humanity's only major strength was their lack of penalties; humans alone could take any class to any level, whereas other races could only take specific classes, and could only rise to certain levels within those classes. It's unclear just how viable this was, because nobody seemed to really like the idea of non-humans having level limits based on their race; [[Baldur's Gate]] and [[Icewind Dale]] both dropped that mechanic like a hot potato. And even within the official supplements there were some treading on humanity's toes.<br>
For example, whilst the [[Paladin]] was envisioned as a human-only class, several races were released that could also become paladins, namely [[Rakasta]], [[Lupin|Lupins]], and [[Saurial|Saurials]].<br>
Humans also had unique [[Multiclassing#Advanced_Dungeon_.26_Dragons|multiclassing]] mechanics in the form of [[Multiclassing#Dual-classing|dual-classing]], which involved basically completely stopping your advance in one class and starting over from scratch in another one. Which, if you weren't using level limits, was demonstrably inferior to the [[demihuman]] ability of [[Multiclassing#Multiclassing|multiclassing]], where you progress in multiple classes ''simultaneously'' from character creation.

In [[Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition|3rd Edition]], humanity again had no ability score modifiers. However, a trend started that would influence the next three editions (and one spin-off): human versatility was given a mechanical basis, with humans now gaining a bonus feat at character creation, an expanded array of skill points (+4 at first level, +1 at each level), and having a [[Favored Class]] of Any, allowing them to [[Multiclassing#3rd Edition & Pathfinder|multiclass]] freely and without suffering XP penalties if they weren't taking levels in their "iconic" class.<br>
[[Pathfinder]] followed the same idea as 3E. The only changes are system wide where they only get +1 skill point at every level starting from first (getting 4 times as many skill points at level 1 no longer exists for anyone, instead you get a +3 bonus to a skill if it's a class skill), and [[Favored Class]] was changed so drastically that it couldn't be a bonus. Still awesome since they still gain that bonus feat and now they get a +2 to any one ability score of their choice. Humans also get the best alternative [[Favored Class]] bonus for spontaneous casting classes, gaining an extra spell known (of one level than the highest you can cast).

Ironically, [[Dungeons & Dragons 4th Edition|4th Edition]] did something similar: humans in that edition gained a +2 to a single ability score of their choice, and then progressed with a bonus skill (because in [[4e]] you're either proficient in a skill or not, there's no ascending scale anymore), a bonus feat, a +1 to all three of their [[Non Armor Defenses|NADs]], ''and'' a bonus At-Will power from their chosen class.<br>
This actually makes humans a pretty powerful race choice in their own right. Like the [[half-elf]], humans got the option to take a unique racial power instead of their bonus at-will: Heroic Effort lets them, once per encounter, add a +4 bonus to the result of either a missed attack roll or a failed saving throw.

Unfortunately, [[5e]] is where that winning streak basically collapsed. There are two different mechanical versions of humans in 5th edition; the standard human just gets a +1 to all six ability scores, which is... not ''bad'', but pretty low-down on the useful scale. Then there's the variant human, who instead gets a +1 to two ability scores of their choice, a bonus skill proficiency (5e skills working mostly like 4e skills) and a bonus feat. This makes variant humans '''the''' race of choice for power gaming, simply because feats in 5e are extremely powerful and other races can't get them until several levels into the game - and even then, only at the expense of an increase in ability scores. The [[Eberron]] Guidebook also included Dragonmarked subraces for humans that aren't as powerful as the PHB Variant Human, but still leaps ahead of the default mold.

Also, fun fact, 5e finally gave an explanation for why humans are the only race in the [[Great Wheel]] that don't have a single defining monolithic culture (orcs are savage brutes, elves are magic and nature-loving, etc): all the other races are like that because they have a racial god or pantheon of gods telling them how to behave. Humans originally had such a god, but they were killed very early in the Great Wheel's history. Info on this god is hard to come by, but secondhand sources say that it was Asmodeus' brother, and that he was the one who did the deed, but this sounds suspiciously similar to Pathfinder Asmodeus' backstory. All we know for sure is that we probably don't have to worry about [[Zarus]] rearing his nazi head any time soon.

{{D&D1e-Races}}
{{D&D2e-Races}}
{{D&D4e-Races}}
{{D&D5e-Races}}

== Humans in Star Wars==
[[Star Wars]] is one of the many human-centric settings out there. Humans are the dominant and most populous species in the galaxy, [[What| despite the franchise explicitly being set in the distant past and another galaxy]]. Originally seeded throughout the galaxy as slaves by the long dead Rakata and the first post-Rakata species to discover hyperdrives on their own (aside from Duros, who invented it at roughly the same time), humans can be found almost anywhere in the known Galaxy. Most works of fiction in the Star Wars universe centre around the exploits of humans with non-humans as supporting cast. Ironically, the early ''Droids'', and ''Ewoks'' cartoons are still among the few that don't. Too be honest, all intelligent species in Star Wars act like human, from individual behaviors to social structure, they may has well just be different racial groups of humanity.

Human crossbreeds are actually quite limited in Star Wars. The only known crossbreeds are with near-human species that were human off-shoots in the first place, the result of Sith magic and possibly [[Twi'lek]]. The last one has one shown family of hybrids, but previous works explicitly established Humans and Twi'leks can't produce children. Since it wasn't ''explicitly'' a natural conception, it led to speculation it was the product of genetic engineering or other science. Even with near-humans, just because a crossbreed can be made doesn't mean they should: Hybrids can end up quite poorly. The most notorious being with the eyeless Miraluka who "see" through the force, who produce Human-Miraluka hybrids that most times end up with '''neither''' form of sight, producing an eyeless child that can't see through any means.

The Empire took human-centric to an extreme and became human supremacist. Aside from force sensitive minions (the early [[Star Wars d6]] content says the Emperor wanted to eventually establish a dark side theocracy with castes of Sith>Dark Jedi>Military>Everyone else, and that's still fits after 25 years of further material) and a few talented military leaders, most non-humans were second class citizens at best under the Empire. All stormtroopers are assumed to be human (or cloned human) under their armour. Ironically [[Nazi#Nazi_Portrayal|one of the fiercest supporters of this was not human]], but a hybrid of two near-human species with unusual skin tones that cancelled each other out. After the Battle of Endor and the descent of the remaining Imperials into factions ruled by warlords, this was often relaxed due to manpower shortages, factions being left far away from human-majority space, alien leaders, and plain-old the people that implemented it in the first place being dead.

Mechanically: The original [[Star Wars RPG|d6 based roleplaying game]] assumed a character was human if not stated otherwise. [[Star Wars d20]] literally uses the 3E D&D stats for humans with no changes except a minor difference in height and weight ranges (and that's mostly due to rounding when converting to metric system). d20 Humans were top of the pack since every other race was super weak, even compared to core 3.5. Saga Edition humans are virtually the same as d20 and 3.5, but are adjusted for the skill system working differently: They get an extra trained skill instead of bonus skill points. Saga edition buffed alien races enough and made class talent more important than feats that humans are actually fairly close in balance to other races. [[Star Wars Roleplaying Game|The system]] by [[Fantasy Flight Games]] has Humans in the core book of all three "games" (though for some reason it can't decide if humans should be listed first or alphabetically) and also takes the approach of giving humans a broader range of skills. There humans get balanced attributes (all 2s), 10% higher starting XP (point buy) and two extra skill points. Since humans are the majority of the population and near entirety of the Empire, disguise is most useful on a human.

== Humans in Magic: The Gathering ==
Humans in [[Magic: The Gathering]] are mostly defined and given a place in the colour pie by their class, so they can be anything. Humans do have a few common trends however. Firstly they are all generally either cheap+weak, or are Legendary (unique individuals). Human tribal tends to occur in White, though this is largely due to tribal itself favouring White.

==Humans in Warhammer Fantasy Battle==
Humans in WFB were a third race created by the [[Old Ones (Warhammer)|Old Ones]] to fight [[Chaos]], presumably in [[Nehekhara]] or [[Cathay]], and are implied to be a completely failed project, because unlike preceding [[High Elves (Warhammer Fantasy)|Elves]] and [[Dwarfs (Warhammer Fantasy Battle)|Dwarfs]], they weren't particularly good at magic and were too easily corrupted. Their only advantage was fast breeding, and due to that, they were left by Old Ones on their own.

After the collapse of Polar Gates and the coming of Chaos, [[Warriors of Chaos|some people]] were corrupted or [[Beastmen|mutated]] by the Big Four, but generally human nations are Order-aligned. All of them are based on real-life nations and countries and are situated almost exactly in the same spot as their counterparts (like, for example, [[Albion]] is an island near [[Bretonnia]]). Generally speaking, they are the protagonists of WFB (especially [[The Empire (Warhammer Fantasy)|The Empire]]) and exist pretty much everywhere.

==Humans in Age of Sigmar==
After the death of the entire setting, a new one was presented, and unsurprisingly, it features the same set of generic fantasy races, although stupidly renamed. Humans managed to evade the renaming though, and are generally similar to WFB humans in pretty much everything. Only two differences exist - they have [[Stormcast Eternals|Sigmarines]], and the Order-aligned ones are generally unified under the command of [[Sigmar]] and inspired solely by Holy Roman Empire. At least Azyrite ones.

==Humans in Warhammer 40k==
<s>Same shit, but they're more unified than in WFB and much, much more xenophobic. There are also no independent undead factions, instead there are [[Squat|human biker dwarves]], [[Ogryn|human ogres]]</s> {{BLAM}} {{BLAM|Find out yourself, Heretic!}}

TLDR: Humanity fuck yeah, purge the xenos.

{{Template:Important Species in 40k}}

==Humans in Kings of War==
{{NotFunny Sourcebook}}
There are many humans splintered across the whole of Pannithor, some have been blessed/tainted by the Gods.
Like all humans they are of any alignment and fall into loose them vs us factions, including:
* [[Kings of War/Tactics/Kingdoms of Men|Kingdoms of Men]] - Human soup faction, meant to represent any and all "generic" kingdoms, in-lore however they are the various Successor Kingdoms.
* [[League of Rhordia]] - Humans and Halflings sharing an uneasy alliance.
* [[Basilea|Basileans]] - the holier-than-thou dictatorship of Good.
* [[Order of the Brothermark]] - a splinter faction made from some from the Basileans and the now disbanded [[Brotherhood]].
* [[Northern Alliance]] - a faction made from an alliance of the northern tribes of Dwarves, Elves, Naiads and Humans.
* [[Order of the Green Lady]] - a splinter faction made from some from the Forces of Nature and the now disbanded [[Brotherhood]].
* [[Abyssals|Forces of the Abyss]] - there are a few Humans, or whats left of their humanity within the ranks as Infantry and Cavalry.
* [[Twilight Kin]] - there are a few Humans, or whats left of their humanity within the ranks as Cavalry.
* [[Varangur]] - a Human faction which worship the old gods, considered evil by the other Pannithor dwellers.

The Humans even wield magic within some other factions
* The Druids within the [[Forces of Nature]] and [[The Herd]]
* The Necromancers of the [[Undead]]

'''Some notable Humans include:'''
* [[Danor the Wizard]]
* [[Gnaeus Sallustis]]
* [[Orlaf the Barbarian]]
* [[Clarion]]
* [[Javis]]
* [[The Captain]]
* [[Dogs of War]]
* [[Battle Shrine]]
* [[Lady Ilona]]
* [[Magnilde of the Fallen]]
* [[Swain]]

{{Pathfinder-Races}}
{{Starfinder-Races}}

[[Category:Scarred Lands Races]]

/tv/

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{{stub}}
[[Image:MST3k.jpg|thumb|300px|right|It's sort of like this, but with more autism]]
/tv/ is a board on [[4chan]] dedicated to Film and Television. While much of it has little to do with /tg/, several /tg/ interests cross over with /tv/, including the same sort of praise for [[Lord of the Rings|Peter Jackson's adaptation of the Lord of the Rings]] and regular references to [[Konrad Curze|American Psycho]]. Also, thinly veiled attempts at posting Rule 34 disguised as movie discussion. We know you /tg/, this ain't just a goblin/orc thread you're doing.

==The board==
Moviegoing was an activity that gained a certain amount of popularity during the 50s, and kept being celebrated until the invention of the Internet and Binge-watching in the early 2010s. Moviegoers tended to go to the theater and watch movies weekly and/or daily and without having any sort of preferences. This allows for a plethora of artistically ambitious directors and studios to rise as pillars of cinema histoiry and craftmanship, otherwise known as the one thing that /tv/ strives for: Kino.

/tv/ is not a board utilized by moviegoers. Well, maybe it was one day, and it probably still is. But as pop-culture gained more and more traction with the rapid growth of internet culture and its forceful centralization by the massive corporations that own most platforms and webhosts, /tv/ now stands more as a board that focuses on movies and series ''relevant'' to pop-culture. That means that Almodovar's last movie won't probably be discussed, Nicholas Ray is a literally who, and most foreign films do not exist to them. If you don't know any of these people, it's alright, they're big names in the moviegoing community and you may have heard of them if you're really invested in festivals like Cannes or Sundance. Most of /tv/'s users, however, will claim, loud and proud, that they're movie specialists. And to prove this, they usually discuss the last minority actor that replaced an orignally white guy in a most recent adaptation of some geek and nerdy franchise, the [[/d/|pillowy dairy mounds of Christina Hendricks]], or make memes.

Now, now. /tv/ isn't bad. A lot of /tv/ users are, in truth, actually very invested in film culture, and will attempt to promote it whenever they can. But most of the board is filled to the brim with threads talking about stuff from Hollywood promoted daily on various other websites and magazines. So it's actually very not likely you'd find threads of the French New Wave, the Italian Diallo movement, Swedish Arthouse films, or anything else. It can happen! Sometimes if you're very lucky the thread will get traction, but good luck with that. But believe us, when there's a good thread on /tv/, it's always a '''really good one'''. Well, there are always chances of them derailing into oblivion, due to the meme culture of the board. But it's not too jarring.

The mantra of many /tv/ users can be summarized in a single word: Kino. The search for absolute quality and only quality. Sure, everyone's standards for quality can differ, and this leads to a lot of heated discussions. But in times when anons are summoned for various recommandations, this is where their cinephilia truly shines. Sometimes, a lot of movies get a sudden spike in popularity just because ONE guy recommended the films to many others on a recommandation thread. Unfortunately, their search can be impeded by the constant shitposting, the uninteresting threads about the CURRENT THING HAPPENING, or any sort of speculations regarding Internet personalities and online drama.

/tv/ is a fun board. From the silly discussions about films, to the recommandation threads, passing by the many threads where you ask yourself if any of the people in there had actual mother figures in their lives, /tv/ just never stops delivering. Sure, there are times when the whole board becomes an unbrowsable mess when something major happens on social media, but for general movie discussion, /tv/ does a better job at discussing their passion than /v/. With that being said, don't always expect to find some thoughtful posting, a lot of them consist of back and forth arguing between different anons and discussions that lead nowhere. If you want a thread that is guaranteed to be good, you must find a way to make something completely unrelated to Television and Films. Go figure why THAT works.

==Memes==
/tv/ is fun. And as a fun board, they're behind a lot of memes or jokes that are frequently reused every where else on 4chan. Television series and movies being too very popular mediums, it's always very likely that people fromm all across the imageboard actually watched, or at least heard of, a series that currently piqued /tv/'s interest. We owe the board such classics as:
* '''Bane Posting''': /tv/ is particularly fond of the Dark Knight Trilogy by Christopher Nolan, just like the rest of the Internet. But they are particularly fan of the third installment of the series; The Dark Knight Rises. Why? Because of Bane, mostly. The undecipherable dialog, the weird delivery of his lines, his general motive and overall presentation came as a bowl of fresh air for the character who was, the recent years preceding the movie, depicted as a mindless brute. One scene, however, stands out of all the rest to /tv/'s eyes: The plane scene. The opening of the film, accompanied by a very tense music, subpar acting by the character only known as "C.I.A." by the community, his discussion with Bane and the pace of it all made for picturesque material for general shitposting. /tv/ loves to re-do the entire scene and had an interesting twist to it; whether it is by renacting it using vocaroos, calling Nolan's strange obsession with namedropping by replacing the entirety of the dialog with made up names, or cloning C.I.A.
* '''American Psycho''': A particular example of a meme that not only branched off /tv/ and unto all of 4chan, but also off the website itself as shitposting regarding the peak of Christian Bale's career is frequent on websites and apps such as YouTube, Discord and Twitter. American Psycho features Patrick Bateman, a 27 year-old financial prodigee and ''100% butt-fuck insane psychopath'' [[Khorne Berserkers|who preys on the people he vehemently hates with a flaming passion]] and [[-4 STR|women]]. The sheer quotability and state of American Psycho as a cult classic gave the film a massive fanbase. From scene re-enactments to parodies, /tv/ celebrates the movie whenever they can. There are too many injokes on the board to list them all here. Oh, one question though; [[Bard|Do you like Huey Lewis and the News?]]
* '''Fesh Pince of Blair''': While not /tv/ specific, it's to be noted that /tv/ preferred Dikekike's YTP of the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air than the actual series itself. Often quoting passages or entire scenes from the trilogy. Also, variants of the show's intro can be found here and there, especially when anything happens to Will Smith.
* '''Harry Potter posting''': The Harry Potter movies really aren't popular at all on /tv/. [[Meme|HOOOOOOOWEEEEEVEEEEEEEEEEEER]], the community frequently mocks it by calling J.K. Rowling's poor writing and worldbuilding, mocking her rants on Twitter or Emma Watson's shenanigans, writing prompts, copypastas and greentexts related to it, and calling the series shit-literature (on a board that discusses movies). You may have seen pastas of people complaining that Rowling would rather say "shake their legs" instead of "running", pictures of Voldemort saying "Deh!" or Severus Snape's ramblings about making polymorph potions to masturbate himself while disguised as Lily Potter. They don't like it, but you bet your ass they love to pock fun at Mr. Potter.
* '''Simpsons Posting''': The Simpsons were celebrated here and there on /tv/, and just like the rest of the fan community, /tv/ hates anything beyond Season 8 or 9. Recurrent threads of Simpsons editing could be observed from time to time, and they consisted of people taking scenes or entire segments of classic Simpsons episodes and completely altering them or making referrences to other Simpsons jokes or scenes. Some results are pretty surreal. But of course, that was before...
* '''Sneed''': Otherwise known as Sneed's Seed and Feed (formerly Chucks's) is a thrown-in background joke and scene from an episode of the Simpsons. Naturally the scene itself and the jokes aren't remarkable on their own, and the characters aren't particularly noteworthy, unlike someone like Hank Scorpio for example. So of course, some guys on /tv/ thought it would be super fun to spam the joke everytime they had the occasion to do it. Despite the janitors' best efforts to shut down any sort of Sneedposting, their combat was in vain, since Sneed became the new hot thing of /tv/. Any time the Simpsons are mentionned, you'd witness not just a derailment, but a literal flood of Sneedposts. They were unstoppable. Repeating the same joke over and over again. People complained, their cries were followed by "Sneed"s. People made anti-sneed posts, none of which succeeded. And then Sneed branched off /tv/ and went on other boards; /v/, /x/, /pol/, etc. The only board left to absolutely despise Sneed being /co/. For many, /tv/'s reputation and overall quality was ruined by sneedposting, which is... Debatable. At one point, the meme reached a point where the characters featured in the skits were used to a similar manner as Pepe the Frog. Showcasing them in absurd and politically incorrect situations.
TLDR: Things escalated quickly.
* '''Buck Breaking''': Completely ignoring the debates that surrounded Tariq Nasheed's film, /tv/ jumped on the controversial hype of the film to yet again post politically incorrect memery. For a long while, the board was filled with greentexts of anons roleplaying as slave-owners who anally annhilate their slaves. It was... Something. This also led to the ironic praise of Tariq Nasheed and his silly ideas.
* '''Blade Runner 2049''': With Dennis Villeneuve's attempt at a sequel to the cyberpunk cult classic, /tv/ fell for the movie's charm and praised the movie throughout. Remember that scene with Ryan Gosling crying and shouting? Or that scene where he confront a giant, interactive ad with a woman? Yeah, /tv/ was obsessed with those scenes in particular.

== /tg/ /tv/ on This Site ==
*[[Adventure Time]]
*[[Avatar: The Last Airbender]]
*[[Avatar: The Last Airbender#Legend_of_Korra|Avatar: The Legend of Korra]]
*[[Conan the Adventurer]]
*[[Conan the Barbarian]]
*[[Doctor Who]]
*[[Dune]]
*[[Firefly]]
*[[A Song of Ice and Fire|Game of Thrones]]
*[[Harry Potter]]
*[[The Dark Crystal]]
*[[The Hobbit]]
*[[The Lord of the Rings]]
*[[The Lord Inquisitor - Seed of Ambition]]
*[[Mazes and Monsters]]
*[[Samurai Jack]]
*[[Starship Troopers]]
*[[Star Trek]]
*[[Star Wars]]
*[[Transformers]]
*[[Ultramarines: The Movie]]
*[[Wakfu]]
*[[War Planets]]

== See Also ==
*[[Approved movies|Approved Movies]]
*[[Approved Television]]

[[Category:4chan]]

File:2d4.png

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== Summary ==
Importing file

User:2d4fag

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If you have any questions or concerns, put it in my talk page. You can also contact me on Discord @2d4fag.

Current Projects:

* Import better templates
* <s>Setup QuestyCaptcha</s>
* <s>Nuke the Campaign namespace</s>
* Remove those joke templates they put at the top of the page
* <s>Enable QuestyCaptcha for account creation</s>
* <s>Nuke TGHEIM namespace</s>
* Use Manual:Pywikibot/redirect.py to nuke broken redirects
* Fix pages whose titles start with a forward slash.

tbh I've given up. I'm going to kill myself once the weather warms up and the campaign I'm running ends. This site will stay up at least another year after I'm gone. Longer depending on what happens to the money in my bank account.

R.I.P. (17.01.2025 - 03.05.2035) suicide LARPing loser.

Yo faggot, if you ever decide to come back I have a plan to clean up all the godawful spam. Drop me a line on my user talk to give me the go-ahead.

=== Grave-pissing: ===
Lazy fucking attention whore faggot.

A REAL piece of shit.

User talk:2d4fag

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== Spice and Wolf ==

Why was the page cut, especially since it was there when 2d4 came back (and was part of it's gimmick ad)? Plus it leaves red links all across the 2d4 [[Special:Contributions/46.205.196.189|46.205.196.189]] 18:46, 16 February 2025 (UTC)
:It is not relevant to /tg/. Keep it in relegated to [[Approved Anime]]. I did not create the thread that advertised the return of this site.--[[User:2d4fag|2d4fag]] ([[User talk:2d4fag|talk]]) 03:52, 21 February 2025 (UTC)
:Ironically, back in 1d4, I was the only one that wanted to delete the page. All the soon-to-be 1d6 editors wanted to keep it, porn included.--[[User:2d4fag|2d4fag]] ([[User talk:2d4fag|talk]]) 03:55, 21 February 2025 (UTC)
::One of the most /tg/ and 4chan things ever isn't relevant, says some asshat. Can't wait to see the domain goes down, like it already did twice so far

== RE: Remove those joke templates they put at the top of the page ==

Outta curiosity, what was wrong with the joke templates to start? Were they considered cluttering or what? [[Special:Contributions/50.65.212.96|50.65.212.96]] 00:45, 17 February 2025 (UTC)

:Yes they were cluttering. They line up in a big stack at the top of the page and don't really serve a useful or entertaining purpose. [[User:2d4fag|2d4fag]] ([[User talk:2d4fag|talk]]) 14:15, 17 February 2025 (UTC)
::They do though. Originally they were related to the massive infobox stacks that many mediawiki-based sites accumulate. The homos who took over the wiki went too far with it, as tropers always do, but wholesale nuking is not advisable. The oldest templates (awesome, heresy, cleanup, skub) should stay. [[User:Pachinko Man|Pachinko Man]] ([[User talk:Pachinko Man|talk]]) 15:21, 15 July 2025 (UTC)

== Compromised Historical Preservation ==

i extraneously disapprove of both the campaign & /tg/heim's erasure, what kind of archive does that?, in any case if you are sticking to your guns, a simple search will reveal that there are still 30 pages related to /tg/heim if you search for it & a lot more linking to campaigns, in fact one escaped your nuking [[TG/heim:_The_Forsaken_of_Mermedus_(Norse_Warband)]], you should have blocked editing of them after adding a warning that they are left as historical records instead of deleting them, you disgust me.

as an aside, i know it was barebone(singular), but is what was done to the [[Fatemasters]] page really acceptable? [[User:PrincessLoverEleventeen|PrincessLoverEleventeen]] ([[User talk:PrincessLoverEleventeen|talk]]) 15:59, 20 February 2025 (UTC)
:This is no longer an archive.--[[User:2d4fag|2d4fag]] ([[User talk:2d4fag|talk]]) 03:00, 21 February 2025 (UTC)
::Then I guess you can go fuck yourself with your shitty offshot, then

== Please do not an hero ==

Why the hell would you do that? People are finally starting to use the fucking site after learning what massive faggotrons the suptg guys are. [[User:Pachinko Man|Pachinko Man]] ([[User talk:Pachinko Man|talk]]) 15:12, 15 July 2025 (UTC)

== Active? ==
* [https://2d4chan.org/wiki/Special:ListUsers?username=&group=sysop&wpsubmit=&wpFormIdentifier=mw-listusers-form&limit=50 He's the only admin], and [https://2d4chan.org/wiki/Special:Contributions/2d4fag he was last seen doing actions on 3th May]. So he's active or not? --[[User:Sdhjk|Sdhjk]] ([[User talk:Sdhjk|talk]]) 13:59, 27 July 2025 (UTC)
** So, he was last inactive for roughly 3 months. Is that normal? --[[User:Sdhjk|Sdhjk]] ([[User talk:Sdhjk|talk]]) 19:15, 29 July 2025 (UTC)
**:He has abandoned the ship. You did not know? [[Special:Contributions/88.188.8.167|88.188.8.167]] 16:18, 1 September 2025 (UTC)
**:You know about him? Like - why he did it, or whether or not it's possible for him to come back (guaranteed to come away?)? --[[User:Sdhjk|Sdhjk]] ([[User talk:Sdhjk|talk]]) 16:27, 1 September 2025 (UTC)
**::Read the last sentence of his user page. [[Special:Contributions/90.80.221.226|90.80.221.226]] 13:41, 2 September 2025 (UTC)

== You are alive?! ==

This comes as a surprise. I was sure you had given up. What changed? - [[User:Gilten|Gilten]] ([[User talk:Gilten|talk]]) 16:32, 30 December 2025 (UTC)

== Hey ==

Holy fuck you're lazy and that suicide baiting stunt you pulled as an excuse just makes you a real loser. [[Special:Contributions/185.220.101.40|185.220.101.40]] 02:30, 23 January 2026 (UTC)

:maybe if you stopped rage blanking everything (which I could fix in like an hour with shell access btw) [[User:Pachinko Man|Pachinko Man]] ([[User talk:Pachinko Man|talk]]) 14:33, 21 March 2026 (UTC)

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<center><table><tr><td><div style="border:1px solid #888888"><div style="border:1px solid #CCCCCC"><div style="background: #CCCCCC">[[Image:AIAaward.gif|40px]]<font size=1> This article is [[awesome]]. Do not fuck it up.</font></div></div></div></td></tr></table></center>
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<center><table style="border:1px solid #FF0000; width:400px" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=5><tr><td style="background: #EEBBBB;">[[File:LamiaMonstergirl.png|80px]]</td><td style="background: #EEBBBB; font-size:80%; line-spacing: 80%; text-align: justify;">This article or section is about [[Monstergirls]] (or a monster that is frequently depicted as a Monstergirl), something that /tg/ widely considers to be the purest form of [[awesome]]. Expect [[Promotions|PROMOTIONS!]] and [[:/d/|/d/elight]] in equal measure, often with drawfaggotry or writefaggotry to match.</td></tr></table></center>
[[Category:Monstergirls]]
<noinclude>[[Category:Wiki-templates]]</noinclude>

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<td style="background: #FDFD96; font-size:100%; line-spacing: 80%; text-align: justify;">
<font color=#000000> '''This Article is a Work In Progress!'''</font></td>
<td style="background: #FDFD96;">[[File:Wip.png|60px]]</td></tr></table></div></center>

<noinclude>This template is for articles which are unfinished, but are '''currently being worked on'''; where applicable it may be better to use this instead of <nowiki>{{Stub}}. Consider {{Abandoned}} or {{Rubbish}} if the page/project is no longer likely to be completed, or {{Stub}}</nowiki> if insufficient information currently exists to make a complete article.</noinclude>
[[Category:Work In Progess]]
<noinclude>[[Category:Wiki-templates]]</noinclude>

Category:Age of Sigmar Templates

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[[Category:Age of Sigmar]]
[[Category:Wiki-templates]]

Template:AoS-Champions

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<center>
{|border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2 style="margin: 1em; border: 2px solid black;"
|-
!align=center bgcolor="A05050" | The [[Chaos Champion]]s of the [[Age of Sigmar]]
|-
| align=center | [[Archaon]] - [[Warhammer Underworlds#The Wurmspat|Fecula Flyblown]] - [[Warhammer Underworlds#Garrek's Reavers|Garrek Gorebeard]] - [[Glottkin]] - [[Glutos Orscollion]] - [[Warhammer Underworlds#Khagra's Ravagers|Khagra the Usurper]] <br> [[Korghos Khul]] - [[Warhammer Underworlds#Magore's Fiends|Magore Redhand]] - [[Marakarr Blood-Sky]] - [[Maggoth Lords]] - [[Rokar Gresh]] <br>[[Sigvald]] - [[Syll'Esske]] - [[Warhammer Underworlds#Godsworn Hunt|Theddra Skull-Scryer]] - [[Vorgaroth the Scarred and Skalok]] - [[Warhammer Underworlds#Eyes of the Nine|Vortemis the All-Seeing]]
|}</center>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Chaos]]<noinclude>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]</noinclude>

Template:AoS-Gitz

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<center>
{|border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2 style="margin: 1em; border: 2px solid black;"
|-
!align=center colspan=9 bgcolor="#008141" | <span style="color:White">Age of <strike>Sigmar</strike> ‘AMMER GIT BOSSES</span>
|-
| align=right | '''[[Orcs|Orruks]]:''' ||[[Dakkbad Grotkicka]] - [[Gobsprakk]] - [[Gordrakk]] - [[Skumdrekk]]
|-
| align=right | '''[[Goblins|Grots]]:''' ||[[Skragrott]] - [[Snazzgar Stinkmullett]]
|}
</center>

[[Category: Age of Sigmar]]
<noinclude>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]</noinclude>

Template:AoS-Gods

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<center>
{|border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2 style="margin: 1em; border: 2px solid black;"
|-
!align=center colspan=1 bgcolor="Yellow" | <span style="color:Blue"> The Grand Pantheon of [[Age of Sigmar]] </span>
|-
| align=center | [[Alarielle#Age of Sigmar|Alarielle]] - [[Gorkamorka (Deity)|Gorkamorka]] ([[Gork]] + [[Mork]]) - [[Grimnir]] - [[Grungni]] - [[Malekith|Malerion]] - [[Nagash]] - [[Sigmar]] - [[Teclis]] - [[Tyrion]]
|}
</center>
[[Category:Age of Sigmar]]
[[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]
<noinclude>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]</noinclude>

Template:AoS-Realms

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<center>
{|border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2 style="margin: 1em; border: 2px solid black;"
|-
!align=center colspan=5 bgcolor="Yellow" | <span style="color:Blue"> The Nine Realms of the [[Age of Sigmar]] </span>
|-
| || || align=center | [[Hysh]]
|-
| || align=center | [[Ghur]] || || align=center | [[Chamon]]
|-
| [[Aqshy]] || align=center colspan=3 | [[Realm of Chaos]] || align=center | [[Ghyran]]
|-
| || align=center | [[Shyish]] || || align=center | [[Azyr]]
|-
| || || align=center | [[Ulgu]]
|}
</center>
[[Category:Realms of Age Sigmar]][[Category:Age of Sigmar]]<noinclude>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]</noinclude>

Template:AoS-Stub

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<center><table><tr><td><div style="border:1px solid #000000"><div style="border:2px solid #BBEEBB"><div style="background: #BBEEBB">[[File:Age of Sigmar Title.png|40px]]<font size=1> This article related to the [[Warhammer: Age of Sigmar]] is a stub. You can help 1d4chan by [{{fullurl:{{FULLPAGENAME}}|action=edit}} expanding it]</font></div></div></div></td></tr></table></center>[[Category:Age of Sigmar stubs]]<noinclude>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]</noinclude>

Template:AOSRulebooks

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<includeonly>'''Faction rules and abilities''': ''Battletome {{{tome}}}''
{{#if:{{{additional|}}}|<p>'''Additional rules''': ''{{{additional}}}''</p>|}}
{{#if:{{{FW|}}}|<p>'''Forgeworld warscrolls''': ''[https://www.forgeworld.co.uk/resources/PDF/fw_warscrolls/aos-monstrous-arcanum.pdf Monstrous Arcanum]''</p>|}}
'''Latest Matched play points''': ''{{{points|Battletome {{{tome}}}}}}''

'''Core rules''': [https://ageofsigmar.com/core-rules/ here]

'''Matched play rules, battleplans and expansions''': ''General's Handbook 2022-23 Season 2'', plus the battleplans from the ''Core Book''.

Supplement all the above with any ''Errata'' and ''Designers' Commentary'' from the [https://www.warhammer-community.com/faqs/ FAQs].</includeonly><noinclude>

Used to list all the various books you'll need to play AOS for a given faction.

== Parameters ==
<pre>
tome = name of the faction battletome
points = where the latest points are
FW = set to any string to list the Monstrous Arcanum
additional = any additional rulebooks
</pre>

== Examples ==
<pre>
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Sylvaneth (2019)|points=[https://www.warhammer-community.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/40ad8aeb.pdf Sylvaneth Errata]}}
</pre>
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Sylvaneth (2019)|points=[https://www.warhammer-community.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/40ad8aeb.pdf Sylvaneth Errata]}}

<pre>
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Gloomspite Gitz|FW=1|additional=white dwarf}}
</pre>
{{AOSRulebooks|tome=Gloomspite Gitz|FW=1|additional=white dwarf}}

[[Category:Age of Sigmar]] [[Category:Age of Sigmar/Tactics]][[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]

</noinclude>

Template:Destruction-Gods

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<center>
{|border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2 style="margin: 1em; border: 2px solid black;"
|-
!align=center colspan=1 bgcolor="Green" | <span style="color:White"> Gods of Destruction </span>
|-
| align=center | [[Bad Moon]] - [[Fire Mouth]] - [[Gorkamorka (Deity)|Gorkamorka]] ([[Gork]] - [[Mork]]) - [[Everwinter]] - [[Great Maw|Gulping God]] - [[Kragnos]] - [[Spider-God]]
|}
</center>
[[Category:Warhammer Fantasy]][[Category:Age of Sigmar]][[Category:40k and Fantasy Gods]]<noinclude>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]</noinclude>

Template:Idoneth Deepkin-Units

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<center>
{|class="mw-collapsible mw-collapsed table" border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=2 style="margin: 1em; border: 2px solid black;"
|-
!align=center colspan=4 bgcolor="#0000FF" | <span style="color:Dark Blue"> [[Idoneth Deepkin]] Units </span>
|-
| align=right|'''Akhelian:''' || [[Akhelian King]] - [[Akhelian Guard]] - [[Allopex]] - [[Leviadon]]
|-
| align=right|'''Isharann:''' || [[Tidecaster]] - [[Soulscryer]] - [[Soulrender]]
|-
| align=right|'''Namarti:''' || [[Namarti Thralls]] - [[Namarti Reavers]]
|}
</center>
[[Category:Age of Sigmar]][[Category:Idoneth Deepkin]] <noinclude>[[Category:Age of Sigmar Templates]]</noinclude>

Warhammer 40,000

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{{Awesome}}

[[Image:WH40Klogo.gif|WH40Klogo.gif|center]]

[[File:40k NewLogo 1000px.png|frameless|center|444px|]]

{{topquote|Do not wait for the Last Judgment. It takes place every day.|Albert Camus}}

{{topquote|It is the 41st Millennium. For more than a hundred centuries The Emperor has sat immobile on the Golden Throne of Earth. He is the Master of Mankind by the will of the gods, and master of a million worlds by the might of his inexhaustible armies. He is a rotting carcass writhing invisibly with power from the Dark Age of Technology. He is the Carrion Lord of the Imperium for whom a thousand souls are sacrificed every day, so that he may never truly die. <br> Yet even in his deathless state, the Emperor continues his eternal vigilance. Mighty battlefleets cross the daemon-infested miasma of the Warp, the only route between distant stars, their way lit by the Astronomican, the psychic manifestation of the Emperor's will. Vast armies give battle in his name on uncounted worlds. Greatest amongst his soldiers are the Adeptus Astartes, the Space Marines, bio-engineered super-warriors. Their comrades in arms are legion: the Imperial Guard and countless planetary defence forces, the ever vigilant Inquisition and the tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus to name only a few. But for all their multitudes, they are barely enough to hold off the ever-present threat from aliens, heretics, mutants - and worse. <br> To be a man in such times is to be one amongst untold billions. It is to live in the cruelest and most bloody regime imaginable. These are the tales of those times. Forget the power of technology and science, for so much has been forgotten, never to be re-learned. Forget the promise of progress and understanding, '''for in the grim darkness of the far future there is only war.''' There is no peace amongst the stars, only an eternity of carnage and slaughter, and the laughter of thirsting gods.|"The standard intro to every Imperium-centered written work from the 40K universe, first spoken by Vulkan, Primarch of the XVIII Legiones Astartes "Salamanders"}}

{{topquote|Warhammer Fantasy is Lord Of The Rings on a cocktail of steroids and GBH. And Warhammer 40000 is the above on a cocktail of every drug known to man and genuine lunar dust, stuck in a blender with Alien, Mechwarrior, Starship Troopers and Star Wars, bathed in blood, turned up to eleventy billion, set on fire, and catapulted off into space screaming WAAAGH! and waving a chainsaw sword.|TV Tropes, This Is Your Premise on Drugs}}

{{topquote|1=Basically life sucks, there's only war and you're probably going to get eaten by [[Tyranids]]. Have fun.|2=TotalBiscuit, May the Emperor guide his soul to peace, [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MeVxKZBOfM Warhammer 40k Lore in a Minute]''}}

[[Image:Titan_Space_Marines.jpg|right|thumb|350px|In the grim darkness of the far future, there is only war. And awesome.]]
'''''Warhammer 40,000''''' is the sci-fi equivalent of [[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]] and is also a tabletop wargame produced by [[Games Workshop]], currently in its [[Warhammer_40,000_10th_Edition|10th edition]]. It [[Grimdark|depicts a dystopian hellhole of a future]] where the majority of the human race, in the form of the gargantuan [[Imperium|Imperium of Man]], is the dominant but dwindling force in the galaxy (even though the lore says the Imperium is constantly expanding for ten thousand years and is at its largest ever size...ugh, GW) and constantly (and we mean CONSTANTLY) at war against [[Heretic|themselves]], [[Daemon|Space Demons]], [[Tau|Space Communists]], [[Tyranids|Space Bugs of Death]], [[ork|space fungi people addicted to fighting]], [[Eldar|Space Elves]], [[Dark Eldar|evil BDSM Space Elves]], <s> [[Squat|Space Dwarfs 1.0]] </s>, [[Leagues_of_Votann|Space Dwarfs 2.0]] and [[Necron|Organics-Hating Robot Mummies]]... from space, for their survival as a species.
In a universe constantly at war, don't get your hopes up of finding anyone "good" by normal standards. No faction is "good", all factions act toward their own interests, and that's it. The closest to what modern humans may view as the factions with justified villainy are the Imperium (doing anything to keep humanity alive, but also horrified by its deeds to survive) and the Tyranids (who are really just eating to live and reproduce like any other life). Everyone else is either doing evil for fun, for extra fun, because they're brainwashed, because they were genetically engineered for it, because they're jealous of everyone else and that fuels their hatred, or because they worship daemon gods. You may, maybe, find decent individuals in certain factions, but if you came to play the hero who saves the damsel while making everyone happy, then you're in the wrong place.
It's more or less Victorian England (with a bit of pseudo Middle Ages mixed in for good measure) and instead of jolly merry fellows with glorious sideburns, you get jolly merry fellows who are also murderous orks, and genetically enhanced macho-men who beat up and get beaten up by said orks and a variety of other aliens.

If you care about 40k, start killing 10th edition players! Death to 10th edition and competitive gaming!

There are sort of fanon prequels such as Event Horizon and Chainsaw Warrior.

==In the Grim Dark Future==
{{Grimdark}}
[[File:Silvian locke.jpg|250px|right|thumb|Women of the 41st millennium. Outrageously attractive, but this Imperial Navy captain is not here to impress you.]]
The motto is: "In the grim darkness of the 41st Millennium, there is only war." Warhammer 40k even gave rise to the word "grimdark." Set in the [[Advancing the Storyline|seemingly never-ending]] year 999 of the 41st Millennium, Humanity, now united under the Imperium of Man, will go to any ends to protect itself from an endless tide of enemies, including the onslaught of time itself - though they seem to have adopted a peace treaty of some sort, given that they finally reached M42 as of 8th Edition.

From the [[Eye of Terror]] come the dreaded Legions of [[Chaos]], psychopathic mutants, slavering daemons and relentless heretics that have together waged a 10,000-year war against the Imperium. The mysterious, near-extinct and technologically superior [[Eldar]] pursue their own ends, which often conflict with that of the Imperium, while their fucked-up brethren, the [[Dark Eldar]], enslave, torture, and rape anyone they get their hands on. From another galaxy come the [[Tyranids]], a pure-biological hive-minded insectoid colossus that lives only to consume all life. The robotic [[Necrons]], one of the oldest races in the galaxy, who strive to reclaim the galaxy for their own, have began to re-awaken on their [[Tomb World]]s. The [[Orks]], green-skinned war-worshipping monsters that are MADE FER FIGHTIN' AN' WINNIN', that have the monopoly on MOAR [[Dakka|DAKKA]], as well as outnumbering everyone else put together except the Tyranids. The [[Tau]], a progressive and technologically-advanced race of [[weeaboo]] communists, crusade for "the Greater Good" with forced sterilizations and brainwashing.

Standing in defence of the Imperium of Man are the numberless regiments of regular military men and women known as the [[Imperial Guard]], the tech-worshipping weirdos of the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Legio Cybernetica [[Titan (Warhammer 40,000)|Titan]]/[[Imperial Knight|Knight]] Legions, and last but ohh-no-not-least; the legendary [[Space Marine]] Chapters, genetically engineered immortal super-warrior-monks that only live to fight the Imperium's foes. Meanwhile, the [[Sisters of Battle]], [[The_666_Rituals_of_Detestation|Grey]] [[Grey Knights|Knights]], [[Inquisition]], and Officio Assassinorum (Latin for Office of Assassins. They do pretty much exactly what it says on the tin) safeguard the Imperium from internal threats like heretics, traitors, mutants, furries, and daemonic possessions.

In case you haven't guessed, this premise and 40K's official tagline (''In the grim darkness of the far future, there is only war!'') is the origin of the term [[grimdark]]. Not knowing this is [[heresy]] - which, incidentally is also derived from this setting.

==Background==
[[Image:Warhammer Canon.png|300px|righ|thumb|Just keep in mind before the internet slap fight starts about which Smurf is the Captain in which battle that the creators care about less than you.]]

'''Important Note:''' In 40K there is a parallel dimension where the gods of Chaos (the grimdark supervillains) and other Pantheons exist and where all psykers - the setting's equivalent of wizards - draw their power from, known as the Warp. It is also Warp navigation that forms the 40K take on FTL (Faster-Than-Light) travel. The Warp is a batshit insane place, full of things that want to fuck you and your brain inside out, and as such, being a psyker is very dangerous. Basically everybody but the Emperor are under the danger of having their head explode every time they channel Warp powers. It goes without saying that using the Warp as FTL-travel will also result in a grade A clusterfucking, if the ship is not protected with some sort of shielding (the [[Gellar_Field|Gellar Field]]). The Warp affects every race in 40K in some major or minor way (except the Tau, who are too young as a species to produce psykers (this is a [[skub]], though), the Necrons, who are the ANTI-Warp race, and the Tyranids, who by some unexplained means block out the Warp). The Warp is the very source of Chaos itself, as it is the dimension of feelings and spontaneity, creation and destruction.
[[Image:Promethean_Sun.jpg|300px|left|thumb|Space elves riding dinosaurs with heatlances is a part of this setting. Just like that. Your [[Star Trek]]s wouldn't do that shit now would it?]]
'''Settle down, kids and elders, grab your favorite snack and beverage, because it's now time for some TL;DR!:'''

Once upon a time, humanity had a much more [[Dark Age of Technology|optimistic and peaceful interstellar empire]] that got [[Age of Strife|royally fucked]] thanks to [[Men of Iron|a bunch]] [[Fall of the Eldar|of assholes]]. That was the main reason of humanity's distrust of xenos and artificial intelligence. But all was not lost: there came the [[God-Emperor_of_Mankind|EMPRAH]]. There are no words in the human language that can describe his radiant levels of awesome, but basically he told the human race to do his will and they did (<s>millions</s>billions died in the process, but that's a "hush-hush subject"). He started the tedious task of re-conquering planets and systems that mankind had lost in the distant past and discovering many thousands of new ones, with the aid of the Emperor's loyal Army (now [[Imperial Guard]]), the machines of the allied Mechanicum and 20 [[SPESS MEHREENS|SPESS MEHREEN]] Legions composed of up to 250,000 superhuman soldiers ''each'' (before 2 went missing, then half of the remainder turned heretic, and then the remaining loyalists were decentralized and re-organized into Chapters of 1,000 warriors each), personally led by His 20 [[Primarch|demigod sons]] as generals with each specific role in his Empire. In the process, they destroyed countless alien races and civilizations for the crime of not wanting to embrace the human way of life (well, there were some actual assholes in the bunch, but the Emprah took a "better safe than sorry" approach), as well as killing millions of humans for the crime of not being "Terran" enough. This period of history, this time of many moronic misunderstandings, would be additionally remembered as The Time of Scarlet Foreheads, due to the near-endless amount of facepalms produced by the population. But the Emperor did all this for great justice, so that makes it okay.

The Space Marine Legions, 20 of them in total, were the main specialist force during this Great Crusade, lasting 200 years. Despite their minuscule numbers comparatively to the human Army Corps, they were, however, the manliest skullfuckers in the galaxy at the time. The only thing that could beat the Space Marines were other Space Marines. That jinx. It's kind of like when the ''Titanic'' began it's maiden voyage and some fucktard said: "God himself could not sink this ship". And so it happened of course.

[[Image:Drive_me_Closer.jpg|right|thumb|300px|40K: Never letting practicality get in the way of manliness.]]

A guy named Horus, the Primarch chosen "Warmaster" by the Emperor to lead the closing decenniums of Great Crusade, while the Emperor went back to Terra to work on some super secret pwn-the-galaxy scheme, accidentally fucked everything up. [[Horus Heresy|Succumbing to the whispers of the Chaos gods]] (& his own deep seated "Daddy Issues"), he led a third of the Imperium's armies straight to Terra where he attempted to fuck up the Emperor's Palace and obviously the Empra himself. The siege took too long and in an attempt to end it quickly, the Emperor teleported to Horus's flagship for some glorious hand-to-face face-to-hand close combat. The Emperor won, but was seven levels of "fucked up" by the fight and had to be attached to a life-support machine known as the Golden Throne, where he has remained for ten millennia as a super-psychic vegetable.

'''Cue atmospheric lights, deep ambient music and [[grimdark]].'''

[[Image:Warhammer.jpg|left|thumb|350px|"GOD HIMSELF COULD NOT SINK THIS GAME!" (note: they said the same about the Titanic, [[Rocks fall, everyone dies|where is the Titanic now]]?) Alt: No, [[Slaanesh]]! back! Not that kind of mansauce!]]

During this time, the confused and stressed out humanity did everything in their power to fuck up the Emperor's vision of the [[Imperium of Man]]. With the Emperor no longer in charge, the total IQ of the Imperium's leadership dropped by about 99%. The Imperium has now become a nightmarishly bureaucratic, totalitarian militaristic state, governed by unforgiving commanders and extremistic religious fundamentalists, while all of this is fueled by some good ol' fashioned ignorance. At some point, the term "heresy" was reinvented by the Imperium as a blanket term to cover every single act a human being could possibly commit for good or for worse, that any amoral Imperial Official subjectively deems as countering the interests of the Imperium or whoever else in charge. Disagreeing with this treatment of heresy is itself heresy.

Even though we are humans, and this universe is created by us, far from everything revolves around the Imperium, however. Which is pretty awesome and makes the setting just a bunch more nuanced and richer.

After the Horus Heresy, the armies of Chaos fled into a section of disturbed warp-space known as the Eye of Terror, where they are pretty much safe from the Imperium until they leave ''en masse'' in what is known as "Black Crusades". There have been 13 so far, and most Imperial scholars are confused as to what every of these Crusades had a goal to accomplish, because they all seemed to aim high, failed low, but somehow succeeded in helping Chaos to establish a minor foothold in the Imperium. [[Just As Planned]].

The [[Eldar]], one of the most ancient races in the galaxy and literally space-elves, are the source of the aforementioned Eye of Terror. Back in the old days, like ''millions of years'', the Eldar had a galaxy-spanning empire too. Except instead of enjoying themselves the classical way of constantly fighting for their own existence and accusing each other of heresy, they indulged in fuckhueg amounts of hedonism. After one too many cocaine-and-alcohol-fueled underage orgies, the fabric of the material universe tore open and created the unstable warp-realspace phenomenon known as the Eye of Terror. I know it sounds completely bizarre and childishly hilarious, but what do you expect of a dumbed down and shortened version of the event? The sex-fueled explosion also wiped out like 80% of the Eldar race and birthed the fourth major Chaos god, [[Slaanesh]], the Prince of Pleasure and Excess. Created by <s>their own desires</s>sexing it into being, the Eldar race basically now "belongs" to Slaanesh and so when they die, their souls go to his little section of the Warp to be tormented for all eternity (unless they store their own souls in living gems called Spirit Stones). Whoops. despite all of this, some (Dark) Eldar kept being decadent fucks and pissed off to the dark hidden city of Commorragh, but most became very [[Serious Business|srs bsns]] mopey living-in-the-past elves, consumed with manipulating the future for their own ends, to preserve their dying race, now that and all the alcohol, sex and cocaine belongs to Slaanesh.

[[Ork]]ses iz da biggest 'n' da strongest, and they have been around for as long as the Eldar. They are somewhat more numerous these days, that with their method of reproduction consists of an Ork scratching himself and by shedding some of his skin, seeding a few more Orks in the ground (Egghead tip: Orks are alien mixotrophs with a reproduction cycle similar to fungi). Basic understanding of technology, medicine and warp manipulation is genetically-encoded within them and occasionally express themselves in certain breeds of Orks, creating mechanics, doctors, natural leaders and a slew of other "oddboy" Orks. Occasionally they throw a [[WAAAGH]]! and blow away big chunks of the galaxy and anything that lives there.

The [[Necron]]s are so old and pissed off that even your grandma wouldn't fuck with them. They started the first (and still biggest) [[War in Heaven|galactic war]] and kicked so much ass that it created the Warp. ''The Eldar and Orks were created to stop the advance of these skeletal nihilists.'' They eradicated most part of intelligent life in the galaxy and then decided to take a lil' nap. Now that they've given the intelligent races a somewhat 60 million year fighting chance, they're back and more pissed than ever. Their goal is to cleanse the galaxy of all life, though the Tyranids may have something to say about that (NOT. Tyranids are avoiding Necrons like an over-sized gonad. Primarily because they realized that Necrodermis isn't a very good nom-nom. Also, [[Games Workshop|geedubs]] realised that having the 'nids face off against these immortal metal skeletons would actually be a decent fight...so obviously they didn't do anything). The future plans, goals and "wishes" of the Necrons seem to be in a constant state of [[skub]], both within the lore, the fans, the writers and the Necrons themselves. Look, it's fucking complicated and i'd advise you to read all their past codices if you want to know more. Nevertheless, it's still an interesting read.

The [[Tyranid]]s have been around for nobody-knows how long, as they come from another galaxy. There's like, a fuckton of them. As much as you can count at any given time. Yes, even if you're a mathematician or a physics student. There is speculation that they might be running for their lives from something even more scary. It has been theorized by Imperial scholars that the Tyranids will eventually bring forth a massive Hive fleet that would consume everything, however, this is said to be kept back by something more powerful than the Emperor and Chaos combined: [[GW]]'s refusal to [[Advancing the Storyline|move the WH40K storyline forward]]."[[Warhammer 40,000 8th edition|At least with any races but the human ones]]."

The [[Tau]] are a five thousand years old civilization and have advanced from spears and loincloths to a technological level slightly beyond that of Imperium (and constantly upgrading just like the Steam-app) although since their world was engulfed by a Warp storm and those tend to fuck over time, they may be five million years old for all anyone knows. They expand symmetrically in all directions with their home-world T'au in the center, but don't have warp drives yet, and thus rely on FTL travel (they hadn't even had FTL tech at all until the 3rd Sphere Expansion). The Tau have a real penchant for advancing their society rapidly, however, they are Space Communists and as such have no future. In the grim darkness of far future, Tau are the only ones who prefer to talk before shooting and aren't xenophobic, because they recognize the advantages of creating an empire of mixed species. They often give aliens assimilated into their society citizenship and tech, and even claim to treat them as equals, though in fact aliens are always second-class citizens (and brainwashed by pheromones and re-socialization camps). Despite this, their standard of life sucks much less in comparison to Imperium of Man (unless you live on a Civilized World of the Imperium like some humans do, then your life is quite good and generally quite advanced). Their empire is too small to have an impact on the grand scheme of things, but survives and thrives despite Chaos incursions, Necron forces, Hive Fleets, and encounters with the Eldar thanks to all factions not caring enough to put in true effort into wiping them out beyond a token gesture or just the dregs of a far larger force stumbling across the Tau. Sometimes the Imperium accidentally saves them from real threats by destroying those threats from behind without realizing if they'd just waited a little on that then they'd have one less enemy plaguing them.

==The Hobby==
===The tabletop===
[[File:The Dawn.jpg|300px|thumb|right|Space Marines always steal the spotlight from all the other races and factions. Blood Ravens steal everything else. Except for the Glory. That belongs exclusively to the [[Galactic Partridges]].]]

Playing the tabletop game of W40k involves the placement of the small plastic and metal models that represent each unit onto a 6'x4' tabletop battlefield. This could be anything from a sterile kitchen bench to a detailed hand-crafted board complete with forests, ruins, rocks, bunkers etc. Terrain is an important part of the game, as the 40K shooting rules rely on "true line of sight" to target any given unit. Terrain can also be used to either player's (and race's) advantage to block units and vehicles and to provide extra protection against shooting, even if within range and line of sight. Difficult and Dangerous Terrains can also hinder movement or even kill models, because sometimes it IS possible for [[Derp|a tank the size of the Sydney Opera House to destroy its tracks on a stray log.]]

The rules for the game are drawn from the ''Warhammer 40K'' Rulebook, sold by [[Games Workshop]] as well as the supplementing 'Codex' books. While the Rulebook provides all the general rules required to play the game, the Codex books, one for each race and some factions, provide specific rules such as unit statistics, wargear and point costs.

====Missions====
There are many game modes you can [[Cities of Death|play]], no matter what race you are pitted up against. You can either decide to kill each other's units and then in the end count how many points all the dead models add up to and if that number is higher or lower than the opponent's death-count. You can capture a beforehand-decided amount of objectives on the board (that can additionally either buff or nerf units controlling them) or just have a single objective to fight over, resulting in a hilarious game of [[tarpit|tar-pits]] and clusterfucks.
Some missions require the opponents to deploy and act differently, depending on mission-specific side-objectives and/or special rules. Most importantly of all, you can decide and combine any missions in a single game and play however you want. '''[[Rule Zero]]''' and homebrew rules and scenarios are king.

====Units====
[[File:Jump Troopers.jpg|350px|right|thumb|"With great balls I shall clad them"- Big E on Guardsmen]]

Each unit in 40K, whether an Imperial Guardsman, a Daemon Prince or a Falcon Grav-Tank, has a set of 'characteristics' that are compared to the statistics of whatever they are attacking to ascertain whatever roll may be necessary on a D6 to succeed in their action. The characteristics are as follows: Movement (M), Weapon Skill (WS), Ballistic Skill (BS), Strength (S), Toughness (T), Wounds (W), Attacks (A), Leadership (Ld) and Armour/Invulnerable Save (Sv). For vehicles; '''in 7th edition and [[Horus Heresy|Age of Darkness]]''' games it is simplified to Frontal, Side and Rear armor ratings, hull points (HP), and Ballistic Skill (BS). Certain units that are a mix between vehicle and infantry/monster, such as Walkers, who retain the Armour ratings and hull points in place of Toughness and Wounds, but use all remaining characteristics as well. '''In the latest edition, this was done away with for brevity.''' Depending on the type of attack made (shooting, assault, psychic, etc), different characteristics are used to resolve the attack. Some special close combat weapons, such as Power Fists, will enhance the characteristics of the user or provide other support bonuses. When shooting, the separate statistics of the weapon fired also come into play.

All units also have a "point cost", representing their overall worth and rarity in an army. There are a number of rules concerning selecting an army from a Codex army book, but one of the most important is the points limit. The points limit is the method used in W40k as an upper limit to army size and/or power. The most common type of W40k game is set at 1,500 points. For comparison, the average squad of 10 Imperial Guardsmen is worth around 60 points, and a Space Marine intercessor squad of the same size is worth 200 points. A single Grey Knight Dreadnought is 130 points. With any unit, upgrades can greatly increase their points cost and effectiveness. Fully-equipped Independent Characters can reach well over 100 points, for example, and the aforementioned squads will usually be equipped with more expensive heavy weapons, squad leaders, or other equipment. Army selection can be limited by the codex's Force Organization Chart; every unit is categorized as HQ, Troop, Elite, Fast Attack, Flyers, Heavy Support, or Lords of War, and the Force Organization Chart specifies the minimum and maximum number of each type of units any army may field in a single game. You may choose to ignore these charts and field whatever you like within the points value, but do so with a disadvantage in certain army-specific powers called Strategems.

Units usually fight as squads, though there are many exceptions. All infantry are formed into a squad with similar units and usually a squad leader (i.e. a squad of Ork Slugga Boyz led by a Nob or a squad of Guardsmen led by Sarge). Units such as vehicles/walkers (Tau Hammerhead, Baal Predator) are usually, but not always (in case of Sentinels and Jetbikes) fielded as a lone unit.

The role of hero units, known as ''Characters'', is an important one in 40K. They are the leaders for each army and one of the most powerful types of unit available to any player. Characters have the distinction of being able to operate as a single model. They can also be fluff-actual, named characters with their own history and unique appearance (such as Celestine the Living Saint), while others like a Space Marine Captain or an Ork Warboss are generic commanders. Both kinds can have a massive impact on the game, especially in the Shooting and Assault phases where their greatly enhanced weapons and abilities can be brought to bear and cause a big amount of [[Rage]] from the opposing player, or in area buffs, which greatly increase the effectiveness of nearby friendly troops.

Characters who are under a certain size (read: not FUCKHUEG) cannot be targeted if not the closest model to the enemy without special rules helping the enemy (e.g. a squad of red scorpions tactical marines cannot dive in front of a leviathan dreadnought). Let the plebs take the hits.

====Phases====
[[Image:Sighing_Marine.jpg‎ |right|thumb|200px|If I ever find the fucker who nerfed Rhino Rush...]]

'''Be wary of the [[skub]]by tone the following sections are written in, because a dispute reigns about how some in-game mechanics are not realistic, but must be applied anyway.'''

The game is divided into seven phases: the Command Phase, the Movement Phase, the Psychic Phase, the Shooting Phase, the Charge Phase, the Fight Phase, and the Morale Phase - each forming a part of each individual player's turn. Quite simply, the Command Phase is for using abilities, the Movement Phase is for movement only, the Psychic Phase is for casting psychic powers, the Shooting Phase is for shooting (or rarely moving), while the charge phase is for trying to get your dudes into gloriously bloody combat, and the fight phase is for resolving said gloriously bloody combats. The morale phase is for seeing if any of your dudes run away after taking casualties in their unit.

To resolve Shooting, players first check to see if they are in range; '''if''' they are, they roll to hit; '''if''' they hit, they roll to wound; '''if''' they wound, the enemy rolls saves. The same rules apply no matter how close the shooter is to the target, though many units can’t shoot if right next to an enemy, and certain weapons fire twice as many shots at closer range, which on second thought makes even less sense. Seriously, people are bad shots in the 41st millennium. (Imagine news footage of pirate gunmen who are shooting from the hip with AK's even though they're not fast drawing, or holding said AK's in front of them in willful disregard that rifle butts go on shoulders, who can't even hold their guns level to fire aimed shots, let alone look down the gunsights, all the while standing in the middle of the street, which they can do because the guys downrange are doing the exact same thing. I don't know if I should cry or laugh.) Thus, [[derp|while within the maximum range of the weapon, neither range nor cover makes you harder to hit]] (although cover does grant a bonus to the save roll of the target).

It's maybe for this reason that individuals in the 41st millennium like to carry outrageously huge and outlandish shooting and melee weapons and [[Ork|like to get stuck in]] with them. The Fight Phase is resolved about the same as the Shooting Phase (which at least makes more sense, since you can parry a sword, but you can't parry a hypervelocity slug, let alone a high energy plasma ball of death or a coherent, high intensity light beam, examples in other works of fiction notwithstanding), melee combat once begun can be disengaged from (but those who Fall Back forfeit their ability to shoot or charge in their next turn), and units not engaged in melee combat can't fire upon combatants in melee. Also, generally speaking, the fight phase is the only phase which happens for both sides every turn - you get to engage in vigorous melee combat on both your turn '''and''' your enemy's turn.

Hit rolls for soldiers in a squad can be rolled together, as can saving rolls. As yet, the gameplay mechanics genii at Games Workshop have not conceived of some physics-defying method by which more than one die can be rolled simultaneously to represent the myriad possible results to an individual unit, such as a tank, and so tragically gamers are still forced to roll to hit, and to roll for wounding, first one and then the other. (Although it's thought by many this is deliberate to draw out the tension and suspense, since victory can hang on these successive rolls. It's also thought W40k players could instead play back alley craps games for the same effect, and save some money in the process.)

In the 41st millennium, military engineers have not yet devised an effective targeting or guidance system that would enable a tank killer to fire on enemy armor (tank sized targets) with confidence of hitting these targets, at the ranges typical of combat in this futuristic era. As such, infantry are frequently tragically forced to engage in melee combat against such armored monstrosities with chainswords, handfuls of potatomasher grenades, and standard issue steel balls.

Both shooting units (e.g. Space Marine Eradicators) and assault units (e.g. Dark Eldar Wyches) have great but very different roles to play. The 40K rulebook describes the manner in which the many varying unit attributes in 40K interrelate. At the end of the Turn, when casualties on both sides have been resolved from shooting and fighting, Leadership (Ld) tests of all sorts must be made. These test how many models from each unit that has taken casualties turn craven and run away, if any. The number of models that run depend on the amount of casualties taken, the highest Ld characteristic in the unit, and a D6 roll made by the controlling player. In this manner an army can be destroyed without actually killing each individual unit, as units that ''flee'' off the board are not allowed to return in the following turns.

====General 40k Tactics====
Contrary to popular belief, you *can* actually apply tactics to 40k beyond the "hurl-your-units-or-park-them-in-front-of-a-gunline-and-yell-for-your-respective-god". You will sometimes be called a cheesemongering win-at-all-costs bastard, because why treat toy soldiers you paid craptons of money for like pawns in a chess-game? [[Skub|Am i rite?]] Building your army-list is a very important part of this, but given two balanced lists, victory tends to go to the better general (or the far luckier one... <s>some days, the dice *really* hate you</s> the dice always hate you). Tactics are gladly discussed [[Warhammer_40,000/Tactics_(9E)|here]]. There are also myriad tactics articles for pretty much every current army with rules, for 8e, 7e, 6e and sometimes 5e.

===Collecting===
There are three elements to ''Warhammer 40K'': The lore, the gameplay and the collecting/modeling. In the same way that the average powergamer in any game will not give two fucks about the background or modeling and that the writer of most of this article would take the background over the gameplay any day, the modeling is something that can replace the other two elements of the game completely. As the game relies on models to represent every unit in an army, and is supported by a massive plethora of awesome artwork, there are great opportunities for the more artistic among us to use those lovely, juicy artist brains of theirs.

[[Image:Chapter_Master_Leonidas.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Chapter Master Leonidas is among the few non-Space Wolf or Imperial Fists Space Marines who's manly enough for a beard. Also, yes that’s an angry Lego stud on the top of the banner.]]

''Warhammer 40K'' models are sold for outrageous sums by Games Workshop in boxed sets produced by Citadel Miniatures. For a while, Citadel released their "[[Finecast]]" line of models, which are basically the same metal models cast in a pseudo-plastic-resin-thingy; very detailed with the caveat that the models have problems with bubbling on the board. Thankfully, most models are now in legit plastic, but you may still need to depend on Finecast for more detailed hero characters or the occasional specialized bitz. Games Workshop also owns Forgeworld, who sell ridiculously expensive and equally ridiculously awesome resin kits of alternative 40K models. These models must be glued together by hand, and this leaves quite some room for customization, better known as "conversion". Conversion consists of everything from gluing on a different arm or weapon, to using the modelling putty known as 'Green Stuff' to add shapes and layers to the model as you see fit. This can result in anything from a different pistol to a more dynamic pose to something too awesome for this world that Games Workshop never thought of. Hell, conversions are sometimes the best way to fix some of GW's [[Dreadknight|stupidest mistakes]].

Each model must also be painted by hand, and for those who prefer painting to modelling, 40K still provides plenty of opportunities. While the entire GDP of the U.S.A. could not buy a year's worth of Games Workshop painting products, the fact remains that Games Workshop models, some more than others, lend themselves extremely well to a steady hand. The annual Games Workshop-run painting contest, the Golden Demon, is a perfect showcase for the incredible examples of epic that can be made by a good modeler and/or painter.

The biggest problem with collecting 40K is the cost, which has gone up by about 300% in the last decade. To buy yourself a playable 1,500 point army will probably cost hundreds of dollars, and a delicious, customized army of that size or larger (or heaven forbid, a Forgeworld army) will cost you thousands. The smart thing to do is to avoid retail as much as possible, though many people will tell you that you should still try to support your [[Local Game Store]]. (Money, money, money. Isn't it funny? In a rich man's wooorld.)

But it's fucking worth it, because even the ugliest miniatures or worst crunch-wise army are distilled awesome in the proper hands. Seriously, people. A well converted and beautifully painted army are only surpassed by an expositive-scenario (the now-called Armies on Parade) of themselves... unless you are a [[powergamer]].

===Edition History===
* [[Warhammer_40,000:_Rogue_Trader|Rogue Trader (1st Edition)]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_2nd_edition|2nd Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_3rd_Edition|3rd Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_4th_edition|4th Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_5th_edition|5th Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_6th_edition|6th Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_7th_edition|7th Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_8th_edition|8th Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_9th_edition|9th Edition]]
* [[Warhammer_40,000_10th_Edition|10th Edition]]

===Roleplaying===
[[File:Undercover.png|200px|right|thumb|Bling bling, motherfucker]]
Aside from the wargame, ''Warhammer 40,000'' had also [[Blood Ravens|stolen]] into the long night of roleplaying games. Currently, thanks to the limited nature of the setting, there were five roleplaying systems, each focused on particular career / scenario that you can play. You can be:

* [[Dark Heresy|An Inquisitorial Agent]], investigating dangerous cults and heretical traitors in the seedy underbelly of the Imperium. Like [[Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay]], life is cheap and TPKs even cheaper.
* [[Rogue Trader (RPG)|A Rogue Trader]], seeking fame and fortune in the deep unknown of space. It's moar of the same from Dark Heresy, but you get a PERSONAL SPESS SHEEP as well.
* [[Deathwatch (RPG)|A Deathwatch Space Marine]], fighting some of the Imperium's most deadly foes with only your killteam at your side.
* [[Black Crusade (RPG)|A Chaos Worshiper]], both the normal and superhuman variety, seeking the power of the dark gods on a quest for immortality, or face a [[Chaos Spawn|fate worse than death]]. Expect backstabbing (from) fellow players.
* [[Only War|A lowly Imperial Guardsman]], fighting tooth and nail just to stay alive. You will earn your steel balls for certain if you make it through the first day.

Of course, while each game was focused on a specific aspect of the universe, [[All Guardsmen Party|that hasn't stopped]] [[Deffwotch|the creative GM]] [[Thorgun the Barbarian|from mixing and matching]] [[Republican Commando|systems and ideas]] to create their own unique experience. It's 40k, after all. In a universe where [[Psyker|wizards]] and [[Eldar|elves]] exist alongside [[Titan|giant robots]] and [[Plasma|energy weapons]], anything goes.

Unfortunately, nearly all sourcebooks are out of print due to the fact that they were all published by [[Fantasy Flight Games]], and GW let the license expire instead of renewing it, possibly because Fantasy Flight were making their own tabletop miniatures games in similar scales (such as Star Wars: Legion and Runewars) and were moving into direct competition with GW, who then transferred the RPG license to Ulisses and are going to make an entirely new setting and ruleset called '''[[Wrath & Glory]]''', allowing the players to take the role of various Xenos races as well as humans.

===Board Games===
Warhammer figurines can be used to play more conventional board games released by Games Workshop, usually two specific factions featuring a specific set of rules. These board games can be a good source of units for regular WH40K wargames, especially if the game itself costs less than what it would cost to buy each figure individually. Some of these are known as "[[Specialist Games]]", featuring figurines unique to the game themselves (but still part of the Warhammer 40k franchise); for a while they had been discontinued, but are slowly being re-released. Some examples are below:

*[[Space Hulk]]: Take a squad of [[terminator]]s through a derelict space craft while fending off hoards of [[genestealer]]s.
*[[Betrayal at Calth]]: A [[Horus Heresy]] themed battle between the [[Ultramarines]] and the [[Word Bearers]].
*[[Necromunda]]: A gang war between different themed gangs with their own strengths and weaknesses.
*[[Battlefleet Gothic]]: Lead fleets of ships as part of the 12th Black Crusade in classic naval warfare.
*[[Gorkamorka]]: Play as one of four [[Gorkamorka#Factions|ork-themed factions]] competing for control of the planet Gorkamorka, including ork-like human barbarians and [[Gretchin Revolutionary Committee|renegade gretchin]].
*[[Lost Patrol]]: You're going to die in this one. Play as five unlucky scouts who will be ripped to shreds by [[Genestealers]].

==Playable Races & Factions==

===The Imperium of Man===

Most of the setting revolves around the Imperium of Man, which is logical given that it is a fuckhueg empire that gets invaded all the time/point of view for 90% of the lore. Basically evil for the sake of humanity's survival but at least tries to be good when it's safe to do so. The Imperial military is likewise massive and sprawling, with both general-purpose and more specialized armies at its disposal. Each faction will usually fight on its own, working together for specific operations or in large warzones where lots of resources are needed. Sometimes however, being a theocratic dictatorship/monarchy, worlds rebel or regiments turn traitor, forcing Imperial armies to fight one another.

If you want to really mix things up, it's possible to mix-and-match different organizations via the "Imperium" Keyword, allowing you to draw units together as you see fit.

'''[[Space Marines]]/Adeptus Astartes:''' Space Knights with futuristic power armor and [[Bolter|weapons]]. Will seriously fuck your shit up, but are often associated with noob players, because they are the army that GW markets the most, and most starter packs have them. Considered a noob army because they are '''extremely''' easy to play. Their only real disadvantage is that their armies are usually pretty mediocre and low in model count, so they can't afford to lose many. Other than that, they are pretty much the standard by which all other armies are measured to and have no major weaknesses. Once upon a time, weren't quite as hung up on the [[Emprah]], and more [[Beakie|informal]].

Or such is the rhetoric many would like to believe. In reality, Space Marines are the most popular faction and thus they enjoy frequent model and codex updates and releases, to the point of making plenty of other players sick to their stomachs from the sheer pauldron overload. Aside from being the best supported army, getting not one, but multiple updates each edition while the majority of other armies languish and find themselves gridlocked into one or two working gimmicks, the varying flavors of Space Marine produce some of the strongest and most versatile armies in the game. Unlike most armies, which are designed around a notion of specialization, '''which is not always executed well by the codex writers in practice''', Space Marines are treated as experts of all trades, which means they have the broadest variety of strategies at their disposal, which is even included crunch-wise. They can generally give specialist races a run for their money in whatever tactic the specialist army was supposed to be good at - this is made possible by having a good selection of support to make up for the inherent holes in a specialized army. Their popularity, however, is their main weakness; as most armies have become tailored to counter the marines and come out on top.

In short, Space Marines are among the few armies designed to be fairly formless in composition, which is ideal for making a flexible army. After someone's been in the game for a while, Marines can get a little bland from overexposure, but Games Workshop focuses on them very exclusively because they love money, and the business side of the company doesn't really seem to understand and be a part of the game side of things. That is, the Space Marines are the best selling army because they're the most flexible, easiest to build, and the most likely to win with if you're a noob. Rather than balancing the game to even out other races, GW business prefers to maintain the status quo and sell mainly Space Marines. Space Marines account for something near half the playable factions in the game.

Space Marines were divided into Legions during [[Great Crusade|their golden era]], but were later broken up into "Chapters", with about 1,000 Marines each, so that [[Horus Heresy|no one can run off with half the military might of the Imperium again and do whatever they want]].

[[File:Enforcer.jpg|300px|right|thumb|Grimdark female [[Adeptus Arbites|space cop]].]]

The remnants of the original Legions are called First Founding Chapters, and all other Chapters hail from them in some way or another:
*[[Ultramarines]]: The cool Joe Everyman of the Marines, these dudes focus a lot on honor and [[Tau|adaptable strategy]], though they tend to adhere to [[Codex Astartes|dogma]] a bit too much. Still are the laughing-stock of the Marines because of the [[Matt Ward|Mattard]]. Their Primarch is [[Roboute Guilliman]], known for being a great administrator and tactician, writing the [[Codex Astartes]] and ''maybe'' having a bit [[Imperium Secundus|too much ambition]] for his own good. Despite coming across as generic at times, they have a cool Roman theme to them when done properly. Currently the story revolves around Guilliman [[gets_shit_done | getting shit done]].
*[[Dark Angels]]: Wearers of badass robes ''on top of power armour'', they shit plasma out on anyone even remotely looking like [[Chaos Space Marines|traitors]]. They also keep tremendous amounts of secrets, especially the knowledge of <s>the [[Fallen Angels]]</s> THE COLONEL'S [[meme|SECRET BLEND]] OF HERBS AND SPICES! Their Primarch is [[Lion El'Johnson]], a secretive and moody but honorable and clearly noble knight... He's also still alive.
*[[Iron Hands]]: Cyborgs above and beyond the standard augmentations that Astartes receive, mostly due to their close alliance with the Adeptus Mechanicus. The Iron Hands generally believe that "flesh is weak" and continually replace their meat with cybernetics throughout their careers. Instead of a single [[Chapter Master]] to lead them, they have a Clan Council consisting of senior captains from each clan-company. Their Primarch was [[Ferrus Manus]], who told them NOT to replace their entire bodies with mechanics. But he is dead now, so who cares about what he said, right? But being the target of the Emperor's Children's obsessions, they've started to reconsider some of their doctrines.
*[[Blood Angels]]: Vampire Jebuses, cursed beyond cursed (blessed by [[Khorne]]), but somehow completely loyal. If you're not inflicted with the Red Thirst, which drives you to drink your enemy's blood, you'll inevitably succumb to the Black Rage, making you a raging lunatic believing you are about to kill [[Horus Lupercal]]. Their Primarch was [[Sanguinius]], a pretty and angelic paragon of hope, who symbolized all that is good in humanity [[Awesome|Who also liked to solo Bloodthirsters]].
*[[Imperial Fists]]: Subjects to porn-memes and siege specialists who WILL ram it up your hole if you ever try to conquer a place they're protecting. The Chapter who tries to uphold the morals and learnings of the Great Crusade the most, keeping off all enemies of the Imperium, in the hope that the Emperor will eventually come back and save the Imperium. In the meantime, they'll do self-harm to express their guilt of [[Rogal Dorn|not having saved the Emps]], stoically defending the morals of the past and, of course, hold the fucking line. Their Primarch was [[Rogal Dorn]], who was Abe Lincoln in space, whose integrity and insistence on speaking his mind hurt his ability to get along with his brothers, but made him one of the most (and possibly THE most) reliable Primarch.
*[[White Scars]]: Ecstasy-abusing mongol bikers, specialized in Blitzkrieg. You won't know the White Scars are hunting you until you wake up covered in tire treads and everyone around you has been slaughtered in a drive-by of epic proportions. Though they appear savage, they are actually quite cultured. While constantly compared to the Space Wolves for their savage origins, they detest the comparison as they'd rather take up more cultured pursuits than revel in their own barbarism. They're also commonly loners, especially after their best bros, the [[Thousand Sons]] [[Grimdark|were betrayed, classified as traitors, almost wiped out by Space Wolves and later went insane]]. They have a professional rivalry with the Raven Guard over their extremely incompatible battle doctrine. Their Primarch is [[Jaghatai Khan]], a noble but savage man who lived for the charge, and weirdly one of the least problematic Primarchs. Likes to wear high-heels.
*[[Raven Guard]]: Goddamn sneaky bastards, able to cut the throat of a Warboss from behind and retreat before anyone notices they were there - [[Power Armor|power armoured]] and without camo, no less. They like [[Jump Pack]]s and [[Beakie]]s too. Because of their meticulous planning of operations for maximum efficiency, they don't play well with the White Scars. Their Primarch is [[Corvus Corax]], a poetic shadow warrior who saved civilians and gave them the power they deserved.
*[[Salamanders]]: Despite their terrifying appearance (coal-black skin with bright red eyes), they are probably the bro-est of bro tier among the Astartes. They live with their people instead of hiding away in a fortress-monastery, and maintain a tradition of craftsmanship. They tend to get fucked over all the time because of this, partly because they took [[Drop Site Massacre|heavy losses]] during the Horus Heresy and couldn't break the Legion up, and partly because they often take on incredibly dangerous missions for the well-being of the people in their protection. Their Primarch is [[Vulkan]], a smith and general cool (HA!) guy, who ended up becoming (temporarily) insane from not dying. Maybe he's dead now. Or not. [[Perpetual|It's complicated]].
*[[Space Wolves]]: SPESS VIKINGS! They ride [[wat|giant wolves into battle]], drink fuckloads of intestine-burning mjöd, made from cooling fluid and Khorne's own piss, and are the only loyal marines [[PROMOTIONS|whose genitals actually work]]. Some of the proudest and most stubborn of the Marines, they went from Emperor's executioners to humanity's protectors and take a real dim view of [[Inquisition|certain organizations]] wiping out populations for dubious reasons. This is hilarious considering [[Burning of Prospero|some of their past actions]]. Their Primarch is [[Leman Russ]] who could be abrasive but was a great warrior and master of playing the dumb barbarian while getting shit done. Needless to say, they're a [[Skub|controversial]] Chapter in-universe and out.

Other Chapters were founded later, to react to a threat or to enforce a region of space. Here are some of the more notable:

*[[Black Templars]]: The most badass, crazy, xeno-fucking maniacs ever to roam the galaxy. They use their neophytes as meat shields and are only interested in seeing the color of your guts. They are always on crusades, which is just fine as the term "collateral damage" is the same as "everyday chores" to them. Of all the successor chapters, these guys show up the most in the fluff, so if there's only one you need to remember, it's these guys.
*[[Blood Ravens]]: A fucked over Chapter from the [[Dawn of War]] vidya games and, if you came here after playing those games, this might be the only damn Chapter you know of. Known for literally stealing equipment from other Chapters both loyal and treacherous as well as being almost universally disliked for it. They are a very independent Chapter, bent on making up for their mistakes in the past... Which is a lot, really. Widely believed to be the loyalist remnants of the Thousand Sons Legion, due to [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4m8HH5zy7w|a fuckton of evidence].
*[[Flesh Tearers]]: A Chapter of loyalist [[Berserker]]s, bat-shit mad motherfuckers. Mostly known for eating their enemies after ripping them apart to get to the juice inside them. Who'd put raspberry juice inside other beings, anyway?
*[[Lamenters]]: Like the Flesh Tearers, the Lamenters are a Blood Angel Successor Chapter. Unlike the Flesh Tearers, the Lamenters are yellow and SUBJECT TO THE WORST FUCKING LUCK IN THE HISTORY OF THE IMPERIUM! Seriously these guys have been lost in the warp, left to die by other chapters on many occasions, tricked to be on the wrong side of a civil war, the list goes on and on. Yet despite all of this they keep Surviving and keep fighting for humanity. Oh, their chapter words are "We Die for those we Cherish", their battlecry is '''“For Those We Cherish, We Die in Glory!”'''. If that isn't cause for some manly tears, I don't know what is
*[[Legion of the Damned]]: Spooky Scary Skeletons that are also on fire. Always. These loyalists got trapped in the Warp and are suffering from various horrible mutations, but they press on and continue to provide support for their beleaguered Battle-Brothers. They like to pop out from the Warp just in the nick of time to save an allied force from sure destruction.

'''[[Deathwatch]]:''' If the Space Marines are akin to modern day marines, the Deathwatch are akin to Delta Force. The Deathwatch recruits from the best xenos-killers of any loyalist Chapter in the Imperium, organizing them into small Kill-teams with combined-arms tactics, as opposed to large homogenized armies. Their armor is all black, save for their right pauldron, which retains their original chapter's icon, and their left pauldron, containing the insignia of the Deathwatch. If you want to play an all-veteran Space Marine army with access to cool new toys, Deathwatch is for you.

'''[[Grey Knights]]:''' The Grey Knights are Space Marines version 1.5, who are all psykers. As the resident holy space paladins, they hunt daemons and Chaos worshippers every day and holiday, and are basically the [[Mary Sue|most powerful chapter]] of all. Expensive as hell, but freakin' badass in their own right. Got totally super-broken-ubercharged by [[Matthew Ward|Matt Ward's]] 5th Edition codex, which was soon fixed in 6th Ed, with 7th leaving them just on the lower end of mid-tier. Nonetheless, they are still great; an elite force that really, REALLY hates daemons and loves alpha striking. Previously had access to Inquisition troops, but can still ally with them, which is more in-line with current fluff anyway. If you ever wanted to field Daemon-killing [[Terminator|Termies]] as Troops, here you go.

'''[[Sisters of Battle]]:''' The "Nuns with guns", these badass ladies in power armor have the levels of strength and devotion to the Emprah matched by the levels of sexual frustration (or so ''you wish''). Known for their love for fire, faith, fire, martyrdom, fire, fire, and fire, they will make your heart(s) melt. Because it's already steaming from a Melta shot. [[-4_Str|-4str]], but -4 points as well, compared to the Marines. Playing them will make other players feel pity, envy (for not having as big balls as you) and fear (because not a single noob or average player would be confident in playing them).

'''[[Adeptus Custodes]]:''' Take everything that makes a Space Marine, and amplify it to eleven. These guys are the personal bodyguards of the Emperor himself, so you know they're some bad motherfuckers, as the average Custodes is about as killy as a Space Marine Captain and as ded 'ard as an Ork warboss. On top of that, every single one is equipped with master-crafted weaponry and armor that only works specifically on them. Now, as badass as these guys were during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy, you barely hear a peep from them post-Heresy as they're too busy making sure no would-be assassins try to attack the now decaying body of the Emperor; letting their guard down even for a moment could mean the destruction of Terra itself, and the collapse of the Imperium itself. As of the back half of 7th Edition and throughout 8th, they've actually come back out to wreck shit once again, with them domaining tournaments in 9th.

'''[[Imperial Guard]]/Astra Militarum:''' Human regulars, so numerous it's impossible for Imperial bureaucratic elements to count them all. Where the Space Marines have been compared to the surgical scalpel of the Imperium, the Imperial Guard are considered the giant fucking sledgehammer of mankind. They got themselves some sweet tanks and the non-Cadian infantry models are fucking amazing (especially Steel Legion and Death Korps of Krieg). They go into battle with nothing but a glorified flashlight/laser pointer, 21st century flak jackets, and standard-issue BALLS OF STEEL, and are expected to go toe to toe with [[Daemons]], [[Chaos Space Marines]], and [[Necrons|who knows]] [[Tyranids|what else]], and they fucking DO IT because that's what's required of them. Unfortunately, surviving this isn't a part of the job, so their gear is a bit lousy, but, you know, they've at least got tanks and Titans.

'''[[Adeptus Mechanicus]]:''' You know those times when starting your car seems like it takes a bizarre ritual to get it to cooperate? You know it's silly, but you still do it? The Adeptus Mechanicus have formalized that. The AdMech (calling it that in their presence is probably not a good idea) has monopoly on the creation and maintenance of advanced technology in the Imperium. Their red-robed Tech-Priests burn incense and pray over anything more sophisticated than an inclined plane to make it work. Obviously, they have the most advanced tech in the Imperium, but they've also lost and forgotten most of the original blueprints from the Age of Technology and thus you can imagine them being totally hung up on reverse-engineering what specimens of lost tech they still have. Because of their hard-on for undiscovered technology, they tend to poke around newly-discovered Necron tombs like they own the place and will literally go to '''any lengths''' to come into possession of a Standard Template Construct-patterns. The tech-priests themselves are organized under the "Cult Mechanicus" faction, supplemented by the [[Skitarii]] tech guard and the robots of the [[Legio Cybernetica]], as well as access to virtually every vehicle the Imperium uses plus some special toys of their own. In fact, the AdMech are responsible for constructing and maintaining the [[Titan]]s, the biggest and deadliest land vehicles the Imperium possesses.

'''[[Inquisition]]:''' Sometimes you have to get your hands dirty to keep an empire as big as the Imperium of Man stable. Enter the Inquisition, a clandestine group of goons in black robes and big [[hat]]s sent to investigate Heresy and sedition (which is also heresy) in all corners of the Imperium. They come with their own retinue of henchmen, but can also requisition the services of other branches of the Imperium, whether its the shadowy agents of the [[Officio Assassinorum]], the chambers militant of the Ordos Majoris (Grey Knights, Sisters of Battle, & Deathwatch) or entire armies of Guardsmen/Space Marines. However, if the shit really hits the fan, they have the authority to declare [[Exterminatus]] and wipe out the planet. Of course, they don't have this option on tabletop, that'd be OP - instead they just get garden variety orbital bombardments.

'''[[Imperial Knight|Imperial Knights]]:''' One-man manned mini-Titans. Each Knight battlesuit is associated with a noble house or the Adeptus Mechanicus, in many ways quite similar to real-world knights. Available in 10 flavours: Errant, Paladin, Lancer, Warden, Gallant, Crusader, Castigator, Acheron, Magaera and Stryx. They can bring to the field rapid-fire battle cannons, thermal cannons, ion shields, reaper chainsaws, Thunderstrike Gauntlets and ''motherfucking heavy stubbers'' ''(Hilarious, since heavy stubbers, being equal to the modern .50 cal machine gun (though of course radically more powerful), are tiny in comparison the rest of the Knights' Arsenal)''. Very expensive in both points (three suits can fill an entire detachment) and money, but the Errant, Paladin, Warden, Gallant and Crusader are cheap compared to the Lancer, Castigator and Acheron, which are from Forge World and consequently will require you to re-mortgage your house.

[[File:Golden Crusade.jpg|800px|center|thumb|Back in the day conquering a galaxy in the name of humanity meant something...]]

===Chaos===
[[Image:1227181112539.jpg|thumb|Chaos Space Marines have a tendency to be hilariously evil, capriciously twisted and more SPIKEY!]]
Coming from the depths of the [[Warp]], Chaos is a force formed from the passions and emotions of all living things. Which, due to [[grimdark|the nature of the setting]], means that all things Chaos-related are either completely malevolent, batshit insane, or both. The Four Gods of Chaos, [[Khorne]], [[Nurgle]], [[Tzeentch]], and [[Slaanesh]], each have their own goals and followings, and are just as likely to fight each other as outside enemies. Chaos' ultimate goal is to make the galaxy as anarchic and destructive as the Warp, and its primary enemy is the "Anathema" - The God-Emperor of Mankind, the single most pernicious foe of the Chaos Gods. Chaos hates the Imperium of Man with a passion, but will also seek to corrupt and destroy Xenos wherever possible.

'''[[Chaos Space Marines]]:''' Evil Space Marines who got fucking tired of the above-mentioned shit and went all nuts and balls out, for the glory of [[Chaos]]! This resulted them becoming way more badass than their holier-than-thou brethren. Years ago, 'Chaos Space Marines' and 'Chaos Daemons' used to be one and the same, sharing the same codex. Then some [[Gav Thorpe|FUCKHEAD]] at the GW office wanted to simultaneously fuck over every Chaos army that used daemons and release another codex, just for Daemons, effectively making it impossible to field a legit CSM/Daemon army. This has been fixed in 8th edition; while technically separate codexes, both share the CHAOS Keyword and can now work in tandem as advertised.

Most of the forces abide within the Traitor Legions - Legions like those the loyal Marines used to have, just that these guys never broke them up in the first place, so they tend to have numbers on their side. Unfortunately, every single Chaos Marine thinks he should rule the lot, and as such, backstabbing is a part of business and results in 'Chaos warbands' which actually consist of pretty few Chaos Marines, but a huge number of cultists. That is of course not represented in their codex, because it seems that after the 4th edition, nobody at GW knows hows to write a fluffy Chaos codex anymore.
*[[World Eaters]]: Bloodthirsty [[Khorne|Khornate]] berserkers, living only to ram a chainaxe up everyone's rectum. Literally. No philosophy, no goal, just pure slaughter, except for [[Kharn|that guy who's always fun to be around]]. Not that that makes them bad guys, as exemplified in [[Kharn the Betrayer]], but actually a great bunch of guys. Their Primarch is [[Angron]], a man so insane and angry, it cannot be written with words. He is also a Daemon Primarch. Oh yeah.
*[[Death Guard]]: Swollen, stinky blobs of rotten flesh, infected with every STD/STI [[Nurgle]] has ever imagined. They are a happy bunch, who don't hesitate showing the lovely embrace of death, painlessness and immortality to the unenlightened citizens of the Imperium. Their Daemon Primarch is [[Mortarion]], a sour and fully depressed fella, who is a literal personification of death (like being bone-slim, shrouded, scythe-wielding shadowy wraith).
*[[Emperor's Children]]: Where the Death Guard are tough as fuck, these maniacs are just high as fuck. Slaaneshi hedonists, ''possibly even more'' fucked up than the [[Dark Eldar]]. Where the Deldar rape and torture to live longer lives, these guys do it just for the kicks! As they serve the god of sex, drugs, and rock & roll, their signature weapon is [[Sonic Weaponry|literally a boombox gun]]. Their Primarch is [[Fulgrim]], the prettiest and most kawaii of all the Primarchs, but was also very much yandere, so he mochi mochi'ed the Chaos Gods desu and became a four-armed snake.
*[[Thousand Sons]]: Traitors by accident, intellectual, knowledge-hungry, MOTHERFUCKING POWERFUL psykers. A lot of the Legion is pissed off dust encased in power armor. Trust a Chaos player, [[Rubric Marines|it's complicated]], so go read the HH book Thousand Sons. Their Primarch is [[Magnus the Red]], a redhead with one eye and the second most powerful psyker in the galaxy, after big E himself. He discovered the ploy being made against the Imperium by Lorgar and Horus and ended up accidentally knocking over his father's [[Miniatures|side hobby]], which he got just a little mad about. He even has a model now!
*[[Word Bearers]]: Religious zealots going so far as to carve psalms on the bodies of the dead and on themselves. Rather than devoting themselves to a single chaos god like those above, these folks [[Chaos Undivided|praise Chaos itself and see the gods as a pantheon to be worshiped equally]]. Arch-heretics, these fellas were the first to get their [[Heresy]] on. Whereas the other legions may only pay lip service to the Dark Gods in pursuit of their own agendas, some outright despising them, the Word Bearers are scarily religious about Chaos. As in, not only should Chaos be appeased with prayer and rituals, but it is the only universal truth, a way of life, a flawless and only true ideology. Their Primarch is [[Lorgar]], ''the'' original Heretic who spends his current days by hiding in the Eye of Terror, regretting setting the Heresy off, and getting his arse kicked by his brother Corvus Corax.
*[[Alpha Legion]]: The most secretive, free-of-dogma, open-minded Marines who always thought one step ahead. These days... Em... well... your brain would melt. Their Primarch is (or was) [[Alpharius]], or maybe it was [[Omegon]], or maybe neither... [[Wat|Just... yeah.]] May or may not be secret loyalists, or maybe they're the pawns of the [[The Cabal|Xenos Illuminati]]. It's complicated, just like any relationship.
*[[Iron Warriors]]: Another legion of Chaos Undivided. Builders and siege-specialists like the Imperial Fists, who they hate with a special, burning passion only reserved for [[Weeaboo|tsunderes]]. Also humongous trolls and amazing mathematicians in one bunch. Their Primarch is [[Perturabo]], a giant dickhead of metal and hatred. He was always jealous of [[Rogal Dorn]] for being such a goddamn father's good boy and getting way much praise, while himself not being appreciated nearly enough for all the hard work he did for the Imperium that he eventually betrayed. Duh, who wouldn't at this point? Well, anyone reasonable since the only reason he and his Legion were in that position and treated poorly was because they chose to accept shit jobs instead of learning to say "No". They weren't ordered to do these things, they chose to accept when asked by others.
*[[Black Legion]]: Formerly known as the Sons of Horus, these guys have been fighting the rotting Imperium for so goddamn long it's almost becoming Saturday morning comic-book villainy. These guys are wholly committed to the destruction of the Imperium more than any other legion. <s>They were about to destroy all opposition on Cadia, the only planet holding back the Chaos forces spilling from the Eye of Terror... Before the plot froze. [[Advancing the Storyline|Goddamnit]]!</s> <b>[[Cadia|WHOOPS]]</b> They recruit from all Traitor Legions, as long as they pledge themselves fully to the Black Legion and spray their armour black. They are the most massive Traitor Legion, but fight with the others way too often in the attempts to gain more recruits by trying to spread their influence. Their Primarch was [[Horus Lupercal]], the favorite son of the Emperor that was completely annihilated by the said Emperor. He was actually a pretty polite guy. [[Grimdark|How sad]].
*[[Night Lords]]: Really freaky grimdark batmen in [[power armour]], turned super-villain. Think of Owlman and a few other alternate universe Bat-men, then ratchet the violence factor up past 11, and you comic fans out there would get the idea. They like flaying, killing messily, and fear and sabotage tactics, but for some reason their color scheme are lighting strikes over red and blue armour. It's as stupid as it sounds. [[Derp|They even wear small wings on their helmets]]. Their Primarch was [[Konrad Curze]], the grimdark Batman who skinned people and drank their blood. <s>A righteous and lawful man</s> THAT ONE GUY WHO LIVED LONG ENOUGH TO BECOME THE VILLAIN AND HATE HIMSELF FOR IT. He wanted to apply these morals upon everyone else with the only tool he knew how to use: Terror.

Over the many, war-filled and chaotic years of fighting to keep the [[Imperium]] alive, some Chapters or Companies of Marines simply snap. These take a darker route in pursuit of something-or-other, which will most often make them to a point-of-no-return and in the end completely fall to Chaos. A couple of examples:

*[[Red Corsairs]]: Formerly the [[Astral Claws]], they decided that they wanted to carve out their own empire and started the [[Badab War]], one of the biggest post-Heresy rebellion the Imperium ever faced. They've since turned to a life of piracy, and have adopted the Black Legion's recruiting tactics of accepting traitors from any other legion or chapter. And despite being much younger than the Black Legion, the Corsairs' numbers could easily rival them.
*[[Crimson Slaughter]]: Fanatically adherent to the laws of the Imperium, turned these bloodcrazed murderers by a series of [[Not as Planned|unfortunate events]]. Now they go everywhere, killing anyone standing in their way to stave away the voices in their heads. In fact, they are so effective at their killing that their existence can't be hidden by the Imperial authorities (Arguably this could mean they leave too many witnesses for even the most zealous Inquisitor to deal with so maybe not so effective).
*[[The Scourged]]: Take a Chapter assisting the Inquisition in their daily investigations, an insane need to know everything there is to know about the motives of others and one seriously bored-out-of-its-bird-skull ([[Lord of Change]]), and you get the Scourged. Formerly the Seekers of Truth, these maniacs now go around and try to rid themselves from the curse of knowing all truths ever conceived by any living creature, while trying to uncover '''THE LIES''' to the Imperium. With force, if necessary.
*<s>[[The Fallen]]: During the Heresy, the Dark Angels who stayed behind on Caliban got caught up in some shady shit, resulting in most, if not all, of them falling to Chaos. The Dark Angels want to keep their existence a secret and will go to great lengths to capture them.</s> NONEXISTENT HERETICS WHO DO NOT EXIST BECAUSE THE DARK ANGELS LOYALTY IS BEYOND REPROACH.

'''[[Daemon|Chaos Daemon]]s:''' Abominations emanating from the warp, daemons seek only to invade the material universe and wreak havoc upon it. Most daemons are aligned with a particular chaos god, and are oftentimes either summoned deliberately by cultists, take possession of an unfortunate psyker, or brought into battle by allied Chaos Space Marines. Daemons can also possess technology, becoming [[Daemon Engine]]s, which supplement Chaos forces lacking the same logistic support as their Imperial counterparts. All champions of Chaos one day wish to [[daemon prince|become daemons themselves]], granting them immortality and incredible power.
*[[Khorne|Khornate]] daemons desire combat above all else. They are some of the most deadly enemies on the battlefield for their sheer tenacity and capacity for violence. They will even turn on their own allies if there aren't enough enemies to slaughter.
*[[Nurgle|Nurglite]] daemons are rotting heaps of filth, spreading plagues and decay wherever they go. Despite this, they are far from frail; Nurglites are extremely durable and hard to kill, and their myriad plagues range from turning you into goop in an instant, to turning you into a [[Plague Zombie]]. But it's all cool, that's just how Papa Nurgle shows his love.
*[[Tzeentch|Tzeentchian]] daemons are tricky bastards, who love to use magic to screw with the material realm. These guys are the epitome of "be careful what you wish for", as they will always find a way to fuck you over, thanks to their [[just as planned|plans within plans]].
*[[Slaanesh]]i daemons are some of the most hardcore hedonists in existence, rivaled only by the Dark Eldar. Their obsession with pleasure and pain is often used to torment victims before breaking their minds, tempting them with promises of unearthly delights and experiences. Or just raping them for eternity, because why the fuck not.
*A few varieties of unaligned daemons exist, such as [[fury|Furies]], [[Chaos Beast]]s, and [[chaos spawn|they whose name we won't speak]].

'''[[Lost and the Damned|Renegades & Cultists]]:''' Non-space marine humans who serve the dark gods, for various reasons and motivations. Cultists can be from [[Nurgle|Underhive gangs living in deplorable conditions]], [[Slaanesh|decadent nobles who take their own hedonistic tendencies too far]], [[Tzeentch|intellectuals who stumble upon forbidden knowledge]], or [[Khorne|renegade regiments who got sick of being someone else's lackies]]. Cultists are often used as meatshields or expendable pawns by Chaos Space Marines, but former Guardsmen, colloquially known as the [[Lost and the Damned]], are often a more significant threat, especially in large enough numbers. Supplementing them are [[mutant]]s, [[Rogue Psyker]]s, even [[Beastmen]]. Much like their loyalist Guardsmen counterparts, individually they're quite weak, but the Lost and the Damned possess the numbers and vehicles to make up for it - plus some Daemon Engines and Chaos Space Marines to boot. Those who survive purging or their own sociopathic leaders will typically end up insane, [[Chaos Spawn|or worse]], but rarely they may earn the favor of the Chaos Gods.

'''[[Daemon Knights|Renegade Knights]]:''' While fewer in number than their loyalist counterparts, Knights can be corrupted to chaos too. Daemon Knights are particularly dangerous, as they're essentially massive Daemon Engines with all the advantages that comes with it. The Imperial Knights view their existence as a stain upon the Knight Houses' honor, and will relentlessly pursue them wherever they go.

===Xenos===
The various alien species inhabiting the Milky Way galaxy are not friendly to mankind. Those that were not destroyed during the Great Crusade were usually the most dangerous and expansive alien empires in the Galaxy. While Xenos generally do not like the Imperium in kind, they also hate Chaos, and will also war with one another.

====Eldar====
*'''Craftworld [[Eldar]]:'''
**Space elves. The members of the race that went "Well shit, guys, we just partied so hard that we accidentally made a God of sex and cocaine, so maybe we should re-think our lives", and then fucked off to giant [[Craftworld|worldships]] and tried as hard as possible to forget that time they made dildos out of bees. Much like college graduates coming face to face with their Facebook page when applying for jobs, Slaanesh is always there to remind them that their souls are forfeit and belong to him/her/it. And no, the worldships are NOT as cool as you think they are, they're even '''cooler'''. They're darting around doing unfathomable stuff, trolling [[Imperium|the man]], and taking names. You'd think they'd at least be on civil terms with the Imperium, considering they share many of the same enemies and goals (namely, stop all the other genocidal races from turning the galaxy into a [[Chaos|collective seizure]] / [[Orks|the world's most deadly playground]] / [[Necrons|a lifeless wasteland]] / [[Tyranids|lunch]] / [[Dark Eldar|all of the above]]), but Eldar seem to have [[Eldrad|dickishness]] written into their DNA. They sometimes help, sometimes don't, and as such, the Imperium are uncertain on how to deal with them - they have been there to defeat some big old Daemon, and sometimes have killed entire armies, so it's kind of a toss-up. [[Inquisition|Better just kill them and then ask questions, right?]]
*'''[[Harlequin]]s:'''
**Space elves who like to cosplay as psychotic clowns. They are seemingly random space elves who leave the other factions and join up with this mysterious cult that serves the trickster god [[Cegorach]]. They act as intermediaries between the other space elf factions, and then like to put on dramatic performances retelling ancient space elf mythologies- which includes using hallucinogenic gasses/psychic powers on their audiences. They also defend the great space elf [[Webway|interstellar highway network]] against daemons and other intruders- mainly because they have a [[Black Library#In Warhammer 40,000|big fancypants library]] hidden in there.
*'''[[Dark Eldar]]:'''
**The space dark elves that, after spawning the God of "Let's make some new orifices to fuck" decided that they'd rather be humongous soul eating douchebags than get a grip on their metaphysical coke habit. These elves will raid, mutilate, rape, and torture the crap out of anyone even half-alive, and not necessarily in any specific order. Significantly less civilized than the Craftworld Eldar, they'll do what ever the fuck they want, mostly because it actually prolongs their life-span. They live in the Webway and invade real space once in a while from their evil, dark city of Commorragh to get some fresh slaves and to strike terror in the enemy. They are one of the few factions who will always actively target civilians for no other reason than because they're helpless.
*'''[[Eldar#Eldar_Corsairs|Eldar Corsairs]]:'''
**These Eldar have abandoned the strict and regimented lifestyle of the Craftworlds to engage in acts of piracy and adventure. While not as extremely hedonistic as the Dark Eldar, their lifestyle is still quite hazardous as they have no protections against Slaanesh's pull on their souls. Many Eldar still find this path worth the risk, often going to great lengths to amass wealth and get their jollies off before eventually getting bored and returning home, or else going full monty and joining the Commorrites. This army has no formal models but can be represented by a mix of Eldar and Dark Eldar figures.
*'''[[Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Ynnari(7E)|Ynnari]]:'''
**The combined forces of all Eldar factions under the leadership of the newborn Eldar god of death, [[Ynnead]]. These spess elves come from very many different walks of life but have one purpose: to fuck [[Slaanesh]]'s shit up. Currently the friendliest Eldar faction towards the Imperium (alongside Harlequins I guess, seeing as they perform their circus tricks on plenty of human worlds as well as Eldar ones. Oh, and maybe 8th ed Ulthwe too).
*'''[[Exodites]]:'''
**Space Wood Elves. Focused on maintaining Eldar planets called Maiden Worlds that survived the fall and never became inhabited by another space faring species. They ride fucking dinosaurs. No official models as of early 9th Edition.

====Orks====
'''[[Ork|Orks]]:''' Oh, fuck yeah. When it comes to xenos, none are more kickass than Orks. Bellowing hordes of greenskins with ramshackle [[Dakka|DAKKA]] AND [[Choppa|CHOPPA]], who are MAID FER FIGHTIN' 'N' WINNIN'. The most numerous and successful race in the galaxy, Orks live for fighting and nothing else, as they worship and love every moment of it. They introduced randomness to the table, but if you're playing Orks and expecting efficiency, you are doing it oh-so-wrong. Out of all the other factions, Orks are easily the least serious. As a rule Ork players reflect this by also being a bit odd and a bit loud, but the general consensus is that the bonkers character of the army tends not to attract hyper-competitive assholes; thus, most Ork players are decent chaps to play against. In short, Orks are silly, stupid and don't give two fucks about anything. [[wikipedia:magical thinking|Magical thinking]] is an actual game mechanic for them. Oh, and they're literally sentient fungi.

====Necrons====
'''[[Necron|Necrons]]:''' Robots who have recently awakened from an eons-long slumber, intent on reclaiming their ancient empires. Well, what's their actual intention is a subject of [[skub]]. Millions of years ago, the entire Necrontyr species gave up their bodies (unwillingly) to the [[C'tan]], becoming soulless and encased in living metal so they could have a chance in fighting the [[Old_Ones_(Warhammer)|Old Ones]]. On the one hand, this war ended up fucking over the galaxy by leading to the creation of Chaos as we know it. GG, guys. On the other hand, their [[Cadian Pylons|anti-warp technology]] helped delay and contain Chaos up until the 41st millenium. They have some of the toughest basic units, t̶̶h̶̶e̶̶i̶̶r̶̶ ̶b̶̶a̶̶s̶̶i̶̶c̶̶ ̶i̶̶n̶̶f̶̶a̶̶n̶̶t̶̶r̶̶y̶̶ ̶w̶̶e̶̶a̶̶p̶̶o̶̶n̶̶s̶̶ ̶c̶̶a̶̶n̶̶ ̶s̶̶h̶̶r̶̶e̶̶d̶̶ ̶t̶̶a̶̶n̶̶k̶̶s̶̶(Not since, 7th, unfortunently) , and they don't stay down when you destroy them. Their technology doesn't even obey the laws of physics, although they still make use of FTL-travel. Since they have no Warp presence, the Tyranids instinctively avoid their Tomb Worlds and daemons have no souls to claim when killing them. The C'tan, meanwhile, have been broken into pieces to be used as Necron weapons, though they are slowly reforming to wreak vengeance upon the galaxy.

====Tyranids====
[[Image:Carnifex_and_Gaunts_Victorious.jpg|right|thumb|300px|The ORIGINAL Zerg Rush. Holy shit, that's awesome.]]
*'''[[Tyranid|Tyranids]]:'''
**If it's not Orks, it better fucking be Tyranids who are the biggest threat to the galaxy as a whole. Hordes of scuttling space locusts that look like the kind of things that give the Xenomorph from ''Alien'' nightmares. Look as these motherfuckers: every single one of their models (except for those artillery guys with a scrotum about as large as the rest of their body) is fucking badass to the core (their most basic troop is a dinosaur/solider-ant with a gun that shoots flesh-eating beetles). They are faster than Eldar. They assimilate new features into their DNA from fallen foes, such as the Space Marine's black carapace. They're immune to virtually any toxin, and they can even [[Genestealers|infect other races to be their willing accomplices]]. Their only known motive is to devour all life in this galaxy, all the way to the cellular level... and that's all that we know, because reasoning with them has been so far unsuccessful, due to excessive OMNOMNOMNOMMING.
***The Tyranids are probably the most dicked over nation in the lore recently, as basically every single accomplishment the Tyranids have made in the lore have been recently undone and ruined, such as their destructions of worlds being retconned into them only eating the surface allowing the Imperium to terraform them. Also, their codexes are *full* of loss after loss after loss for the Tyranids with them not winning once.
*'''[[Genestealer Cult]]s:'''
**Whenever the Tyranids wish to invade a planet or system, they typically send out genestealers ahead, with the intention of infecting the populace to make them more compliant. A genestealer that successfully creates a cult will surround itself with fanatical hybrid and/or brainwashed worshippers who view the Tyranids as their star gods, and will steal weapons and disable planetary defenses in preparation of the invasion. Many will join the local PDF unit to hijack and steal any weapons and vehicles they can, giving them access to a staggering amount of Guardsman wargear for when the time to revolt comes. These creepy [[Cthulhu]] cultists give Chaos worshippers a run for the money on most batshit-insane nutters in the Imperium, and that's saying something.
**The effects of this on non-human worlds were rarely explored until recently. As follows:
*** Unlike humanity, Tau civilisation enforces a very strict breeding doctrine upon its citizens, A.K.A. you can only have the smex when your boss tells you to and getting with partners from different castes is forbidden (hopefully the infected aren't the ones in charge of implementing the breeding doctrines...). And since successful genestealer cults require multiple generations of offspring, the Tau would very likely catch on to an infestation far quicker than an Imperial world. However, the Tau once allowed themselves to be infected by Genestealers and formed a Genestealer cult as an experiment. This went as well as making the Xenomorphs from the Alien films controllable bioweapons, and while the Fire Caste had to purge the cult, some escaped and may have even been able to make or infect an Ethereal.
***The [[Hrud]] are actually being targeted by the genestealer cults to great effect. However, the Hrud lack a formal military and tend to cohabitate with other species, so the infiltration is not immediately apparent.
***The Eldar are susceptible to this as well, with similar results to humans. But Eldar can easily detect this and stamp it out, so the only examples come from Eldar willingly engaging with genestealers. We have recently seen the effects on an isolated craftworld that was infected by genestealers; they willingly allowed genestealers to infect them in an attempt to avoid having their souls consumed by Slaanesh, since this Craftworld was so old it predated the invention of the Infinity Circuit and therefore didn't have one. There were also Dark Eldar social elites who captured Genestealer hybrids, then developed a fad where they commissioned the Haemonculi to amputate and graft Genestealer parts onto their bodies (I'm not making this up), with similar results to Craftworlders and humans (they also developed a telepathic bond and an obsession with Tyranids...). Kitbash to your heart's content.
***It's been known for awhile that genestealer infections [[Genestealer#Non-human_Hybrids|interact particularly unusually with orks.]]

====Tau====
*'''[[Tau Empire]]:'''
**The weeaboo space Communists. East Asian-inspired high-tech faction with awesome hardware and a willingness ''not'' to slaughter other races just on principle. Though largely confined to a backwater corner of the galaxy, they are expanding alarmingly rapidly on their own "Great Crusade". While not too threatening to the Imperium, it's hard to do anything major against them as it would be WAY too costly for the Imperium. They die miserably in melee, unless they send their hordes of [[Kroot|mercenaries]] and [[Gue'vesa|meatshields]] in front of them, but that doesn't matter because they blow up everything from a distance with hundreds of [[Pulse rifle|different]] [[Melta|ranged]] [[Railgun|superweapons]] [[Plasma Gun|without missing]] [[Missile Launcher|breakfast]]. No psykers, no warp presence, just like the Necrons. At this point in time, the Imperium isn't really trying to fight them, as the [[Damocles Crusade|last time that happened]] they basically just stalled. Think of how a little blue squirrel is holding up a guardsman's combat boot and you'd be close. In fact, the two factions even help each other from time to time, though you wouldn't call them allies; they just have less reasons to fight against each other than together against those other [[Tyranids|more]] [[Chaos|threatening]] [[Orks|guys]]. While on the surface their setting is an optimistic one, [[skub|depending on who you ask]], they're actually an Orwellian tyranny that forcibly sterilizes dissenters and have propaganda on par with North Korea. They additionally keep Chaos a secret from their populace, much like the Imperium does, and are themselves mind-controlled by [[Nagi|literal brain worms]]. The sole dissenter in this shitshow is a badass Tau Commander known as [[Farsight]], who gets his own mini-faction and iconography.

====Leagues of Votann====
'''[[Leagues of Votann|Leagues of Votann]]:''' Despite technically being a human sub species (abhumans), the Leagues classified as xenos due the Imperium fanatical stupidity, and amazing achievements in ignorance. What doesn't help with this is the fact that they don't really bother to explain themselves (nor do they want to in order to keep a lower profile. They have also not only retain much of their tech database, but have also actively been innovating and developing their tech for thousands of years, which has helped hide their shared stc ancestry with the Imperium's tech. As a result, the imperium is quite fucking confused on what the hell these short humanoids are.

Anyways, these guys are fucking space dwarves, but in a more modern sense. They don't just go diggy diggy fucking hole, they chuck entire worlds into giant grinder, and then proceed to churn out manufactured products from said grinded up worlds in mass. Their favorite places to dwell in are essentially fortified arcologies, space stations, and live in factories. Oh, and they have robots instead of golems (which they are complete broes with).
They also beat out both the Tau and the Imperium in terms of advancement, so have fun with that.

==Reasons why 40K is [[awesome]]==

[[File:Epic Beard Priest.jpg|300px|thumb|This is the guy who knocks on your door when you don't show up for church.]]

*Grim darkness is cool for it's dark grimness.
*You can throw EXPENDABLE units at your foe
*Huge body count.
*[[Imperial Guard|"HOLD THE FUCKING LINE!"]]
*Tanks the size of buildings.
*Buildings the size of tanks.
*Titans with weaponry that can level a city with one shot.
*Railguns, grav weapons, plasma-, melta-, pulse rifles and other futuristic weapons.
*The funkiest Orks in any franchise.
*Tyranids, a race directly inspired by the legendary xenomorphs.
*Necrons, a race directly inspired by the renowned Terminator robots from the Schwarzenegger movies.
*<s>[[Squats|Dwarf]] bikers IN SPEHSS!</s> [[Squats|Dwarf]] bikers IN SPEHSS [[Necromunda|again]]!
*Fucking CHAIN'''axes''' and the euphoric feeling of chain-saw-slash-chopping things into meaty little chunks and covering your face with thick viscous fluids of the enemy's organs.
*'''Thunder''' hammers, '''Force''' halberds, power '''fists''', '''Volcano''' cannons, '''Earthshakers''', NOVA CANNONS, [[Exterminatus|EXTERMINATUS]], HOLY SHIT I'M GOING TO CUM.
*POWER EVERYTHING: POWER armour, POWER fists, POWER gloves, POWER axes, POWER swords, POWER feet, POWER dicks, [[Daemonculaba|POWERspawning babies]].
*[[Pauldrons|PAULDRONS]].
*Forgeworld Death Korps models.
*Humans that are known for their titanium-hard balls of steel and not being an average race.
*Tons of epic lines to yell when boardgaming: WAAAGH! Purge the heretics! For the Greater Good! Blood for the Blood God! For the EMPEROR! (Feel free to OMNOMNOM if you win with [[Tyranids|'nids]])
*12km long Gothic Cathedrals.
*Making said cathedrals [[Imperial Navy|FLY IN SPACE]].
*Using said 12km flying gothic cathedrals to transport yourself through an alternate dimension just so you can SHOVE A POWER-<weapon> IN SOMEONE'S FACE.
*[[Just as planned]]...
*DOOMRIDER NA NA NA.
*[[Slaanesh|A god of cocaine, sex and booze]].
*[[Commissar|Commissars]] {{BLAM}}
*[[Dawn of War]].
*[[Ollanius Pius|Ollanius. Motherfucking. Pius.]]
*[[Love Can Bloom]] {{BLAM}} [[Extra Heresy|EXTRA HERESY!]]
*[[Macha|Perpetual virgins]].
*[[Creed|CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!!!!]]
*[[Flankitus]] of Battlefleet [[/tg/]]
*Jubblowski.
*Suavis Astartes.
*If you don't think a certain rule exists (or is just causing you problems), you can roll a die to see if the rule is real!
*Codex always have a cool story bro.
*Apocalypse games (3,000-50,000 points of win!).
*"Everything is heresy! EVERYTHING!".
*[[Eversor|Wryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!]]
*[[Slaanesh|''Literal'' fuck-demons]]
*It all boils down to comedy

==The Appeal of Warhammer 40,000==
Warhammer 40,000 is basically the anti-[[Star Trek]]. Where Trek envisioned a Scholarly Egalitarian Secular Humanist Post Scarcity Utopia built on understanding, friendship and cooperation in the Federation, 40k conceives of a Militaristic Hierarchical Theocratic Dystopia built on a foundation of Hatred, Fear, Spite, Dogma and the backs of countless billions toiling away in manufactoria in conditions which would make a Victorian factory look pleasant for the Imperium. And those are the ''Good Guys''. 40K has become the poster child for fundamentally bleak settings because it goes beyond cynicism and into the realm of the absurd.

And yet, it avoids becoming an endlessly dark pit of depression and hatred for one reason - deep in the soot and dirt of war-ravaged worlds, between skulls and bodies killed in their myriads, you'll still find the tiniest, most delicate flower. They are one to a million, but genuinely good and hopeful events and people do exist in 40k, and the fact that they are so rare is what makes them shine so much more. Take [[Ciaphas Cain]], [[Vulkan He'stan]] or [[Saint Celestine]], the [[Lamenters]] or the realms of [[Ultramar]]. They are rare and often not the shiniest pieces of hope out there, but the fact that they can even exist in a setting that is known for having coined the term "grimdarkness" is a testament.

Beyond Grimdark, Warhammer 40,000 is also aesthetically distinct. Most Sci-Fi franchises have aesthetics tend to lean towards Functionalism, various flavors of modernism or Art Deco. Machinery made to do a job or something with smooth surfaces, clean lines and sleek forms. 40K in contrast goes for baroque. Especially in regards to the Imperium and Chaos, everything is overdesigned. Battleships are flying gothic Cathedrals with bristling with fuckhuge guns. Space Marine armor is covered in heraldry, skulls, aquilae, purity seals and more. Chaos Space Marines are walking nightmares bedecked with spikes, chains, horns, the symbols of their gods and grizzly trophies, with the lost and the damned being kitted out in the Bargain basement version there-of. Even in the depths of the hive there are gothic finishings, statuary and human figures among twisted mazes of pipes and girders.

Which is not to say that's exclusively hyper gothic over-design. Your average Guardsman is usually more subdued along military and retro lines, though there definately are fancier forces. The Greenskins have their Ramshackle Mad Max aesthetic. The Eldar are sleek and flowing. The Tyranids are heavily carapaced space monsters. The T'au are typically more futuristic, functional and high-tech. Each faction has it's distinct aesthetic, recognizable at a glance and iconic.

And despite the [[Grimdark]] meme, Warhammer 40,000 is rather optimistic in its own way if you think about it. Yes, the universe is a Cosmic Horror Story. Yes, everything out there is trying to kill you. Yes, there are eldritch abominations outside of space and time who will fuck you up or torment your soul for eternity. Yes, we can't do anything about them. But do we just lay down, give up and commit suicide? FUCK NO! Instead, you get up and fight. Fight for anything, whether for [[Imperium|Faith in your God]][[Chaos|/s]], [[Eldar|for the preservation of your people]], [[Tau|for a better future]], or [[Orks|for the hell of it]]. No matter what, even if it takes a lot of painful sacrifices and even [[Imperial Guard|bodies]], you must fight. Because despite the darkness and meaninglessness of this universe, it is ultimately struggle that defines who we are, what gives our life meaning. In a way 40k is a very existential/Nietzschean/absurdist work, with its lesson being determination, endurance and courage in spite of everything. Like how Camus' Sisyphus finds purpose in his eternal punishment of carrying that boulder forever, so do the people of 40k, despite all the crushing realities the universe piled up upon them, still carry on.

==Endless List of Significant Personalities==

[[image:tg-chars.jpg|400px|thumb|right|When [[/tg/|fatguys]] have nothing to do, they invent new characters. Yeah, they are pretty bored.]]

[[File:007 Dorn.jpg|200px|right|thumb|"They call me Dorn, Rogal Dorn..."]]

===[[Canon]]===
*[[God-Emperor_of_Mankind|The Emperor]].
*The Chaos Gods: [[Khorne]], [[Nurgle]], [[Slaanesh]], [[Tzeentch]], HEY, did someone forget to invite poor [[Malice]]?
*The Primarchs ([[Alpharius]], [[Angron]], [[Sanguinius]], [[Rogal Dorn]], [[Jaghatai Khan]], [[Lion El'Jonson]], [[Fulgrim]], [[Perturabo]], [[Leman Russ]], [[Konrad Curze]], [[Ferrus Manus]], [[Roboute Guilliman]], [[Mortarion]], [[Magnus the Red]], [[Lorgar]], [[Vulkan]], [[Corax]], daddy's favorite [[Horus]], and the two forgotten primarchs.
*[[Abaddon|Failabaddon]].
*Farseer [[Macha]].
*Farseer [[Taldeer]].
*Farseer [[Caerys]].
*[[Eldrad|That dick]].
*[[Fabius Bile|FABULOUS Bile]].
*[[Hyperion]].
*Ultramarines Chapter Master [[Marneus Calgar]].
*Captain Indrick [[Indrick Boreale|Baldeale]].
*Black Templars High Marshall [[Helbrecht]].
*Governor-General [[Vance Motherfucking Stubbs|VANCE MOTHERFUCKING STUBBS]].
*Lord Castellan Ursarkar E. [[Creed|Creeeeeeeeeeeed]].
*Commissar [[Ciaphas Cain]], HERO OF THE IMPERIUM.
*Commissar [[Holt]]
*Commissar [[Commissar Yarrick|Yarrick]].
*Commissar [[Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt|Gaunt]], THE HARDCORZ.
*Commissar [[Commissar Dan|Dan]]
*[[Sly Marbo]]
*[[Love Can Bloom|LIIVI]]
*Warboss [[Gorgutz 'Ead 'Unter]].
*Warboss [[Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka]].
*[[Tankred]].
*[[Doombreed]].
*[[Kaldor Draigo]].
*[[Kharn|That great guy]].
*[[Sindri|SINDRIIIIIIIIIIIII]].
*[[Doomrider]].
[[Image:Doomrider_NANANANANA.png|right|thumb|200px|[[Doomrider|NA NA NA]]]]
*[[Swarmlord]].
*[[Farsight|Shas'O Vior'la Shovah Kais Mont'yr]] (yes the long name is mandatory for all Tau players).
*[[Shadowsun]].
*[[Shas'o Kais]].

===Non-Canon===
*[[TTS|Kitten]].
*[[Lolicron]].
*Commissar [[K59]].
*Commissar [[Commissar Fuklaw | Fuklaw]].
*[[Kasrkin-chan]] ([[PROMOTIONS]]!)
*[[Cultist-chan]] (Moar PROMOTIONS!)
*[[Chem-chan]] (Still moar PROMOTIONS!)
*[[Loli Daemonette]] (Take-a-seat-over-there-PROMOTIONS!)
*[[Faptau]].
*[[Shlicktau]].
*[[Ork Trek|Jamez T Kork]], Kaptain of Orkterprize.
*[[Ork-Chan]],the lovable ork school girl.
*[[Grandpa dreadnaught]].
*[[Papalith]].
*[[Heavy-chan]].
*[[Blue]].
*[[C.S.Goto|C.S. Multilaser]].
*[[Matthew Ward]] (a.k.a. Your [[Spiritual Liege]]).

==To Sum it All Up==

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-jBnE3LYo4&feature=related THIS.]

[https://youtube.com/watch?v=cA-4ypMn4-o Now in a slightly longer, 42nd Millennium flavor.]

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:WH Faces_1_(1).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(2).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(3).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(4).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(5).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(6).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(7).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(8).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(9).jpg
File:WH_Faces_(2).png
File:WH_Faces_(3).png|Foreseeing!
File:Grimas.jpg|HO HO HO MOTHERFUCKERS!
File:Concept.jpg|<strike>Not in a million years...</strike>Behold the [[Infiltrators]]!
File:Female Marine.jpg|Totally not shopped.
File:example.jpg
</gallery>

==See Also==
[[File:Exterminatus Retribution.jpg|200px|thumb|right|[[Angron]]'s assault pod landing on a world filled with poor bastards.]]
*[[Games Workshop]]
*[[Space Hulk]]
*[[Rogue Trader]]
*''[[Dawn of War]]''
*[[Imperium|Imperium Of Man]]
*[[Races of Warhammer 40k]]
*''[[BrightHammer40k]]''
*[[Half Life 40k]]
*[[Slut Patrol]]
*[[Boltershell City]]
*[[Warhammer_40,000/Tactics_(9E)|Warhammer 40,000/Tactics]]
*[[Army compatibility between Warhammer settings]]

==External Links==
*There's a 40k movie, though GW fags wanted to purge it. That never happened.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYt3aFiheEI]
*There's a full CGI 40k movie: [http://ultramarinesthemovie.com/] There's also this: [http://www.thelordinquisitor.com/], and this: [https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtube.com/watch?v=Ia1kvLbmEXg], and this [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-4k4T4lRfNQ]
*[http://nnm-club.me/forum/viewtopic.php?t=717734/ The line between heresy and truth, passes through the blade of the sword of the Inquisitor] '''Book series WarHammer 40 000 - 15 individual fonts.''' The Russian language.
*[http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive.html?tags=40k Know what's happening in 40k fanon]
*[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warhammer_40,000 Wikipedia's WH40k article]
*[http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/ Games Workshop's main site]
*[https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Main_Page/ Lexicanum ''Warhammer 40k'' wiki]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyPXFbmGieA/ This rap song is for the tabletop warhammer 40k]
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_D9zj6WEqyA/ Kill Team, the rap awesomeness]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MeVxKZBOfM Warhammer 40k Lore in 1 Minute]

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]
[[Category:Wargames]]
[[Category:Games Workshop]]

Space Marines

2026-05-12T04:19:55Z

109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010425 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

{{awesome}}
[[File:Silver Skull.jpg|300px|right|thumb|WE ARE THE EMPRAH'S FUREH! Also, [[Beakie]].]]
''For the vidya gaem, please see: [[Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine]]''

{{Topquote|Give me a hundred Space Marines. Or failing that give me a thousand other [[Imperial Guard|troops]].|Attributed to [[Rogal Dorn]], [[Primarch]] of the [[Imperial Fists]]}}
{{Topquote|They shall be my finest warriors, these men who give of themselves to me. Like clay I shall [[Finecast|mould]] them, and in the furnace of war forge them. They will be of iron will and steely muscle. In great [[Pauldrons|armour]] shall I clad them and with the [[Bolter|mightiest guns]] will they be armed. They will be untouched by [[Nurgle|plague]] or disease, no sickness will blight them. They will have [[Deep Strike|tactics]], [[Steel Rain|strategies]] and [[Dreadnought|mac]][[Centurion Squad|hin]][[METAL BOXES|es]] so that no foe can best them in battle. They are my bulwark against [[Chaos|the Terror]]. They are the Defenders of Humanity. They are my [[Robert Heinlein|Space Marines]] and they shall know no fear.|[[Emperor|The God-Emperor of Mankind]]}}

The '''Space Marines''', also known as '''[[Indrick Boreale|SPESS MEHREENS]]''' (or '''Marinelets''' or (canonically) '''Firstborn''' now that the [[Primaris Marines|Chadmarines]] are here) and canonically named the '''Adeptus Astartes''' are an army in the [[Warhammer 40,000]] universe. They are [[Transhumanist|bio-enhanced]] super soldiers clad in [[Power Armour]], and are generally regarded as the toughest warriors to ever serve the [[Emprah|Emperor]] (except for the Adeptus Custodes, Imperial Assassins and the now-obsoleted Thunder Warriors). The average Space Marine is around eight feet tall. They used to be seven feet in the old fluff, but [[Dan Abnett]] and the rest of Games Workshop have a hard-on for gigantism (though they have addressed the problems real-life gigantism can cause by throwing in more bio-engineering) so they jacked them up a foot, though RPGs from Fantasy Flight Games and games by THQ scaled them back to the more reasonable seven feet (though some eight foot people do exist in real life). Although do note that the height of Marines can vary greatly; some can even reach ''ten'' feet, like [[Asterion Moloc]]. "Giant gods of war" is far more believable, considering their insane feats and ability for a handful of them to face down an Ork WAAAGH!!! and Tyranid Hive Fleets, yet still make a major difference. Oversight of the Adeptus are by the Ordo Astartes of the [[Inquisition]].

Internally, they have bones that can repel anything short of a boltgun round and can breathe underwater even without their helmets on because they have a third (artificial/augmetic) lung. They can also breathe all but the most potent of toxic fumes with little to no damage to their respiratory system, have two hearts, and live for hundreds of years (they may be functionally immortal, but they usually die in battle after a few centuries, so nobody can be sure, although a Salamander was found in armor fused to his ship and he was ten thousand years old and alive and aware...and batshit insane for having only his brothers’ corpses to look at for ten millennia and his body had severely atrophied). They are vastly more powerful in their [[fluff|official descriptions]] than they actually are in the ''Warhammer 40,000'' tabletop game (although the Marines statted in [[Dark Heresy]] or [[Rogue Trader (RPG)]] are walking rapemachines, and the [[player character]] Marines in [[Deathwatch]] are hard as nails). Much like the [[Chaos Space Marines]] are the 40k successors of the [[Warriors of Chaos]], Space Marines are the 40k successors of Warrior Priests, right down to their BALD. Portrayals range from hardcore but plausible super-soldiers to shameless [[Mary Sue]]s who could fight off Batman with one hand and the Joker with the other, considering their fluff feats and the things they defeat, defeating Batman and the Joker while missing all his limbs would be completely unsurprising for an Astartes. Although occasionally, they serve to make other galactic forces seem superior. ''More like the Ineptes Astartes.''

They account for approximately 35% of the playable armies (counting chaos space marines) in 40k, over 21.4% (yeah, I thought that was a pretty conservative estimate too) of played armies among the 40k fandom (factoring in that people can collect and play more than one 40k army), and as of October 2010, receive about 50% or more of new releases. While there are many, ''many'' chapters that you can choose from, the actual armies basically boil down to seven main choices: [[Ultramarines]], [[Dark Angels]], [[Blood Angels]], [[Space Wolves]], [[Grey Knights]], [[Legion of the Damned]] (barely), [[Deathwatch]], [[Black Templars]] (<s>previously</s> [[Warhammer_40,000/Tactics/Space_Marines_(9E)#Black_Templars|NOT ANYMORE!]]) and everybody else (with the [[Chaos Space Marines]] accounting for three more codexes). Everyone who's a successor of the first two choices follows their codex and generally share their units, while the "everybody else" just follows the generic Space Marine codex. Don't let the promotional art fool you, though; the Space Marine army isn't exclusively Ultramarines. It used to be that you also had individual codices the [[Black Templars]], but they got folded into the generic Space Marine army. At least they still get special chapter-specific units, which is more than can be said for the likes of the [[Salamanders]] or other important yet still-neglected chapters. But nooo, the Ultramarines need every type of special character...

Contrary to that, [[fluff]]-wise Space Marines are amongst the smallest factions in the game. With Loyalist Marines combined they number just above one million in a galaxy where the Imperium alone has more or less a million honest to God inhabited worlds (deepshit colonies with a population of only a few million may or may not be included in that number). In fact, any single capital-class space ship may have a population higher than the entirety of Marines in the Galaxy. Furthermore, Marine armies are extremely fractured, very rarely deployed at above a company per war zone. GW never cared to explain how forces so small could have such a huge impact on the battlefields, when Orks, Guard, and Tyranids could field their troops in the millions, and Chaos can convert entire populations of planets (which is often tens of billions), though by rubbing two brain-cells together we can imagine a combination of them being just that powerful and focusing on opening opportunities for their Strike Cruiser or Battle Barge to blow everyone up. (While the scale is certainly off, it might be less off than you think. Space marines are more "armor" than "infantry". In WWII, entire campaigns involving millions of soldiers have been decided by battles focused around some hundred tanks, although this argument ignores that Astartes are infantry and that those battles mattered only due to the hundreds of thousands of other tanks also fighting, fundamentally there are too many important locations on a planet for a hundred or even a thousand maybe hundred thousand Space Marines to matter). Regardless, everything that is something in the setting has a tendency to at least have a bit Space Marines in it, if they aren't flat-out the protagonists. Expect enormous campaigns to revolve around a few companies, regardless of the involved numbers of Guardsmen and enemy xenos and chaotic characters, and the Marines to be the key to victory in any given war.

The main reason for the small numbers, though, seems to be that [[Games Workshop]] and the [[Black Library]] authors have no sense of scale. For example, the largest battle of the Great Crusade was the battle for what became known as Armageddon. It had a measly eight million soldiers and several hundred thousand Space Marines. To say nothing of Mechanicus forces. Fast forward ten thousand years and most major battles or campaigns of the setting that require Space Marines only have dozens to hundreds of regiments, the average regiment size being ten thousand men in the lore. Either because you only need to take out a shield generator, that miraculously is the only one or one of a few instead of bajillions around the globe, so the Navy can wipe out the enemy or, more likely, the aforementioned non-existent concept of scale. So, in battles that actually need Astartes there will usually be rough one Marine per one hundred or one thousand Guardsmen depending on how important the battle is. A battle with dozens of regiments often has elements of multiple Chapters involved and easily can have several thousand Marines of various Chapters fighting in the battle. On top of that, it is rare for Astartes to be needed in the first place outside of major invasions of strategically important worlds by particularly advanced alien or daemonic threats. When coupled with the complete lack of any ability to comprehend scale on the writers’ part, the small numbers or Space Marines are plenty sufficient for the Imperium’s needs.

Space Marines the selves specialize in achieving strategic objectives for the Imperial Guard and Mechanicus forces to capitalize on. Give them a mission and it will be completed. Making sure their success matters is up to everyone else. Each company is often spread across a planetary conflict since each Marine is so powerful that hardly any are needed to achieve a vital objective when supported by Guard forces such as tanks and artillery. Even at the tactical level aiding the Imperial Guard a single Marine will simply move around the skirmish to key points and curbstomp to make the enemy incapable of having any hope of victory. Basically, a Chapter of Space Marines should not be thought of as an army but as a collective of Master Chiefs.

Unfortunately for the Imperium, spreading the Guard and Marines so thinly across the galaxy is necessary as rapid response is not really possible due to the whims of the Warp. Especially with Warp entities actively interfering.

It should be noted that per "Fall of Cadia," [[Abaddon| a certain armless failure]] mustered a force of CSM ''ten times'' the size of the original Legion (i.e. Luna Wolves) for the 13th Black Crusade. So yeah, no wonder the poor Cadians didn't stand a chance—although ''technically,'' Abaddon only won because he flung the remains of a [[Blackstone Fortress]] at the planet's surface. He had a lot of Marines and daemons but cultists generally can’t survive long in the Eye. Most likely he had the means to seize any strategic objectives he wanted but not a sufficient auxiliary force to push home the advantages nor reliably keep the territory he took. Even if he did, cultists are batshit insane and so can’t exactly be relied on to follow orders competently.

[[Games Workshop|Geedubs]] [[Meme|has a hard-on for Space Marines]]. [[Slaanesh|Between the writers favoritism and the "Spots the Space Marine" fiasco, it's gotten to the point where they should seek professional help]].

'''THIS JUST IN: THE SPACE MARINES JUST GOT AN [[Skub|SKUBPGRADE]]! See [[Primaris Marines]]'''

==History==
[[File:Prayer before battle.jpg|250px|left|thumb|Marine with half his FUCKING face missing, skulls in the wall, bolter laying ready, and servitors with hoods swinging censers. Ladies and gents, [[Warhammer 40k]].]]
After the end of the [[Age of Strife]], the Emperor of Mankind (overachieving at it's finest) wanted to reunite [[humanity]] in a [[Great Crusade]] across the galaxy, and he realized that in order to do this he would need one epic-ass army and equally epic generals to lead it. He created the [[Primarchs]], his sons, to be his generals, and let me tell you, these guys were some of the most insanely powerful badasses in all the lore of 40k, and that is saying something. (There is a story in which [[Sanguinius|one of them]] snaps a fucking [[Bloodthirster]]'s spine over his knee.) From their DNA, he created the [[First Founding|Legiones Astartes, the first Space Marines]]. But before that he did a trial run with the Prototype Legionaries where only a few survived and was the foundation of Space Marine Legions.

Their first task was to locate their Primarchs, because the [[Chaos Gods|Gods]] of [[Chaos]] had scattered them across the galaxy in an attempt to foil the Emperor's efforts at human reunification (they were basically just butt-hurt that they didn't have some baddass buttfucking sons; [[Slaanesh]] approved!). All of the Primarchs were eventually recovered and reunited with their respective legions, but then, at the height of the Space Marines' power, disaster struck. [[Horus]], the Emperor's most trusted Primarch, fell to Chaos and turned traitor along with his legion, the [[Luna Wolves]], and several others followed suit. After much [[Grimdark|sorrow, pain, and civil warring]], the Emperor killed Horus personally (Daddy issues at their finest yet again), but was mortally wounded in the process, which is why he is now a zombie being kept alive by the technologies of the Golden Throne (Undead Heresy?).

The traitor legions, who are now known as the <s>[[Chaos Space Marines]]</s> TRAITOR ASTARTES, were defeated and pushed back to the [[Eye of Terror]]. All of the Primarchs that did not fall to Chaos during the Horus Heresy either disappeared or were [[Ferrus_Manus|killed]], and until very recently, none remained to lead the Space Marines. ([[Roboute Guilliman]], Primarch of the Ultrasmurfs, long enshrined and [[Matthew Ward|(according to some people)]] healing in stasis has recently been revived after ten thousand years). In addition, after the Heresy, the Legions were mostly [[Second Founding|split into smaller "Chapters"]] of up to a thousand Marines according to the teachings of the [[Codex Astartes]] (although some Chapters, such as the [[Space Wolves]] and the [[Black Templars]], do not follow Astartes orthodoxy and maintain forces in much greater numbers, and [[Dark Angels|some chapters]] go so far as to form almost legion-strength forces.)

The Space Marines are most commonly looked upon as warrior-monks, generally referring to each other as "Brother", "Battle Brother" or some variation thereof based on rank, spending most or all of their time training, in battle, or venerating the Emperor. However, no two Chapters are exactly alike, and many differ wildly from the standard perception of the Marines. The Space Wolves, as one example, appear to be much less disciplined than most other Chapters, maintaining a much larger force than permitted by the Codex and frequently having great feasts with much merriment and drinking (the Space Wolves happen to produce the only intoxicating beverage known to have any effect on Marine physiology, and which liquefies the innards of non-Astartes). Their attitude toward others in the Imperium can also differ greatly from Chapter to Chapter or even from marine to marine. Some are very idealistic, believing very strongly in their role as protectors of humanity (such as the [[Lamenters]], the [[Celestial Lions]] or the [[Salamanders]]). Others, like the [[Black Templars]], tend to disregard the ordinary elements of the Imperium, and emphasize much more their role as a weapon against its enemies. And some are [[Blood Angels | just]] [[Angry Marines | angry]].

Their attitude towards the Emperor can also vary. Although they are typically believed to worship him as a deity like most of the rest of the Imperium, the Space Marines are, by virtue of their gene-seeds, derived from the Primarchs and hence the Emperor himself, making them much closer to him than most humans. In fact, many of the Space Marine chapters' beliefs maintain some of the old [[Imperial Truth]] that the Emperor was not a god, but simply the greatest of mortal men, worthy of praise and veneration but not a deity proper. Although it is true that the majority of the Chapters certainly venerate him in an orthodox manner, others just scream his name a lot because that's tradition.<i>The exact degree of Emperor-worship in the Space Marine chapters is a bit mushy. Some openly refer to the Emperor as the God-Emperor while others are outright contemptuous of the idea. [[Excoriators|Captain Zachariah Kersh]], later Chapter Master, was such a nah-sayer but was converted by his experiences during the destruction of the Cholercaust on Certus-Minor. This could mean that among the various Chapters the exact degree of veneration of the Emperor could be entirely a personal choice rather than explicit doctrine. But again the inconsistencies therein make it hard to judge. Alternatively to this theme being a result of lazy writers is that it is in fact a clever but under-developed effect of the progression of the plot of Warhammer 40k. Such that by the end of the 41st millennium, things are so awful that even the Space Marines seek resolve in the worship of the God-Emperor.</i>.
[[Image:Blingmarine.jpg|thumb|right|The great Papa Smurf hisself.]]
Space Marines are generally regarded as having something of an "unfair advantage" in the tabletop, mainly because every young 40k player has a strong liking for them, and almost every unit in the listings has at least a 3+ armor save, making them rather hard to kill, especially when considering armies such as the Blood Angels have models that allow players to roll an additional "Feel No Pain" 4+ save if they fail the 3+ one. The problem is that it took 3 Space Marine Chapter books in 5th Edition to come up with a Space Marine Codex framework that didn't suck (almost nothing in C:SW is non-competitive or poorly priced), which is why Long Fangs are usually 50 points cheaper than their Space Marine counterparts, while being twice as effective. Why are Devastators supposedly more expensive? Combat tactics. Yeah, you're never going to use it. The Ultramarines in particular are an extremely popular choice of Space Marine Chapter, and their blue design coupled with the small size of the miniatures often leads to them being referred to as "Smurfs." Thanks to [[Indrick Boreale]], the Space Marines in general are frequently called "Spess Mehreens," or variations to that effect. The Space Marines of today look very different from the glory days of Rogue Trader, when they earned the nickname "[[beakie|beakies]]" because of their signature helmets.

Denizens of /tg/ are prone to claiming a wide variety of things about the Space Marines, usually about their sexual activity (or lack thereof), ranging from assertions that the genitalia of a Space Marine is nonfunctional to claims that they are castrated during the creation process. They never have any supporting evidence for these theories and it is not clear whether or not Space Marines are allowed to have sex, which Chapters would allow them to have sex, if they even can have sex, if they're still capable of normal human reproduction, or what bits they may or may not still possess. Still, that doesn't stop anyone from stating their personal opinion as if it were fact. The most revealed, beyond a few hints about [[Lukas the Trickster]] being a womanizer in the Space Wolves codex and books, is that a female Inquisitorial henchwoman got an eyeful of a naked Grey Knight novice and was rather impressed by what she saw. The Grey Knight, naturally, had no idea why she seemed so interested. Another hint is a Remembrancer that saw a Marine naked and referred to his manhood as “equine”.

An interesting point to note is that right below this segment on the right is an image of a Marine with a loin-cloth. If there is no modesty to protect, why protect it? One suspects that the reason Marines aren't afforded the luxury of sex (aside from distraction from serving the Emperor), is that they'd kill whatever unfortunate woman or xenos livestock they take a fancy to.
The point is, due to psychological conditioning and likely the sterilizing effects of the augmentation process, followed by a century plus of service to the Emperor in radiation and toxic filled environments, they are simply disinclined towards it, and wouldn't result in any more meat-shields for the Emperor's glorious wars regardless, thus only serving the [[Slaanesh|arch-hedonist.]]

==Creation==
[[File:1396451926378.jpg|400px|thumb|right|From deranged lab-experiment to fucking [[awesome]].]]
Knowing [[Chaos|just]] [[Tyranids|what]] [[Necron|the]] [[Dark Eldar|fuck]] [[Ork|was]] [[Eldar|waiting]] for humanity in space, the Emperor of Mankind designed the [[gene-seed]], [[Gene-seed#The_Organs|nineteen special organs]] to enhance the regular human body to keep the Space Marines going when fighting these monstrosities. Over a series of several years, human adolescents, dubbed aspirants, are selected through a rigorous process which varies from Chapter to Chapter. They are always male, with cited reasons including that Astartes are basically clones of their Primarchs, and by extension the Emperor, and that the geneseed requires portions of the Y-chromosome to function, extreme amounts of testosterone, women just plain being weaker and far more emotional than men and therefore would cost more to bring up to snuff, etc. They are also probably, given such individuals are logical sources to look for talent in combat, [[Grimdark|some form of child soldier]]. When their training goes to the next stage, the aspirants are implanted with the initial gene-seed. They then become neophytes, Space Marines in training. As the gene-seed is implanted into them, the neophytes also go through hypnotic conditioning to hone their responses. By the time they're done, the subject has few impulses beyond fighting and killing in the name of the Emperor (it's sometimes thought that this is what kills their sex drive) and most of their memories of their earlier lives are all but forgotten. The only mental frailties remaining are a "fear" (ATSKNF notwithstanding) of failure and experiencing notable stress when severely injured or crippled, as they are no longer able to fulfill their function.

After receiving all these organs and conditioning, it's highly arguable if a Space Marine still qualifies as human. Though the [[Imperium of Man]] has basic "kill on sight" orders for most non-humans and venerates the "Holy Human Form", the topic of whether or not Space Marines violate this edict is ignored, mostly because they were designed by the Emperor and thus considered holy creations. There is also an understandable hesitance to declare war on the only thing standing between the Imperium and the unfathomable evil of the [[Chaos Gods]]. Arguably Marines are no less human than those of the Mechanicum, just with organic implants instead of bionics, and cog boys still count as 100% right and proper humans (even if most of them consider themselves a separate species or at least "humans 2.0").

In fact, this religious need to adhere to the Holy Human Form may be why the Emperor designed the gene-seed to be a bio-enhancement project and not a genetic modification one; all of a Space Marine's inhuman abilities are a result of the artificially engineered organs shoved into their bodies during their creation, either directly (the secondary heart or multi-lung) or indirectly (the Ossmodula, which alters their hormone balance and makes their skeleton growth go berserk). Consequently, this means a Space Marine would technically pass a genetic scan of being "human" better than an [[abhuman]] like an [[Ogryn]] or [[Ratling]] would. The holiness of the Human Form came long before the Horus Heresy, so this theory is likely, anyways. Besides, the Emperor did attempt genetic modification but it proved either fraught with peril ''(ie. The Thunder Warriors)'' or prohibitively expensive ''(Valdor claimed that the entire productive capacity of the Imperium would be unable to generate anything else if Custodians were the primary forces)''. <s>Gene</s> Bio-enhancements are also much more conductive to mass-production. Of course, so long as the genetics are merely ''added'' to the human genome instead of (drastically) ''changing'' the genome, then it can easily be argued the enhancements are no different than using technological tools like auspex or lasguns.

Yes, this tramples all over the spirit of the law (not really, adding to something is just that; addition) whilst technically adhering to the letter, but it's hardly unique -- see the Ecclesiarchy having its own army of battle nuns and priests despite being formally forbidden to have "men" under arms.

Another theory is that the Space Marines were designed this way for more symbolic reasons. Done this way Marines retain a link to humanity; all were born human, no more than any other citizen. They became more through science and training but they aren't some new species or a warrior caste. As Marines they are beyond humans but they know where they came from. The regular citizens see the Marines as the best of humanity, proxies for the Emperor's power. The Marines remember humans are their kin and while they are more than human they are still the same species, all coming from the same root. The power vested in them doesn't pass by blood, it passes by merit and a normal citizen can still aspire to become an Astartes even if it's a long shot. The Emperor's whole deal was based around humanity, so he built something that could be a symbol to all humanity. He could have bred a new war species but he altered us because his dream of the Imperium was the dream of humanity. Symbolic difference, sure, but it matters. There's a reason Space Marines are venerated not feared.

Incidentally, bio-enhancements like the gene-seed are actually more controllable than a genetic enhancing procedure would be, since the resultant outcome is more predictable, more easily mass-produced, and it means that even if a Space Marine could have kids, they would in all likelihood not be different from ordinary humans, since their abilities aren't tied to them on a genetic level, though they would be far more likely to become Space Marines since some amount of genetic compatibility is required.

It is also noteworthy that as a possibly unintended side effect of their geneseed, Space Marines are enormously well endowed. This is evidenced in the first book of the Horus Heresy series, whereby a Remembrancer described a naked Captain Loken as being "equine." Of course out of all the chapters, only the [[Space Wolves]] and the [[Emperor's Children]](for obvious reasons that shouldn't be discussed) ever seem to take advantage of this factor.

==How strong Space Marines are==
Fanboys and opponents constantly argue how strong Astartes are. This entails unfavorable comparisons to super soldiers like Custodians and Thunder Warriors, or comparisons to Ogryns and Imperial Assassins. The crunch can give reasonable estimates, but things like tabletop balancing show its limitations as broad indicators of performance (Guard officers have more wounds than Astartes recruits, although this could be argued as a tabletop representation of plot armour). Thus, it's often a matter of conjecture how far an abbreviated statistic translates into a hypothetical comparison; Strength 4 is weaker than Strength 5, but "Strength" can apply variously to lifting/pressing strength instead of striking force, hence why power-lifters don't necessarily make the best cage fighters.

The fluff (and writer) subject Astartes potency to many fluctuations, from absolute gods of battle to DOW1 opening redshirts levels of incompetence. Fans, BL and Codex writers all agree that Astartes are extremely powerful and resilient, with great tactical acumen (see [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMGRa4_UjE4 Astartes - Part Three] ). Most fans agree this representation of them is more canon than most video game trailers (looking at you DOW 3). Astartes Pt.3 shows their post-human skill and advanced equipment are a cut-above even the more competent (renegade) guardsmen.

It is not difficult to create super soldiers in the Warhammer 40,000 Universe. Examples going as far back as the early Great Crusade show that humans can be brought up to near-Astartes strength through various surgeries that do not involve gene-seed. Presently, just about every militant Imperial arm has their own equivalent of super soldiers, ranging from the Ordo Hereticus and the [[Sisters of Battle]] to the Adeptus Mechanicus with their various [[Skitarii]] forces. Some cultures (such as Necromunda's [[House Goliath]]) even have the facilities and resources to enhance their ''entire'' population with superhuman strength, and even create some individual members with levels of bulk and savagery that outright exceed Space Marines, so when reduced to sheer combat potential a Space Marine doesn't appear to be that special.

A Space Marine's true "strength" lies not with his muscle power or his resistance to injury but in the fact that he is trained and drilled to fight at optimal strength, regardless of whatever battlefield he finds himself in. A Space Marine is capable of fighting centuries-long campaigns, eating toxic foods, surviving in irradiated environments with little to no atmosphere, not requiring sleep, not worrying about the effects of zero-gravity, and more. If he is lost without resupply he can consume the genetic information of local fauna or his enemies to survive, else he can enter hibernation until he is recovered. If he is injured, the wound will seal in mere moments, preventing further damage through blood loss or infection. If he is killed his progenoid glands can be used to create more Space Marines in his place. More importantly, he is disciplined to a level far beyond the scope of an ordinary human soldier and is highly resistant to the psychological trauma inherent to participating in long, bloody wars. Even if you took away his size and muscle power, a Space Marine ''still'' ought to be one of the finest soldiers in existence.

There is also the added benefit that ''outside'' of combat situations, many Space Marines can generally find ways to make themselves useful in ways that roid-raging, uber warriors would find difficult: both [[Fulgrim]] and [[Sanguinius]] encouraged their sons to excel as artists and artisans; the [[Iron Warriors]] and the [[Thousand Sons]] ''(before the Heresy)'' were pretty good architects or scholars; and [[Vulkan]] and his sons were generally quite cool bros. This is [[Lion El'Jonson|not]] [[Angron|the]] [[Konrad Curze|rule]], but it shows how Space Marines ''could'' potentially have adapted to life during peacetime after their task was done.

None of these things translate to tabletop rules so they typically get discounted when trying to compare one to the other, but the context of a fight can be supremely important. For instance, an Ogryn certainly could not survive underwater or in methane atmospheres and would choke to death before the fight even began. It is unclear if other superhuman lines can do all of these things: Custodians are most likely equal if not superior to Astartes in most respects, but they are far more difficult to produce than Space Marines and are too valuable to waste on standard military operations. Thunder Warriors certainly couldn't do everything (and indeed were never intended to survive past the Unification Wars), while Assassins are subject to different upgrades that are more niche to their function. All of them might be physically more powerful than a Space Marine, but either take up more resources to create or are simply unsuited for other tasks.

==The Lifespan Debate==
[[File:Sons of Corax by MajesticChicken.jpg|450px|thumb|left|When the going gets tough, the tough get going.]]
The lifespan for Astartes is something of a tricky subject. Because although Astartes refer to normal humans as “mortals” and their daddies and Big E never said they were wrong to and although a Salamander from the Great Crusade was found fused by his armor to his ship’s deck (and insane from boredom) ten thousand years later, some dumb bitches don’t want the demigods to be demigods. Probably the same people who imagine Astartes as similar to Halo’s Spartans despite the examples of handfuls of Space Marines butchering entire armies of super aliens and daemons from literally Hell itself (sometimes one and the same). While it’s made clear that Space Marines live many centuries longer than normal humans, exactly how long they’re ''supposed'' to live has never really been elaborated on; and furthermore, keep in mind that the middle age of the upper-class Imperial citizens is circa 3 centuries or so. It doesn’t help that there has never been a Space Marine shown or described to have ever died of anything resembling old age, and that different chapter bloodlines (and writers) each appear to handle aging differently. So there really isn’t any kind of baseline to work with here. Perhaps most central to the issue is the question of whether or not Astartes are biologically immortal. Of course, there’s also the question or whether or not gene-seed from a Primarch instead of hand-me-down man juice makes a difference.

On the “for” side, both [[Dan Abnett]] and [[Graham McNeill]] claim that Astartes are indeed immortal, and that although they might physically age (grey hair, wrinkles, etc.) it is only skin deep and they are in just as good physical condition as when they first joined the Astartes, only dying when they are killed. Nick Kyme also appears to be a believer in the immortal point of view (though more in a sitting-stone-gathers-moss-and-lasts-forever kind of way), as in his Salamanders series, an [[wat|Astartes survivor from the Horus-friggin-Heresy was found in a crashed and buried Salamanders starship]]. His armor had melded into the metal of the ship and he could no longer move, but he was alive. He had apparently been sitting there watching over the empty, ancient suits of armor from his fallen brothers for ten thousand years. He was also borderline crazy from all the memories filling his head (thanks eidetic memory, but then if he had human memory he'd have Alzheimers or something) and his vocal cords and muscles were desiccated, but the latter are implied to be due to atrophy from inactivity more than anything else so that doesn't count. [[Nick Kyme]] also touched on the subject in Fall of Damnos, with a Tactical Sergeant remarking that he did not know himself if Astartes could die of old age, or that even if they could he had never heard of it happening - indeed, it would be a dishonor to the warrior lifestyle of a Space Marine to do so. The Night Lords series by Aaron Dembski-Bowden is another in the "for" catagory, at least in that the Astartes refer to humans as "mortals," and Talos, at just 300 years old, is apparently considered young for a Crusade-era, unwarped traitor Space Marine. David Annandale has also made allusions to the longevity of the Astartes. In ‘The Death of Antagonis’ Brother Nithigg of the Black Dragons chapter is noted by Sergeant (later Captain) Volos to be ‘at least 1000’, and showing no signs of slowing down or decrease in combat efficiency.

On the “against” side, the [[Blood Angels]] are specifically noted for having exceptionally long, but limited lifespans, namely a 1000 years give or take, and Marines from other Chapters don’t live nearly as long. Although they have several major genetic flaws working against them. This has been reaffirmed in the current Blood Angels Codex, and it should be noted that it was written by GW's biggest Space Marine fanboy. Yes, even [[Matt Ward|Ward]] says Space Marines can die of old age. Even Abnett has flip-flopped a bit on it, with Brothers of the Snake (admittedly his first time writing Space Marines) portraying the apothecary Khiron as starting to slow down with his advanced age and not being quite as fit as he used to be. The Space Wolves also have a dedicated unit representing their more senior members in the [[Long Fang]]s. While the canis helix certainly plays a part in their aging, it is also implicit that these warriors represent a more traditional "warrior elder." Maybe most importantly, a highly plot-relevant fact about the duel between [[Abaddon]] and [[Sigismund]] is that everyone present, Abaddon included, agreed that if Sigismund had not been slowed down by his age, he would have been the clear victor, and Abaddon only managed to fight him to a near-mutual-kill draw because he had been protected from aging by living in the Eye of Terror. Other things you can handwave or retcon, but the Black Templar vs the Black Legate is as close to sacrosanct as you get. Although, lore also says that the older a Marine gets, the stronger his augmentations become.

Of course all of the above might reflect differences in the stability and expression of traits in given "strains" of gene seed. Both the BA and the SW have documented flaws and instabilities in their gene seed whereas the Salamanders descend from a perpetual. Perhaps the IF sit somewhere between those extremes being descended from a the tough as nails, uber durable and stubborn Rogan Dorn.

Unsurprisingly, BL tends to be inconsistent with their lore. There's 2 reasons for this. 1st is because some gamers would think less of the Space Marines if they could die of old age, which Gee Dubs doesn't want. 2nd is because GW seems to agree that not dying of old age would be great. However, they wouldn't want to anger the part of the fanbase that doesn't want Astartes to be biologically immortal, so GW must be deliberately vague on this. This is retarded because the god-like mystique comes from their immortality. Removing immortality would demote the Astartes from demigods to super-special forces, lacking much of their awe. Woop-dee-fucking-doo. The people who don't want the Astartes to be immortal are whiny bitches who want their own armies to seem more impressive by dragging the Astartes down to a mortal level. Which is pathetic and probably heretical.

Others have tried to argue that biological immortality would limit the incentives for Heretic Astartes to seek demonhood, but these people fail to make a key distinction. The inability to die of old age doesn't remove the threat of injury or death. On the other hand, ascending to demonhood leaves you unbound to physics and immune to death, instead being banished for a time. For those wondering, Chaos Marines who remember the Horus Heresy but lack demonhood aren't considered for this debate due to warp fuckery. The Night Lords and Alpha Legion are an exception since their location lacks warp-taint, but it's unknown if any of them are from the Horus Heresy.

Regardless, the true measure of an Astartes is their killing potential. If Astartes can die of old age, they'll more likely die in battle before age takes its toll. If age DOES take its toll, then the loss of potency due to old age will get them killed anyway. However, being ''slowed down'' by old age doesn't count as ''dying'' of old age. General estimates place the average Astartes life expectancy at 400-500 years, becoming a venerable elder and certified badass if they exceed this span.

On a more grimdark note, the Horus Heresy series shows that Astartes are vulnerable to mental traumas like PTSD thanks to a lifetime of war in the meat grinder. It's possible that instead of old age, it's the weight of mental trauma that slows them down. Dan Abnett never wrote those books of course, who believes that Big E wouldn't make super soldiers vulnerable to mental trauma (no galactic ruler worth their salt would allow such ailments to happen if they can prevent it). That is to say, if the Emperor cared enough to bother preventing it if he didn’t intend the Astartes to live past their usefulness (not necessarily killing them, but not replacing them when done as he see’s them as weapons). Others have argued that mental trauma is endured in training, and continues until they become proper Astartes hardened to such struggles.

Ultimately, it probably comes down to how well an individual’s genetics accept the progenoid’s changes to their genetic template to accept the other implants and whether or not there are major flaws in the gene-seed.

With the return of The Lion, fresh questions have been raised about just how much the Emperor's creations can stand the test of time. Sleeping beauty has shown significant signs of aging after 10,000 years. On the one hand, if even a Primarch starts showing his age then that might seem like bad news for their sons in the immortality department. On the other hand, all signs of this aging seem to only be in his appearance rather than physicality. Indeed, The Lion managed to best demon-Angron in single combat. [[Anime|Maybe it's old man strength]]?

==Space Marine Chapters==
[[File:40k RPG.jpg|300px|right|thumb|We honestly can't tell whether this is a dude or a chick, so you'll just have to make a guess and face the consequences.]]
*[[Aurora Chapter]] - Institutionally lazily named.
*[[Astral Claws]] - Institutionally secessionist.
*[[Astral Knights]] - Institutionally [[The World Engine|crazy awesome, but totally dead]].
*[[Alpha Legion]] - Institutionally closet loyalists
*[[Avenging Sons]] - Institutionally makes their enemies look good.
*[[Black Dragons]] - Institutionally taking their cue from Wolverine.
*[[Black Templars]] - Institutionally crusaders.
*[[Blood Angels]] - Institutionally [[Black Rage|unstable]].
*[[Blood Ravens]] - Institutionally <s>relic hunters</s> Obsessive Kleptomaniacs.
*[[Space Sharks|Carcharodons Astra]] - Institutionally banished, yet loyal. [[Badab War|Fucking shit up very eclectically.]]
*[[Celebrants]] - Institutionally gradient.
*[[Celestial Lions]] - Institutionally suffering losses from [[Ork Snipers]].
*[[Crimson Fists]] - Institutionally [[Reasonable Marine|reasonable.]]
*[[Dark Angels]] - - Institutionally <s>mysterious</s> <s>Loyal</s> <s>Traitors?</s> LOYAL WITHOUT QUESTION FROM FOUNDING UNTIL DESTRUCTION.
*[[Dark Hands]] - - Institutionally... wait have these guys done anything other then face the Hrud and a couple of Orks?
*[[Dark Hunters]] - Institutionally grim of grim marines.
*[[Death Spectres]] - Institutionally albino.
*[[Deathwatch]] - Institutionally, intentionally and professionally xenocidal. Employed by the [[Inquisition]], recruited from other Chapters.
*[[Doom Eagles]] - Institutionally doomed.
*[[Emperor's Shadows]] - Institutionally Japanese.
*[[Emperor's Spears]] - Institutionally a Celtic.
*[[Excoriators]] - Institutionally ugly.
*[[Executioners]] - Institutionally [[lawful stupid|honorable]].
*[[Exorcists]] - Institutionally [[Heresy|possessed and exorcised]].
*[[Flesh Tearers]] - Institutionally RIP AND TEAR.
*[[Flesh Eaters]] - Institutionally cannibals.
*[[Flame Falcons]] - Institutionally ON FIRE. ALL OF THEM.
*[[Fire Angels]] - Institutionally religious BUT ALSO ON FIRE.
*[[Fire Lords]] - Institutionally [[Flamer|burny]], possibly more so than the [[Salamanders]] (see below).
*[[Fists Exemplar]] - Institutionally were there after the [[Imperial Fists]].
*[[Genesis Chapter]] - Institutionally [[Ultramarines]].
*[[Grey Knights]] - Institutionally killing [[Daemon|Daemons]].
*[[Guardians of the Covenant]] - Institutionally record-keeping Catholic space monks.
*[[Hammers of Dorn]] - Institutionally trolling the Ultramarines.
*[[Hospitallers]] - Institutionally religious.
*[[Howling Griffons]] - Institutionally Black Templars wannabes.
*[[Inceptors]] - Institutionally <blank>.
*[[Imperial Fists]] - Institutionally fortifying this position.
*[[Invaders]] - Institutionally trading blows with Eldar.
*[[Iron Hands]] - Institutionally angry cyborgs.
*[[Iron Snakes]] - Institutionally [[Awesome|Texas Rangers]].
*[[Lamenters]] - Institutionally unlucky.
*[[Legion of the Damned]] - Institutionally undead WHILE ON FIRE!
*[[Marines Errant]] - Institutionally being actual marines.
*[[Marines Malevolent]] - Institutionally MASSIVE assholes.
*[[Mantis Warriors]] - Institutionally misdirecting.
*[[Mentors]] - Institutionally academic. Has not been heard from [[Rogue Trader (Sourcebook)|for a long time]].
*[[Minotaurs]] - Institutionally mysteriously paranoid teamkilling dicks. They are suspected to be in league with the [[High Lords of Terra]] as an attempt to police the Adeptus Astartes. Cause that'll work.
*[[Mortifactors]] - Institutionally Skulls and Bones.
*[[Novamarines]] - Institutionally hating Xenos.
*[[Raptors]] - Institutionally [[Reasonable_Marines|reasonable]] and [[shooty]].
*[[Raven Guard]] - Institutionally [[Troll|tricksy]] and speedy.
*[[Rainbow Warriors]] - Institutionally [[Gay|<s>gay</s>]] not appearing in this game.
*[[Red Scorpions]] - Institutionally pure.
*[[Red Talons]] - Institutionally bloodthirsty, and red.
*[[Relictors]] - Institutionally radical.
*[[Retributors]] - Institutionally tactical, also officially official.
*[[Salamanders]] - Institutionally [[Flamer|burny]]. Also, surprisingly nice for all their... fiery nature.
*[[Sable Swords]] - Institutionally heirs to the [[Astral Knights]].
*[[Scythes of the Emperor]] - Institutionally NOT DEAD YET.
*Shadow Wolves - Institutionally made up by AD-B for his wife, and wiped out in a book he wrote.
*[[Silver Skulls]] - Institutionally [[Shaman|shamanistic]].
*[[Sons of Medusa]] - Institutionally lime green.
*[[Sons of the Phoenix]] - Institutionally totally not the [[Emperor's Children]].
*[[Soul Drinkers]] - Institutionally rebellious.
*[[Space Sharks]] - Institutionally [[Shark|SHARKY]], BITCH!
*[[Space Wolves]] - Institutionally Vikings.
*[[Star Phantoms]] - Institutionally SURPRISE, MOTHERFUCKER!.
*[[Storm Wardens]] - Institutionally Celtic.
*[[Ultramarines]] - Institutionally <s>[[Codex_Astartes|orthodox]]</s> Matt Ward Cultists.
*[[Unnumbered Sons]] - Institutionally without identity.
*[[White Scars]] - Institutionally Mongolian.
*[[White Templars]] - Institutionally Black Templars...but white
*[[Valedictors]] - Institutionally gone, so forget it.

==Space Marine Chapter Masters==
[[File:Angels of the Rock.jpg|200px|right|thumb|Tiny head syndrome is a common side effect of the augmentations]]
*[[Marneus Calgar]] - Chapter Master of the [[Ultramarines]]. Received the rank by having the most plot armor, nowadays he has become Guilliman's aide in running Ultramar.
*[[Dante]] - Chapter Master of the [[Blood Angels]]. '''Beware!!!!'''. Dante is watching you! Received the rank for being so old and always wearing a mask, he looks like a man entering his sixties without it.
*[[Logan Grimnar]] - Great Wolf of the [[Space Wolves]]. Is the wolfiest of all the wolf lords without being a furry, also, he cares a lot for the average baseline human.
*[[Azrael]] - Supreme Grand Master of the [[Dark Angels]]. Best at VANQUISHING FOUL TRAITORS FROM OTHER LEGIONS.
*[[Vorn Hagen]] - Chapter Master of the [[Imperial Fists]]. Appointed as Chapter Master <s>out of pity</s> because he was the second best candidate in line for the job, and the [[Darnath Lysander|TRUE HERO]] had turned it down so he could continue doing what he does best (namely make servants of Chaos cry with a generous appliance of [[Thunder Hammer]] to the face). Died in the Second Battle of Terra and was replaced by Gregor Dessian.
*[[Jubal Khan]] - Chapter Master of the [[White Scars]]. Proved his speediness by outracing a bike mounted captain wearing only rollerskates. Was abducted by the [[Red Corsairs]] and tortured to the point that he is permanently crippled and forced to survive strapped to life support systems in the Chapter's Fortress Monastery.
*[[Tu'Shan]] - Master of the Fire Drakes, [[derp|de-Facto]] Chapter Master of the [[Salamanders]]. Forged the burniest flamer.
*[[Kardan Stronos]] - Chapter Master of the [[Iron Hands]](sort of). Was actually democratically elected for diplomatic reasons, temporarily. It's complicated.
*Corvin Severax - Former Chapter Master of the [[Raven Guard]], nicknamed "Master of Shadows". Got the job by being the sneakiest of the sneaky Marines (they were looking for him to officially grant him the rank until the last day). Unfortunately some [[Shadowsun|blue-skinned bitch]] had him killed in the Damocles Gulf (ironically by being even sneakier and trickier then him).
*[[Kayvaan Shrike]] - Formerly Captain of the Raven Guard's third company, and all-around badass that [[get shit done]] in his Primarch's time-honored way (i.e. sneak up to a motherfucker and shred him with [[Lightning Claws]] before vanishing again). Shrike was decided unanimously to be Severax' successor when the latter suffered from an unfortunate severe overdose of Tau gunline; only adding to his [[awesome]].
*[[Kaldor Draigo]] - SUPREME Grand Master of the [[Grey Knights]] and one of [[Matt Ward]]'s [[Mary Sue|Special Snowflakes]]. Honored for being the single biggest Mary Sue in the whole damn setting by being able to survive in the Warp unprotected and uncorrupted. Fortunately, later authors have been working to tone him down and give him an actual personality.
*[[Helbrecht]] - High Marshall of the [[Black Templars]]. Was voted High Marshall for being the angriest of the not [[Angry Marines]]. Has a [[Waifu|tsundere]] relation with [[Imotekh the Stormlord]]
*[[Pedro Kantor]] - Chapter Master of the [[Crimson Fists]]. Got the most votes (read: all three) during the election.
*[[Gabriel Seth]] - Chapter Master of the [[Flesh Tearers]]. Ripped and tore the most during the Chapter Master audition (also kicked one of the judges in the balls), he is a bit tsundere for Dante while still being totally bros with him.
*[[Azariah Kyras]] - Former Chapter Master of the [[Blood Ravens]] who was killed for being a filthy, despicable, traitorous, no good follower of Chaos. Later replaced by [[Gabriel Angelos]].
*Gabriel Angelos, a totally cool dude who had to deal with Kyras heresy, as well as Baldeale's incompetence and having his recruiting worlds invaded by the Tyranids.
*Sarpedon - Chapter Master of the [[Soul Drinkers]] Also, a (bottom) half giant spider mutant. Got all his friends killed for trying to do the right thing. Rookie Grimdark mistake, kid.
*[[Carab Culln]] - Lord High Commander of the [[Red Scorpions]]. Got promoted after the last one was killed. Then got himself mortally wounded and was interred in a [[Dreadnought#Leviathan Pattern|Leviathan Dreadnought]]. Suceeded by [[Casan Sabius]].
*Artekus Bardane - Chapter Master of the [[Relictors]]. Collects and uses Chaos artifacts better then anyone in the Chapter.
*[[Asterion Moloc]] - Chapter Master of the [[Minotaurs]]. No clue how he got the job, our inquiries were met with death threats and top level cease and desist orders. Has a laser-shooting pimp cane and won't mind sacrificing his own people to get the job done.
*[[Lugft Huron]] - Chapter Master of the [[Astral Claws]]. Got the rank by being absolutely awesome, unfortunately he overdid it and caused the [[Badab War]].
*Lias Issodon - Chapter Master of the [[Raptors_(Chapter)|Raptors]]. The most reasonable of the not-[[Reasonable Marines|reasonable marines]].
*[[Tyberos the Red Wake]] - Chapter Master of the [[Space Sharks]], or at least assumed to be. He was the leader of the Carcharodons during the Badab War, but his exact rank was never confirmed until 8th Edition. Still showed the best technique when it came to applying '''RIP AND TEAR''' to heretic asses, assisted by his [[awesome|LIGHTNING CLAW CHAINFISTS]].
*Omadon Tiresias - Chapter Master of the [[Star Phantoms]]. Blinded by warp storms during the evacuation of the Star Phantom home world, he forsook his own sight to save the relics of his Chapter.
*[[Malakim Phoros]] - Chapter Master of the [[Lamenters]]. Not happy with his Chapter being constantly shat upon and sided with Huron during the Badab War. Ohh, you poor man. Despite being utterly screwed and [[Eldrad|dicked with]] due to [[Tzeentch|unbelievably bad fortune]] AND struggling with crippling depression and cynicism, the guy refuses to give up faith in his fellow man. [[Grimdark|Naturally, it only makes things worse.]]
*[[Lord Magyar]] - Chapter Master of [[Mortifactors]]. His artificer armor is made from bone entirely, and though the rule Slow and Purposeful is no more, he definitely IS [[Tactical genius|slow and purposeful]]. He wears a relic [[Typhus|power scythe]]. He is at least [[Awesome|700 years old]]. Also dead, according to a Deathwatch: Swordwind.

== Rivalries ==
[[File:Moloc.JPG|300px|right|thumb|Everyone hates the Minotaurs]]
While normally above mortal shortcomings, the greatest flaw of the Space Marines is their hubris. They are immensely proud warriors who do not take kindly to having their honor slighted. Some take mental note of this for a later date while others [[rip and tear|take the more direct approach]]. This has created some notable rivalries between the various Chapters, some of which date back to the Great Crusade.

*'''Space Wolves and Dark Angels''' - The Space Wolves and Dark Angels have a rather tumultuous and sometimes violent rivalry, but in a way their Legions truly reflect the relationship between brothers. The rivalry itself stems from a confrontation between their Primarchs that stemmed from the different cultures the Primarchs had come up in. During a joint operation between the Wolves and the Dark Angels, the planet's ruler had insulted Russ personally, so Russ resolved to slay him personally. The Lion tried to cut Russ in on his deep strike plan, but Russ would have none of it. He didn't want to defeat the enemy, he wanted to utterly crush them. Frustrated with his brother's lack of cooperation, the Lion launched his strike without the Wolves' help, and Russ fought his way into the planetary ruler's palace just in time to watch the Lion behead him. Furious, Russ threw down his weapons and punched the Lion, starting a lengthy fist fight that only ended when Russ started laughing upon realizing how pointless the fight was and how stupid he'd been. Thinking that Russ was laughing at him, the Lion punched Russ unconscious. When Russ awoke he sought out the Lion to make amends, but he had already departed with his fleet. Though the two would work together again, the Lion was rather unforgiving (oh the irony) towards Russ. To Russ the Lion seemed the antagonist. After all, in the halls of Fenris a brawl between angry brothers was hardly unusual. When the fight ended you'd toast each other and drink away the bruises and move on. To the Lion Russ seemed at fault. After all, in the knightly orders of Caliban striking one's brothers was not done: petty infighting could not be tolerated when monsters slavered at the gate. As is so often the case between brothers, both were at fault and neither would back down. To this day the Space Wolves and Dark Angels (and their successor Chapters) will fight (usually) non-lethal honor duels to "settle the score," though "the score" has never really been agreed on. Occasionally tensions between the two Chapters will boil over into open warfare which is often caused by <strike>Fallen Angels</strike> TRAITORS UNASSOCIATED WITH THE DARK ANGELS hiding amidst the Space Wolves' protectorate worlds, using the tensions to their advantage. Finally it's worth noting that even though the two (former) Legions often fight, they never show that rivalry to the wider Imperium, and they'll set aside their rivalry whenever they need to [[get shit done]] together. Their rivalry is in question now, though, as after the Great Rift opened the Unforgiven came and beat the shit out of Magnus’s army invading Fenris. Originally they thought the sudden explosion of Wulfen numbers meant that the Space Wolves either fell to Chaos, were too mutated to recover and needed a mercy killing, or that there would hardly be any left and just Wulfen remained. Unlike when the last time they showed up at Fenris and attacked the Space Wolves in the belief the Wolves had turned or something, this time the Dark Angels were wary of being used and found out that their assumption was wrong before they could fuck up and thus avoided epic team-killing and instead the First Legion slammed into the daemons and traitor Marines like the Emperor’s own banhammer.

*'''Ultramarines and the Word Bearers''' - The Ultramarines are pissed off at the Word Bearers for a great many things: 1) They turned traitor during what was supposed to be an exercise to patch up their poor relations after the Castigation of Lorgar; 2) They used millions of cultists as meat shields during the [[Battle of Calth]], which the Ultramarines saw as dishonorable and disgusting; 3) They almost destroyed Calth; and finally 4) The battle of Calth was the first battle of the Heresy for the Ultramarines as a whole, meaning that while they were chilling and waiting to go kill some Orks, the Word Bearers suddenly turned around and slaughtered a fuckload of them without warning. They managed to pull through in the end and win by the skins of their teeth, but it was a gigantic blow to the Ultramarines, who now had to fight off a vengeful Legion out of nowhere with almost half their Legion dead, their fleet crippled, ''and the fucking sun of the planet they were on flooding it with deadly radiation''. Not to mention the giant Warp storm that cut them off from the rest of the Imperium, which coincidentally formed at the exact time the Word Bearers attacked...

*'''Ultramarines and the Alpha Legion''' - The Alpha Legion led the Ultramarines halfway across the galaxy on a fool's errand that ultimately ensured they were nowhere near the Imperial Palace during the Horus Heresy. Adding insult to injury, they inflicted enormous casualties on the Ultramarines, and though they succeeded in killing Alpharius (or did they?), the Alpha Legion's command structure was so decentralized that it did little to affect them.

*'''Ultramarines and the Black Templars (also the Imperial Fists, the Crimson Fists, the Space Wolves, and the Salamanders)''' - When Roboute Guilliman tried to force the Codex Astartes on the Space Marine Legions after the Horus Heresy, some Legions - most notably the Imperial Fists - outright refused, not wanting their legions to be broken down into smaller Chapters. Rogal Dorn called Guilliman a coward, while Guilliman called Dorn a rebel. The Space Wolves and the Salamanders ended up backing Dorn, while the Raven Guard and the White Scars supported Guilliman. The rivalry became so intense that the Imperial Navy even fired on the Imperial Fist strike cruiser ''Terrible Angel'', and it seemed that the Space Marines would war against one another once again. Finally, Rogal Dorn yielded to prevent another war and broke his legion into the Black Templars and the Crimson Fists. As the Ultramarines still were wary of the loyalties of the Imperial Fists and their successors, Sigismund - the first Emperor's Champion and the man that Dorn had appointed to be the Black Templars Chapter Master - declared a 10,000 year crusade in the Emperor's name to prove their loyalty. Even though tensions have since cooled between the Ultramarines and the other Chapters, the Ultramarines are still suspicious about (read: sticking their nose into the business of) the Black Templars as they still refuse to conform to the Codex Astartes, and won't tell the Ultramarines just how huge their Chapter is. In short, Sigismund and Leman Russ told Guilliman where he can shove his Codex Astartes, and he's all anal pained about it.

*'''Ultramarines and the Iron Warriors''' - [[Uriel Ventris]] and Pasanius Lysane, of the Ultramarines, were sworn to a Death Oath by their Chapter Master Marneus Calgar as punishment for violating the Codex Astartes (specifically, because they had abandoned the rest of their company to assist a Deathwatch Kill-team during the Battle of Tarsus Ultra). Their mission: find and destroy the [[Daemonculaba]]. The quest took the Ultramarines pair to the nightmarish [[Daemon World]] of [[Medrengard]], within the [[Eye of Terror]] itself. Medrengard was the homeworld of the Iron Warriors Traitor Legion. It was also the location of [[Honsou]], the evil Iron Warriors Warsmith who oversaw the Daemonculaba project from within his fortress, Khalan-Ghol. The Ultramarines were successful in destroying the Daemonculaba, and were also able to bring ruination to Khalan-Ghol and Honsou's forces. Uriel Ventris also managed to shoot Honsou in the head. Unfortunately, the Warsmith survived the headshot. Upon realizing the extent of the damage Uriel had caused, Honsou swore revenge and also the utter annihilation of [[Ultramar]]. Honsou was aware that before he ever dealt with Uriel Ventris, the Ultramarines spent years and countless resources and lives to repel a [[Tyranid]] incursion at Tarsis Ultra. Honsou thus unleashed a plan which destroyed every living thing on Tarsis Ultra, and reduced the planet itself to a lifeless rock. Destroying the planet provided no strategic gain to the Iron Warriors; Honsou carried out his horrific genocide simply to spite Uriel Ventris and the Ultramarines. Following this, the Iron Warriors use an army won from the [[Red Corsairs]] to free the [[Daemon Prince]] [[M'kar]], and invade [[Ultramar]]. Though the "Bloodborn" army is beaten back, the Ultramarines lost over one third of their battle-brothers in the attempt, leaving them open to attack for the first time since the First Tyrannic War and unable to properly participate in the Imperial counter-offensive for the [[13th Black Crusade]]. The Ultramarines and the Iron Warriors have thus become bitter enemies-- with Uriel Ventris and Honsou in particular becoming sworn foes.

*'''Ultramarines and the Hammers of Dorn''' - The Hammers adhere rigidly to the Codex Astartes, to the point where they point out any deviations from the codex by the Ultramarines. According to the Hammers of Dorn, Guilliman may have had the genius to pen the codex, but the sons of Dorn are the only ones that can bring out its full potential.

*'''Ultramarines and the Minotaurs''' - While the Minotaurs are hated by everyone the Ultramarines have a special grudge against them, due to the Euxine Incident of the [[Macharian Heresy]]. It just so happened that the loyalist [[Doom Warriors]] and [[Inceptors]] chapters were busy [[skub|fighting each other over a matter of honor]], and [[lawful stupid|refused to stop and aid Imperial forces]]. The Minotaurs were sent to quell the dispute, which they did in their [[rip and tear|usual manner]]. They attacked both sides in force, nearly destroying them wholesale. The Doom Warriors were badly beaten and forced into a barely-organized retreat almost immediately. The Inceptors weren't so lucky. With no way to withdraw they suffered the full onslaught of the Minotaurs and finally surrendered with less then 100 Marines left. The honored 2nd [[Founding]] Chapter was subsequently [[Blood Ravens|robbed of most of their Chapter relics, the Minotaurs stealing them right off their dead bodies]], including their flagship, a relic of the Great Crusade. This brought them a great deal of hatred from the Ultramarines and their successors, who have since forbidden the Minotaurs from entering Ultramar and seek vengeance whenever the opportunity arises.

*'''Blood Angels and the World Eaters''' - Both constantly compete for superiority in melee combat and also the angriest motherfucking berserker full of rage.

*'''Raven Guard and White Scars''' - Supposedly dates back to a huge fucking argument between [[Corax]] and [[Jaghatai Khan]], where the two had a massive spat over the proper use of rapid-reaction forces. Corax insisted they be used as part of infiltration and deep-strike units, and Jaghatai insisted they were to be on the front lines - the two never really saw eye-to-eye, Corax seeing Jaghatai as devastatingly effective, but with the tactical sense of a drunken Space Wolf, and Jaghatai seeing Corax as too cautious and tactical for proper man-fighting. The two would eventually make up after the Horus Heresy, and both the Raven Guard and White Scars would be forced to ally on several occasions - most notably during the infamous Hunt for Voldorius - but an intense rivalry over whose fast-attack doctrine is better persists to this day, and the two factions are still kind of assholes to one another as a result.

*'''Blood Angels and the Black Legion''' - Considering that Horus killed their Primarch (who, before the Heresy, were closer than any other Primarchs) which resulted in them suffering from the Black Rage which eventually causes every descendant of Sanguinius to have visions of being killed by Horus, the Blood Angels probably despise the Black Legion to the point of pure obsession. Also as a rule, the Blood Angels have a special hatred for the [[Abaddon|owner]] of the '''Talon of Horus''', since it killed their <s>father</s> sexy angel daddy.

*'''World Eaters and the Grey Knights''' - Angron was banished back to the Warp by Grey Knights during the first battle of Armageddon, which resulted in the World Eaters' defeat. Angron has since been resurfacing, and has sworn revenge.

*'''Raven Guard and the Black Legion (also the Word Bearers, Night Lords, Iron Warriors, and Alpha Legion)''' - The Raven Guard were the second hardest hit by the Drop Site Massacre of Istvaan V ''(the Salamanders got hit worse, but there weren't really enough survivors to hold a grudge)''. Though all of the traitor legions except the Thousand Sons were involved, the Raven Guard holds a special hatred for the former Luna Wolves and Horus, a hatred which has transferred over to [[Abaddon]] and the Black Legion. That said, the Raven Guard go absolutely murderous on any of the Legions who turned on them at Istvaan V.

*'''Grey Knights and the Space Wolves''' - Officially, there really isn't a rivalry at all. Because officially the Grey Knights don't exist. Unofficially, during the First War for Armageddon, Grey Knights were ordered to fire on dozens of civilian ships because there was a fraction of a shadow of smidgen of a chance that they were tainted by Chaos. The Space Wolves decided this was pretty dickish, and protected the civilians. Naturally, the Inquisition made it worse. Then old [[Logan Grimnar|Loggy]] chops a Grey Knight Grand Master's head off and kills four Justicars, the ugly downward spiral of '''''WTF!?'''''s started there. Eventually, an understanding was reached where the remaining civvies weren't murdered but just mindwiped a bit and Inquisitorial ships would never again come to Fenris or the Wolves would tear them a new asshole. Officially unofficially, the Grey Knights are angry that another Chapter was given even shittier writing than they got.

*'''Imperial Fists and the Iron Warriors''' - Imagine their rivalry akin to World War I. The Imperial Fists love making defenses, while the Iron Warriors love destroying stuff. Perturabo hated Rogal Dorn for being Daddy's golden boy and his constant boasting of the fortifications of the Imperial Palace. Perturabo eventually bested Dorn and the Imperial Fists by making a huge space fortress that Dorn then tried to attack in an effort to bring Perturabo to justice (known as the 'Iron Cage'). The fortress was nothing but a decoy with inwardly facing gun-lines, meaning the entire thing was a trap and wound up cutting down enormous numbers of the Imperial Fists before they could retreat. Each side was too strong without both of them completely destroying each other. Dorn is still perturbed to this day by the event.

*'''Thousand Sons and the Space Wolves''' - The Space Wolves despised the Red Sorcerers for their practice of magic, and initially didn't question a goddamned thing after Horus had intentionally given the Wolves incorrect orders (to destroy the Thousand Sons, as opposed to taking Magnus to stand trial). Perhaps the dumbest part of their rivalry is that when they actually showed up at Prospero, Leman Russ felt guilty about just slaughtering the Thousand Sons, so he tried to call Magnus to ask him to stand down so that they could take him in peacefully. Magnus, having assumed Leman Russ was here to kill him had refused to take any calls (and not only prevented his Legion from communicating with the Wolves, but gathered them all so they'd be easier to slaughter) which ended up pissing off the Wolves again and ensuring the Thousand Sons were nearly completely wiped out. Despite this being entirely preventable by their Primarch (on top of causing their fall to Tzeentch) and engineered by Horus (with the Wolves being completely ignorant about it) they still blame the Wolves anyway instead of those [[Derp|other two]]. The Sons would nonetheless resurface to attack the Space Wolves: they led a siege on their homeworld and succeeded in causing considerable damage before being driven off; during this offensive they managed to destroy a series of laboratories, including one that held an entire generation worth of the Space Wolves' Gene-Seed (as well as the cure for the Wulfen curse), and Magnus himself was responsible for killing the Space Wolves' Chapter Master.

*'''White Scars and the Space Wolves''' - Thousand Sons were the biggest bros of the Scars during the Great Crusade, their Primarchs were total bros too, so when they figured out that Wolves destroyed Prospero, killed most of the (still totally loyal) Thousand Sons and Magnus forced the surviving ones into going heretic (though some were [[Traitor Legion Loyalists|already corrupted prior]]) (and the Wolves don't even feel any guilt or remorse about their role), none were surprised the Scars kept a huge grudge against the Space Yiffs. Also during the Crusade, the Scars hated being compared to the Wolves because of the apparent link to barbarism. The Wolves themselves also have a thing or two to say about the multiple times Scars hadn't come to help when they could, starting from when they left the Wolves alone against an entire Alpha Legion fleet.

*'''White Scars and Death Guard''' - Mostly a personal one between Jaghatai Khan and Mortarion, but there was no love lost to begin with. Solidified when the Khan cut Mortarion's head off and killed his physical body at the Siege of Terra, forcing him to assume a Daemonic form.

*'''Iron Hands and the Emperor's Children''' - Prior to the Heresy, Fulgrim and Ferrus Manus were '''extremely''' close friends. Their bond ran so deep that even as Fulgrim declared his intentions of joining the forces of Chaos to Ferrus, asking him to join him in overthrowing the Emperor, Ferrus couldn't open fire on his brother's ship. Naturally, this had some rather nasty effects in the long term, not least of which was Fulgrim decapitating the Gorgon with his own sword. The Iron Hands did not take kindly to this. Also, getting all repressed and logical over the next 10,000 years caused Slaanesh to take breaking them as a challenge.

*'''World Eaters and The Emperor's Children''' - In addition to following [[Khorne|rival]] [[Slaanesh|deities]], the Emperor's Children lost huge numbers of troops to the World Eaters at [[Battle of Skalathrax|Skalathrax]]. Really, all you need to know is that [[Kharn]] and a Flamer were involved, and that before this incident, the World Eaters were a much more coordinated force.
**'''World Eaters and World Eaters''' - This event caused the World Eaters to break up into warbands.

*'''Emperor's Children and the Iron Warriors''' - Given that Fulgrim tried to sacrifice Peturabo's soul to Slaanesh to fuel his ascension to Daemon Prince...
** '''Emperor's Children and absolutely everyone else''' - Due to their disturbing habits of enslaving populations and/or stealing other Legion's servants to be used as... [[Slaanesh|''partners'']] for [[/d/|some memorable parties]], absolutely everyone tend to avoid them like walking STD's.

*'''Dark Angels and FOUL TRAITORS''' - Do ''not'' get between them and a [[Fallen Angels|FOUL TRAITOR TO THE IMPERIUM WHO CERTAINLY HAS NO CONNECTION TO THE SONS OF THE LION]]. It can only end in tears.

*'''Thousand Sons and World Eaters:''' Khorne hates sorcery, and so the World Eaters hate the Sons. Sadly for the World Eaters, they're usually well out of the Sons' league; the Thousand Sons tend to pick conflicts selectively, which means the followers of Khorne have rarely even had the chance to fight them. Also, it doesn't do much to appease Khorne's bloodlust, since there is no blood or skulls to offer, just dust. Then again, there are some exceptions, namely [[Iskandar Khayon]] and [[Lheorvine Ukris]], who were total bros, and they were the guys that founded the [[Black Legion]] along with [[Abaddon]].

*'''Blood Ravens and EVERYONE:''' Apart from Captain Titus of the Ultramarines, almost every Marine Chapter mentioned in having contact with the Blood Ravens have not been on good terms. Most likely due to their rampant kleptomania. This animosity extends beyond the Space Marines, and into the rest of the Imperium as well; Imperial Guard forces hate them for exterminating the Kronus Liberators, the Mechanicus hates them stealing archeotech, the Ecclesiarchy hates them for their psykers, and the Inquisition doesn't like them for their secrecy.

*'''Blood Angels and the Emperor's Children''' - [[Fabius Bile]] stole the blood of Sanguinius from the Blood Angels' Fortress-Monastery as part of a plot to make a clone of the God-Emperor. As the neophyte initiation process for the Blood Angels requires the consumption of some of the aforementioned blood, the Blood Angels and all their Successor Chapters have sworn to find and kill Bile at all costs. (For a while, it looked like they succeeded—that is, until they found out that Bile had begun cloning ''himself''.)

*'''Iron Hands and Raven Guard and Salamanders''' - The Iron Hands are still pissy about the whole [[Drop Site Massacre|Isstvan V]] thing. They believe that had the Salamanders and Raven Guard followed their Primarch Ferrus Manus they would have won at the Dropsite Massacre. Completely overlooking the fact that they were surprised, surrounded, outgunned and outnumbered nearly 3 to 1. They don't like the Raven Guard in particular for their use of stealth and subterfuge, and also for having a pretty much identical color scheme. The Salamanders aren't too keen about the Iron Hands belief of "purging the weak" and usual disregard for civilian casualties and sometimes their own Marines. The Raven Guard and Salamanders never pulled any of this bullshit with each other, though, and remain close allies, if for nothing other than the Hands constantly being dicks to both of them.

*'''Marines Malevolent and Salamanders''' - What happens when the galaxy's [[That Guy|greatest assholes]] meet the galaxy's greatest humanitarian Marines? Hilarity, that's what. The hate fueled rivalry that was first widely known came during the Third War for Armageddon where a squad of Marines Malevolent used their [[Whirlwind|Whirlwinds]] to fire upon an Ork-occupied camp, when they ''knew'' that the camp contained hundreds of Imperial civilian hostages, mostly women and children. Oh and guess what their response was, something to do with "Meh, we only serve the Emprah only" and "We didn't know there were ''"that"'' many civilians." As you can imagine, this both horrified and [[Rage|royally pissed off]] the Salamanders, and when these two Chapters met again after the war, Chapter Master Tu'Shan, to put it simply, bitch-slapped the Captain of the Marines Malevolent in front of ''everybody in the city,'' prompting much sniggering and cheering among both Guardsmen and civilians alike. Because of such reaction to complete dickwads, the Salamanders were considered as the '''Heroes of Armageddon''' by popular vote.

*'''Aurora Chapter and the Emperor's Spears''' - Fought each other over matters of honor and the Ultramarines judged Aurora Chapter was right, which soured relations of the Emperor's Spears with their primogenitor. Tensions have since lessened but the two Chapters still refuse to fight together.

*'''Marines Malevolent and Everyone Else''' - When even [[GW|GeeDubs]] canonically calls them "the worst"... well, 'nuff said.

*'''Salamanders and Sons of Medusa''' - During the [[Badab War]] the Salamanders, being friends with the [[Executioners]] chapter (who had been on the wrong side of the fighting), prevented the [[Sons of Medusa]] from taking revenge for the Strike Cruiser Warspite, lost with all hands at the hands of the Executioners, after the Executioners surrendered. The Sons of Medusa have sworn off all contact with the Salamanders and basically implied they would rather see the Imperium lose wars than help a single Salamander live.

*'''Iron Hands and Successors (especially Red Talons) and Sons of Medusa'''- The Sons of Medusa were formed from Iron Hands and successor Chapter Marines except those from the [[Red Talons]] who professed their belief in the Moirae Doctrine during the [[Nova Terra Interregnum]]'s Moirae Schism. The Red Talons killed all of their schismatics but all other Schismatics essentially formed their own Chapter, which was judged pure by the restored [[High Lords of Terra]] near the end of the [[Age of Apostasy]] and given official recognition outside of normal Chapter Foundings as the Sons of Medusa. The mainstream believers in the [[Omnissiah]] amidst the Iron Hands and all other successors obviously have serious problem with this, but can't act against the Sons of Medusa due to them being officially recognized as a Chapter. Further, the Sons of Medusa outperformed all other Iron Hands successors during the major Crusades whose ending marked the beginning of the [[Age of Redemption]], formally earning the respect of Imperial military bureaucracy and erasing any suspicions over their being specially recognized rather than normally founded. The Sons of Medusa for their part see the mainstream Iron Hands and successors as fools who cling to ancient doctrine over the reality of the situation at hand.

*'''Lamenters and Reality Itself''' - Again, enough said.

*'''Fire Angels and Space Sharks'''- The [[Fire Angels]] refused to fight alongside the [[Space Sharks]] during the Badab War, implying some bad blood between the chapters though the severity is unknown.

==Bros To the End==
As there are several Chapters and Legions who despise one another, there's a few that get along damned well.

*'''Raven Guard, Salamanders, and Iron Hands''' - True since the Great Crusade, where these three found they worked extremely well in-concert - The Raven Guard acting as the advance and cutting off critical locations and eliminating command units, the Salamanders in providing the heavy punch to follow this up, and the Iron Hands providing the tide of firepower to support both. That being said, the Iron Hands' relationship with the Raven Guard and the Salamanders has deteriorated since the Horus Heresy; they believe that had their allies not retreated from the Drop Site Massacre, Ferrus Manus would not have been killed and Horus would have been defeated before he could pose a threat to the Imperium. (It doesn't take a genius to realize that this would have just led to the complete annihilation of their Legions in practice.) It's not really clear if the Hands still fight alongside their former best bros in the 41st millennium, but given the whole "feeding a Raven Guard company to psyker Orks for lulz" thing, it doesn't seem likely.

*'''Salamanders and Blood Angels''' - Though the Salamanders are friendly with most Chapters anyway (and them hating you being a good indication of you being a huge asshole), they're particularly tight with the Blood Angels. Both Chapters are some of the few in the Imperium that actually go out of their way for civilians and put them before pride and glory in battle. This became particularly evident during the [[Armageddon|Second War of Armageddon]], when both fought side-by-side against the [[Orks]] and when [[Dante]] publicly honored [[Tu'Shan]] for his bravery during the war and bitch-slapping the Marines Malevolent Captain.

*'''Imperial Fists and their successors''' - Doctrinal differences and martial angst aside, the sons of Dorn have always been on good terms with each other. Whenever a crisis threatens Terra that is too great for a single Chapter, the Imperial Fists and their successors unite to put an end to that threat, such as [[The War of The Beast]], and the [[Age of Apostasy|Second Siege of Terra]] to put [[Goge Vandire]] in his place. Every century, they also come together for an epic swordfighting tournament called the [[Feast of Blades]].

*'''Blood Angels, White Scars and Imperial Fists''' - All three fought and died in the defence of the Imperial Palace. Broforce = very yes.

*'''Ultramarines and Imperial Fists''' - Similar to the Space Wolves and Dark Angels above, beef about the Codex aside, the two Chapters have always been on very good terms. (I guess the above segment regarding the Ultramarines firing on the Imperial Fists ship is just swept under the rug).

*'''Dark Angels and Dark Angel successors''' - THE DARK ANGELS HAVE NO SUCH RELATIONSHIP WITH THEIR SUCCESSOR CHAPTERS. RUMORS THAT DARK ANGEL SUCCESSORS ARE STILL UNDER DIRECT COMMAND FROM THEIR PARENT CHAPTER, EFFECTIVELY STILL MAKING THEM FUNCTION AS A LEGION, ARE OBVIOUSLY LIES AND SLANDER FABRICATED BY THE FOUL HERETICS OF CHAOS, AS SUCH AN ACT WOULD BREAK THE GUIDELINES OF THE CODEX ASTARTES, WHICH LOYAL CHAPTERS WOULD NOT DO-{{BLAM}}

*'''Astral Claws, Lamenters and Mantis Warriors {Pre-Badab War}''' - When the [[Maelstrom|Maelstrom zone]] needed to be conquered, the [[High Lords of Terra]] create the "Maelstrom Warders", an alliance formed by all these chapters (and the Charnel Guards, who later were withdrawn) to pacify and control the sector, and they got shit done! At some point, the [[Chapter Master]] of the Astral Claws, [[Lugft Huron]], believed the Imperium wasn't helping enough, declared himself "the Tyrant of Badab" and [[Heresy|secession from the Imperium]] (also just before this time, the Astral Claws absorbed the final few survivors of the Tiger Claws, their successor Chapter, after a catastrophic battle and their last fleet going MIA). Both the Lamenters and the Mantis Warriors followed suit, as they were both under command of the Astral Claws and were honorbound to them, but as well some agreeing that the Imperium was indeed bullying the Astral Claws for no reason. [[Badab War|The rest is history]]. After that sordid affair was over with, the Lamenters and the Mantis Warriors were fucked over sent on century long penitence crusades without the right to recruit until it was over (though the Mantis Warriors were allowed to recruit while in penitence after being reduced to 100 Marines). Given that the galaxy [[Great Rift|split right in half]] 13 years before their penance was to be over, it was probably quietly lifted before they were reinforced by [[Primaris Marines]]. Given that the Mantis Warriors have a unit specifically dedicated to hunting the [[Red Corsairs]], the former alliance is quite dead and gone.

*'''Thousand Sons and Word Bearers {Pre-Heresy.}''' - Lorgar was the closest Primarch-buddy of Magnus, due to the scholarly nature of both. They went separate ways after the Heresy though, probably because Magnus learned who really was behind the Burning of Prospero all along.

*'''Thousand Sons and White Scars {Pre-Heresy.}''' - As above, The Khan respected his scholarly brother and would have helped him if he was present at Nikaea.

*'''Iron Hands and Emperor's Children {Pre-Heresy.}''' - The culmination of the aforementioned close friendship between the Gorgon and the Phoenix would be a tragic foreshadowing of the fate of the Warmaster and the Great Angel's friendship.

*'''Luna Wolves/Sons of Horus and Blood Angels {Pre-Heresy.}''' - Horus and Sanguinius were the closest two Primarchs before the Heresy, and this extended to their Legions. This went to the point where Horus still wished he had Sanguinius on his side after having given himself over to the Dark Gods fully, and Sanguinius was willing to die if it meant that his brother could be saved even if only through death. This just makes the rivalry between the Black Legion and The Angelic Host that much more sad.

*'''Ultramarines and Genesis Chapter''' - Super close ties due to Genesis Chapter being Ultramarines reserve for Marines. They patrol the galaxy together.

* '''Emperor’s Spears, Celestial Lions, and Black Templars''' - the first two stemming from their tripartite brotherhood as the Adeptus Vaelari alongside the defunct Star Scorpions (who’s survivors are now their arch nemesis as the Chaos warband called the Pure) in Elara’s Veil while the latter two are fellow Sons of Dorn. The tragic death of thing is the Lions have a hit-me target painted on their forehead after having major disagreements with the Inquisition over collateral damage. While they’ve avoided extinction due to help from the Spears and the Templars, all three are now neck deep in the Veil with the Pure’s Exilarchy overwhelming half of the region after the Great Rift isolated them from the Imperium.

==Official /tg/ Space Marine Chapters==
[[File:Cloten.jpg|300px|right|thumb|THE RAPE TRAIN HAS NO BRAKES!!!]]
One of /tg/'s favorite pastimes is creating new and exciting Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes based on silly concepts. [[/tg/|/tg/'s]] [[/tg/'s homebrews|homebrew]] Chapters include:

*[[Adeptus Orthodontus]]
*[[Angry Marines]]
*[[Butthurt Marines]]
*[[The Wonderful Misadventures of: Inquisitor Fob and the Classy Marines|Classy Marines]]
*[[Comedy Marines]]
*[[Disco Marines]]
*[[Dorf Marines]]
*[[Drunk Marines]]
*[[Sigmar Marines|Emperor's Hammers]]
*[[Emperor's Paragons]]
*[[Galactic Partridges]]
*[[Golden Aquilas]]
*[[Inside-Out Marines]]
*[[Lazy Marines]]
*[[Manly Marines]]
*[[Metal Marines]]
*[[Mexicarines]]
*[[Mole Marines]]
*[[Obstinate Marines]]
*[[Pathetic Marines]]
*[[Pretty Marines]]
*[[Reasonable Marines]]
*[[Red Skeletons]]
*[[Scary Marines]]
*[[Silly Marines]]
*[[Sleepy Marines|Dream Warriors]]
*[[Star Shanks]]
*[[Elderly Marines]]
'''As you can see, /tg/ has a problem with creativity.'''

===Second Founding of /tg/ Space Marine Chapters===
After the release of Deathwatch: Rites of Battle, /tg/ quickly flung itself at the Chapter creation rules and began to produce a second wave of /tg/ Chapters. Noticeably more serious business than the previous Chapters, these Spess Mahreens range from the widely popular Emperor's Nightmare, to the derpy Flesh Helms.

*[[Abyssal Jaws]] - Institutionally sharky.
*[[Argent Strix]] - Institutionally hungry.
*[[Black Locks]] - Institutionally corsair.
*[[Blood Jaguars]] - Institutionally Aztec.
*[[Brotherhood of the Gauntlet]] - Institutionally Arabic Ghazi.
*[[Brotherhood of the Megalith]] - Institutionally rocky.
*[[Conservators]] - Institutionally poor and under-equipped. It's what happens when you piss of the Mechanicus.
*[[Deep Ones (Tiji Sector)|Deep Ones]] - Institutionally aquatic and environmentally resistant.
*[[Desert Fangs]] - Institutionally [[Angry Marines]] taken seriously.
*[[Dionysus Revelers]] - Institutionally cannibal drunks.
*[[Dune Walkers]] - Institutionally Arabic Nomads.
*[[Emperor's Bears]] - Institutionally lost.
*[[Emperor's Nightmare]] - Institutionally [[Sleepy Marines]] taken seriously.
*[[Eyes of Mordred]] - Institutionally [[Scary Marines]] taken seriously.
*[[Flesh Helms]] - Institutionally [[Imperial Guard]] of the Adeptus Astartes.
*[[Guardians Exemplar]] - Institutionally equal to the [[Marines Malevolent]].
*[[Ice Serpents]] - Institutionally [[Baneblade|mechanized]] for war.
*[[Ice Wraiths]] - Institutionally [[Awesome|cyborg-ice-vampire-yeti-riders]].
*[[Knights Inductor]] - Institutionally [[Reasonable Marines]] taken seriously. Also [[Mary Sues|MARY SUES]], don't mention them on /tg/. You'll just [[troll|cause a shitstorm]]
*[[Knights Repentant]] - Institutionally UTTERLY LOYAL and true pre-heresy [[Word Bearers]].
*[[Lumbermarines]] - Institutionally lumberjacks.
*[[Rising Sons]] - Institutionally BANZAI!!!
*[[Screaming Eagles]] - Institutionally 'MURICAN!!! FUCK YEAH!
*[[Talons of Corvus]] - Institutionally a more heroic [[Command and Conquer|Nod]].
*[[The Sovereign's Appraisal]] - Institutionally loyal and sympathetic despite mutations, being declared renegade, [[Slaanesh]] trying to seduce them and the [[Ultramarines]] and their successors trying to terminate them.
*[[War Brothers]] - Institutionally not giving a damn about what the [[Dark Angels]] want from them.
*[[The Adeptus Estates]] - Institutionally home building.
*[[Mourning Sons]] - Institutionally shedding [[Fist of the North Star|Manly Tears]].
*[[Star Krakens]] - Institutionally Viking, yet not [[Space Wolves|THAT]] Viking. Plus one of the biggest of shits that /tg/ has done right. AND HOW!
*[[Space Knights]] - Institutionally dour.
'''The second wave WOULD show improvements to creativity... If they didn't use a RPG system as a crutch, among other issues.'''

== Trivia ==

The name Adeptus Astartes is usually portrayed as meaning Star Adepts. However the name "Astarte" is actually a goddess of fertility, love, war, sex and sexuality from the Eastern Mediterranean regions during the [[Bronze Age]]. Somewhat meta considering that the Emprah was also from that region ''(Anatolia)'' around the same time period. [[HERESY|He may have been horny and/or romantically interested]] [[Rule 63|in the idea of a badass God-Empress]] and [[What|named his sons to symbolically show this]] using a language that only he and [[Ollanius Pius]] [[Derp|are the speakers of]] besides dead people and three of [[Khorne|the]] [[Nurgle|Ruinous]] [[Tzeentch|Powers]] (unlikely given the Emperor was anti-theistic and anti-religious), or this is just the Emperor keeping himself sane by engaging in humor he knows only one loyal person will get, which does not include his last [[Malcador the Sigillite|two]] [[Companion|friends]]. [[Grimdark|No wonder the Emprah doesn't smile much.]] [[Derp|Ironic given that the Astartes is an all-male organization.]]

However, much as with the [[Arkhan Land|Land]] Raider, a more prosaic explanation was provided in the novel ''The Great Work'', which features flashbacks from the memories of Ezekiel Sedayne (the guy who headed up the development team for the Black Carapace). The project’s coordinator was a mortal woman named Amar ''Astarte'', who was the most accomplished geneticist of the time outside of the Emepror and the Selenite Gene-witches. Following the theft of the Primarchs, Astartes feared that the Space Marines, without the supply of genetic materials from their Primarchs, would fall into deterioration like the Thunder Warriors. And so she blew up the Legions' gene-vault alongside herself; however, the Emperor had already known of this and made several copies of the vault elsewhere.

Given the current talent writing for GW, we'll eventually hear of somebody named "Adeptus" who also worked on the project (or even [[Adeptus Terra|all government organization as a whole]]); wouldn't be any dumber than some [[Erda|other things they chose to do.]]

==See Also==
*[[Beakie]] - When the Spehss mahrens were awesome looking.

*[[Chaplain]] - The spiritual leaders of the space marines.

*[[Female Space Marines]]- Records officially decommissioned and terminated by the [[Inquisition]] on the grounds of [[Heresy]], there is nothing here trust us. E-Commissars will blam you from your monitor when attempting to access said heretical records.

*[[Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine]]- The official game of [[Pauldrons]] (despite the fact that the pauldrons in this game are smaller than they should be)

*[[Warhammer_40,000/Tactics/Space_Marines_(9E)|Space Marines Tactics]]

*[[Guidelines of the Space Marines]]

*Despite the considerable amount of hate at the space marines nowadays, [[The World Engine|they can still be awesome.]]

*[[Bretonnia#Knightly Hierarchy|Grail Knights]] - The Warhammer Fantasy equivalent.

*[[Stormcast Eternals]] (AKA, [[Ground Marines]]), their [[Warhammer: Age of Sigmar]] equivalent.

*[[Terminator]]

*[[Apothecary]]

*[[Techmarine]]

*[[Librarian]]

*[[Scout]]

*[[Kill Marine]] of Deathwatch

*[[Codex Astartes]]

*[[Insignium Astartes]]

*[[Space Marine Chapter]]

*[[Space Marine Chapter Creation Tables]]

*[[Renegade Space Marine Chapter Creation Table]] - For when you hate both the Imperium and Chaos.

*[[Legion Consul]]

==External Links==
* [https://youtube.com/watch?v=XQwTyGeoprA The Emperor's speech on the Space Marines]
* [https://warhammer40k.fandom.com/wiki/Space_Marines WH40k Wikia on Astartes]
* [http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Space_Marine Lexicanum on Space Marines]
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Marine_(Warhammer_40,000) Wikipedia Article]
* [http://wackycamper.deviantart.com/art/Space-Marine-Commandments-88741651 The Commandments of the Space Marine]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13nM17TV_sU/ Rap song dedicated to the mighty-ass space marines.]
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMzWrDSNN4Y/ Another rap dedicated to the mighty-ass space marines.]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzPuK1vib_c Emperor's quote about the Space Marines in a remix done from If the Emperor had a Text-to-Speech Device glory.]
* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shRHZLheEJI What is to be a space marine, in thrash metal version!]

==Gallery==
<center>
<gallery>
File:Xenos sighted.jpg
File:Pingas.png
File:Pyramidheadspacemarine.jpg
File:Troll Emperor.jpg
File:New Marine.jpg
Image:1227373581722.gif
Image:Femalemini.jpg
File:Correction.JPG|Drill Abbots '''hate''' him!
File:Stuffy.jpg|Build a Marine Workshop
File:Pauldronius.png|[[Pauldron]]ius
File:Brother Sergeant Aznable.jpg|'''EEECK!'''
image:steelrain.jpg|Steel Rain in action!
File:Reasonablemarine.png|Don't fuck with [[Reasonable Marines]].
Image:LEGO_SpaceMarines_by_Jerac.jpg|Brick by brick we shall conquer.
File:1285382081001.jpg|Apparently, marines '''DO''' in fact have tiny heads.
File:Sperm Marine.jpg|I'm in ur w0mb, fertulizan yo eggz
File:Amuricuh.jpg|What historians didn't want you to believe
File:Yes they can.jpg|[[Skub|A matter of some contention.]]
File:False.jpg|Taking a page from their fallen brothers.
Image:Primarchs_as_teen_girls.png|<span style="color:#FF55FF;" color="pink">'''[[Rule 63]] Primarchs are the most popular girls at [[HS40K]]'''
File:Gearing up.jpg|A rare glimpse at a Space Marine without his awesome pauldrons on
File:Armour of Bulk.png|Space Marines and ridiculous suits of armour go hand in hand.
File:BruceAstartes.jpg|Brother Campbell brings a world into Imperial compliance.
File:SpessM.jpg|Indrick Boreale nearly turned Space Marines into the laughing stock of the entire franchise.
File:Angels of Derp.jpg|Space Marines as depicted during the dark ages of GW art (aka 2nd Edition)
Image:1228559892410.jpg|The scary thing is that this isn't fan art, seriously, this was an official GW product.
File:Warhammer 40k space marines we'll find your mom mother storytellers storytime missing child lost little girl.jpg|Now gather around children as I recount to you the exploits of the Emperor's chosen...
Image:1207335921499.jpg|The Space Wizards of Warpwarts have mastered the art of profecting the power of the warp through small wooden sticks. How they refrain from breaking them is a mystery.
Image:Horny Marine.gif|'''Hump the heretic, penetrate the mutant, cum in the alie-'''{{BLAM}} {{BLAM|SLAANESH WORSHIPPER!}}
</gallery>
</center>

{{Imperium}}
{{Marines-Forces}}
{{Marines-Official}}
{{Marines-Characters}}
{{WH40k-Factions}}

Awesome

2026-05-12T04:13:42Z

109.70.100.8: Undo revision 1010429 by 109.70.100.13 (talk)

[[Image:Awesome.png|300px|thumb|right|Standard awesome image. If you don't know what it means, gb2/gaia/.]]
{{awesome}}
An image with a long, murky history with [[4chan]] and Something Awful. Popular with probably every board, including /tg/. In its primordial roots, it was created on a now-defunct [[Pokemon]] fansite (Pokemopolis) of all places, where it was known as the :cheesy: smiley. The creator also posted in on Something Awful, where the Goons made it into what it is now.

If someone replies to your post with this image attached, he is essentially saying something along the lines of "fuck you" or "you're a fucking retard". This person is probably correct, since the purpose of /tg/ is /to generate/ [[RAGE]].

Often blends with [[METAL]], which is similarly employed in irony against shit that's just too ''much''.

== What is Awesome ==
awe·some
/ˈôsəm/

'' adjective ''

causing or inducing awe; inspiring an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, or fear:
an awesome sight.

exhibiting or marked by awe; showing reverence, admiration, or fear.

'' Slang ''

very impressive.

Things that ARE awesome include:
* [[Vecna]] is the primary example of awesome in [[D&D]], since he's the [[Batman]] [[wizard]] who broke the game so hard in 2nd edition, that he caused the edition change to 3rd. He avoids [[Mary Sue]]dom primarily by being awesome, and by ultimately losing, though he had a partial success since he ultimately went from demigod to lesser god.
* Some (not all) [[Old School Roleplaying|Old School]] modules in D&D - the ones which established the tropes. ''[[Scourge of the Slavelords|In the Dungeons of the Slavelords]]'', ''[[Tomb of Horrors]]'', and (as late as 1996) ''[[Gates of Firestorm Peak]]''. ''[[Rappan Athuk]]'' for that First Edition Feel.
** A subset are old modules which are still playable, brought some interesting ideas, and are regarded with nostalgia; but are dated, to modern audiences. That would be a majority of 1e: ''e.g.'', ''[[Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth]]'' and ''[[White Plume Mountain]]''.
* ''[[Warhammer 40,000]]'': a universe guided solely by Rule of Cool and [[GRIMDARK]], with the Imperium being the essence of [[Humanity Fuck Yeah]]. In eternal war against Extradimensional Cosmic Horrors straight out of [[H.P. Lovecraft]]'s worst nightmares.
** In the lore itself, the biggest examples of awesome are the [[Adeptus Astartes]], all of the [[Imperial Guard]], [[Sanguinius]], [[Dante]], [[Kharn|Kharn the Betrayer]], the [[Lamenters]], [[Commissar Yarrick|Commissar Yarrick]], Scout Trooper MkVenner, [[Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt]], and [[Sly Marbo]]!
* In [[WFB|fantasy]], the second biggest example of awesome is FUCKING [[Norsca|NORSCA]]. BECAUSE VIKINGS. TEN FOOT TALL VIKINGS ON CRACK CLAD IN BLACK ARMOUR FORGED IN THE FIRES OF HELL.
* If you play ''older editions'' of 40K, draw this face on your blast templates for lulz.
* In [[battletech]] there is a mech named the Awesome, it is indeed pretty awesome.
* But by far the most amazing and awesome of all is the king of all kings, [[Settra the Imperishable]] the most arrogant biggest egotistical lovable skeleton in all of warhammer. Imagine being an undead pharaoh, imagine putting up a valiant fight against a God of undeath, imagine being brought before him and offered immense power, minor godhood, a body of solid gold - just as long as you pledge to serve him... and he will destroy you down to your head and leave you in the sand if you refuse. Settra, undead pharaoh, replies thusly: "SETTRA DOES NOT SERVE! SETTRA RULES!!" Settra is a Chad, nuff said.
* A close second to the king above is a slightly more... robotic version. And another. [[Silent King|Szarekh]] and his hyper-pimp throne, complete with rape-beam-carrying walls of doom orbiting it, is the guy who led his people against their C'tan overlords. It is because of this lad that there are [[Cheese|C'tan shards]] on the tabletop. The other guy is [[Imotekh the Stormlord]]- this guy has a hyper pimp staff and is incredibly smart, to the point where logical attacks on his forces just [[FAIL|don't fucking work.]]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8LNTCLQs0M/ BRIAN BLESSED!!!!]- [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGZbU7tFr44/"GOTREK'S (Gordon) ALIVE!!!!"]
* You. You're awesome. Unless you're [[That Guy]].
* [[Old Man Henderson]], the mentally-ill ''fake'' Vietnam vet who blew up an evil god and ''won'' [[Call of Cthulhu]].
* The glorious return of [[Makari]], the luckiest Git to ever live.
* [[Imperial Guard]]
** [[Armageddon Steel Legion]]
* [[The End Times: Vermintide]] and [[Vermintide 2]]
* [[Total War: Warhammer]]

==Rule Of Cool==
A derivative of Awesome meets [[Rule Zero]], the Rule of Cool is basically permission to do something ''not'' in the written rules solely because it is Awesome. If you want to be a nerd about it, it's the suspension of disbelief and leaving things like logic or Rules Lawyering at the door so you can have some fun for a change.

In Settings, the Rule of Cool is what gives us [[Imperator Titan|walking cathedrals full of guns]] and defines the [[Cyberpunk 2020|Edgerunner's]] way-of-life.

In TTRPGs, RoC is often invoked when you want to do something really imaginative, [[Old Man Henderson|insane]], or derivative (i.e. you wanna do something you saw on TV). That last bit is important, because not everyone has the same idea of what's cool or not: some players try to abuse it by trying to force everyone to go along with their anime fixations or novice DMs may try to fill the world with so many cool things it becomes less of a campaign and more of a guided tour through their [[magical realm]].

[[Exalted]] has Rule of Cool as an actual mechanic called '''Stunting''', and some 5e DMs award Inspiration for those who attempt to do something Cool.

==External Links==
*[https://encyclopediadramatica.rs/Awesome ED's awesome article, featuring XBAWKS HEUG gallery of Awesome mutations]

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Awesome_Face_Song.jpg|[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NWR-6-9S7GI Awesome Face Song]
Image:Awesomecat.jpg|Awesome is back, IN CAT FORM!
Image:Red_spy.jpg|SPY SAPPIN MAH AWESOME
File:40k v starwars.jpg|AWESOME
File:Awesome guardsmen.jpg
File:Awesome Chaos.jpg | <s>Even Chaos can be a little awesome.</s> {{BLAM|HERESY!}}
File:Awesome Beholder.png
</gallery>

[[Category:Meme]]