2d4chan - User contributions [en]

Creed

2018-01-06T15:38:22Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

{{awesome}}

[[Image:Creed.jpg|thumb|right|And you thought [[Vance Motherfucking Stubbs]] was manly.]]
[[File:Tzeentch's_True_Form.png|thumb|right|[[Tzeentch|What Creed Pretends to be.]]]]
'''Ursarkar E. Creed''' is a Lord General of the [[Imperial Guard]] and the current Lord Castellan of [[Cadia]] who is such a tactical genius he may somehow infiltrate ANY unit onto a battlefield (as if it were using the Scouts special rule) [Update: He is not since Cadia was devourered by warp]. Even vehicles. Even SQUADRONS of vehicles. Apparently even [[Titan]]s, and Living Saints. [[What|The only thing his genius can't handle is cavalry, since it wouldn't make sense for them to be scouts.]] This can cause considerable confusion and consternation to opposing forces as, for example, a 45 foot tall Warhound reveals itself from behind a small bush (hey its a SCOUT titan), or they notice that the door they just attempted to open was in fact a Baneblade, leading them to curse the tactical genius of their enemy with cries of "CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!"

His miniature is actually based around British Wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill, he's also a manly looking, cigar-chomping motherfucker with a coat so huge its collar obscures all peripheral vision. Presumably he wears it due to a lack of power armor, which normally fulfills this function by virtue of [[pauldrons]]. In addition to that, he also carries not one, but TWO motherfucking [[Hellgun|hellpistols]] in combat, just to show everyone that he's that pimping. If that's not enough, he wears them reverse style so he can cross-draw them. He is currently aligned with <s>Tzeentch, Oh fuck.</s> {{BLAM}} [[Emperor|The Emprah]], since Creed is too much of a Tactical Genius for Tzeentch's pussy ass to handle, and he knows this.

<s>As of 6th Edition, his tektikal jinyus has failed him and Failbaddon is fucking shit up all about Cadia and Segmentum Obscurus in general.</s> <s> {{BLAM}} {{BLAM| Creed's genius remains indisputable, GW are just desperately trying to pretend that Abaddon isn't the big fat failure that we all know that he is.}}</s> <s>nope he's simply waiting for the best opportunity to reveal that what Abaddon previously thought was Cadia is in fact a carefully arranged group of Imperator Class Titans. [[Just_As_Planned|Just as Planned]].</s> As of Fall of Cadia, Abaddon finally gets a sort-of victory as Cadia is destroyed (not conquered) though much of the Imperial forces are able to evacuate due to the heroic sacrifice of Creed and the Cadian 8th (although rumor has it [[Trazyn]] manages to capture him for his collection before the planet blows up with him on it). Creed's tactical genius and plot armour make him the Imperial Guard equivalent of [[Marneus Calgar|Papa Smurf]], <s>though being just an ordinary human otherwise makes him less (or more, depending on how you view it) of a Mary Sue. </s> Creed is not a Mary Sue; I doubt he really could hide a bajillion baneblades behind a lamp post and- Oh not agai- {{BLAM}}

No but seriously, apparently the 13th Black Crusade got retconned by GW. Turns out the results of the worldwide campaign were a flop so they're going to try again, which is a part of the fluff-upheaval they've been talking about.

As far as we know, Creed has one son, but as revenge after his loss in The Great Game, Tzeentch did a Primarch and fired his son into 1980s Illinois, where he was found and given the name of Kevin McCallister.

It's not known for certain why Creed hasn't teamed up with the [[Legion of the Damned]] yet, to TACTICAL GENIUS them right into the critical position at the critical moment, with game-changing weapons- oh no wait, '''he has'''.

No-one knows it yet, but Creed plays [[Just as planned]] with the Deciever, [[Cegorach]] and [[Tzeentch]] every Saturday night. He's just '''waiting''' for the right moment to reveal that he's TACTICAL GENIUSED himself into the games. That's right. The [[Emprah]] is actually Creed. Oh, FFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU- {{BLAM}} HERESY!

==Creed & 4chan==
Creed has woven his very essence into /tg/ through the tactical skills he possesses. /tg/ is now clearly known to stand for Tactical Genius, and not Traditional Games as many have previously thought. Only a tactical genius could accomplish this. Likewise, only a tactical genius could have hidden the entire Cadian 8th in 4chan's interwebzserver boxes to surprise ambush the maintenance shift and bring 4chan down.

In fact, it's probably the best meme /tg/ has created for some time now. Seriously, sometimes one might believe that it could have only been started by some kind of tactical geniu-

CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!
<div style="text-align:right; font-style:italic;">..........Tactical genius hrrrrr......</div>

==FALL OF CREED==
{{MattWard}}
Sadly, due to [[Matt Ward|this douche]], Creed is no longer the Tactical Genius extraordinaire, as his ability has been co-opted by the Fifth-Edition [[Grey Knights]], who can Scout up to three units. God ''damn'' it, [[Games Workshop]]. That said, the original CREEEEEEEEED!-like ability was the ''Second Edition'' generic Imperial Assassin; before the Polymorphine wargear card was replaced with one specific to the Callidus Assassin, it wasn't entirely abnormal for a Gretchin to suddenly become an Imperial Assassin in Terminator Armour riding a bike.

In Creed's defense, this is at least fluff-inconsistent; the [[Grey Knights]] are highly brainwashed troops, who obey every single command to the letter, without showing personal initiative. Creed, on the other hand, gets to work with Imperial Guardsmen, who, unlike Grey Knights, actually have an in-game mechanic for following orders, they do it so much. Also, Creed isn't using bullshit tricks like being psychic or [[Khornate Knights|killing off a ton of friendly Adeptae Kitchenates to fight demons]].

Besides which, the [[Grey Knights]] can't scout vehicles, so Creed is still the only source of Titans hiding behind waist-high fences.

Also, who do you think taught them their Tactical Genius to begin with?

==RESHUFFLING OF CREED==

And then Sixth Edition happened. Creed's power became a IG exclusive Warlord Trait. Now any Guard Commander <s> who rolls right </s> who was, in fact, Creed all along is a Tactical Genius. Also, Creed gets to roll for two Warlord Traits now, so he gets double chance to Outflank shit compared to everyone else. It should be noted that the Warlord Trait in question works on D3 units from the same <s>Codex as Creed - so no more outflanking Titans, but maybe outflanking cavalry. All in all, not all is lost.</s> It says from the same primary detachment! Slap that Imperator in you LoW slot, and you are good to go!

==NO?, YES? Maybe?==
In 8th Creed has lost the ability to scout units, but instead of hiding [[Baneblade]]s behind fences, he can now hide a hit inside your miss, or hide a lascannon shot inside the enemy's vehicles, or even hide extra guardsmen in your guardsmen squad!! I know not as cool as scouting titans but arguably more useful {{BLAM}} NO ARGUING. He now gives two extra command points which is pretty ok but the best part is to tell your opponent who has 4 or 6 command points that you brought 14! (in combination wit a brigade detachment)... and then with the release of the IG Codex the Creed ability returned... as a Tallarn exclusive strategem.

==Writefaggotry!==
{{story}}
"So. Fresh bunch'a recruits straight off the regimental home world, huh? Got your heads full of propaganda and not much else, lemme bet. Well, listen to me and listen good, kids - probably half of what you know is nothing but ambull-shit, and you'd better get that through your heads now rather than getting a traitor's lasbolt through your head on the battlefield. Now, you pray to the Emperor like you should, and if you don't the Commissar'll blow your head off, and that'll be a mercy compared to what I'll do to ya if I find out 'fore he does - but don't be thinkin' for a second that recitin' the Litany of Protection makes you invulnerable on a battlefield.

Sure, you'll hear stories about brave Guardsmen that charged enemy positions armed with nothin' but their lasguns and their bayonets and won - and I'll even admit that probably a couple of them are true, but in an army that numbers in the billions one or two of ya are bound to get lucky every now and again, so it don't really say much. No, kids, they might make for inspirin' stories, but fanatical charges aren't what win battles. Battles are won by determination and tactics. Lemme tell you about this one time our regiment was servin' under the command of General Creed.

Never a finer tactician has the Imperial Guard ever seen than that General Creed, let me tell you. He came up with plans so devious and cunnin' you didn't even have a hope of figurin' out how he'd done what he'd done 'less he explained it to ya himself. We were fightin' on Kavara IV, what'd used to be a good Imperial world till the taint of Chaos found its way down there and turned loyal citizens into traitorous scum. At the time we'd been shipped off, we thought we were just gonna be helping the local PDF put down a small insurrection, but what with the ways of the warp by the time we got there it'd turned into a full on rebel uprisin' and all the nobles were already dead or in hidin', and another army led by General Creed had arrived to bring it back under control - we'd been missin' so long they thought we'd been lost to the warp, you see, and sent another off in our place - so we wound up joinin' forces an' bolsterin' their ranks.

Now, we got deployed into one of the urban centers that'd been taken over almost entirely by the heretics, goin' through clearing buildings of resistance and tightenin' the noose around their filthy necks. Only been gettin' minor resistance until a couple of hours in, when we stumbled across a fortified plaza that hadn't been in none of the intelligence reports. So there we were, pinned down by enemy fire, usin' rubble for cover and hopin' to the Emperor that'd we get some artillery support soon, when all of a sudden there's a tremendous rumblin' off to the right, soundin' like a column of tanks comin' up towards the buildin' we'd just cleared.

We weren't gettin' nothin' about armored support on the vox, so we was sittin' there shittin' ourselves wonderin' where the traitors had got tanks from, when all of a sudden the front of the buildin' just collapses out onto the street and a damn Baneblade rolls right on out in front of us. One blast from the main gun and it turned the heretic's position into a crater. The vox lights up and we get ourselves a message - "Armored Support courtesy of General Creed", they say. Now that's tactics, kids - we never saw it comin', so those traitors sure didn't. The application of overwhelmin' force at just the right spot at just the right moment'll turn the tide of any battle in your favor.

I took a look at that buildin' again as we were marchin' down the street in the Baneblade's wake, though. Funniest thing, the only hole in it was the one the tank'd made on its way out. How the hell we missed it when we were clearin' the place I don't know. How the hell Creed got it in there in the first place, I'm not sure I WANT to know - but let me tell you, pulling that off must've taken one hell of a tactical genius."

-Sergeant Karls addressing new recruits to the Hirian 204th, shortly before being relieved of duty and sent for psychiatric evaluation due to inexplicable urges to scream incoherently.

=== Tactical Genius ===
The forces of Chaos reigned victorious over the shattered city, littered with the wounded and dying Guardsmen of the Cadian 503rd. At their head, ready to deliver the killing blow to the last world between him and conquest, strode Abaddon the Despoiler himself, his Daemonblade screaming as it claimed the souls of a score of men, slashing through the staunch but futile defenses of his feeble foe. He had won. Finally, after all these centuries, he had triumphed, and begun to finish what that weakling Horus had started! And now, now it was time to put the icing on the cake, and finish off that arrogant son of a bitch Creed, as he routed like a coward nonetheless!

Beside him, his lieutenants roared in delight, cleaving through flesh and bone and steel alike, and his bodyguard made a mockery of Imperial pride. Demons from the warp, incarnations of the entropy of Khorne and Slaanesh hacked their way through droves of fleeing shock troopers, and a flanking force of the Night Lords penned in those who were left, trapping them in a great valley.

His final carnage began in a great valley, the product of a near miss by a melta torpedo. A miss that had spared the Imperials yesterday, but sealed their fates tonight! Abaddon flung himself into the fray, cleaving with full strokes the men who stood in between him and his prey, butchering wholesale with his men. The Cadians fought like men possessed, like monsters cornered. Abaddon's men were possessed, monsters in truth as well as metaphor, and so fought harder still. When the last corpse fell, it was Abaddon who laid it low, sending that cloak, that cigar spinning to the ground with a backhand from his mighty palm. The heavyset, gray-haired man lay flat upon the graying mud, and a pool of blood grew around him. Abaddon felt his breath quicken, and kicked the Castellan over, to see his face as the Daemonblade consumed his soul.

"I've won, Creed! I've beaten you, the Imperium is MINE for the taking! [[Horus|The galaxy shall burn!]] But not before I hear you beg, NOT BEFORE I HEAR YOU BEG!" His voice was torn with emotion, manic laughter struggled free of his throat.
The figure tipped over, to lay spread eagle on its back. Silent, broken, and dead. An old man, slain by a casual blow from an immortal warrior. Abaddon felt something leave him. The rush vanished. Creed was dead. He had won... Yes. He had defeated the hero of the Imperium, but Creed was dead. And without ever even knowing that Abaddon had won. The united leader of Chaos knelt down, and screamed at the square-jawed corpse, howling in anger, in the hopes that perhaps his fleeting soul could still hear his words. "I. HAVE. WON. CR-" He froze mid-word, as he realized that the crater was silent. He stood, and thought for a moment that his men were watching him. He was mistaken, for his marines, his warriors, his cultists... Even the demons, were staring open-mouthed, at the crest of the crater that they had swept into.

For one nanosecond. For one fleeting, cursory micron of an instant, Abaddon was confused.

And then he knew. He knew what he would see when he looked up to match their gaze. He knew what he would see when he looked up, and realized why Creed had led this defensive force personally, and why he had not boarded one of the Valkyries that had escaped, or a Chimera to flee. He looked up, to see the barrels of a thousand tanks, the crested figures of ten thousand men, the whirring shapes of countless hundreds of skimmers and fighters. He saw in the distance, the smoking ruin of [[Vengeful Spirit|his flagship]] drifting through orbit a hundred miles away, and heard all of a sudden the unjammed signals of panicked screaming coming in from every one of his officers and aides.

[[Image:EvenInDeathIStillCREEEEEED.jpg|thumb|right|''And he knew, without looking, the expression upon that fat old man's face, despite the shattered jaw and the broken neck.'']]

Abaddon saw, before his eyes, his Crusade crumble. And he knew, without looking, the expression upon that fat old man's face, despite the shattered jaw and the broken neck. And he felt his last emotion before the guns started firing, and the torpedoes struck, and the lascannon-bolts flew. Boiling up inside of him, he opened his mouth, and screamed.
And over the din of battle, though battle cannon roared and [[basilisk]] whistled, though lasgun cracked and Guardsmen cried out with tears in their eyes the name of their savior, no voice cried so loudly as Abaddon the Fool's, whose hatred of one man had cost him a victory that could have changed the galaxy, the one man whose name he now invoked. That magnificent bastard. That tactical geniu-

"CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!!!!!!"

===The Game===

[[Image:Putin.png|thumb|left|''46th United States President Mitt Romney, the sponsor of Creed in the duel.'']]
[[Image:Trillionaire.jpg|thumb|left|''Leader of the Brotherhood of Nod Artemis Sorras, the sponsor of Tzeenctch in the duel.'']]
The mortal moved his piece. Tzeentch, Lord of Change and Master of Destinies moved his. They were playing a game of chess. The stakes were high: if the mortal won, Tzeentch, all his daemons and followers would retreat to the Warp for all time and would never again attempt to harry the mighty Imperium of Man in any way be it directly or indirectly. If Tzeentch won (which, of course, he knew he would), the soul of the mortal went to Tzeentch. These stakes obviously seemed skewed in favor of the mortal, but there were several factors to consider.

The mortal moved another piece.

Tzeentch moved another piece.

Tzeentch had wanted this particular soul for what might have been 10 million years, or maybe 5 minutes. Who could tell in the Warp? The problem was, it was pledged to the accursed corpse-god on Terra. So Tzeentch had sought him out and challenged him.

The mortal moved.

Tzeentch moved.

Also Tzeentch, as Master of Fates, knew that he would win. He had to. He had been planning for this game for centuries before the mortal in question was ever born. He had watched, planned, schemed, and acted to ensure that the mortal would learn a certain chess strategy, one that he just "happened" to have a perfect counter to.

Another move by the mortal.

Another move by Tzeentch.

Finally, the idea of a Chaos God focusing so much on a single soul, or making such an enormous bargain was inconceivable, a fact that had never once changed, not even for Warmaster Horus. What was Tzeentch, if not the Lord of Change? So went the reasoning (if the thought process of a Chaos God can be called such) of Tzeentch.

The mortal went on for several turns.

Tzeentch went on for several turns.

Finally, the mortal got a smug look on his face. Tzeentch's beak curled into something resembling a smile.He held his head up high. The mortal moved a piece. Tzeentch spoke, in a voice that was ever shifting and could drive men mad.

"Mortal, do you not know who I am? Let me tell you. I am Tzeentch. The Changer of Ways. The Master of Fate. The Lord of Change. The Controller of Destinies. I have existed before the stars, and I will exist long after they have died. No mere mortal could possibly-"

Then Tzeentch spared a glance at the board.

"What is that pawn doing there?"

Tzeentch stared, utterly dumbstruck. His eyes bulged and his beak dropped. He saw the reason for the mortal's smugness.

[[Image:CreedvTzeentch.png|thumb|right|''Tzeentch let out a cry of rage. It was a cry that echoed throughout the Warp, driving Imperial psykers insane and Chaos sorcerers more insane.'']]It was checkmate.

A very small part of Tzeentch was glad. After all, being unintentionally defeated was certainly a change for him. Also, no longer interfering in the affairs of the mortal galaxy was definitely a change.

However, that was just a very small part.

Tzeentch let out a cry of rage. It was a cry that echoed throughout the Warp, driving Imperial psykers insane and Chaos sorcerers more insane. It was a cry containing a subconscious command. All across the galaxy, the daemons of Tzeentch vanished from the material world, never to return. His mortal followers began retreating, heading towards the Eye of Terror. All the Gods, daemons, and mortal followers of Chaos took notice. In the Warp near Terra, the mighty soul of the God-Emperor of Mankind himself took notice. He smiled, for he knew what it meant. It was a cry that was to echo in the Warp throughout eternity, long after the stars themselves died. It was the cry of a defeated god.

"CREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED!"

==A Record of Historic Significance==
There is an example of real-world tactical genius that took place during granpappy's WWII, though it was performed not by a manly cigar-chomping motherfucker but rather by a man named Jasper Maskelyne, a British stage magician who was recruited by Britain's MI9 to assist with camouflage development. One account (which has had trouble being verified admittedly, but then many files are still classified from that era) claimed that he was able to hide an entire desert convoy by deploying ultra-bright "dazzle-lights" which blinded recon planes being used by the enemy. However, many of his claims have been thoroughly scrutinized and most seem to be tall tales.

Whatever the story may be the lesson to learn from it is never ask Creed to pull a rabbit out of his hat. He will instead pull a [[Slaanesh|Baneblade out of your ass.]]

There is also the story about how the Allies managed to dupe Germans into believing they were going to land their invasion at [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pas_de_Calais Pas-de-Calais], at the narrowest point of the British Channel, codenamed [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Fortitude Operation Fortitude]. They built entire fake bases, complete with wireless traffic, nonsense but believable orders, and dummy transport aircraft, and placed General Patton at the "head" of this fake [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_United_States_Army_Group 1st US Army Group]. They also made use of captured German double agents, codenamed [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-Cross_System Double-Cross] ([[Alpha_Legion|XX]]) System, along with diplomatic channels with neutral countries, to feed Nazis more misinformation, and used [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultra_(cryptography) Ultra] decryption to confirm they had fallen for it. Indeed, Hitler himself ordered to hold up some German divisions as a reserve for this fictional Calais landing, and Rommel gave the reinforcement of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_Wall Atlantic Wall] defenses in that region top priority. It was so believable that when [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Neptune Operation Neptune] commenced and D-Day landings began, the Germans thought it was a diversion, not the main attack, and so did not commit their reserves until the Allies had already established a full front in Normandy.

So it can be said that the Allies managed to CREEEEEEED their troops into France.

===Fall of Cadia===
Creed loses a hand fighting Abaddon. And nearly loses his life as the armless wonder chokes him. But an expertly infiltrated Celestine back stabs the Failure, and Creed lives. Despite Creed losing, you have to think about it this way; a human stood up to a Space Marine, in Terminator Armor, with the full power of Chaos powering him. (*cough* [[Ollanius Pius]], anyone?*cough*)

Creed stays behind with the rest of the 8th Cadian force to hold off the tide of Daemons as Cadia collapses into pieces. Later, he wanders through the destroyed landscape, slowly succumbing to his wounds. Trazyn notices that a wild Creed appeared, and captures him in a pokeball. (Not the best end, but without Trazyn, Creed would've died in the Eye of Terror.) NOTE: This is not yet confirmed, although everyone thinks that Trazyn took him. Many also think that 'A metal giant in a scaled cloak' could also be Vulkan. Offering Creed immortality? Regardless, we shall know in the future if GW decides to bring him back for one last epic fight (probably future Siege of Terra).

[[Just as planned|Or it is Trazyn who is saving Creed to get his hands on Abaddon in the future]]. After all, he is currently playing the role of saviour, and it is stated Abaddon is the prize he wants for his collection. And he did release some of his catches to demonstrate he was [[Paranoia|just a friend willing to help]].)

==See Also==
*[[Vance Motherfucking Stubbs]] - <s>Who is tactically incompetent.</s> NONSENSE!!! There is nothing said about those one hundred [[Baneblade|Baneblades]] being lost. {{BLAM|That's heretical propaganda}}. The tanks were shipped all across the [[Imperium|Imperium's]] borders. ''(And then lost)''.
*[[Castor]] - His second cousin.
*[[Cadia]] - Where that motherfucker lives.
*[[Baneblade]] - His greatest asset
*[[Vlad von Carstein]] - His pupil in Warhammer Fantasy.
*[[Sly Marbo]] - Can "out-CREEEEEEEED!" Creed.
*[[Colour Sergeant Jarran Kell]] - His bodyguard and bro. He died on Cadia, saving Creed's life. RIP, you manly bastard.

==External Links==
*[[Abaddon at the Therapist]]
*[http://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/archive/4544432/ sup/tg/ archive of the First Coming of Creed.]
*[http://www.facebook.com/pages/Flanking-the-enemy-hidden-behind-some-moss/Ursarkar-E-Creed/167568501474?created&v=info#/pages/Flanking-the-enemy-hidden-behind-some-moss/Ursarkar-E-Creed/167568501474?ref=nf He has infiltrated Facebook ! He is also a social genius !]
And twitter! @creeeeeeeeeeeed

==Gallery==
<gallery>
Image:TacticalSexyness.jpg|The tactical sexyness of one goddamn motherfucking tactical genius.
Image:1242252059504.jpg|Creed pulling off a Yo Dawg meme.
Image:Creedrules.jpg|Creed's "Tactical Genius" special rule.
Image:CREEEED.png|AVE IMPERATOR MOTHERFUCKERS!
Image:creeeeeeeed.jpg|Abaddon getting ready for another black crusade.
Image:Tacticageniuspool.jpg|Pool is closed due to Tactical Genius.
Image:1242230736718.jpg|Cigar chomping, manly motherfucker.
Image:1242252825237.jpg|If you think this is impossible even by 40K standards then you're doing it wrong.
Image:Ursakar_Hefner.jpg|Creed, after tactical geniusing himself into position of Judge in the annual Imperial Swimsuit contest.
Image:Creeeeeeed.jpg|Some speculate a Tactical Genius placed Demolishers in the servers.
Image:Creed-loliflanku.jpg| Problem, Failbbadon?
File:Warhammer-imperial-guard.jpg| Canon CREEEED!
Image:1242225473355.jpg|If I See That Fucking Warhound One More Time...
Image:CREEEED.jpg|Even heretics resent scouting Warlords...
Image:1242253576880.jpg|...then again it's their fault for turning away from the [[Emperor|Emprah]] and all.
Image:goodnewscreed.jpg|Good news everyone... BANEBLADES!
Image:CREEEEEEEEEE.jpg|Another crusade foiled.
Image:Thrawncreed.jpg|Some speculate Admiral Thrawn may be Creed.
Image:Creed.gif|TACTICAL GENIUS
Image:1242230900950.jpg|YOU HAS NO ARMS! YOUR TACTICS ARE INVALID!
Image:CreedvTzeentch.png| Where are your Gods now, Heretic?
Image:1243030681317.jpg|Kirby may be a possible lead on who Creed really is...
Image:1243333513695.jpg|"I WAS COPULATING WITH A DAMNABLE SLAANESHI WHORE?!?!?!".
Image:Cred.jpg|CREEEEEEED
Image:Currie.jpg|The Real Creed?
Image:Creedchoke.jpg|Creed choking someone.
Image:Tacticalgenius.png|How it went down
Image:TacticalSwarmlord.png|The reason Tyranids can never take allies.
File:Hammerspace_Titan.jpg| CREEEEEEED!!!
File:And then Creed.png| THE PONIES ARE HERETICS AND SHALL NEVER RULE HERE!
</gallery>

{{IG-Characters}}
[[Category: Awesome]][[Category:Meme]][[Category:Stories]]

Siege of Terra

2018-01-06T12:55:05Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

{{Stub}}
[[File:Siege_of_Terra1.jpg|thumb|middle|500px|Just 0.000001% of 0.000001% of the Siege of Terra.]]

The '''Siege of Terra''' was the end of the [[Horus Heresy]] in [[Warhammer 40,000]]. If the Horus Heresy can be considered the most important series of events in the 40k universe, then the Siege of Terra itself could be considered the single most important event. It is also possibly the most fucking awesome event; Brother fighting brother, the mighty guns of Titans blowing fortifications to shreds, Imperial Army soldiers leading charges against the traitorous forces even though they know it's suicide and [[Ollanius Pius]]

It was [[Horus]]'s big attempt to off his daddy and so be the true Emperor of the galaxy (for [[Chaos]] of course!). He bought a load of his traitor legions, millions of corrupt Imperial army personnel and mutants, the part of the Mechanicus that had gone over to his side and a whole load of daemons to boot. On his side the [[Emperor]] had three legions, his custodians and the loyal imperial army regiments of Terra and you know what? The Emperor went and won anyway (granted it was because the Emperor offed Horus before his legions could crack the Imperial palace but still, victory for the home team!).

Horus's side: Sons of Horus; [[Emperor's Children]]; [[Death Guard]]; [[World Eaters]]; [[Night Lords]]; [[Iron Warriors]]; [[Lost and the Damned]]; several traitor Titan Legions (Mortis, Storm Lords, Flaming Skulls).

Emperor's side: [[Blood Angels]]; [[Imperial Fists]]; [[White Scars]]; loyalist Imperial Army regiments; [[Adeptus Custodes|Legio Custodes]], [[Sisters of Silence]], three Titan legions.

[[file:Horus and his Daddy.jpeg|thumb|middle|400px|If you haven't seen this image yet, you must be new. Like, really fucking new.]]

==Duel of the Emperor and Horus==

Like with any truly epic event, the siege only ended with the most motherfuckingest duel in the entire 40k fluff; the Emperor of Mankind against Horus, most favoured of the Primarchs and the living avatar of the Chaos Gods. If the Horus Heresy was the most important of a series of events, if the siege was the single most event, then the duel is the defining most of the fluff and affected everything else that came after it.

Although the Emperor managed to win and kill Horus, he was so badly wounded in the end he needed to be on 24/7 life support just to survive. So really when you come down to it it was a draw; Chaos had been stopped then but only at an unthinkable cost to the Imperium.

==/tg/ Connection==
What, besides the fact that '''''it's the most important event in the 40k universe?''''' Fine.

The Siege of Terra is also the theme for the [[Horus Heresy#The Board Game|Horus Heresy board game]], in which you reenact the Siege itself. There. Happy?

Not really.

===The fa/tg/uy's explanation of the Siege Of Terra (for Dummies and BL Editors)===

The main rule of warfare. As the number of combatants increases, the resemblance to complete uncontrolled insanity approaches infinity. And then you have to take into account the terrain...

Basically you start with a planet that's been nuked, polluted, and generally lived-in for a few hundred thousand years too long (nevermind that this is ~*40,000* years into the future...). And everyone on it is fighting everyone else, constantly. Your basic unit of land is the Bunker, vault 101 style. There isn't any natural plant life left of course, so all the oxygen is made in vats with the food. ""Luckily"" this means you can build anywhere that isn't intensely radioactive, and hence fight over those areas. Get Mega-City-One, nuke it and rebuild it a few times, and then you start to understand.

Then the Emperor comes along, and manages against all odds to conquer the place. Suddenly everyone isn't killing and dying all the time, and a population boom happens. So Emps organised the largest set of public-works since the first colony ships. He rebuilds huge areas of the planet, and creates the Palace, the Astronomicon, and a buttload more besides. And what he gets is effectively one giant city, the second largest (after Comorragh) in the universe. "Huge" just doesn't do it justice as a description. Neither does "Labyrinthine", "Over Populated", or "Gothic Nightmare". And this New Terra was mostly just thrown over the original foundations of whatever was there, like a pile of gold-bricks onto a rat maze. There are bunkers and emplacements still around that date back to the War Against The Men of Iron and even before.

Then the Heresy came, and the Emperor says to Dorn "Fortify this fucking madhouse". So now everything that didn't have a gun emplacement before does now, everywhere. And he walled in half the doors and windows, put hundreds of AA batteries on every roof, and generally panicked because if they would only ever be necessary if the space defenses (the best in the galaxy bar none) have failed.

Then Horus arrives in orbit. He's punched through the space-defenses at massive cost, but the war in space is far from won, and the Palace is just a flat no-fly zone, so he can't just pick and choose landing areas. So he bombards everything his ships can reach, fills the sky with Drop Pods, and tries to march on it.

Which is when Rule #1 kicks in and everything immediately gets Mega-Fucked, for both sides. Ruined streets and bunkers make navigating a nightmare, communications are somewhere between impossible and actively detrimental, Drop Pods land off target, plans and back-up plans fall apart in seconds, demons run amok. And the Primarchs are either constantly trying to out Tactical Genius each other or are too in the thick of it to relay any commands, so no-one has a fucking clue what's actually going on in the big picture. It's Stalingrad writ large, but without even the merest hint of sanity, and a thousand space marines charging into every breach. The inclusion of cackling daemons, rampaging renegade guardsman, and bellowing daemon engines doesn't help the situation.

[[File:Loyalists vs. Traitors.jpg|thumb|middle|700px|Some serious Daddy problems.]]
[[File:Trillionaire.jpg|thumb|left|500px|The Age of Cloud Strife should be succeeded by the Age of Artemis Sorras.]]
So it takes roughly 10 minutes of this menial bullshit for a load of the Chaos forces to get bored and just decide "Fuck It, Let's Just Wreck The Place". So now everything makes even less sense, entire companies ignoring sensible objectives to go on the Chaos Marine equivalent of a bender. The Emperor's Children and Night Lords rape, murder, and pillage the civilians of Terra so hard that even 10,000 years later they still live in fear at the memory, while the World Eaters hacked and slashed at anything they thought might bleed. Only the Iron Warriors and Sons of Horus are whole-heartedly tearing at the palace, dedicated to rubbing it in Dorn's face like a bitch no matter what. And to the horror of the loyalists, they're succeeding. Brick by brick the greatest military stronghold in the galaxy is falling.

Which sounds great for Chaos, were it not for the simple fact it wasn't falling quickly enough. It was taking days to advance inches at massive cost, and Guilliman was en-route with reinforcements, with Russ, El'Jonson alongside whatever remained of their respective Legions right behind. If the siege wasn't ended before they got there, the traitors would likely lose. So Horus put all his cards on the table and lowered his battle barge's shields, goading the Emperor (who didn't know about the reinforcements) on-board to hopefully kill him and force the defenders to route. Everything else is history.

{{Template:40k-Timeline}}

[[Category: Warhammer 40,000 Battles]]

Star Wars

2018-01-05T14:29:13Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_D0ZQPqeJkk/ Star Wars]''' is one of, if not ''the'', most influential media franchises of modern times, let alone its effect on science-fiction and fantasy. Indeed, among [[/tg/|nerddom]], it is challenged by only a few others, like [[Star Trek]] and [[The Lord of the Rings]]. The incredibly ardent fandom is spread worldwide and has a strong presence in popular culture. Many of the characters, like Darth Vader and Yoda, are iconic even to the general public. John Williams' score for the original trilogy is probably the best-known film score of all time. The universe has spawned numerous video games, hundreds of novels, multiple TV shows, one of the largest merchandising franchises ever, and, relevant to /tg/, a whole bunch of board, card, and roleplaying games.

[[Image:Riddick.png|600px|thumb|right]]

==The Basic Concept==
Star Wars was originally a series of epic science-fantasy "space operas" that roughly followed the mythic cycle that's been around since Homer. They're set "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away," where a mysterious life force called (reasonably enough) the Force permeates everything. This, in turn, can be wielded by certain people, giving them pseudo-magical abilities; thank the Emperor (no, the other one) there were no Commissars in that universe. Those who use it for good become mystical, selfless warrior monks called Jedi, whereas those who use it for evil are ruthless, self-serving bastards called Sith. However, the Force must always be in balance, so any time the Sith arise to cause imbalance, the Jedi have to pull together and take them out to restore the natural order.

The so-called Original Trilogy (made up of films IV through VI, released from 1977 to 1983) followed a young man named Luke Skywalker who becomes a Jedi and re-balances the Force. Meanwhile, the Rebel Alliance is fighting to end the oppressive Galactic Empire, which is secretly led by the Sith. Luke and his Rebel companions eventually defeat the evil Emperor Palpatine, but along the way they discover that his lieutenant, Darth Vader, is actually Luke's father. A financial, critical, popular and cultural H-bomb, these movies are basically the filter through which Generation X perceives the world... for better or worse.

The so-called Prequel Trilogy (made up of films I through III, released from 1999 to 2005) explained how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader and how the Galactic Empire was established. This involves a lot of convoluted politicking in the Republic, which is then torn apart in the Clone Wars, where the Republic (with an army of clones led by the Jedi) fights against the Confederacy (with an army of robots led by [[Necrons|General Grievous]] and secretly controlled by the Sith). It was not as well received as the first trilogy, for reasons we'll talk about below.

There's also a so-called Sequel Trilogy (made up of film VII and presumably films VIII and IX), which started in 2015 and picked up the story some three decades after the Emperor's defeat with a new generation of heroes taking on the remains of the evil Empire, which is a group of extremist former Imperials calling themselves the First Order. However, Episode VII aka ''The Force Awakens'', was directed by J.J. Abrams, who's mostly known for the [[skub|skubtastic]] [[Star Trek]] reboot. So [[skub|guess what]]? Time will tell if the upcoming sequels, directed by other less controversial folks, will make things better or worse.

Finally, there are the so-called Anthology movies, standalone one-shots involving characters and plotlines that aren't a part of the main "Saga" films, except they kind of are. The first, Rogue One (2016), is an immediate prequel to Episode IV that follows those Rebel spies who stole the Death Star plans. The second film follows a young Han Solo and pals Chewie and Lando. A third rumored one follows Boba Fett.

There are also three separate TV series. The first one, ''Clone Wars'', was based on traditional animation, whereas the later one, '''''The''' Clone Wars'', was a weird 3D animation. They're both pretty good. There was also a terrible theatrical release that was basically just an advertisement for ''The Clone Wars'', but, since it's even worse than the Prequel Trilogy (hint: babysitting Jabba the Hutt's kid), nobody talks about it much. The third series is Disney's ''"Rebels"'' which is set between Episodes III-IV and it takes itself far less seriously than Clone Wars did, and is more of a homage to the original trilogy since not every character in the series is the owner of a lightsaber nor are they constantly talking about grown-up politics, senators and trade embargoes... pretty much the things that clogged up the plot of the prequel trilogy.

And then there's the whole Expanded Universe, which covers pretty much everything not covered by the films, like the Old Republic (set thousands of years before the prequel trilogy, when there were a hell of a lot more Sith and Jedi around) and the New Republic (set immediately after the original trilogy, explaining what became of all the characters. Also features Force-less [[White Scars|Space Mongols]].

The EU is no longer considered in the main canon of the films and TV series, due to the new sequel trilogy which does not follow EU, the reason for this being, according to Disney, that following EU would restrict their creative freedom. The reaction to this was, well, [[skub|mixed, for lack of a better word.]] They've since noted that they'll slot ''some'' of it in on a case-by-case basis, but the canon is in a highly fluid state at the moment. EU is now officially called Star Wars Legends, though most fans still refer to it as EU.

==Why was it so popular?==

Star Wars is as accessible as science fiction gets. It doesn't require extensive knowledge of a fictional world (a la ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'') or cultural background (as ''[[Star Trek]]'' sometimes does) to make sense. Those elements are present for those who want them, but they stay in the (very rich and vibrant) background. It has well-shot action and good ''enough'' dialogue to make it interesting for both kids and adults (as well as allowing parents who grew up with it to watch it with their children, thereby hooking the next generation of viewers). It has simple, good-vs.-evil themes that resonate with almost anyone, anywhere, at any time. The science fiction elements are generally handled well if you don't obsess over making science fiction realistic and hard. It's a prime gateway drug for sci-fi. (Isaac Asimov saw and rather enjoyed the films.) All in Fourteen hours of cinema, plus optional sides for those who want it.

There's a ton of merchandise that is, of course, really cool. Also, given it's crossed over into the mainstream, many people feel comfortable being part of the community without feeling judged as "nerds" (as they might with ''Lord of the Rings'', ''D&D'', ''Star Trek'', ''Warhammer'', etc.).

Finally, there's the fact that the original trilogy films are simply good. The fact that they're not only watchable today, but still stand on their own as good films, is a testament to the story-telling ability of the team that made it. John Williams' excellent score, Ralph McQuarrie's amazing concept art, the impressive performances put in by all of the actors, and, hell, even George Lucas' drive and ambition all steered the films towards the cultural significance they enjoy today.

Again, they roughly follow the mythic cycle that's been around since Homer. If you think about it, 4 of the 7 films can be summarized as: hero begins his journey under the tutelage of a wise (more or less) man, they encounter a threat which has captured/enslaved a princess/girl, who was in one way or another connected to an important secret (usually a superweapon but could be the identity of a political figure or the location of someone); the heroes save the princess/girl but someone dies tragically in a battle against the villain while someone else is blowing up a space station or a spaceship afterwards they are happy, they celebrate and mourn the loss of the poor bloke who died.

Additionally, the first film can be summarized as a samurai and a gunslinger team up to save a princess from Nazis in space. That is multiple cinematic genres at once, following the style of the epic myth.

==Characters==
===Pre-Disney===
* Luke Skywalker: All-round good guy and idealist, despite some flaws, Luke wishes to learn the ways of the Force to defeat the Emperor and save the galaxy. A Jedi prodigy, he can lift heavy ton space fighters with just his force powers, though he struggles with doubts. Although he starts all brash and teenage and shit, by the conclusion of the trilogy, Luke is well on the way to becoming a wise and powerful Jedi ready to rebuild the Order. Then he ends up training Kylo fucking Ren and becomes a [[Neckbeard|grumpy old man who just wants the Jedi Order to die with him since he's been disillusioned in people not being shitty now that his shitty-feeling self is considered the least shitty person in the universe]]. It takes a direct Force-powered intervention from Leia as well as Yoda's Force ghost telling him "don't worry, we both fucked up and the kids still love our <strike>toys</strike> legends" to get him to nut the fuck up and help stop the First Order by embarrassing Kylo Ren in front of everyone. Yoda also trolled Luke from beyond the grave once more, destroying the tree which supposedly contained the last books about the Jedi code and history which turns out to be because Rey had already stolen said books and the destruction of the tree prevented Luke from discovering that fact, ensuring the Jedi will continue regardless of Luke's faith crisis. In the original EU, Luke was '''FAR''' more successful and trained many generations of Jedi including his niece (future Empress of a reformed Empire) and non-evil (although he came close a few times) nephew, destroyed massive remnants of the Empire over and over again, killed the fucking Emperor over and over again, fought off space Cenobites that almost destroyed the galaxy, blew up more Death Star-type things, killed a god made of crystals (we don't like to talk about that one), and hooked up with the Emperor's own hot red-headed assassin.

* Han Solo: Loveable [[rogue]] and space cowboy who shoots his way out of debt to the mob, ends up a general, and bags himself a princess. Not a bad series' work. His ship, the Millennium Falcon, deserves a mention too for being as iconic as he is. Unfortunately his actor Harrison Ford always went back and forth on wanting to continue the franchise and they were always ready to kill him. He agreed to be a part of Episode 7 if they'd finally follow through on his wish, having him fail to redeem his son Ben (named after an crazy old man he only knew for a few hours) and getting a metaphorical and literal lightsaber through the heart for it. In pre-Star Wars continuity he was once a Swoop (flying motorcycle) racer turned Imperial Officer who shot his superior that was beating a Wookie to death and gained a lifelong friend in Chewbacca, post-Disney origin is to be revealed in a solo movie named Solo. No, seriously. That is, if the movie ever comes out because of how poorly the production is going.

* Princess Leia: The regulation piece of lady crumpet in the movies, Princess Leia was a leader in the rebel alliance and (spoiler!) Luke's long lost twin sister. Also both a capable soldier and politician. Her being forced to wear a metal thong by an overweight space slug named Jabba the Hutt has since cemented her role as sex idol to legions of adoring fan boys, while her general [[Awesome|door-kicking deadshot sarcastic asskickery]] made her a feminist icon as well (this was back in the 80's when the two could be the same). With her home planet and entire adoptive family destroyed by the Death Star, she became a General although somehow retained her princesshood (yes, she's now a Disney Princess), and went on to become a full-on Jedi warrior in the pre-Disney EU. [[Skub|Not in the new canon though.]] She does manage to [[Roboute Guilliman|survive getting shot into space]] using her latent force abilities in TLJ, so that's something. Unfortunately thanks to the death of her actress Carrie Fisher (given the amount of cocaine and partying she's done over the years it was amazing she lived as long as she did) Leia will have to die offscreen between Episode 8 and Episode 9...unless they do an uncanny valley CG model again.

* C-3P0 and R2-D2: Two robots trapped in a sexless gay marriage who are the only minor characters to have been in all the movies so far, and even in stories like The Old Republic outside of their millennia of existence will usually have an equivalent. C-3P0 is the shiny golden humanoid robot who constantly fusses about keeping the furniture clean and worries that his pies are getting overdone in the oven due to being a fucking protocol droid that keeps ending up in the front lines of warzones while R2-D2 is the brash, brave husband figure who swings into action regardless. He looks like a salt shaker next to the Dalek's pepper shakers, although is he more a plucky rabbit to their rabid wild cats. The robots mostly have comedy roles in the movies, since they might threaten to upstage the human actors if they became too useful, though R2 has an electric cattle prod and serves as the party's computer skillmonkey, while C-3P0 saves the day with his mad linguistic skillz at least once per film in the original trilogy. They starred in their own cartoon series that was surprisingly good. After the original trilogy in both pre/post Disney continuity the writers don't seem to know what to do with them, and they just randomly appear sometimes.

* Chewbacca: The original furry in space, the dog you can have a beer with in the space Winnebago. Nothing sexy about him; he is just hairy, huge, knows how to pilot a space ship, fix stuff, fire a gun, and generally get shit done which strangely makes him the coolest furry ever. Best friends with Han, has a family that we can all agree did not appear in the terrible Christmas special that does not exist (he got a much more badass family in the Galactic Battlegrounds games, so go with that). Hates Trandoshans like all Wookies, since Trandoshans are almost always assholes and are particularly assholish to Wookies. In the pre-Disney continuity he was a slave that the then-Imperial Han saved and eventually get mooned to death, courtesy of [[R.A. Salvatore]]. In the post-Disney continuity he continues to be awesome and generally ignored in endings. The prequel trilogy revealed he's REALLY FUCKING OLD thanks to Wookie lifespan.

* Lando Calrissian: Suave, charismatic, and an expert con artist, this guy is the original pirate king in space. He betrays Han and co. when Vader invades his city, later regrets it, and then atones by saving the cast from the Empire as well as the populace of his city at the same time, then helps save Han from the mafia, and finally leading the fleet that blows up the Death Star 2.0.

* Obi-Wan Kenobi: If, at any point, in any work of fiction, the hero has an old master/father figure who teaches him part of what he knows, makes sure that he will grow up to be a virtuous and decent hero, but ultimately dies fighting a great evil to buy the hero time to escape, then returns as a spirit guide for the hero later, the Internet has probably accused that character of ripping off Obi-wan Kenobi. The prequels show him as a young Jedi and a deuterotagonist to Anakin Skywalker, acting as ''his'' master, teacher, partner, and dear friend before their eventual falling out [[FATAL|ends with Anakin losing most of his major extremities and organs]] and Obi-wan hiding out in a cave waiting to turn into Alec Guinness.

* Yoda: Ancient wise grand master of the Jedi Order who a tiny green alien is. Never named, his species was. Because of his size and age, most assumed just a harmless old teacher he was, your nice old granddad like. His pulling out a lightsaber and engaging a Sith Lord in combat at the end of ''Attack of the Clones'', one of the most surprising and popular fights of the series is. Became a big franchise mascot he did, despite a surprise for the audience he was meant to be in his first appearance, ruining it for future generations. A unique way of speaking, he has. A very popular target for parody, it has become.

* Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker/"The Chosen One": The black-helmeted face of evil and the most well known villain from Star Wars (and arguably the most recognisable characters in cinema). Has become an iconic and memorable figure due to his menacing, robotic appearance and ultra-deep, wheezy respirator voice. He is [[Meme|(spoiler!)]] secretly Anakin, Luke's fallen Jedi father, thus allowing him to be able to say the most memorable line in the film series, "''I'' am your Father!" Abaddon wishes he could be this sinister. His children eventually manage to rekindle the spark of human decency in his heart, and he redeems himself by giving up his own life to save them and destroy the Emperor. Hates sand. Fun Fact: his portrayal required four actors in the original trilogy: body, voice, face and a stunt double. Single-handey rescues the entire spin-off film Rogue One with an '''incredible''' scene at the end.

* Darth Sidious/Sheev "Can't Peeve the Sheev" Palpatine/The Emperor: A creepy old wrinkly dude who sits in his badass evil throne constantly screaming "[[Just as planned]]!" And occasionally frying fools with force lightning. Built a giant planet-destroying weapon, then built another, bigger one as a trap when the first one blew up. He is very clever, managing to scheme and outwit everyone in the prequel trilogy, moving them all into place so he could take over the galaxy (although he still needed a big superweapon anyway to hold onto said power). Chews so much scenery they had to resort to computer-generated imagery. [[Meme|He is the Senate]].

* Admiral Ackbar: Giant tactical fish who has the need to point out obvious traps in memetic fashion. Leads the rebel fleet in the <s>third</s> sixth film. Dies in the eighth.

* Wedge Antilles: The anti-redshirt. Has almost no lines in the original movies but somehow survives all of them, even blowing up the second Death Star with Lando. In the EU he is one of, if not ''the'' best starfighter pilot in the galaxy, and co-founder of the über elite Rogue Squadron along with Luke.

* Padmé Amidala: Darth Vader's waifu who spends most of the prequel trilogy being a hopeless pacifistic idealist [[DERP|(which makes her a hypocrite with all the fight scenes she's in.)]] Get's choked by Vader and dies giving birth to Luke and Leia, which ironically Vader was trying to prevent in the first place after seeing a vision. [[FAIL|Way to go, dumbass]]. Haven't you ''read'' a work of fiction with that kinda prophecy in it before?

* Jar-Jar Binks: Solely exists to fuck up everything (and we do mean EVERYTHING) at the worst possible moment. This guy is so hated by everyone in and out of universe that even Lucas shitcanned his role down into a very brief cameo at the end of Episode 3; he's actually a tragic figure representing someone good who tries to act to save the galaxy but ends up causing a massive war with tons of casualties and handing over the rule of the galaxy to a Sith lord. There are rumors that he was originally going to be revealed as a villain but because of his poor reception, this idea was scrapped. People who dislike Episode 7 often refer to its director as Jar Jar Abrams.

* Wilhuff Tarkin: [[A Song of Ice and Fire|Tywin Lannister]] [[Indrick Boreale|IN SPHESS]]. Ruthless, ambitious, and cold, Grand Moff (Governor) Tarkin is the epitome of all that is Imperial in the SW Universe. His idea of ruling pretty much comes down to "They can hate me as long as they fear me", which is symbolized ultimately by the Death Star. [[Derp|However, he uses the stick far too often and hardly uses the carrot]], and this policy backfires on him horribly when he destroys Alderaan, a Core World and one of the founders of the Old Republic- for instead of cowing the galaxy into submission, it, along with the Battle of Yavin which saw himself and his battle-station destroyed, [[Fail|galvanized half the galaxy into openly declaring for the Alliance]].

* Jango and Boba Fett: Father and son, though the son is actually an unaltered clone of his father. Badass, mostly-silent mercs who get shit done and come from a line of Spartan/Viking/Māori warriors in space called Mandalorians. Sadly, both had very anticlimactic deaths, though Boba survived his in the EU, through the power of being too popular with the audience to kill permanently. (This became canon after Disney made the entire EU non-canon. Rumour has it Boba will be getting his own spin off movie.)

* Jabba the Hutt: Obese slug who is a cross between a Mexican drug cartel kingpin and Mafia crime-boss. He runs his criminal enterprise from an old palace-monastery on Tatooine. A [[/d/]]eviant at heart, likes to fap to hot alien chicks dancing for him until they try to escape, then faps even harder when he feeds said chicks to Rancor. Gets strangled to death by a bikini-wearing Leia with her own chains, because symbolism.

* Mace Windu: The original only black dude in space, he was the hardest-as-nails Jedi master of the council during the prequel trilogy and the best swordfighter in the Order, hence his unique purple lightsaber. That, and Sam Jackson wanted his own color to stand out. If Anakin hadn't interfered, he would have killed Darth Sidious and none of the original trilogy would have taken place. His subsequent anti-climatic death in the movie is regarded with annoyance by his fans. His mastery of the Force allows him to channel his anger and enjoyment of battle into his combat style without being corrupted by the Dark Side. He can also detect what he calls "shatterpoints", which lets him detect weaknesses to either mess people up in combat or exploit the "for want of a nail" proverb to turn situations to his side. Has a novel, Shatterpoint, which is pretty much Heart of Darkness IN STAR WARS. Was rumoured to be Disney’s wannabe Emperor, Supreme Leader Snoke, before *SPOILERS!* <s>Ben Solo</s> Kylo Ren killed him, so no one really cares now.

* Qui-Gon Jin: Liam Neeson as a Jedi. He was the only one smart enough to recognize a Sith plot, and would've uncovered and exposed Palpatine if it weren't for Darth Maul's sword going through his gut. Was the master of Obi-Wan, and tried to teach Anakin the basics from beyond the grave.

* Count Dooku: An elegant, charismatic, gentlemanly Sith lord and master fencer who had dreams of liberating the galaxy from Republic control, but didn't expect his partner in crime to be a backstabbing douchebag. Hates Anakin/Vader for not being a gentleman.

* Darth Maul: Horned Sith only concerned with bloodshed and fighting. He'd do well as a Khornate Champion. Had his legs cut off and was then was brought back more badass than ever, until he was utterly stomped by the Emperor then gets killed in a duel with an elderly Obi-wan almost 18 years later. Wields a sick-looking double-bladed lightsaber, doesn't actually gets a single line in the first film dubbed in by a different actor, and played by famous martial arts master Ray Park. He was a silent badass in the movie but for some reason he was made very talkative in the animated series.

* General Grievous: A cyborg even more fucked up than what Darth Vader would become, Grievous was the Supreme Commander of the Droid Army during the Prequels and the Clone Wars TV series (both versions), and a sadistic Jedi hunter. His competence is usually portrayed two totally different ways; in the 2D animated TV series (created by the same guy who made [[Samurai Jack|Samurai Jack]]), he is portrayed as an unstoppable killing machine who roflstomps experienced Jedi Masters, and is only bested by Mace "The Ace" Windu. In the CGI series and the third film, he is an [[Stupid Evil|incompetent, frothing loony]] with a record of failure that even Abbadon would laugh at hysterically. Actually has a somewhat-tragic past: he was a great and virtuous hero on his primitive planet, but when the Separatists harvested his shredded body to repurpose into their general/assassin, Dooku had those parts cut out of his brain until only the raging killer was left.

* Stormtroopers: The elite soldiers of the Galactic Empire. Originally, these soldiers were vat clones of Jango Fett cloned in large numbers, trained from birth in combat and clad in environmentally sealed suits of their famous gleaming white full body armor. After the rebels blew up the gene-banks, the Empire switched to an enlistment system. Numerous sub-categories exist, specializing to operate in different environments (deserts, frozen tundra, zero gravity, underwater, etc.) and serve different roles (scouts, aerial jump-packers, heavy-weapons teams, etc.). They are unwaveringly loyal and obedient to their Empire (due to being brainwashed as kids), ruthless and brutally efficient foes in combat, and incredibly precise shots with their state-of-the-art weapons. Naturally, these qualities all go out the window when they encounter the main characters in the series, but that's life when you're wearing a [[helmet]].

===Post-Disney===
* Rey: Protagonist of the new trilogy and considered by many a complete [[Mary Sue]] (insert [[Skub]] discussion on if movie themes and plot convenience trumps plausibility here). Starts out as a scavenger on a desert junker planet where the last battle between the Empire and Rebels happened, finds BB-8 escaping the First Order and later Finn. Steals the Millenium Falcon from the guy who stole it from the guy who stole it from Lando after Return Of The Jedi and expertly flies it (thanks apparently to her only source of entertainment being Rebel training VR tapes as explained in a novel, as well as the fact she has had to repair it in the past) in a dogfight with First Order TIE. Meets Han Solo who takes a liking to her and Finn, is escorted to meet Maz Kanata in order to make their way to the Resistance, and Maz gives her Luke’s lightsaber based on Force feelings and the fact that when Rey touched it she tripped the fuck out. The First Order attacks and Rey is kidnapped, managing to shoot a few Stormtroopers despite never having used a blaster then while in First Order interrogation manages to block Kylo Ren’s Force-mind reading and push back into his mind, then mind tricks Stormtrooper James Bond into freeing her. Rey meets back up with Finn in time to see Kylo kill Han Solo then can Force pull (despite Kylo also trying to do this) Luke’s lightsaber to her in order to duel and almost kill Kylo (this was all VERY Skubby, <s> though can also be explained in Kylo being emotionally unstable </s> (dark side feeds on emotions such as fear, anger and uncertainty))). She heads with Chewie on the Falcon to find Luke and ask for training...which in Last Jedi he refuses to do, claiming the Jedi must die out due to the fact the Order always fucks up and lets the Sith take back over (Darth Revan is in fact confirmed canon now) as well as his disillusionment in heroes now that the universe considers him the greatest one coupled with him failing Kylo and causing a new Dark Side order to form. Luke agrees to teach her three basic lessons, and in them he confirms she is massively powerful in the Force and tainted by the Dark Side like Kylo was. She also is connected with Kylo mentally, the two being able to see and speak with each other. She has The Cave freakout and decides to confront Kylo, and is brought before Snoke who tells her that he was the one who created the Force-bond between her and Kylo in an attempt to find Luke. Kylo kills Snoke and fights alongside Rey to kill his guards then forces her to confront her past and finally admit to herself that her parents were not great heroes or coming back for her, they were drunks who sold her into slavery. The reason for Rey’s parentage is the director knew everyone was expecting a twist, and he felt it was the best one he could deliver while building on the theme of letting heroes be inspiring legends for the common folk while not letting the old define the new (yeah, insert Disney canon metaphor here). Rey then proceeds in the Falcon with Chewie to the planet where the Resistance is hiding and lifts a fuckton of rocks using the Force to save them (this time, Chewie pilots and she is a gunner). Rey certainly was not as much of a Mary Sue in The Last Jedi as she was in the Force Awakens but her portrayal in The Force Awakens was textbook Mary Sue writing.

* Finn: A First Order Stormtrooper (serial code FN-2187) who has doubts about the First Order after his first battle and ends up defecting to the Resistance, allowing him to actually aim worth a damn. Despite (apparently) lacking force-sensitivity, can somewhat wield a lightsaber in combat, though he loses both his fights when using it. Finn ends up carrying ''The Force Awakens'' thanks to the acting talents of John Boyega. He probably would have made a much better main character than Rey because at least ''he'' has a fucking ''reason'' to go on a space adventure. He’s basically Kyle Katarn, only he didn’t get to steal the Death Star plans or become a Jedi. Finn unfortunately is a character without an arc, as discussed below.

* BB-8: The R2-D2 replacement and mascot of the new trilogy. Poe's buddy robot, started out as the plot device that the First Order was after in The Force Awakens, saves Finn and Rose's asses twice by taking down prison guards and piloting an AT-ST to attack Stormtroopers in The Last Jedi as well as Poe's in the comic.

* Poe Dameron: An X-Wing pilot and one of the best pilots in the Resistance who gave Finn his nickname. Poe is the son of an ace pilot and an elite Rebel soldier, who was seemingly concieved in an Ewok hut during the Yubyub song and grew up with a holy Force tree in his yard that was a gift from Luke. Gets captured by the First Order but gets rescued by a defecting Finn and they both escape using a TIE Fighter. Assumed dead by Finn after crashing the TIE Fighter, though ends up coming back shooting down an entire squadron of TIE Fighters. Its never really stated why did he leave Finn behind in the crash site, how did he leave the planet or why did he pretty much abandon his mission of trying to find BB-8. As such he's barely in The Force Awakens. This is because the original script George Lucas proposed for Force Awakens used Poe as a means of Finn escaping, whereupon Finn takes it on himself to complete Poe’s last mission and eventually replace Poe in the Resistance. After Poe’s actor lamented that he dies in every movie, Poe was made to survive the crash and Finn gained a fearful coward who becomes a hero subplot, which unfortunately left both characters with nowhere to go for character arcs. Poe is far more important in The Last Jedi, but not in good ways. He disobeys orders and leads an attack on a First Order capital ship which not only results in the destruction of most of the surviving Resistance small fighters, but delays their escape long enough for the First Order flagship (so large it is essentially a giant capital city for the First Order) to catch up with them and massacre the Resistance. Poe then mutinies when the now-comatose Leia’s subordinate Holdo is put in charge of the Resistance (Ackbar was killed before that because his Voice Actor died, leaving Holdo as highest ranking officer) to enact his own plan using Finn...which fails, resulting in the deaths of most of the rest of the Resistance and the loss of their last capital ship. Poe’s counterattack also fails, and by the end its only thanks to Rey and Luke that anyone survives. By the end, there’s barely enough Resistance left to fill up the Millennium Falcon, although the First Order got it just as bad thanks to Holdo’s last act. In short: Poe is [[Magnus_the_Red|Magnus The Red]] tier of fuckups (for the same reason too, not being trusted with the truth).

* Maz Kanata: A orange alien with the personality and wisdom of an ancient Chinese grandma who knows a lot about the Force. In her backstory she was a Force-sensitive that’s somewhere in Yoda-tier age, but was never trained as a Jedi and instead used her talents to survive among the “third faction” (Hutts, smugglers, mafias, Mandos) while remaining as friendly to the “light side” factions as Hutts are to the “Dark Side” factions. Apparently also a supreme badass, judging from her brief appearance in TLJ. She procured Anakin’s/Luke’s blue lightsaber from the depths of the Bespin gas giant simply because she wanted it, and gave it to Rey in Force Awakens as well as some grandmotherly advice to her and Rey. She appears briefly to give the heroes contact information for a codebreaker in The Last Jedi.

* Kylo Ren: A Dark Jedi who is actually the son of Han and Leia, Ben Solo, which the Internet absolutely refused to shut up about after it was leaked. He idolizes his grandfather, Darth Vader and wears a black suit and a mask to show this. He wields a unique crossguard lightsaber. People thought he would be a badass after seeing the trailers but after seeing the movie, he turned out to be a complete pussy who very often gets temper tantrums and gets his ass kicked by a teenage girl. His name Ben is something of a question mark, considering that most fans associate the name with Obi-Wan but Leia never met him and to Han, he was little more than a customer whom he knew for less than 24 hours. Would have made perfect sense for Luke to name his son Ben, which he did in EU but for Han and Leia it makes little sense (their older son was named Jacen, the younger son the cringeworthy Anakin in the EU; Kylo is far more similar to the constantly Dark Side tempted Jacen than Anakin, who dies young alongside Chewie).

* Snoke: Supreme Leader of the First Order who speaks to his underlings through a massive hologram. Very little is known about him at the moment. Though many fan theories say that he is Darth Plagueis, the old master of Palpatine who was assumed dead, the powers that be have repeatedly denied the theory (though it's admittedly a better guess than suggesting that Snoke is [[What|Mace Windu, Boba Fett, or a clone of Darth Vader]], which we would like to stress are [[DERP|actual fan theories]])...unfortunately, we will have to wait for an inevitable comic book or novel to explain it, since he [[RAGE|gets killed like a chump by his own servant, Kylo "Emofag" Ren.]] It is possible he may return given that the ring on his finger has inscriptions that translate to various rephrasing of “survive death”, but that may actually be a nod to Palpatine’s EU resurrections.

* General Hux: An officer in the First Order and a moustacheless ginger Hitler in space. Delivers a pretty cool speech, but can't fight to save his life and remains only an officer and the First Order equivalent to Tarkin. The backstory for Hux is his father was an Imperial hero, and Hux wants to be the First Order version of his old man and lead the FO to a final victory. Hux openly dislikes Kylo Ren and has frustration with the Force-users borders on meta at times. Spends most of TLJ as a foil to the edgier and more toyetic bad guys, but he seems to be the only one to have noticed how impractical the Empire/FO's fuckhuge weaponry can be when you're fighting something smaller than a planet and have lost the element of surprise.

* Captain Phasma: A First Order operative in charge of instructing the new Stormtrooper legions, Phasma serves as the Boba Fett of TFA - which is to say that she does nothing of note other than stand around and look cool until she figuratively and literally gets thrown into the trash in Force Awakens. Lucasfilm have apologized for overadvertising the character in the lead-up to the film and have promised to give Phasma an actual role and backstory for TLJ that will play into Finn's story. Her backstory was released in a novel where she was a tribal on a planet the Empire stripped into the stone age, who backstabbed her tribe for a stronger tribe, backstabbed her second tribe and brother to rescue a stranded Imperial officer and join the Empire, backstabbed her mentor to become the supreme commander of the Stormtrooper Corps in the First Order, then in the comic series she was shown to have survived the tradh compactor when a Resistance bomb blew it up and she entirely disregarded everything (including saving Starkiller Base or Kylo Ren) to frame one of her subordinates for lowering the shields then promptly hunted him down to “bring him to justice”. She reappears towards the end of The Last Jedi to attempt to execute Finn, then kill Finn in a duel, then the ship they are on is badly damaged and she falls into a flaming chasm (no dead body=maybe not dead). At least she manages to get some fight scenes this time, and apparently her armor isn’t just for show as it deflects blaster fire. So [[Skaven|she’s a spear-wielding backstabber extraordinaire.]]

* FN-2199: a First Order Stormtrooper who wields a badass riot baton in combat. Notable only for two reasons; he shouts "Traitor!" at Finn, and then he kicks Finn's ass despite the latter wielding a fucking lightsaber. Such is the stuff that memes are made of. Even if he goes out like a punk to Han Solo, by all accounts, FN-2199 is what Phasma '''should''' have been. [https://image.prntscr.com/image/VFRN0EFuQkCz3pkBYGCN2Q.jpg He would be a great commissar]. Often gets called TR-8R as a nod to his memetic line and the naming conventions for Stormtroopers.

* Jyn Erso: A former member of the Space Taliban who is captured by the Rebels so they can talk to Space Bin Laden about rumors of a planet killer being fueled by Space Iraqi oil crystals, one that was partially designed by her father. Jyn is angry all of the time because her life sucks, she watches every parental figure in her life die in front of her, most of them over the period of a single day, and the movie hopes this will hide the fact that she really doesn't do much other then flip authority figures the bird. Her name mirrors that of Jan Ors, partner-in-crime of legendary badass Kyle Katarn.

* Cassian Andor: A Rebel spy and assassin, Cassian angsts about the fact that he lives in a political thriller set mere days before the simple morality of the original trilogy kicks in. His only friend is a droid, but that's not exactly unusual. Shares an award with Luke for not getting the girl in the end. Kind of. The Disney Canon variant of Kyle Katarn, an Imperial officer turned Rebel turned Jedi Master, who is so badass he shaves with a lightsaber. A massive waste of character.

* K-2S0: What C-3P0 would be if he grew a pair. A reprogrammed Imperial tactical droid and Cassian's only friend. Does that thing where he spits out survival odds in stressful moments. Caught a grenade in mid-air then tossed it back at it's original thrower without even looking. He dies first in order to establish that shit gets real in the last twenty minutes of the movie.

* Chirrut Îmwe: The real star of Rogue One. A blind martial artist who may or may not have force powers, can beat a squad of Stormtroopers with a staff, shoot TIE Fighters out of the air, and could take your girl if he wanted to. Just kidding, he's totally homo for his bara autocannon wielding BFF. A discount Jedi for a film that promised no Jedi.

* Baze Malbus: Chirrut's partner. Has three lines, but comes off as memorable because of his hellgun-looking backpack mounted autocannon with a scanvisor that lets him hold down the trigger and headshot stormtroopers until they are all dead.

* Orson Krennic: Director of the Imperial Military Research Division. Forces Jyn's father into building the Death Star for him, then proceeds to spend the rest of the movie getting roasted by the more competent Imperial characters because he's a fucking moron with a grudge.

* Saw Gerrara: Originally a member of the Space Viet Cong, this guy doesn't fuck around. Torture civilians? Check. Massacre entire patrols of Imperials? Check. In fact, his methods were considered so extreme that even the Rebel Alliance wanted nothing to do with him. Gets deaded within the first 30 minutes of Rogue One.

* Amilyn Holdo: An overbearing, purple-haired “Rebel hero” who somehow winds up being one of the key leaders of the Resistance, despite displaying no actual military acumen or diplomatic skill what-so-fucking-ever (although to be fair the only real Resistance requirement is “didn’t think Leia was crazy for thinking the First Order was going to perform Star Wars 9/11”, and Holdo was only the captain of a small frigate before her battlefield promotion). As a matter of fact, [[skub|her "super-duper secret plan" ends up getting most of the Resistance killed after Finn and Poe fuck it up]], due to the fact that she decided to [[skub|not tell a demoted and disgraced hot shot pilot who had just lost the resistance the last of their bombers her plan]] causing him to mutiny, and she only partially redeems herself via [[Awesome|ramming their command ship into the First Order command ship via hyperspace, destroying most of the FO fleet.]]

* Rose Tico: Finn's possible love interest, it remains to be seen. A maintenance worker who lost her sister in the opening fight of The Last Jedi, she caught her idol Finn trying to desert ship in order to warn Rey not to rendezvous as they were getting tracked by the First Order fleet. Deducing a way to deactivate the First Order's tracking system, she tagged along with Finn to accomplish that mission. Ended up cockblocking Finn from pulling a heroic sacrifice and confessing her love in the wrong moment before passing out from her injuries.

* Sana Solo: Han Solo's suppose "girlfriend" despite never being foreshadowed or mentioned before in any film. [[SJW|Oh and her appearance resembles a real life African American woman, who are known for being A STRONG WOMAN THAT NEEDS NO MAN.]]

==The rise of the original trilogy==

A long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away....etc etc you all know the lines.

A man called George Lucas had the idea to create a series of epic sci-fi space operas that would become so successful that Disney would take notice and give it the franchise fluttering eye lashes, trying to seduce it.

They would be called... ''Flash Gordon''.

Unfortunately for Georgie boy, and fortunately for modern nerddom, Dino de Laurentiis already owned ''Flash Gordon'', and were busy making their own, hilariously eighties version, so he said, screw it, I'll make my own!

He decided to start with the fourth movie in the series he envisioned, for at the time he didn't have the special effects to create the first three to the standard he wanted, and/or he just kinda made up the first move up as he went along (drawing heavily on Akira Kurosawa's seminal samurai action film, ''Hidden Fortress'' in the process). So Episode Four ''A New Hope'' was created (simply titled ''Star Wars'' at the time) and it is not an exaggeration to say it changed the face of sci-fi and general moviemaking forever, bringing a new era of special effects and imagination to cinema and changing the lives of many who would go onto to become dedicated fan boys.

Originally, the studio had forced Lucas to take ever increasing paycuts for what they were sure was going to be a flop, and only let him keep merchandising rights. However, whatever his flaws, George Lucas was a man of vision. Having helped pioneer the summer blockbuster, he went on to do the same to ginormous piles of movie-tie-in memorabilia. His production company, Lucasfilm ended up rolling in dosh, and with Episode Five ''The Empire Strikes Back'' and Episode Six ''The Return of the Jedi'', the legend of Star Wars and its place in cultural history was assured.

tl;dr: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ij4w7ChpuaM Pretty much this.]

==The coming of the prequel trilogy==
{{editwar}}

With the year 2000 coming, George Lucas felt that special effects technology had reached the level he wanted and began to create the first three movies in the star wars story he had envisioned. (As a side-note, he also made some touch-ups to the three original films, re-mastering them with special effects and a couple of extra scenes that weren't doable with the eighties' animatronics. But those were mostly accepted/shrugged away since they didn't deeply modify anything.)

The hype for the movies was immense.

And then the first movie, Episode One ''The Phantom Menace'' came out.....and there was nerd rage beyond expectation.

Part of the problem was that the immense expectations of the fandom had grown until anything less-than-perfect simply would not do, so perhaps that is somewhat to blame for the reaction to the prequel trilogy. Certainly, taken on their own merits, they aren't ''[[Twilight|terrible]]'' films.

But there was nothing to cover the problems that did exist with the first movie. Jar Jar Binks has become such a figure of ire to the fandom that mentioning him will incite rage and prayers to [[Khorne]] for his swift demise, but he was by no means the only problem with the film. There was also:

*Wooden acting and stilted dialogue from most of the cast. (To be fair, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher weren't exactly the best actors in the world, but the original trilogy had a fresh, naïve, ''WTF-are-we-doing?'' charm to it that is completely gone from the prequel trilogy.)
*A confusing plot concerning the nature of the Trade Federation's invasion. (Confusing in the sense that it's portrayed in too convoluted a way for a Manichean 'Good Guys vs. Bad Guys' story like in the original trilogy; but far too straightforwardly for the [[Tzeentch|masterful political stratagem]] sending the Republic into disarray it's supposed to be.)
*Jake Lloyd as Anakin Skywalker. While Jar Jar was the primary focus of people's rage, Jake had his own share of annoying moments (The guy ended up becoming so hated by everyone that he eventually became a redneck meth-head).

Episode Two ''Attack of the Clones'' and Episode Three ''Revenge of the Sith'' followed after a few years each and fans complained they didn't match the greatness of the original trilogy, more concerned with flashy action and effects than competent story-telling. It didn't help that the acting wasn't exactly better; ''Attack'' makes you sit through about 15 minutes of a romance subplot between two actors who simply don't have any chemistry together. Not to forget the infamous sand quote.

''Revenge of the Sith'' did, however, receive higher ratings than ''Return of the Jedi'', and is generally seen as the best and most-complete of the three films as a story.

What was generally more well received during this time for Star Wars was the Clone Wars animated series (both the traditionally-animated ''Clone Wars'' and the later seasons of the CGI show '''''The''' Clone Wars'', the latter which most everyone agrees is what the prequels should have been), following the war between the Republic and the Confederacy that sprung up during the time between the second and third of the prequels. It should be pointed out that despite being skubtastic, they are still frequently mined for references and material to build upon to this day.

Years after the release of the prequels, Star Wars community has become increasingly cancerous and has very disturbingly started to resemble [[/v/]], where people are constantly fighting about which movie is the worst and if you dare to call any of the prequels good or even comparable to the originals, you are likely to get personal insults and death threats on levels that make [[Commissar|Commissars]] look friendly in comparison.

2016 saw the beginning of multiple [[meme]] sites across social media, most notable of which is Reddits Prequel Memes. Practically every scene in every movie, especially the third one, has been used as a template for some kind of a hilarious meme by now and it has been said that these memes have started to change peoples opinion about the prequels to a more positive direction.

==Disney and the sequel trilogy==

Finally, all the efforts by Disney to woo George Lucas paid off and in 2012 Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise for 4 billion dollars and immediately announced they would produce a new trilogy of films set after the original trilogy.

Expectations were almost as high as the private fears of the fans. Bringing on the creative talent behind the [[skub|skubtastic]] ''[[Star Trek]]'' reboot was equally... well, [[skub|take a wild guess]].

The first of these films debuted in December of 2015, and reception was what you would expect: the film was immediately a massive success from a monetary standpoint as everyone ([[China|almost]]) everywhere rushed to the theaters in response to the hype, with children engaging in as many repeat viewings as their parent's money could allow as fans did the same thing with their own. It has become a financial hit with the general public and a (critically) generally well-reviewed piece, with decent cinematography, special effects, technical stuff, etc. It also went on to become the biggest financial success in film history, when not adjusted for inflation.

Fan response was a good deal more mixed. Many criticize the plot for rehashing Episode IV, without doing anything to establish its own identity and claim that it had a bland main character, [[Mary Sue|who had too many abilities]] whereas others find the replication of ''Star Wars'' feel an acceptable trade and praise it for being a decent action film, [[Skub|and point out the lead doesn't even outdo any of the previous main characters in anything.]] In fact, some would argue that by rehashing the original trilogy it basically nullified the accomplishments of the original crew; the Empire's still around, they've got yet another superweapon, Han & Leia split up, Luke failed to rebuild the Jedi, etc. Other fans praised it simply for being a new Star Wars that was better than the prequel trilogy.

And at least the jokes were better this time.

Disney also released ''Star Wars: Rebels'', their own CGI series, which is actually pretty ok (considering that it airs on Disney XD, it should be no surprise that they've toned down the graphic depictions of gratuitous violence, much to the chagrin of [[Neckbeards|those who love overly gory deaths]]). It focuses less on the Jedi that have come to dominate the franchise and more on the "boots on the ground" experience of the average characters, and while the show started slow and small, the plot has started to gain momentum as the series has progressed, especially after the first season. The Rebel movement has started to grow, several characters have returned from ''The Clone Wars'', and the enemies the main characters have had to face have been steadily getting darker and more dangerous as more of the Empire’s attention is attracted. When Darth Vader gets involved (played by none other than [[Awesome|James Earl Jones himself]]) he immediately proceeds to [[Awesome|open a 24-pack of unstoppable whoop-ass on the rebel scum]]. The return of Maul resulted in three character deaths (possibly four), the crippling of one main character with another well on his way down the dark side, and to top it all off Maul himself is on the loose once again. Things did not turn out so well [[Grimdark|last time that happened]], so expect the body count to rise, especially with [[Creed|Grand Admiral Thrawn]] now also coming onto the scene. The show also continues the trend set by ''The Clone Wars'' in making the Force mystical again, though whether this is a good or bad thing depends on how you felt about the <s>bullshit</s> <s>scientific</s> [[Skub|skubtastic]] midichlorian explanation of the Prequels. The animation is on point with ''The Clone Wars'', which considering it's Disney should surprise less than nobody. Oh, and Steve Blum voices one of the main characters. However, it is also noted that Star Wars Rebels may indeed have [[Grimdark|dark ending]].

[[Skub|The way that Filoni (the creator of Rebels and The Clone Wars) has handled the Mandalorians, a fan-favorite warrior-culture based upon the Scots and Vikings, has either been met with praise from those who despised Traviss and her overpowering of said culture, or utter RAGE that he turned many of them into either pacifist morons or bloodthirsty barbarians- usually that particular criticism comes from the Traviss fanboys]]. Do take note, however, that the old ways for the Mandalorians are making their way back into canon, such as the language, the emphasis on martial honor, and the decentralized nature of their government.

December of 2016 brought us the first standalone Star Wars movie, "Rogue One", showing the theft of the original Death Star plans. While "Rogue One" has been criticised for being lacking in character development; (fair warning) literally the entire cast of the movie who doesn't appear in Episode IV dies by the end, and it still manages to pack more than it's fair share of awesome into the movie, with Donnie Yen, Alan Tudyk and Darth Vader all used to great effect. Rogue One also answers several questions, plugs several plot holes, and just generally makes A New Hope make a lot more sense in retrospect. (No wonder Vader wasn't impressed when Leia claimed to be on a "diplomatic mission.") It also has the distinction of being the only Star Wars movie to focus on regular soldiers instead of Jedi. Much, much [[Skub]] still exists of course, since no Star Wars movie will ever please all the neckbeards but out of the three post-Disney Star Wars movies released so far, this one is definitely the least divisive and arguably the best of the bunch.

On December 14 2017, ''Star Wars Episode 8: The Last Jedi'' was released world wide. Suffice to say, in a non-spoiler tone, if you thought The Force Awakens and the Prequels were [[Skub]] material, The Last Jedi beats them all in its skubby goodness. Basically, to put it nice and short, if you have watched the Empire Strikes Back, you [[skub|''MIGHT'']] be [[Rage|disappointed at best]], if you want to see a Star Wars film that would finally expand the character of Kylo Ren, you ''WILL'' be satisfied, and if you want to watch the film because it is the last film starring the great and wonderful Carrie Fisher, you ''WILL'' feel hollow and sad inside. Early word is the Last Jedi is seen as one of the weakest and most divisive film in the franchise by the fandom, [[FAIL|which is one hell of an achievement]] when <s>Holiday Special </s>, The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones are all worthy contenders. Among the common complaints are the treatment of Luke, Leias WTF moment, Finns plot arc that serves practically zero purpose and the fact that the central conflict is essentially the same as the one in the originals. As of this writing it's been out for less than a week, though, so who the hell knows what the fanbase will think once the dust settles, as despite universal critical acclaim it seems to have caused quite a divide between those who enjoy its message on letting go of the past and embracing the future (which is rather interesting message for a movie in a trilogy which apes the original trilogy left and right), and those who refuse to let go of the past. If nothing else, TLJ builds on the grimdark of Rogue One with enough sci-fi carnage and [[not as planned]] on all sides to make you think this was a 40k movie.

==Expanded Universe==

It can be said what makes a franchise into a long term lasting thing is when a wealth of extra story and background is created that expands on the original story far beyond what there was. It could be argued Star Wars leads the race in this, as the sheer amount of extra novels, graphic novels and games based on Star Wars can and does overwhelm the ordinary fan.

The background has expanded into the distant past before the founding of the current Jedi and Sith orders and into the (not-quite-so) far future looking at the descendants of Luke Skywalker and other popular characters. Uniquely, especially considering [[Warhammer 40K|other]] [[Star Trek|franchises']] track records, the Star Wars Expanded Universe is remarkably internally consistent, both with other sources within the universe and with the films themselves. Sure, every once in a while the odd [[C. S. Goto|problem child such]] slips through, but on the whole it holds up well (largely due to the efforts of Lucas' company's continuity department leaning on everyone to hold it together).

Disney recently said "fuck it" and threw out everything but the films and the Clone Wars cartoons. New and old stuff ''are'' still filtering in, but on a case-by-case basis. [[Skub|Whether or not this is good or bad depends on mostly who you ask, as some feel the EU was filled with nothing but Mary Sues trying to out-Sue one another and a pro-monarchist bias on part of the authors, while others feel as if the stories in the EU were more fleshed out, deeper, and more realistic than the new Disney canon]], [[Not As Planned| and a third group who admits the old EU had plenty of good stories and plenty of bad.]] It would appear that Disney got the message from the third group, as they've brought back fan-favorite antagonist Grand Admiral Thrawn for Star Wars Rebels.

==Impact on 1d4chan and associated games etc==

Star Wars has had subtle and clear impacts on a number of other franchises and genres and it can be ''incredibly'' hard to gauge the extent of it all. Certainly it didn't create the concepts of sci-fi, space battles, sweeping storylines, and a blending of mystical and scientific ideas, but it certainly popularized them during the years of the original trilogy and influenced many people that would go on to have interests in sci-fi, fantasy and epic adventure today.

Hell, look me in the eye and tell me that the lightsaber didn't give us the [[power weapon]]. But then again, magic weapons.

==Tabletop games for Star Wars==

=== Role-playing Games ===

[[West End Games]] made a Star Wars [[role-playing game]] called [[Star Wars RPG|Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game]]. Like many West End products, it's a good game with the great misfortune of being published by West End games.

[[Wizards of the Coast]] picked up the license later and made two distinct RPGs based on their [[d20 System]], called [[Star Wars D20]] (imaginatively) then utterly revised that into what they called the '''Saga Edition'''. Could be fun, but generally broken as hell, much like [[Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition|its parent game]].

[[Fantasy Flight Games]] is presently selling [[Star Wars Roleplaying Game|a whole line of Star Wars-themed RPGs]], whether you want to play a bunch of scruffy space outlaws, members of the nascent Rebellion, or exiled Jedi Knights. Unlike their [[Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay]] games, which are all ''juuuuust'' different enough from one another to completely buttfuck any attempts at blending, all three gamelines use identical mechanics and are fully cross-compatible.

=== Card Games ===

The big [[card game]] set in the Star Wars universe is the [[Star Wars Customizable Card Game]]. It's no longer produced by Decipher, but there is still a sufficiently large player community to organize annual tournaments, rule on cards, and so on.

[[Wizards of the Coast]] made the [[Star Wars Trading Card Game]].

[[Fantasy Flight Games]] is presently selling [[Star Wars: The Card Game]].

Obviously, nobody is capable of creating a Star Wars card game with an interesting name.

=== Miniature Games ===
[[Wizards of the Coast]] did a tabletop battles game imaginatively called Star Wars: Miniatures, based on an extremely dumbed down version of the D&D ruleset. The figures were meant to tie in with the Saga edition RPG, it wasn't terrible on its own, just impossible to collect for competitive play since figures came in random booster packs so you never know what you were getting for what faction. Who could possibly stand for that?

[[Fantasy Flight Games]] is producing the [[X-Wing]] miniatures game based on individual starfighter combat (because, let's be honest, that's what ''Star'' Wars is all about). They have also released [[Star Wars: Armada]] which is a larger scale "fleet" combat simulator, using capital ships and squadrons of starfighters.

'''Star Wars: Imperial Assault'''

The latest [[Fantasy Flight Games]] addition to its Star Wars related games is a mix between a miniature board game and a skirmish wargame. It has two play modes:

One for campaign play where 1-4 players control a team of Republic heroes and another player has the role of the DM, who controls the Imperial forces. The campaign, as the name suggests, focuses on character personalization, xp gain and the like, which you can find in any light RPG-esque (board)game. The main goal is to get a few friends together and casually play through the missions. Think of it as a Star Wars version of the original [[Hero Quest]].

The other play mode is skirmish play, where two players each get to assemble a team of miniatures plus a command deck (cards that have specific effects when played) and play against each other in an open-play scenario. The play area is still very limited to a few game tiles (as in a campaign mission) but players are free to bring whatever they want (wit ha few limitations of course). The skirmish part of Imperial assault is as close as you can get to an actual Star Wars skirmish wargame, but it is a missed opportunity from Fantasy Flight to create a true skirmish wargame (ala [[Infinity (wargame)|Infinity]]), not based on tiles and so confined spaces. Who knows what they have plans for though...

== See Also: ==
* ''[http://www.darthsanddroids.net/ Darths & Droids]'': A webcomic, made using photo-stills of the ''Star Wars'' movies to tell a story about gamers blundering through each of the six movies in sequence... though not quite exactly how you might expect. Think ''DM of the Rings'' in overall visual style, though unlike ''DM of the Rings'', ''Darths & Droids'' features several heavy twists on the actual events of the films, subplots about the players and their lives outside the game alongside the campaign, and a better overall quality of gamer.
*[[Timothy Zahn]]

[[Category:Star Wars]]

Star Wars

2018-01-05T14:29:03Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

'''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_D0ZQPqeJkk/ Star Wars]''' is one of, if not ''the'', most influential media franchises of modern times, let alone its effect on science-fiction and fantasy. Indeed, among [[/tg/|nerddom]], it is challenged by only a few others, like [[Star Trek]] and [[The Lord of the Rings]]. The incredibly ardent fandom is spread worldwide and has a strong presence in popular culture. Many of the characters, like Darth Vader and Yoda, are iconic even to the general public. John Williams' score for the original trilogy is probably the best-known film score of all time. The universe has spawned numerous video games, hundreds of novels, multiple TV shows, one of the largest merchandising franchises ever, and, relevant to /tg/, a whole bunch of board, card, and roleplaying games.

[[Image:Riddick.jpg|600px|thumb|right]]

==The Basic Concept==
Star Wars was originally a series of epic science-fantasy "space operas" that roughly followed the mythic cycle that's been around since Homer. They're set "a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away," where a mysterious life force called (reasonably enough) the Force permeates everything. This, in turn, can be wielded by certain people, giving them pseudo-magical abilities; thank the Emperor (no, the other one) there were no Commissars in that universe. Those who use it for good become mystical, selfless warrior monks called Jedi, whereas those who use it for evil are ruthless, self-serving bastards called Sith. However, the Force must always be in balance, so any time the Sith arise to cause imbalance, the Jedi have to pull together and take them out to restore the natural order.

The so-called Original Trilogy (made up of films IV through VI, released from 1977 to 1983) followed a young man named Luke Skywalker who becomes a Jedi and re-balances the Force. Meanwhile, the Rebel Alliance is fighting to end the oppressive Galactic Empire, which is secretly led by the Sith. Luke and his Rebel companions eventually defeat the evil Emperor Palpatine, but along the way they discover that his lieutenant, Darth Vader, is actually Luke's father. A financial, critical, popular and cultural H-bomb, these movies are basically the filter through which Generation X perceives the world... for better or worse.

The so-called Prequel Trilogy (made up of films I through III, released from 1999 to 2005) explained how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader and how the Galactic Empire was established. This involves a lot of convoluted politicking in the Republic, which is then torn apart in the Clone Wars, where the Republic (with an army of clones led by the Jedi) fights against the Confederacy (with an army of robots led by [[Necrons|General Grievous]] and secretly controlled by the Sith). It was not as well received as the first trilogy, for reasons we'll talk about below.

There's also a so-called Sequel Trilogy (made up of film VII and presumably films VIII and IX), which started in 2015 and picked up the story some three decades after the Emperor's defeat with a new generation of heroes taking on the remains of the evil Empire, which is a group of extremist former Imperials calling themselves the First Order. However, Episode VII aka ''The Force Awakens'', was directed by J.J. Abrams, who's mostly known for the [[skub|skubtastic]] [[Star Trek]] reboot. So [[skub|guess what]]? Time will tell if the upcoming sequels, directed by other less controversial folks, will make things better or worse.

Finally, there are the so-called Anthology movies, standalone one-shots involving characters and plotlines that aren't a part of the main "Saga" films, except they kind of are. The first, Rogue One (2016), is an immediate prequel to Episode IV that follows those Rebel spies who stole the Death Star plans. The second film follows a young Han Solo and pals Chewie and Lando. A third rumored one follows Boba Fett.

There are also three separate TV series. The first one, ''Clone Wars'', was based on traditional animation, whereas the later one, '''''The''' Clone Wars'', was a weird 3D animation. They're both pretty good. There was also a terrible theatrical release that was basically just an advertisement for ''The Clone Wars'', but, since it's even worse than the Prequel Trilogy (hint: babysitting Jabba the Hutt's kid), nobody talks about it much. The third series is Disney's ''"Rebels"'' which is set between Episodes III-IV and it takes itself far less seriously than Clone Wars did, and is more of a homage to the original trilogy since not every character in the series is the owner of a lightsaber nor are they constantly talking about grown-up politics, senators and trade embargoes... pretty much the things that clogged up the plot of the prequel trilogy.

And then there's the whole Expanded Universe, which covers pretty much everything not covered by the films, like the Old Republic (set thousands of years before the prequel trilogy, when there were a hell of a lot more Sith and Jedi around) and the New Republic (set immediately after the original trilogy, explaining what became of all the characters. Also features Force-less [[White Scars|Space Mongols]].

The EU is no longer considered in the main canon of the films and TV series, due to the new sequel trilogy which does not follow EU, the reason for this being, according to Disney, that following EU would restrict their creative freedom. The reaction to this was, well, [[skub|mixed, for lack of a better word.]] They've since noted that they'll slot ''some'' of it in on a case-by-case basis, but the canon is in a highly fluid state at the moment. EU is now officially called Star Wars Legends, though most fans still refer to it as EU.

==Why was it so popular?==

Star Wars is as accessible as science fiction gets. It doesn't require extensive knowledge of a fictional world (a la ''[[The Lord of the Rings]]'') or cultural background (as ''[[Star Trek]]'' sometimes does) to make sense. Those elements are present for those who want them, but they stay in the (very rich and vibrant) background. It has well-shot action and good ''enough'' dialogue to make it interesting for both kids and adults (as well as allowing parents who grew up with it to watch it with their children, thereby hooking the next generation of viewers). It has simple, good-vs.-evil themes that resonate with almost anyone, anywhere, at any time. The science fiction elements are generally handled well if you don't obsess over making science fiction realistic and hard. It's a prime gateway drug for sci-fi. (Isaac Asimov saw and rather enjoyed the films.) All in Fourteen hours of cinema, plus optional sides for those who want it.

There's a ton of merchandise that is, of course, really cool. Also, given it's crossed over into the mainstream, many people feel comfortable being part of the community without feeling judged as "nerds" (as they might with ''Lord of the Rings'', ''D&D'', ''Star Trek'', ''Warhammer'', etc.).

Finally, there's the fact that the original trilogy films are simply good. The fact that they're not only watchable today, but still stand on their own as good films, is a testament to the story-telling ability of the team that made it. John Williams' excellent score, Ralph McQuarrie's amazing concept art, the impressive performances put in by all of the actors, and, hell, even George Lucas' drive and ambition all steered the films towards the cultural significance they enjoy today.

Again, they roughly follow the mythic cycle that's been around since Homer. If you think about it, 4 of the 7 films can be summarized as: hero begins his journey under the tutelage of a wise (more or less) man, they encounter a threat which has captured/enslaved a princess/girl, who was in one way or another connected to an important secret (usually a superweapon but could be the identity of a political figure or the location of someone); the heroes save the princess/girl but someone dies tragically in a battle against the villain while someone else is blowing up a space station or a spaceship afterwards they are happy, they celebrate and mourn the loss of the poor bloke who died.

Additionally, the first film can be summarized as a samurai and a gunslinger team up to save a princess from Nazis in space. That is multiple cinematic genres at once, following the style of the epic myth.

==Characters==
===Pre-Disney===
* Luke Skywalker: All-round good guy and idealist, despite some flaws, Luke wishes to learn the ways of the Force to defeat the Emperor and save the galaxy. A Jedi prodigy, he can lift heavy ton space fighters with just his force powers, though he struggles with doubts. Although he starts all brash and teenage and shit, by the conclusion of the trilogy, Luke is well on the way to becoming a wise and powerful Jedi ready to rebuild the Order. Then he ends up training Kylo fucking Ren and becomes a [[Neckbeard|grumpy old man who just wants the Jedi Order to die with him since he's been disillusioned in people not being shitty now that his shitty-feeling self is considered the least shitty person in the universe]]. It takes a direct Force-powered intervention from Leia as well as Yoda's Force ghost telling him "don't worry, we both fucked up and the kids still love our <strike>toys</strike> legends" to get him to nut the fuck up and help stop the First Order by embarrassing Kylo Ren in front of everyone. Yoda also trolled Luke from beyond the grave once more, destroying the tree which supposedly contained the last books about the Jedi code and history which turns out to be because Rey had already stolen said books and the destruction of the tree prevented Luke from discovering that fact, ensuring the Jedi will continue regardless of Luke's faith crisis. In the original EU, Luke was '''FAR''' more successful and trained many generations of Jedi including his niece (future Empress of a reformed Empire) and non-evil (although he came close a few times) nephew, destroyed massive remnants of the Empire over and over again, killed the fucking Emperor over and over again, fought off space Cenobites that almost destroyed the galaxy, blew up more Death Star-type things, killed a god made of crystals (we don't like to talk about that one), and hooked up with the Emperor's own hot red-headed assassin.

* Han Solo: Loveable [[rogue]] and space cowboy who shoots his way out of debt to the mob, ends up a general, and bags himself a princess. Not a bad series' work. His ship, the Millennium Falcon, deserves a mention too for being as iconic as he is. Unfortunately his actor Harrison Ford always went back and forth on wanting to continue the franchise and they were always ready to kill him. He agreed to be a part of Episode 7 if they'd finally follow through on his wish, having him fail to redeem his son Ben (named after an crazy old man he only knew for a few hours) and getting a metaphorical and literal lightsaber through the heart for it. In pre-Star Wars continuity he was once a Swoop (flying motorcycle) racer turned Imperial Officer who shot his superior that was beating a Wookie to death and gained a lifelong friend in Chewbacca, post-Disney origin is to be revealed in a solo movie named Solo. No, seriously. That is, if the movie ever comes out because of how poorly the production is going.

* Princess Leia: The regulation piece of lady crumpet in the movies, Princess Leia was a leader in the rebel alliance and (spoiler!) Luke's long lost twin sister. Also both a capable soldier and politician. Her being forced to wear a metal thong by an overweight space slug named Jabba the Hutt has since cemented her role as sex idol to legions of adoring fan boys, while her general [[Awesome|door-kicking deadshot sarcastic asskickery]] made her a feminist icon as well (this was back in the 80's when the two could be the same). With her home planet and entire adoptive family destroyed by the Death Star, she became a General although somehow retained her princesshood (yes, she's now a Disney Princess), and went on to become a full-on Jedi warrior in the pre-Disney EU. [[Skub|Not in the new canon though.]] She does manage to [[Roboute Guilliman|survive getting shot into space]] using her latent force abilities in TLJ, so that's something. Unfortunately thanks to the death of her actress Carrie Fisher (given the amount of cocaine and partying she's done over the years it was amazing she lived as long as she did) Leia will have to die offscreen between Episode 8 and Episode 9...unless they do an uncanny valley CG model again.

* C-3P0 and R2-D2: Two robots trapped in a sexless gay marriage who are the only minor characters to have been in all the movies so far, and even in stories like The Old Republic outside of their millennia of existence will usually have an equivalent. C-3P0 is the shiny golden humanoid robot who constantly fusses about keeping the furniture clean and worries that his pies are getting overdone in the oven due to being a fucking protocol droid that keeps ending up in the front lines of warzones while R2-D2 is the brash, brave husband figure who swings into action regardless. He looks like a salt shaker next to the Dalek's pepper shakers, although is he more a plucky rabbit to their rabid wild cats. The robots mostly have comedy roles in the movies, since they might threaten to upstage the human actors if they became too useful, though R2 has an electric cattle prod and serves as the party's computer skillmonkey, while C-3P0 saves the day with his mad linguistic skillz at least once per film in the original trilogy. They starred in their own cartoon series that was surprisingly good. After the original trilogy in both pre/post Disney continuity the writers don't seem to know what to do with them, and they just randomly appear sometimes.

* Chewbacca: The original furry in space, the dog you can have a beer with in the space Winnebago. Nothing sexy about him; he is just hairy, huge, knows how to pilot a space ship, fix stuff, fire a gun, and generally get shit done which strangely makes him the coolest furry ever. Best friends with Han, has a family that we can all agree did not appear in the terrible Christmas special that does not exist (he got a much more badass family in the Galactic Battlegrounds games, so go with that). Hates Trandoshans like all Wookies, since Trandoshans are almost always assholes and are particularly assholish to Wookies. In the pre-Disney continuity he was a slave that the then-Imperial Han saved and eventually get mooned to death, courtesy of [[R.A. Salvatore]]. In the post-Disney continuity he continues to be awesome and generally ignored in endings. The prequel trilogy revealed he's REALLY FUCKING OLD thanks to Wookie lifespan.

* Lando Calrissian: Suave, charismatic, and an expert con artist, this guy is the original pirate king in space. He betrays Han and co. when Vader invades his city, later regrets it, and then atones by saving the cast from the Empire as well as the populace of his city at the same time, then helps save Han from the mafia, and finally leading the fleet that blows up the Death Star 2.0.

* Obi-Wan Kenobi: If, at any point, in any work of fiction, the hero has an old master/father figure who teaches him part of what he knows, makes sure that he will grow up to be a virtuous and decent hero, but ultimately dies fighting a great evil to buy the hero time to escape, then returns as a spirit guide for the hero later, the Internet has probably accused that character of ripping off Obi-wan Kenobi. The prequels show him as a young Jedi and a deuterotagonist to Anakin Skywalker, acting as ''his'' master, teacher, partner, and dear friend before their eventual falling out [[FATAL|ends with Anakin losing most of his major extremities and organs]] and Obi-wan hiding out in a cave waiting to turn into Alec Guinness.

* Yoda: Ancient wise grand master of the Jedi Order who a tiny green alien is. Never named, his species was. Because of his size and age, most assumed just a harmless old teacher he was, your nice old granddad like. His pulling out a lightsaber and engaging a Sith Lord in combat at the end of ''Attack of the Clones'', one of the most surprising and popular fights of the series is. Became a big franchise mascot he did, despite a surprise for the audience he was meant to be in his first appearance, ruining it for future generations. A unique way of speaking, he has. A very popular target for parody, it has become.

* Darth Vader/Anakin Skywalker/"The Chosen One": The black-helmeted face of evil and the most well known villain from Star Wars (and arguably the most recognisable characters in cinema). Has become an iconic and memorable figure due to his menacing, robotic appearance and ultra-deep, wheezy respirator voice. He is [[Meme|(spoiler!)]] secretly Anakin, Luke's fallen Jedi father, thus allowing him to be able to say the most memorable line in the film series, "''I'' am your Father!" Abaddon wishes he could be this sinister. His children eventually manage to rekindle the spark of human decency in his heart, and he redeems himself by giving up his own life to save them and destroy the Emperor. Hates sand. Fun Fact: his portrayal required four actors in the original trilogy: body, voice, face and a stunt double. Single-handey rescues the entire spin-off film Rogue One with an '''incredible''' scene at the end.

* Darth Sidious/Sheev "Can't Peeve the Sheev" Palpatine/The Emperor: A creepy old wrinkly dude who sits in his badass evil throne constantly screaming "[[Just as planned]]!" And occasionally frying fools with force lightning. Built a giant planet-destroying weapon, then built another, bigger one as a trap when the first one blew up. He is very clever, managing to scheme and outwit everyone in the prequel trilogy, moving them all into place so he could take over the galaxy (although he still needed a big superweapon anyway to hold onto said power). Chews so much scenery they had to resort to computer-generated imagery. [[Meme|He is the Senate]].

* Admiral Ackbar: Giant tactical fish who has the need to point out obvious traps in memetic fashion. Leads the rebel fleet in the <s>third</s> sixth film. Dies in the eighth.

* Wedge Antilles: The anti-redshirt. Has almost no lines in the original movies but somehow survives all of them, even blowing up the second Death Star with Lando. In the EU he is one of, if not ''the'' best starfighter pilot in the galaxy, and co-founder of the über elite Rogue Squadron along with Luke.

* Padmé Amidala: Darth Vader's waifu who spends most of the prequel trilogy being a hopeless pacifistic idealist [[DERP|(which makes her a hypocrite with all the fight scenes she's in.)]] Get's choked by Vader and dies giving birth to Luke and Leia, which ironically Vader was trying to prevent in the first place after seeing a vision. [[FAIL|Way to go, dumbass]]. Haven't you ''read'' a work of fiction with that kinda prophecy in it before?

* Jar-Jar Binks: Solely exists to fuck up everything (and we do mean EVERYTHING) at the worst possible moment. This guy is so hated by everyone in and out of universe that even Lucas shitcanned his role down into a very brief cameo at the end of Episode 3; he's actually a tragic figure representing someone good who tries to act to save the galaxy but ends up causing a massive war with tons of casualties and handing over the rule of the galaxy to a Sith lord. There are rumors that he was originally going to be revealed as a villain but because of his poor reception, this idea was scrapped. People who dislike Episode 7 often refer to its director as Jar Jar Abrams.

* Wilhuff Tarkin: [[A Song of Ice and Fire|Tywin Lannister]] [[Indrick Boreale|IN SPHESS]]. Ruthless, ambitious, and cold, Grand Moff (Governor) Tarkin is the epitome of all that is Imperial in the SW Universe. His idea of ruling pretty much comes down to "They can hate me as long as they fear me", which is symbolized ultimately by the Death Star. [[Derp|However, he uses the stick far too often and hardly uses the carrot]], and this policy backfires on him horribly when he destroys Alderaan, a Core World and one of the founders of the Old Republic- for instead of cowing the galaxy into submission, it, along with the Battle of Yavin which saw himself and his battle-station destroyed, [[Fail|galvanized half the galaxy into openly declaring for the Alliance]].

* Jango and Boba Fett: Father and son, though the son is actually an unaltered clone of his father. Badass, mostly-silent mercs who get shit done and come from a line of Spartan/Viking/Māori warriors in space called Mandalorians. Sadly, both had very anticlimactic deaths, though Boba survived his in the EU, through the power of being too popular with the audience to kill permanently. (This became canon after Disney made the entire EU non-canon. Rumour has it Boba will be getting his own spin off movie.)

* Jabba the Hutt: Obese slug who is a cross between a Mexican drug cartel kingpin and Mafia crime-boss. He runs his criminal enterprise from an old palace-monastery on Tatooine. A [[/d/]]eviant at heart, likes to fap to hot alien chicks dancing for him until they try to escape, then faps even harder when he feeds said chicks to Rancor. Gets strangled to death by a bikini-wearing Leia with her own chains, because symbolism.

* Mace Windu: The original only black dude in space, he was the hardest-as-nails Jedi master of the council during the prequel trilogy and the best swordfighter in the Order, hence his unique purple lightsaber. That, and Sam Jackson wanted his own color to stand out. If Anakin hadn't interfered, he would have killed Darth Sidious and none of the original trilogy would have taken place. His subsequent anti-climatic death in the movie is regarded with annoyance by his fans. His mastery of the Force allows him to channel his anger and enjoyment of battle into his combat style without being corrupted by the Dark Side. He can also detect what he calls "shatterpoints", which lets him detect weaknesses to either mess people up in combat or exploit the "for want of a nail" proverb to turn situations to his side. Has a novel, Shatterpoint, which is pretty much Heart of Darkness IN STAR WARS. Was rumoured to be Disney’s wannabe Emperor, Supreme Leader Snoke, before *SPOILERS!* <s>Ben Solo</s> Kylo Ren killed him, so no one really cares now.

* Qui-Gon Jin: Liam Neeson as a Jedi. He was the only one smart enough to recognize a Sith plot, and would've uncovered and exposed Palpatine if it weren't for Darth Maul's sword going through his gut. Was the master of Obi-Wan, and tried to teach Anakin the basics from beyond the grave.

* Count Dooku: An elegant, charismatic, gentlemanly Sith lord and master fencer who had dreams of liberating the galaxy from Republic control, but didn't expect his partner in crime to be a backstabbing douchebag. Hates Anakin/Vader for not being a gentleman.

* Darth Maul: Horned Sith only concerned with bloodshed and fighting. He'd do well as a Khornate Champion. Had his legs cut off and was then was brought back more badass than ever, until he was utterly stomped by the Emperor then gets killed in a duel with an elderly Obi-wan almost 18 years later. Wields a sick-looking double-bladed lightsaber, doesn't actually gets a single line in the first film dubbed in by a different actor, and played by famous martial arts master Ray Park. He was a silent badass in the movie but for some reason he was made very talkative in the animated series.

* General Grievous: A cyborg even more fucked up than what Darth Vader would become, Grievous was the Supreme Commander of the Droid Army during the Prequels and the Clone Wars TV series (both versions), and a sadistic Jedi hunter. His competence is usually portrayed two totally different ways; in the 2D animated TV series (created by the same guy who made [[Samurai Jack|Samurai Jack]]), he is portrayed as an unstoppable killing machine who roflstomps experienced Jedi Masters, and is only bested by Mace "The Ace" Windu. In the CGI series and the third film, he is an [[Stupid Evil|incompetent, frothing loony]] with a record of failure that even Abbadon would laugh at hysterically. Actually has a somewhat-tragic past: he was a great and virtuous hero on his primitive planet, but when the Separatists harvested his shredded body to repurpose into their general/assassin, Dooku had those parts cut out of his brain until only the raging killer was left.

* Stormtroopers: The elite soldiers of the Galactic Empire. Originally, these soldiers were vat clones of Jango Fett cloned in large numbers, trained from birth in combat and clad in environmentally sealed suits of their famous gleaming white full body armor. After the rebels blew up the gene-banks, the Empire switched to an enlistment system. Numerous sub-categories exist, specializing to operate in different environments (deserts, frozen tundra, zero gravity, underwater, etc.) and serve different roles (scouts, aerial jump-packers, heavy-weapons teams, etc.). They are unwaveringly loyal and obedient to their Empire (due to being brainwashed as kids), ruthless and brutally efficient foes in combat, and incredibly precise shots with their state-of-the-art weapons. Naturally, these qualities all go out the window when they encounter the main characters in the series, but that's life when you're wearing a [[helmet]].

===Post-Disney===
* Rey: Protagonist of the new trilogy and considered by many a complete [[Mary Sue]] (insert [[Skub]] discussion on if movie themes and plot convenience trumps plausibility here). Starts out as a scavenger on a desert junker planet where the last battle between the Empire and Rebels happened, finds BB-8 escaping the First Order and later Finn. Steals the Millenium Falcon from the guy who stole it from the guy who stole it from Lando after Return Of The Jedi and expertly flies it (thanks apparently to her only source of entertainment being Rebel training VR tapes as explained in a novel, as well as the fact she has had to repair it in the past) in a dogfight with First Order TIE. Meets Han Solo who takes a liking to her and Finn, is escorted to meet Maz Kanata in order to make their way to the Resistance, and Maz gives her Luke’s lightsaber based on Force feelings and the fact that when Rey touched it she tripped the fuck out. The First Order attacks and Rey is kidnapped, managing to shoot a few Stormtroopers despite never having used a blaster then while in First Order interrogation manages to block Kylo Ren’s Force-mind reading and push back into his mind, then mind tricks Stormtrooper James Bond into freeing her. Rey meets back up with Finn in time to see Kylo kill Han Solo then can Force pull (despite Kylo also trying to do this) Luke’s lightsaber to her in order to duel and almost kill Kylo (this was all VERY Skubby, <s> though can also be explained in Kylo being emotionally unstable </s> (dark side feeds on emotions such as fear, anger and uncertainty))). She heads with Chewie on the Falcon to find Luke and ask for training...which in Last Jedi he refuses to do, claiming the Jedi must die out due to the fact the Order always fucks up and lets the Sith take back over (Darth Revan is in fact confirmed canon now) as well as his disillusionment in heroes now that the universe considers him the greatest one coupled with him failing Kylo and causing a new Dark Side order to form. Luke agrees to teach her three basic lessons, and in them he confirms she is massively powerful in the Force and tainted by the Dark Side like Kylo was. She also is connected with Kylo mentally, the two being able to see and speak with each other. She has The Cave freakout and decides to confront Kylo, and is brought before Snoke who tells her that he was the one who created the Force-bond between her and Kylo in an attempt to find Luke. Kylo kills Snoke and fights alongside Rey to kill his guards then forces her to confront her past and finally admit to herself that her parents were not great heroes or coming back for her, they were drunks who sold her into slavery. The reason for Rey’s parentage is the director knew everyone was expecting a twist, and he felt it was the best one he could deliver while building on the theme of letting heroes be inspiring legends for the common folk while not letting the old define the new (yeah, insert Disney canon metaphor here). Rey then proceeds in the Falcon with Chewie to the planet where the Resistance is hiding and lifts a fuckton of rocks using the Force to save them (this time, Chewie pilots and she is a gunner). Rey certainly was not as much of a Mary Sue in The Last Jedi as she was in the Force Awakens but her portrayal in The Force Awakens was textbook Mary Sue writing.

* Finn: A First Order Stormtrooper (serial code FN-2187) who has doubts about the First Order after his first battle and ends up defecting to the Resistance, allowing him to actually aim worth a damn. Despite (apparently) lacking force-sensitivity, can somewhat wield a lightsaber in combat, though he loses both his fights when using it. Finn ends up carrying ''The Force Awakens'' thanks to the acting talents of John Boyega. He probably would have made a much better main character than Rey because at least ''he'' has a fucking ''reason'' to go on a space adventure. He’s basically Kyle Katarn, only he didn’t get to steal the Death Star plans or become a Jedi. Finn unfortunately is a character without an arc, as discussed below.

* BB-8: The R2-D2 replacement and mascot of the new trilogy. Poe's buddy robot, started out as the plot device that the First Order was after in The Force Awakens, saves Finn and Rose's asses twice by taking down prison guards and piloting an AT-ST to attack Stormtroopers in The Last Jedi as well as Poe's in the comic.

* Poe Dameron: An X-Wing pilot and one of the best pilots in the Resistance who gave Finn his nickname. Poe is the son of an ace pilot and an elite Rebel soldier, who was seemingly concieved in an Ewok hut during the Yubyub song and grew up with a holy Force tree in his yard that was a gift from Luke. Gets captured by the First Order but gets rescued by a defecting Finn and they both escape using a TIE Fighter. Assumed dead by Finn after crashing the TIE Fighter, though ends up coming back shooting down an entire squadron of TIE Fighters. Its never really stated why did he leave Finn behind in the crash site, how did he leave the planet or why did he pretty much abandon his mission of trying to find BB-8. As such he's barely in The Force Awakens. This is because the original script George Lucas proposed for Force Awakens used Poe as a means of Finn escaping, whereupon Finn takes it on himself to complete Poe’s last mission and eventually replace Poe in the Resistance. After Poe’s actor lamented that he dies in every movie, Poe was made to survive the crash and Finn gained a fearful coward who becomes a hero subplot, which unfortunately left both characters with nowhere to go for character arcs. Poe is far more important in The Last Jedi, but not in good ways. He disobeys orders and leads an attack on a First Order capital ship which not only results in the destruction of most of the surviving Resistance small fighters, but delays their escape long enough for the First Order flagship (so large it is essentially a giant capital city for the First Order) to catch up with them and massacre the Resistance. Poe then mutinies when the now-comatose Leia’s subordinate Holdo is put in charge of the Resistance (Ackbar was killed before that because his Voice Actor died, leaving Holdo as highest ranking officer) to enact his own plan using Finn...which fails, resulting in the deaths of most of the rest of the Resistance and the loss of their last capital ship. Poe’s counterattack also fails, and by the end its only thanks to Rey and Luke that anyone survives. By the end, there’s barely enough Resistance left to fill up the Millennium Falcon, although the First Order got it just as bad thanks to Holdo’s last act. In short: Poe is [[Magnus_the_Red|Magnus The Red]] tier of fuckups (for the same reason too, not being trusted with the truth).

* Maz Kanata: A orange alien with the personality and wisdom of an ancient Chinese grandma who knows a lot about the Force. In her backstory she was a Force-sensitive that’s somewhere in Yoda-tier age, but was never trained as a Jedi and instead used her talents to survive among the “third faction” (Hutts, smugglers, mafias, Mandos) while remaining as friendly to the “light side” factions as Hutts are to the “Dark Side” factions. Apparently also a supreme badass, judging from her brief appearance in TLJ. She procured Anakin’s/Luke’s blue lightsaber from the depths of the Bespin gas giant simply because she wanted it, and gave it to Rey in Force Awakens as well as some grandmotherly advice to her and Rey. She appears briefly to give the heroes contact information for a codebreaker in The Last Jedi.

* Kylo Ren: A Dark Jedi who is actually the son of Han and Leia, Ben Solo, which the Internet absolutely refused to shut up about after it was leaked. He idolizes his grandfather, Darth Vader and wears a black suit and a mask to show this. He wields a unique crossguard lightsaber. People thought he would be a badass after seeing the trailers but after seeing the movie, he turned out to be a complete pussy who very often gets temper tantrums and gets his ass kicked by a teenage girl. His name Ben is something of a question mark, considering that most fans associate the name with Obi-Wan but Leia never met him and to Han, he was little more than a customer whom he knew for less than 24 hours. Would have made perfect sense for Luke to name his son Ben, which he did in EU but for Han and Leia it makes little sense (their older son was named Jacen, the younger son the cringeworthy Anakin in the EU; Kylo is far more similar to the constantly Dark Side tempted Jacen than Anakin, who dies young alongside Chewie).

* Snoke: Supreme Leader of the First Order who speaks to his underlings through a massive hologram. Very little is known about him at the moment. Though many fan theories say that he is Darth Plagueis, the old master of Palpatine who was assumed dead, the powers that be have repeatedly denied the theory (though it's admittedly a better guess than suggesting that Snoke is [[What|Mace Windu, Boba Fett, or a clone of Darth Vader]], which we would like to stress are [[DERP|actual fan theories]])...unfortunately, we will have to wait for an inevitable comic book or novel to explain it, since he [[RAGE|gets killed like a chump by his own servant, Kylo "Emofag" Ren.]] It is possible he may return given that the ring on his finger has inscriptions that translate to various rephrasing of “survive death”, but that may actually be a nod to Palpatine’s EU resurrections.

* General Hux: An officer in the First Order and a moustacheless ginger Hitler in space. Delivers a pretty cool speech, but can't fight to save his life and remains only an officer and the First Order equivalent to Tarkin. The backstory for Hux is his father was an Imperial hero, and Hux wants to be the First Order version of his old man and lead the FO to a final victory. Hux openly dislikes Kylo Ren and has frustration with the Force-users borders on meta at times. Spends most of TLJ as a foil to the edgier and more toyetic bad guys, but he seems to be the only one to have noticed how impractical the Empire/FO's fuckhuge weaponry can be when you're fighting something smaller than a planet and have lost the element of surprise.

* Captain Phasma: A First Order operative in charge of instructing the new Stormtrooper legions, Phasma serves as the Boba Fett of TFA - which is to say that she does nothing of note other than stand around and look cool until she figuratively and literally gets thrown into the trash in Force Awakens. Lucasfilm have apologized for overadvertising the character in the lead-up to the film and have promised to give Phasma an actual role and backstory for TLJ that will play into Finn's story. Her backstory was released in a novel where she was a tribal on a planet the Empire stripped into the stone age, who backstabbed her tribe for a stronger tribe, backstabbed her second tribe and brother to rescue a stranded Imperial officer and join the Empire, backstabbed her mentor to become the supreme commander of the Stormtrooper Corps in the First Order, then in the comic series she was shown to have survived the tradh compactor when a Resistance bomb blew it up and she entirely disregarded everything (including saving Starkiller Base or Kylo Ren) to frame one of her subordinates for lowering the shields then promptly hunted him down to “bring him to justice”. She reappears towards the end of The Last Jedi to attempt to execute Finn, then kill Finn in a duel, then the ship they are on is badly damaged and she falls into a flaming chasm (no dead body=maybe not dead). At least she manages to get some fight scenes this time, and apparently her armor isn’t just for show as it deflects blaster fire. So [[Skaven|she’s a spear-wielding backstabber extraordinaire.]]

* FN-2199: a First Order Stormtrooper who wields a badass riot baton in combat. Notable only for two reasons; he shouts "Traitor!" at Finn, and then he kicks Finn's ass despite the latter wielding a fucking lightsaber. Such is the stuff that memes are made of. Even if he goes out like a punk to Han Solo, by all accounts, FN-2199 is what Phasma '''should''' have been. [https://image.prntscr.com/image/VFRN0EFuQkCz3pkBYGCN2Q.jpg He would be a great commissar]. Often gets called TR-8R as a nod to his memetic line and the naming conventions for Stormtroopers.

* Jyn Erso: A former member of the Space Taliban who is captured by the Rebels so they can talk to Space Bin Laden about rumors of a planet killer being fueled by Space Iraqi oil crystals, one that was partially designed by her father. Jyn is angry all of the time because her life sucks, she watches every parental figure in her life die in front of her, most of them over the period of a single day, and the movie hopes this will hide the fact that she really doesn't do much other then flip authority figures the bird. Her name mirrors that of Jan Ors, partner-in-crime of legendary badass Kyle Katarn.

* Cassian Andor: A Rebel spy and assassin, Cassian angsts about the fact that he lives in a political thriller set mere days before the simple morality of the original trilogy kicks in. His only friend is a droid, but that's not exactly unusual. Shares an award with Luke for not getting the girl in the end. Kind of. The Disney Canon variant of Kyle Katarn, an Imperial officer turned Rebel turned Jedi Master, who is so badass he shaves with a lightsaber. A massive waste of character.

* K-2S0: What C-3P0 would be if he grew a pair. A reprogrammed Imperial tactical droid and Cassian's only friend. Does that thing where he spits out survival odds in stressful moments. Caught a grenade in mid-air then tossed it back at it's original thrower without even looking. He dies first in order to establish that shit gets real in the last twenty minutes of the movie.

* Chirrut Îmwe: The real star of Rogue One. A blind martial artist who may or may not have force powers, can beat a squad of Stormtroopers with a staff, shoot TIE Fighters out of the air, and could take your girl if he wanted to. Just kidding, he's totally homo for his bara autocannon wielding BFF. A discount Jedi for a film that promised no Jedi.

* Baze Malbus: Chirrut's partner. Has three lines, but comes off as memorable because of his hellgun-looking backpack mounted autocannon with a scanvisor that lets him hold down the trigger and headshot stormtroopers until they are all dead.

* Orson Krennic: Director of the Imperial Military Research Division. Forces Jyn's father into building the Death Star for him, then proceeds to spend the rest of the movie getting roasted by the more competent Imperial characters because he's a fucking moron with a grudge.

* Saw Gerrara: Originally a member of the Space Viet Cong, this guy doesn't fuck around. Torture civilians? Check. Massacre entire patrols of Imperials? Check. In fact, his methods were considered so extreme that even the Rebel Alliance wanted nothing to do with him. Gets deaded within the first 30 minutes of Rogue One.

* Amilyn Holdo: An overbearing, purple-haired “Rebel hero” who somehow winds up being one of the key leaders of the Resistance, despite displaying no actual military acumen or diplomatic skill what-so-fucking-ever (although to be fair the only real Resistance requirement is “didn’t think Leia was crazy for thinking the First Order was going to perform Star Wars 9/11”, and Holdo was only the captain of a small frigate before her battlefield promotion). As a matter of fact, [[skub|her "super-duper secret plan" ends up getting most of the Resistance killed after Finn and Poe fuck it up]], due to the fact that she decided to [[skub|not tell a demoted and disgraced hot shot pilot who had just lost the resistance the last of their bombers her plan]] causing him to mutiny, and she only partially redeems herself via [[Awesome|ramming their command ship into the First Order command ship via hyperspace, destroying most of the FO fleet.]]

* Rose Tico: Finn's possible love interest, it remains to be seen. A maintenance worker who lost her sister in the opening fight of The Last Jedi, she caught her idol Finn trying to desert ship in order to warn Rey not to rendezvous as they were getting tracked by the First Order fleet. Deducing a way to deactivate the First Order's tracking system, she tagged along with Finn to accomplish that mission. Ended up cockblocking Finn from pulling a heroic sacrifice and confessing her love in the wrong moment before passing out from her injuries.

* Sana Solo: Han Solo's suppose "girlfriend" despite never being foreshadowed or mentioned before in any film. [[SJW|Oh and her appearance resembles a real life African American woman, who are known for being A STRONG WOMAN THAT NEEDS NO MAN.]]

==The rise of the original trilogy==

A long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away....etc etc you all know the lines.

A man called George Lucas had the idea to create a series of epic sci-fi space operas that would become so successful that Disney would take notice and give it the franchise fluttering eye lashes, trying to seduce it.

They would be called... ''Flash Gordon''.

Unfortunately for Georgie boy, and fortunately for modern nerddom, Dino de Laurentiis already owned ''Flash Gordon'', and were busy making their own, hilariously eighties version, so he said, screw it, I'll make my own!

He decided to start with the fourth movie in the series he envisioned, for at the time he didn't have the special effects to create the first three to the standard he wanted, and/or he just kinda made up the first move up as he went along (drawing heavily on Akira Kurosawa's seminal samurai action film, ''Hidden Fortress'' in the process). So Episode Four ''A New Hope'' was created (simply titled ''Star Wars'' at the time) and it is not an exaggeration to say it changed the face of sci-fi and general moviemaking forever, bringing a new era of special effects and imagination to cinema and changing the lives of many who would go onto to become dedicated fan boys.

Originally, the studio had forced Lucas to take ever increasing paycuts for what they were sure was going to be a flop, and only let him keep merchandising rights. However, whatever his flaws, George Lucas was a man of vision. Having helped pioneer the summer blockbuster, he went on to do the same to ginormous piles of movie-tie-in memorabilia. His production company, Lucasfilm ended up rolling in dosh, and with Episode Five ''The Empire Strikes Back'' and Episode Six ''The Return of the Jedi'', the legend of Star Wars and its place in cultural history was assured.

tl;dr: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ij4w7ChpuaM Pretty much this.]

==The coming of the prequel trilogy==
{{editwar}}

With the year 2000 coming, George Lucas felt that special effects technology had reached the level he wanted and began to create the first three movies in the star wars story he had envisioned. (As a side-note, he also made some touch-ups to the three original films, re-mastering them with special effects and a couple of extra scenes that weren't doable with the eighties' animatronics. But those were mostly accepted/shrugged away since they didn't deeply modify anything.)

The hype for the movies was immense.

And then the first movie, Episode One ''The Phantom Menace'' came out.....and there was nerd rage beyond expectation.

Part of the problem was that the immense expectations of the fandom had grown until anything less-than-perfect simply would not do, so perhaps that is somewhat to blame for the reaction to the prequel trilogy. Certainly, taken on their own merits, they aren't ''[[Twilight|terrible]]'' films.

But there was nothing to cover the problems that did exist with the first movie. Jar Jar Binks has become such a figure of ire to the fandom that mentioning him will incite rage and prayers to [[Khorne]] for his swift demise, but he was by no means the only problem with the film. There was also:

*Wooden acting and stilted dialogue from most of the cast. (To be fair, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher weren't exactly the best actors in the world, but the original trilogy had a fresh, naïve, ''WTF-are-we-doing?'' charm to it that is completely gone from the prequel trilogy.)
*A confusing plot concerning the nature of the Trade Federation's invasion. (Confusing in the sense that it's portrayed in too convoluted a way for a Manichean 'Good Guys vs. Bad Guys' story like in the original trilogy; but far too straightforwardly for the [[Tzeentch|masterful political stratagem]] sending the Republic into disarray it's supposed to be.)
*Jake Lloyd as Anakin Skywalker. While Jar Jar was the primary focus of people's rage, Jake had his own share of annoying moments (The guy ended up becoming so hated by everyone that he eventually became a redneck meth-head).

Episode Two ''Attack of the Clones'' and Episode Three ''Revenge of the Sith'' followed after a few years each and fans complained they didn't match the greatness of the original trilogy, more concerned with flashy action and effects than competent story-telling. It didn't help that the acting wasn't exactly better; ''Attack'' makes you sit through about 15 minutes of a romance subplot between two actors who simply don't have any chemistry together. Not to forget the infamous sand quote.

''Revenge of the Sith'' did, however, receive higher ratings than ''Return of the Jedi'', and is generally seen as the best and most-complete of the three films as a story.

What was generally more well received during this time for Star Wars was the Clone Wars animated series (both the traditionally-animated ''Clone Wars'' and the later seasons of the CGI show '''''The''' Clone Wars'', the latter which most everyone agrees is what the prequels should have been), following the war between the Republic and the Confederacy that sprung up during the time between the second and third of the prequels. It should be pointed out that despite being skubtastic, they are still frequently mined for references and material to build upon to this day.

Years after the release of the prequels, Star Wars community has become increasingly cancerous and has very disturbingly started to resemble [[/v/]], where people are constantly fighting about which movie is the worst and if you dare to call any of the prequels good or even comparable to the originals, you are likely to get personal insults and death threats on levels that make [[Commissar|Commissars]] look friendly in comparison.

2016 saw the beginning of multiple [[meme]] sites across social media, most notable of which is Reddits Prequel Memes. Practically every scene in every movie, especially the third one, has been used as a template for some kind of a hilarious meme by now and it has been said that these memes have started to change peoples opinion about the prequels to a more positive direction.

==Disney and the sequel trilogy==

Finally, all the efforts by Disney to woo George Lucas paid off and in 2012 Disney acquired the Star Wars franchise for 4 billion dollars and immediately announced they would produce a new trilogy of films set after the original trilogy.

Expectations were almost as high as the private fears of the fans. Bringing on the creative talent behind the [[skub|skubtastic]] ''[[Star Trek]]'' reboot was equally... well, [[skub|take a wild guess]].

The first of these films debuted in December of 2015, and reception was what you would expect: the film was immediately a massive success from a monetary standpoint as everyone ([[China|almost]]) everywhere rushed to the theaters in response to the hype, with children engaging in as many repeat viewings as their parent's money could allow as fans did the same thing with their own. It has become a financial hit with the general public and a (critically) generally well-reviewed piece, with decent cinematography, special effects, technical stuff, etc. It also went on to become the biggest financial success in film history, when not adjusted for inflation.

Fan response was a good deal more mixed. Many criticize the plot for rehashing Episode IV, without doing anything to establish its own identity and claim that it had a bland main character, [[Mary Sue|who had too many abilities]] whereas others find the replication of ''Star Wars'' feel an acceptable trade and praise it for being a decent action film, [[Skub|and point out the lead doesn't even outdo any of the previous main characters in anything.]] In fact, some would argue that by rehashing the original trilogy it basically nullified the accomplishments of the original crew; the Empire's still around, they've got yet another superweapon, Han & Leia split up, Luke failed to rebuild the Jedi, etc. Other fans praised it simply for being a new Star Wars that was better than the prequel trilogy.

And at least the jokes were better this time.

Disney also released ''Star Wars: Rebels'', their own CGI series, which is actually pretty ok (considering that it airs on Disney XD, it should be no surprise that they've toned down the graphic depictions of gratuitous violence, much to the chagrin of [[Neckbeards|those who love overly gory deaths]]). It focuses less on the Jedi that have come to dominate the franchise and more on the "boots on the ground" experience of the average characters, and while the show started slow and small, the plot has started to gain momentum as the series has progressed, especially after the first season. The Rebel movement has started to grow, several characters have returned from ''The Clone Wars'', and the enemies the main characters have had to face have been steadily getting darker and more dangerous as more of the Empire’s attention is attracted. When Darth Vader gets involved (played by none other than [[Awesome|James Earl Jones himself]]) he immediately proceeds to [[Awesome|open a 24-pack of unstoppable whoop-ass on the rebel scum]]. The return of Maul resulted in three character deaths (possibly four), the crippling of one main character with another well on his way down the dark side, and to top it all off Maul himself is on the loose once again. Things did not turn out so well [[Grimdark|last time that happened]], so expect the body count to rise, especially with [[Creed|Grand Admiral Thrawn]] now also coming onto the scene. The show also continues the trend set by ''The Clone Wars'' in making the Force mystical again, though whether this is a good or bad thing depends on how you felt about the <s>bullshit</s> <s>scientific</s> [[Skub|skubtastic]] midichlorian explanation of the Prequels. The animation is on point with ''The Clone Wars'', which considering it's Disney should surprise less than nobody. Oh, and Steve Blum voices one of the main characters. However, it is also noted that Star Wars Rebels may indeed have [[Grimdark|dark ending]].

[[Skub|The way that Filoni (the creator of Rebels and The Clone Wars) has handled the Mandalorians, a fan-favorite warrior-culture based upon the Scots and Vikings, has either been met with praise from those who despised Traviss and her overpowering of said culture, or utter RAGE that he turned many of them into either pacifist morons or bloodthirsty barbarians- usually that particular criticism comes from the Traviss fanboys]]. Do take note, however, that the old ways for the Mandalorians are making their way back into canon, such as the language, the emphasis on martial honor, and the decentralized nature of their government.

December of 2016 brought us the first standalone Star Wars movie, "Rogue One", showing the theft of the original Death Star plans. While "Rogue One" has been criticised for being lacking in character development; (fair warning) literally the entire cast of the movie who doesn't appear in Episode IV dies by the end, and it still manages to pack more than it's fair share of awesome into the movie, with Donnie Yen, Alan Tudyk and Darth Vader all used to great effect. Rogue One also answers several questions, plugs several plot holes, and just generally makes A New Hope make a lot more sense in retrospect. (No wonder Vader wasn't impressed when Leia claimed to be on a "diplomatic mission.") It also has the distinction of being the only Star Wars movie to focus on regular soldiers instead of Jedi. Much, much [[Skub]] still exists of course, since no Star Wars movie will ever please all the neckbeards but out of the three post-Disney Star Wars movies released so far, this one is definitely the least divisive and arguably the best of the bunch.

On December 14 2017, ''Star Wars Episode 8: The Last Jedi'' was released world wide. Suffice to say, in a non-spoiler tone, if you thought The Force Awakens and the Prequels were [[Skub]] material, The Last Jedi beats them all in its skubby goodness. Basically, to put it nice and short, if you have watched the Empire Strikes Back, you [[skub|''MIGHT'']] be [[Rage|disappointed at best]], if you want to see a Star Wars film that would finally expand the character of Kylo Ren, you ''WILL'' be satisfied, and if you want to watch the film because it is the last film starring the great and wonderful Carrie Fisher, you ''WILL'' feel hollow and sad inside. Early word is the Last Jedi is seen as one of the weakest and most divisive film in the franchise by the fandom, [[FAIL|which is one hell of an achievement]] when <s>Holiday Special </s>, The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones are all worthy contenders. Among the common complaints are the treatment of Luke, Leias WTF moment, Finns plot arc that serves practically zero purpose and the fact that the central conflict is essentially the same as the one in the originals. As of this writing it's been out for less than a week, though, so who the hell knows what the fanbase will think once the dust settles, as despite universal critical acclaim it seems to have caused quite a divide between those who enjoy its message on letting go of the past and embracing the future (which is rather interesting message for a movie in a trilogy which apes the original trilogy left and right), and those who refuse to let go of the past. If nothing else, TLJ builds on the grimdark of Rogue One with enough sci-fi carnage and [[not as planned]] on all sides to make you think this was a 40k movie.

==Expanded Universe==

It can be said what makes a franchise into a long term lasting thing is when a wealth of extra story and background is created that expands on the original story far beyond what there was. It could be argued Star Wars leads the race in this, as the sheer amount of extra novels, graphic novels and games based on Star Wars can and does overwhelm the ordinary fan.

The background has expanded into the distant past before the founding of the current Jedi and Sith orders and into the (not-quite-so) far future looking at the descendants of Luke Skywalker and other popular characters. Uniquely, especially considering [[Warhammer 40K|other]] [[Star Trek|franchises']] track records, the Star Wars Expanded Universe is remarkably internally consistent, both with other sources within the universe and with the films themselves. Sure, every once in a while the odd [[C. S. Goto|problem child such]] slips through, but on the whole it holds up well (largely due to the efforts of Lucas' company's continuity department leaning on everyone to hold it together).

Disney recently said "fuck it" and threw out everything but the films and the Clone Wars cartoons. New and old stuff ''are'' still filtering in, but on a case-by-case basis. [[Skub|Whether or not this is good or bad depends on mostly who you ask, as some feel the EU was filled with nothing but Mary Sues trying to out-Sue one another and a pro-monarchist bias on part of the authors, while others feel as if the stories in the EU were more fleshed out, deeper, and more realistic than the new Disney canon]], [[Not As Planned| and a third group who admits the old EU had plenty of good stories and plenty of bad.]] It would appear that Disney got the message from the third group, as they've brought back fan-favorite antagonist Grand Admiral Thrawn for Star Wars Rebels.

==Impact on 1d4chan and associated games etc==

Star Wars has had subtle and clear impacts on a number of other franchises and genres and it can be ''incredibly'' hard to gauge the extent of it all. Certainly it didn't create the concepts of sci-fi, space battles, sweeping storylines, and a blending of mystical and scientific ideas, but it certainly popularized them during the years of the original trilogy and influenced many people that would go on to have interests in sci-fi, fantasy and epic adventure today.

Hell, look me in the eye and tell me that the lightsaber didn't give us the [[power weapon]]. But then again, magic weapons.

==Tabletop games for Star Wars==

=== Role-playing Games ===

[[West End Games]] made a Star Wars [[role-playing game]] called [[Star Wars RPG|Star Wars: The Roleplaying Game]]. Like many West End products, it's a good game with the great misfortune of being published by West End games.

[[Wizards of the Coast]] picked up the license later and made two distinct RPGs based on their [[d20 System]], called [[Star Wars D20]] (imaginatively) then utterly revised that into what they called the '''Saga Edition'''. Could be fun, but generally broken as hell, much like [[Dungeons & Dragons 3rd Edition|its parent game]].

[[Fantasy Flight Games]] is presently selling [[Star Wars Roleplaying Game|a whole line of Star Wars-themed RPGs]], whether you want to play a bunch of scruffy space outlaws, members of the nascent Rebellion, or exiled Jedi Knights. Unlike their [[Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay]] games, which are all ''juuuuust'' different enough from one another to completely buttfuck any attempts at blending, all three gamelines use identical mechanics and are fully cross-compatible.

=== Card Games ===

The big [[card game]] set in the Star Wars universe is the [[Star Wars Customizable Card Game]]. It's no longer produced by Decipher, but there is still a sufficiently large player community to organize annual tournaments, rule on cards, and so on.

[[Wizards of the Coast]] made the [[Star Wars Trading Card Game]].

[[Fantasy Flight Games]] is presently selling [[Star Wars: The Card Game]].

Obviously, nobody is capable of creating a Star Wars card game with an interesting name.

=== Miniature Games ===
[[Wizards of the Coast]] did a tabletop battles game imaginatively called Star Wars: Miniatures, based on an extremely dumbed down version of the D&D ruleset. The figures were meant to tie in with the Saga edition RPG, it wasn't terrible on its own, just impossible to collect for competitive play since figures came in random booster packs so you never know what you were getting for what faction. Who could possibly stand for that?

[[Fantasy Flight Games]] is producing the [[X-Wing]] miniatures game based on individual starfighter combat (because, let's be honest, that's what ''Star'' Wars is all about). They have also released [[Star Wars: Armada]] which is a larger scale "fleet" combat simulator, using capital ships and squadrons of starfighters.

'''Star Wars: Imperial Assault'''

The latest [[Fantasy Flight Games]] addition to its Star Wars related games is a mix between a miniature board game and a skirmish wargame. It has two play modes:

One for campaign play where 1-4 players control a team of Republic heroes and another player has the role of the DM, who controls the Imperial forces. The campaign, as the name suggests, focuses on character personalization, xp gain and the like, which you can find in any light RPG-esque (board)game. The main goal is to get a few friends together and casually play through the missions. Think of it as a Star Wars version of the original [[Hero Quest]].

The other play mode is skirmish play, where two players each get to assemble a team of miniatures plus a command deck (cards that have specific effects when played) and play against each other in an open-play scenario. The play area is still very limited to a few game tiles (as in a campaign mission) but players are free to bring whatever they want (wit ha few limitations of course). The skirmish part of Imperial assault is as close as you can get to an actual Star Wars skirmish wargame, but it is a missed opportunity from Fantasy Flight to create a true skirmish wargame (ala [[Infinity (wargame)|Infinity]]), not based on tiles and so confined spaces. Who knows what they have plans for though...

== See Also: ==
* ''[http://www.darthsanddroids.net/ Darths & Droids]'': A webcomic, made using photo-stills of the ''Star Wars'' movies to tell a story about gamers blundering through each of the six movies in sequence... though not quite exactly how you might expect. Think ''DM of the Rings'' in overall visual style, though unlike ''DM of the Rings'', ''Darths & Droids'' features several heavy twists on the actual events of the films, subplots about the players and their lives outside the game alongside the campaign, and a better overall quality of gamer.
*[[Timothy Zahn]]

[[Category:Star Wars]]

Grimdark

2018-01-05T11:16:25Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

''"They say, 'Evil prevails when good men fail to act.' What they ought to say is, 'Evil prevails.'"'' 
-Yuri Orlov, ''Lord of War''
[[Image:Lovepeace.png|thumb|right|It's totally the opposite of this.]][[Image:Inspector Grimgadget.jpg|thumb|right|Inspector Gadget, reimagined with a grimdark feel.]]
[[Image:Grimdark.jpg|thumb|right|Grimdark versions of the TMNT. Their mentor is a Skaven.]]
[[Image:Putin.png|thumb|right]]
'''Grimdark''' is an adjective derived from the tagline for [[Warhammer 40k]], which states that "In the '''grim darkness''' of the far future, there is only war." It is generally used to describe a dilapidated, dystopian "crapsack world" setting which it would really suck to live in, as say Somalia, North Korea, or the setting of Warhammer 40k itself. In fairness to the franchise and its defenders, this is because the published material primarily focuses on war and [[Chaos Gods|cults]] and other [[Daemonculaba|horrible things]]. There are supposed to be many pleasant and peaceful worlds and sectors in the Imperium, but they are mostly ignored as they are boring -- and when they DO appear in lore or fluff, they're usually to go from "0 problems" to "totally fucked", very quickly. <s>Unless, of course, we're talking about planets in the [[Ultramar|Macragge system]]</s> (Well... you see... about that...). It can also be used to describe artwork that has a ''grimdark'' feel, even if the setting itself would not normally be considered grim or dark, or something sinister or uncommonly threatening/intimidating in real-life. This often applies to fan-art and writefaggotry as well.

Depending on your own personal tolerances for grim darkness of course, it can be taken to the extreme, just like with all descriptive traits. There is a point in which it becomes more ridiculous than anything else, because everything is indefeasibly tragic all the time - the term for this being [[Grimdark#Grimderp|grimderp]], which is explained further below.

This is an accusation often leveled at Warhammer itself, and leads some to rail against "Grimdark" as a whole, decrying the concept as ridiculous attempts at [[edgy|edginess]] (typically by teenagers), and using the expression to refer solely to such over-the-top settings in a strictly pejorative manner. Others actually embrace this ridiculousness and run with it (including Warhammer 40K itself, due to being a much more obviously comedic setting [[Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader|in early editions]]), insisting that the detractors who take it seriously (or the ''creators'' who take it seriously) are making a mistake. Some people embrace the grimdarkness and mix it up with some humor (like painting Necrons with bright colors to make them look like edible candy figurines), especially if they are Ork players. But the schism between taking Warhammer's grimdarkness seriously or not is mostly visible with races such as the Tau, who are noticeably less grimdark (visually, their lore can be pretty grimdark in a 1984 sense) than most of the other races and are either loved or absolutely hated for it (when they're not hated for being overpowered as shit). Meanwhile, another sizable percentage instead postulate that Grimdarkness lends greater moral and ethical complexity to a setting, based on [[Edgy|the fallacy that darkness always equals depth]]). Such people usually cite the works of Dan Abnett and many other Warhammer 40K writers to lend credence to such suppositions; these people are clearly ignoring that fact that most writers tone the grimdark WAY down. What, you didn't think the fact that the Imperium being an effective government, civilians having normal happy lives on par with the Scandinavians, Commissars who never *BLAM* their troops was odd?. Needless to say, grimdark is [[Skub|a rather polarizing subject whose discussion often leaves little room for a middle ground]].

Speaking of, the polar opposite of grimdark is [[Noblebright]], a deliberate inversion of grim and dark nature where honor, chivalry, happiness and high adventure rule the day, as opposed to dying in a ditch from a supernatural plague as you run out of potable water and can no longer wait for the logistics department to process your dead comrades into something slightly more palatable before you start eating them. Oh, and being {{BLAM}}ed by a Commissar for even starting to look a little sad from these thoughts.

== Common grimdark themes ==
*[[1984|Massive, imperialist, overbearing, bureaucratic, dystopian dictatorships]]; e.g. [[Imperium|Nazi Germany clones]], [[Tau|USSR clones and anything communistic really, successful anarcho-Communist societies like the Culture not included]], or straight out examples of [[Paranoia|"Big Brother is watching you"]].
*Constant, never ever-ending warfare.
*Horrifyingly large death tolls are perfectly normal.
*Everyone is racist towards non-humans/[[Eldar|elves]]/[[Mutant|mutants]]/[[Orks|fungus]]/[[Rak'gol|lizards]]/[[Slaugth|worms]]/[[Necrons|robots]]/[[Tyranids|aliens]]/[[Chaos|each other]].
*Daily dose of [[HFY]]. [[Astral Knights|And]] [[Awesome]].
*[[Shadowrun|The vast majority are poor people who literally live in shit, pollution, crime]], and a plethora of [[Nurgle|all kinds of filthy diseases]], except for a [[Monopoly|few greedy upper 1% who own 99.9% of everything]].
*You, a poor bastard, are being farmed for shoots and giggles by said few greedy upper 1%.
*Most of the poor bastards are being forced to work 23 hours a day, seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year, in factories and/or forced labour camps, until their bodies give out. Forever.
*They're probably making weapons and equipment for [[Imperial Guard|the military]] (which is where the rest of the poor bastards are).
*Want chemotherapy or some other expensive treatment? Well, you have to make drugs with an old dropout student of yours in order to pay.
*[[Age of Strife|Dark, disgraceful and recondite past]] covered with [[Alpha Legion|lies]] [[Imperium|propanganda]], [[Tzeentch|deception]] and [[Eldar|partiality]].
*The Higher Powers do indeed give you consideration, they're just malevolent as all fuck.
*Chronic backstabbing. Just like in real life relationships.
*[[Ork Snipers|"Frie]][[Marines Malevolent|ndly]] [[Kharn|fire"]]
*Child soldiers. Just like in real life.
*Your morning alarm clock is the bullets you hope not to hit you fired by the drive-by [[Necromunda|by gangsters aiming their enemy that happens and are in the same district]] and you don't even belong or like.
*Status quo is god. [[Nurgle|Literally.]]
*[[Tzeentch|Change is worse]].
*[[Commissar|Daily forecasts reguarly call for a 80% chance or more of *BLAM*]].
*[[Judge Dredd|Police]] [[Adeptus Arbites|brutality]].
*Even minor crimes can have major punishments.
*Being innocent or even a victim of crime can be counted as a crime
*[[Inquisition|Government agencies that are always there to fuck you over]] at the slightest hint of [[heresy]].
*The [[Erebus|cock]][[Dark Eldar|suckers]] responsible for most of the shittiness are not only getting away with it, but are surviving and thriving, without becoming major targets for the [[noblebright]] forces.
*Torture.
*Human experiments.
*Massive amounts of blood, gore, guts, pain and hatred.
*No personal opinion or choice. Only the illusion of it, in which you probably end up an [[Magnus|unwil]][[Mortarion|ling]] [[Rubric Marines|sla]][[necron|ve]]. Or...[[Chaos spawn|something worse]].
*Anti-intellectualism.
*PTSD.
*Nihilism.
*[[Call of Cthulhu|Sanity checks]].
*Criminally insane delusional psychotics tortured in filthy mental asylums (in case of no SAN checks).
*[[H.P. Lovecraft|Disgusting, horrifying, tentacled eldritch abominations]] that are often the cause of aforementioned criminal insanity.
*Rape. Just like in real life. ([[Anime|And often by said]] [[/d/|disgusting, horrifying, tentacled eldritch abominations]])
*Surgery without anesthesia. As well as other heavy metal references.
*In fact even surgery without anesthesia is a luxury available only to wealthy or important ones, as are all other forms of medicine. 99% of people are expected to die when they fall sick or get injured. That is when they don't get executed FOR falling sick or getting injured.
*Zombie plagues.
*[[Cyberpunk|Cybernetics and cyborgs]]; the less human, the better.
*Ritual cult sacrifices.
*Gothic and emo aesthetics (with the help of tons of ''"decorative"'' skulls).
*There are no "good guys". Everyone's a jerk, including yourself. ''Especially yourself.''
*[[Tau|The guys everyone refer to be "good" or "nice"]] are actually just ''the least'' evil bunch, and would still make your average high fantasy/sci-fi arch-villains look like saints in comparison.
*The REAL good guys are either [[Lamenters|the ones (usually) mostly hated, and are going to get fucked over beyond human recognition usually without any logical reason]] or [[Salamanders|too few to make any difference]].
*Aforementioned "good guys" are only "good" because they do care about their allies and civilians. They still wouldn't hesitate a second before killing a defenseless xeno child.
*You either die a [[Sanguinius|worthy death]] or you live long enough to see yourself becoming something that [[Mortarion|you've]] [[Perturabo|always]] [[Fulgrim|hated]].
*Everyone will most likely die in the end. Especially the ones important to and including the main character.
*Always polluted, never sunny.
*No ice cream.
*Death or suicide will only make things much, much worse in [[H.P. Lovecraft|Lovecraftian]] levels, as a hive of disgusting, incomprehensibly evil supernatural daemons are waiting patiently to eternally torment your un-life and roast your soul alive day and night forever and ever, again and again and again and again.
*Tremendous potential for offensive/dark comedy/[[lulz]].
*[[God-Emperor of Mankind|And if you ever, EVER try to change this shitty world or try to help one person just a little, you will probably suffer terrible consequences,]] because altruism is a dying philosophy.
*Life sucks.
*There's only war.
*You're probably going to get eaten by Tyranids.
*Good luck and have fun.

== Stuff considered Grimdark ==

[[File:Tyrus.jpg|400px|thumb|A world where the only way to beat grimdark is by introducing something even grimmer and darker]]
* [[Warhammer 40,000]] (Naturally).
* [[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]], but less than you'd think.
* The World Wars, especially the Western Front of WW1 and Eastern Front of WW2.
* [[Dwarf Fortress]].
* End of War.
* Most of Shakespeare's iconic plays, especially ''Macbeth'' and ''Hamlet''.
* [[1984]].
* [[Paranoia]] (though used for parodying 1984).
* The majority of the tragedy genre of stories.
* [[RIFTS]].
* [[Blame!]].
* [[Berserk]].
* [[Kingdom Death]](Makes 40k's setting seem pleasant and cheerful).
* Eastenders (especially at Christmas).
* [[Grimdark Songwriting]].
* [[Don't Rest Your Head]].
* SLA Industries.
* [[World of Darkness]].
* [[CthulhuTech]].
* [[Call of Cthulhu]].
* Everything from H.P Lovecraft and the Cthulhu Mythos.
* Playing mortals in [[Exalted]].
* Neon Genesis Evangelion. Especially the movie.
* [[Midnight]] setting for D&D.
* [[FATAL]].
* [[Rebecca Black]].
* I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream (just the title itself should give you a clue on how horrific the game is. The video game is bad and thr book is even worse).
* The Medieval Dark Ages that Warhammer 40,000 was originally based on.
* The Witcher (racism, genocides, dozens of monsters that want to eat Your face whenever You enter the random forest. Or cave. Or ruins. The third installment of the video game adaptation even features a medieval Hitler running the [[Inquisition|Witch Hunters]], a fanatical order of [[Black Templars|racist scumbags dedicated to wiping out both mages and non-humans]] in the name of the Eternal Fire). Meanwhile, the neighboring empire starts a series of wars against northern kingdoms (where the series takes place), in which both sides descend into scorched earth warfare, all the while backstabbing their allies and generally being a colossal wall of dicks to the point that close to 70% of civilian population in war-zones died from raiding, famine and occasional outbreaks of outer-dimensional plagues. To add insult to injury, the whole world is doomed due to (slowly) encroaching Ice Age, and the only person that could save it took two glances at this shitshow and decided to fuck off to a parallel universe and let them all die, ''because it would be a mercy''. (To be fair, though, she comes back, if only to save her adoptive mother and father from said Ice Age, as she still maintains her 'fuck the rest of humanity' attitude.)
* [[Dark Souls]] (the entire ''world'' is '''dying'''. That is all you should probably need to know. If you want to be specifics, then in the setting, most of the population are undead, you die constantly, and you have to fight enemies larger and filthier than you are, [[Heresy|including a naked bitch with a spider vagina]]. Also, [[Extra Heresy|FAKE TITS]]. Stuck in an infinite loop where a hero constantly saves the world, and everything goes back to normal before hitting another grimdark cycle every thousand years. Compare to nobledark and check your mileage).
* Drakengard and its related franchise: Nier. Basically god hates human so he gave them zombie aids and watch them kill eachother for the lulz. Your only hope is a group of psychopath composed of a fallen mute prince Caim (the player) who [[khorne|enjoys slaughtering any living things]], a blind pedophile priest, a baby eating elf witch and a stopped aging shota. The true ending for the game is that everyone except Caim died and he somehow end up moving a magical doomsday device created by god to other world, (our world to be exact), detonate it and doom the human race. It is said that drakengard as a series has fuck tons of timelines for each game's ending, surprisingly the ending mentioned above is consider canon and it is where the sequel Nier took place (after 700 years no less). Drakengard 2 was pretty bright light, it's part of branch timeline but not really canon while Drakngard 3 is the prequel retelling how god tries to destroy the world by stuck a parasite evil flower on some psychopathic girl. There's also dragons but who cares.
* Gears of War (decades of civil war, genocide and weapons of mass destruction has turned your home planet into a quasi-dead world. The human race is close to extinction, women are reduced to birthing machines, your government is an uncaring fascist scumbag, the weather is often rain consisting of razor sharp ice crystals that could cut you into ribbons, you're fighting a never-ending war with genocidal monsters from the underground and the world is literally '''dying''' from super fuel.)
**To make matters even worse. Even before the Locust War, humanity was locked in a near 80 year war between two rivaling super powers over the aforementioned super fuel. The COG and the UIR. Both governments are ruthless, imperialistic, fascistic, communistic bastards of a government whose war crimes will make the likes of the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany look like amateurs. When even the Locust have a point by calling us out for being exactly the same genocidal monsters as they are, you know Gears of War is fucked. Oh and the planet is called Sera, or Ares when said backwards. Yeah, even the planet is named after a god of war.
* Hellgate London.
* Most of David Bowie's songs about 1990.
* World Devastators in [[Star Wars]]. Seriously, if you read about them without knowing that they are from Star Wars, you could easily mistake them for something from 40k. And we're not talking about Star Wars Legacy and the genocide of the Mon Calamari.
* The first two Hellraiser movies and also Event Horizon.
* [[Cyberpunk 2020]].
* [[Shadowrun]]. While not the worst in the grimdark department, Shadowrun definitely has its moments with for instance the oppressive megacorporations reducing people to an identification number; where those people not having one ([[Derp|for... reasons]]) don't exist legally.
* Hellsing... just all of Hellsing... Though it can easily slide into grimderp. (A little girl seeing her mother killed while hiding in a closet? Yeah that's intense. In a moment of desperation, shove a rod into the guy's eyeball, only for him to not be mortally wounded? That's pretty unfortunate. Said guy deciding to fuck the corpse as his smashed eyeball hangs from the socket? Okay now that's just silly.)
* Bioshock (as well as Bioshock Infinite, though it comes hidden behind a smiling facade of barbershop singing and the Fourth of July).
* Anything from the [[Xeelee Sequence]].
** The Interim Coalition of Governance for example, is such a grim-ridden shit-hole that they make the Imperium of Man look like pussies filled with sun-shine and rainbows in comparison. In fact, they are so Grimdark, that they would make even the [[Adeptus Custodes]] shit themselves in collateral fear. In fact, despite achieving time travel, conquering the entire <s>Galaxy</s> Universe through xenocide that would make the Necrons look like children and shooting Neutron Stars at .99c at the speed of light. The ICoG is still a minor nuisance compared to the scale between the Xeelee and their enemies, the Photino Birds. If anything, Stephen Baxter was able to construct the insignificance and petty malevolence of Man in a few books better than GeeDubs more [[Matt Ward|questionable]] [[CS Goto|authors]] did in decades. [[tl;dr]] the IoM wishes they would be as cool as the ICoG.
* North Korea which is essentially [[1984|"Real Life Oceania"]].
* ''The Goon'' comic series by Eric Powell (because circus hillbillies, werewolves with midget hand phobias, and the Zombie Priest are the least of it all).
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0206634/]Children of men: a future where humans are no longer fertile and going extinct, and then someone finds a pregnant woman and nearly everyone in the world fights over her.
* [[A Song of Ice and Fire]] AKA Game of Thrones: Good guys screw up monumentally or never win, the only people who get ahead are amorally manipulative assholes and everyone is going to be massacred and enslaved by the evil ice elf necromancers in the end. And if they somehow survive, then another war for the Iron Throne will happen after the winner gets their revenge-boner satisfied and later, their kids would need to clean up the wankstains.
* Dishonored - Grimdark, and steampunk. Only in the "Kill fucking everyone" ending though.
* [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|X-Com]] (The remake, and the original, as a parody of the G.I. Joe Badass stereo type, you're struggling with funding and even your gods in human form, some of whom make certain chapters of Astartes weep, can get fucked over by Sectoids!)
* Madoka Magica.
* [[Adventure Time]]'s backstory.
* Path of Exile.
* [[Space Station 13]] : Space paranoia simulator, some might not consider this game as grimdark, but the lore is set in a dystopian future where capitalism and unforgiving bureaucracy rules the universe, your life is expandable, and the media is controlled; your only choice is working until you die, or get killed by either rival corporate operatives, space wizards, cultists, and deathsquads or infiltrated spies posing as your co-workers.
* LifeWeb : A complex SS13 spinoff taking place in a cave forteress of a neo-medieval world in the far future, combat is more lethal, and it explores subjects like murder, corruption, rape, torture, cultism and general human suffering.
* [[Pokemon Tabletop Adventures]] (optionally).
* Spec Ops: The Line (Because no one felt like a hero after all this).
* Original Grimm fairy tales ("Hansel and Gretel", for example).
* Alien (as in the biomechanical, parasitic, acid-blooded brainchild of Ridley Scott and the late H.R. Giger).
* [[Halo]] (the setting of Halo is one grand scale of a Cosmic Horror Story centered around absolute hopelessness and bleakness of a Universe governed by hyper malevolent gods. Our good guys, the UNSC? Well it's a semi-authoritarian 'Big Brother is Watching You', fascistic style government that have no qualms in dumping a barrage of nukes on a civilian population if rebellion is sighted. The UNSC also have no problems dicking over their only alien 'friends' just so it could benefit humanity, while also being bogged down in a political quagmire. The Covenant are ''much, much worse'', while anything from the Forerunner trilogy is just a high concoction of Nightmare Fuel inside a depressing milkshake.
**Now with the [[Halo#Halo Fleet Battles and Ground Command|newly added fluff in the Tabletop Games and other books,]] Halo seems to be going eerily strait down the WH40K route. [[Space Marines|Covenant now having different chapters and sects,]] [[Warp|Slipspace shifting more like space hell,]] [[Inquisition|the UNSC/UEG sending secret police to silence and torture innocents]] [[Abbadon|and an ancient Eldritch A.I. of malevolent aura that shares the same name to a certain armless failure.]] Seriously we ain't making this shit up!
* [[Battletech]].
* Factorio. Subtle, but, lone human, aliens want to kill you, everything you do makes smog, and your goal is to cover the world in industry, concrete, machines, and gun turrets. The world isn't dead when you arrive, but you're damn well going to kill it yourself or die trying.
* Attack on Titan (You cannot win, ever. And if you do, you've probably lost all your friends, who've been eaten by giant freaky Mutants, who don't even need food. Yeeeah).
* Metro series (both the books and games, but mostly in the books, where the last known humans are hiding in underground subway tunnels, and when they're not trying to finish each other off, they are fighting endless hordes of [[mutant]]s [[/b/|and other, much worse things]]. Also, let's not forget that if you're one of the stalkers, the few brave ones that head to the surface to [[Blood Ravens|loot anything they can find]], you risk [[Tyranid|being eaten by flying daemons]]. Hell, it even has [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metro-2033-Dmitry-Glukhovsky/dp/0575086254 the same "abandon all hope" vibe in the intro], just like 40k. And that is just the tip of the iceberg.)
** Note as the books go on the grimdarkness does tone down by showing the areas outside of the city to be in much better living conditions and other metros.(allthough not all the books are written by the same author).
*Madness combat - no regret, no remorse, no reason, only [[Khorne|madness]].
* LISA the RPG.
* ''The Darkness'' videogames.
* The first two Hyperion books.
* Elfen Lied (where the next step of the evolution of mankind is a group schizophrenic homicidal mutant girls with invisible tentacle hands and a hair-trigger temper who will either kill you in the worst way possible or else [[Genestealer|infect you with their gene to increase their numbers]].)
* Most of Stephen King's works.
* Crossed (Most of the world is dead or turned into [[Slaanesh|murder-raping sadists]] á la the Reavers from Firefly. Showing any courage will get you killed or turned into one of the aforementioned murder-rapists, and there are survivors that are just as fucked up as the infectees.)
* S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (You travel in a desolate landscape, filled with mutants in all the horrific varieties, failed science projects (courtesy of the secret cabal of scientist settled there after USSR' s dissolution), anomalies that you often can't see and kill you instantly and a lot of renegades/bandits/fanatics/zombies. Your gear breaks all the time, resources are scarce and your goal is to get to the highly dangerous Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Why is the Nuclear Power Plant dangerous? Because it blew the fuck up back in the 80's [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster (in real life, no less)] and is protected by lots of fanatics with the best gear you can get. If you make it through that hellish place that is The Zone, you'll most likely get one of the 5 really grimdark endings, and if you payed a lot of attention to certain seemingly useless items along the way, you may get one of the other two endings which are also grimdark. The rest of the world also largely ignores what's happening inside The Zone, aside from a few scientists that study the deadly phenomena and the international military that maintains a cordon around The Zone so the nasty stuff doesn't get out and sometimes send expeditions inside, killing everyone in sight. Yeah, including other humans. Also, [[Meme|A NU CHEEKI BREEKI IV DAMKE]].)
* The Slenderman Mythos (HE ALWAYS WATCHES).
* The Old Testament.
* [[Dante]]'s ''[[Warp|Inferno]]''. Put simply short, God is a fucking Sadist. For example: If you suffer from depression/PTSD so much that you commit suicide, God won't give you therapy, but rather, mutate you into an immortal tree that can still feel pain and is constantly torn apart by harpies forever. How merciful. Sins of Greed and Gluttony are punished by being eaten alive by Cerberus, who then proceed in transforming ye corpse into slowly regenerating shit mud ; after being whole again, thou art eaten while trying to flee in despair, and it start anew. For ever. Because some old dude called Minos decided so.
* The F.E.A.R. series (even the third vanilla-by-comparison game is fucked up).
* Total War: Attila (Unlike the previous titles in Total War, which were about your faction's rise to power from small backwater city/tribe/country into a mighty empire able to boss around its neighbors into doing your bidding, this one is more or less about the decline of your faction as you desperately try to survive the onslaught of the Huns, who's sole purpose in the game is to worship Tengri by burning, pillaging, and raping their way through the known world. Particularly if you are the Romans. Winning is defined by being the last guy standing who gets to clean up the rubble and dead bodies, trying to rebuild their world after Attila destroyed it. Seriously, even the music sounds depressing and foreboding as fuck.)
* Darkest Dungeon. The name speaks for itself. Your ancestor literally awokened some kind of God that is pretty much Chtulu's brother and sent you a letter before killing himself, asking to mop up the huge mess he created. Enjoy sending parties of 4 adventurers ranging from badass lepers to sickle-wielding jesters to their deaths in cultist-infested ruins, sewers filled with mutated cannibalistic pigmen, sea caverns serving as anthropomorphic sea creatures and forests corrupted by evil. And I'm not going to talk about the Darkest Dungeon itself. Also, have fun dealing with those bandits that are raiding the Hamlet for which you spent a fuckton of resources in upgrades.
* The Day After, and its worse Brit counterpart, Threads.
* Lord Of War. The worst is that it's based on real events.
* SCP universe. Why do you ask? because above all: [[Inquisition|Secure. Contain. Protect. Imagine a semi-totalitarian world power, funded by every world government to capture anomalous entities, objects and locations, contain them, so that the rest of mankind can live in a world that makes sense.]]We're talking animate statues that move when you blink (I know what you're thinking, but this predates that episode of [[Doctor Who]]) and a creature that kills anyone that sees its face (through any means, including photographs). And not all of these threats can be contained or stopped,instead the are roaming free to harm innocents. And some of the captured SCPs are not necessary hostile or evil, but the are still imprisoned in a worse case scenario (witch happens too many times than it should). Oh, and is hinted that the world and humanity is destroyed already sometimes. But still, [http://www.scp-wiki.net/black-white-black-white-black-white-black-white-black-white Secure. Contain. Protect.] Just another day at the office.
* Shisha no Teikoku, the Empire of Corpses. Steampunk, Grimdark, Zombies, Cross-References and Conspiracies everywhere. It has even become possible to ressurect the dead, giving them their soul and intelligence back, but only 2 characters profit from it in the end, while everyone else stays a slave.
* [https://www.reddit.com/r/theeternalwar/ The Eternal War], as the name suggests
* [[Dystopian Wars]], as the name suggests
* Clockup Games where you get a firsthand look a sex cult and their destructive side effects.
* World War Z (the book). After zombies overran most of the world, many people had it so bad that they simply lost the will to live. Fighting in the Paris Catacombs necessitated using weaker weapons that wouldn't guarantee a cave-in due to hazardous gasses everywhere. Russian soldiers rioting over unfair treatment and enforced secrecy were ordered under pain of death to kill one in ten of their own squadmates - with rocks - to teach them the price of freedom and democracy. Which they then happily traded away. The survival of the human race hinged on governments following a plan including elements of eugenics and necessitated leaving settlements of people behind as zombie bait. People resorted to cannibalism to survive in Canada. North Korea entirely vanished without a trace. Pakistan and India nuked each other. And even after the war officially ended, there are still loose zombies wandering around, Russia has started a breeding program to deal with severe underpopulation, several species are extinct, and diseases thought to be wiped out are coming back en masse.
* Armored Trooper Votoms, an old-school mech anime. Basically, [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|mankind has been at war for so long that even the computers created to direct strategy don't know what the goal is]]. War isn't glorious either, most of the first arc is about a squad that goes rogue and raids their own side's armory to find some loot. While the mech designs aren't practical, they are more industrial and utilitarian than many contempoaries, being repurporsed exo-suits. Also, the main character is a [[Perpetual]] done right, through a mix of natural regeneration abilities, skills and nigh supernatural luck; unlike, you know, [[Vulkan]], who was just handed something that should have probably belong to all Primarchs just so that he could make [[Horus|some]] [[Sanguinius|people]] [[Ferrus Manus|jealous]]. Take notes, [[Games Workshop|Gros Wotour]], take notes...
* Prototype 1 & 2. A video game series where New York City is infected with a virus created by corporation called GenTek that mutates people into casual mutant zombies to fucking huge deformed beasts. A secret division called Blackwatch is sent to brutally contain the virus. This may sound like Resident Evil but the resemblance ends here because you play as Alex Mercer (Prototype 1) and James Heller (Prototype 2), both of them infected by the virus and became superhumans who can shapeshift and gain someone's memories by consuming them (read violent absorbing them into their bodies) and can grow weapons like claws or a blade arm.
* Saw: [[Cegorach|I just wanna play a game.]]
[[File:Digimon_Tamers_Nope_Nope_Nope!.jpg|300px|right|thumb|[[Trap|It was going to be a kids show they said. It was going to be as whimsical as Pokemon they said...]]]]
* [[Digimon: Digital Adventures|Digimon Tamers]]. (Whilst Digimon as a franchise is noted to be surprisingly dark and adult for a kids anime in the 'Mon' genre, Digimon Tamers is noted to be exceptionally depressing even by the series standard. Tamers includes children attempting suicide, child abuse, attempted murder on a child, multiple on-screen deaths on major characters, torture, psychological mind rape on a young girl, PTSD on said young girl, eldritch abominations, horror and psychological horror. You think Tamers would have a happy ending? Lolnope, Tamers has a bittersweet ending in which the main kids lose their Digimon partners ''for ever''. Then again this is what happens when you allow a guy notorious in psychological horror anime to do a kids show. There is a reason why Tamers is considered the Neon Genesis Evangelion for kids.)
**Digimon Adventure Tri will take Tamers up a notch in just plain creepyness. Then again Tri is aimed more for adult fans of the original anime series. Adventure Tri is just as dark as Tamers as it showcase deaths, assisted suicide, infanticide of Digimon babies, psychological damage, grief-induced madness, corruption, attempted genocide, racial supremacy, racism, immense property damage with collateral damage and attempted rape from the series' former mentor and teacher becoming a creepy sexual predator molesting one of the main characters and choking another one to near death (Both are female by the way). Digimon doesn't fuck around.
* Most good 'Real Robot' anime/video games. Further discussion will result in [[skub]].
* Full Metal Alchemist: The World is coated by a side of Noblebright at the beginning but morphs into 1984 the more you watch/read. THe world Amestris starts out as fine and dandy (despite being a fascist military Dictatorship.) then it morphs into a world where the Main Country (Amestris.) is at constant war with almost all it's neighbors commits Genocides Left and right and Murder's anyone who finds out the dark truth.
* Bet On Soldier/Iron Storm: WW1 got extended by 80 years, leading to a world where war is everything (including a televised past time), peace is considered a horrifically dissident ideal and there is a shadowy cabal behind the scenes plotting to make the war last forever.
* Noir in general, from Raymond Chandler's novels to games like This is the Police.
* Wanted. (A comic book series which inspired the 2008 action flick. In a nutshell, the villains won the war against the heroes and erased them from reality. Yes, the bad guy wins, there is no longer any power struggle. The world of Wanted is one of the most horrific comic book series as it deconstructs the 'action macho man' of the superhero genre and actually insults the reader (As in break the fourth wall) if they ever felt like trying to root for the 'protagonist'. How bad is Wanted? Well being a world dominated by supervillans, where crime is not only rampant but is actually part of the law, enforced by the Fraternity (Which is essentially the Justice League for bad guys), the only way to even have the closest thing to a 'safe and happy life' is by murdering your next door neighbor out of paranoia. Furthermore, as the world is cut up into sections and ruled by different supervillains, you will most likely be born in a country ruled by either a psychotic bastard who shoots children for shits and giggles, a Lex Luthor archetype who hungers for more unrestrained power, a literal Nazi from the future who wants another Holocaust, a megalomaniac and sociopathic Chinese emperor who makes Mao Zedong like a chump or a completely immortal 'President-for-Life' Mugabe expy that will probably rule for eternity.)
**Our 'protagonist' for example, is a sociopathic, violent, sadistic rapist who assassinates people in ridiculous violent manners that makes the Punisher, Konrad Curze and Batman look like Constable Care in comparison. Seriously his first 'character development' was shooting his neighbor in the face because he was too damned nice... yeah... our 'heroes' are literally no different than the villains at all. If you could even call them 'heroes'. At least in universes like WH40K and Gears of War, characters who commit acts of crime, even Chaos, do it because they have a reason, idea or dogma behind their actions. Wanted on the other hand? The villains commit crime (Like shooting at a baby's crib) because [[Lulz|they felt like it.]] Don't even get us started with the supervillains who are so repulsive that they are barely redeemable. Wanted is one of those franchises that just makes you ''feel'' like a bastard for even trying to root for anyone. In terms of the moral scale, if DC is the classical Black and White franchise and Marvel is the classical Grey and Gray franchise, than Wanted is the classical Black and Black franchise. [[Chaos]] wishes it could be this efficiently evil.
* Grim Dawn. In a world called Cairn there is magic, monsters, and humans using 19th century tech. A group of mages failed some sort of ritual and accidentally called in a ghost called an Aetherial, this set off a chain of events that would lead to the "Grim Dawn". They invaded the world by possessing many creatures and humans for their own world domination plan. The ensuing chaos allowed the Cthontic Cult (Mix Khorne and Slaaneshi pain cults) to come out of the shadows just at the time the Aetherials started getting shit done. This results in a never ending struggle between humans and multiple otherworldly powers. An optional meeting with a god from the universe tells the player that there are many gods watching this world and none of them gave a shit about their followers (including him) since this is just one of the many realities they observe and the tragic event is nothing more than a normal day for him. So players have to fight through undead ([[Tomb Kings|who are cursed to forever linger in the world, only to get back up as soon as they are defeated]]), a land corrupted by the aether's green shit that is about as harmful as the warp itself, and a crimson forest filled with Cthonic Cultists. The factions of the 'Good Guys' aren't much better either. There is either a necrophiliac ice ninja that will enslave the dead or a pretentious templar order who's god is just as bad as the other ones. The only hope lies to the survivors from the aetherial encounters that gave them strange unnatural powers, which may or may not corrupt them in the process. Nothing will ever really change though since the world now is filled with horrifying creatures, human civilisations are practically nonexistent and most of the survivors end up on the dark side, stealing and robbing their fellow humans. Invasions are still going strong despite your effort at the very end of game and other gods are ready to back stab, corrupt, raid and torment every living creature in the world for their own selfish needs.
* Peter Watts. Brutal neuropunk sci-fi horror, as bleak as H. P. Lovecraft but with a list of scientific citations at the end to let you know just how realistic it really is. Hits you with a world-ending catastrophe and then manages to make it a thousand times worse -- an alien invasion DURING a hard-takeoff singularity, for example. Sociopathy and post-human augments abound. [Also, the books are free|http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm]!

== Grimderp ==
Grimderp is what happens when a writer takes grimdark so far that it goes [[derp]]. The writer puts something in that makes the setting more grimdark, but it's generally reliant on at least one party involved [[Fail|suddenly abandon all sense of reason and logic]], or else caused by a lack of forethought on the implications of how the element interacts with the world. Many long-runner grimdark works will become this sooner or later, as either the setting or the cast's morality (rather a usually extreme lack thereof) will induce complete and utter apathy in the audience and cause them to give up out of sheer pointlessness. Most "dark" anime/manga tend to be more or less grimderp, as attempts to attract mature audiences ends in violence, blood, and sex without consequence (at BEST, mind you. [[Rape|At worst...]]), all in gratuitous quantities. So... not that different from the West, really.

* [[My Little Pony|Fallout Equestria: Project Horizons]] is a fanfiction about magical ponies so grim, dark, and derp that it would almost be comical if it wasn't so fucking horrifying. With characters that get shit on (both figuratively and literally) more than the [[Lamenters]], and with a world so bleak (and missing the point of Fallout, FiM, ''and'' the original Fallout: Equestria) that an heroing <s>seems like</s> WOULD ACTUALLY BE the happiest ending (<s>Assuming it will end, it probably never will as long as there's enough cybernetics to keep rebuilding the constantly-dying protagonist)</s> HOLY SHIT IT ACTUALLY ENDED!), it's the prime example of how to make readers stop giving a fuck about the story at all.
* On that note, 90% of all grimdark fics are grimderp since writers are under the impression that [[Edgy|just making things dark makes it good writing]]. There are exceptions, but they are rare, because Sturgeon's Law is a thing. On the flip side, however, [[DOOM: Repercussions of Evil|certain examples]] have reached the apotheosis of Grimderp and become gut-bustingly hilarious.
* Warhammer 40,000 gets called out as this by some. Certainly it's a valid criticism of certain parts, but as we said earlier, [[Skub|you could argue about what is and is not grimderp in 40k for weeks without conclusion.]] For example, the Imperium is excessively self-destructive and tyrannical to its own people, but in the hands of a good writer, it's meant to underline how corrupt and desperate the Imperium has become without the Emperor's guidance, and how even those who are neither incompetent nor malicious still have to make brutally difficult choices. In the hands of a lesser writer, it's unnecessary evil purely for the sake of evil. We should call our next book "[[C.S. Goto|Darkness of Darkest Dark!]]"
* [[Drowtales]]: The whole series is Grimderp on steroids, but there are a few particularly nauseating examples: nothing like the protagonist [[Mary Sue]] of innocence and purity blowing up the light elf MILF slave called Maya in an argument with a rival, an argument in which she feels morally justified right after buying a fighting slave which was doomed to die in underground Arenas even most Drow find disgusting, ran by a complete monster of a drow, regularly visited to watch slaves die, that's right, by the protagonist Ariel. Maya dies crying in her native tongue about "what she did to deserve this", crying she'll never see sunlight again. Protagonist feels a bit bad about a few days, and only that when she sees a few naked light elf slaves for sale, reminiscing Maya's face. Years pass and she thinks all the slavery and needless murder isn't so cool... just before visiting a surface colony who was taken from humans. She and her lesbian lover have an orgy on the settlement they just conquered by massacre. After a blissful after-sex sleep, the settlement is counterattacked by desperate humans coming to save their kin... which are promptly murdered by the half-light half-dark elf paladin of Sharess (Yes, a [[Mary Sue]] worshipping a total [[Baldur's Gate]] rip-off) who is all high and righteous when she is burning innocent humans who wanted to save their kin from slave traders about to buy the survivors. The protagonist's lesbian empath Drow (yes, with a length of purple hair paint, straight out of Deviantart) friend berates the cornered humans with a lame excuse line of "I feel your pain, why don't you take your survivors and run?!" when the said humans scream in desperation to save their families from the town's locked buildings, die horribly and our "I'm glad my clan Sarghress prevents slavery, let's shake hands and feast on the food we just plundered!" protagonist shakes hands on it. It's not even depressing, it's plain fucking logic diarrhea with enough depressive themes to OD an edgy 13 year old. (considering the authors were that old when they started...)
* Jeph Loeb's run on Ultimate Marvel: people dying brutally (most well known being Wasp getting eaten by the Blob) and completely gratuitously (Dr. Strange is killed the one page he shows up on and is completely forgotten afterwards), lore rape worst than anything Ward ever did (the heroic Pyro is now a rapist version of the mainline Marvel Pyro with no explanation, Thor going from new age hippie to mainline-style viking with no explanation... at least that last one is kinda cool). Overall it was so bad it effectively made the Ultimate Marvel universe (with the exception of Spider-Man and his cast) completely unusable. Small wonder that years later, Marvel thought smashing it and the main Marvel universe together would be a good idea.
* Koutetsujou no Kabaneri, an anime with a similar premise to the already-grimdark ''Attack on Titan'': It's set in (presumably feudal) Japan, where people are hiding behind walls and communicate with each others using trains to travel from town to town, and trades the giants and horses for guns and [[zombie]]s. Several of the characters have moments of team-killing ineptitude that end up prolonging the conflict far longer than it should:
**The [[samurai]] don't bother with armor and generally aren't very combat-savvy when it comes to zombies, and their [[Lawful Stupid]] tendencies turn any defense against a wall breach into an utter clusterfuck. The antagonist is [[Abaddon|an absolute failure AND wanted for crimes against humanity]], being a [[Edgy|pretentious Che Guevara wannabe]] [[Chaos Pretty Marines|with pink hair]] and wielder of an ugly-yet-somewhat effective [[Sword|sabre]]. He also has a devoted following despite being thoroughly unable to grasp the basics of warfare and its ethics (he thinks children are cowards for not being able to fight monsters that ambush and run through trained adult fighters with ease, and [[What|considers destroying one's own resources and castles to be a viable strategy]]). Meanwhile, the main protagonist has found not one, but TWO miracle solutions that would allow mankind to fight back against the zombie plague, but no one will listen to him, especially not the main antagonist, both because of the above and because ''of course they wouldn't'', it's <s>grimderp</s> GRIMDARK.
**Ironically, Ancient Shintoism (a main religion of that period) has the only known anti-[[Nurgle|zombie]] deities: ''Kukuri hime no kami'', a goddess of purification ([[Reasonable Daemonette|''despite'' being rather sado-masochist]]) whose followers would bind a corpse with ropes, place a big stone on the chest and bury it (coffins are optional). [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|Insane as it was]], it was the most common form of burial in the Jomon period, and never went completely out of date through all the medieval period. Despite the rites being a perfect defense against [[Dark Souls|an undead invasion]], apparently they didn't take in this setting. Three guesses why.
*Most dark fantasy hentai games and manga like Kuroinu and whatever bargain basement hentai game developer puts the heroines through corrupting debauchery with no way to escape for little more purposes than to degrade and humiliate them.

== Grim Tragedy ==
Naturally in a universe such as 40k, the grimdarkness of the setting would mean nothing if not tied into the ironic tragedy of the lore. This includes:

*[[Imperium|A species]] so afraid of the dauntless perils of Chaos that they will brutally harass and execute entire populations out of mere suspicion, all to stop the spread of ruin while indirectly strengthening those who seek to destroy them (''particularly'' Chaos). They, as a people, have progressed massively in population, technology and power since their species conception, yet they more than anyone else have lost one vital element: their humanity.

*[[Eldar|A race who]] was once a zenith of civilization and prosperity, capable of bending the very Gods to their will, but by their own hand reduced themselves to scattered, isolated fleets and colonies always on the run; their pompous and arrogant leaders hide behind a dwindling sense of security based in superiority over other races who are far more successful and perhaps destined to be greater than they ever were. [[Dark Eldar|A number among them]], after their unholy and insidious near-demise, continue (with oblivious glee) to empower [[Slaanesh|the very being that brought them to ruin]] in order to save themselves.

*[[Orks|A race of creatures]] who possess the brightest potential, with near mastery over the psychic, near-natural physical perfection and almost limitless numbers from their highly successful methods of reproduction... and yet they are genetically restricted by an unquenchable thirst for battle which drives each to idiocy, leaving them hopeless of advancing beyond simple barbarians.

*[[Necron|An ancient people]] whom were so envious of their neighbors' power that they were ready to cripple the entire galaxy just for the sake of petty superiority - a superiority neutered by their unwitting transformation into metaphorical and literal automatons. They are now mindless machines who, bar few, care nothing of their past and seek only one thing: war. And those who still have their personalities are either insane, demented, brooding, psychotic, or any combination of these in various proportions.

*[[Tau|A newborn race]] who innocently believes that there can be peace and acknowledgement among each other, but unfortunately the sinister methods they employ hoping that it is for [[Greater Good|something better]] is slowly, but steadily driving them into the decadence that plagues the other species. In doing so they become proof, both of the fact that [[Horus|anyone]], [[Emperor|no matter their intentions]], can be corrupted, and also of the kindness that the rest have forsaken for damnation and despair...

*The fact that, despite hundreds of thousands of years of knowing nothing but only war, these peoples are woefully unprepared for what is to come. No matter how many regiments can be raised or Craftworlds restored, what is out there is all [[Tyranids|consuming, diabolical and numberless...]] Unless, they are themselves on the verge of extinction, and as such, desperately tries to cross over the great void between galaxies, which implies fighting against [[Ork|invincibles foes]] and [[Ultramarines|fate weathing cheaters]] unnaturaly empowered by the grief of an [[Games Workshop|evil entity beyond the cosmos]]. (Well, this lore hint has been dropped a very long time ago in favor of "the good option is that there are a thousand galaxies worth of the fucking bugs, the bad option is that there are billions upon billions of galaxies worth of the fucking bugs.)

== See also ==
*[[Noblebright]]
*[[Edgy]]
*[[Eversor]]
*[[Lamenters]]

== External Links ==
* [http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/grimdark KnowYourMeme has examples from outside of /tg/]

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]

Grimdark

2018-01-05T11:16:12Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

''"They say, 'Evil prevails when good men fail to act.' What they ought to say is, 'Evil prevails.'"'' 
-Yuri Orlov, ''Lord of War''
[[Image:Lovepeace.png|thumb|right|It's totally the opposite of this.]][[Image:Inspector Grimgadget.jpg|thumb|right|Inspector Gadget, reimagined with a grimdark feel.]]
[[Image:Grimdark.jpg|thumb|right|Grimdark versions of the TMNT. Their mentor is a Skaven.]]
[[Image:Romney.png|thumb|right]]
'''Grimdark''' is an adjective derived from the tagline for [[Warhammer 40k]], which states that "In the '''grim darkness''' of the far future, there is only war." It is generally used to describe a dilapidated, dystopian "crapsack world" setting which it would really suck to live in, as say Somalia, North Korea, or the setting of Warhammer 40k itself. In fairness to the franchise and its defenders, this is because the published material primarily focuses on war and [[Chaos Gods|cults]] and other [[Daemonculaba|horrible things]]. There are supposed to be many pleasant and peaceful worlds and sectors in the Imperium, but they are mostly ignored as they are boring -- and when they DO appear in lore or fluff, they're usually to go from "0 problems" to "totally fucked", very quickly. <s>Unless, of course, we're talking about planets in the [[Ultramar|Macragge system]]</s> (Well... you see... about that...). It can also be used to describe artwork that has a ''grimdark'' feel, even if the setting itself would not normally be considered grim or dark, or something sinister or uncommonly threatening/intimidating in real-life. This often applies to fan-art and writefaggotry as well.

Depending on your own personal tolerances for grim darkness of course, it can be taken to the extreme, just like with all descriptive traits. There is a point in which it becomes more ridiculous than anything else, because everything is indefeasibly tragic all the time - the term for this being [[Grimdark#Grimderp|grimderp]], which is explained further below.

This is an accusation often leveled at Warhammer itself, and leads some to rail against "Grimdark" as a whole, decrying the concept as ridiculous attempts at [[edgy|edginess]] (typically by teenagers), and using the expression to refer solely to such over-the-top settings in a strictly pejorative manner. Others actually embrace this ridiculousness and run with it (including Warhammer 40K itself, due to being a much more obviously comedic setting [[Warhammer 40,000: Rogue Trader|in early editions]]), insisting that the detractors who take it seriously (or the ''creators'' who take it seriously) are making a mistake. Some people embrace the grimdarkness and mix it up with some humor (like painting Necrons with bright colors to make them look like edible candy figurines), especially if they are Ork players. But the schism between taking Warhammer's grimdarkness seriously or not is mostly visible with races such as the Tau, who are noticeably less grimdark (visually, their lore can be pretty grimdark in a 1984 sense) than most of the other races and are either loved or absolutely hated for it (when they're not hated for being overpowered as shit). Meanwhile, another sizable percentage instead postulate that Grimdarkness lends greater moral and ethical complexity to a setting, based on [[Edgy|the fallacy that darkness always equals depth]]). Such people usually cite the works of Dan Abnett and many other Warhammer 40K writers to lend credence to such suppositions; these people are clearly ignoring that fact that most writers tone the grimdark WAY down. What, you didn't think the fact that the Imperium being an effective government, civilians having normal happy lives on par with the Scandinavians, Commissars who never *BLAM* their troops was odd?. Needless to say, grimdark is [[Skub|a rather polarizing subject whose discussion often leaves little room for a middle ground]].

Speaking of, the polar opposite of grimdark is [[Noblebright]], a deliberate inversion of grim and dark nature where honor, chivalry, happiness and high adventure rule the day, as opposed to dying in a ditch from a supernatural plague as you run out of potable water and can no longer wait for the logistics department to process your dead comrades into something slightly more palatable before you start eating them. Oh, and being {{BLAM}}ed by a Commissar for even starting to look a little sad from these thoughts.

== Common grimdark themes ==
*[[1984|Massive, imperialist, overbearing, bureaucratic, dystopian dictatorships]]; e.g. [[Imperium|Nazi Germany clones]], [[Tau|USSR clones and anything communistic really, successful anarcho-Communist societies like the Culture not included]], or straight out examples of [[Paranoia|"Big Brother is watching you"]].
*Constant, never ever-ending warfare.
*Horrifyingly large death tolls are perfectly normal.
*Everyone is racist towards non-humans/[[Eldar|elves]]/[[Mutant|mutants]]/[[Orks|fungus]]/[[Rak'gol|lizards]]/[[Slaugth|worms]]/[[Necrons|robots]]/[[Tyranids|aliens]]/[[Chaos|each other]].
*Daily dose of [[HFY]]. [[Astral Knights|And]] [[Awesome]].
*[[Shadowrun|The vast majority are poor people who literally live in shit, pollution, crime]], and a plethora of [[Nurgle|all kinds of filthy diseases]], except for a [[Monopoly|few greedy upper 1% who own 99.9% of everything]].
*You, a poor bastard, are being farmed for shoots and giggles by said few greedy upper 1%.
*Most of the poor bastards are being forced to work 23 hours a day, seven days a week, fifty-two weeks a year, in factories and/or forced labour camps, until their bodies give out. Forever.
*They're probably making weapons and equipment for [[Imperial Guard|the military]] (which is where the rest of the poor bastards are).
*Want chemotherapy or some other expensive treatment? Well, you have to make drugs with an old dropout student of yours in order to pay.
*[[Age of Strife|Dark, disgraceful and recondite past]] covered with [[Alpha Legion|lies]] [[Imperium|propanganda]], [[Tzeentch|deception]] and [[Eldar|partiality]].
*The Higher Powers do indeed give you consideration, they're just malevolent as all fuck.
*Chronic backstabbing. Just like in real life relationships.
*[[Ork Snipers|"Frie]][[Marines Malevolent|ndly]] [[Kharn|fire"]]
*Child soldiers. Just like in real life.
*Your morning alarm clock is the bullets you hope not to hit you fired by the drive-by [[Necromunda|by gangsters aiming their enemy that happens and are in the same district]] and you don't even belong or like.
*Status quo is god. [[Nurgle|Literally.]]
*[[Tzeentch|Change is worse]].
*[[Commissar|Daily forecasts reguarly call for a 80% chance or more of *BLAM*]].
*[[Judge Dredd|Police]] [[Adeptus Arbites|brutality]].
*Even minor crimes can have major punishments.
*Being innocent or even a victim of crime can be counted as a crime
*[[Inquisition|Government agencies that are always there to fuck you over]] at the slightest hint of [[heresy]].
*The [[Erebus|cock]][[Dark Eldar|suckers]] responsible for most of the shittiness are not only getting away with it, but are surviving and thriving, without becoming major targets for the [[noblebright]] forces.
*Torture.
*Human experiments.
*Massive amounts of blood, gore, guts, pain and hatred.
*No personal opinion or choice. Only the illusion of it, in which you probably end up an [[Magnus|unwil]][[Mortarion|ling]] [[Rubric Marines|sla]][[necron|ve]]. Or...[[Chaos spawn|something worse]].
*Anti-intellectualism.
*PTSD.
*Nihilism.
*[[Call of Cthulhu|Sanity checks]].
*Criminally insane delusional psychotics tortured in filthy mental asylums (in case of no SAN checks).
*[[H.P. Lovecraft|Disgusting, horrifying, tentacled eldritch abominations]] that are often the cause of aforementioned criminal insanity.
*Rape. Just like in real life. ([[Anime|And often by said]] [[/d/|disgusting, horrifying, tentacled eldritch abominations]])
*Surgery without anesthesia. As well as other heavy metal references.
*In fact even surgery without anesthesia is a luxury available only to wealthy or important ones, as are all other forms of medicine. 99% of people are expected to die when they fall sick or get injured. That is when they don't get executed FOR falling sick or getting injured.
*Zombie plagues.
*[[Cyberpunk|Cybernetics and cyborgs]]; the less human, the better.
*Ritual cult sacrifices.
*Gothic and emo aesthetics (with the help of tons of ''"decorative"'' skulls).
*There are no "good guys". Everyone's a jerk, including yourself. ''Especially yourself.''
*[[Tau|The guys everyone refer to be "good" or "nice"]] are actually just ''the least'' evil bunch, and would still make your average high fantasy/sci-fi arch-villains look like saints in comparison.
*The REAL good guys are either [[Lamenters|the ones (usually) mostly hated, and are going to get fucked over beyond human recognition usually without any logical reason]] or [[Salamanders|too few to make any difference]].
*Aforementioned "good guys" are only "good" because they do care about their allies and civilians. They still wouldn't hesitate a second before killing a defenseless xeno child.
*You either die a [[Sanguinius|worthy death]] or you live long enough to see yourself becoming something that [[Mortarion|you've]] [[Perturabo|always]] [[Fulgrim|hated]].
*Everyone will most likely die in the end. Especially the ones important to and including the main character.
*Always polluted, never sunny.
*No ice cream.
*Death or suicide will only make things much, much worse in [[H.P. Lovecraft|Lovecraftian]] levels, as a hive of disgusting, incomprehensibly evil supernatural daemons are waiting patiently to eternally torment your un-life and roast your soul alive day and night forever and ever, again and again and again and again.
*Tremendous potential for offensive/dark comedy/[[lulz]].
*[[God-Emperor of Mankind|And if you ever, EVER try to change this shitty world or try to help one person just a little, you will probably suffer terrible consequences,]] because altruism is a dying philosophy.
*Life sucks.
*There's only war.
*You're probably going to get eaten by Tyranids.
*Good luck and have fun.

== Stuff considered Grimdark ==

[[File:Tyrus.jpg|400px|thumb|A world where the only way to beat grimdark is by introducing something even grimmer and darker]]
* [[Warhammer 40,000]] (Naturally).
* [[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]], but less than you'd think.
* The World Wars, especially the Western Front of WW1 and Eastern Front of WW2.
* [[Dwarf Fortress]].
* End of War.
* Most of Shakespeare's iconic plays, especially ''Macbeth'' and ''Hamlet''.
* [[1984]].
* [[Paranoia]] (though used for parodying 1984).
* The majority of the tragedy genre of stories.
* [[RIFTS]].
* [[Blame!]].
* [[Berserk]].
* [[Kingdom Death]](Makes 40k's setting seem pleasant and cheerful).
* Eastenders (especially at Christmas).
* [[Grimdark Songwriting]].
* [[Don't Rest Your Head]].
* SLA Industries.
* [[World of Darkness]].
* [[CthulhuTech]].
* [[Call of Cthulhu]].
* Everything from H.P Lovecraft and the Cthulhu Mythos.
* Playing mortals in [[Exalted]].
* Neon Genesis Evangelion. Especially the movie.
* [[Midnight]] setting for D&D.
* [[FATAL]].
* [[Rebecca Black]].
* I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream (just the title itself should give you a clue on how horrific the game is. The video game is bad and thr book is even worse).
* The Medieval Dark Ages that Warhammer 40,000 was originally based on.
* The Witcher (racism, genocides, dozens of monsters that want to eat Your face whenever You enter the random forest. Or cave. Or ruins. The third installment of the video game adaptation even features a medieval Hitler running the [[Inquisition|Witch Hunters]], a fanatical order of [[Black Templars|racist scumbags dedicated to wiping out both mages and non-humans]] in the name of the Eternal Fire). Meanwhile, the neighboring empire starts a series of wars against northern kingdoms (where the series takes place), in which both sides descend into scorched earth warfare, all the while backstabbing their allies and generally being a colossal wall of dicks to the point that close to 70% of civilian population in war-zones died from raiding, famine and occasional outbreaks of outer-dimensional plagues. To add insult to injury, the whole world is doomed due to (slowly) encroaching Ice Age, and the only person that could save it took two glances at this shitshow and decided to fuck off to a parallel universe and let them all die, ''because it would be a mercy''. (To be fair, though, she comes back, if only to save her adoptive mother and father from said Ice Age, as she still maintains her 'fuck the rest of humanity' attitude.)
* [[Dark Souls]] (the entire ''world'' is '''dying'''. That is all you should probably need to know. If you want to be specifics, then in the setting, most of the population are undead, you die constantly, and you have to fight enemies larger and filthier than you are, [[Heresy|including a naked bitch with a spider vagina]]. Also, [[Extra Heresy|FAKE TITS]]. Stuck in an infinite loop where a hero constantly saves the world, and everything goes back to normal before hitting another grimdark cycle every thousand years. Compare to nobledark and check your mileage).
* Drakengard and its related franchise: Nier. Basically god hates human so he gave them zombie aids and watch them kill eachother for the lulz. Your only hope is a group of psychopath composed of a fallen mute prince Caim (the player) who [[khorne|enjoys slaughtering any living things]], a blind pedophile priest, a baby eating elf witch and a stopped aging shota. The true ending for the game is that everyone except Caim died and he somehow end up moving a magical doomsday device created by god to other world, (our world to be exact), detonate it and doom the human race. It is said that drakengard as a series has fuck tons of timelines for each game's ending, surprisingly the ending mentioned above is consider canon and it is where the sequel Nier took place (after 700 years no less). Drakengard 2 was pretty bright light, it's part of branch timeline but not really canon while Drakngard 3 is the prequel retelling how god tries to destroy the world by stuck a parasite evil flower on some psychopathic girl. There's also dragons but who cares.
* Gears of War (decades of civil war, genocide and weapons of mass destruction has turned your home planet into a quasi-dead world. The human race is close to extinction, women are reduced to birthing machines, your government is an uncaring fascist scumbag, the weather is often rain consisting of razor sharp ice crystals that could cut you into ribbons, you're fighting a never-ending war with genocidal monsters from the underground and the world is literally '''dying''' from super fuel.)
**To make matters even worse. Even before the Locust War, humanity was locked in a near 80 year war between two rivaling super powers over the aforementioned super fuel. The COG and the UIR. Both governments are ruthless, imperialistic, fascistic, communistic bastards of a government whose war crimes will make the likes of the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany look like amateurs. When even the Locust have a point by calling us out for being exactly the same genocidal monsters as they are, you know Gears of War is fucked. Oh and the planet is called Sera, or Ares when said backwards. Yeah, even the planet is named after a god of war.
* Hellgate London.
* Most of David Bowie's songs about 1990.
* World Devastators in [[Star Wars]]. Seriously, if you read about them without knowing that they are from Star Wars, you could easily mistake them for something from 40k. And we're not talking about Star Wars Legacy and the genocide of the Mon Calamari.
* The first two Hellraiser movies and also Event Horizon.
* [[Cyberpunk 2020]].
* [[Shadowrun]]. While not the worst in the grimdark department, Shadowrun definitely has its moments with for instance the oppressive megacorporations reducing people to an identification number; where those people not having one ([[Derp|for... reasons]]) don't exist legally.
* Hellsing... just all of Hellsing... Though it can easily slide into grimderp. (A little girl seeing her mother killed while hiding in a closet? Yeah that's intense. In a moment of desperation, shove a rod into the guy's eyeball, only for him to not be mortally wounded? That's pretty unfortunate. Said guy deciding to fuck the corpse as his smashed eyeball hangs from the socket? Okay now that's just silly.)
* Bioshock (as well as Bioshock Infinite, though it comes hidden behind a smiling facade of barbershop singing and the Fourth of July).
* Anything from the [[Xeelee Sequence]].
** The Interim Coalition of Governance for example, is such a grim-ridden shit-hole that they make the Imperium of Man look like pussies filled with sun-shine and rainbows in comparison. In fact, they are so Grimdark, that they would make even the [[Adeptus Custodes]] shit themselves in collateral fear. In fact, despite achieving time travel, conquering the entire <s>Galaxy</s> Universe through xenocide that would make the Necrons look like children and shooting Neutron Stars at .99c at the speed of light. The ICoG is still a minor nuisance compared to the scale between the Xeelee and their enemies, the Photino Birds. If anything, Stephen Baxter was able to construct the insignificance and petty malevolence of Man in a few books better than GeeDubs more [[Matt Ward|questionable]] [[CS Goto|authors]] did in decades. [[tl;dr]] the IoM wishes they would be as cool as the ICoG.
* North Korea which is essentially [[1984|"Real Life Oceania"]].
* ''The Goon'' comic series by Eric Powell (because circus hillbillies, werewolves with midget hand phobias, and the Zombie Priest are the least of it all).
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0206634/]Children of men: a future where humans are no longer fertile and going extinct, and then someone finds a pregnant woman and nearly everyone in the world fights over her.
* [[A Song of Ice and Fire]] AKA Game of Thrones: Good guys screw up monumentally or never win, the only people who get ahead are amorally manipulative assholes and everyone is going to be massacred and enslaved by the evil ice elf necromancers in the end. And if they somehow survive, then another war for the Iron Throne will happen after the winner gets their revenge-boner satisfied and later, their kids would need to clean up the wankstains.
* Dishonored - Grimdark, and steampunk. Only in the "Kill fucking everyone" ending though.
* [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|X-Com]] (The remake, and the original, as a parody of the G.I. Joe Badass stereo type, you're struggling with funding and even your gods in human form, some of whom make certain chapters of Astartes weep, can get fucked over by Sectoids!)
* Madoka Magica.
* [[Adventure Time]]'s backstory.
* Path of Exile.
* [[Space Station 13]] : Space paranoia simulator, some might not consider this game as grimdark, but the lore is set in a dystopian future where capitalism and unforgiving bureaucracy rules the universe, your life is expandable, and the media is controlled; your only choice is working until you die, or get killed by either rival corporate operatives, space wizards, cultists, and deathsquads or infiltrated spies posing as your co-workers.
* LifeWeb : A complex SS13 spinoff taking place in a cave forteress of a neo-medieval world in the far future, combat is more lethal, and it explores subjects like murder, corruption, rape, torture, cultism and general human suffering.
* [[Pokemon Tabletop Adventures]] (optionally).
* Spec Ops: The Line (Because no one felt like a hero after all this).
* Original Grimm fairy tales ("Hansel and Gretel", for example).
* Alien (as in the biomechanical, parasitic, acid-blooded brainchild of Ridley Scott and the late H.R. Giger).
* [[Halo]] (the setting of Halo is one grand scale of a Cosmic Horror Story centered around absolute hopelessness and bleakness of a Universe governed by hyper malevolent gods. Our good guys, the UNSC? Well it's a semi-authoritarian 'Big Brother is Watching You', fascistic style government that have no qualms in dumping a barrage of nukes on a civilian population if rebellion is sighted. The UNSC also have no problems dicking over their only alien 'friends' just so it could benefit humanity, while also being bogged down in a political quagmire. The Covenant are ''much, much worse'', while anything from the Forerunner trilogy is just a high concoction of Nightmare Fuel inside a depressing milkshake.
**Now with the [[Halo#Halo Fleet Battles and Ground Command|newly added fluff in the Tabletop Games and other books,]] Halo seems to be going eerily strait down the WH40K route. [[Space Marines|Covenant now having different chapters and sects,]] [[Warp|Slipspace shifting more like space hell,]] [[Inquisition|the UNSC/UEG sending secret police to silence and torture innocents]] [[Abbadon|and an ancient Eldritch A.I. of malevolent aura that shares the same name to a certain armless failure.]] Seriously we ain't making this shit up!
* [[Battletech]].
* Factorio. Subtle, but, lone human, aliens want to kill you, everything you do makes smog, and your goal is to cover the world in industry, concrete, machines, and gun turrets. The world isn't dead when you arrive, but you're damn well going to kill it yourself or die trying.
* Attack on Titan (You cannot win, ever. And if you do, you've probably lost all your friends, who've been eaten by giant freaky Mutants, who don't even need food. Yeeeah).
* Metro series (both the books and games, but mostly in the books, where the last known humans are hiding in underground subway tunnels, and when they're not trying to finish each other off, they are fighting endless hordes of [[mutant]]s [[/b/|and other, much worse things]]. Also, let's not forget that if you're one of the stalkers, the few brave ones that head to the surface to [[Blood Ravens|loot anything they can find]], you risk [[Tyranid|being eaten by flying daemons]]. Hell, it even has [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metro-2033-Dmitry-Glukhovsky/dp/0575086254 the same "abandon all hope" vibe in the intro], just like 40k. And that is just the tip of the iceberg.)
** Note as the books go on the grimdarkness does tone down by showing the areas outside of the city to be in much better living conditions and other metros.(allthough not all the books are written by the same author).
*Madness combat - no regret, no remorse, no reason, only [[Khorne|madness]].
* LISA the RPG.
* ''The Darkness'' videogames.
* The first two Hyperion books.
* Elfen Lied (where the next step of the evolution of mankind is a group schizophrenic homicidal mutant girls with invisible tentacle hands and a hair-trigger temper who will either kill you in the worst way possible or else [[Genestealer|infect you with their gene to increase their numbers]].)
* Most of Stephen King's works.
* Crossed (Most of the world is dead or turned into [[Slaanesh|murder-raping sadists]] á la the Reavers from Firefly. Showing any courage will get you killed or turned into one of the aforementioned murder-rapists, and there are survivors that are just as fucked up as the infectees.)
* S.T.A.L.K.E.R. (You travel in a desolate landscape, filled with mutants in all the horrific varieties, failed science projects (courtesy of the secret cabal of scientist settled there after USSR' s dissolution), anomalies that you often can't see and kill you instantly and a lot of renegades/bandits/fanatics/zombies. Your gear breaks all the time, resources are scarce and your goal is to get to the highly dangerous Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Why is the Nuclear Power Plant dangerous? Because it blew the fuck up back in the 80's [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chernobyl_disaster (in real life, no less)] and is protected by lots of fanatics with the best gear you can get. If you make it through that hellish place that is The Zone, you'll most likely get one of the 5 really grimdark endings, and if you payed a lot of attention to certain seemingly useless items along the way, you may get one of the other two endings which are also grimdark. The rest of the world also largely ignores what's happening inside The Zone, aside from a few scientists that study the deadly phenomena and the international military that maintains a cordon around The Zone so the nasty stuff doesn't get out and sometimes send expeditions inside, killing everyone in sight. Yeah, including other humans. Also, [[Meme|A NU CHEEKI BREEKI IV DAMKE]].)
* The Slenderman Mythos (HE ALWAYS WATCHES).
* The Old Testament.
* [[Dante]]'s ''[[Warp|Inferno]]''. Put simply short, God is a fucking Sadist. For example: If you suffer from depression/PTSD so much that you commit suicide, God won't give you therapy, but rather, mutate you into an immortal tree that can still feel pain and is constantly torn apart by harpies forever. How merciful. Sins of Greed and Gluttony are punished by being eaten alive by Cerberus, who then proceed in transforming ye corpse into slowly regenerating shit mud ; after being whole again, thou art eaten while trying to flee in despair, and it start anew. For ever. Because some old dude called Minos decided so.
* The F.E.A.R. series (even the third vanilla-by-comparison game is fucked up).
* Total War: Attila (Unlike the previous titles in Total War, which were about your faction's rise to power from small backwater city/tribe/country into a mighty empire able to boss around its neighbors into doing your bidding, this one is more or less about the decline of your faction as you desperately try to survive the onslaught of the Huns, who's sole purpose in the game is to worship Tengri by burning, pillaging, and raping their way through the known world. Particularly if you are the Romans. Winning is defined by being the last guy standing who gets to clean up the rubble and dead bodies, trying to rebuild their world after Attila destroyed it. Seriously, even the music sounds depressing and foreboding as fuck.)
* Darkest Dungeon. The name speaks for itself. Your ancestor literally awokened some kind of God that is pretty much Chtulu's brother and sent you a letter before killing himself, asking to mop up the huge mess he created. Enjoy sending parties of 4 adventurers ranging from badass lepers to sickle-wielding jesters to their deaths in cultist-infested ruins, sewers filled with mutated cannibalistic pigmen, sea caverns serving as anthropomorphic sea creatures and forests corrupted by evil. And I'm not going to talk about the Darkest Dungeon itself. Also, have fun dealing with those bandits that are raiding the Hamlet for which you spent a fuckton of resources in upgrades.
* The Day After, and its worse Brit counterpart, Threads.
* Lord Of War. The worst is that it's based on real events.
* SCP universe. Why do you ask? because above all: [[Inquisition|Secure. Contain. Protect. Imagine a semi-totalitarian world power, funded by every world government to capture anomalous entities, objects and locations, contain them, so that the rest of mankind can live in a world that makes sense.]]We're talking animate statues that move when you blink (I know what you're thinking, but this predates that episode of [[Doctor Who]]) and a creature that kills anyone that sees its face (through any means, including photographs). And not all of these threats can be contained or stopped,instead the are roaming free to harm innocents. And some of the captured SCPs are not necessary hostile or evil, but the are still imprisoned in a worse case scenario (witch happens too many times than it should). Oh, and is hinted that the world and humanity is destroyed already sometimes. But still, [http://www.scp-wiki.net/black-white-black-white-black-white-black-white-black-white Secure. Contain. Protect.] Just another day at the office.
* Shisha no Teikoku, the Empire of Corpses. Steampunk, Grimdark, Zombies, Cross-References and Conspiracies everywhere. It has even become possible to ressurect the dead, giving them their soul and intelligence back, but only 2 characters profit from it in the end, while everyone else stays a slave.
* [https://www.reddit.com/r/theeternalwar/ The Eternal War], as the name suggests
* [[Dystopian Wars]], as the name suggests
* Clockup Games where you get a firsthand look a sex cult and their destructive side effects.
* World War Z (the book). After zombies overran most of the world, many people had it so bad that they simply lost the will to live. Fighting in the Paris Catacombs necessitated using weaker weapons that wouldn't guarantee a cave-in due to hazardous gasses everywhere. Russian soldiers rioting over unfair treatment and enforced secrecy were ordered under pain of death to kill one in ten of their own squadmates - with rocks - to teach them the price of freedom and democracy. Which they then happily traded away. The survival of the human race hinged on governments following a plan including elements of eugenics and necessitated leaving settlements of people behind as zombie bait. People resorted to cannibalism to survive in Canada. North Korea entirely vanished without a trace. Pakistan and India nuked each other. And even after the war officially ended, there are still loose zombies wandering around, Russia has started a breeding program to deal with severe underpopulation, several species are extinct, and diseases thought to be wiped out are coming back en masse.
* Armored Trooper Votoms, an old-school mech anime. Basically, [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|mankind has been at war for so long that even the computers created to direct strategy don't know what the goal is]]. War isn't glorious either, most of the first arc is about a squad that goes rogue and raids their own side's armory to find some loot. While the mech designs aren't practical, they are more industrial and utilitarian than many contempoaries, being repurporsed exo-suits. Also, the main character is a [[Perpetual]] done right, through a mix of natural regeneration abilities, skills and nigh supernatural luck; unlike, you know, [[Vulkan]], who was just handed something that should have probably belong to all Primarchs just so that he could make [[Horus|some]] [[Sanguinius|people]] [[Ferrus Manus|jealous]]. Take notes, [[Games Workshop|Gros Wotour]], take notes...
* Prototype 1 & 2. A video game series where New York City is infected with a virus created by corporation called GenTek that mutates people into casual mutant zombies to fucking huge deformed beasts. A secret division called Blackwatch is sent to brutally contain the virus. This may sound like Resident Evil but the resemblance ends here because you play as Alex Mercer (Prototype 1) and James Heller (Prototype 2), both of them infected by the virus and became superhumans who can shapeshift and gain someone's memories by consuming them (read violent absorbing them into their bodies) and can grow weapons like claws or a blade arm.
* Saw: [[Cegorach|I just wanna play a game.]]
[[File:Digimon_Tamers_Nope_Nope_Nope!.jpg|300px|right|thumb|[[Trap|It was going to be a kids show they said. It was going to be as whimsical as Pokemon they said...]]]]
* [[Digimon: Digital Adventures|Digimon Tamers]]. (Whilst Digimon as a franchise is noted to be surprisingly dark and adult for a kids anime in the 'Mon' genre, Digimon Tamers is noted to be exceptionally depressing even by the series standard. Tamers includes children attempting suicide, child abuse, attempted murder on a child, multiple on-screen deaths on major characters, torture, psychological mind rape on a young girl, PTSD on said young girl, eldritch abominations, horror and psychological horror. You think Tamers would have a happy ending? Lolnope, Tamers has a bittersweet ending in which the main kids lose their Digimon partners ''for ever''. Then again this is what happens when you allow a guy notorious in psychological horror anime to do a kids show. There is a reason why Tamers is considered the Neon Genesis Evangelion for kids.)
**Digimon Adventure Tri will take Tamers up a notch in just plain creepyness. Then again Tri is aimed more for adult fans of the original anime series. Adventure Tri is just as dark as Tamers as it showcase deaths, assisted suicide, infanticide of Digimon babies, psychological damage, grief-induced madness, corruption, attempted genocide, racial supremacy, racism, immense property damage with collateral damage and attempted rape from the series' former mentor and teacher becoming a creepy sexual predator molesting one of the main characters and choking another one to near death (Both are female by the way). Digimon doesn't fuck around.
* Most good 'Real Robot' anime/video games. Further discussion will result in [[skub]].
* Full Metal Alchemist: The World is coated by a side of Noblebright at the beginning but morphs into 1984 the more you watch/read. THe world Amestris starts out as fine and dandy (despite being a fascist military Dictatorship.) then it morphs into a world where the Main Country (Amestris.) is at constant war with almost all it's neighbors commits Genocides Left and right and Murder's anyone who finds out the dark truth.
* Bet On Soldier/Iron Storm: WW1 got extended by 80 years, leading to a world where war is everything (including a televised past time), peace is considered a horrifically dissident ideal and there is a shadowy cabal behind the scenes plotting to make the war last forever.
* Noir in general, from Raymond Chandler's novels to games like This is the Police.
* Wanted. (A comic book series which inspired the 2008 action flick. In a nutshell, the villains won the war against the heroes and erased them from reality. Yes, the bad guy wins, there is no longer any power struggle. The world of Wanted is one of the most horrific comic book series as it deconstructs the 'action macho man' of the superhero genre and actually insults the reader (As in break the fourth wall) if they ever felt like trying to root for the 'protagonist'. How bad is Wanted? Well being a world dominated by supervillans, where crime is not only rampant but is actually part of the law, enforced by the Fraternity (Which is essentially the Justice League for bad guys), the only way to even have the closest thing to a 'safe and happy life' is by murdering your next door neighbor out of paranoia. Furthermore, as the world is cut up into sections and ruled by different supervillains, you will most likely be born in a country ruled by either a psychotic bastard who shoots children for shits and giggles, a Lex Luthor archetype who hungers for more unrestrained power, a literal Nazi from the future who wants another Holocaust, a megalomaniac and sociopathic Chinese emperor who makes Mao Zedong like a chump or a completely immortal 'President-for-Life' Mugabe expy that will probably rule for eternity.)
**Our 'protagonist' for example, is a sociopathic, violent, sadistic rapist who assassinates people in ridiculous violent manners that makes the Punisher, Konrad Curze and Batman look like Constable Care in comparison. Seriously his first 'character development' was shooting his neighbor in the face because he was too damned nice... yeah... our 'heroes' are literally no different than the villains at all. If you could even call them 'heroes'. At least in universes like WH40K and Gears of War, characters who commit acts of crime, even Chaos, do it because they have a reason, idea or dogma behind their actions. Wanted on the other hand? The villains commit crime (Like shooting at a baby's crib) because [[Lulz|they felt like it.]] Don't even get us started with the supervillains who are so repulsive that they are barely redeemable. Wanted is one of those franchises that just makes you ''feel'' like a bastard for even trying to root for anyone. In terms of the moral scale, if DC is the classical Black and White franchise and Marvel is the classical Grey and Gray franchise, than Wanted is the classical Black and Black franchise. [[Chaos]] wishes it could be this efficiently evil.
* Grim Dawn. In a world called Cairn there is magic, monsters, and humans using 19th century tech. A group of mages failed some sort of ritual and accidentally called in a ghost called an Aetherial, this set off a chain of events that would lead to the "Grim Dawn". They invaded the world by possessing many creatures and humans for their own world domination plan. The ensuing chaos allowed the Cthontic Cult (Mix Khorne and Slaaneshi pain cults) to come out of the shadows just at the time the Aetherials started getting shit done. This results in a never ending struggle between humans and multiple otherworldly powers. An optional meeting with a god from the universe tells the player that there are many gods watching this world and none of them gave a shit about their followers (including him) since this is just one of the many realities they observe and the tragic event is nothing more than a normal day for him. So players have to fight through undead ([[Tomb Kings|who are cursed to forever linger in the world, only to get back up as soon as they are defeated]]), a land corrupted by the aether's green shit that is about as harmful as the warp itself, and a crimson forest filled with Cthonic Cultists. The factions of the 'Good Guys' aren't much better either. There is either a necrophiliac ice ninja that will enslave the dead or a pretentious templar order who's god is just as bad as the other ones. The only hope lies to the survivors from the aetherial encounters that gave them strange unnatural powers, which may or may not corrupt them in the process. Nothing will ever really change though since the world now is filled with horrifying creatures, human civilisations are practically nonexistent and most of the survivors end up on the dark side, stealing and robbing their fellow humans. Invasions are still going strong despite your effort at the very end of game and other gods are ready to back stab, corrupt, raid and torment every living creature in the world for their own selfish needs.
* Peter Watts. Brutal neuropunk sci-fi horror, as bleak as H. P. Lovecraft but with a list of scientific citations at the end to let you know just how realistic it really is. Hits you with a world-ending catastrophe and then manages to make it a thousand times worse -- an alien invasion DURING a hard-takeoff singularity, for example. Sociopathy and post-human augments abound. [Also, the books are free|http://www.rifters.com/real/shorts.htm]!

== Grimderp ==
Grimderp is what happens when a writer takes grimdark so far that it goes [[derp]]. The writer puts something in that makes the setting more grimdark, but it's generally reliant on at least one party involved [[Fail|suddenly abandon all sense of reason and logic]], or else caused by a lack of forethought on the implications of how the element interacts with the world. Many long-runner grimdark works will become this sooner or later, as either the setting or the cast's morality (rather a usually extreme lack thereof) will induce complete and utter apathy in the audience and cause them to give up out of sheer pointlessness. Most "dark" anime/manga tend to be more or less grimderp, as attempts to attract mature audiences ends in violence, blood, and sex without consequence (at BEST, mind you. [[Rape|At worst...]]), all in gratuitous quantities. So... not that different from the West, really.

* [[My Little Pony|Fallout Equestria: Project Horizons]] is a fanfiction about magical ponies so grim, dark, and derp that it would almost be comical if it wasn't so fucking horrifying. With characters that get shit on (both figuratively and literally) more than the [[Lamenters]], and with a world so bleak (and missing the point of Fallout, FiM, ''and'' the original Fallout: Equestria) that an heroing <s>seems like</s> WOULD ACTUALLY BE the happiest ending (<s>Assuming it will end, it probably never will as long as there's enough cybernetics to keep rebuilding the constantly-dying protagonist)</s> HOLY SHIT IT ACTUALLY ENDED!), it's the prime example of how to make readers stop giving a fuck about the story at all.
* On that note, 90% of all grimdark fics are grimderp since writers are under the impression that [[Edgy|just making things dark makes it good writing]]. There are exceptions, but they are rare, because Sturgeon's Law is a thing. On the flip side, however, [[DOOM: Repercussions of Evil|certain examples]] have reached the apotheosis of Grimderp and become gut-bustingly hilarious.
* Warhammer 40,000 gets called out as this by some. Certainly it's a valid criticism of certain parts, but as we said earlier, [[Skub|you could argue about what is and is not grimderp in 40k for weeks without conclusion.]] For example, the Imperium is excessively self-destructive and tyrannical to its own people, but in the hands of a good writer, it's meant to underline how corrupt and desperate the Imperium has become without the Emperor's guidance, and how even those who are neither incompetent nor malicious still have to make brutally difficult choices. In the hands of a lesser writer, it's unnecessary evil purely for the sake of evil. We should call our next book "[[C.S. Goto|Darkness of Darkest Dark!]]"
* [[Drowtales]]: The whole series is Grimderp on steroids, but there are a few particularly nauseating examples: nothing like the protagonist [[Mary Sue]] of innocence and purity blowing up the light elf MILF slave called Maya in an argument with a rival, an argument in which she feels morally justified right after buying a fighting slave which was doomed to die in underground Arenas even most Drow find disgusting, ran by a complete monster of a drow, regularly visited to watch slaves die, that's right, by the protagonist Ariel. Maya dies crying in her native tongue about "what she did to deserve this", crying she'll never see sunlight again. Protagonist feels a bit bad about a few days, and only that when she sees a few naked light elf slaves for sale, reminiscing Maya's face. Years pass and she thinks all the slavery and needless murder isn't so cool... just before visiting a surface colony who was taken from humans. She and her lesbian lover have an orgy on the settlement they just conquered by massacre. After a blissful after-sex sleep, the settlement is counterattacked by desperate humans coming to save their kin... which are promptly murdered by the half-light half-dark elf paladin of Sharess (Yes, a [[Mary Sue]] worshipping a total [[Baldur's Gate]] rip-off) who is all high and righteous when she is burning innocent humans who wanted to save their kin from slave traders about to buy the survivors. The protagonist's lesbian empath Drow (yes, with a length of purple hair paint, straight out of Deviantart) friend berates the cornered humans with a lame excuse line of "I feel your pain, why don't you take your survivors and run?!" when the said humans scream in desperation to save their families from the town's locked buildings, die horribly and our "I'm glad my clan Sarghress prevents slavery, let's shake hands and feast on the food we just plundered!" protagonist shakes hands on it. It's not even depressing, it's plain fucking logic diarrhea with enough depressive themes to OD an edgy 13 year old. (considering the authors were that old when they started...)
* Jeph Loeb's run on Ultimate Marvel: people dying brutally (most well known being Wasp getting eaten by the Blob) and completely gratuitously (Dr. Strange is killed the one page he shows up on and is completely forgotten afterwards), lore rape worst than anything Ward ever did (the heroic Pyro is now a rapist version of the mainline Marvel Pyro with no explanation, Thor going from new age hippie to mainline-style viking with no explanation... at least that last one is kinda cool). Overall it was so bad it effectively made the Ultimate Marvel universe (with the exception of Spider-Man and his cast) completely unusable. Small wonder that years later, Marvel thought smashing it and the main Marvel universe together would be a good idea.
* Koutetsujou no Kabaneri, an anime with a similar premise to the already-grimdark ''Attack on Titan'': It's set in (presumably feudal) Japan, where people are hiding behind walls and communicate with each others using trains to travel from town to town, and trades the giants and horses for guns and [[zombie]]s. Several of the characters have moments of team-killing ineptitude that end up prolonging the conflict far longer than it should:
**The [[samurai]] don't bother with armor and generally aren't very combat-savvy when it comes to zombies, and their [[Lawful Stupid]] tendencies turn any defense against a wall breach into an utter clusterfuck. The antagonist is [[Abaddon|an absolute failure AND wanted for crimes against humanity]], being a [[Edgy|pretentious Che Guevara wannabe]] [[Chaos Pretty Marines|with pink hair]] and wielder of an ugly-yet-somewhat effective [[Sword|sabre]]. He also has a devoted following despite being thoroughly unable to grasp the basics of warfare and its ethics (he thinks children are cowards for not being able to fight monsters that ambush and run through trained adult fighters with ease, and [[What|considers destroying one's own resources and castles to be a viable strategy]]). Meanwhile, the main protagonist has found not one, but TWO miracle solutions that would allow mankind to fight back against the zombie plague, but no one will listen to him, especially not the main antagonist, both because of the above and because ''of course they wouldn't'', it's <s>grimderp</s> GRIMDARK.
**Ironically, Ancient Shintoism (a main religion of that period) has the only known anti-[[Nurgle|zombie]] deities: ''Kukuri hime no kami'', a goddess of purification ([[Reasonable Daemonette|''despite'' being rather sado-masochist]]) whose followers would bind a corpse with ropes, place a big stone on the chest and bury it (coffins are optional). [[Humanity Fuck Yeah|Insane as it was]], it was the most common form of burial in the Jomon period, and never went completely out of date through all the medieval period. Despite the rites being a perfect defense against [[Dark Souls|an undead invasion]], apparently they didn't take in this setting. Three guesses why.
*Most dark fantasy hentai games and manga like Kuroinu and whatever bargain basement hentai game developer puts the heroines through corrupting debauchery with no way to escape for little more purposes than to degrade and humiliate them.

== Grim Tragedy ==
Naturally in a universe such as 40k, the grimdarkness of the setting would mean nothing if not tied into the ironic tragedy of the lore. This includes:

*[[Imperium|A species]] so afraid of the dauntless perils of Chaos that they will brutally harass and execute entire populations out of mere suspicion, all to stop the spread of ruin while indirectly strengthening those who seek to destroy them (''particularly'' Chaos). They, as a people, have progressed massively in population, technology and power since their species conception, yet they more than anyone else have lost one vital element: their humanity.

*[[Eldar|A race who]] was once a zenith of civilization and prosperity, capable of bending the very Gods to their will, but by their own hand reduced themselves to scattered, isolated fleets and colonies always on the run; their pompous and arrogant leaders hide behind a dwindling sense of security based in superiority over other races who are far more successful and perhaps destined to be greater than they ever were. [[Dark Eldar|A number among them]], after their unholy and insidious near-demise, continue (with oblivious glee) to empower [[Slaanesh|the very being that brought them to ruin]] in order to save themselves.

*[[Orks|A race of creatures]] who possess the brightest potential, with near mastery over the psychic, near-natural physical perfection and almost limitless numbers from their highly successful methods of reproduction... and yet they are genetically restricted by an unquenchable thirst for battle which drives each to idiocy, leaving them hopeless of advancing beyond simple barbarians.

*[[Necron|An ancient people]] whom were so envious of their neighbors' power that they were ready to cripple the entire galaxy just for the sake of petty superiority - a superiority neutered by their unwitting transformation into metaphorical and literal automatons. They are now mindless machines who, bar few, care nothing of their past and seek only one thing: war. And those who still have their personalities are either insane, demented, brooding, psychotic, or any combination of these in various proportions.

*[[Tau|A newborn race]] who innocently believes that there can be peace and acknowledgement among each other, but unfortunately the sinister methods they employ hoping that it is for [[Greater Good|something better]] is slowly, but steadily driving them into the decadence that plagues the other species. In doing so they become proof, both of the fact that [[Horus|anyone]], [[Emperor|no matter their intentions]], can be corrupted, and also of the kindness that the rest have forsaken for damnation and despair...

*The fact that, despite hundreds of thousands of years of knowing nothing but only war, these peoples are woefully unprepared for what is to come. No matter how many regiments can be raised or Craftworlds restored, what is out there is all [[Tyranids|consuming, diabolical and numberless...]] Unless, they are themselves on the verge of extinction, and as such, desperately tries to cross over the great void between galaxies, which implies fighting against [[Ork|invincibles foes]] and [[Ultramarines|fate weathing cheaters]] unnaturaly empowered by the grief of an [[Games Workshop|evil entity beyond the cosmos]]. (Well, this lore hint has been dropped a very long time ago in favor of "the good option is that there are a thousand galaxies worth of the fucking bugs, the bad option is that there are billions upon billions of galaxies worth of the fucking bugs.)

== See also ==
*[[Noblebright]]
*[[Edgy]]
*[[Eversor]]
*[[Lamenters]]

== External Links ==
* [http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/grimdark KnowYourMeme has examples from outside of /tg/]

[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]]

Command and Conquer

2018-01-05T02:56:34Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

[[Image:Cnc-95.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Behold, the beginning!]]{{/vg/}}
{{Oldschool}}

''"He who controls the past commands the future, He who commands the future, conquers the past."''
-[[Kane]].

Long ago, back before vanilla [[Dawn of War]], back when [[Starcraft]] wasn't even a sketch in the minds of Blizzard, one franchise ruled above all others in the RTS genre, Westwood's Command and Conquer.

While some scholars argue Dune 2 was the first prototype of the real-time strategy genre, most fans and critics recognize Command and Conquer is where everything truly started, thus what we may now call Tiberian Dawn (and very appropriately) implemented what would became the hallmarks of any awesome and self-respecting RTS game:

*Well defined factions with their own quirks, ideologies and agendas.
*Mission-driven campaigns for all factions with a rich geopolitical and economic narrative.
*Skirmish games for good compstomp.
*Multiplayer capabilities to spend whole nights fighting with your bros.
*Patch support and an online community capable to produce new material as well as [[skub|bringing impartial feedback]].
*Awesome media including cool cinematics with LARGE HAMS and kick-ass OST.

In time the franchise split in three branches, all of them awesome in their own right and capable to compete alone with any other game setting while bringing their own unique features, their tale is also a cautionary one for any franchise for [[eldar|C&C, despite its many achievements and strong fanbase fell from grace and got cancelled]].

[[Image:Trillionaire.jpg|thumb|400px|right]]

==Tiberian Universe==
[[Image:Kanes-gift.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Those were awesome days, example of fanart photoshop.]]
Follows the struggle of <s>The [[God-Emperor of Mankind]]</s> [[Kane]], widely considered the greatest Magnificent Bastard of the whole videogame industry (no kidding here, TV Tropes declared him god of Magnificent Bastards after competing with the likes of Tzeentch and Eldrad). Originating from the Biblical Genesis as Cain, the first murderer who was cursed by God with immortality to wander the "Land of Nod" for all eternity, he, after the crash of the element Tiberium into the Tiber River in Italy, became leader of the shadowy non-national superpower known as the [[Nod|Brotherhood of Nod]], against the [[GDI|Global Defense Initiative]], a military coalition formed by the United Nations, spanning nearly a century of warfare, both factions fight for the control of Tiberium, an alien substance which is slowly xenoforming the Earth, destroying the ecosystem but also giving mankind unique industrial and scientific possibilities.

By the third game, a new alien faction arrives - the Scrin, [[Just as planned|after Kane sends a false signal making them believe Earth has finally completed its transformation into a Tiberium world]]. It is soon revealed the terrible alien force which is threatening mankind with extinction are just a minor mining expedition with no real backup, a fact Kane takes advantage of [[Blood Ravens|to steal their technology]] in order to achieve his master plan, which by the fourth game allows him to clean Earth of Tiberium, [[derp|even while he was trying the opposite during the previous games]] As far as this viewer can tell his plan was to cover the earth with tiberium to attract the Scrin via massive ion cannon induced explosion, and once they showed up the Tiberium was no longer needed so he got rid of it becuase. . . he's a swell guy? ([[EA]] trademark for you), and ascend to another plane of existence along with his followers.

'''The games of the series:'''

*'''Tiberian Dawn:''' where it all started, Earth is still widely similar to our own, this game features what may become the standard for the industry, including some of [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goQiwNZzoVA the best scenes ever].
**'''The Covert Operations:''' more missions! And hard as fuck.
**'''Sole Survivor:''' [[rage|Just don't, I mean, seriously?! You control only one unit?! If i wanted to play a MOBA I would, well I would dig my eyes out with a melon baller but you get the point!]]
*'''Renegade:''' a FPS/TPS featuring [[Sly Marbo|Nick "Havoc" Parker]], a trigger happy GDI commando, it seems this setting runs parallel with the main story of Tiberian Dawn, if you like your Halo-like shooter, by all means, feel obliged to play this game.
*'''Tiberian Sun:''' [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKy4BdOVsZI KANE LIVES!] Grimdark cyberpunk heavy setting, with the entire world altered by by Tiberium into a [[Daemon World|hellscape]], mutants, hints of the Scrin, cyborgs and futuristic weapons such as mechs, lasers and hover technology, it has arguably some of the best cutscenes and scenarios of the game, Uniquely, for Command and Conquer over all, it has the commanders of GDI and Nod as characters, not the player in front of his computer screen. Oh ya and the Mammoth Mk2 is awesome!
**Firestorm: CABAL, the supercomputer of the Brotherhood of Nod, goes rogue, [[servitor|attempting to turn everyone into cyborgs]] to accomplish Kane's master plan. Included new scenarios, more options and units.
*'''Tiberium Wars:''' combining the the cyberpunk style with 20-minutes-in-the future of your Dale Brown novels, it introduces the Scrin, which are what if the Tyranids and the Eldar joined forces, the mammoth tank is back after some corporate nut tried to remove it from GDI's arsenal, did we mention [[tau|you can upgrade your tanks with railguns]]?
**'''Kane's Wrath:''' [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AVH-qeWom0o KANE IS BACK!] This expansion centers on everyone's favourite dark messiah, with every mission showing large amounts of HAMtastic dialogues and Just as planned taken to the eleven, also, awesome new units and subfactions including each major power getting its Lord of War styled superunit. Steel Talons mechs! Cyborgs again! And Black Hand infantry! There is one downside; the sole campaign focuses on Nod. Even though it had the most support from EA, this still disappointed fans who wanted campaigns for GDI and the Scrin.
*'''Tiberian Twilight:''' And here is where everything ended, including C&C's reputation, while the game wouldn't have been quite bad as a spin-off, the brutal change in the gameplay mechanics, the cartoonish graphics (particularly cruel after the masterful [[grimdark]] style of Tiberian Sun and Tiberium Wars) and the awful plot inconsistencies and over-exhaustion of the brand made this a huge disappointment, it was later revealed that what the fans bought was originally going to be a [[fail|free-to-play MMO real tactical game for the weaboo market]]... Well at least Kane managed to save the world from tiberian infestation and ascend, still, Tiberian Twilight was to C&C what Soulstorm was to Dawn of War, minus its [[Indrick Boreale|funny]] [[Firaeveus Carron|spots]].
*'''Tiberium Alliances:''' browser RTS, make what you want about it, although [[Evony|when compared with the competition]] it's actually quite nice.

==Red Alert series==
[[Image:Cnc-red-alert-3-girls.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Red Alert 3 featured so much fanservice that it ended in its logical conclusion.]]

Originally considered a prequel but ultimately earning its own continuity [[awesome|it starts with Albert Einsten creating a time machine to go back to the 1920s and erase Hitler from history]], this ends [[not as planned]]. Red Alert follows the battle between the Soviet Union and the Allies during a series of World Wars where every faction seems to deploy increasingly crazytastic units which includes [[Gauss|tesla weaponry]], chrono-machines, mind-controlled animals and some other batshit insane wacky technology. The franchise consists on three games and its expansions, the two later add a new faction, first [[Chaos|Yuri]], a rogue Soviet psyker who attempts to mind-control the entire planet and has a badass army of flying saucers, hulk-like soldiers, virus snipers, grinders that recycle mind-controlled people into natural resources, and some other nasty grimdark stuff, and the second features [[anime|the Empire of the Rising Sun]], a God-Emperor-worshipping [[Adeptus Mechanicus|Technology Cult]] which adds transforming mechas, a psionics schoolgirl and beam-katanas, yes, Red Alert is <s>that weird</s> what you may expect from an elegan/tg/entlenman production.

'''The games of the series'''

*'''Red Alert:''' After messing up with time, Einstein leaves the stage open for [[communism|Iosif Stalin]] to try to conquer Europe, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pV1vodHcqkM awesome intro is awesome], the rest is history. Gameplay-wise is the same as Tiberium Dawn, with a very [[grimdark]] outlook upon the course of the war. Soviet victory shows that [[Kane]] [[Blam|took over]] the USSR until the 90's, giving way to the Tiberium series. Allied victory on the other hand, gives way to the sequel, Red Alert 2.
**'''Counter-Strike:''' more missions!(yeah, back in that time that was the best thing you could expect from an expansion).
**'''Aftermath:''' What is this, new units and campaigns?! Bring it on! Huge fucking tanks that create earthquakes, Chrono-tanks, surface-to-surface missile armed subs, and MOTHERFUCKING TESLA TROOPERS. (they looked like flamethrowers though, [[fail]]ing in physics)
*'''Red Alert 2:''' When gameplay kicked up a notch, but cutscenes became a bit goofier: The Soviets come back and invade the United States (yes that doesn't make a lot of sense given America was barely mentioned in the original(sequel installation story explains US saving Britain from the brink and tank-rushing the Soviets by superior production) but then again the chief adviser of the Soviet premier is big on mind control), did we mention the Russians are backed up by the Cubans, the Libyans and the Iraqis? Prism technology, desolator troops to irradiate whole areas with nuclear power, tesla tanks, chronospheres, weather control devices and iron curtain shields are used in this war as standard weaponry, what's that Adeptus Mechanicus, you can't keep up with Old Earth technology? On a side note, this is where C&C started to feature some blatant fanservice, namely lieutenants Eva and Sofia and special agent Tanya and this is where Red Alert started to be stop being "Serious" and start getting campy. (The Premier of the USSR being a goofball [[Slaanesh|on a serious gluttony and sexual harassment bonanza]] [[RAGE|did...not sit well with some]])
**'''Yuri's Revenge:''' creepy former adviser of Soviet premier Romanov (yes, we know that was the Tsar surname), Yuri has been using the Soviet invasion onslaught as a distraction to build a network of psychic dominator devices to mind-control the whole planet (what's up, Eldar, you can't keep up with Old Earth technology?), unfortunately for him and thankfully for everyone else the Allies travel back in time in order to topple him (and you though [[Orikan the Diviner]] was cheating hard), ensuring during the process a temporal alliance between the Soviets and the Allies to crush him. By the way there is a mission to the Moon featured in the Soviet campaign, though sadly up to Red Alert 2 most bad guy's campaigns weren't considered canon. Sadly Yuri's army, which is one giant insect away from being a B movie come to life, doesn't have a campaign. It may be broken but people still thought it was fun to play. As for 2015's, it has an incredibly detailed mod named Mental Omega which is being completed: 60+ missions and entire new arsenals.
*'''Red Alert 3:''' The Soviets decide to attempted to pull the time travel trick by themselves and they actually succeeded at killing Einstein. [[not as planned|With the unforeseen consequence]] of [[Weeaboo|turning Japan into the Empire of the Rising Sun]], [[Eldar|complete with nanolathing technology, laser beams, extreme miniaturization and artistic weaponry from the future]]. By this point, and with the inclusion of Japan, you know this has gone completely bonkers. Just for good measure EA brought Tim Curry, George Takei and J.K. Simons as bosses of each major faction, along with some other celebs to ensure this release can go hand-to-hand with Dawn of War in terms of LARGE HAMS. Seriously they even got [[What|David Hasselhoff as the new president of United States]]. Amusingly, and yet sadly, it seems like Red Alert 3 didn't sell as well or as fast as Tiberium Wars. Still, an awful lot of people liked the narmy catoonish graphics, new balance and the cast-overload. [[Grimdark]] is overrated! Sadly it didn't keep Yuri.
**'''Uprising:''' Singleplayer only, but with awesome new units, a campaign featuring the background of [[Farseer|Yuriko Omega]] (the above mentioned psionic schoolgirl) and [[Apocalypse|a complete disregard for balance]] in the form of units such as the Empire's Gigafortress and the Allied Harbinger Gunship. What's up, Tau? You can't keep with old Earth firepower? It has a very cool Challenge system which allows you to fight against the commanders of each faction Dark Crusade style. The main campaigns were pretty boring though, being way too short, with a bare bones story with very little humor and the Soviets getting favoritism with two missions over the Allies and Empire (one extra one in their campaign, one of the Empire's three missions is spent using Soviet units) and they lack any of the silliness that made them fun in the last two games.

==Generals series==
[[Image:Cnc-generals-1.jpg|thumb|250px|right|Unrealistic scifi? You mad?]]
With Tiberium being the [[Grimdark]] Science fiction to Red Alert's [[Noblebright]] camp and ham, EA found out there was a hole in the Command and Conquer line up for something more grounded and realistic. So they came up with Command and Conquer generals, a 20 minutes in the future spin-off with no relation with the two previous settings, instead based on present-day news about the War on Terror and the spread of radical Islam. It also represents a complete change in the game economy which shows a dangerous amount of Starcraft influence (like buildings are built by conventional worker units instead of giant 3D printers). Still, despite some purists arguing that this wasn't a real C&C, most fans welcomed the fresh air it brought along with the opportunity to play a Present-Day modern-warfare themed game which still had some scifi/tongue-in-check elements. Enter the modern world, where the <s>Islamic State</s> Global Liberation Army ravages the Mideast in order to achieve their shadowy agenda, while the United States of America and China (Soviet replacement in the setting as the Commies are no longer around) join forces to show the evil terrorists they can't mess around with the new world order. Expect generous amounts of Chinese [[exterminatus|nuclear weapons]], USA showing off its high-tech-this-is-the-future [[Tau|drone warfare]], and the religiously fanatical GLA bombing [[Heresy|Infidels]] with [[Nurgle|anthrax weaponry]] piloted by suicide bombers expecting 72 virgins. Seriously, this game came out two years after 9-11, and you know it's development likely took longer then two years with programming and modeling. The game was in development before Al-Qaeda showed up and the Islamic State became a critical Real Life issue, but was released after it did and the game has become prophetic in a nasty way. This first mission of the USA campaign may as well be a retreading of the first gulf war. (US tanks beat other "GLA" tanks easily, air craft blow up other tanks in seconds). EA attempted to make a sequel by 2013, as a multiplayer oriented F2P, but in today's political climate with a real GLA doing real drone attacks? It was almost guaranteed to end baldly, in fact, [[fail|it went so badly]] it got [[blam|cancelled]].

'''The games of series:'''
*'''Generals:''' [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1egsGjVAeKY In the modern world, great leaders solve their conflicts with words like]... Awesome trailer aside, you got your three factions, modern USA, communist China will be communist and mideast <s>Islamic State</s> Global Liberation Army, great variety of tactics, fun missions, sadly it lacked the awesome cutscenes of the Tiberian and Red Alert series and barely explains where the GLA came from. Still, you can always get your cutscenes by just watching CNN. From a gameplay perspective this one stands out the most apart from the rest of Command and Conquer. Resources are gathered from fixed points on the map, all factions have ways to get infinite money meaning turtling and just nuking, skud-storming or lasering your enemy is more viable (one sub-faction in the expansion even specializes in it), it adds a kinda of "Commander XP" bar so you can unlock units or get access to off map support like heavy bombers and the like, you can see a lot of it's influence on the later Tiberium 3 and Red Alert 3 even if it only got one one expansion pack: Speaking of...
**'''Zero Hour:''' New subfactions! More units, and missions! Also cutscenes! Although these were more like CNN news, but that's ok, it also brought a challenge mode where you fights against the generals of each faction (ergo the name of the game).
**Not wanting to see the game die, the fine people of SWR Productions decided to make mods to expand upon the game. They have made two so far, each doing something different but both being of high quality. Several units in each mod take after designs of the other games in the franchise, with a few even taking their voice lines from those games.
***'''ShockWave:''' The expansion of the expansion, ShockWave (note capitalization) sets out to take the different playstyles of the factions' generals and expand on them. ShockWave's generals all play very differently from one another, with several unique units, technologies and even buildings per general. On top of that, each faction gets a fourth general and the base army gets several new toys as well.
***'''Rise of the Reds:''' Generals 1.5, Rise of the Reds is the what-could-have-been of the series. It adds two new factions to the mix: the Russian Federation and the European Continental Alliance. After the events of the campaign of Zero Hour Russia's economic growth has gone to shit and aggressive military expansion is the only viable option for them to stick around. Meanwhile, the European Union falls to the mix of GLA actions, Chinese intervention and internal popular uprisings. From its ashes rose the European Continential Alliance, which turned out to be way more totalitarian, militaristic and intolerant towards sedition than the EU ever was. The Russians use more tanks than even the Chinse while the ECA has access to a whole slew of base defenses, solar powered weapons and a broad range of voice actors from all over Europe. The other factions are still around as well: the GLA has moved to Africa on account of everything of worth between Greece and India has been bombed to dust, China is going full 1984 and America's role is to help the ECA drive the invaders from their lands. [[Troll|Again]].

*'''Generals 2:''' Was looking awesome and ready to reignite the franchise, unfortunately EA cancelled it, oh the pain, the pain! [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80_x6bmzluc This is how it was supposed to be but no, it could not become real...] Anyway, we all hope this is not the end of the franchise.

==The fall of a franchise (but we know it will come back!)==

One may wonder, why is it a franchise which lasted so long faded away into nothingness? The answer, surprising, is not quite as simple as pointing out at [[EA]]. As with many other matters related with the industry, there is far more than meets the eye.

Command and Conquer started strong; as in every successful product there was a good balance between investment and sales. By the first Red Alert sales were in millions, and that was in a time when you didn't hear about Call of Duty blockbuster releases. Unfortunately it seems like the original creators at Westwood didn't have the experience to keep with the monetary success of the game. Triple-A game development costs are high and new technologies were appearing back then - Tiberian Sun proved to be a complete designing challenge as it implemented isometric view and relied heavily in 3D designs, programming a game which represented a massive challenge. As such, Westwood started to delay the release date.

By this point, EA, which have been investing as producers of the game decided it was time to take things in their hands and get something ready for the market. After all, they were expecting to earn back their investment. The end result was a quite nice game, but with a lot of content cut; the possibility of a third faction in the Forgotten was killed in order to meet the release date. Most players didn't notice it, but it was a precedent.

Red Alert 2 seemed to stabilize the situation; 2 factions, an expansion with a third faction and lots of goodies were very welcome, things seemed to be in good order. However, Westwood and EA decided to expand their market, as by this point [[Starcraft]] was becoming the dominant RTS and with so much competition around it appeared to be a sound idea. This however was not the case; Renegade was a complete new setting gameplay-wise, which meant more investment in more development, most of which was trial-and-error, while at the same time having to compete with established franchises such as Counter-Strike, MoH, CoD and the likes. While Renegade managed to sell half a million copies, it was quite short for a C&C game, particularly after every previous C&C getting the million mile.

This was the state of affairs when EA decided to make some [[Tzeentch|changes]] in the way the team worked, they have been trying to get the Las Vegas bureau to grant them permission to build a new campus where they may get Westwood a new home ([[Commissar|and probably keep an eye on them]]). Unfortunately [[Administratum|the Las Vegas bureau weren't so cooperative when it came to terrain sales]], so EA declared they would open a new campus in Los Angeles so everyone had to pack and go live there. Of course not everyone was happy with this and a lot of people decided to stay and create their own company, which would become Petroglyph Studios of [[Star Wars|Empire at War glory]].

By this point, and with Generals on the market, everyone was wondering what was going to happen with the original Tiberium and Red Alert series. The release of [[The Lord of the Rings]] films, which made a lot of neckbeards happy, created a hype which ended in the new Electronic Arts Los Angeles studios (EALA) making a RTS in order to cash the franchise, [[GW|and if this sounds familiar to you, yes, that's how EA rolls]]. Though these RTS were pretty good by there own merits people still wanted another C&C game.

Apparently this was the end of C&C, but in 2006 EA announced Tiberium Wars, and the fandom rejoiced. After 3 years Command and Conquer was back, and not just back; [[Kane]] was back, the Tiberium was back. The game easily achieved over a million sales and had become the hotspot in a time where there was no real competition in the market (aside from Supreme Commander, but even then, no one beats Kane). Unfortunately, the cracks started appeared; a public used to Starcraft's continuous patches and updates, as well as old-school gamers who haven't learnt or forgotten anything became a recurring presence among the community - constantly complaining about the lack of balance, how things were far better back during previous games or just simply complaining for the sake of it, ruining everyone's day and posting confusing feedback, so yeah, /tg/ is not unique in that sense.

From this point on, there was also a problem with the focus of the franchise. EA wanted badly to turn C&C into an e-Sport RTS, and some opportunist professional gamers quickly took advantage of the situation to promote their own views of how C&C should be ([[Heresy|exclusively a multiplayer, Starcraft style game with no real interest for single-player campaigns]]), hoping to emulate Starcraft success on that field. Of course, this was not going to work as [[derp|EA does not understand what long-term support means]]. Furthermore, polls had shown that most people played C&C solely for the singleplayer; Kane's Wrath, which was released with some truly awful imbalances and bugs, managed to sell well even if it wasn't actually made by EALA but a subsidiary studios.

Red Alert 3 promised to be good, it could not [[fail]], or so EA thought, what they didn't understand is that it's not enough to add some celebrities and fanservice along with light-hearted cartoonish graphics into a game to make it successful. Also, by this point, the release rate of the C&C games were one per year, as EA were also trying to emulate Activision's Call of Duty rate of production, in the end they managed to get their million sales, but not without counting the standalone expansion Uprising and a [[Heresy|PS3 version of Red Alert 3.]] Add to this crappy DRM software and the fact [[fail|they did forget to add a digit in some CD-keys and you may understand]] [[RAGE|why some people were not very happy.]] it was also apparently a pain in the ass to really mod.

Attempting to save the day, EA announced the production of Tiberium, a FPS (yes, we see a pattern here) which was supposed to be a link between Kane's Wrath and the next C&C, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XtA3zXkDue8 it looked quite nice] but a few months later EA announced they had cancelled the project because of its bad quality, even while production was apparently very advanced.

Thus EA decided to play the master card, Tiberian Twilight, the epic conclusion of the tiberian saga, the game to end all games, with Kane and Tiberium and robots and lasers... [[What|as a real-time tactics game, with the Scrin removed, a badly written storyline and a complete change in atmosphere from the previous two games.]] Everyone got very pissed; as previously pointed out by some fans, it could have worked well as a spin-off, but it broke with too many traditional gameplay elements to be considered a classic RTS. Shortly after that, EALA was closed...

[[Image:Gaming-john-riccitiello.jpg|thumb|250px|right|[[Emperor|John Riccitiello]], we really need our old evil corporate overlord back.]]

It did seem like it was truly the end of the franchise when suddenly EA announced they were making Generals 2. It seemed like a logical choice as it would be a continuation of the spin-off they have created, thus there will be no "it doesn't feel old school". But of course, EA couldn't keep with it and decided to announce the game [[RAGE|will be F2P, with no singleplayer elements, even while they themselves had revealed C&C had always been a franchise mostly played due its singleplayer.]] There was also the matter about the name of the new studios in charge of the game, first named Victory Games, then [[Bioware]] Victory, [[derp|and then Victory Games again]]. Promises of adding skirmish and campaigns managed to steam-off the community although some nay-sayers keep beating the dead horse and promoting discontent telling everyone the franchise was dead, and then something terrible happened, they got it right, but not for the reason most whiners thought.

John Riccitiello, then the CEO of Electronic Arts, quit, [[Grimdark|and it was later revealed that he had been the only one keeping the project and the whole franchise afloat and safe from EA hardline corporate suits]]. The new CEO and his buddies decided enough was enough and cancelled C&C Generals 2 (then renamed Command and Conquer 2013) and closed [[fail|"Victory" Games]], getting most of the people from the studios fired. And just to make sure no one could resurrect the project [[Exterminatus|they broke the Cloud they were using as the main repository of the game data and development.]]

Thus, a great franchise ended and many tears were dropped. On one hand we can see that neither Westwood nor EA knew exactly how to capitalize their successes; bad executive decisions were evident, with the lack of longterm support and the inability to know when to actually listen to the fans and when to ignore them whenever some exclusivist group became too vocal, which ensured an erratic history. On the other hand, some people simply couldn't keep their mouths shut, while a great deal of the community knew what they wanted and were open to some positive changes, there were too many voices who wished to turn C&C into some other's game rip-off or just stay in the 1995 era with sprites and two factions as the standard of every game - this evolved into fandom wars of such epic proportions even [[4chan]] denizens would have been impressed. [[Imperium|Eventually the whole thing fell apart, showing that even the greatest successes do not assure continuity if there isn't unity and clear objectives to achieve.]]

'''TL;DR, Don't worry guys, we all know in a couple of years EA or someone else will resurrect the franchise, because C&C cannot stay down!'''

''"You can't kill the Messiah."''
-[[Kane]].

==Tiberian Gallery==
<center>
<gallery>
File:Titan-gdi.jpg|Democracy is not negotiable!
File:Gdi-lego-tank.jpg|GDI lego fans make it happen!
File:Kane-tiberian-dawn.jpg|Old school photoshop.
File:Tiberian-sun-nod.jpg|You don't get more cyberpunk that Tiberian Sun's Brotherhood of Nod.
File:Awakened-1.jpg|Reddish and cybernetic, the way the Adeptus Mechanicus like it!
File:Comic-cnc-tiberium.png|Beware [[Tzeentch|Tiberium's mutating power!]]
File:Scrin-eradicator.jpg|[[Tyranids]] wish their monstrous creatures were half as good as a Scrin Eradicator Hexapod.
File:Avatar1.jpg|Skillful fans have been capable to make minis of some of the units.
File:Nod-flame-tank.jpg|Sadly it seems like EA followed the taurox and centurion designing vibe with C&C4.
</gallery>
</center>

==Red Alert Gallery==
<center>
<gallery>
File:Hitler-ra.jpg|[[nazis|Hitler]] making a cameo.
File:Stalin-ra.jpg|We got comrade Stalin!
File:Einstein-ra.jpg|And professor Einstein!
File:Ra3-girls.jpg|Dem fanservice!
File:Yuriko-lucky-star.jpg|THE LEVELS OF WEABOO ARE OVER 9000!
File:Ra3-anime.png|More anime...
File:Kirov-mk-2.jpg|Soviet fans trying to achieve enuff dakka.
File:Red-Alert-3-Tesla-tank.jpg|<s>2000</s>100,000 volts coming up!
File:Eotrs-archer-maiden.jpg|The Empire of the Rising laughs at silly things such as logic weapon design.

</gallery>
</center>

==Generals Gallery==
<center>
<gallery>
File:Cnc-vs-generals.jpg|Campcom style.
File:Cnc-generals-packs.JPG|We love our [[METAL BOXES|boxes]].
File:Gla-1.jpg|It's hard to be GLA in these days...
File:Gatling.nuke-cannon.jpg|Problem titanicus?

</gallery>
</center>

==So what next?==

While nowadays, the only C&C which still receives support is Tiberium Alliances, [[fail|making it effectively the only C&C still alive]], there have been a few attempts to make C&C-styled games, with one of the most prominent being Petroglyph's End of Nations, which proposed the possibility of up to 50 players fighting in the same map. Sadly, after a complicated development phase, Petroglyph's then publisher Trion Worlds announced the game was going to [[What|become a MOBA,]] and then all production was put on hold. By 2014 all mentions of the game in Trion's site were removed, with the domain for the game's webpage being abandoned.

Still, Petroplyph didn't give up and made Grey Goo, a very cool RTS which features three factions: the nanomachine-lifeform Goo, the industrial-punk alien Beta and the early [[Dark Age of Technology]] Humans; it follows many of the traditions of the 90s despite it being more scifi-ish than C&C what with being hundreds of years in the future. Still, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Sl1WCZEQfg the C&C legacy is there.] Even more recently, they released 8-Bit Armies, an indie RTS collection and love-letter to old-school RTS games that's very much the closest Petroglyph's gotten so far to recreating C&C in all but name, right down to the interface and pseudo-pixelated graphics.

Elsewhere, Eugen Systems, the developers of C&C Generals-like Act of War, WW2 themed RUSE and the Cold War-styled Wargame series (yes, these frenchies CV is made of awesome) launched Act of Aggression, a classic RTS with 3 20-minutes-into-the-future factions reminiscent of the C&C Generals and Tiberium universes. While AoA is definitely a tough game for starters, many old-school grizzled veterans will find themselves at home, easily recognizing the possibilities of tank rushes, superweapons, specialist units and overall that turn-of-the-millennium feeling [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qzFNsFbUbY which made life back then so awesome.] By the way, their publishers are [[Focus Home Interactive]], the guys behind many recent GeeDubs-IP based games.

Then of course, there are mods. Due to a mix of popularity, age and genre (which add together to mean lower rez models don't look quite as bad), Command and Conquer games are some of the most widely modded games there are, meaning that though official games have ended for some times, mods that are practically full expansion packs worth of content live on. Of course [[fail|many mods are poor quality or never get anywhere]] [[awesome|but as a whole there are always diamonds when you dig enough, a few cool examples are:]]

* C&C Twisted Insurrection, a reimagining of the second tiberian war if Nod had won the original conflict, with new units, an upcoming new faction and a new OST which includes at this moment 69 new songs, some of them remixes done by original composer Frank Klepacki himself.
* C&C3: Tiberium Essence (which revamps the game and especially the units to be much more reminiscent of Tiberian Sun, albeit updated)
* C&C Generals: Shockwave and Rise of the Reds from the same team (the latter having evolved into becoming the closes there is to an actual Generals 2), though of the two Shockwave is better if you don't have friends thanks to it's enhanced General Challenge.
* C&C Renegade X (a complete remake of the original Renegade made in the Unreal Engine, and notably given the green light by EA for an official release)
* C&C Generals Mideast Crisis 1 and C&C 3 Mideast Crisis 2.
* C&C Yuri's Revenge Mental Omega, a reimagining of Red Alert 2 and Yuri's Revenge which expands over the original factions by adding new subfactions and heroes, a complete new faction, campaigns and even a brand new OST.
* Red Alert 3: Paradox: Officially a dead mod, but not one from a lack of effort as the sheer number of 3d renders they did manage to make attests to it. Paradox died because red alert 3, as a game engine, was just really hard to mod. Still what they did make is interesting, even if it amounts to "fan fiction" and is worth a read on the remade wiki. Special notes goes to there version of China: which is enough to make even a Death Korp trooper go "Woah."

==See also==
*[http://cnc.wikia.com/wiki/EVA_Database C&C Wiki], for those of you who want to explore more.
*[http://www.cncnz.com/ CnCNZ], longtime fansite with news, updates and goodies.
*[http://www.frankklepacki.com/ Frank Klepacki], composer of many of the C&C tracks.
*[http://paradox-modfanmadebackup.wikia.com/wiki/Paradox_Mod_Wiki] The Paradox wiki.

Imperial Fists

2018-01-03T17:44:25Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

{{Infobox Spess Mahreen Chapter
|Name = Imperial Fists
|Heraldry = [[Image:Imperial_Fists_Livery.jpg|center|140px]]
|Battle Cry = "Primarch-Progenitor, to your glory and the glory of Him on earth!"
|Number = VII
|Founding = [[First Founding]]
|Successors of = N/A
|Successor Chapters = [[Astral Knights]], [[Black Templars]], [[Crimson Fists]], [[Excoriators]], [[Executioners]], [[Fists Exemplar]], [[Hammers of Dorn]], Iron Knights, [[Sons of the Phoenix]] (Officially, anyway), [[Soul Drinkers]](sort of, it's complicated), [[Celestial Lions]], Emperor's Spears (not officially)
|Chapter Master = Vorn Hagan (formerly Vladimir Pugh)
|Primarch = [[Rogal Dorn]]
|Homeworld = Used to be [[Inwit]], then [[Terra]], now a giant space fortress called the ''Phalanx'' (though officially it's still Terra)
|Specialty = Defensive Siege Warfare/Urban Warfare
|Strength = 1000 Marines
|Allegiance = [[Imperium]]
|Colours = Yellow
}}

{{Topquote|You can stand me up at the gates of hell, but I won't back down.|Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, I Won't Back Down}}

The Imperial Fists are a [[First Founding]] chapter of [[Space Marines]], descended from [[Rogal Dorn]] and characterized by their mastery of siege warfare and their extreme, often suicidal stoic bravery. They are the forefathers of the [[Crimson Fists|blue guys with red hands]], as well as the [[Black Templars|in-game Angry Marines]]. Sometimes they get together with their successors and have a [[Feast of Blades|sword fighting tournament]]. They aren't as angry as the [[Angry Marines]] (close though), but they [[/tg/ gets shit done|get the shit done]]. Unlike [[Pretty Marines|some people.]]

Basically they're the true Vanilla Marines, albeit the most badass vanilla marines ever. Probably best represented on the table top by IA: 10's [[Warhammer_40,000/Tactics/Space_Marines/Siege_Assault_Vanguard(7E)|Siege Assault Vanguard list]], since it includes most codex space marine options, plus additional siege-y stuff.

They're well known for their fixation on physical and spiritual endurance, reinforced and tested through extreme trials and the use of a gadget called the "pain glove" which is apparently a bodysuit that activates every pain nerve in a marine's body while hindering their pain suppressing organs, basically making you feel like your body has been dipped in molten steel. Older fluff kinda played this up as masochism, but more recent fluff, especially the Horus Heresy books, have shown these pain seeking tendencies as being a mechanism of focus and preparation, the idea being that if a marine is already exposing himself to much greater pain than he could be exposed to on the battlefield, there's no injury or obstacle that could threaten them, because they've already done worse to themselves. They also use pain as a meditative and training aid, as Astartes biology is keyed to react to pain in useful ways, which can be helpful in training and mental preparation.

They are known for being one of the Chapters who try to keep the Imperium together as the Emperor intended the most, and defends Imperial soil with tenacity and stoic contempt. This harkens back to their Legion being one of the most Imperial in morals, and known as the "true Imperial Legion", beside the [[Blood Angels]] (although only outwards - [[Red Thirst|Things weren't as well internally]]) and the [[Ultramarines]]. They recruit people from many different worlds of the Imperium, showing traits from Hive worlds, Agriworlds, Death Worlds, Ocean Worlds, etc. They even recruit from Terra itself, making them to a degree Terra's marines and being known as the [[Awesome|Defenders of Terra]]. Combining this with their standard reaction to pain ("This sucks... I'LL DEFEND IT EVEN MORE!!!") paints a picture of a stubborn Chapter who refuses to let go of the ideals that the Imperium was founded on, but unlike the [[Dark Angels|catholics]] aren't afraid of showing it, and aren't a dick about it, like the [[Space Wolves|vikings]].

They appear in the [[Warhammer Films|Ultramarines movie]], ostensibly to teach aforementioned smurfs how to get the shit done, or probably steal the movie from the smurfs and make the Theater explode due to epicness and faithful Imperium subjects yelling as many literal one liners of 40k when they see the motherfucking Imperial Fists. Also, John Hurt plays an IF chaplain in said film. Sadly, due to the amount of Smurf Fanboyism in said film, all but two of them die, their Chaplain gets shot by SPOILER a daemon in disguise, and some scrawny Ultramarine recruit saves the day instead. Normally we'd say this is [[C.S. Goto|fucking retarded]], but the Fists die holding the line and fight to the last, both on-screen and off (and at the very least, one of the Fists survives the movie).

==History==
[[File:Imperialfist78.jpg|450px|thumb|left|Chaos proctologists]]

They were masters of siege warfare and construction, like the [[Iron Warriors]], though the [[Horus Heresy]] series tells us that it was [[Perturabo]] who turned the Iron Warriors into siege specialists with his head for numbers and engineering ''(they were intended as a "workhorse" legion)''(ironically "workhorse" may have meant they were intended to be the stereotype for the Space Marine program. The Warhounds' reputation for brotherhood and honor could support this hypothesis). The Imperial Fists were designed to consolidate their victories and build fortresses in their wake, leaving well defended systems upon which the Imperium could count ''(contrasting with the [[World Eaters|War Hounds]] who were absolute destroyers)''. Ultimate irony: Perturabo hated that his legion got stuck performing sieges and consolidating victories and such even though he was the one to specialize them in it. Given each Legion seems happy to fulfill its intended purpose, the Emperor probably worked that into their genetics so Imperial Fists had no problem with siege warfare and garrison duty but the Iron Warriors, who were not intended for such things, were bitter about having to perform it.

Since '''ALL''' [[First Founding]] Legions originally recruited from Terra, their first home-world was officially Rogal Dorn's planet of [[Inwit]] which is exactly as it sounds, a frozen planet of low-tech Inuit people, though Dorn was such an impressive dude he managed to turn the feral worlders and their ice caves into a sprawling interplanetary Empire ''(beat THAT [[Roboute Guilliman|Girly-pants!]], though to be fair Guilliman was probably better at actually setting up and "running" societies, while Dorn was better at crusading and consolidating)(except that obviously is not the case given Guilliman made little advancement and just used what was already available whereas Dorn brought his people from making sharp rocks to making warp-drives '''and''' created and managed an interstellar empire of his own)''.

Rogal Dorn was the only Primarch ''(aside from [[Magnus the Red]])'' to actively seek out the Emperor rather than be discovered by him, so when he showed up with the '''Phalanx''', big Emps was like ''"oh Hai... erm... I wasn't expecting you yet... Dorn? was it? okay here's your Legion."'' Dorn didn't say a word as the Imperial Fists knelt and pledged their loyalty, but after he had witnessed them in battle, he met with the Space Marine who was the place-holder Primarch (Legion Master Matthias) and simply said ''"Cheers dude, you're in command of [[Inwit]] now, make me thirty more regiments of you guys, I'm off on a crusade"'' (seriously, that's pretty much how it went).

It wasn't all [[Noblebright]] crusades though, they were described as [[Black Templars|zealous]] as the [[Ultramarines]] or [[Word Bearers]] when it came to conquering and drawing recruits. On one feral world they recruited EVERY SINGLE male child old enough to hold a spear, whilst on one hive world they went down into the [[Necromunda|underhives]] and walked away with half of the male population. This was perhaps not the best way to get results, and most of the potential recruits would end up dead, though one can guess that the ones that survived would be guaranteed to be the best of the crop, probably in a similar way to how the [[Space Wolves]] whittle out the weaklings from the strong.

They did so well at crusading during the Great Crusade ''(go figure)'' that the Emperor landed more honours on them than anyone else and fought alongside them more often than any other. One might wonder why Dorn wasn't named Warmaster, but was probably more to do with Horus being '''a)''' already well established and crusading on his own, '''b)''' presumably a better all-round general than Dorn and '''c)''' Dorn was noted as lacking in the interpersonal skills necessary to keep the other primarchs in line. The Imperial Fists were considered by many to be the bedrock of the Imperium (and most associated with the Emperor, thus midway through the Great Crusade when big Emps retired to his dungeons to play with warp trinkets, they got the job of guarding [[Terra]] and the surrounding solar system ''(but not guarding the [[Emperor]] himself since the [[Adeptus Custodes|Custodians]] already had that job)'', and fortifying the Imperial Palace and so they became the most publicly visible loyalist Astartes during the time of the [[Horus Heresy]]. Not only that, their Primarch, along with [[Jaghatai Khan|the Khan]] personally carried the Emperor's fucked up body all the way to the Golden Throne.

Dorn's rejection of the Codex was primarily based on his legion being '''the''' crusading legion. They defined themselves by their identity as Legionaries, and saw Guilliman's codex as being a betrayal of the Emperor's mandate for the Space Marines. Indeed, Big.E wanted Legions to expand the Imperium aggressively and Guilliman wanted to turn them into a bunch of small High Threat Response teams each protecting their own little corner of the Imperium. When Guilliman rolled up and asked Dorn if he was done with the codex, Dorn rejected him by saying there were Traitors to hunt down and exterminate and ran off to enact the Scouring with his sons. (And, to be fair, Guilliman and everyone else joined in the Scouring as well because it was actually a good idea.)

By the time the majority of the Traitors had been either purged with extreme prejudice or driven into the Eye of Terror, however, Guilliman came around with his Codex idea again. Again, Dorn told Guilliman to leave his Legion alone, but this time Guilliman wouldn't take no for an answer and it became increasingly apparent that it was going to become a thing whether Dorn liked it or not. Dorn's Legion was going to be broken up. His father was dead. His [[Horus|best]] [[Sanguinius|friends]] were dead. Deep down, he felt that he'd failed the Emperor and the Great Crusade; if only he'd fortified Terra a little more or been at the Emperor's and Sanguinius' side to confront Horus they wouldn't be in this [[grimdark|complete and utter clusterfuck they were now mired in]]. The Emperor was dead, the Great Crusade over. There was no more need for an Emperor's Praetorian or an Imperial Crusader in this new galaxy where they could only cling on grimly to what they'd so laboriously managed to seize.

Luckily, in this moment of quiet despair in Dorn's life, [[Perturabo]] dropped the challenge for Dorn to come and break into his mightiest fortress. Dorn saw this as the perfect solution to his problem, rose seemingly blindingly to the obvious bait and took his sons to what he knew was a trap. He went in with no help, with no reinforcements, even without expectations or a battle plan. He'd moved on from self-injury and fury to suicidal bravery. He didn't expect to survive the Iron Cage. He went there with his sons so they could die holding up the ideals they'd believed in and that defined the Imperial Fists. When Guilliman arrived uninvited to 'save' the Imperial Fists, Dorn's legion was physically mauled, but spiritually intact once again. Dorn and his sons never exactly got over their guilt, but they were no longer defined by it. Dorn grudgingly accepted the Codex, but used the [[Feast of Blades]] and the Last Wall protocol to ensure that if humanity and the Imperium needed the VIIth Legion instead of the Imperial Fists, Black Templars, Crimson Fists and the others, the Defenders of Terra would answer the call. Dorn finally could accept the new reality of the Imperium, but made sure the Fists and their successors would continue to fight for the Emperor's original vision. Far from the kneeling submission of a broken man to Guilliman, this act was Dorn's way of staying true to the Imperium that had gone before without tearing apart the Imperium that was still standing.

Not all bad things though, since he split his legion into the ever raging [[Black Templars]] which remains ''the'' largest and busiest Chapter to date, and the conservative [[Crimson Fists]] who actually have brains and don't throw themselves wastefully into wars about glory or honour.

The Beast Arises book series revealed that Dorn still wasn't totally on board with the whole "let's divvy up our legions" thing (but then again, neither were [[Leman Russ]] and [[Lion El'Jonson]]), and so secretly created a last-resort plan known as 'The Last Wall'; if Terra were ever to come under direct threat again, then the Imperial Fists and their successor chapters would reunite as a full Legion in its defence. This turned out to be a good idea, as the Fists got their shit completely wrecked by some Orks at the beginning of the war (as in, there was exactly one survivor from the entire chapter). This sole survivor, Captain [[Slaughter Koorland]], fortunately proved to be a complete badass and got all the Fists' successors together to go and wreck greenskin faces, becoming Lord Commander of the Imperium and founding the [[Deathwatch]] along the way. Sadly, he eventually got killed by the Beast himself on Ullanor, rendering the OG Fists extinct. They were covertly reconstituted by members of other Imperial Fists second founding chapters later on, though, so it's all good. Plus he most likely had a bunch of gene-seed and who knows what so the original Fists were probably revived anyway.

(Not really, one Iron Warrior Warsmith, Honsou's predecessor, noticed how the Fists of the 41st Millennium fight differently from their Heresy-era selves)

The new Fists spent the next nine millennia or so generally getting shit done and beating the stuffing out of anyone who tried to mess with the Imperium. Highlights include helping to take out Drakan Vangorich after [[The Beheading]], being forced to lay siege to the Imperial Palace because of [[Goge Vandire|Space Caligula]], and repeatedly trying to kill one particularly crazy [[Shon'tu|Warsmith]].

During the 13th Black Crusade, said Warsmith and Daemon Prince [[Be'lakor]] invade the Phalanx, hoping to use it to blow up the Imperial Palace and thereby make [[Abaddon|Failbaddon]] look stupid(er) by comparison. The only Fists present to stop them are the 3rd Company, which is rebuilding after getting destroyed in a recent battle, and a few 1st Company veterans. Things don't go so well for the boys in yellow, so the Fists captain decides to send the Phalanx into the warp to prevent the Chaos forces from carrying out their plan. He also winds up using the Phalanx's guns to shoot off all the daemon-infested parts of the station, destroying a tenth of its total mass. Then the [[Legion of the Damned]] shows up to help them wreck the daemons, and Shon'tu finally gets properly killed. With that clusterfuck over, the Phalanx sets course for [[Cadia]], because if you've just won one impossible battle, you might as well go get involved in another one. They arrive just in time to nuke a chunk of the Black Fleet, along with a Blackstone Fortress, and then assist the Imperial fleet in evacuating the system after the planet finally falls. Later some of the other Fists show up in the nick of time to back up Girlyman and his forces on Luna.

As of 8th edition, the Fists have gotten back to doing what they do best: crusading and killing traitors. They re-earned their title as the Defenders of Terra by helping to defeat a Khornate invasion of the planet caused by the eruption of the Cicatrix Maledictum. After that, they joined up with the Indomitus Crusade for a while, during which they earned much praise from Guilliman himself. They also at some point decided to go smash the shit out of an Iron Warriors fortress world, the creatively named Ironhold, and invited a bunch of Cadian shock troopers and some Knight houses to give them a hand.

==Ultimate Badasses==

[[Image:275px-Imperial Fists Sternguard.jpg|thumb|right|Washing away the [[Rage|sour disposition]] most of us have towards [[Marines Malevolent|yellow armour]].]]

If you still doubt that the Imperial Fists are awesome, then look at this guy, First Captain [[Darnath Lysander]]. You see Lysander was a Terminator, he and almost the entire first company teleported down on a planet, all regular business, but the Chaos Cultists used the warp to send most of the company into a mountain (Good excuse for not loading the P-code into their GPS!). [[Just as planned]]. No one knows how that worked since exiting teleportation destroys all matter around the exit point, but whatever just roll with it. Lysander found the Company Captain dying, but before he died he gave him the relic thunder hammer named Fist of Dorn. After that, Lysander was named 1st Company Captain and went on to do so much crazy shit most people thought he was insane, but he was just awesome. Lysander led a force of Fists into a warp stormed planet, hey not his best move but nobody is perfect. Many thought Lysander and all those with him died, but they re-emerged out of the Warp in a hijacked Iron Warrior ship. You see, Lysander and his force were taken prisoner by the [[Iron Warriors]]. Eventually Lysander, without weapons or armor, escaped and fought his way out to freedom. When he returned to the Imperial Fists Chapter, several centuries had passed in the material universe. After they made sure he wasn't corrupted by the centuries he spent in [[Warp|that god forsaken place]], Lysander returned to his position as Captain of the 1st Company. Lysander then led a force to fuck up the Iron Warriors, and killed them all. Not forgetting he likes to hunt Titans on foot, getting his Titanhammer squads to reduce them to extra parts for use in the TV show "Scrapyard Wars". Also, he's technically older than even Commander Dante, with only Bjorn being an older living SM, since he was a sergeant (~approx 150yrs) in 567.m40, making him roughly 1600yrs old. No mention is ever made of what happened to the guy who was already leading the first company when Lysander returned. (Actually, he was named Chapter Champion and accepted it, presumably while giving Lysander a brofist of badassery)

In short, Lysander is badass, he's [[Mary Sue|not perfect]] (ironically, he's even less of a Mary Sue in the Matt-Ward written supplement for the Imperial Fists - as it turns out, he was demoted to 3rd Company Captain after a bout of stubbornness considered suicidal even by Imperial Fist standards led to the near-destruction of the 3rd Company), he's no smurf, but he is still awesome, and don't believe me, check Lexicanum out; http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Lysander. And he's tough as shit: 4 wounds @ 2+/3++ with eternal warrior to boot. And his hammer is arguably one of the best anti-tank weapons in the game. Nope, nothin' wrong here.

IMPORTANT NOTE: While many say that the Imperial Fists do not follow the Codex Astartes, this is in fact incorrect. While they do not follow it as obsessively as the Smurfs, the very reason why Dorn participated in the Iron Cage was not only to atone for the sin of letting the Emprah die, but also to create a force of hardened warriors ready to follow the Codex. If you read the unofficial 40 wiki (http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Imperial_Fists), you'll see that their adherence to it is second only to the Smurfs (at least until the appearance of [[Red Scorpions|these guys]]). A key difference however, is that the Fists combine the formidable wisdom contained in the Codex with actual brains and thus win more battles than the faggots in blue. Basically, their organization is the same as the Ultramarines but they view the Codex the same way Captain Titus does; as a useful set of guidelines and advice rather than a set of rules.

In fact, thanks to the existence of the Ultramarines' non-Codex Tyrannic War Veterans, the Imperial Fists are - in organizational terms - [[Derp|more Codex-adherent than the Ultramarines]].

If this '''still''' doesn't convince you, then consider the following.

==What it means to be an Imperial Fist==
You are an Imperial Fist, a member of the VII Legion, you are charged with the defense of Terra, the seat of Imperial Power. When the news came to you that Horus had betrayed mankind, it felt as if someone had placed a knife in your heart and left it there after twisting it and turning it. Horus, greatest of the Primarchs, had turned from the Emperor. This is impossible, he is either ill or deranged. The very core of your beliefs is rocked; if one such as he could turn, what about you? You steel yourself to do what must be done, trusting in your Primarch, who would never lead you astray. You slowly begin to tear down the Imperial Palace and in its place build a monstrosity of fire lanes, choke points, barricades, battlements, and gun pits. Razorwire replaces rose gardens; trenches replace esplanades, all by your hand. The Emperor is close but never seen; this makes you happy to know that he doesn’t see the horrors you commit to this edifice of his glory. You continue on for years until finally, the forces of the Warmaster are on the approach. Smashing aside all resistance, they fight their way to Terra and make orbit above the cradle of mankind. You take your post, readying your mind to kill whatever comes, warriors whom you might know or have even shared a similar battlement with. The warriors of the Blood Angels and White Scars lend their aid, but in your heart you know it isn’t enough. You know you will not give in to your fear, for you '''are''' fear. The skies darken in an unnatural storm, the drop ships of the traitors speed towards the planet. Fiery comets of malice come not to conquer, but to destroy. What spills from the bellies of the Stormbirds and Thunderhawks are not the noble warriors of the Legions you once knew, but twisted and corrupted mockeries of Space Marines. Spikes and kill trophies of loyalists hang from their backs in a grisly spectacle. You hold the line, you fire magazine after magazine into them. Decaying members of the Death Guard plod towards you, soaking up every round you fire and shambling forward as if against a light breeze. World Eaters throw themselves into your fire zone, bodies piling one on top of another, having no more effect than to slow their traitorous brethren. Creatures from nightmares assail you from all angles, battlements being no more tangible to them than wind to your armored gauntlet. Your efforts are not enough and slowly, inch-by-inch, they gain on you until you have to retreat deeper and deeper into the palace. Now, you really feel the pressure, your enhanced psyche is pushed to its limits. Warp-spawned abominations do battle with your brothers, reaping terrible rents in your defenses, the great cannons of your hated rivals, the Iron Warriors, pound night and day with out cease.

After months of this you still hold, you are still alive, you still are invigorated when the Primarch commands you. They will never take him from you, your rock and shelter. The Primarch will see you through this, he has never failed before, why should you now, at his greatest test, see him break. One day, you are swept up into a mob of your brothers. Horus has lowered his shields! The Emperor is leading a counter thrust! You grab whatever you can and continue in the fumbling ecstasy; this is your chance for revenge. This could end it all and the Great Crusade could begin again! Mankind will see even greater growth with the Emperor at its head, and you will live to see it; you must. Blood Angels, White Scars, Imperial Fists, Custodes, and even Imperial Soldiers fill the vast teleporter arrays. A green light fills your vision and when you are brought back to your senses the ship you once knew as the Vengeful Spirit lies before you. It has become a foul reflection of the ship you once walked through with your brothers from the Luna Wolves. You are alone, and for the first time in your life, physically scared. This is unlike anything you have ever seen or known. Monsters lay into you, the very material of the ship is anathema to you. In a great chamber you manage to link up with more loyalists. What luck! One of them knows where your group is located, and better yet the way to the last known rendezvous, Lupercal’s Court. Running through the corridors, you no longer take any notice of the battle around you, your combat reflexes take over and you fight on autopilot. You must get to the Primarch, he will know what to do. When you finally meet back up with him, it is not what you expect, it is what you feared. The Primarch lies weeping over the Emperor’s body, his ear pressed to the barely moving lips of the broken form of the man at whose word worlds moved and stars died. First Captain Sigismund, his black and white heraldry gore-spattered and his armor rent from dozens of weapons, is being restrained by Captain Polux. Members of the Huscarls kneel around the Primarch, sharing tear-filled glances. The Primarch wordlessly lifts the Emperor’s body and signals for the remaining Imperials to be teleported back to the surface.

The Primarch is a broken man. Having donned the black armor of mourning, he waits for Guilliman and his Ultramarines, Jonson and his Angels, and Russ and his Wolves. When they arrive it is not the homecoming they want. How dare they come here after what you have been through and demand status updates and military courtesies? What have they done? Who have they lost? You were there when the Emperor fell; where were the Ultramarines, and the Dark Angels, and the Space Wolves? Everyone you know is dead, everyone. You are the only remaining member of your company, of the three companies that made up the great company. The Legion went from being a glorious manifestation of the Emperor's power, to a ghost of its former glory. Only those ruined at Istvaan could know this pain. The Space Wolves are insufferable. They camp on the sites where you lost everything. You even see one sneer at a trench where you fought tooth and nail with a dark champion of the World Eaters, curse them. The Dark Angels are morbid, aloof, quiet. After time, though, you can suffer that. You even begrudge them a recounting of the Emperor’s fall. You feel ashamed as you do it. It is wrong to even think about that horrible scene ever again. You decide that you won't tell it again. The Blood Angels have long since left, what can a Legion do without its Primarch? Doomed to a slow death, you hope that you may fight alongside them again before the end. Lord Dorn quickly relinquishes command of Terra to Guilliman. You and the rest of the Imperial Fists board the Phalanx, and the Scouring begins.

On worlds that you once fought to conquer in the name of the Emperor, you now fight to liberate again, although this time you fight those who fought alongside you the first time. The Scouring takes years. More of your brothers live and die, especially die. You no longer joke with your friends after battles, because you have no friends remaining; and why would you make new ones when they will all be killed eventually? But not you, no you will live forever in this endless cycle of death, you will endure, for you are an Imperial Fist and sacrifice is your nature. The High Lords have decreed that the Legions will be broken up, so that treason of this magnitude can never happen again. Dorn will not bow to these councilors and mortals who had no part in the War. These men are more concerned with reacquiring the taxes and tithes of the worlds lost to the traitors and xenos than returning the Imperium to its former glory. It comes to a head when Guilliman declares Dorn no better than the traitors and accuses him of power-mongering. In your wisdom, you can see Guilliman’s point: Lord Dorn has been on Crusade since the Siege, he has sat out the most important meeting and forfeited his vote on the matters at hand. Though he conceals it deep down, you can see the disdain Guilliman has for your Legion, he no doubt thinks that if it had been him, the Emperor and Sanguinius would still be alive. You hate him for that. He would have fared no better, what right has he to judge you! You, who fought day and night with no rest, no respite! You, who watched the same patch of ground for weeks, ever vigilant! You, who was there to see the Emperor’s greatest mistake.

Lord Dorn relents, but only on one condition: that Guilliman allow him to fight the thrice-cursed Perturabo, alone, at his Eternal Fortress. The last charge of the Imperial Fists Legion. The chance to cleanse yourself through sacrifice. The battle is more bitter than the Siege, it is the explosion of hatred held by both Legions. At first, it seemed as if the battle would be fought in noble virtue, with steel and fire. But Perturabo has different plans for you. First comes the explosions, trapping you on the planet, then the ambushes from well-concealed tunnels. You reap a bloody toll upon the traitors but their spite knows no bounds. They slowly and surely break you apart, until again you are all alone, surrounded by the piled bodies of your brothers and foes. Night and day you fight alone, crawling on your belly through the no-mans-land, trying to find anyone, friend or foe. The shelling is constant, the Iron Warriors have no lack of ammunition. The ground becomes an ever-changing bog, the blood mixing with the rain, eventually covering every part of your armor until the gold of the Legion is completely covered. The days blur together and you no longer know how long you have been crawling, until fate intervenes and again you find yourself in the presence of the Primarch. He is not as you remember. His black armor is pitted and scarred, the mud covers most of it. The rest of the first company shares the harrowed appearance of the Primarch. The once proud Templars of Sigismund, who used to wear the finest tabards of rich cream, their company heraldry displayed by devotion markings now show their devotion in scars and burns. Their bolters have long since been discarded and they now use bits of chain and razorwire to keep their swords fastened to their arms. Sigismund is no longer the Champion you remember hurling back the traitors single-handed, but a relentless whirlwind of destruction. All caution thrown to the wind, the First Company charges the traitors at every opportunity, their losses only driving them to greater heights of rage. The Iron Warriors fall before them like long grass to a scythe, the traitors' only recourse is to shell their own positions. The fighting continues as such for what seems like years, every firefight seems like a lifetime. All military objectives have long been abandoned, the only mission is to find Perturabo and destroy him. The senior captains call for a breakout, but the Primarch will not relent, he will kill Perturabo. You continue on day and night until, one day, the tide turns. The Ultramarines have come. Their Thunderhawks bombard the traitor positions, their Battle Barges fire volley after volley into the central keep. Lord Dorn is incensed; when Guilliman makes landfall at your position you half expect the Primarch to strike him down, but it does not happen. As the last of your brothers board the Thunderhawk, Dorn takes one last look at the battlefield, and steps aboard wordlessly.

You leave over four hundred brothers un-recovered on the battlefield. That figure does not include the dead that have been brought back. The Legion is no more, it was able to end with its honor intact. The successors are formed, Lord Dorn gives Sigismund the first of the successors and commands him to keep true to the original virtues of the Astartes. The First Captain leads those still thirsty for vengeance on an Eternal Crusade, forever carrying the Legion's memory as a torch. Master Polux is given the other successor and takes the newest members of the Legion on Crusade as well, but not with the zeal of Sigismund’s Black Templars. Polux uses the bloodied fist as a metaphor for the Chapter. It symbolizes your tradition of sacrifice in the Emperor's name. The new Chapters take to the field in your Chapter's stead, winning much honor for the Primarch. You rebuild. It is a sombre process, few remain who fought at the Cage and fewer still who fought at the Siege. You see faces that might have been at there, but you aren’t sure. The Chapter slowly takes shape, with the Codex at its heart. You endure, ever more.

You continue on, true to the Emperor that was. When word reaches you of a Black Crusade driving into the heart of the Imperium, a chance for vengeance is at hand. The Primarch takes three hundred warriors to hold the forces of chaos back until the rest of the Chapter can join him. But, it does not happen. The Primarch is laid low, and you fight to recover his remains. It is the saddest moment of your life, the Primarch is gone, the Emperor is gone, and the Legion is gone. You bear his remains back to the Phalanx where they will rest for eternity. You endure. You relive your nightmares when Vandire causes a second Imperial Civil War, and you fight through the same corridors you once defended. The Tau menace is thwarted by you and the Ultramarines, fighting alongside each other once more. On Miral the horror of the Great Devourer is thrown back by your hand. You are there when First Captain Lysander returns in time to stop the Traitors from ruining the Imperium during the 13th Black Crusade. You fight across the bleak moors of Cadia, against the sons of the monster who crippled your Master so long ago; it is a wound that still drives so much of your being so many years later. You sacrifice and you believe. You will fight the enemies of the Emperor for all eternity, you endure, you sacrifice, you do not relent. That is what it is to be a Son of Dorn.

==Daily routine==

3:00-Reveille: The Imperial Fists are roused from their iron slabs and spiked beds to start the day. Morning Prayer is still an hour away, but it takes that long just to get past the locks and barricades they put up the night before. 
4:00-Morning Prayer: The Imperial Fists assemble for a sermon by the Chaplains. The poses of fealty they maintain are specifically designed to be the most physically uncomfortable possible. 
5:00-Morning Firing Rites: The Imperial Fists assemble to practice their firing drills. You can imagine everyone's surprise when the Chapter serfs learn that the Fists have built up fortifications around their firing ranges. 
6:00-Battle Practice: The Imperial Fists descend into the battle cages for practice in close combat and moving targets. Frequently the Imperial Fists will forgo medical attention for injuries. 
9:55-Milkshake and Cookies break: Nutrient fortified. 
10:00-Pain Stimulation: The Imperial Fists undergo pain stimulation and endurance tests. Such tests range from the Pain Glove to sitting naked in rooms where the temperature is designed to simulate the night-side of [[Inwit]] during winter. 
12:00-Midday meal: A light meal is prepared by the Chapter serfs. Showing pleasure at the taste earns you an hour in the Pain Glove. Rumors that Imperial Fists deliberately say they enjoyed the meal to get into the Pain Glove have never been proven. 
12:30-Tactical Indoctrination: The Imperial Fists undergo tactical indoctrination on what sort of enemies they can expect to be crusading against in the near future, how to best design fortifications to stop them, and what sort of pain contact with their weapons causes. 
16:00-Evening Firing rites: The Imperial Fists engage in evening firing drills. 
20:00-Evening Prayer: The Imperial Fists assemble for a sermon by the Chaplains. 
21:00-Evening Meal: A feast is prepared for the Imperial Fists by the Chapter serfs. 
22:00-Evening Fortifications: The Imperial Fists set up fortifications in their cells to make sure no one can get into their room and surprise them while sleeping. 
23:00-Rest: The Imperial Fists retire to their iron slabs or spiked beds for the evening.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Name
!Class
!Value
!Wargear
!Quantity
!References
|-
|Guardian
|Troops (Aeldari)
|9 Points
|Mesh Armour, Shuriken Catapult and Plasma Grenades
|60
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Guardian]
|-
|Neophyte
|Troops (Imperium)
|14 Points
|Boltgun, Bolt Pistol, Frag and Krak Grenades
|21
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Tactical_Marine]
|-
|Spider
|Fast Attack (Aeldari)
|18 Points
|Heavy Aspect Armour, Death Spinner and Warp Jump Generator
|162
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Warp_Spiders]
|-
|Devastator
|Troops (Imperium)
|24 Points
|Heavy Bolter, Bolt Pistol, Frag and Krak Grenades
|3
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Devastator_Marine]
|-
|Templar
|Troops (Imperium)
|29 Points
|Plasma Gun, Bolt Pistol, Frag and Krak Grenades
|3
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Veteran_Marines]
|-
|Bazooka
|Troops (Aeldari)
|30 Points (No cost for 3 due to Guardian Battlehost)
|Heavy Weapon Platform with Eldar Missile Launcher
|6
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Craftworld]
|-
|Culverin
|Heavy Support (Aeldari)
|30 Points
|Support Weapon with Pair of Guardians and Shadow Weaver
|3
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Vaul]
|-
|Blademaster
|Elites (Imperium)
|35 Points
|Terminator Armour, Storm Bolter and Power Sword
|5
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Darnath_Lysander]
|-
|Warlock
|HQ (Aeldari)
|40 Points
|Rune Armour, Shuriken Pistol and Singing Spear
|14
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Warlock]
|-
|Terminator
|Elites (Imperium)
|40 Points
|Terminator Armour, Storm Bolter and Chainfist
|35
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Terminators]
|-
|Exarch
|Fast Attack (Aeldari)
|58 Points
|Heavy Aspect Armour, Death Spinner, Pair of Powerblades and Warp Jump Generator
|18
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Exarch]
|-
|Centurion
|Elites (Imperium)
|60 Points (70 Points for leader of every 6)
|Twin-Linked Melagun, Hurricane Bolter and Dual Siege Drills
|30
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Centurion]
|-
|Cataphract
|Elites (Imperium)
|60 Points
|Terminator Armour, Assault Cannon and Chainfist
|10
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Assault_Cannon]
|-
|Sergeant
|Troops (Imperium)
|64 Points
|Plasma Pistol, Power Fist, Frag and Krak Grenades
|3
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Sergeant_(Space_Marine)]
|-
|Lancer
|Elites (Imperium)
|70 Points (80 Points for leader of every 6)
|Twin-Linked Lascannon and Hurricane Bolter
|6
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Lascannon]
|-
|War Walker
|Heavy Support (Aeldari)
|75 Points
|Shuriken Cannon, Starcannon, Power Field and Spirit Stones
|3
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/War_Walker]
|-
|Vyper
|Fast Attack (Aeldari)
|85 Points
|Shuriken Cannon, Starcannon, Holo-Field and Spirit Stones
|6
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Vyper]
|-
|Farseer
|HQ (Aeldari)
|105 Points
|Rune Armour, Shuriken Pistol, Singing Spear and Ghosthelm
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Farseer]
|-
|Dreadnought
|Elites (Imperium)
|135 Points
|Seismic Hammers with Built-in Meltaguns, Hurricane Bolters, Searchlight, Smoke Launchers and Extra Armour
|3
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Ironclad_Dreadnought]
|-
|Champion
|HQ (Imperium)
|140 Points
|Armour of Faith, Black Sword, Bolt Pistol, Frag and Krak Grenades
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Emperor's_Champion]
|-
|Chaplain
|HQ (Imperium)
|150 Points
|Master-Crafted Plasma Pistol, Crozius Arcanum, Rosarius, Frag and Krak Grenades
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Merek_Grimaldus]
|-
|Fire Prism
|Heavy Support (Aeldari)
|160 Points
|Prism Cannon, Shuriken Cannon, Holo-Field and Spirit Stones
|15
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Fire_Prism]
|-
|Marshall
|HQ (Imperium)
|180 Points
|Sword of the High Marshalls, Combi-Melta, Iron Halo, Frag and Krak Grenades
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Helbrecht]
|-
|Avatar
|Lords of War (Aeldari)
|195 Points
|Wailing Doom
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Avatar]
|-
|Raider
|Heavy Support (Imperium)
|275 Points
|Twin-Linked Heavy Bolter, Dual Twin-Linked Lascannons, Storm Bolter, Multi-Melta, Searchlight, Smoke Launchers and Extra Armour
|11
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Land_Raider]
|-
|Wraithknight
|Lords of War (Aeldari)
|325 Points
|Dual Heavy Wraithcannons and Dual Shuriken Cannons
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Wraithknight]
|}

==See Also==

*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdlAerT2aT0 Their theme], done by [[HMKids]], Fucking [[Awesome]]!
*Read "The Beast Arises: I am Slaughter", by Dan Abnett: They got LITERALLY destroyed to the last man, this being one Slaughter Koorland, does he give to despair and runs away throwing a tantrum? No, he mans up and activates the Last Wall protocol, reforming the Imperial Fist in Legion strength.
*"Space Marine", by Ian Watson.

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:5bb1320db65801446d0238d653385da7.jpg|Line Holding Specialty. Angry Prussians in Space FTW!
File:Marcius Flavius Color.jpg|[[Marcius Flavius]], the first (and only) space marine assigned to a Federation starship in the historic Federation-Imperium officer exchange program.
Image:Lysanderart.jpg|First Captain (later Third Captain) Lysander.
Image:RogalDorn.jpg|Rogal Dorn.
</gallery>

{{Template:Marines-Official}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Imperial]][[Category:Space Marines]]

Word Bearers

2017-12-23T19:02:01Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

{{Infobox Traitor Legion
|Name = Word Bearers
|Heraldry = [[Image:Post-Heresy Daemon Head.jpg|250px]]
|Battle Cry = Verses from the Book of Lorgar
|Original Name = Imperial Heralds
|Number = XVII
|Primarch = [[Lorgar|Lorgar Aurelian]]
|Original Homeworld = Colchis
|Current Homeworld = Sicarus
|Champion = [[Erebus]], [[Kor Phaeron]]
|Specialty = Mass Indoctrination, Summoning [[Daemon]]s, Cult Uprisings.
|Strength = Legion strength
|Allegiance = [[Chaos Undivided]]
|Colours = Dark crimson and steel
}}
''"By its very nature, theology tends - and under certain conditions, must always tend - to become demonology."''

— Thomas Mann, "Doctor Faustus"

''"From the fires of betrayal unto the blood of revenge we bring the name of Lorgar, the Bearer of the Word, the favoured son of Chaos, all praise be given unto him. From those what would not heed we offer praise to those who do, that they might turn their gaze our way and gift us with the boon of pain, to turn the galaxy red with blood, and feed the hunger of the gods."''

— Excerpt from the three hundred and forty-first Book of the Epistles of Lorgar.

''"We are twice armed if we fight with faith."''

— Plato

''"Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not [[Eldar|omnipotent]].
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is [[Ork|malevolent]].
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh [[Tau|evil]]?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him [[Imperial Guard|God]]?"''

— Epicurus

The Word Bearers are a legion of [[Chaos Space Marines]]. Their [[Primarch]] is [[Lorgar]].

==History==
There is a phenomenon of psychology that some people are prone to zealotry. It does not matter what they believe in, when they come to believe in something they believe in it with all their heart. This type of individual who is likely to end up becoming a fanatical member to a certain ideology will if they somehow become disillusioned with it, often find it easier to adopt an opposing or opposite ideology and be just as fanatical to said new cause rather than simply moderating their commitment to their first ideology as needed and making caveats and exceptions to its general principles. The Word Bearers are this phenomenon at its most extreme.
===Early History===
[[File:Dark_apostle_by_kunkka.jpg|250px|left|thumb|Why hello there unbeliever. Would you mind a small theological chat?]]
The Emperor used the genetic templates of the Primarchs to create the Legiones Astartes after the powers of Chaos stole the gestating Primarchs. Those who received gene-seed from template number seventeen stood apart from their brother Astartes in duty and outlook. They fought with utter devotion and a fanatical zeal. Their original recruits were drawn from the sons of defeated enemies, raised to know the crimes of their fathers and the price of the Emperor's forgiveness. Thus while the other Legions went to war with righteousness, the XVIIth fought with the cold fury that only the condemned and redeemed could know. While other Legions took some time to acquire formal names, the XVIIth was named the Imperial Heralds almost immediately after their founding. This was due to their early role: to deliver the Emperor's ultimatum of submission or destruction.
Upon defeating an enemy, the Imperial Heralds would empty their libraries and records of any contents deemed heretical or sorcerous. Condemned works, individuals, and buildings would be destroyed in the name of the Imperial Truth (though they also tended to exterminate the entire population of the places they conquered; see Antarctica). The Imperial Heralds repeated this process all across Terra during the Unification Wars. This gave the Imperial Heralds a rarely-spoken nickname among the greater Imperium: the Iconoclasts.

===Great Crusade===

[[File:Daemon world by majesticchicken.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Okay, so the Imperial Cult might not exactly be hot chickenwings with thousand island sauce, but worshipping Chaos might not be the best alternative.]]

The planet Colchis was full of people that worshipped a watered down version of chaos. Primarch XVII was adopted by Kor Phaeron, one of the chief priests, and given the name Lorgar. Lorgar received a vision of the Emperor and formed a religion around him, leading to a six-year religious civil war that Lorgar's faction eventually won, shortly before the Emperor came to Colchis. During the Great Crusade, they bore the word of the Emperor to new worlds, wiping out any traces of dissenting faiths as they assimilated cultures into the Imperial way of life, including enforcing the worship of the God-Emperor.

Their thorough attention to this kept them far behind the pace of other expeditionary fleets and drew the ire of the Emperor. He repeatedly made it clear that he did not consider himself a god and wanted Lorgar to knock it off and catch up with the other fleets. Lorgar responded by penning the original Lectitio Divinitatus, which would much later form the core of the beliefs of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor. Finally, the Emperor had enough and ordered the Ultramarines to make an example of him. They torched the world of Khur and called the entire Word Bearers legion to kneel in its ashes before Guilliman, Malcador, and the Emperor.

To say Lorgar was devastated would be an understatement. He spent an entire month in seclusion, taking only the advice of Kor Phaeron and First Chaplain Erebus. They revealed to him that they had kept the old faith alive and that many worlds appeared to have religions that aligned with it, suggesting a more primal truth than worship of the God-Emperor. They convinced Lorgar that the primordial truth was truer than the Imperial Truth and he took his legion on a pilgrimage to the Eye of Terror to learn more about Chaos.

===Chaos===

They were the guys who used to be really, really, really loyal to the [[Emprah]]. Like, these guys used to be the Church of the Emprah. After the [[Horus Heresy]], they became the complete opposite. Now they go around fucking up the Emprah's sepulchre planets, relic worlds, and cardinal worlds, setting up cathedrals to the [[Chaos Gods]] in their places. They are also notable for being the one [[Chaos]] legion to still have [[Chaplain]]s, known as [[Dark Apostle]]s, which is probably because they invented the idea of Space Marine preachers and no other traitor Legions wanted them after the Horus Heresy was over, because there is little sense in having morale officer in Chaos force. Unlike the other Chaos legions and renegade chapters, [[Red Corsairs]] notwithstanding, these guys actually managed to sort of keep their shit together rather than having everyone with a slightly fancier costume take his ball and go home. They're sorta like [[grimdark]] Chaos <s>Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS. Except the Word Bearers make <s>the Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS look like peace-loving atheists in comparison.

Their hobbies include human sacrifice, prayers to the [[Chaos Gods]], [[daemon]] summoning, and occult study.

First Chaplain Erebus was actually pretty much the driving force behind Horus turning to Chaos. At the climax of ''Horus Rising'', Erebus steals a weapon from the [[Interex]], which caused them to get all butthurt and blame [[Horus]] and the Luna Wolves for the theft. In the next book, ''False Gods'', Horus and the merry Luna Wolves take a trip to Davin IV on Erebus's advice, during which all hell breaks loose and Horus takes some wounds and comes as close as a [[primarch]] can to a near-death experience (he basically took a nap). [[Abaddon]], having as many daddy issues as Horus, decided it'd be a good idea to follow the advice of Erebus and take Horus to a local temple run by the serpent-worshiping locals, where it was said he could be healed. Erebus sent Horus into a trance and basically whispered sweet nothings about [[Chaos]] into his ear the entire time, planting the very first seed of corruption.

==Organization==
Yeah, we know what you're thinking: organization? Of a Traitor Legion? While it may surprise you, the Word Bearers still function as an organized Legion (though much looser than the Legiones Astartes). Ironically, their uttermost commitment to Chaos as a religion gives them a semblance of order (DOUBLE HERESY?) As such, they have a clearly designated hierarchy and command structure. While Lorgar remains the ultimate master of the Word Bearers, in reality he has allowed command to fall as such:

*'''Master of the Faith''': The de jure head of the Word Bearers in Lorgar's absence, currently held by First Captain [[Kor Phaeron]].

*'''Chief Dark Apostle''': The head of the priesthood, and true power behind the throne of the legion, currently held by [[Erebus]].

*'''Dark Council''': A collection of Dark Apostles who oversee the overall actions of the Legion, and confirm the ascension of other Dark Apostles.

*'''Dark Apostle''': spiritual leader of a Host, the primary organization of the Word Bearers following the Horus Heresy. Dark Apostles are confirmed by the Dark Council and in turn make the decisions of the rank and advancement for the Host.

*'''Coryphaus''': The senior military commander of a host, comparable to a [[Chapter Master]] or [[First Captain]]. The Coryphaus leads the Host's returns during religious ceremonies (and trust us, the Word Bearers have a lot of religious ceremonies) and makes all tactical decisions during actual combat, freeing up the Dark Apostle to better commune with the Chaos Gods.

*'''Icon Bearers''': A Word Bearer charged with carrying the Icon of the XVII Legion in battle, similar to a Company Standard Bearer in a [[Space Marine Chapter]].

*'''Champion''': The leader of Word Bearer squads, know as coteries. Comparable to a Squad Captain from the Legiones Astartes.

*'''Aspiring Champion''': Another Squad leader, comparable to a [[Brother-Sergeant|Sergeant]].

*'''Anointed''': The [[Terminator]]s of a Host.

*'''Gal Vorbak''': The [[Possessed Marine]]s of a Host.

*'''Warrior-Brother''': The rank and file soldiers of a host.

==Daily Rituals==

*04:00: Morning Prayer: The Word Bearers are roused from their cells to begin the day with sermons from the Book of Lorgar read by the Dark Apostle. Prayer lasts four hours, one dedicated to each of the Chaos Gods.
*08:00: Morning Firing Rites: The Word Bearers engage in target practice. Often using human slaves captured during raids.
*09:00: Battle Practice: The Word Bearers descend to the practice cages for training.
*12:00: Midday Meal: A light meal is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Cooking the meal improperly will often see the Legion Serf become the next meal.
*12:30: Tactical Indoctrination: The Word Bearers gather for a tactical briefing, showing which planets they will be invading, and locations of cathedrals to the False Emperor which must be destroyed.
*14:00: Evening Firing Rites: The Word Bearers gather for target practice.
*15:00: Evening Prayer: The Word Bearers gather for the Dark Apostle to lead them in prayer. Daemonic pacts are often made during Evening Prayer, and Marines may be blessed with possession.
*19:00: Evening Meal: A feast is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Sometimes Legion Serfs are on the menu.
*20:00: Evening Maintenance: Word Bearers will be stripped of their [[Power Armour]] (assuming they can still remove it) for repairs to be completed. Sometimes Warrior-Brothers will see the Apothecary to check on the status of mutations.
*00:00: Rest Period: The Word Bearers retire to their cells for rest.

==Famous Word Bearers==
In [[Dawn of War|Dark Crusade,]] the Dark Apostle [[Eliphas]] leads a warband of Word Bearers to take over Kronus. [[Awesome]] ensues.

In the videogame [[Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate]], an ENTIRE Word Bearers ARMY OF 10,000 MARINES is lead by the Chaos LORD Zymran, who is the main antagonist of the game. Apart from sounding MANLY, he does nothing but taunt the Ultramarines like a saturday morning cartoon villain (''Seriously all he needs is that large mustache to twirl and he'll be as contrived as the [[Abbadon|Warmaster]] himself''). Ultimately somewhat forgettable.

There's also some faggot named Marduk, from the book series, as well as his awesome terminator Coryphaus, Kol Badar.

Amongst [[/tg/]], the most famous Word Bearer would be [[Dranon]].

{{Template:Chaos-Official}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Chaos]][[Category:Space Marines]]

Word Bearers

2017-12-23T19:01:27Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

Word Bearers

2017-12-23T19:00:46Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

{{Infobox Traitor Legion
|Name = Word Bearers
|Heraldry = [[Image:Post-Heresy Daemon Head.jpg|250px]]
|Battle Cry = Verses from the Book of Lorgar
|Original Name = Imperial Heralds
|Number = XVII
|Primarch = [[Lorgar|Lorgar Aurelian]]
|Original Homeworld = Colchis
|Current Homeworld = Sicarus
|Champion = [[Erebus]], [[Kor Phaeron]]
|Specialty = Mass Indoctrination, Summoning [[Daemon]]s, Cult Uprisings.
|Strength = Legion strength
|Allegiance = [[Chaos Undivided]]
|Colours = Dark crimson and steel
}}
''"By its very nature, theology tends - and under certain conditions, must always tend - to become demonology."''

— Thomas Mann, "Doctor Faustus"

''"From the fires of betrayal unto the blood of revenge we bring the name of Lorgar, the Bearer of the Word, the favoured son of Chaos, all praise be given unto him. From those what would not heed we offer praise to those who do, that they might turn their gaze our way and gift us with the boon of pain, to turn the galaxy red with blood, and feed the hunger of the gods."''

— Excerpt from the three hundred and forty-first Book of the Epistles of Lorgar.

''"We are twice armed if we fight with faith."''

— Plato

''"Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is not [[Eldar|omnipotent]].
Is he able, but not willing? Then he is [[Orks|malevolent]].
Is he both able and willing? Then whence cometh [[Tau Empire|evil]]?
Is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him [[Astra Militarum|God]]?"''

— Epicurus

The Word Bearers are a legion of [[Chaos Space Marines]]. Their [[Primarch]] is [[Lorgar]].

==History==
There is a phenomenon of psychology that some people are prone to zealotry. It does not matter what they believe in, when they come to believe in something they believe in it with all their heart. This type of individual who is likely to end up becoming a fanatical member to a certain ideology will if they somehow become disillusioned with it, often find it easier to adopt an opposing or opposite ideology and be just as fanatical to said new cause rather than simply moderating their commitment to their first ideology as needed and making caveats and exceptions to its general principles. The Word Bearers are this phenomenon at its most extreme.
===Early History===
[[File:Dark_apostle_by_kunkka.jpg|250px|left|thumb|Why hello there unbeliever. Would you mind a small theological chat?]]
The Emperor used the genetic templates of the Primarchs to create the Legiones Astartes after the powers of Chaos stole the gestating Primarchs. Those who received gene-seed from template number seventeen stood apart from their brother Astartes in duty and outlook. They fought with utter devotion and a fanatical zeal. Their original recruits were drawn from the sons of defeated enemies, raised to know the crimes of their fathers and the price of the Emperor's forgiveness. Thus while the other Legions went to war with righteousness, the XVIIth fought with the cold fury that only the condemned and redeemed could know. While other Legions took some time to acquire formal names, the XVIIth was named the Imperial Heralds almost immediately after their founding. This was due to their early role: to deliver the Emperor's ultimatum of submission or destruction.
Upon defeating an enemy, the Imperial Heralds would empty their libraries and records of any contents deemed heretical or sorcerous. Condemned works, individuals, and buildings would be destroyed in the name of the Imperial Truth (though they also tended to exterminate the entire population of the places they conquered; see Antarctica). The Imperial Heralds repeated this process all across Terra during the Unification Wars. This gave the Imperial Heralds a rarely-spoken nickname among the greater Imperium: the Iconoclasts.

===Great Crusade===

[[File:Daemon world by majesticchicken.jpg|thumb|right|350px|Okay, so the Imperial Cult might not exactly be hot chickenwings with thousand island sauce, but worshipping Chaos might not be the best alternative.]]

The planet Colchis was full of people that worshipped a watered down version of chaos. Primarch XVII was adopted by Kor Phaeron, one of the chief priests, and given the name Lorgar. Lorgar received a vision of the Emperor and formed a religion around him, leading to a six-year religious civil war that Lorgar's faction eventually won, shortly before the Emperor came to Colchis. During the Great Crusade, they bore the word of the Emperor to new worlds, wiping out any traces of dissenting faiths as they assimilated cultures into the Imperial way of life, including enforcing the worship of the God-Emperor.

Their thorough attention to this kept them far behind the pace of other expeditionary fleets and drew the ire of the Emperor. He repeatedly made it clear that he did not consider himself a god and wanted Lorgar to knock it off and catch up with the other fleets. Lorgar responded by penning the original Lectitio Divinitatus, which would much later form the core of the beliefs of the Temple of the Saviour Emperor. Finally, the Emperor had enough and ordered the Ultramarines to make an example of him. They torched the world of Khur and called the entire Word Bearers legion to kneel in its ashes before Guilliman, Malcador, and the Emperor.

To say Lorgar was devastated would be an understatement. He spent an entire month in seclusion, taking only the advice of Kor Phaeron and First Chaplain Erebus. They revealed to him that they had kept the old faith alive and that many worlds appeared to have religions that aligned with it, suggesting a more primal truth than worship of the God-Emperor. They convinced Lorgar that the primordial truth was truer than the Imperial Truth and he took his legion on a pilgrimage to the Eye of Terror to learn more about Chaos.

===Chaos===

They were the guys who used to be really, really, really loyal to the [[Emprah]]. Like, these guys used to be the Church of the Emprah. After the [[Horus Heresy]], they became the complete opposite. Now they go around fucking up the Emprah's sepulchre planets, relic worlds, and cardinal worlds, setting up cathedrals to the [[Chaos Gods]] in their places. They are also notable for being the one [[Chaos]] legion to still have [[Chaplain]]s, known as [[Dark Apostle]]s, which is probably because they invented the idea of Space Marine preachers and no other traitor Legions wanted them after the Horus Heresy was over, because there is little sense in having morale officer in Chaos force. Unlike the other Chaos legions and renegade chapters, [[Red Corsairs]] notwithstanding, these guys actually managed to sort of keep their shit together rather than having everyone with a slightly fancier costume take his ball and go home. They're sorta like [[grimdark]] Chaos <s>Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS. Except the Word Bearers make <s>the Taliban</s> <s>Al-Qaeda</s> ISIS look like peace-loving atheists in comparison.

Their hobbies include human sacrifice, prayers to the [[Chaos Gods]], [[daemon]] summoning, and occult study.

First Chaplain Erebus was actually pretty much the driving force behind Horus turning to Chaos. At the climax of ''Horus Rising'', Erebus steals a weapon from the [[Interex]], which caused them to get all butthurt and blame [[Horus]] and the Luna Wolves for the theft. In the next book, ''False Gods'', Horus and the merry Luna Wolves take a trip to Davin IV on Erebus's advice, during which all hell breaks loose and Horus takes some wounds and comes as close as a [[primarch]] can to a near-death experience (he basically took a nap). [[Abaddon]], having as many daddy issues as Horus, decided it'd be a good idea to follow the advice of Erebus and take Horus to a local temple run by the serpent-worshiping locals, where it was said he could be healed. Erebus sent Horus into a trance and basically whispered sweet nothings about [[Chaos]] into his ear the entire time, planting the very first seed of corruption.

==Organization==
Yeah, we know what you're thinking: organization? Of a Traitor Legion? While it may surprise you, the Word Bearers still function as an organized Legion (though much looser than the Legiones Astartes). Ironically, their uttermost commitment to Chaos as a religion gives them a semblance of order (DOUBLE HERESY?) As such, they have a clearly designated hierarchy and command structure. While Lorgar remains the ultimate master of the Word Bearers, in reality he has allowed command to fall as such:

*'''Master of the Faith''': The de jure head of the Word Bearers in Lorgar's absence, currently held by First Captain [[Kor Phaeron]].

*'''Chief Dark Apostle''': The head of the priesthood, and true power behind the throne of the legion, currently held by [[Erebus]].

*'''Dark Council''': A collection of Dark Apostles who oversee the overall actions of the Legion, and confirm the ascension of other Dark Apostles.

*'''Dark Apostle''': spiritual leader of a Host, the primary organization of the Word Bearers following the Horus Heresy. Dark Apostles are confirmed by the Dark Council and in turn make the decisions of the rank and advancement for the Host.

*'''Coryphaus''': The senior military commander of a host, comparable to a [[Chapter Master]] or [[First Captain]]. The Coryphaus leads the Host's returns during religious ceremonies (and trust us, the Word Bearers have a lot of religious ceremonies) and makes all tactical decisions during actual combat, freeing up the Dark Apostle to better commune with the Chaos Gods.

*'''Icon Bearers''': A Word Bearer charged with carrying the Icon of the XVII Legion in battle, similar to a Company Standard Bearer in a [[Space Marine Chapter]].

*'''Champion''': The leader of Word Bearer squads, know as coteries. Comparable to a Squad Captain from the Legiones Astartes.

*'''Aspiring Champion''': Another Squad leader, comparable to a [[Brother-Sergeant|Sergeant]].

*'''Anointed''': The [[Terminator]]s of a Host.

*'''Gal Vorbak''': The [[Possessed Marine]]s of a Host.

*'''Warrior-Brother''': The rank and file soldiers of a host.

==Daily Rituals==

*04:00: Morning Prayer: The Word Bearers are roused from their cells to begin the day with sermons from the Book of Lorgar read by the Dark Apostle. Prayer lasts four hours, one dedicated to each of the Chaos Gods.
*08:00: Morning Firing Rites: The Word Bearers engage in target practice. Often using human slaves captured during raids.
*09:00: Battle Practice: The Word Bearers descend to the practice cages for training.
*12:00: Midday Meal: A light meal is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Cooking the meal improperly will often see the Legion Serf become the next meal.
*12:30: Tactical Indoctrination: The Word Bearers gather for a tactical briefing, showing which planets they will be invading, and locations of cathedrals to the False Emperor which must be destroyed.
*14:00: Evening Firing Rites: The Word Bearers gather for target practice.
*15:00: Evening Prayer: The Word Bearers gather for the Dark Apostle to lead them in prayer. Daemonic pacts are often made during Evening Prayer, and Marines may be blessed with possession.
*19:00: Evening Meal: A feast is prepared by the Legion Serfs. Sometimes Legion Serfs are on the menu.
*20:00: Evening Maintenance: Word Bearers will be stripped of their [[Power Armour]] (assuming they can still remove it) for repairs to be completed. Sometimes Warrior-Brothers will see the Apothecary to check on the status of mutations.
*00:00: Rest Period: The Word Bearers retire to their cells for rest.

==Famous Word Bearers==
In [[Dawn of War|Dark Crusade,]] the Dark Apostle [[Eliphas]] leads a warband of Word Bearers to take over Kronus. [[Awesome]] ensues.

In the videogame [[Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate]], an ENTIRE Word Bearers ARMY OF 10,000 MARINES is lead by the Chaos LORD Zymran, who is the main antagonist of the game. Apart from sounding MANLY, he does nothing but taunt the Ultramarines like a saturday morning cartoon villain (''Seriously all he needs is that large mustache to twirl and he'll be as contrived as the [[Abbadon|Warmaster]] himself''). Ultimately somewhat forgettable.

There's also some faggot named Marduk, from the book series, as well as his awesome terminator Coryphaus, Kol Badar.

Amongst [[/tg/]], the most famous Word Bearer would be [[Dranon]].

{{Template:Chaos-Official}}
[[Category:Warhammer 40,000]][[Category:Chaos]][[Category:Space Marines]]

Primarch

2017-12-22T23:11:56Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

[[Image:Primarchs big.JPG|thumb|right|500px|Several of the Primarchs at the Triumph of the Ullanor Crusade. From left to right: Sanguinius, Mortarion, Magnus the Red, Angron, Jaghatai Khan, Lorgar, Rogal Dorn, Horus, and Fulgrim.]]
{{Topquote|Man must become stronger, more profound and more evil.|Friedrich Nietzsche, Thus Spoke Zarathustra: A Book for All and None}}
{{Topquote|According to the word of God, the meek would someday inherit the earth. Someday. But God never accounted for the mighty.|Norman McCay, Kingdom Come}}
The '''Primarchs''' were the twenty ([[Omegon|-one]]) genetically-engineered "sons" of the [[Emperor]]. Using his own DNA in their creation, the Primarchs were designed to be far superior to even [[Space Marines]]: they were taller, stronger, faster and more intelligent. They were also incredibly charismatic and were well suited to their role as the generals and leaders of the Imperium of Man.
Such a pity then that they ended up being bunch of squabbling siblings who were responsible for plunging the Imperium into its current messed up state. Even the loyalist primarchs contributed to screwing things up good and proper, by either disappearing, getting killed or failing to keep the Imperium along their father's vision.

==History==
[[File:Warmaster's_Coronation.jpg|300px|left|thumb|Horus Lupercal being made Warmaster of the Imperium in Ullanor. From center counter-clockwise: Horus, the Emperor, Magnus, Mortarion, Lorgar, Angron, Jaghatai Khan, Rogal Dorn, Rogal Dorn's mustache, Fulgrim and Sanguinius.]]
The Primarchs were created in a secret underground laboratory on what used to be the Himalayas, under the tightest security. All of them were derived from a subset of the Emperor's DNA that served as a template, which was altered differently for each of the Primarchs; it is also thought that he engineered them spiritually as well using long-forgotten psychic techniques. As the [[Raven Guard]] discovered after the Emperor granted them access to the original data from the Primarchs' creation, many of the Primarchs' gene-samples were wildly divergent from the original template- some had long gene sequences deleted, while others had non-human DNA spliced into them for reasons only known to the Emperor. (A particularly intriguing discovery was one sample labeled "[[Leman Russ|Subject VI]]", [[Furry| which had extensive amounts of canine DNA added to it]].)

The Emperor's original plan was to have his superhuman creations mature safely in his lab and guide them from 'birth' toward the role he'd foreseen for them. However, due to insidious dickery and in spite of the safeguards the Emperor had set up, the forces of [[Chaos]] were able to spirit the Primarchs away from the laboratory right before they would emerge from their pods and scatter them across the universe (Conveniently, the canine sample get scattered to a wolf-planet) [[Just as planned]]. Somehow, the Emperor knew his sons were still alive but had no clue to where they could be nor any immediate way to search for them. So he took it in stride, shrugged it off as a minor setback (unknowingly, this would come to bite him back in the ass nastily decennia later) and went ahead with the second part of his plan: his Space Marine project. Using DNA samples from each Primarch before they were abducted, the Emperor created twenty legions of [[Space Marines]], in what would later be called the [[First Founding]]. They would form the core of the armies He needed to conquer the galaxy, and the absence of the Primarch leading those would only serve as a motivation for the warriors to search for them.

One consequence of the abduction, however was that each of the young Primarchs were forced to adapt to the lifestyle on their new homeworld, something which would influence and mould them throughout their lives. The Primarchs rapidly grew to adulthood and quickly rose to power, often becoming the leaders of their world. As the Emperor crusaded to unify the galaxy he would occasionally stumble upon another long-lost son. When this happened, the Emperor would hold a celebration in honor of this discovery, give the Primarch their Legion to command, then tell them to [[Angron|fuck]] [[Mortarion|off]] [[Lorgar|and start]] [[Alpharius|conquering]] [[Perturabo|worlds]] while he [[Horus|fapped]] [[Rogal Dorn|to]] [[Sanguinius|his]] [[Leman Russ|favoured]] [[Roboute Guilliman|offspring]]. The Emperor was a [[Eldrad|dick]] like that. (Or rather, he never saw the Primarchs as 'sons', just as carefully crafted tools to enforce his will and vision so he in essence made them get at it on the double to catch up with His schedule. Which is actually even more [[Cegorach|Dickish]].)

The first Primarch the Emperor discovered was Horus, who would become the Emperor's favoured son. The majority of Primarchs somehow recognized the Emperor on sight, immediately pledging their allegiance to their father. A few (such as Leman Russ and Vulkan) only swore allegiance after being bested in a contest. The only exception is Angron, who outright refused to follow the Emperor as he preferred to die in battle along with his rebels brothers and sisters in their fight against the oppressive Not-Romans. The Emperor simply shrugged and abducted his son, leaving Angron's followers to get slaughtered. Angron never really got over that dick move.

Primarch discovery order:
*1.Horus
*2.Leman Russ
*3.DELETED FROM IMPERIAL RECORDS
*4.Ferrus Manus
*5.Fulgrim
*6.Vulkan
*7.Rogal Dorn
*8.Roboute Guilliman
*9.Magnus the Red
*10.Sanguinius
*11.Lion El'Jonson
*12.Perturabo
*13.Mortarion
*14.Lorgar
*15.Jaghatai Khan
*16.Konrad Curze
*17.Angron
*18.DELETED FROM IMPERIAL RECORDS
*19.Corax
*20.Alpharius Omegon

At the end of the period known as the [[Great Crusade]], Horus, who had recently been promoted to the title of Warmaster, fell to Chaos and rebelled. It didn't take long for eight other of his fellow Primarchs to join his side against the Emperor, resulting in a full-scale civil war known as the [[Horus Heresy]]. Funnily enough, most of the Primarchs who sided with Horus were those who felt that the Emperor had taken a giant, steaming dump on them. So while the Emperor is the greatest tactician, biologist, warlord, and leader in the history of mankind, he's worse than a crack-addled transient junkie as a father.

As mentioned above, the Emperor's attitude toward his Primarchs was also heavily divergent to that of the greater Imperium. Whilst he indulged them in the idea that they were his "sons", privately, he didn't view the Primarchs as his literal children, analogising himself as Gepetto to 20 (21) different Pinocchio's. The Emperor even referred to Angron as "The Twelfth" rather than refer to him by name. Although this seems like typical Emperor douchebaggery, he may have behaved in this way because the Primarchs themselves prompted that dynamic, and it was easier to just go along with it. [[Leman Russ]] once boasted to [[Adeptus Custodes|Constantin Valdor]] that the Custodians would never understand the Emperor like the Primarchs could because they weren't "family", even calling the Custodians the "instruments" to be tossed aside when He cared to; Valdor's response was ''"there are so many errors there, I do not even know where to start"''.

Malcador also claimed that the Primarchs were but a means to an end; designed to be ''"conqueror's tools and nothing more"'', built to dominate and compete with each other, eventually intended to challenge each other and eventually confront the Emperor himself, he further claimed that the Primarchs had no free will and that the a civil war like the Horus Heresy had always been part of the Emperor's design, although he later admits that he had to lie to spare his servant sorrow on her deathbed, so it is probable that the Primarchs were simply beyond expected control. In a separate instance: Valdor claimed ''"we turned on one another, driven by pride and human resentment"'' which assumes some measure of responsibility for the Heresy rather than completely blaming the Primarchs, and after that point he wasn't prepared to challenge [[Rogal Dorn]] over decisions regarding the fate of the Custodes, even though he believes he had the capacity to challenge Dorn on the matter, calling the Primarchs ''"creatures of power, built to dominate"''; all hinting that while they may have had an original function, they probably turned out quite differently from expected and the final result might not necessarily have been them turning on each other and fucking up the human webway. Although Valdor did once angrily claim that the entire debacle could have been avoided if the Custodians had just intervened at the Primarch's births.

Roboute Guilliman is the opposite of Alpharius Omegon in terms of distribution of strategic roles during military organization.
Corvus Corax is the opposite of Konrad Curze in terms of infiltration, stealth, ambush, terror and espionage.
Leman Russ is the opposite of Magnus the Red in terms of mysticism and traditional arcane ritual ceremonies.
Jaghatai Khan is the opposite of Angron in terms of aggressiveness and direct confrontation with the enemy.
Ferrus Manus is the opposite of Fulgrim in terms of the former replaced faulty parts of a living entity with artificial ones while the latter evaluated their perfection.
Rogal Dorn is the opposite of Perturabo in terms of logistics and innovative technical designing skills.
Vulkan is the opposite of Mortarion in terms of survivability and encountering depressive conditions.
Sanguinius is the opposite of Lorgar in terms of extreme loyalty to the Emperor with the former believing everything should be sacrificed for him while having Chaos flaws (Khorne for Blood Thirst, Nurgle for Black Rage, Slaanesh for struggle to do everything beautifully and Tzeentch for trying to correct the Blood Angels genetic material) and the latter having faith in the omnipotency of the Emperor.
Lion el Johnson is the opposite of Horus Lupercal in terms of being the greatest primarchs and confronting their mentors before leaving them imprisoned for ten thousand years to guide their followers inconspicuously.

==Primarchs and Legions==
{|align=center border="1" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0"
|-
|align=center|'''Legion Number'''
|align=center|'''Name'''
|align=center|'''Homeworld'''
|align=center|'''Name of the Legion'''
|align=center|'''Allegiance'''
|align=center|'''Description/Current Status'''
|align=center|'''30k/40k'''
|-
|align=center|'''I'''
|align=center|[[Image: Lion_El_portrait.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Lion El'Jonson]]
|align=center|[[Caliban]]
|align=center|[[Dark Angels]]
|align=center|<s>Loyal?</s> LOYAL
|align=center|
*Crushes the horrors of Old Night, destroys worlds, whole civilizations, erase stuff from history.
*Sees himself as a man that no one else can compare to and constantly toils to maintain this standard (although he wasn't as excessively vainglorious as Fulgrim).
*Unlike Fulgrim however, The Lion's greatness caused him to be a hardcore pragmatist and largely detached from everyone around him. The Lion just couldn't relate to anyone else not even close to his level (even most of his brother primarchs couldn't fit the bill), so he always felt alone in the universe.
*Was a bit of a loose cannon with a long but explosive fuse. The Lion is as smart and introspective as he is merciless and brutal. He wasn't necessarily easy to piss off like Angron, but anyone who manages to cross his threshold of patience will find themselves on the business end of his weapon. Several times. And possibly dismembered to boot.
*Fought Luther during his betrayal at the end of the Horus Heresy, where he was wounded from their duel. He survived however, and was spirited away and tended to by the [[Watchers in the Dark]] in a super secret chamber in [[The Rock]] (that not even the Dark Angels knew about), where he spent the last millennia healing his wounds. As of the current edition; The Lion is now supposedly fully healed and all he's waiting for is the Emperor to tell him to wake up from his millennia-long power nap.
|align=center|
|-
|align=center|'''II'''
|! colspan="5" |+++Records expunged+++
|-
|align=center|'''III'''
|align=center|[[Image: Portrait.Fulgrim_Ancient_Sketch.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Fulgrim]]
|align=center|[[Chemos]]
|align=center|[[Emperor's Children]]
|align=center|Traitor
|align=center|
*A patron of the arts, who wanted to enjoy the finest and most exotic things in life.
*Believes that he and his legion should be the avatar of humanity's perfection, and so everything about them should be flawless, everywhere from appearance and actions to their fighting style. Due to this, Fulgrim's battle tactics revolved around utterly perfecting their strategies. Everything from his soldiers to their strategies were intensely drilled until their fighting was closer to a intricately-choreographed play of death than anything. To him, war is an art, and he wanted to perfect his arts.
*A master blacksmith in his own right, capable of forging weapons that even [[Ferrus Manus]] couldn't help but deem "perfect". His artwork however, wasn't always the best in the universe.
*Was initially corrupted by Chaos through the Laer blade, a Slaaneshi-possesed daemon sword he looted as a trophy, but wasn't aware of what Chaos was. He would fully give in to the temptations of the sword after he beheaded Ferrus Manus, where his utter grief at the act caused him to succumb to the daemon within the sword.
*Daemon Prince of Slaanesh, ruler of the Pleasure World. <s>Fulgrim's actual consciousness however, may or may not also be still imprisoned within his own body by</s> the daemon who possessed him in the first place was eventually conquered by Fulgrim's inner will or whatever, but his new personality is generic "DEMON PRINCE OF THE DARKNESS AND EVIL".
*Managed to incapacitate Guilliman at one point by slicing his throat with a poisoned sword.
*Still has a soft-spot for his brother Ferrus. He asked [[Fabius Bile|Fabulous Bile]] to clone his brother several times so that he could attempt to lure Ferrus into Chaos' side again. All his attempts have ended in failure, which he has blamed Fabius for due to his certainty that a "perfect" clone would join him.
*Heard about [[Roboute Guilliman|Big G]] waking up and is a bit buttmad about it at the moment. He tried to give Guilliman a cursed artifact during his return party, but was found out and subsequently banished. Needless to say: he mad.
|align=center|[[Image: Fulgrim.30k.jpeg|thumb|150px|]][[Image: 40k.fulgrim.jpg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''IV'''
|align=center|[[Image: Perturabo_Portrait.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Perturabo]]
|align=center|[[Olympia]]
|align=center|[[Iron Warriors]]
|align=center|Traitor
|align=center|
*A man who was already had the knowledge to create the best at everything he did from birth. Perturabo considered this a curse however, feeling it robbed him of any sense of accomplishment while growing up, contributing to his eternal grumpiness.
*Originally preferred diplomacy and was an admirer of the arts during his time in Olympia, but meeting the Emperor (who had no time for such things) caused a violent switch to flip inside Perturabo's mind, turning him into a ruthless warlord throughout the Great Crusade, likely because he wanted things to be different from Olympia once he joined E-money, but once he realized that The Great Crusade was basically Olympia 2.0; he just gave up, flipped the table, and accepted how things really are and played the part.
*Just as much as a master of siege warfare as Dorn (both in offense and defense), but the lack of opportunities and recognition led him and his legion to be specialists of tearing shit down.
*Unlike Dorn however, Perturabo's general strategy is a combination of stubbornness and ice cold-calculating efficiency, orchestrating war like it was one giant math problem. The problem with this is that he didn't even see his sons as people. As far as he was concerned, they're just armored meatbags who pull triggers and push buttons and were about as expendable as guardsmen.
*Suffers from a massive inferiority complex, partially due to his certainty that the Eye of Terror was always watching and judging him. Nobody believed him when he said this, so it was mostly attributed to Rogal Dorn, whom the Emperor ''greatly'' favored over Pert, despite having similar skillsets.
*Daemon Prince, ruler of Medrengard. Described as the ultimate Obliterator; so expect him to be carrying around titan grade weaponry and millennia of pent-up [[Rage|RAEG]] when he finely shows up. Given that Magnus, Fulgrim, and Mortarion are back in action; he'll probably come out eventually as well.
|align=center|[[Image: 30k.Perturabo.jpeg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''V'''
|align=center|[[Image:JaghataiKhan-1-.jpg|JaghataiKhan-1-.jpg]] [[Jaghatai Khan]]
|align=center|[[Chogoris|Chogoris/ Mundus Planus]]
|align=center|[[White Scars]]
|align=center|Loyal
|align=center|
*Never wants to stay still, prefers to hunt down xenos enemies.
*An observer for the most part. While little people wanted to learn about the White Scars and their culture; The Khan studied everyone, gaining tons of knowledge about Imperial cultures and norms.
*Unknown, disappeared into the [[Webway]] while hunting [[Dark Eldar]] after they raided Chogoris.
|align=center|[[Image: Jaghatai Khan.png|thumb|100px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''VI'''
|align=center|[[Image: Portrait..Leman.Russ.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Leman Russ]]
|align=center|[[Fenris]]
|align=center|[[Space Wolves]]
|align=center|Loyal
|align=center|
*Had a high opinion of himself and his legion, if only because he felt that he's earned that kind of respect through the centuries. Of all the Primarchs, Leman was the one most willing to cross any line to do what the Emperor asked, at least at first. Later on, he decided to become his own man and protect the people of the Imperium. Also notable for curbing the more savage tendencies of the Wolves and teaching them to control their ferocity, unlike [[Angron|some]] [[Konrad Curze|people]].
*Wanted to test his legion all the time, to prove he is the best.
*Unknown, disappeared into the [[Eye of Terror]] with the 13th company but promised to return one day. Magnus supposedly knows where he is, but he isn't telling. The Wolves found his armor in a Khornate Shrine, implying he either; turned into [[Wulfen]], to [[Chaos]], is dead, or is murdering his way through the warp [[Conan_the_Barbarian|as a half-naked barbarian]].
|align=center|[[Image: 30k.Russ.jpg|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''VII'''
|align=center|[[Image: Rogal_Dorn_Portrait.png|thumb|250px|]] [[Rogal Dorn]]
|align=center|[[Inwit]]
|align=center|[[Imperial Fists]]
|align=center|MEGA DUPER Loyal
|align=center|
*A brutally honest and steadfast man, but was equally indifferent to those around him. Dorn's personality is akin to a wall, he was a man you could take at face value; he would never lie or deceive you, and he would always speak his mind without a hint of falsehood, even if it ends up working against his favor. That said, he could never properly relate with other people's emotions. He will speak the truth, but lacked any glib of tongue to express it in a way that wouldn't feel like he was delivering it with the bluntness and intensity of a power fist to the face.
*Embodied the "soul" of the Great Crusade unlike any other; he received the most accolades from the Emperor and fought alongside him most often.
*A master of siegecraft, although fortifications was his forte. So much that he was tasked with fortifying the Imperial Palace. He would also build grand fortresses on the worlds they conquered.
*Assumed deceased, disappeared while boarding a Chaos cruiser during a Black Crusade. One of his fists were recovered and its skeleton is placed in a shrine, where each new Chapter Master of the Imperial Fists engraves their name upon it. Rumored to still be alive, though that begs the question of whose fist is in the Phalanx.
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|align=center|'''VIII'''
|align=center|[[Image: Portrait.Konrad_Curze_sketch.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Konrad Curze]]
|align=center|[[Nostramo]]
|align=center|[[Night Lords]]
|align=center|Traitor
|align=center|
*A man of justice who believed that he needed to instill absolute fear into people to ensure lasting peace.
*Possessed psychic powers that allowed him to perceive the future in short glimpses. The problem was that they were uncontrolled and they constantly subjected him to see the worst possible future in the darkest, most vivid detail possible, including the deaths and fall of his brother Primarchs as well as the Emperor's own entombment on the Golden Throne. This only served to widen his ever-growing insanity.
*An unstable sociopath, to say the least. Curze's visions, upbringing, and perceived need for brutality took a heavy toll on his sanity, but he held firm under the belief he was making the galaxy a better place, like what he did with Nostramo. This all came crashing down after Nostramo reverted back to its old ways when he was away; deciding that nothing would ever change, he chose to bombard his home planet into rubble.
*That said, he was a master at infiltration and unconventional warfare, just as much as he was a master of scaring the shit out of people. His crowning achievement is that he managed to fuck up Guilliman's Imperium Secundus by himself, no aid from his legion what-so-ever, something his brothers couldn't even come close into doing.
*Lost what little sanity he still had after destroying Nostramo. By this time, Konrad stopped justifying his methods to himself and fully embraced the depraved side of his "Night Haunter" persona, spreading untold terror and pain wherever he went. By the time of the late Horus Heresy, the Emperor wanted to put a stop to it and sent a Callidus assassin named "M'shen" after him.
*Curze knew about her mission from the get-go but he made sure the assassin could reach him unimpeded. He did not resist when she entered his chambers and asked the Callidus to kill him. There are believed to be two reasons why this might have been. One is that Konrad realized he became the very thing he sought to rid the galaxy of and knew what had to be done- a perceived hero who lived long enough to see himself become a villain. The other is that the assassination vindicated everything he'd ever said and done; he punished and killed evil-doers and now the Emperor used his own methods to kill him, thus proving that all his atrocities were both justifiable and necessary. Whatever the case, Konrad was already a jaded, broken man after the Nostramo debacle and wished only to die.
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|align=center|'''IX'''
|align=center|[[Sanguinius]]
|align=center|[[Baal]]
|align=center|[[Blood Angels]]
|align=center|Loyal
|align=center|
*A noble but unparalleled warrior, known for the angel-like wings that grew from his back.
*Was known as the greatest exemplar of the Emperor himself, mirroring many of his father's best traits, instead of only one or two of them like his brothers. If anything, Sanguinius is a reflection of what the Emperor could have been as a truly benevolent being, concerned not just for mankind's future, but man as individuals as well.
*A pretty cool guy to be around. Despite being a fabulous, angelic demi-god of war; he had mankind's best wishes at heart and fought for it with graceful ferocity, hell even the Primarchs couldn't resist Sanguinius being so bro-tier. He is essentially the vampiric, bishie version of Vulkan.
*Showed the same amount of concern for his legion. Sanguinius did all that he could to hide the Red Thirst from being exposed to the wider Imperium, knowing full well that the Blood Angels would receive the II/XI Legion treatment if it came to light.
*Psychic, and capable of seeing glimpses of the future.
*He was powerful as he was nice, Sanguinius was one of the most powerful of the Primarchs in terms of martial prowess. Feats include; ripping the wings off a bloodthirster and literally throwing him to the warp, single-handedly holding a defensive point during the Siege of Terra against numerous traitors, and managing to damage Horus' armor ''even after being exhausted from literally soloing entire armies''.
*Deceased, slain by Horus. His body is currently in a stasis crypt in Baal, so his corpse remained fabulous for the last 10,000 years. Commemorated during Sanguinala, a holiday dedicated to his memory.
*May or may not be the Sanguinor, a warp entity that looks like him and fights just as well.
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|align=center|'''X'''
|align=center|[[Image: Portrait.Ferrus_Manus_sketch.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Ferrus Manus]]
|align=center|[[Medusa]]
|align=center|[[Iron Hands]]
|align=center|Loyal
|align=center|
*Wants to get things done quickly, without needless philosophizing.
*Contrary to his sons; Ferrus wanted to advocate the strength of one's flesh, rather than relying completely on bionics and mechanical augmentations as shown by the Iron Hands, if any he was appalled at the idea of turning man completely into machine. He wasn't able to realize this after getting a viking crewcut by his best friend, however.
*A master artisan, thanks to his metal arms, which allowed him to practice his craft with incredible precision and detail.
*Deceased, slain by Fulgrim and his head offered to Horus as a gift. Fulgrim still has the body, which he repeatedly clones and murders again in a futile attempt to make him turn traitor. Some claim he is still alive on Mars, though [[Void Dragon|it may be not actually be him]].
|align=center|[[Image:FerrusGorgon30k.jpg|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''XI'''
|! colspan="5" |+++Records expunged (Possibly [[Malal]]?)+++
|-
|align=center|'''XII'''
|align=center|[[Angron]]
|align=center|[[Nuceria]]
|align=center|[[World Eaters]]
|align=center|Traitor
|align=center|
*Embodies the name "World Eater". He and his legion consumes entire worlds in a whirlwind of indiscriminate slaughter until nobody but them is left, pre and post-Great Crusade.
*No real ambition beyond endless slaughter, thanks to the butcher's nails augment jammed into Angron's brain. It also made him incredibly violent and quick to anger. At first it was to satiate the unending bloodlust generated by the butcher's nails, but now its to glorify Khorne.
*One of, if not the most, powerful of the Primarchs in terms of sheer combat prowess. Angron could kick anyone's shit, Sanguinius and Horus included. That said, his ability as a general is lacking. He could murder armies sent against him, but he lacked the tactical acumen (or anything resembling sanity) to focus on the objectives truly needed to win a war (although in Angron's head: murdering all of his opponents '''is''' the only way to win a war).
*Daemon Prince of [[Khorne]]. Spend most of his time Getting Shit Done and being banished to the Warp for a hundred or so years after Imperum responds to his blood crusades.
*Was one of the largest reasons for fucking up the Horus Heresy. If Angron kept his murderboner down for just a few more minutes and let Horus finish off the remaining loyalists on Istvaan with another Exterminatus strike; they would have been able to march to Terra faster and with much more manpower and have a better chance at winning. Whether this was Angron just being Angron or a secret ploy by Khorne to keep the blood flowing by thinking past the Horus Heresy is unclear (after all, if Horus won; Chaos eventually starves to death. If Horus lost; he has a aeons' worth of blood and conflict to revel over.).
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|align=center|'''XIII'''
|align=center|[[Image: Robute Guilliman.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Roboute Guilliman]]
|align=center|[[Ultramar|Macragge]]
|align=center|[[Ultramarines]]
|align=center|Loyal, barring [[Imperium Secundus| that one episode he doesn't like to talk about]]
|align=center|
*A proud but fair visionary who always looked towards building a better future for humanity. Guilliman never did anything without thinking what would happen at the end of the day and he always tried to plan a better outcome for whatever he did, whether its building an empire or subjugating an enemy civilization.
*Was more for the people than the Emperor, hence why he thought preserving his Imperium was more important than the survival of the Emperor himself.
*A general first and warrior second, which was the key to his success throughout the Great Crusade. He wasn't the best at crossing swords or gunfights, atleast in comparison to his brothers; but he was exceptional at commanding his forces and resources, ensuring all wars he fought in were running at optimum efficiency.
*The greatest statesman among the Primarchs. Guilliman was best remembered for his ability to set up an efficient form of government on every planet his legion conquered, turning them into model, self-sufficient worlds in order to prepare them for the future after the Great Crusade. This is best exemplified by Ultramar, which still remains one of the most powerful and idyllic planetary systems in the Imperium, even after 10,000 years.
*He's also a logistical genius, and invented the organizational model that 8 of the 9 First Founding Chapters still use (more or less).
*Previously kept in a stasis chamber after his throat was sliced by Fulgrim with a poisoned sword.
*Recently revived with the help of Belisarius Cawl and the Ynnari and their new soul manipulation powers. Is now active once more, and not very happy with how badly the Imperium has gone to shit since he was not-quite-dead. Currently back in his old role of Lord Commander of the Imperium, trying his hardest to keep the Emperor's work from going completely down the drain while while waging an unending war against the forces of Chaos and the Imperium's monstrous bureaucracy.
|align=center|[[Image: 30k.Guilliman.png|thumb|150px|]][[Image: Primarchs-Guilliman-40000.jpeg|thumb|150px|]]
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|align=center|'''XIV'''
|align=center|[[Image: Mortarion Portrait.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Mortarion]]
|align=center|[[Barbarus]]
|align=center|[[Death Guard]]
|align=center|Traitor
|align=center|
*A bitter yet petty man, kind of like the edgy goth kid of the group. Mortarion didn't want to associate anyone who hasn't gone through the same brand of abuse he has during his childhood and also hated those who had relatively comfy ones in comparison (like Guilliman or Dorn). He would only find some friendship with Konrad Curze (due to his "raised alone and became psycho-Batman" origin) and Horus (because just about everyone likes Horus).
*Has an immense abhorrence for psykers and the warp, due to his experiences in Barbarus. As a daemon prince, he is the very thing he hated in the first place. He takes the resulting bitterness out on everyone else in the form of horrible diseases.
*Stubborn to the core. Mortarion's favored tactic that he passed onto the Death Guard is a combination of attrition and unrelenting assaults; they take the pain while dishing it out in greater amounts, non-stop. He also valued individualism throughout his legion, largely leaving it up to his troops to figure out the best strategy in a conflict, rather than micro-managing them.
*Was already disenchanted by the Imperium by the start of the Horus Heresy (Seeing the Emperor and his works as total hypocrisies), so he threw his lot in with Horus. However, due to a ruse by Typhus; he and his legion ended up being infected by a virulent Nurglite plague while in the warp, which caused them to be in a constant state of agony but remain alive due to their Astartes-grade toughness. Unable to bear the pain and see his sons suffer; he pledged his loyalty to Nurgle and the god "cured" them of the plague (cure is probably incorrect, it was more of mutate their bodies to be compatible with the plague). From here, he became a daemon prince.
*Went back to the warp after the Horus Heresy, where Nurgle gave him dominion over the Plague Planet, which he shaped into the image of Barbarus.
*Was banished by [[Kaldor Draigo|Grey Knights]] during the Battle of Kornovin, which was the origin of [[Kaldor Draigo|Draigo]] carving a name onto his plague-ridden heart (how Draigo did so is a mystery, so we'll just chalk it up to him being too high on drugs to be infected by Mortarion's plagues).
*Helped Abby by creating the zombie plague, along with other contagions, after he got the Hand of Darkness artifact.
*He eventually got better and waged a full-scale invasion of Ultramar when he heard that Guilliman's finally awake. Had to retreat after he had to deal with the other Chaos Gods' typical shenanigans (mainly encroaching on his strongholds in the [[Scourge Stars]] while he was off campaigning).
|align=center|[[Image: Mortarion-40k.jpeg|thumb|150px|]]
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|align=center|'''XV'''
|align=center|[[Image: Magnus Headshot.jpeg|thumb|250px|]] [[Magnus the Red]]
|align=center|[[Prospero]]
|align=center|[[Thousand Sons]]
|align=center|Traitor
|align=center|
*An optimistic scholar who thirsted for knowledge and always believed that information should be preserved for the greater good of mankind, regardless of its origins or the danger it might pose.
*As a psyker from birth, he was sympathetic to the discrimination faced by his fellow psykers and labored for his kind to be accepted. He did so by training psykers to control and enhance their powers, in the hopes of showing to people the benefits of his kind's gifts. This had mixed results with his brother primarchs, especially in the face of the Emperor's "psykers are bad" standing orders.
*Defying the Nikea council's rulings, Magnus continued to experiment with warp powers and during a Tzeentch-induced prophesy that involved Horus' betrayal; he attempted to warn his father with a psychic message. During the sending process; he accidentally destroyed the Emperor's webway project, causing him to be arrested by Russ and the Wolves to answer for his disobedience.
*As Horus was already corrupted by this point, he altered the orders to instead destroy the Thousand Sons' homeworld. Realizing he's been played like a damn fiddle by Tzeentch, Magnus' resolve was broken and initially accepted his destiny of being destroyed by the wolves in an attempt to spite Tzeentch, but eventually decided to attempt to rebel against his fate but ultimately failing after Leman Russ beat him up badly. He then made a desperate deal with Tzeentch to save his legion in return for his servitude. He and the Thousand Sons were teleported to the Planet of Sorcerers, where more hijinks ensued with his [[Ahzek Ahriman|first captain]]'s certain ritual.
*Now a daemon prince, one of his first major campaigns was to invade the Space Wolves' homeworld. Was banished, but the Wolves were all but ruined; most of their upper command structure and progress with stabilizing their flawed gene seed was gone. Feeling they weren't down for the count yet; he went in again and bloodied the entire star system of Fenris itself, irreparably damaging the Wolves' home system.
*Appeared during the Gathering Storm, where he trapped and captured Guilliman and his retinue in the warp. After he escaped, Magnus chased and confronted Guilliman all the way to Luna, but was banished by the Custodes and Sisters of Silence. Now currently biding his time for another offensive.
|align=center|[[Image: 30k.magnus-the-red.jpeg|thumb|150px|]][[Image: 40k.magnus-the-red.jpeg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''XVI'''
|align=center|[[Image: Portrait.Warmaster_Horus_Remembrancer_Sketch.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Horus|Horus Lupercal]]
|align=center|[[Cthonia]]
|align=center|[[Black Legion|Luna Wolves/ Sons of Horus/ Black Legion]]
|align=center|[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1rT6Vi5Ln4 DOUBLE TRAITOR]
|align=center|
*A charismatic strategist who overwhelms his enemies through sheer numbers and precision tactics.
*Big E's most favored son, always being held in the highest regard, second only to the Custodes. This was a combination of him being the first Primarch found and his long rap sheet of victories throughout the Crusade.
*Due to his position and experience, he was the most well-liked of the Primarchs during the Great Crusade. Just about everyone looked at Horus as the greatest among them.
*For all his charisma and leadership, Horus was still wracked with self-doubt once appointed Warmaster, constantly afraid that he was unable to live up to the title. Being overall commander of the Emperor's forces AND being his personal favorite was a lot to live up to. This was one of the reasons why he succumbed to the temptations of Chaos.
*Was one of the few Primarchs who was suspicious of the Emperor's plans for the Astartes post-Crusade, fearing they'd be disposed of like the Thunder Warriors and was mistrustful of the Emperor's intentions in the long run in general. The Ruinous Powers would also use this to their advantage.
*Rebelled against the Emperor after being fed a vision of the future by the Chaos Gods, in which the Emperor was being worshiped as a god and many of his fellow Primarchs (including himself) were reviled or outright forgotten. Little did he know that this was to become a self-fulfilling prophesy.
*His essence has been erased from existence. When the Emperor mustered up the resolve to finally end Horus, he shot him with a psychic blast powerful enough to obliterate his very soul, ensuring that the Chaos Gods couldn't just bring him back from the dead. His body was recovered and brought to the Eye of Terror, but was later destroyed after an incident involving [[Fabius Bile]] and a clone of Horus.
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|align=center|'''XVII'''
|align=center|[[Image: Portrait.Lorgar_Aurelian_sketch.png|thumb|250px|]] [[Lorgar|Lorgar Aurelian]]
|align=center|[[Colchis]]
|align=center|[[Word Bearers]]
|align=center|Traitor Prime
|align=center|
*A charismatic diplomat with a golden tongue, who relied heavily on his unparalleled speaking abilities to bring worlds into compliance during the Great Crusade. Lorgar would always prefer to talk out a peaceful solution, rather than resorting to violence. That said, Lorgar did know how to slap a bitch when needed.
*A deeply spiritual man, due to growing up in a theocratic society during his time on Colchis. Due to this, Lorgar saw The Emperor as a literal god and decided to spread the good word of the God-Emperor throughout the Crusade. During this time, he penned the "Lectitio Divinitatus", a book detailing how awesome the God-Emperor was, and always built grand cathedrals in all the planets he conquered. As you can imagine, this didn't sit well with the Man-Emperor's secular Empire ,so he decided to bloody one of Lorgar's grandest cities to send a message with Guilliman. Little did the Emperor know what this act of dickery would lead eventually to.
*With Lorgar being completely disheartened and defeated; Kor Phaeron and [[Erebus]] lured him to the worship of the Dark Gods, who were more than happy to accept his rabid fanboyism. He would eventually corrupt Horus and ignite the [[Horus Heresy|single biggest clusterfuck in Imperial History]], ruining everything that the Emperor has striven to build since the [[Age of Strife]].
*Rules as a daemon prince of Chaos Undivided and currently located in Sicarius, the Word Bearers' home planet. Unlike his brothers through, Lorgar doesn't really "lead" his legion anymore, instead leaving that to his council of Dark Apostles. As of the moment all he's done for the past few millennia is meditate in the warp and do fuckall. With [[Roboute Guilliman|Big G]] finally awake and taking the fight to Chaos; its rumored that Lorgar might finally get out of his overdue NEET phase and command his sons again.
|align=center|[[Image: 30k.Lorgar.jpeg|thumb|150px|]]
|-
|align=center|'''XVIII'''
|align=center|[[Image: Portrait.Vulkan_sketch.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Vulkan]]
|align=center|[[Nocturne]]
|align=center|[[Salamanders]]
|align=center|Loyal
|align=center|
*A true man of the people, concerned with the preservation and welfare of humans. Vulkan saw all humans in the Imperium as equals and would protect any servant of the Emperor with great ferocity regardless of their class or status.
*Growing up in a blacksmith society allowed him and his legion to craft some of the finest wargear the Imperium has ever seen. Its also the reason for their fire fetish in combat.
*Inherited the Emperor's perpetual powers, granting him the ability to reincarnate after dying.
*He and his legion took some of the worst losses during Istvaan, and he himself was eventually captured by Konrad Curze.
*Curze wanted to get his torture fetish on, so he tortured Vulkan to death. Several times. Vulkan's status as a perpetual ensured he always came back, but less and less sane as Curze's treatment got worse and worse.
*He eventually managed to escape, but accidentally teleported over Macragge's atmosphere, crashing down on the planet like a green comet of insanity. By this point, anything remotely resembling sanity had left Vulkan's mind. He was eventually "killed" by another perpetual, in a well-meaning attempt to reset Vulkan's brain. It worked (sort of. At least he wasn't a howling maniac anymore) and after taking a short death nap, he got better and disappeared for a while.
*Resurfaced during [[The War of The Beast]] and was recruited to lead the Imperial forces against The Beast's forces. Then disappeared after ramming The Beast into a plasma reactor and killing them both in a squall of gore. The Salamanders claim he continued to lead them for a few more centuries after that death, then left them with the Tome of Fire, claiming he had a special mission that they could not accompany him for.
|align=center|[[Image:Vulkan-Primarchs-Warhammer-40000-фэндомы-4123369.jpeg|150px|]]
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|align=center|'''XIX'''
|align=center|[[Image: Corax Portrait.png|thumb|250px|]] [[Corvus Corax]]
|align=center|[[Deliverance]]
|align=center|[[Raven Guard]]
|align=center|Loyal
|align=center|
*Sought to overthrow oppression, bringing justice to tyrants.
*Possessed some kind of perception-manipulating psychic power, giving him the ability to be "invisible" to organics (He's still there clear as day, but your mind just can't process that he's right there).
*Preferred covert warfare, sabotaging, fast strikes and assassinating the enemy from the sides, and only striking in the open when the time is right. Basically one of the few primarchs who uses tactics of actual special forces units.
*He and his legion were bloodied during Istvaan and forced out of the conflict. Corvus wanted desperately to help the Imperium's deteriorating situation, so he asked the Emperor for assistance. Emps obliged and gave him the template to create the Primarchs themselves, giving him the ability to train marines at an even faster rate. This was wrecked after the Alpha Legion tampered with the creation process, resulting with the majority of the aspirants coming out as horrible mutants and aberrations.
*While it weighed heavily on his conscience, Corax had to be pragmatic. He made do and used his newly obtained mutant horde as shock troops and it worked; they were able to disrupt the traitors long enough to buy Terra some time to put up a defense.
*After the Heresy ended, he was reluctantly forced to euthanize his creations, wracking Corvus with a huge amount of guilt.
*Went missing after heading for the Eye of Terror to atone for his sins, saying only "Nevermore" before leaving. His status is currently unknown, but the Raven Guard believe he's still alive and will return once again.
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|align=center|'''XX'''
|align=center|[[Image: Alpharius2.jpg|thumb|250px|]] [[Alpharius]] [[Omegon]]
|align=center|They're not telling
|align=center|[[Alpha Legion]]
|align=center|[[Alpha Legion|Alpharius: sort-of loyal. Omegon: even Tzeentch can't keep track.]]
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*Shrouded in mystery. It's not even known what their homeworld is, let alone what their upbringing was like. Forge World gave no fewer than four mutually irreconcilable origin stories, all of which were dismissed as lies. That said, the only discernible fact we can give about them is that the two primarchs did not always agree with each other, exemplified with Omegon actively sabotaging Alpharius' operations during the Horus Heresy.
*As primarchs of the Alpha legion; the two frequently exchanged roles whenever needed with nobody ever noticing, but officially; Alpharius is the primarch of the legion while Omegon is commander of their elite covert forces.
*Masters of psychological warfare and manipulation. They didn't need regiments of soldiers or weapons to do his heavy lifting; all he needs is a handful of spies to plant paranoia, deceit, misinformation, and dissent in his targeted worlds. By the time his agents are done: the enemy would either be tearing each other apart and/or distrustful of each other; making them isolated, easy pickings for the main Alpha Legion forces once they're called to reign the planet in.
*Alpharius bought the Cabal's story about letting Horus kill all of humanity to kill off the Chaos Gods in the long run, and was eventually beheaded by Rogal Dorn during a battle on Pluto. Maybe. Quite frankly, with these two one can never be entirely sure '''what''' the truth really is.
*Omegon took on his mantle officially ("the jest made real") and this new "Alpharius" may or may not have been killed by Guilliman (the Ultramarines suspect they may have only killed a body double). His loyalties are unknown, but he was against the Cabal's proposal, indicating he either thought sacrificing his entire species was too big of a price (which would mean he's still loyal to humanity), or he wanted Chaos to survive by feeding off humanity (which would mean he was a traitor).
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|}

==Their Eventual Fates==
[[File:Heresy_Time.jpg|300px|thumb|right|An accurate retelling of the final stages of the rebellion.]]
===Traitors===
*General downside to those who became Daemon Princes is that the further they go from the Eye of Terror, the more their power wanes. Also most of them spend most of their time in the Great Game (eternal war in the Warp), growing increasingly distant from the real world affairs.
* '''Horus''' was killed by the Emperor during the Siege of Terra, who utterly destroyed his soul. His legion enshrined his corpse until the Emperor's Children stole it. [[Fabius Bile]] managed to successfully clone him, but [[Abaddon]] killed the clone to cement his position as his successor as Warmaster of Chaos. Horus is ''very'' dead, but that was his fault for being a fuckwit.
* '''Angron''' is a Daemon Prince of Khorne. Still gets shit done, but did get his arse handed to him by the Grey Knights on Armageddon.
* '''Mortarion''' is a fucktwit who rarely does anything of interest (still sulking over his eternal existence as the thing he hates the most), but is a Daemon Prince of Nurgle. Apparently now holds the largest domain in the Eye of Terror, rather than just one planet he had in the old fluff, and also the last Daemon Primarch to bow to the Despoiler during the Legion war. Got some open heart surgery, courtesy of Draigo/Ward. Created zombie plague from one of the artifacts Abbaddon used in his XII crusade. He invaded Ultramar after hearing news that Guilliman's finally awake, though he ultimately had to go back to the [[Scourge Stars]] due to his poor fortunes in the war as well as being summoned back by his patron God.
* '''Fulgrim's''' soul was trapped in a painting while his body was possessed by a daemon for a brief time before swapping places with the daemon and taking its powers (or so he claims). The first Primarch to become a Daemon Prince, although he aimed at achieving (demi)godhood instead (by sacrificing Perturabo). Abandoned what remained of his legion to rule his pleasure daemon world, and [[Troll|didn't tell them how to get there]] (yet Abaddon somehow manages to contact him anyways).
* '''Lorgar''' is a lazy fucknut who does nothing since they fled to the Eye of Terror, and handed the rule over his legion to the council of Dark Apostles, but still a Daemon Prince of Chaos Undivided. Taught Abaddon how to summon daemons.
* '''Magnus the Red''' got broken into several pieces during his fight with Leman Russ, with several of them actually believing they were the real Magnus and going their own way. Some pieces were eventually put back together to form "the Crimson King", the Daemon Primarch form of Magnus who joined Horus in his rebellion. This sometimes also gets shit done, leading armies to the [[Space Wolves]]' planet and screwing with the Imperium, keeping his big red trollface on all the time until he gets his ass tossed back into the [[Warp]]. Other fragments seem to be floating around throughout history, appearing to have their own agenda, pretending to be daemons or helping the Imperium from time to time. By the time of the Gathering Storm and the 42nd Millennium the disparate fragments have mostly recombined to the Crimson King ''(leaving out a few key elements, namely the ones who embodied his best qualities; for example, the part of Magnus that embodied his love for his Legion chose to fade into nonexistence instead of being reabsorbed into the Crimson King)'' making him as whole as he can be.
* '''Perturabo''' becomes irrelevant after he goes on to drop largely out of post-Heresy fluff, but is still a Daemon Prince of Chaos Undivided. Rules the most stable planet in the Eye of Terror, where he does nothing but watching his sons sieging each other. Helps Failbaddon in a couple of Black Crusades by giving him some Daemon Engines. It doesn't really help, but it's more than Lorgar's done for Chaos Undivided. He is also leading his Legion after the 13th Black Crusade in their new offensive against the Imperium
* '''Konrad Curze''' allowed a Callidus assassin to infiltrate his lair and kill him, either because he himself became the thing he hated the most, or to justify to himself that every atrocity he has done in the name of justice was a necessary act.
* The Alpha Legion's story is a bit complex:
**'''Alpharius''' was slain by Rogal Dorn in combat during the Battle of Pluto. He is very much dead as he did not bargain with the Dark Gods and had his head split open by a chainsword. Conspiracy theorists will speculate that it wasn't really Alpharius, though the death is strongly corroborated by Omegon's response. So unless Alpharius used a body double to trick Rogal Dorn AND ''his own twin'' into thinking he was dead and allowed Omegon to take his place and identity permanently; there isn't any hard evidence to suggest that the dead "Alpharius" was anything other than the actual Primarch, but knowing the Alpha Legion that doesn't mean too much without definitive proof.
**'''Omegon''' reluctantly took Alpharius' identity after he sensed he was dead, and his legion a bee-line for Ultramar after the Horus Heresy, where he met his end after dueling [[Roboute Guilliman|Big Bobby G]]. However, because the rest of the Alpha Legionaries did not break even after the death of their primarch ''(in fact they managed to beat the Ultramarines in the conflict altogether);'' nobody could truly confirm if they did indeed kill the real deal, or if it was a body double.
**While it's been established that a decent amount of Alpha Legionnaires were surgically altered to resemble their Primarch and even ''believe'' they were Primarchs themselves; that and the figurehead role of "Alpharius" has been largely interchangable between both the twins and their sons, which makes sense for a legion whose MO is flexible leadership. While we can be reasonably certain that at least one of the twins is dead, whatever "Omegon-Alpharius" or at least whichever person who thinks he's Alpharius have been up to following the Heresy is a matter of fierce debate and speculation.

===Loyalists===
*'''Ferrus Manus''' was killed by Fulgrim during the Drop Site Massacre. His body was not recovered, so some Iron Hands think he might still be alive. But the fact that he was decapitated by Fulgrim after being defeated and had his head delivered to Horus makes this claim fairly dubious. Just don't say that to the Iron Hands, though. Unless you want free open-heart surgery from a ceramite and steel power fist. Fulgrim did try to clone him (several times) in the hope one of them would join the traitors, but every clone so far has refused and been subsequently killed by him.
*'''Sanguinius''' was killed by Horus. His body was recovered, and he's the only Primarch who doesn't have any legends about returning, though there are some theories on the identity of the Sanguinor. For what it's worth, Fear to Tread shows that the Sanguinor is indistinguishable from Sanguinius himself and had enough power to appear in the mind of an Apothecary shortly before the Blood Angels were deployed to the Signus system.
*'''Lion El'Jonson''' returned to Caliban only to discover <s>that his friend Luther had stabbed him in the back.</s> THAT LUTHER HAD A PLANET-WIDE PARTY AND EVENTUALLY PASSED OUT INTO A COMA AFTER DRINKING 200 TANKARDS OF SPACE WOLF-GRADE ALCOHOL. He sleeps deep within the Rock, originally on life support and now fully-healed (but none of the Dark Angels seem to know this). Perhaps this is a sign of a coming advancement of the storyline, DUN DUN DUN!
*'''Jaghatai Khan''' disappeared into the Webway after chasing a group of Dark Eldar. The White Scars think he will return someday, and when you consider the fact that time is just as weird there as it is in the rest of the Warp, there is a small possibility he's still around.
*'''Leman Russ''' disappeared into the Eye of Terror but promised the Space Wolves that he would return for the Final Battle. Magnus appears to know where he is now, but he sure as hell isn't telling the Space Wolves. Reports during the Thirteenth Black Crusade claim that a figure matching Russ's description was seen leading the 13th Great Company have surfaced, but were never verified. Numerous crusades by the Space Wolves to find Russ have resulted in failure, although they did find his armor in a shrine of Khorne in the Eye - so either he succumbed to Chaos, was killed by a Khorne champion, devolved into wulfen, or is [[Conan the Barbarian|currently pillaging The Warp as a muscle-bound, half-naked barbarian hero]].
*'''Rogal Dorn''' disappeared during a [[Black Crusade]] in a desperate ship boarding action. Only his severed hand was recovered and its skeleton enshrined. Debate rages about whether the Zerg rush of World Eaters killed him, or whether he's still out there, [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIJTvEo4N4Q murdering his way through traitors with an Astartes-pattern shotgun and a chainsword grafted where his hand used to be]. Original 40K novels stated his entire skeleton was on display on Terra, but it's been ret-conned to only his hands. Still, a Primarch without a skeleton would be bad-ass, if not a little amusing.
*'''Roboute Guilliman''' was formerly preserved in a stasis field, seconds from death after he was poisoned by Fulgrim. Fast-forward a few thousand years and some Eldar flubdubbery, however, and Big Bobby G is back in action, and he's mad at the current state of the Imperium. After a private meeting with the Emperor, he assumed direct command of the Imperium itself as Lord Commander of the Imperium. When he isn't curb-stomping traitors to death or otherwise trying to keep the Imperium afloat, Guilliman is busy re-vamping the Imperium with numerous reforms in an attempt to realize his father's dream about humanity. Needless to say; a lot of people are unhappy about this, but they can't exactly tell off one of the Emperor's actual sons and expect not to be on the business-end of a boltgun. He's also taken the time to rewrite the Codex Astartes as well.
*'''Vulkan''' got the shit kicked out of him during the Drop Site Massacre, whereupon his fluff gets a bit hazy:
**The old''Codex: Space Marines'' states that his body was never found, only a book containing only the names of nine powerful relics and a bunch of annoying riddles as to where they might be found, penned by Vulkan himself. In the 41st millennium, the Salamanders believe that he is still alive and that collecting the nine relics - they've found five so far - will reveal his location.
** In the Black Library novels, starting with ''Vulkan Lives'' the big V had to be dragged into a Thunderhawk in bloody tatters. Kurze captured him and tortured him to death... repeatedly; Vulkan would not stay dead. After an indeterminate amount of time and deaths, Vulkan managed to escape by teleporting himself into orbit around Macragge and reentering its atmosphere. When he recovered and learned that Kurze was planetside, he [[Rage|flipped out]] and went after him. A well-meaning Perpetual stabbed him with a fulgurite (a spearhead-shaped piece of stone that contains a bit of the Emperor's power), hoping to either cure his madness or kill him for good. Now apparently dead, Vulkan was put in a stasis capsule inscribed with the words "Unbound Flame," with an honor guard of Salamanders until his remains could be returned to Nocturne. As of the end of ''Deathfire'', he somehow managed to return to life again, although there's no indication as to whether or not he's still a Perpetual. As of the War of the Beast, he's still alive in M.32, after the wounding of Guilliman. He's apparently been wandering the Imperium for a millennium fulfilling his own oaths, but returns to Terra to take command and reclaim Ullanor from the united Ork race. Even with one of the greatest forces assembled since the Horus Heresy, with the remnants of the VII Legion Chapters, the fight devolved to Vulkan facing off with The Beast one-on-one, and sacrificing himself in The Beasts temple-gargant's core detonating it with both himself and The Beast inside it. Whether both of them died is highly unlikely. He hints that Dorn is also alive, meaning he is either privy to some secret information, doesn't know of his brother's death, or is going insane.
**The 8th Edition Codex reconcile these stories somewhat, by claiming that sources within the Salamanders themselves believe Vulkan led them for three millennia ''(which accounts for his appearance during the War of the Beast)'', sometimes falling in battle but apparently always returning ''(also accounting for his perpetual status)''. He eventually disappeared on some final undocumented mission, not without leaving his Time of Fire and bequeathing his personal artefacts to the chapter but not actually saying where they were, giving rise to the legend that if they are all found he will then return.
*'''Corax''' disappeared into the Eye of Terror as an atonement for putting down the mutant hordes he created in trying to create Space Marines out of desperation. Quoth the Raven: "Nevermore." He is probably derping around in the Eye like [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIX_6TBeph0 this.]

==Two Missing Primarchs==
Who are the two missing Primarchs, you ask? [[Sigmar]] and [[Archaon The Everchosen: Lord of the End of Times; Chaos Incarnate; Herald of the Apocalypse|Archaon]] (depending on how WHFB fits in with 40K, if it does). Or maybe (per /tg/ canon) [[Rachnus Rageous]] and [[Tialoc Ekans]]. [[Samus]] and [[Berserk|Guts]] are also contenders, and many Bolter and Chainsword regulars consider Icarion and his [[Lightning Bearers]] to be their headcanon II Legion. It is also highly possible that the XI Legion Primarch has now become [[Malal]] and the [[Sons of Malice]] Chaos Space Marine warband are the remnants of the 11th Legion (Possible, because Malal's sacred number is 11 and the two unknown legions are the II and the XI)
...

Okay, fine. Nobody really knows. What has been established is that they got killed for some reason and the existence of their Legions was wiped from record by the Emperor. [[Malcador the Sigillite]] claims that the Primarchs had been manipulated from the start, and were to be maneuvered into their proper roles prior to the Horus Heresy and those which would not be manipulated would be removed. Although Malcador's own testimony is tainted by the fact that he later admits he had to lie, though many of his statements do mirror what we have seen from the Emperor's own statements.

[[Games Workshop]] have mentioned Primarchs besides the eighteen above on other occasions, but they backtracked since. Back in the [[Rogue Trader|first edition]] of [[Warhammer 40,000]], all twenty [[First Founding]] Chapters were known, as were their Primarchs (though, at the time, the Primarch was just the first Chapter Master). Of these, the [[Valedictors]] and [[Rainbow Warriors]] were declared in a later [[White Dwarf]] to have been founded after the [[Second Founding]].

Later, in the short story '''Hell in a Bottle''' from the novel Into the Maelstrom, a chapter known as the Iron Hearts get fucked over by a [[Chaos Lord]]. The short story also mentions that the Chapter has a Primarch known as Rubinek. Of course, this was just a huge cock-up on the author's part, who himself admitted that he meant Chapter Master.

The Horus Heresy novels fill in some of the blanks, but they still leave a lot of questions open. In ''The Lightning Tower'' Rogal Dorn says that the lost Primarchs' disappearances were "separate tragedies", so it seems like they disappeared in two different incidents. ''Deliverance Lost'' suggests that whatever happened to the missing Primarchs occurred sometime before the Emperor found Corvus Corax, as Corax asked the Emperor why there were only sixteen other Primarchs waiting for him if he was the nineteenth (it's unsure whether this was referring to him being the Primarch of the nineteenth Legion, or him being the nineteenth found); the Emperor avoided the question, claiming that "it would be a discussion for another day". This is no longer the case, somehow, as he is [[Retcon|now the third-to-last primarch found]], right before the second missing primarch. ''The First Heretic'' specifies that the missing Legions were purged at least 43 years before the Drop Site Massacre, so we can conclude that neither one took part in the Horus Heresy. At the same time, members of the Word Bearers Seventh Company travelling through time with Ingethel the Ascended reveal rumors that the surviving members of the lost Legions were folded into the Ultramarines (their Chaplain thinks the rumor is a load of grox-shit, but their Captain does note that the Ultramarines are on record as receiving an increase in troops). Finally, it also adds that the remaining Primarchs had to swear an oath never to speak of their missing brothers and that the missing Primarchs' corresponding legions were personally purged by the Emperor, so it had to have been something extraordinarily bad. Leman Russ mentions in ''Prospero Burns'' that the Space Wolves had fought other Space Marines before the attack on Prospero, which may have something to do with the purge. A senior Space Wolf describes Russ' "wyrd" as being "the Emperor's executioner". Several books since have backed this up. In ''The Dark King'', when asked if he will report the Night Lords for censure, Dorn remarks that he feared to add another empty statue to the Emperor's palace, implying that the missing legions were exterminated for committing severe atrocities. Gene-seed flaws might have played a major part- in ''Fear To Tread'', Sanguinius admits to Horus that he had not told the Emperor about the Red Thirst because he feared that the Emperor would purge the Blood Angels in the same way as the missing Legions. In ''Scars'' there's a reference to rumours and "whispers of past atrocities" that only a Primarch could kill another Primarch. Russ also turns up and talks a bit about fighting Magnus, and the resulting "shame". So if he's responsible for offing one or two of his brothers, they must've done something pretty fucking heinous.

Out of universe, Rick Priestley admitted that the unknown legions were supposed to be a reference to the three Roman legions wiped out in the [[Wikipedia: Battle of the Teutoburg Forest| Battle of the Teutoburg Forest]], whose numbers were never reused after they were slain to a man by German barbarians. The intention was to let fans design their own Legions to fill in the gaps for themselves, though the implications that this would have on the setting clearly weren't thought through. Nowadays, it doesn't even really let people do much with homebrew fluff since the setting has developed in such a way that it's almost impossible for someone to connect a homebrew chapter to the missing primarchs without getting laughed out of their [[Local Game Store]].

==Rules on the Tabletop==
Thanks to Forge World, not only do we have models for the Primarchs, but rules as well. As you can guess, they are ungodly death machines who can easily win their points back and more. That's not to say they're invincible, though; they can still be killed if you screw up badly enough. All currently released Primarchs have the following statlines (the "Minimum" Primarch is also listed for convenience, if you want a baseline to homebrew your own):
{| border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" align="left" class="wikitable sortable"
! || WS || BS || S || T || W || I || A || Ld || Sv || Invul || ML || Points
|-
| '''[[Horus]]''' || 8 || 5 || 7 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 5+1 || 10 || 2+ || 3++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 500
|-
| '''[[Angron]]''' || 9 || 5 || 7 || 6 || 5 || 7 || 6+1 || 10 || 3+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 400
|-
| '''[[Fulgrim]]''' || 8 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 8 || 5 || 10 || 2+ || 5++/3++ in CC || data-sort-value=0 | || 380
|-
| '''[[Mortarion]]''' || 7 || 5 || 6 || 7 || 7 || 5 || 5 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 425
|-
| '''[[Ferrus Manus]]''' || 7 || 6 || 7 || 7 || 6 || 5 || 4+1 || 10 || 2+ || 3++ || data-sort-value=0 | || data-sort-value=455 | 455 or steal his hammer for 415
|-
| '''[[Konrad Curze]]''' || 8 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 7 || 5+1 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 435
|-
| '''[[Vulkan]]''' || 7 || 5 || 7 || 7 || 6 || 5 || 4 || 10 || 2+ || 3++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 425
|-
| '''[[Lorgar]]''' || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 5 || 6 || 4+1 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=2.5 | 2 or 3 || data-sort-value=375 | 375 or Chaosify him for 450
|-
| '''[[Perturabo]]''' || 8 || 6 || 7 || 6 || 6 || 5 || 4 || 10 || 2+ || 3++ || data-sort-value=0 | || data-sort-value=455 | 455 or give him Forgebreaker for 490
|-
| '''[[Rogal Dorn]]''' || 8 || 5 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 5 || 4 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 385
|-
| '''[[Corvus Corax]]''' || 7 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6/5 || 7 || 6/5 || 10 || 2+/3+ || 5++ || data-sort-value=0 | || data-sort-value=450 | 450 or fuck him over for 350
|-
| '''[[Alpharius]]''' || 7 || 7 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 5 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=0 | || data-sort-value=415 | 415''.... or is it?''
|-
| '''[[Roboute Guilliman]]''' || 7 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 4+1 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 400
|-
| '''[[Roboute Guilliman]] (40k)''' || 9 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 10 || 2+ || 3++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 350
|-
| '''[[Magnus the Red]]''' || 7 || 5 || 7 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 4 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || 5 || 495
|-
| '''[[Magnus the Red]] (Daemon)''' || 7 || 7 || 8 || 7 || 7 || 7 || 6 || 10 || 4+ || 4++ || 5 || 650
|-
| '''[[Leman Russ]]''' || 9 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 6 || 7 || 6 || 10 || 2+ || 4++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 455
|-
| '''[[Jaghatai Khan]]''' || || || || || || || || || || || data-sort-value=0 | ||
|-
| '''[[Lion El'Jonson]]''' || || || || || || || || || || || data-sort-value=0 | ||
|-
| '''[[Sanguinius]]''' || || || || || || || || || || || data-sort-value=0 | ||
|-
| Minimum || 6 || 5 || 6 || 6 || 5 || 5 || 4 || 10 || 3+ || 5++ || data-sort-value=0 | || 350
|} 
*'''Special Rules'''
**''Primarch''
***''Adamantium Will''
***''Independent Character''
***''Eternal Warrior''
***''Fear''
***''Fleet''
***''Fearless''
***''It Will Not Die''
***''Master of the Legion''
***''Precision Shots''
***''Precision Strikes''
**''Sire of the [Legion]''

As of 8th edition (special rules not included):
{| border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="5" align="left" class="wikitable sortable"
! || M || WS || BS || S || T || W || A || Ld || Sv || Points/Power level
|-
| '''[[Roboute Guilliman]]''' || 8" || 2+ || 2+ || 6 || 6 || 9 || 6 || 10 || 2+/3++|| 360/18||data-sort-value=0 |
|-
| '''[[Magnus the Red]]''' || 16 || 2+ || 2+ || 8 || 7 || 18 || 7 || 10 || 3+/4++ || 495/21||data-sort-value=0 |
|-
| '''[[Mortarion]]''' || 12 || 2+ || 2+ || 8 || 7 || 18 || 6 || 10 || 3+/4++ || 470/24|| data-sort-value= 0 |
|} 

Each of them have one or two close-combat weapons, all of which are AP2 or 1, backed by some decent gun to lay some dakka down while they run to the glorious melee. Their Primarch rule acts like a big bundle of USRs wrapped up together in one package, and as ICs they can join squads as well (though most of the Primarchs are better run solo). Each of them have a page worth of special rules and unique wargear, both of which can be stupidly powerful to the point of broken, but that's OK since even the cheapest of the Primarchs costs more than 350 points and eats an extremely valuable Lord of War slot that might otherwise be spent on a [[Thunderhawk]] or a [[Fellblade]].

===Pimpin Rides===
Also worth mentioning, that Perturabo and Rogal Dorn are special enough to get their own personal special/unique vehicle, other primarchs may get their own vehicles in the future (who knows?). However, rules dictate that neither vehicle can be taken in games under 3000 points. Meaning you can only use it in 3000+ matches.

*'''Perturabo''' gets to ride in ''The Tormentor'', a Shadowsword with the Command Tank upgrade. Not only that, but Perturabo is so awesome, he managed to somehow give it 15 troop capacity, meaning it can take 12 Power Armoured dudes + himself, or 6 Terminators for his bodyguard. But, it doesn't stop there! It also has a single Void Shield! It costs 25pts more than a normal Shadowsword with the same upgrades, but strictly speaking it does NOT have BS4 unless you take the targeter sponsons as the Legion Crew upgrade is not mentioned (the command tank upgrade is), but it's so awesome, who cares?
*'''Dorn,''' on the other hand, gets a customised Thunderhawk Gunship, the ''Ætos Dios''. This ship has Turbo Laser as standard, plus a single Void Shield to protect it, it also has It Will Not Die so can regenerate some of its hull points and finally it ALSO has a 4+ invulnerable save against missiles, all on top of being a flyer which means you can only snap-shot at it, all for the bargain cost of 600 points - which is actually 175 points CHEAPER than a normal Legion Thunderhawk with a Turbo-Laser.

==Douchebagginess==
It is well known that most of the primarchs were douchebags to varying degrees.

From least to most douchebag. Note, the scale really drops off into fucking douchebag after Jaghatai.

# Vulkan - The least douchebaggy primarch by far. Vulkan routinely put the life of him and his men on the line for the sake of the Imperial citizens. Vulkan would throw himself to the defence of a no name human tribe with the same ferocity and zeal as he would Terra itself. A total bro. Also was the largest, strongest Primarch (Ferrus' metal arms were determined as cheating) and held back in sparring for fear of hurting his brothers. His only real fault was that, despite his strong distaste for terror weapons, he had a thing for setting people on fire.
# Sanguinius - Despite some... [[Red Thirst|unorthodox tendencies]], he is reported as being the most charismatic of the primarchs, perhaps second only to Horus. He taught his men humility and nobility, and put the well-being of humanity above any personal glory. A pretty all-round nice guy (except for that little aforehinted bloodlust problem). And he can also lapse a bit as seen in his treatment of Curze by denying him a chance of changing his fate & earning forgiveness. On the other hand, Curze did have it coming for how he massacred Sanguinius' bodyguards.
# Magnus the Red - For his faults, Magnus was one of the nicest Primarchs right up there with Vulkan and Sanguinius. Before the whole Prospero thing, this guy's MO was all about the advancement of humanity: always trying the diplomatic approach to preserve what could be preserved, using shock and awe tactics to limit damage when fighting, happily taking remembrancers along his legion (Although all remembrancers amongst the fellowship were psykers to some degree). Magnus was a friendly and open-minded idealist, which makes it all the more tragic when he gets deceived, framed, backstabbed and then coaxed into selling his soul to the [[Tzeentch|Cuttlefish of Keikaku]]. He is easily the most sympathetic of the traitors, considering he only joined them after being backed into a corner; had Jaghatai been at his side during and after Nikaea (especially considering he knew about the Webway project), things might have turned out differently. He was also the only traitor primarch who actually cared about his men, even after ascending to daemonhood. The novel ''Deathfire'' also ups his bro-ness quite a bit, as he proved himself the only traitor-aligned Primarch to ''sincerely'' do something very helpful for one of his loyalist brothers after the Horus Heresy was already in full swing. This "special favour" is made all the more striking given how it took place ''after'' Magnus had his adoptive homeworld burned out from under him. Perhaps his skin was red not only because of mutation, but because it also showed [[Lovedagger|the greatness of his heart?]]. On the other hand, this happened before all of his fragments were merged back together and before his more benevolent fragments faded into oblivion or were permanently lost. So any chance he's still benevolent and has a good heart died after Ahriman's failure at his Second Rubric on Prospero.
# Corax - Even after being raised under the tyranny of the Kiavahrans, he refused to take after their tyrannous ways, wanted to make things right, and asked the Emperor to end the civil war he started while liberating his homeworld of Lycaeus. Seeing the ruthless tendencies the Terran members of his legion had, he quietly shipped them way the fuck away from the rest of the Great Crusade to go fight xenos or had them all slaughtered during the Battle of Gate 42. One of the only primarchs to readily admit his own mistakes, which were many and sometimes tragic.
# Jaghatai Khan - Despite him being modeled after [[Genghis motherfucking Khan|the guy who holds the high score on raping and pillaging]], Jaghatai was actually very reasonably and [[Kharn|a pretty fun guy to be around]]. His main hobbies included raiding and jetbikes, but he had an appreciation for the fine arts as well. He was very good friends with Magnus and very pro-psyker. However he also kept his distance from pretty much everyone else, save Horus, not wanting to deal with other people's bullshit, unless they were really worth the effort - as the result very few people knew and trusted him (especially once his only bros turned traitor). While the Khan didn't seem to care too much about the whole Great Crusade thing and spent most of his time doing his own thing, he never turned his back on the Imperium, despite being one of the two Primarchs to fully recognize how flawed the Emperor was; he declared that Big E was "neither a monster nor a simpleton", mostly because he knew that Chaos was even worse.
# Guilliman - R.G. is a jerk with a (or rather two) heart(s) of gold or a nice guy with a nasty mean streak, depending on how you look at him. Some people might say this dude was a statesman in the same vein as Augustus Caesar- he was great at building states and making life generally better for people, but only if you ignore the deported and murdered people who didn't agree 100% with the new regime. For somebody more reasonable, Guilliman was perhaps one of the most responsible and human among his brothers. He cared about the common man, personally planned post-war reconstruction and political integration into the Imperium of the planets he conquered and (unofficially) tolerated moderate presence of religion in Ultramar. But for sure the guy had a big ego, as he constantly spoke and behaved like he knew what was best for everyone, at least until proven wrong (multiple times). And you better not get on his shit list, although to be fair he was mostly a complete jerk with people he considers being [[Konrad Curze|psycho]] [[Angron|mass murderers]] with [[Perturabo|no respect for their own sons]] or [[Alpharius|civilian populations]]. And despite what [[Matt Ward|some people]] would have you believe, he knew he couldn't plan for every situation and expected people to use their own judgment rather than blindly follow his [[Codex Astartes|codex]]. Like Jaghatai Khan, we know Guilliman recognized that the Emperor was a horrible father and that the ideals the Emperor espoused were far more important than the Emperor himself ever was. While he's grown more cynical since his revival and subsequent realization of how badly the Imperium has devolved in his absence, he has refused to abandon his noble ideals or his faith in humanity as a whole.
# Horus - Pre-Heresy he was a surprisingly chill dude, except if you crossed his sensibilities. Got along well with the regular people and his brothers, but he gradually started treating some of them like shit after becoming Warmaster. His insecurities may have also made him vulnerable to the Dark Gods' lies when he received a vision of the Imperium 10,000 years into the future where the Emperor was worshiped as a god, he and many of his brothers were forgotten, and everything was Grimdark--a future that, unbeknownst to him, he would be directly responsible for creating specifically as a result of his own attempts to avert it. The whole heresy thing just sort-of kills his position on the list. After going full Chaos, he rapidly became a much, much bigger dick.
# Rogal Dorn - Although one hell of a masochist, and at times thick-headed, he did see the idea behind the Imperium, and actually agreed with it. Honest and dependable, while Rogal didn't make for interesting conversation, he would always do his job without complaint. Had as much empathy and subtlety as one of his fortresses and ended up hurting a lot of people (mostly emotionally, but sometimes physically too) with his over-the-top brutal honesty. The prime example was when he betrayed Fulgrim's trust after they had a discussion regarding Konrad's visions, and provoked Curze into slashing him across the face. However, he could occasionally get quite philosophical, and is perhaps the only Primarch to admit that his own nature and power unsettled him.
# Leman Russ - Nowhere near as much of a dick as butthurt Magnus fanboys would have you believe. He was indeed savage, brutal, and myopic (being as violent as Angron and using psykers like Magnus while shunning both for those traits); but ultimately always keeping the larger goal of betterment of humanity in sight and having good reasons for that myopia. Prone to picking fights with his brothers and destroyed Prospero under questionable circumstances. That said, he used the culture of his homeworld to give his Legion control over its savagery, and made the Space Wolves focus on protecting people from monsters instead of just butchering civilians. He did use terror tactics, mass killings, and the destruction of knowledge, but he did so out of loyalty to humanity and the Emperor, not just because he felt like it. Bottom line: Russ certainly had his fair share of flaws, but as belligerent and myopic as he could be he always tried to make the galaxy safe for humanity in the longer run.
# Lion El'Jonson - The Lion was complex, to say the least. He had an arrogance that matched Fulgrim or Horus's worst moments combined with a difficult early life fighting Chaos beasts on Caliban. This "do-or-die" attitude spilled over into his interpersonal skills, hard. Too hard. Put simply, you had once chance with Johnson and if he ever decided you wasted it, then it was over and you went on his shitlist forever. The end result was a Primarch who was aloof and taciturn, whose poor communication skills made him unsuited to lead the Primarchs but whose ego made it impossible for him to accept the seniority of Horus or Russ. At the same time, there was a competitive, spiteful, and self-centered side to the Lion, which led him to execute one of his own Dark Angels over a conflict of authority and nearly kill Russ over an argument about kill-stealing. There's been speculation in-universe and out of it that he wasn't wholly loyal to the Emperor, but he made it clear to Curze that he sees loyalty as "its own reward". The only reason he's below Russ is that Russ at least admitted his own faults and tried to interact with people, while the Lion was too stubborn to admit when he was wrong and came off as distant at the best of times.
# Ferrus Manus - A big dude with a penchant for bursts of choleric anger. Between his resting bitch face and his Social Darwinist ideals, he seems at first glance to be a natural candidate for a traitor. However, his honesty and loyalty to the Emperor mean he certainly wasn't as bad as Perturabo or Mortarion, and he did sincerely believe that weakness would cause the Imperium to collapse. He was... really a pain to deal with, however. Unlike let's say Dorn who was only really mean when you made it on his shitlist; Ferrus was only nice to people who made it on his friendslist. Anyone else could as far as he was concerned better stay out of his way or get introduced to his fists. Most of the Loyalists and even some Traitors (at first) viewed the protection of the innocent as their goal, while Ferrus encouraged tactics that led to massive civilian casualties, and where Primarchs like Curze or Angron took Legions that were bad about mortal deaths and kept up such practices, Manus took a Legion that had tried to minimize mortal deaths and made them worse about it. All this said, he was loyal unto death to the emperor's ideals and he also understood that his sons' fetish for cybernetics was beyond unhealthy and wanted to help them overcome it. His death ensured that last part would never happen, and indeed made them double down on their hatred of the flesh.
# Alpharius Omegon - Damned if anyone knows. You just can't trust that/those guy(s), which does make him/them a pretty big dick by default. The fallout from some of the Alpha Legion's Crusade-era shenanigans suggests a certain inclination to showing off at the expense of civilian lives.
# Fulgrim - Not as much a dick as some other primarchs. Still a dick to humans and marines who didn't match his ridiculous high standards. He also can't keep a secret, betraying Konrad Curze's trust and causing him to go nuts on Dorn's face. Other than Horus and Sanguinius, was the only Primarch to really get along with all his brothers (save Jagatai, but that's his fault. Oh, Mortarion thought he was a prancing idiot. And Fulgrim considered Russ a dumb hick), and was BFFs with Ferrus Manus, of all people. That is, until he chopped his head off. Rude. Also took pride to the extremity of arrogance, hence his fall to Slaanesh.
# Mortarion - Rubbed everyone the wrong way. EVERYONE, excluding Eidolon who he actually got along with somehow. Downright bigoted against psykers. He resented pretty much everyone who he felt had it easier than him. He was also notorious for using chemical and radiological terror weapons and generally not giving a fuck about who got killed by them. However, his reputation is slightly misleading. Mortarion was the Primarch who was the most driven to slay monsters and bring down tyrants, and would rather go kill more monsters than rebuild the planet. He and his Legion were almost always deployed in the most hellish and war-torn locations, so their use of chemical weapons didn't do as much damage as Morty's detractors would have you believe. Maybe not, but he'd still deploy them in almost any theatre as a matter of course. Over time, he became more and more disgusted with people's acceptance of [[Emperor|tyrants]] and [[Magnus the Red|psykers]], and became much more likely to kill everything in the vicinity of what he considered evil. Then [[Nurgle]] made him his plague-ridden bitch, at which point he decided to just take his bitterness out on everyone lacking the Plaguefather's "gifts".
# Angron - Loved killing people and not much else. Most of the casualties within his legion were a result of him being a team-killing psycho because quite frankly he didn't care what he got to kill as long as he got to kill it. That said, Angron at least had an excuse for being such a rampaging dick all the time. The Butcher's Nails had effectively turned him into a half-mindless killing machine, as it actually has not just remapped, but replaced parts of his brain, effectively removing from him any emotions other than pain, hatred and battle-lust. One may wonder what sort of guy he would have been without the implants, maybe someone more akin to [[Conan the Barbarian]]? Just consider even with the nails biting at his mind he became life bros with the other gladiators of Nuceria and stopped himself from killing worthy adversaries back during his life as a slave, such an act must have meant getting brain-roasted by the Butcher's Nails. But he stick to his guns despite the suffering. On top of that, he got fucked over pretty hard by Big E when they first met, so it's no wonder he went traitor the moment Horus made him an offer, we may even credit him for enduring years fighting for the Imperium instead of just getting himself killed in any of the battles. At the end of the day, Angron was probably the primarch who gave least fucks about his legion and was content to let it run itself without his leadership, although he never really wanted one to begin with. The action that places him so low on this list is the fact that he allowed the spread of Butcher's Nails throughout his Legion, despite his own hatred of the damn things and the fact they cause him so many issues, not least going psycho rage-monster most of the time; which is a pretty fucked up thing for him to condone. Perhaps he allowed it because seeing his sons with Butcher's Nails reminded him of his fallen gladiator brothers and sisters on Nuceria. Still, it's a dick move.
# Perturabo - Underwent an extreme shift some time before the heresy. Initially, Pert was a fairly relaxed architect, swapping lore with Magnus and dreaming up untold wonders (we get a look at this more reasonable side during Angel Exterminatus). During the crusade, though, he and his legion were given the very shittiest jobs and the least recognition, going so far as to have the Iron Warriors' credit in a campaign handed to other legions [[Galactic Partridges|swiped]] least a few times. Understandably pissed, Perturabo spiraled from a not-very-high start (he killed 10% of his legion when he assumed command, simply because they weren't the very best) to rock bottom, caring even less about the life of his legionaries and civilians than Mortarion. Unlike other Primarchs like Angron and Mortarion, Perturabo didn't really have that tragic of an upbringing to justify his shitty personality. And while he did have a sympathetic foster sister, Calliphone, who tried to help him cope with his dreams being belittled and court politics plaguing him in his childhood, any sympathy went out the window when he choked her to death for pointing out his flaws and foolishness causing the planet's rebellion after he devastated Olympia (even though he did cry afterwards). By the end we was just an envious, petty bastard who was always complaining whenever things didn't go his way (which was always).
# Konrad Curze - Arguably the most sadistic of all primarchs, Konrad really got off to torturing people and manipulating the masses through fear. Warped as it may have been, he did at least have a sense of justice. Unfortunately, his desire to protect the innocent was eviscerated and left to die in a gutter by his desire to punish the guilty. Any ideas of mercy or decency he may have harbored had been long buried under a massive pile of flayed guts. Angron may have not really cared about his Legion, but Curze actively despised his own long before the Horus Heresy ever started. He did admit that what he had done was wrong, but instead of trying to atone for his atrocities, he used that fact he was going to be assassinated as validation of his actions. In fact, the only two things that genuinely seemed to scare him were the possibilities that the Emperor '''wouldn't''' order his death ''(and render his life choices meaningless)'' or even worse: be forgiven for his behavior.
# Lorgar - The dude who brought this whole fucking mess into fruition. If only he had strangled Erebus and Kor Phaeron at the first mention of Chaos. Instead he decided he was going to ruin everything for everybody because nobody was on board with his kooky cult shit. He started off as a well-intentioned idealist who sought to use what he knew best to uplift humanity, religion, before the Emperor's actions on Monarchia destroyed his psyche, allowing Erebus and Kor Phaeron to let him know about [[Chaos|the other gods who would appreciate his worship]]. Ironically, the Emperor was willing to put up with the Machine Cult instead of tolerating Lorgar's craft while urging him to bring worlds into the Imperium faster. While it's true he shouldn't have been treated so harshly by the Emperor (even Malcador and Guilliman privately said as much), and even though he believed Chaos was necessary for humanity to survive and continue existence, the fact that Chaos & the Horus Heresy caused the 10,000 year old Imperium to become the grimdark, bloody, corpse-littered cesspool we all know and love, outweighs all of the slivers of sympathy that he might have had. To be honest, he was one of the nicest primarchs before the destruction of Monarchia, comparable to Magnus before the Burning of Prospero. Still, Lorgar is why we can't have [[Noblebright|nice things.]]

==See Also==

[[Return of the Primarchs]]: A What IF? series filled with pure [[AWESOME]] and [[Fist of the North Star|MANLY TEARS]].

A little side note, if you want an awesome look at the Primarchs in all their Crusadey goodness, go look at Aerion the Faithful's Libris Primaris project. http://www.bolterandchainsword.com/topic/152862-artwork-libris-primaris/

==Gallery==

<center>
===Loyal===
<gallery>
File:Lion El'Jonson.JPEG|[[Lion El'Jonson]]
File:JaghataiKhan-1-.jpg|[[Jaghatai Khan]] (look at those fabulous high-heeled boots)
File:LEMAN RUSS.jpg|[[Leman Russ]]
File:Rogal Dorn Portrait.png|[[Rogal Dorn]]
File:Sanginuscool.jpg|[[Sanguinius]]
File:Ferrus Manus Pre-Haircut.jpg|[[Ferrus Manus]]
File:Robute Guilliman.jpg|[[Roboute Guilliman]] (Big Bobby G)
File:Vulkan's Face.jpg|[[Vulkan]]
File:Corax Portrait.png|[[Corvus Corax]]
</gallery>

===Traitor===
<gallery>
File:Horus Portrait.png|[[Horus Lupercal]] (THAT ONE FUCK-UP)
File:Fulgrim by slaine69.jpg|[[Fulgrim]] (look at his sexyness)
File:Perturabo Portrait.jpg|[[Perturabo]]
File:Konrad Curze Mugshot.jpg|[[Konrad Curze]]/Night Haunter/Batman
File:Angron Butchers Nails.jpg|[[Angron]] (GETS. SHIT. DONE.)
File:Mortarion Portrait.jpg|[[Mortarion]]
File:Magnus.jpg|[[Magnus the Red]]
File:Lorgar Handsome.jpg|[[Lorgar Aurelian]] (goldboy)
File:Alpharius2.jpg|[[Alpharius]]/[[Omegon]]
</gallery>
</center>

{{Template:Primarchs}}
{{Imperium}}

[[Category:Chaos]]

Mortarion

2017-12-21T21:19:23Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

[[File:Mortarion Portrait.jpg|400px|thumb|right|Mortarion, the Death Lord, is in serious need of some chapstick.]]

{{Topquote|Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster . . . for when you gaze long into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.|Friedrich Nietzsche}}

{{Topquote|Now, I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.|Robert Oppenheimer, quoting the Hindu religious text, the ''Bhagavad Gita''}}

{{Topquote|Forget no insult, my sons, as I have never forgotten those of my father, of the Emperor, nor those of Horus. Forgive no slight or grievance. Hold your bitterness deep within, and there let it fester. Let it roil and squirm and churn, until you are filled with bile so poisonous that all you touch falls to ruin. Thus shall you serve Nurgle best. Thus shall you spread his virulent gifts across the false Imperium, and watch its final rotting…|Mortarion}}

Also known as the '''Death Lord''' or the '''Prince of Decay''' after he got sick of [[Emperor|Daddy's]] shit, '''Mortarion''' is the [[Primarch]] of the [[Death Guard]] (XIV), a particularly gross legion of [[Chaos Space Marines]]. Has an absolute hatred of psykers, is a staunch believer of the Darwinistic principle, has some serious beef with the new and improved [[Roboute Guilliman|Rowboat Girlyman]] and is [[Nurgle|Grandaddy Nurgle's]] big special boy.

==Biography==
Mortarion was left on the plague planet [[Barbarus]] by the [[Chaos]] gods. He was found by the Overlord of Barbarus, who may or may not have been a xeno or possibly a sorcerer of Nurgle, but whatever he was, he was something that was less human than Mortarion. The Overlord, naming him Mortarion (to mean "Child of Death") took the infant Primarch and raised him, teaching him the arts of combat and warfare, after caging the child on a mountain top to acclimatize to the poisonous atmosphere. Mortarion's curiosity led him to leave home and set up shop in one of the human villages in a less plague-filled valley, where he simply helped with the harvest. When the village was attacked by a marauding warlord, Mortarion charged into the fray, defending his home with his scythe. After the battle was won, Mortarion taught the villagers, and other humans on Barbarus, the same lessons of warfare he had learned from his adoptive father. Soon, they were strong enough to take the fight to the warlords of Barbarus until only the Overlord remained. The Emperor showed up in a modest robe, as he feels like doing sometimes, and challenged Mortarion to slay the Overlord alone or swear loyalty to him.

Mortarion wasted no more time and went to kill his adoptive father, but he was too weak and succumbed to the poisonous upper atmosphere. Cue [[God-Emperor of Mankind|Emperor]] time and one hit kill. The Emperor stole Mortarion's kill and evil adoptive father (Mortarion resented both as a trivialization of his struggles against the warlords, and this resentment eventually caused his fall to Chaos).

===Great Crusade===
He was discovered 130 years into the Great Crusade and was taken to Terra, like all his other brothers were, to learn the ways of the Imperium. But unusually he was held for a bit longer on Terra than his brothers were on the reasoning that they were going to get all of the poisons and toxins out of his system, though this would obviously hit a snag since he got his armour customised to supply him with the Barbarus gases on demand ''(maybe he was dependent on them?)'', naturally all this waiting around got him a bit frustrated and annoyed.

Mortarion managed to sneak his way through the Imperial Palace and to the construction site of the future [[Golden Throne]] ''(yeah, despite being all giant and pungent, he was an excellent [[Ninja]], also evidenced by his rules below)'' When he demanded of [[Malcador the Sigillite|Malcador]] what it was, he wouldn't accept the regent's excuses that it was nothing to concern himself over, since Mortarion knew [[Heresy|warp-tech]] when he saw it, and considered the Emperor & Malcador big giant hypocrites. The same went for his three brothers who set up the Librarius, and he didn't get on that well with the others. Apart from maybe the Khan, Mortarion had the least central role in the Crusade of all the Primarchs.

Thus Malcador revealed to Mortarion the Emperor's greater plan; which was to remove the reliance on psykers and warp travel entirely, and that they were already planning the [[Librarian|Council of Nikaea]] in advance and that Mortarion would be the one to make the case for reining it in.

Mortarion gets his own legion and swears allegiance to the big E. Weirdly, for all his dad and Malcador's worries about him, they didn't see fit to keep him fighting alongside the Emperor like (clearly sane and well-adjusted) Vulkan. After a few years of raping and pillaging those filthy Xenos he becomes best buds with [[Horus]] and that [[Konrad Curze|creepy pseudo-batman]]. He wasn't that bad of a guy, but he resented pretty much everyone whose upbringing hadn't been as awful as his, except Horus. There's a bit in Scars where he bitches and moans at Sanguinius, Jaghatai and Fulgrim about how they had it easy before snapping at the Khan that he ''doesn't resent it''. Hmm. The newly renamed Death Guard was moulded to resemble Mortarion's old army on Barbarus, as it began prioritising endurance over everything else. In combat Mortarion relied on his raw strength, which according to Jaghatai Khan, only Ferrus Manus had a hope of matching. In a primarch-on-primarch duel he just absorbed damage, tiring his opponent out.

===Horus Heresy===
When the [[Horus Heresy]] began, of all his traitor brothers, we don't quite yet know "why" Mortarion joined the Traitors since there haven't been many books with him as the protagonist. But it was presumably for [[Perturabo|ideological reasons]] rather than being outright [[Fulgrim|corrupted]], [[Angron|broken]] or [[Konrad Curze|renegade already]] since we know he already considered the [[Emperor]] and the [[Imperial Truth]] to be hypocritical and had never forgiven the Emperor for being the one to kill his foster "father" instead of him. He also felt that the whole goal of the Imperium was the wrong one- viewing non-combatants as unworthy, and hating the influence that civilians began to wield post-Ullanor. Horus' rebellion promised an order based on Might Is Right, and if the Warmaster died in the process of overthrowing the Emprah, then Mortarion might get a shot at the top job. So was probably like "Yeah I won't worship Chaos, but I'll follow you anyway!" with Horus. Then again, a flashback with Malcador tells us that Mortarion might've had mental scars just as big as Curze's and Angron's, between the jail-keeper relationship with his adoptive dad, wanting to kill said foster parent, failing and watching his real dad kill said evil dad and finally finding out that his real dad was also a psyker (basically everything that Mortarion hated).

If he was telling Jaghatai the truth, in Horus he saw a leader who could give the strong freedom to dominate the galaxy, driving out the weak and impure. At the same time, Horus might not keep the throne once he got it; there would be "room to rise" when the war was over. Specific, room for him to take Horus's place.

However, that wasn't as easy as he thought, especially when he saw just how many despised psykers, witches, and sorcerers were running around all over the place. As a last-ditch attempt to change the balance, he tried to recruit [[Jaghatai Khan]] on [[Prospero]], using the Warrior Lodges to subvert the [[White Scars]]. Being an architect of the [[Librarian|Librarius]] and a generally cool guy, the Khan told Mortarion he was an idiot and went to town on the Death Lord. Mortarion gave Jaghatai the fight of his life, but eventually ran away to take his butthurt out on the rest of the Prosperine system, all the while brooding over the Khan's taunts. He'd thrown his lot in with the thing he hated the most and now that he'd run out of allies, it was going to claim him. Scars kinda retcons the start of Mortarion's descent here- the Khan thinks that Mortarion's "power" has grown (probably psychically) and that the guy's face looks discoloured around his rebreather. Despite this, he still insisted on claiming he was the only "pure" Primarch.

Just after getting into that scrap with the Khan, he travelled to a library world that once belonged to the [[Thousand Sons]] and set about [[Exterminatus|purging it]] to find a particular person possessed by a daemon. This would prove a turning point, as he kept the daemon in order to [[Inquisition|extract knowledge on how to defeat daemons]], but ended up getting goaded into using sorcerous powers to blast the creature into a mushy pulp and declaring that he would learn all he could about his [[Daemon|enemy]] in order to learn how to [[Fail|better eradicate it]]. Which the daemon had forseen as the beginning of Mortarion's descent into [[Fifteen views of Asscrack|Nurgle's Pocket]]. The retcon continues here, as Mortarion's claims to "purity" are mocked to his face and we're told that a Chaos God has already staked a claim on him. It's also pretty clear that Mortarion's close to going nuts even before this push, as his quarters are littered with Scientific Anti-Warp Devices (AKA shit tons of charms, incantations and numerical codes which do hurt Daemons... once he starts using the Warp). Oh yeah, and he makes speeches about how destroying worlds is good for the soul.

Following this he went on a psychic binge on [[Molech]], using the daemon prince who his old captain Ignatius Grulgor had become to wipe out entire cities. However, he also [[Awesome|took a blast from a Stormhammer cannon in the face, stayed on his feet, and destroyed the Goddamn superheavy tank.]]

Apparently the tank shell was loaded with the rare substance known as "common sense" (and admittedly with his regular author back) so Mortarion retreated from the Warp again, smashing up his trinkets, locking Grulgor away, banning sorcery again (although that only applied to his own Legion and he was more lenient on his allies) and generally treating the whole thing as some kind of lost weekend. His paranoia only got worse when First Captain [[Typhon]] disappeared, and then Horus assigned him the task of destroying the White Scars. Mortarion was so suspicious that he accused Horus of trying to get him killed, not appreciating that he was the only one Horus could trust to Get Shit Done in this scenario until Horus explained that the other Primarchs had [[Fulgrim|fucked off]], [[Angron|were]] [[Konrad Curze|uncontrollable]], [[Perturabo|disillusioned]], [[Alpharius|not really fans in the first place]] or were [[Lorgar|too busy pursuing personal vendettas]].

To that end Mortarion worked alongside [[Eidolon]] of the Emperor's Children, and despite Eidolon being a glory-whore who was all for using Chaos to modify himself wherever he could while also employing sorcerers (while Mortarion's the polar opposite), the two got along really well (mostly because Mortarion made it clear Eidolon was working '''with''' him and not '''for''' him). Surprisingly Mortarion arguably treated Eidolon better than Eidolon's own Primarch, given how Mortarion was supportive and didn't cut Eidolon's head off. The mission would have gone swimmingly, if the Scars' head psyker hadn't opened up a [[Dark Glass|Webway gate]]. Still, Mortarion was able to break open the Khan's flagship and teleported aboard with three hundred Terminators... only to find the ship empty, with the Khan and co evacuated to another ship (admittedly Jaghatai hated doing it, feeling like he was a coward for running away). Next thing he knew, the shields came back and his force was zerg rushed by the last of the Sagyar Mazan death squads formed from disgraced(attempted to usurp the Khan) White Scars. So he watched as his nemesis escaped and the warriors he'd once hoped would force the Khan to join them redeemed themselves by delaying him. And best of all? They were laughing.

And all the while, all his ships were getting grimier and the mortals were getting sicker...

Eventually he'd use Eidolon's sorcerers to locate Typhon, his first captain would kill his [[navigator]]s, claiming they were secretly loyalists, and then he'd convince Mortarion that he could take them to Terra. Why Mortarion trusted a hidden Psyker who revealed himself as his first captain after butchering the navigators who served him quite well isn't fully known yet since those books haven't been written (hopefully there's a plausible explanation). When his big ol' fleet was pimping their way to Terra, they were caught in a Warp Storm, where they had to suffer diseases which would kill anyone else. The Death Guard's legendary endurance turned against them, holding them just on the edge of death, suffering so hard that it makes a [[Dark Eldar]] torture feel like massage (no, really). Well, what would be the best way to stop the disease? [[Derp|Start the worship of the God of the Diseases, of course!]] To be fair, Typhon was already doing that- in fact, he was the one who arranged them to be caught in the warp storm in the first place. [[Nurgle]] was pleased as the Death Guard swore loyalty to him, and he ended their suffering (but made them walking sacks of meat that simply won't die, our beloved [[Plague Marines]]). Mortarion instead became... actually he didn't change all that much. Seriously, aside from getting a scabby face he looks nearly identical to how he used to be.

This act of "swearing loyalty" takes on a different context when you realize that Mortarion utterly despised the Ruinous Powers (even if he may have been getting some assistance from them towards the end of the Heresy, if the events of Scars are to be believed) and only submitted to Nurgle because he physically couldn't suffer any longer or watch his sons do the same. Certain fluff sources literally state that as Mortarion lay in agony he pictured himself once again defeated atop his daemon-father's lair, too weak to fight on in the face of certain death, only this time he knew the Emperor wasn't going to save him from his fate (when you consider the importance he placed on strength and the refusal to surrender, this becomes an even bigger nightmare). And so, after a lifetime of striving to become the most grim, unstoppable motherfucker in the galaxy he crumbled when the stakes were highest, and lost his soul to Chaos, becoming everything he hated most. [[Grimdark]].

===Post Heresy===
[[File:Mortarion,_Prince_of_Decay.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Seriously, Morty was playing Ol'Grimmy before the [[C'tan|Nightbringer]] was ever thought up! So much for originality [[GW]].]]

After Horus got his ass kicked, Mortarion made epic formations, and marched his ships (yes, marched them!) to the Eye of Terror; as a reward for his service and his ability to keep his Legion from disintegrating on the way to the Eye, Nurgle made Mortarion a Daemon Prince and gave him a nice new home, known as the Plague Planet, which they started decorating and uhh... "cleaning". Yes, seriously. Mortarion changed the Plague Planet to resemble Barbarus which caused Typhon (now Typhus) to abandon him in disgust of the sentimentality (not to mention he was more interested in getting shit done). Nurgle on the other hand, likes good gardeners and wholly approved of the whole venture. Though Mortarion was somewhat displeased with Typhus' insubordination, he allowed Typhus to leave rather than trying to control his former Captain as the Emperor sought to control him.

Surprisingly, his appearance barely changed from how he used to be, and if you ignored the wings (and the immortality) you could be forgiven for thinking he wasn't a Daemon Prince at all. He even stayed about the same size as before (at least until GW released a new model that makes him as big as Magnus). [[Angron|Very different to]] [[Magnus|Nearly every other]] [[Fulgrim|Daemon Prince in the setting]].

Incidentally, did we mention that he built his fortress atop the high mountains shrouded in toxic miasma and rules over billions of slaves? You know, exactly like the Overlord of Barbarus all those millennia ago?

Ever since getting the Plague Planet Mortarion hasn't done all that much (though he's far from being the laziest Primarch in the setting). The whole enslavement and broken-by-plague thing has probably hurt Mortarion's motivation a little bit, whereas Fulgrim, Angron and Magnus all get to have some fun with their Chaos abilities, Mortarion is just stuck in a mess of self-hatred. He's basically ended up like his adoptive father, punishing all his subjects for being too weak to rebel against him - by proxy, punishing himself for his own weakness. In those moments he was not completely consumed with self-loathing, though, he got creative and designed toys for his sons to play with like the [[Plagueburst Crawler]].

To his credit, he did make himself useful in the Fall of Sanctia in 437.M36 by sending an army of diseased [[Orks]] to soften the planet up, then made their corpses explode into a massive horde of Nurglings when he and the Death Guard landed, wiping out all life in less than a day. It's also emerged that he helped Typhus concoct the Plague of Unbelief, which helped raise the curtain on Abaddon's 13th Black Crusade. More recently, he led the Death Guard's invasion of [[Ultramar]] to kick off the Plague Wars.

Apparently at some point in time after his ascension he spent a millennium tracking down the soul of his foster "father", which he now keeps in a jar to torture when he's in a bad mood. Better late than never, right?

===The Draigo Incident===

Tl;dr: he got his ass handed to him by [[Kaldor Draigo]] who carved the name of the previous SUPREME GRAND MASTER, Geronitan, into one of Mortarion's hearts.

The longer story, as told by the Audio Drama ''Mortarion's Heart'': Geronitan more or less baited Mortarion and allowed whole sectors to die under the Primarch's massive force (every Nurgle cult and warband within 100 sectors) until he showed up at Kornovin, which was one of the few places the Grey Knights could perform the ritual to bind his soul and kill him for good. It failed due to the fact that Geronitan forgot to wear a helmet so Mortarion just Plague Winded him to death and laughed as the entire Grey Knights Chapter cried (yes this happened.)

Afterwards, Kaldor got elected, mostly because he's the most expendable Grand Master who's also skilled enough to fight the Death Lord. Grand Master Crom gave Kaldor a potent weapon, the true name The Emperor gave to Mortarion.

After a laughably short and one sided fight, which was really just Mortarion punching Kaldor in the face over and over again, Kaldor was able to light Mortarion's cape on fire when Mortarion eventually got a hand cramp. Mortarion paused for a second because that was his VERY favorite cape and became distracted enough to allow Kaldor to slip Mortarion's true name into the Death Lord's mind, which caused him to [[wat|FUCKING EXPLODE]] somehow, regardless of the fact that in every other instance of true names ever the worst that can happen is your combat stats getting halved. Though it might be because in this case the name itself originated from the Emperor, and anything that has to do with the Big-E will mess up anything Daemonic big time. Kaldor then crawled over to a helpless, nearly broken in half Mortarion and wrote Geronitan's name on Mortarion's heart in magic marker.

He is still incredibly bitter about his loss. More so than usual, anyway.

===Plastic Model===

With [[Magnus the Red]] getting a Daemon Primarch model, rumor has it that either Mort or Angron will receive one next. Kaldor probably will show up and autograph his other heart, though. As of early 2017, a supposed image of Daemon Mortarion is floating around the internet. HYPE!
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BceinBiT9jQ New video] on Warhammer tv. His model is confirmed, as well as plastic plague marines! Manreaper looks [[awesome]]! Yaaaaay! MOAR IMPERIAL SLAUGHTER!!! MOAR!!! Not sure what else is getting the [[Thousand_Sons | Thousand sons]] treatment though. Plastic Typhus?

As of writing, a picture of Mortarion's model has been released. It's beautiful. (See gallery)

[[File:99800104022 KarandrasNEW 01.jpg|300px]]
[[File:Khaine.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Tarantula.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Parker.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Harvest.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Ghost.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Vyper.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Falcon.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Traveller.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Demon.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Plague.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Champion.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Blightlord.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Corruption.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Hauler.jpg|400px]]
[[File:Predator.jpg|400px]]

Death Guard Legion Brigade Detachment
3 HQ choices
Traveller Calas Typhon with Destroyer Hive, Manreaper & Blight Grenades - 175 points
Nurgle Chaos Daemon Prince with Malefic Talons & Hellforged Sword - 156 points
Nurgle Chaos Daemon Prince with Malefic Talons & Hellforged Sword - 156 points
6 Troops choices
Plague Marine Squad (Plague Champion with Power Fist & Plasma Gun, 2 Plague Marines with Plasma Guns & 2 Plague Marines with Boltguns, all with Plague Knives, Blight & Krak Grenades) - 5x19 + 3x13 + 12 = 146 points
Plague Marine Squad (Plague Champion with Power Fist & Plasma Gun, 2 Plague Marines with Plasma Guns & 2 Plague Marines with Boltguns, all with Plague Knives, Blight & Krak Grenades) - 5x19 + 3x13 + 12 = 146 points
Plague Marine Squad (Plague Champion with Power Fist & Plasma Gun, 2 Plague Marines with Plasma Guns & 2 Plague Marines with Boltguns, all with Plague Knives, Blight & Krak Grenades) - 5x19 + 3x13 + 12 = 146 points
Plague Marine Squad (Plague Champion with Power Fist & Plasma Gun, 2 Plague Marines with Plasma Guns & 2 Plague Marines with Boltguns, all with Plague Knives, Blight & Krak Grenades) - 5x19 + 3x13 + 12 = 146 points
Plague Marine Squad (Plague Champion with Power Fist & Plasma Gun, 2 Plague Marines with Plasma Guns & 2 Plague Marines with Boltguns, all with Plague Knives, Blight & Krak Grenades) - 5x19 + 3x13 + 12 = 146 points
Plague Marine Squad (Plague Champion with Power Fist & Plasma Gun, 2 Plague Marines with Blight Launchers & 2 Plague Marines with Boltguns, all with Plague Knives, Blight & Krak Grenades) - 5x19 + 2x14 + 13 + 12 = 148 points
5 Elites choices
Blightlord Terminator Squad (Blightlord Champion & 5 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Combi-Plasmas, 2 Blightlord Terminators with Flails of Corruption & 2 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Blight Launchers) - 10x38 + 8x5 + 6x15 + 2x14 + 2x10 = 558 points
Blightlord Terminator Squad (Blightlord Champion & 5 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Combi-Plasmas, 2 Blightlord Terminators with Flails of Corruption & 2 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Blight Launchers) - 10x38 + 8x5 + 6x15 + 2x14 + 2x10 = 558 points
Blightlord Terminator Squad (Blightlord Champion & 5 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Combi-Plasmas, 2 Blightlord Terminators with Flails of Corruption & 2 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Blight Launchers) - 10x38 + 8x5 + 6x15 + 2x14 + 2x10 = 558 points
Blightlord Terminator Squad (Blightlord Champion & 5 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Combi-Plasmas, 2 Blightlord Terminators with Flails of Corruption & 2 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Blight Launchers) - 10x38 + 8x5 + 6x15 + 2x14 + 2x10 = 558 points
Blightlord Terminator Squad (Blightlord Champion & 5 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Combi-Plasmas, 2 Blightlord Terminators with Flails of Corruption & 2 Blightlord Terminators with Bubotic Axes & Blight Launchers) - 10x38 + 8x5 + 6x15 + 2x14 + 2x10 = 558 points
5 Fast Attack choices
Myphitic Blight-Hauler Tri-Lobe with 3 Myphitic Blight-Haulers with Missile Launchers, Bile Spurts, Multi-Meltas & Gnashing Maws - 3x85 = 255 points
Myphitic Blight-Hauler Tri-Lobe with 3 Myphitic Blight-Haulers with Missile Launchers, Bile Spurts, Multi-Meltas & Gnashing Maws - 3x85 = 255 points
Myphitic Blight-Hauler Tri-Lobe with 3 Myphitic Blight-Haulers with Missile Launchers, Bile Spurts, Multi-Meltas & Gnashing Maws - 3x85 = 255 points
Myphitic Blight-Hauler Tri-Lobe with 3 Myphitic Blight-Haulers with Missile Launchers, Bile Spurts, Multi-Meltas & Gnashing Maws - 3x85 = 255 points
Myphitic Blight-Hauler Tri-Lobe with 3 Myphitic Blight-Haulers with Missile Launchers, Bile Spurts, Multi-Meltas & Gnashing Maws - 3x85 = 255 points
3 Heavy Support choices
Hellforged Predator with Twin Lascannon & Lascannon side sponsons - 190 points
Hellforged Predator with Twin Lascannon & Lascannon side sponsons - 190 points
Hellforged Predator with Twin Lascannon & Lascannon side sponsons - 190 points
Aeldari Craftworlds Brigade Detachment
3 HQ choices
Avatar of War God Khaine - 250 points
Shadow Hunter Karandras - 150 points
Harvester of Souls Maugan Ra - 140 points
6 Troops choices
Storm Guardian Squad (2 Storm Guardians with Fusion Guns & 6 Guardians with Chainswords & Shuriken Pistols, all with Plasma Grenades) - 8x7 + 2x14 = 84 points
Storm Guardian Squad (2 Storm Guardians with Fusion Guns & 6 Guardians with Chainswords & Shuriken Pistols, all with Plasma Grenades) - 8x7 + 2x14 = 84 points
Storm Guardian Squad (2 Storm Guardians with Fusion Guns & 6 Guardians with Chainswords & Shuriken Pistols, all with Plasma Grenades) - 8x7 + 2x14 = 84 points
Storm Guardian Squad (2 Storm Guardians with Fusion Guns & 6 Guardians with Chainswords & Shuriken Pistols, all with Plasma Grenades) - 8x7 + 2x14 = 84 points
Storm Guardian Squad (2 Storm Guardians with Fusion Guns & 6 Guardians with Chainswords & Shuriken Pistols, all with Plasma Grenades) - 8x7 + 2x14 = 84 points
Storm Guardian Squad (2 Storm Guardians with Fusion Guns & 6 Guardians with Chainswords & Shuriken Pistols, all with Plasma Grenades) - 8x7 + 2x14 = 84 points
8 Elites choices
Striking Scorpion Squad (Striking Scorpion Exarch with Scorpion's Claw & 9 Striking Scorpions with Scorpion Chainswords, all with Plasma Grenades & Shuriken Pistols) - 10x13 + 15 + 9 = 154 points
Striking Scorpion Squad (Striking Scorpion Exarch with Scorpion's Claw & 9 Striking Scorpions with Scorpion Chainswords, all with Plasma Grenades & Shuriken Pistols) - 10x13 + 15 + 9 = 154 points
Striking Scorpion Squad (Striking Scorpion Exarch with Scorpion's Claw & 9 Striking Scorpions with Scorpion Chainswords, all with Plasma Grenades & Shuriken Pistols) - 10x13 + 15 + 9 = 154 points
Klaivaulch Vengeful Wraithblade Squad (10 Vengeful Wraithblades with Ghostaxes & Forceshields) - 10x(29+10+6) = 450 points
Klaivaulch Vengeful Wraithblade Squad (10 Vengeful Wraithblades with Ghostaxes & Forceshields) - 10x(29+10+6) = 450 points
Klaivaulch Vengeful Wraithblade Squad (10 Vengeful Wraithblades with Ghostaxes & Forceshields) - 10x(29+10+6) = 450 points
Klaivaulch Vengeful Wraithblade Squad (10 Vengeful Wraithblades with Ghostaxes & Forceshields) - 10x(29+10+6) = 450 points
Klaivaulch Vengeful Wraithblade Squad (10 Vengeful Wraithblades with Ghostaxes & Forceshields) - 10x(29+10+6) = 450 points
5 Fast Attack choices
Warp Spider Squad (Warp Spider Exarch with a pair of Powerblades & two Death Spinners & 9 Warp Spiders with Death Spinners) - 10x10 + 11x8 + 4 = 192 points
Warp Spider Squad (Warp Spider Exarch with a pair of Powerblades & two Death Spinners & 9 Warp Spiders with Death Spinners) - 10x10 + 11x8 + 4 = 192 points
Vyper Jetbike Skimmers (3 Vyper Jetbike Skimmers with Starcannons & Shuriken Cannons) - 3x50 + 3x15 + 3x10 = 225 points
Vyper Jetbikes (3 Vypers, each with a pair of Starcannons) - 3x50 + 6x15 = 240 points
Vyper Jetbikes (3 Vypers, each with a pair of Starcannons) - 3x50 + 6x15 = 240 points
5 Heavy Support choices
Fire Prism Gravity Battle Tank with Prism Cannon & Shuriken Cannon - 165 points
Fire Prism Gravity Battle Tank with Prism Cannon & Shuriken Cannon - 165 points
Dark Reaper Harvester Aspect Warrior Squad (Dark Reaper Exarch with Tempest Launcher & 9 Dark Reapers with Reaper Launchers) - 10x5 + 9x22 + 27 = 275 points
Dark Reaper Harvester Aspect Warrior Squad (Dark Reaper Exarch with Tempest Launcher & 9 Dark Reapers with Reaper Launchers) - 10x5 + 9x22 + 27 = 275 points
Dark Reaper Harvester Aspect Warrior Squad (Dark Reaper Exarch with Tempest Launcher & 9 Dark Reapers with Reaper Launchers) - 10x5 + 9x22 + 27 = 275 points

===The Plague Wars===

Mortarion was sulking in a pile of slime as usual when the winds of the Warp whispered that his brother [[Roboute Guilliman]] had finally been pulled off life-support and took the position of Lord-Commander of the Imperium. Morty was [[RAGE|not pleased]] that Rowboat got a second chance at life while he remained in Grandpa Nugle's clutches, so the Death Lord decided to finally get off his ass and start acting like a Deamon Primarch for once!

He brought the Death Guard to real space after [[Abaddon]]'s 13th [[Black Crusade]] succeeded in expanding the Eye of Terror (and nothing else). [[Magnus]] failed to kill Guilliman when he had the chance so, prepared to [[get shit done]], Morty Boy planned out a massive campaign called the Plague Wars to meticulously rot and plague every single planet in [[Ultramar]]. He released many different plagues, including several variations of Typhus' [[Zombie Plague]]: Shoot the zombies and you only [[FAIL|make it worse]] since they explode into a swarm of full-grown [[Nurgling]]s. For a guy who spent 10,000 years sitting on his ass and getting beat up by [[Mary Sue]]s, he proved surprisingly effective at [[Anal circumference|penetrating]] deep into Ultramar before Gorillaman was able to halt his advance. Nurgle's little scythe boy managed to carve out 3 whole star systems for the Death Guard to use as their base of operations in real space: '''The Scourge Stars.'''

Alas, Mortarion's big Ultramar come-back tour was bound to end eventually. Guilliman's waifu [[Yvraine]] headed into the Warp and retrieved an eldar artifact called the Rose of Isha , which let the Ynnari take back the Hand of Darkness and slow the spread of the Death Guard's plagues, leading to the Ultrasmurfs pushing the rotting bastards back. Mortarion and Guilliman clashed personally on the hospital world of Iax. Unlike his duel with Magnus, Robby G didn't have the [[Adeptus Custodes]] or [[Sisters of Silence]] backing him up, so the two were at a complete stalemate, Mortarion's strength and resilience vs. Guilliman's [[Creed|tactical genius]]. The Death Guard eventually had to retreat, as [[Khorne]] and [[Tzeentch]] had grown jealous of Nurgle's fledgling empire and were sending forces to take it for themselves while the Death Guard was away.

'''''*Nurgle: I'm so proud of my little plague bringer, he's finally giving my love to the galaxy like I always wanted! *sluuuuurp*

==Tabletop==
===Heresy===
[[File:FW_Mortarion.jpg|260px|thumb|right|Here's his mini teaching all of us how to properly wield a scythe.]]

{| class=wikitable
! || WS || BS || S || T || W || I || A || Ld || Sv
|-
| '''Mortarion:''' || 7 || 5 || 6 || 7 || 7 || 5 || 5 || 10 || 2+/4++
|}

Mortarion is a tough oponent : with the Primarch rule, T/W 7, flat dice wounds like poisoned and fleshbane wound on 6's, rerollable IWND and Toughness tests, 2+ armor save and a 4+ invulnerable save, he's basically a Gargantuan Creature for all intents and purposes. He negates Maledictions affecting him or his unit on a 4+, ''(which isn't a Deny the Witch, so Adamantium Will doesn't help and you get his 5+ DtW after, though it works out to being exactly the same as nullifying them on a 3+ anyway)'', Death Guard gain Stubborn and Poisoned (4+) on all frag grenades and missiles which is pretty sickening. For weapons he has the Lantern pistol which is almost a pistol meltagun, phosfex bombs (an unlimited supply of them, and he can throw them at double the range!), frag grenades and Silence, a S7 AP 2 no longer unwieldy power scythe with sweep attacks that causes Instant Death and reroll failed penetration rolls. Great for getting rid of that annoying Praetor or captain. Notably, he's also one of the only characters in fiction who knows how the hell you're supposed to hold a scythe! Take that, Poldark!

they also gave him the Shadow Of The Reaper rule. It makes enemy units take a fear check at -1 leadership. By itself in normal 40k rules, it's situationally great, making it pretty mediocre on the whole, but in the pre-ATSKNF 30k setting, it's much more useful. But much more importantly, it gives him a special move in the shooting phase: if Mortarion isn't locked in combat or embarked and doesn't shoot or run, he can take a leadership test and teleport 10 inches away from his current position. It does not count as moving, does not scatter, and does not prevent him from charging (But he does count as making a disordered charge. Not that big of a problem, seriously). There are some other caveats, but he effectively has a minimum 18" charge range without factoring in his base size, and he is fleet to boot. [[Awesome|Because he's fucking terrifying.]]

Mortarion is among the top 3 best Primarchs for his points, as SotR lets him reach combat by turn 2 unless you fail your Ld test. Furthermore, Stubborn is an absolute game-changer in 30k, as it drastically reduces your odds of breaking in Assault and Poisoned allows you to functionally ignore [[Iron Hands|certain legions]] [[Imperial Fists|Toughness shenanigans]] (and it makes it easier to hurt Mechanicus). He doesn't really need a transport or retinue, giving you more points to put towards dakka, and provided you're smart enough to avoid concentrated AP2 you're very likely to see the end of the game. He can't fight Land Raiders, but with 5 S7 Sunder attacks you shouldn't underestimate his ability to fuck up Dreadnoughts. Ultimately, his biggest strength is that unlike [[Angron]] or [[Vulkan]] he is an effective force multiplier who gives a lot to his army while needing almost no support in return.

His model is equally as badass as his rules, if you can get past the fact that he doesn't have a rebreather (it's a part of his armor's chest piece now, which still begs the question, why not just give him a rebreather and shut fa/tg/uys up on the subject?). Although the designer probably thought that he didn't really need to breathe, and he's probably immune to anything poisonous anyway (on Prospero the Khan had to go in totally suited up, whereas the Death Lord just strolled in dressed just the same as normal, and Girlyman established that Primarchs can breathe in an incredibly thin atmosphere - he can apparently fight in near-vacuum for hours on end without a helmet, because [[Heresy|fuck physics]]). (Even in-universe, Guilliman's ability to fight in the void without a helmet and little oxygen has Imperial scholars going "WTF?")

===40k===

This is Mortarion's stat line in 40k:

{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;"
! Name || M || WS || BS || S || T || W || A || Ld || Sv || Power
|-
| '''Mortarion''' || * || 2+ || 2+ || 8 || 7 || 18 || * || 10 || 3+/4++/5+++ || 24
|}

His movement/attacks are based on his wounds remaining.

{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;"
! Wounds || Move || Attacks || Host of Plagues
|-
| 9-18 || 12" || 6 || 4+
|-
| 5-8 || 10" || 5 || 5+
|-
| 1-4 || 8" || 4 || 6+
|}

'''Toxic Presence''': Enemy models with 7" must subtract 1 from their Toughness characteristic.

'''Host of Plagues''': Depending on Morty's remaining wounds, roll a die for each enemy ''unit'' within 7"; on a success, the unit takes D3 mortal wounds.

So what do we get? With 18 wounds, a 4++ save, and Grandaddy's trademark Disgustingly Resilient rule, he will prove quite hard to bring down, and his survivability can be boosted further with Nurgle's stratagems. He has the best (at the moment) anti-horde weapon in the game, his huge scythe ''Silence''. It can dish out Ax3 (18 base!!!) S:U AP:-2 D1 Plague Weapon attacks per phase of combat (and incidentally, his WT lets him and everyone near him using a Plague Weapon reroll all failed to wound rolls), which will annihilate tarpits like there's no tomorrow. To deal with anything requiring more killing, ''Silence'' has a second profile being S:x2 AP:-4 D:1d6 Plague Weapon. His 'command aura' affects every enemy unit standing within 7" of him, giving them -1 toughness and they will receive 1d3 mortal wounds on a roll of 4+ (scaling down as he takes wounds, alas). He still carries his old ''Lantern'' pistol that can cause quite a bit of damage to lined units for it hits automatically every unit in a straight line between him and the one he aims for, but only once per shot. He still carries his phosphex bombs that deal 2D6 S5 AP-1 hits (They're not Plague Weapons, though), and he can perform a bunch of weaker attacks on top of his normal ones thanks to his retinue of Nurgling helpers. Cherry on top, he's now a psyker. (Yeah, the very thing he hated back in the days but, hush. No more tears, only Nurgle's happiness now!) He knows 3 powers from the Contagion discipline, he's able to cast two and deny three every turn. All this is in addition to the fact that he is the fastest piece in the army, moving 12" with FLY. And as ultimate finger flip, if he does somehow go down he explodes like a vehicle for a few parting mortal wounds. All in all a really, REALLY strong big daddy.

Unlike Magnus, Mortarion's command aura doesn't boost his sons but weaken his enemies so there's no reason whatsoever to hold him back. Do note however that while he's tanky he's far from invulnerable and always keep in mind that he is a massive fire magnet. Just like in 30k, you'll need supporting units and a plan to get the most of ole Morty. [[Deathshroud]] Terminators are a shoe-in for that role, of course, especially if Mortarion buffs them up first.

==Mortarion VS other Primarchs:==
<div class="toccolours mw-collapsible mw-collapsed" style="100%">
Primarch fighting, while fun to see isn't a very competitive thing to do as it'll usually tie up both Primarchs for the entire game without either of them dying (especially with Mortarion who can mathematically always go the entire game in a Primarch duel), with that in mind this section is how Mortarion fares against other Primarchs Mathhammer wise. Please note that all the various abilities, with the exception of Blind, are taken into account (Blind is ignored because it never changes the outcome of the fights, the winner is still the winner with or without it) and the match-ups assume the Primarchs are the only ones involved in the fighting, so various abilities like Angron's "The Butcher's Nails" and Rampage do not provide any bonuses.
<div class="mw-collapsible-content">

* Mortarion VS Horus
**Horus will use Worldbreaker (as wounding on 2's is better than re-rolling to wound) and hits 3.999 times, wounds 3.332 times, 1.666 after saves and IWND will take that down to 1.111 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.666 times, 0.555 wounds after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.222.
**Mortarion loses this fight.

* Mortarion VS Angron
**Round 1: Angron has Hatred, so on the first turn he will instead hits 5.333 times, wounds 3.555 times, 1.777 after saves, and IWND take it down to 1.222.
**Round 2: Angron hits 4 times, wounds 2.666 times, 1.333 times after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.778 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.666 times, 0.833 times after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.5 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion just barely loses this fight by one turn as his extra wound almost allows him to outlast Angron.

* Mortarion VS Fulgrim
**Fulgrim hits 5.333 times, wounds 2.666 times (Fireblade)/1.777 times (Laer Blade), 1.333 times (Fireblade)/0.888 times (Laer Blade) after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.778/0.333 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.666 times, 0.555 wounds after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.222.
**Mortarion loses this fight either by a little or a lot depending on whether or not Fulgrim has Fireblade or not.

* Mortarion VS Ferrus
**Ferrus with Forgebreaker: hits 2 times and 0.5 with his servo arm, wounds 1.666 times with Forgebreaker and 0.333 with his Servo-Arm (1.999 total), 0.999 times after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.444 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Ferrus with Bare Hands: hits 2 times and 0.5 with his servo arm, wounds 1 time with his hands and 0.333 with his Servo-Arm (1.333 total), 0.666 times after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.111 times at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.25 times, 0.416 wounds after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.083.
**Even though Mortarion is tough in the end Ferrus wins pretty easily thanks to his superior save and damage.

* Mortarion VS Konrad Curze
**Curze hits 4 times, wounds 2.221 times, 1.11 wounds after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.555 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.666 times, 0.833 wounds after saves and 0.5 wounds after IWND.
**Mortarion wins as even though he does less damage he'll outlast Curze.

* Mortarion VS Vulkan
**Vulkan hits 2 times, wounds 1.666 times, 0.833 wounds after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.278 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.25 times, 0.415 wounds after saves and 0 wounds after IWND.
**Mortarion loses as mathematically he's incapable of harming Vulkan.

* Mortarion VS Lorgar
**Lorgar hits Mortarion 2.5 times, wounds 1.666 times, 0.833 after saves and IWND will take that to 0.278 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Round 1: Mortarion hits 2.961 times, wounds 1.752 times, 0.876 times after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.543 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Round 2: Mortarion hits 3.333 times, wounds 2.222 times, 1.111 times after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.778 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Even with forcing Mortarion to re-roll 5's and 6's for the first round Mortarion still beats Lorgar. He also loses to invisible Lorgar Transfigured just like every other Primarch (mathematically he causes 0 wounds to him).

*Mortarion VS Perturabo
**Perturabo hits 2.666 times (both types), wounds 1.333 times (Normal)/2.221 times (Forgebreaker), 0.666 wounds (Normal)/1.11 wounds (Forgebreaker) after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.111/0.555 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.666 times, 0.555 wounds after saves and 0.222 wounds after IWND.
**Mortarion wins but only if Perturabo doesn't bring Forgebreaker.

* Mortarion VS Alpharius
**Alpharius hits 2.92 times and wounds 1.136 times, 0.568 wounds after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.0124 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.667 times, 0.833 wounds after saves and 0.5 wounds after IWND.
**Mortarion wins

* Mortarion VS Rogal Dorn
**Dorn hits 2.666 times (Normal)/1.333 times (Sundering Blow), wounds 1.48 times (normal)/1.183 times (Sundering Blow), 0.74/0.59 wounds after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.185/0.035 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.666, 0.833 wounds after saves and 0.5 wounds after IWND.
**Mortarion wins in 12 turns as Dorn does a lot less damage in return.

* Mortarion VS Corvus Corax
**Corvus hits 4 times (Scourge)/3 times (Shadow-walk), wounds 2.221 times (Scourge)/1.666 times (Shadow-walk), 1.11 wounds (Scourge)/0.833 wounds (Shadow-walk) after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.556/0.278 wounds at the start of the next turn.
**Mortarion hits 2.5/1.666 times, wounds 1.666/1.11 times, 1.11/0.74 wounds after saves and 0.777/0.407 wounds after IWND.
**Mortarion wins either way in this fight, he causes more overall damage, has more wounds, and regenerates faster. In addition even if Corax runs away Mortarion's ability to teleport will mean he'd catch Corax very quickly after he re-appears so he cannot run away to heal which would render this a stalemate.
**Note: Corax could attempt to "cheat" his way to victory thanks to his special rules, especially Sire of the Raven Guard (which grants him Super-Furious Charge) and Hit & Run. With this he could disengage at the end of Mortarion's assault phase, in order to charge him again during his turn. Using this tactic he would Shoot with his pistols for 1.9444 hits, 0.648 wounds, 0.108 wounds after saves, then charge in with Hammer of Wrath gaining 0.333 wounds, and 0.0555 wounds after saves, then attack with the Panoply which hits 4.5 times (scourge), wounds 3.375 times, 1.6875 after saves and 1.132 with IWND for a total of 1.296 Wounds. This, combined with Shadow-walk during Mortarion's assault phase in order to mitigate his retaliation barely lets Corax win if he goes charging scourge in round 7, then scourge again in round 8 as he strikes before Mortarion, compared to 8 rounds needed for Mortarion to kill Corvus (this is including Overwatch with The Lantern).
**Though this looks like a close fight at first glance, this tactic relies completely on Hit and Run (which is more akin to Corvus's fighting style), as well as assumes the Charging always works out in Corvus's favour and so the strategy will mathematically fail over the eight rounds needed to kill Mortarion (as there's mathematically one turn that either Hit and Run or Charging will fail when Mortarion consolidates away from Corvus's consolidation) giving the victory to Mortarion again. But that's actually the same chance of Corax Blinding Mortarion (Not included in the fights), so the odds are still the same.

* Mortarion VS Roboute Guilliman
**Round 1: Guilliman hits 2.5 times, wounds 2.083 times (With Hand of Dominion), 1.042 after saves, and IWND take it down to 0.486.
**Round 2 and after: Guilliman hits 3.333 times (Thanks to Preternatura Strategy), wounds 2.777 times, 1.388 times after saves and IWND will take that down to 0.833.
**Mortarion hits 2.5 times, wounds 1.666, 0,833 after saves, 0.417 wounds after Armor of Reason, and after IWND they become 0.083 wounds.
**Guilliman wins in 8 turns as Mortarion's damage is almost irrelevant.

* TLDR version: Mortarion's good against Konrad Curze, Vanilla Lorgar, Hammerless Perturabo, Alpharius, Rogal Dorn, Corvus Corax and bad against Horus, Angron, Fulgrim, Ferrus, Lorgar Transfigured, Vulkan, Perturabo with Hammer and Guilliman, putting him quite in the middle of the road for Primarch duelling.

* Dirty Trick: Use Morturg and put Endurance on Mortarion, if you do this Mortarion can beat everyone (including Lorgar Transfigured) except Horus, Fulgrim (with Fireblade) and Vulkan as his damage output will exceed theirs or his extra wound will allow him to outlast them and/or they will be unable to hurt him at all mathematically. The reason Horus Vulkan and Fulgrim still win is because Mortarion will eventually be unable to hurt Horus thanks to Disabling Strike, Fulgrim just causes too much damage (and some of his attacks ignore FnP) and Vulkan's Instant Death hammer ignores FnP.

</div></div>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:I am the bringer of Death by SharpWriter-1-.jpg|Seriously badass.
File:Mortarion.jpg|''"Not just yet. When Terra is ashes... ''then'' you have my permission to die."''
File:Mortarion sneak peak.png|Cool model from what we've seen so far
File:DaemonMort.png|The Rotten Angel Cometh.
File:Daemon Primarch Mortarion.png|The official model of Morty, with no Slaaneshi colours, unlike the leaked model.
</gallery>
{{template:Primarchs}}
[[category:Chaos]]

Blood Angels

2017-12-20T14:58:28Z

2A02:587:3A16:C100:E088:4BA2:4059:3AB1:

{{Infobox Spess Mahreen Chapter
|Name = Blood Angels
|Heraldry = [[Image:Blood_Angels_Pauldron.jpeg|center|140px]]
|Battle Cry = "By the blood of Sanguinius!" "For the Emperor and Sanguinius!"
|Number = IX
|Founding = [[First Founding]]
|Successor Chapters = [[Angels Encarmine]] [[Angels Sanguine]] [[Angels Vermillion]] [[Blood Drinkers]] [[Blood Legion]] [[Blood Swords]] (claimed otherwise in Codex: Blood Angels 5th Edition by [[Matt Ward]], so take that as you will) [[Exsanguinators]] [[Flesh Eaters]] [[Flesh Tearers]] [[Knights of Blood]] [[Knights Sanguine]] [[Lamenters]] [[Red Wings]] [[Carmine Blades]]
|Chapter Master = [[Dante]]
|Primarch = [[Sanguinius]]
|Homeworld = [[Baal]]
|Specialty = Rapid assaults, close combat , being ''fabulous''
|Strength = ~1000 Marines
|Allegiance = [[Imperium]]
|Colours = Red with black detailing
}}

{{Topquote|Man is neither angel nor beast, and the misfortune is that he who would act the angel acts the beast.|Blaise Pascal}}

''‘From his Blood are we born! From his essence are we made! From his passion comes our art! From his nobility comes beauty. From his might stems justice. From his thirst is born righteous rage!’''
--The Final Charge of the [[Lord of the Rings|Rohirrim]]--err, Blood angels.

The '''Blood Angels''' were the 9th [[Space Marine]] Legion created by the [[Emperor]]. They are so named because of their tendency to
use blood as a central symbol of their particular warrior-monk rituals, and because of their susceptibility to the Red Thirst, a wild bloodlust that arises in them during battle. If he fails to control his Red Thirst, a Blood Angel may succumb to the [[Black Rage]] (the [[Grimdark|Grimdarkest]] of Daddy Issues), after which he becomes a completely insane killing machine with no regard for his own safety who will try to destroy the Emperor's foes even if all he has left is a bloody stump of one leg. This has led to the Blood Angels being viewed as basically vampires [[Meme|IN SPEHSS]], and unfortunately as the [[Twilight|Team Edward]] to the [[Space Wolves]] [[Twilight|Team Jacob]]. If you are not already completely indignant, see the second image at the bottom of the page for additional [[rage]]. We'll wait. …...Yeah, how much does that blow? Here's the good news, though: that's pretty much the only thing that sucks (PUN) about the Blood Angels. Everything else is [[awesome]] apart maybe from [[Skub|'nipple' armour]], but the rest is all cool, angelic and bloody and all.

The cause of the Black Rage basically amounts to the most epic case of an absent-daddy complex ever. Just with a high chance of being skullfuckingly angry/awesome at the same time. You see, during the [[Horus Heresy]], the Blood Angels' [[Primarch]], [[Sanguinius]], was slain by [[Horus]] himself just before the Emperor destroyed Horus. This subsequently [[RAGE|fucked up]] the mental stability of all future generations of Blood Angels, and when one of them is overtaken by the Black Rage, he literally believes he is Sanguinius and relives in vivid detail the final battle with Horus and his traitor legions at the Battle of [[Terra]].

Oh, and [[Hive Fleet Leviathan]] have been coming to devour their homeworld [[Baal]] for a few editions while it is also being attacked by a [[Khorne|Khornate]] army led by their ancient enemy, the [[Bloodthirster]] Ka'bandha. 8th edition "progressed" the story with the attack and devastation of the Baal system where the Blood Angels and almost all their successor chapters were ready to receive them. Both moons were stripped of all life (yummy yummy radioactive wastes) and the main planet was wrecked with trillions of bugs, with the last survivors awaiting their fate like men in the ruins of the fortress monastery.

This is when the Great Rift opened up and cut Baal from the real space, yet the Tyranids on the ground forgot about the synapse shenanigans and continued to enjoy their first winning campaign since like forever. By the time the Warp was stable, all the bug-ships had vanished and Ka'Bandha had wiped out everything on one of Baal's moons. Luckily for them (though both BA and Tyranid players would disagree), they were bailed out just in time by Roboute Guilliman and his fleet. They have since managed to rebuild, notwithstanding Baal's moons becoming lifeless husks ironically except for the one Ka'Bandha manifested on. At least the places that got that treatment were that radiation blasted shitholes, so yeah.

==History and Background Fluff==

[[File:Blood angel aspirants.jpg|300px|thumb|left|Welcome motherfuckers, have some blood. You'll be as pretty as us in no time.]]

The Blood Angels' Primarch was [[Sanguinius]], who was best known for being a [[Pretty_Marines|pretty]] [[Mutant]], a charismatic guy with a bad temper that made him look like Satan, and he was apparently a total bro. Basically, to the Space Marine legions and the rest of the Primarchs, he was [[This Guy]]. They all loved him. Even Horus, after he fell to [[Chaos]], lamented that Sanguinius in particular was no longer by his side. He also had a pair of huge, angel-like wings; no one is sure if this had something to do with the radiation on Baal or if he just came out of his birthing pod like that, but the citizens of Baal nearly killed him for it when he was found at the site now known as Angel's Fall. ([[Emperor|Emprah]] have mercy on anyone who uses the [[Mutant|m-word]] around the Blood Angels, though.) Many of the Blood Angels imitate the power and majesty of their beloved Primarch's wings by focusing on jump pack assaults, so the Blood Angels and their successor chapters doctrinally see a lot more [[Assault Squad]]s than the typical Space Marine army. Their current Chapter Master is [[Dante]], the oldest non-Dreadnought-interred loyalist Space Marine in history.

They had a brotherly rivalry with the [[World Eaters]] (if only the [[Imperial Fists]]/[[Iron Warriors]] and [[Ultramarines]]/[[Word Bearers]] could have managed that…) which got pretty messy when the [[Horus Heresy]] started. Also, they are one of the only chapters that can call on its successor chapters and reasonably expect more than just a courtesy call back, [[Angels Vermillion|even the ones]] [[Flesh Tearers|that don't like them all that much]]. The only other ones that we can find who can do that are the [[Dark Angels]] (<s>for obvious reasons</s> ANY IDEA THAT THE DARK ANGELS AND THEIR SUCCESSORS ARE CONNECTED IS FALSE THE DARK ANGELS ARE THE MOST LOYAL TO THE IMPERIUM!), [[Imperial Fists]] and the [[Wat|Ultramarines]](Redundant statements since the majority of chapters with successors do this, since the Wolves and Salamanders dont even have successors that just leaves two chapters with successors who cant). This is pretty justified for the Blood Angels, as all Blood Angel descendants are united by the twin curses/blessings of Sanguinius. So you mess with one of them too much, you might just get an entire legion attacking you. Or if it were during the Time of Ending, you might get them to unite to defend their ancestral homeworld, Baal.

[[File:Warhammer 40K blood angels wallpaper (1).jpg|300px|thumbnail|right|A Marine putting the 'blood' in 'Blood Angel'.]]

The Blood Angels' themes and motifs are drawn from vampire and Faustian mythology as well as some Catholic traditions. They [[Beakie|commonly fly (with jump packs)]], [[Twilight|are eternally youthful]], [[Vampire|drink blood, and sleep in coffins]]. They are also noted for naturally living longer on average than the Marines of any other chapter. When a Blood Angel dies, a [[Sanguinary Priest]] (what they call their [[Apothecaries]]) extracts his gene-seed using a device called an exsanguinator. When it comes time to implant it in an Initiate, the Initiate must receive it by drinking from a Blood Chalice ('insanguination'), which also contains the essence of Sanguinius. The story of [[Mephiston]], the Blood Angels' chief librarian, closely parallels the legend of Faust, a scholar who sells his soul to the devil in return for great knowledge and power (hell, he's named after the manifestation of the devil in the story, Mephistopheles or Mephisto). The names of their special characters and vehicles have an Italian flavor—Dante, the Furioso Dreadnought, Brother Corbulo. Corbulo, known as the chapter's High Sanguinary Priest, carries the Red Grail, which contains the blood of Sanguinius himself. Also, do we have to point out that the word 'sanguis' literally means 'blood' in Latin? Well, there you go.

In times of dire need, they are aided by the [[Sanguinor]], a guy who seems to be a Blood Angel in a more literal sense. Maybe he's some psychic manifestation of the Chapter. Maybe he's a ghost of Sanguinius. Nobody knows. The important thing is that he enjoys piledriving [[Bloodthirsters]] from space, killing [[Eldar]] [[Khaine|Avatars]], and killing a bunch of Night Lords, saving Dante's life in the process as it was otherwise a textbook suicide mission, a redemptive one, to be specific. In recent Black Library tales he appeared to lead Blood Angels brethren in a heroic last stand against Hive Fleet Leviathan, where the squad sergeant [[anal circumference|punched a hole in a Carnifex's chest]] [[Awesome|after being impaled, allowing the rest of his squad to live]]. He took off after that, but not after he managed to [[Noblebright|renew the Astartes' faith in humanity.]]

==Combat Doctrine==

[[File:Helmet Colours.jpg|200px|thumb|right|Helmets for the Blood Angels play a very important part in their chapter—easy color coding to identify squad type ''and'' an incentive to keep your sexy face covered to [[Nemeroth|prevent easily avoidable death by helmetlessness]].]]

The Blood Angels took the establishment of the Codex Astartes as official Space Marine doctrine with [[Imperial Fists|notably less]] [[Space Wolves|bitching than]] [[Salamanders|other chapters]] due to the death of their Primarch and the onset of the Black Rage. They follow the strictures of the Codex as far as they see wisdom in it: the chapter is comprised of a thousand Blood Angels and divided into ten companies, each of which is headed by a captain. The First Company is comprised of veterans, and the Tenth Company is comprised of Scouts and Neophytes who have not yet become full Marines. Obviously though, none of the blood rituals and other [[Pretend|weird shit]] is Codex-approved.

Like their brethren in the [[Raven Guard]] though, the Blood Angels have a natural predilection for using jump packs and their own free will ([[Ultramarines|as opposed to blindly]] [[Red Scorpions|following the Codex]]). Due to their chapter's [[Black Rage|curse]], they have had to tweak things a bit; once they complete their training as Scouts, Blood Angels immediately go into [[Assault Squad|Assault Squads]] rather than [[Devastator Squad|Devastator Squads]], as the Codex Astartes would have it, though not only because of these little scamps' brashness. The constant close combat also allows Blood Angel officers to identify the noobs who can control their Red Thirst as well as those who cannot, and thereafter keep tabs on the latter group. Devastator Squads in the Blood Angels Chapter are reserved for Marines who have better control of the Red Thirst than most, because heavy fire support isn't very useful when the people providing it have psychopathic ADD.

The few Blood Angels that decide they don't like jumping like maniacs into swarms of enemies, and instead prefer biking like maniacs into swarms of enemies, are regarded as some of the best biker Marines in the Imperium, following closely behind the White Scars and the Dark Angels' Ravenwing.

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Name
!Class
!Value
!Wargear
!Quantity
!References
|-
|Lord Commander Dante
|HQ
|215 Points
|Axe Mortalis and Inferno Pistol
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Dante]
|-
|High Chaplain Astorath
|HQ
|143 Points
|Executioner's Axe and Bolt Pistol
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Astorath_the_Grim]
|-
|Death Company Chaplain Lemartes
|HQ
|129 Points
|Blood Crozius and Bolt Pistol
|1
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Lemartes]
|-
|Death Company Dreadnought
|Elites
|194 Points
|Pair of Blood Talons with built-in Heavy Flamers and Magna-Grapple
|4
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Death_Company_Dreadnought]
|-
|Death Company Assault Marine
|Elites
|36 Points
|Thunder Hammer and Storm Shield
|10
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Death_Company]
|-
|Tactical Marine
|Troops
|13 Points
|Boltgun and Bolt Pistol
|18
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Tactical_Marine]
|-
|Archangel
|Troops
|26 Points
|Plasma Gun and Bolt Pistol
|6
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Blood_Angels_2nd_Company]
|-
|Sergeant
|Troops
|25 Points
|Power Axe and Plasma Pistol
|6
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Blood_Angels_1st_Company]
|-
|Razorback
|Dedicated Transports
|114 Points
|Twin-Linked Assault Cannon
|6
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Razorback]
|-
|Land Speeder Typhoon
|Fast Attack
|147 Points
|Multi-Melta and Typhoon Missile Launcher
|3
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Land_Speeder]
|-
|Baal Predator
|Heavy Support
|178 Points
|Twin-Linked Assault Cannon and Heavy Flamer Sponson Pairs
|4
|[http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/Predator_Destructor]
|}

==Tools of the Trade==

[[File:Tumblr niexunCRca1tvfheeo1 1280.jpg|300px|left|thumb|[[Sanguinius]] proclaimed, "War is an art form," and the Blood Angels said, "Well, that sounds [[Pretty Marines|absolutely fabulous]]. Get me some gold."]]

Blood Angels are known throughout the Imperium to be master artisans. Their long lifespans allow them time to perfect whatever trade they set their mind too, whether they are crafting the infamous, hand-sculpted artificer 'nipple' armour, [[What|bolters worth more than an Imperial hive city]], or even if they're simply painting vehicles and power armour. The philosophy behind this practice is that you cannot hope to know the value of what you're fighting for if you cannot understand its beauty.

Blood Angels are also known for their prevalent use of [[flamer|flamers]] and [[melta]] weapons. While they don't employ them as plentifully as the [[Salamanders]] do, they are nearly as masterfully constructed. The Sons of Sanguinius have taken a liking to the hand flamer, which gives them the assault capability of a flamer, but leaves their sword arm free to use in close combat. Heavy flamers can also be found in many of their Tactical Squads as an assault deterrent as well as on the side sponsons of Baal Predators to compliment the Flamestorm Cannon, which ruins any infantry unit's day.

They also reeeeeeally like the Inferno pistol. Nearly everyone has one, including the [[Dante|Chapter Master]].

The aforementioned Baal Predator is a unique tank manufactured by the Blood Angels. It is an anti-infantry assault tank equipped with [[Dakka|twin-linked assault cannons and heavy flamers]] that was acquired in a pre-heresy campaign that nearly broke all their relationships with the Mechanicus. Even to this day, things are still a bit touchy. Luckily, the Techmarines of the chapter quickly reverse engineered the overcharged "Lucifer-class" engines onto nearly all their vehicles.

The Blood Angels' de facto relic weapons are called Glaive Encarmines—'glaive' apparently meaning 'sword' in this case rather than the halberd-type weapon it's associated with. They're made out of a mono-filament metal called 'angel-steel' and are purportedly so perfectly crafted that they never bend or warp. The secrets to their manufacture are jealously guarded by their Artificers. This is represented by their master-crafted universal special rule. They come in two flavors, a Carmine Sword or a Carmine Axe.

==The Red Thirst, The Black Rage, and You!==
The Blood Angels and their successor chapters have a genetic defect in their gene-seed known euphemistically as "The Flaw". It seems to have much more representation in the [[fluff]] than in the [[crunch]], but that's standard fare for a life-threatening, damnation-courting mutation that can pop up at any time.

===Red Thirst===

[[File:BA's.jpg|thumb|left|500px|[[Ultramarines|You'll never see a Blood Angel go]] "Oh nooooes, a fleet of nice squishy flesh-bugs coming to devour our system, we're doooomed...". Maybe because it's an excellent way to let loose for a bit.]]

The Red Thirst is what makes the Blood Angels space vampires,<s> or Team Edward </s> {{BLAM}} {{BLAM|PURGE THE UNCOMFORTABLE THEMATIC PARALLELS OF POPULAR CULTURE!}}

The Red Thirst has been a part of being a Blood Angel since the [[Great Crusade]]. Sanguinius went to great lengths to hide it from the Emperor for fear of being [[First Founding#Two Unknown Legions|expunged from the Imperium]], although odds are that the Emperor already knew. He even introduced [[Chaplain]]s to the Blood Angels legions before the Edict of Nikaea, not just to monitor psykers, but to look out for brothers who might be giving into their bloodlust.

In the lore the general effect is that the Red Thirst makes a Blood Angel an [[Angry Marine]] with a thirst for actual goddamn blood. Thus most Blood Angel Chaplains require certification for anger management therapy before they get the job. Their duty is to ensure that the assorted Marines are not showing signs of bloodlust, and to throw them into a battle if they are [[Grimdark|so they can stave off total madness a bit longer]]. However, all battle-brothers who suffer the effects of the Flaw long enough will eventually become overrun with their rather literal thirst for vengeance, succumbing to the Black Rage. After this, their lives will consist of utterly suicidal front-line charges to [[rip and tear]] the enemy as much as possible, before they eventually receive an honorable death in combat against the Emperor's foes. Those unlucky enough to survive to the end of the battle will either be given [[Blam|the Emperor's Peace]] by [[Astorath]], or [[Grimdark|imprisoned within the Tower of the Lost as a hopeless, dribbling maniac until they are required on the field of battle once more.]]

Some chapters are more susceptible than others. The imaginatively named "[[Blood Drinkers]]" are notorious amongst their allies for allegedly leaving exsanguinated corpses wherever they show up. On the upside, Blood Drinkers are one of the few chapters who have [[Deathwatch (RPG)|tangible rules]] regarding how they handle the Red Thirst: if they have recently sated themselves, they gain a boost to WS, and suffer penalties to morale checks if they refrain from feeding.

On the tabletop, this has historically been changed in every single incarnation of the rules as GW continually changed their minds over how the Thirst should be represented; in 7th edition, they just give the flat bonus of Furious Charge to everything (including dreadnoughts); but if you get a bunch of Blood Angels together in the correct FOC or formation, then they also get +1 to Initiative when charging (''á la'' old-school Furious Charge), which is a very strong advantage. In 6th edition, Red Thirst had the odd consequence of occasionally making a unit Fearless and Furious Chargers if they give into the temptation, though independent characters had enough control over themselves that they were mostly immune, with a [[Erasmus Tycho|few]] exceptions. Going further back, into 3rd edition, the Red Thirst made a bit more sense and was something to actually be wary of, as your units had a potential to lose control at the thought of blood and move out of position towards the enemy. This really wasn't [[fun]], especially if your Devastator Squads didn't pull that critical round of shooting.

New in 8th it comes back with a vengeance. Allowing any infantry who charged, has been charged, or is preforming a heroic intervention, to add +1 to the to wound roll. Meaning, when red thirst is in affect, [[awesome|you'll never be wounding on anything worse than 5+]].

===Black Rage===

[[File:Death company by fonteart-d6ay2k7.jpg|250px|thumb|Note the ancient, unfathomable fury, and run away pissing yourself.]]

On the other hand, the [[Black Rage]] is the Red Thirst's angrier, more troublesome brother. You know, the one who dresses in black all the time, and who shows up at random times to complicate your life and embarrass your family. It's a terminal state in which the battle brother has not only succumbed to the Red Thirst, but has had a total psychotic breakdown. Or if you're feeling particularly poetic: it's the psychic scream of a dying demi-god that got stuck in his progeny.

Battle-brothers who succumb to the Black Rage are overcome with visions of Blood Angel battles during the [[Horus Heresy]], and a few even imagine themselves to be [[Pretend|Sanguinius battling Horus on his battle barge]]. This of course has the unfortunate side effect of making them completely lose touch with reality, fighting a battle that they can never ever win since the outcome of the hallucinations has already occurred. On the plus side though, their disconnection with what is going on around them turns them into immensely powerful warriors, since each and every one of them believe in some way that they are Sanguinius.

Long story short, a Marine afflicted with the Black Rage will become even angrier than an [[Angry Marine]], and with even less self-control(which means they are effectively each Nightbringer crossed with Commissar Fuklaw. If you happen to be in the same star system of one of these, pray to the god emperor they don't sense you. If you don't happen to worship the God-Emperor, silently hope your gods are OK with Suicide, because the alternative is too nightmarishly gruesome for even GamesWorkshop to describe in sufficient detail). If this happens in a war zone, they are quietly organized into small squads and their armor is painted black by a chaplain before the worst of the hallucinations take over. If they aren't killed in battle or get off the leash somehow, [[Astorath]] will come and execute them on the battlefield since no other Blood Angel has the stomach (or outright skill) to kill his own battle brothers.

The [[Death Company]] is a group of Blood Angels on the battlefield who are afflicted by the [[Black Rage]]. Every force of Blood Angels and their successor chapters has one, though [[Flesh Tearers|some]] are more susceptible than [[Lamenters|others]], which makes those chapters' responses to the occurrence of Black Rage quite varied. The [[Flesh Tearers]] and the renegade [[Knights of Blood]] chapters both have an uncanny predilection for all-out, balls-to-the-wall assault—hoping to die in battle honorably before the rage takes them. In the Knights of Blood's case, they fought with the zeal of the [[Black Templars]], the fury of the [[World Eaters]], and the excess of the [[Marines Malevolent]] in such a perfect way that they got kicked out of the [[Imperium of Man|cool kids club]] and branded renegades for their excess collateral damage against allied forces. The Flesh Tearers very nearly joined that shit list, and were only forgiven by the Blood Angels when [[Plot armor|Astorath personally intervened on their behalf, citing that their brutality would be a necessity in the near future]].

On the tabletop, this essentially allows you to bring a squad of [[Khorne Berserkers]] without the [[Khorne]], but with more customization options. You can also take several squads if Astorath has shown up, as he always seems to know where and when his brothers will succumb.

As with the Red Thirst, [[Games Workshop|GW]] keep changing the rules with these guys; nowadays you can purchase units of Death Company as Elite choices for your army at a not-insignificant cost, whilst in 6th they were Troops, but were so far down the path of being drooling lunatics that they couldn't hold objectives, and you could only have one squad unless [[Astorath]] was watching. In ancient times, it used to happen spontaneously for free, and you had to roll for squads at the start of battle, potentially losing members of squads you already paid for to bulk up your Death Company, which made fluff-sense. But at least you chose which model to take off, and sending a veteran sergeant to the Death Company was the only way of giving power weapon/fists (excluding the chaplain) to the squad. Losing a [[Terminator|Termie]] or tooled-up honour guard made you cry though...

'''UPDATE:''' As of the 6th edition rulebook, Blood Angels and Necrons are Desperate Allies. For reference, Necrons can form the exact same alliance with the [[Black Templars]]. This implies that the whole scenario with the Necrons and the 'Nids was part of the then-upcoming Necron fluff change wherein the Necrons went from omnicidal kill bots to an actual empire capable of politics and forming alliances

'''UPDATE ver 2.0:''' As of 7th edition the entire allies matrix was rewritten. ALL Imperium forces are Come The Apocalypse with Necrons now.

==Daily rituals of the Blood Angels==

[[File:Dawn of War.jpg|200px|thumb|left|alt text|Dante pwns some noobs as [[Astorath]] and [[Mephiston]] look on.]]

04:00 - Reveille - The Blood Angels are roused from their coffins to start the day. 
04:10 - Grooming - The Blood Angels take the time to comb their hair and brush their teeth. Special attention is given to their fangs. Even more special attention is given to their long, flowing, golden hair. 
04:30 - Morning meal - A light meal is prepared by the chapter serfs for the Blood Angels. Consuming a chapter serf is explicitly prohibited. 
05:00 - Morning prayer. 
06:00 - Morning firing rituals - The Blood Angels assemble for target practice. Due to an ancient clerical error, the Blood Angels are in possession of an excessive amount of a heretical series of books from the pre-Imperial days of Terra called the [[Twilight|Twilight Saga]], which they use for target practice by the thousands. 
07:00 - Battle practice - The Blood Angels begin practice in the battle cages. Frequently, the Blood Angels will forgo their bolters for melee weapons. The usage of fangs in combat practice is considered heresy. Using fangs to drink blood is extra Khornate heresy. 
12:00 - Midday meal - The Blood Angels consume a light meal made for them by the chapter serfs. The chapter serfs are still explicitly off the menu. 
13:00 - Deep strike training - The Blood Angels practice their deep strike maneuvers. Pretending to fly like a bat is heresy. Transforming into a bat or black mist to fly is extra Tzeentchian heresy. 
16:00 - Evening firing rituals. During this time, several Blood Angels also practice the shooting style of a legendary Terran gunslinger known as Nosferatu Alucard, a proto-Blood Angel who was said to have slain thousands of daemons alone using only two blessed stub pistols. 
16:55 - Milk and Cookies Break. Drinking blood instead of milk or dipping cookies in milk is Strictly banned. Doing both is considered heresy. 
17:00 - Staring contests - Dumbasses who want to challenge Chief Librarian Mephiston to a menacing staring contest do so now. Usually it's just the neophytes who don't know any better. 
17:15 - Round up - Staring contests end, and those who went mad while staring into Mephiston's eyes must be tracked down in the fortress-monastery and culled. 
17:30 - Evening prayer. Special attention is given to how fabulous Sanguinius was and why they can't wait to tear the heretical Chaos faggots multiple new assholes (hint, it involves blood). 
19:00 - Evening meal - A feast is prepared by the chapter serfs, usually of animals who were killed during the deep strike training. The chapter serfs ''may'' be consumed depending on how good the first two meals were. Using the Red Grail in drinking contests is explicitly prohibited by order of the Sanguinary Priests. 
20:00 - Free time - The Blood Angels are allowed a few hours of free time to do as they please. Some reflect on their duty to the Emperor and the deeds of Sanguinius. Others play vidya games. [[Pretty Marines|Some just pose moodily and bare-chested in front of a mirror]]. Still others will engage in artistic activities. A GOOD vampire movie is often shown for the Blood Angels' entertainment. 
00:00 - Rest - The Blood Angels retire to their coffins for the evening.

==Notable Members of the Blood Angels==
*[[Sanguinius]] - Primarch. Snaps [[Bloodthirster]] spines over his knee and decapitates [[Keeper of Secrets|Keepers of Secrets]] for the [[lulz]].
*[[Meros]] - Apothecary during the Horus Heresy. Sacrificed himself so that Sanguinius could righteously fuck up a Keeper of Secrets
*[[Dante]] - Current Chapter Master. Dude's mad old and prefers not to mention anything about having a Necron's cell phone number.
*[[Mephiston]] - Chief Librarian and resident rape train. Scariest motherfucker this side of the [[Eye of Terror]].
*[[Corbulo]] - High [[Sanguinary Priest]].
*[[Astorath]] - Keeper of Sanctity and the dude who kills Death Company nutjobs when they nutjob too hard.
*[[Lemartes]] - Chaplain and the Guardian of the Lost, and the only Blood Angel to hold the Black Rage in check. Ranks #2 behind the Eversor Assassin as the most 40K thing in 40K.
*[[Karlaen]] - 1st Company captain and total bro. Has a model thanks to 7E's Deathstorm Box.
*[[Donatos Aphael]]- 2nd company captain.
*[[Erasmus Tycho]] - 3rd company captain. Proof that [[Your dudes]] has a reason to exist.
*[[Moriar the Chosen]] - Matt Ward's excuse for making generic Death Company Dreadnoughts a thing.
*[[Rafen]] - Longest living Blood Angel mook in any of the Blood Angels book series.
*[[Sanguinor]] - May or may not be Sanguinius reborn...or Azkaellon...or a warp entity created by the longings of the Blood Angels...or all three together...DAMMIT! IT'S COMPLICATED.
*[[Acrion]] - Random captain that thought he could stand up to [[Abaddon]] during the 7th Black Crusade. He couldn't.
*[[Thalastian Jorus]] - Fuckawesome Reclusiarch that succeeded in standing up to Abaddon--killed ''all'' his [[Bringers of Despair|Honour Guard]], thoroughly wrecked the [[Black Legion]] by utilizing [[Wat|guerrilla tactics with the Death Company of all things]] AND became one of like 3 people in the Imperium to go toe to toe with the despoiler and come out on top, gravely wounding Abby before Thalastian was killed by the Black Legion.

==See Also==
*[[Warhammer 40,000/Tactics/Blood Angels(8E)|Tactics/Blood Angels]]

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:The Red Angel.jpg|Manly Vampires, IN SPESS!
File:Admit It.jpg|You know it to be true.

</gallery>

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