Editing Unification Wars (section)

==40K==
===Age of Strife===
By M23, the human federation that had spread across the galaxy was on the brink of destruction after the war with the [[Men of Iron]]. Its infrastructure and economy ravaged by the war and the loss of its entire specialized workforce. Already on it's last legs, Warp storms caused by the birth of [[Slaanesh]] separated systems from the larger federation. Cut off from the outside, falling into technological regression and vulnerable to xenos aggression, everything fell apart. This was the nail in the coffin for Terra, which was massively overpopulated and no longer had the resources of its empire to rely on, as well as the depletion of its own resources [[derp|including fucking water]].

What followed was about 5,000 years of anarchy, as Terra's once united world government quickly fragmented into dozens upon dozens of warring states. Think Mad Max and the Warring States period of China on an apocalyptic scale, where warlords and their warriors known as [[awesome|techno-barbarians]] warred against one another and subjugated and brutalized those under their domains. To add salt to the wound, chemical and nuclear wars turned the already overtaxed Terra into a barren, polluted wasteland.

===The Emperor of Mankind===
[[image:Unification Wars Infantry.jpg|thumb|A soldier from one of the many techno-barbarian states and yet another reason why we need a model line for a techno-barbarian army.]]

It's at this point where the Emperor decided to stop hiding in the shadows and get shit done for Mankind. Appearing as a brilliant strategist, warrior, scientist, leader, diplomat, (and all other professions you could give him)... he made himself known in the 29th millennium, out of nowhere, to challenge the rule of the techno-barbarians and the warlords that ruled the remnants of Terra at this point. Possessing not only plenty of regular human followers that no doubt fought and kept his war industry going (remember, this is prior to the Emperor meeting with the [[Adeptus Mechanicus|cogheads]] at [[Mars]]) he also lead a massive army of [[Thunder Warriors]]. These mighty soldiers were the early prototype for Space Marines, being stronger and nominally bigger than them, basically occupying a spot inbetween Astartes and Custodes, but having very short and unstable lives as well as lacking the innate kinship and coordination which made a Legion so powerful.

With his armies, the Emperor slowly but steadily pushed back all other rivals, conquering them and adding them to his forces. He also had to deal with skirmishes with Martian and Lunar raiders, due to them also wanting to conquer Terra, [[Blood Ravens|and to steal some pieces of archeo-tech.]] His ''modus operandi'' was flexible enough to require both subtle diplomacy and propaganda to massive carnage and the slaughter of his enemies. It is during this times that the Emperor shows his hatred and rejection for anything religious (probably because of not being able to control either religion or his raging obsession with control), utterly destroying the Antartic civilization through nuclear warfare because they were a religious society (and shot down the Imperial Emissaries), and also burning [[The Last Church|the last catheric church]] when it posed no threat to him. After years of warfare, he conquered the whole planet, while the thunder warriors supposedly died during the last great battle, though probably it was Big E purging them before bringing the newer kids on the block to play (read Valdor: Birth of the Imperium for a pretty [[Awesome|Awesome]] showcase of what REALLY happened). Many talk about the Unification Wars ending after the Battle of Mount Ararat, though really it should end after the Pacification of Luna. Whichever you choose, the result is the same, with the Emperor controlling Terra and gearing towards his [[Great Crusade]] to unite Mankind and to find [[primarch|his sons]].

===See Also===
*[[The Last Church]]
*[[Thunder Warriors]]

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