Editing Warhammer 40,000 (section)

==The Appeal of Warhammer 40,000==
Warhammer 40,000 is basically the anti-[[Star Trek]]. Where Trek envisioned a Scholarly Egalitarian Secular Humanist Post Scarcity Utopia built on understanding, friendship and cooperation in the Federation, 40k conceives of a Militaristic Hierarchical Theocratic Dystopia built on a foundation of Hatred, Fear, Spite, Dogma and the backs of countless billions toiling away in manufactoria in conditions which would make a Victorian factory look pleasant for the Imperium. And those are the ''Good Guys''. 40K has become the poster child for fundamentally bleak settings because it goes beyond cynicism and into the realm of the absurd.

And yet, it avoids becoming an endlessly dark pit of depression and hatred for one reason - deep in the soot and dirt of war-ravaged worlds, between skulls and bodies killed in their myriads, you'll still find the tiniest, most delicate flower. They are one to a million, but genuinely good and hopeful events and people do exist in 40k, and the fact that they are so rare is what makes them shine so much more. Take [[Ciaphas Cain]], [[Vulkan He'stan]] or [[Saint Celestine]], the [[Lamenters]] or the realms of [[Ultramar]]. They are rare and often not the shiniest pieces of hope out there, but the fact that they can even exist in a setting that is known for having coined the term "grimdarkness" is a testament.

Beyond Grimdark, Warhammer 40,000 is also aesthetically distinct. Most Sci-Fi franchises have aesthetics tend to lean towards Functionalism, various flavors of modernism or Art Deco. Machinery made to do a job or something with smooth surfaces, clean lines and sleek forms. 40K in contrast goes for baroque. Especially in regards to the Imperium and Chaos, everything is overdesigned. Battleships are flying gothic Cathedrals with bristling with fuckhuge guns. Space Marine armor is covered in heraldry, skulls, aquilae, purity seals and more. Chaos Space Marines are walking nightmares bedecked with spikes, chains, horns, the symbols of their gods and grizzly trophies, with the lost and the damned being kitted out in the Bargain basement version there-of. Even in the depths of the hive there are gothic finishings, statuary and human figures among twisted mazes of pipes and girders.

Which is not to say that's exclusively hyper gothic over-design. Your average Guardsman is usually more subdued along military and retro lines, though there definately are fancier forces. The Greenskins have their Ramshackle Mad Max aesthetic. The Eldar are sleek and flowing. The Tyranids are heavily carapaced space monsters. The T'au are typically more futuristic, functional and high-tech. Each faction has it's distinct aesthetic, recognizable at a glance and iconic.

And despite the [[Grimdark]] meme, Warhammer 40,000 is rather optimistic in its own way if you think about it. Yes, the universe is a Cosmic Horror Story. Yes, everything out there is trying to kill you. Yes, there are eldritch abominations outside of space and time who will fuck you up or torment your soul for eternity. Yes, we can't do anything about them. But do we just lay down, give up and commit suicide? FUCK NO! Instead, you get up and fight. Fight for anything, whether for [[Imperium|Faith in your God]][[Chaos|/s]], [[Eldar|for the preservation of your people]], [[Tau|for a better future]], or [[Orks|for the hell of it]]. No matter what, even if it takes a lot of painful sacrifices and even [[Imperial Guard|bodies]], you must fight. Because despite the darkness and meaninglessness of this universe, it is ultimately struggle that defines who we are, what gives our life meaning. In a way 40k is a very existential/Nietzschean/absurdist work, with its lesson being determination, endurance and courage in spite of everything. Like how Camus' Sisyphus finds purpose in his eternal punishment of carrying that boulder forever, so do the people of 40k, despite all the crushing realities the universe piled up upon them, still carry on.