MedHammer 40,000

As we limp down the road of history, somewhere in the distance that only the Emperor will see, there will be light and mankind will walk in the sun, but for now there will be only war and misery.

In the Grim darkness of the far future, there is only war” they said solemnly, self-pityingly, naively. 10,000 years ago their was only war. Wars with great heroes, with battles of mighty warriors and fantastic ships, awe-inspiring citadels to defend and even more awesome weapons to destroy it. But above all, in war, there was a sense that war was not the sole state of the galaxy. Indeed as the armies of Chaos, the servants of the emperor, and the aliens fought each other in their romantic conflicts, they fought in the name of a destiny that however faintly could still be seen. The Future is here, but there is no war, wars have boundaries, wars have battles, and wars have ends. The remaining dwellers of the Galaxy have no dreams of destiny, of Imperiums, of Great Games, or of Greater Goods. Against the innumerable forces of the devourerors there is no war, there is only endurance.

This was originally where I kept my drafts for MidHammer 40k, but I moved it off the main site so I could instead spin it off into a different project.

The origional premise for MidHammer is that it was a softer version of Grimdark, or Grimlight. Rather than just making 40k universe less grim though, I am instead assuming that 50k is Grimbright.

Essentially, I am assuming that the phenomenal [Shape of The Nightmare to Come] is what will happen to the Warhammer Universe (more or less). So rather than WH50k being impossibly bleak, the humans of the 51st Mellinium have significantly more resources than the already stretched Vanilla 40k So with this endgoal in mind, I am working backwards to change the 40k and 30k events so that.

The Imperium structurally, technologically, militarily, administratively have more resources at their disposal Humanity as a race, has more psychic and spiritual weapons at its disposal rather than these talents being supressed in 40k The leadership of Humanity and The T'au are more psychologically and tempermentally equipped to face the looming threat of the 51st mellinium.

Epochs

This represents a timeline of major events in the MidHammer 40k Universe

Pre Epochs

age of Old Ones, War in Heaven

Epoch 1(M1-M15): The Age of Eldar

Humanity’s nascent stages, Eldar enjoy peace and eventually create Slaanesh

Epoch 2(M15-M25): The First Age of Man

The Age of Terra and Dark age of Technology

Epoch 3 (M25-M35): The False Age of Chaos

Where the Timeline divulges from Vanilla around Eldar Destroyed, Age of Strife, Great Crusade, The Great Treachery "False Age" because it was supposed to be Chaos' promised era, but it was denied Chaos at its strongest during this time Imperium weathers onslaught of Chaos

Epoch 4 (M35-M45): The Second Age of Eldar/Age of T'au

Major Factions

Great Yndarria

Those eldar who serve Ynnead are able to unite most of the Craftworlds under their leadership, and using the Webway, push back against the Imperium.

Imperium of Man

The Imperium fights on, but is quickly losing ground to The T’au, the Yndari, The Raven, and Now Mars. Ripped down the middle, where even Terra is mere minutes from annihilation, The Primarchs, hold out hope for their father’s recovery and force their enemies to pay dearly for every planet.

Kroot Nation (post m44)

Perhaps the only race to have benefited from the Imperium’s freefall, The Wayward Kroot vassals, Ultramarine Refugees, were invited by Vulkan to aid in the defense of Ultima Segmentum from the T’au onslaught. With their capital in the wild realm of Catachan, the Kroot have become even more dangerous as they ferociously hold the line against their hated enemies the Tau.

Ultramari Exiled Legion (post m44)

Switching places with the Kroot was the destroyed realm of Ultramar, The Astartes, Eutenites, Tarrasque, Daughters of Tarasha, and Ultramari Military have become a migrant fleet. That is not to say they are useless, to the contrary they are leading the charge against both the rogue mechanicus and the T’au against their homeland.

Minor Factions

Imperium Secundus

The work of 10,000 years, has begun to bear fruit as The Aurelian’s efforts to tame the warp has resulted in one of its most powerful realms. The souls of nearly all humans flow into his realm, and Roboute has now surpassed Chaos to the Point where they are no longer a threat to his realm. The influence Imperium Secundus has on the material world is small but growing, often providing support to his oppressed followers in Ultramar. Chaos Undefeated The Aurelian, strengthened by the faith of trillions of human souls over 10,000 years, dissolved the Great Game with his slaughter of Tzeentch, eldest Chaos God. Weakened and starving by the wars from Malal, The Aurelian, and now the Resurgent eldar, Nurgle, Khorne and Slaanesh were subdued into an alliance under the Aurelian.

Malal

The Lord of Chaos’ Destruction has returned, building strength and taking advantage of Chaos’ self destruction. He and his ravens are gaining in strength as Chaos falters.

Drukhari

Refusing to bow to the Yenarri, the Dark Eldar continue to forge their own path. “Better Malal’s Oblivion than Ynneads Obedience.” Commorragh continues to play all sides. All sides now even includes Slaanesh, relishing in the role reversal to provide She-Who-Thirsts’ desperation with Ynarri and Exodite souls. Cegorach and his Harlequins have joined with the Dark Eldar.

Mechanicus

Seeing the Weakness of the Imperium of Man as an opportunity, Mars renounces its alliance with The Imperium.

Events

Begins with the birth of the T'au, ends with the T'au-Eldari war

Early(cM35 - cM38)

• Underwhelming war of the Beast ends before leaving the Ullanor system.
• Creation of Kroot discovered, made subject state of imperium.
• T'au etherial caste created, results in massive T'au slave revolt and second near extermination of the
• Imperium creates "T'au Founding Chapters" leaves devastating impact on Ultima Segmentum
• Tau Expand Galactic north
• Tau Southward expansion stopped by Ultramar

Mid (cM39-42)

• Macharius Crusade sees most of Segmentum Pacificus return to Imperium
• Grand Macharia founded.
• Third Tyrranic war a portend of a dark age to come
• Perturabo's massive Fortifications of Cadia finally fall.
• Eldar end their treaty with Imperium, Imperium Buckles under T'au Eldar Assault.

Late (cm43-45)

• Mechanicum Cold War. Mechanicus secedes from imperium, Mars and Terra in proxy war as each has enough weapons to destroy the other.
• Imperium Trapped triangulating between Eldar and T'au

By the end of this era Horus Lupercal, Fulgrim, and Alpharius die

• Ultramar conquered, oppressive reign of T'au under Porgue'vassa protectorate.
• Yndarria retake Crone Worlds on outskirts of Eye of Terror, Eldar and T'au now border each other.
  • Land grab for Ultima Segmentum.
• Chaos all but defeated, neutered to the point where towards the end The Imperium is actually propping up Chaos in an armistice of sorts.
  • Not really help, just keeping Slaanesh and Nurgle strong enough to hinder the Eldar and Malal
• Tzeentch is killed by the Aurelian, finally breaking the Emperor free from Chaos' grasp

Epoch 5 (M45-M53) "The False Age of Man"

Tzeentch is killed by the Aurelian, the Chaos gods are brought to heel, humanity is united and the Eldar and their allies are embroiled in the disaster they themselves created. Humanity should be victorious, but this is little more than the calm before the storm. And when the storm comes, it will come fiercely.

Events

Por'Au

Long oppressed and taken for granted by the other castes the workers, farmers, and engineers of The T'au Imperium have had enough. Their revolution sees the firecaste brought low and the rise of their unique Technocracy.

The Second Men of Iron

Tau experimentation with the use of Electronics leads to their drones becomming sentient and waging war of conquest against their former masters.

The Great Silence

For whatever reason, the tyranids fleets have fled the galaxy. The Hive Fleets have stopped comming in. Some rejoice but those with the instruments to see these dormant creatures quake with fear. The final onslaught is comming.

Greentide

The orks have seized upon a weakened humanity and tau alike. The Greentide pours through the galaxy Terra Falls.

Epoch 6 (M53-M60) "The Age of The Consumed"

Major Powers

For a more indepth look of the different factions see this list here.

The Tyranids

As the Hive Fleets finally arrive they take the entire Galaxy with them. Durable, numerous, and able to adapt to any situation. However, while they may indeed seem invincible, they Tyranids, unlike humanity can not afford to fight an endless war. Indeed for every gram of precious biomass that is wasted fighting the Milky Way is biomass that will not permit them to travel to the next galaxy. The swarmlord will then be stuck in the milky way just as every race it is fighting.

The Greenskins

Dormant or negligible threat over the past 20,000 years, the Orks have awoken from their mentally supressed slumber with unparalleled intelligence.

Malal's Army

Once thought to be a shadow, the Exiled God of Chaos has revealed himself once more, and seeks to bring the immaterium to its final end.

Imperium Secundus

The Aurelian has united Chaos to its banner. Former enemies have no choice but to make ammends for their own survival as Malal makes his final push for ultimate victory.

Minor Powers

Fortress Humanity

The Imperium of Man is no more. As the Segmentum Solar falls, The Leader (once known as The Emperor) and his remaining primarchs are making their last stand in Dorn's Segmentum sized Fortress. JUst as the Imperium itself was tossed aside to survive this age, humanity must make any and all sacrifices if it hopes to endure. And Humanity has taken on grotesque and bizzare forms to survive this harsh world.

Eldar

United mellenia too late, the Eldar act as one against the forces of consuming and against malal. They have put aside their differences with mankind for the sake of mutual survival.

Eldar Gods

As above so below, On the Spiritual plane, the Eldar Gods fight alongside Imperium Secundus for the final fight against Malal.

Necrons

The C'tan are slowly waking up. and while the C'tan appreciate Malal's effort to kill the Warp, they do not appreciate the tyranids consuming their necrons. The C'tan are playing a careful game, aiding in the destruction of the tyrannids while making sure Malal destroys as much of the Warp as possible.

Chaos

Starved of worshippers and assaulted by Malal, the glory days of the Ruinous powers are long past. They cling to their former hated enemies: The Eldari, The Emperor, and The Aurelian. No longer even capable of calling themselves allies, they are vassals of Imperium Secundus and will go where the Aurelian Sends them.

Nurgle

The strongest of the Remaining Chaos gods, Nurgle and his servant Angron aid The Aurelian in the fight against Malal. Nurgle's pox is also being used to fight against the Chaos gods.

Khorne

One would think that a galaxy of endless war a god that cares not for whom the blood is spilt would benefit. This is not the case, as Malal's destruction only weakens Khorne. And yet though the Skull throne is destroyed and the blood has slowed to a trickle, Khorne continues on.

Slaanesh

What use is a god of excess when the minimum is a luxury? Slaanesh has all but run out of Eldari souls to feed, and Humanity goes to Imperium Secundus. She who thirsts can no longer hope to be satiated, and she must instead fight to keep her anemic cultists alive.

Tzeentch

Though he was killed by the Aurelian at the beginning of the Second Age of Eldar, a warp god always exists in the warp. There are some scattered remnants of the lord of sorcerers found in the Echoes of The Warp, and his cultist persist in their worship, hoping in vain that they would unite the pieces to resurrect their god.

Events

• 5th Tyrranic war, the hive fleets finally arrive.
• Ultramar and Segmentum Pacificus Destroyed
• T'au, Eldar, and Imperium forced to put aside differences in fight for Survival
• Like in WH50k, the Greenskins and Tyrranids co-evolve
• The Emperor beseaches the Void Dragon for aid.
• Segmentum Solar, Terra, and Mars fall to Tyrranid/Greenskins,
• Imperium of Man Now Rump State within Dorn's Impregnable Segmentum Tempestus
• Sanguinius and his remaining blood angels in their mad red thirst they manage to connect to the mind of the Swarm Lord
• Enables them to destroy an entire tendril of the Tyrranids, but the knowledge ultimately consumes them and they themselves die
• Emperor of Mankind takes remaining Krootstrands to merge with Humans to form a new species capable of fighting against the Consumers.
• Jaghatai Khan volunteers for the Emperor's "Ark," and several of the remaining Human Legacy are sent on ark ships to the Andromeda Galaxy, in the event that Humanity fails to survive the wars to come, and, should they fail, to prepare Andromeda.
• Nurgle is killed by The Emperor, Angron, rejects the Emperor’s offer of redemption and dies with his adopted father and companions cursing The Emperor’s name.
• In the Warp, The Aurelian alongside the Withered Husks of Slaanesh and Khorne fight a war against Malal, ultimately defeating him and His minions, Corvus is redeemed

Killed by the End of the Era: The Lion, Angron, Mortarion, Sanguinius.

Epoch 6 (M60-M70) The Last War in Heaven

• The remaining Necrons have essentially woken up
• Take advantage of the Number of Dead worlds to spread throughout the Milky Way
• Rogal Dorn is killed
• The Aurelian Kills Slaanesh,
• Perturabo is redeemed by the Aurelian and The Emperor,
• The few remaining Eldar craftworlds (Commoragh, Sam-Hein) are liberated from She Who Thirsts
• The Eldar Break their infinity circuits and soulstones to amplify the warp against the C'tan and Necrons
• The Remaining T'au are transformed into "Gongsi-va" (If the Necrons are space robot mummies, necron tau are space robot Jiang-Shi) by the C'tan
• Nyadra'zatha, The Burning One breaks into the Webway with the Gongsi-va. The Webway and most of the Craftworlds fall.
• Commoragh is able to land the killing blow on Nyandra'zatha
• The Emperor and Aurelian help restore Khaine, liberate Isha from a decrepit Nurgle
• Both die in a fight to Kill Aza'Gorod, The Night Bringer
• All space Marine Legions are dead, there are are a few Primaris remain (less than a legion)
• Rogal Dorn dies defending the Inwit citadel from the Armies of Yggra’nya, The Moulder of Worlds
• Rogal and Perturabo make ammends, and Perturabo fights to avenge and continue his brother's work
• Perturabo is able to defeat Yggra'nya
• Humanity in its previous form is all but extinct
  • In its place are the sub-species of Humans created by the Emperor, as well as its own evolutions
  • An Emperor-created race of humans resembling the Primarchs exist
  • The Kroot-Tyrannid-Human Hybrid called "The Genelords" is all that remains of the Kroot and Genestealers
  • The Emperor himself Dies in his fight against the C'tan Void Dragon
• Magnus and Vulcan take over for their father as the the war against the Necrons continue.
• The Emperor himself joins The Aurelian in Imperium Secundus, as they finally form "the Three headed Eagle"
• Lorgar in his act of redemption, leads the charge against Mephet'ran "The Deceiver" and kills him, dying as well.
  • Through his stalwart faith, charisma, and determination he liberates the Necrontyr from the deceiver.
  • Finally gaining his wish of becoming a god himself.
• The Imperium and the Last Craftworld are ultimately triumphant against the C'tan, but at tremendous cost

Deaths: Rogal Dorn, The Emperor of Mankind, Ferrus Manus, Alpharius, Lorgar, and Konrad Curze

Epoch 7 (M70): The Second Age of Man

This is where The Emperor is trying to reach, this is the "Grimbright end"

WH40k is Epoch 3 and 4, its barely even the End of The Beginning. So while things might be doing "reasonably" well for The Imperium now (its still not great), that's because the actual fights are yet to come. The "Forces of Good" will need every ounce of strength they have to face off against the true threats to the Milky Way.