Jump to content

The Cabal


ArcticFox

Recommended Posts

I just finished Legion and a thought occurred to me at the end-

 

What if the Cabal is a faction of the Dark Eldar, and not the Eldar themselves?

 

This would open up some interesting implications, like the possibility that the Alpha Legion was tricked into fighting against the Emperor out of loyalty. The Alpha Legion, being pragmatic as can be, might be much more difficult to turn to Chaos through ordinary means, and so they used the pragmatic nature itself as the lever...

 

Possible? Impossible?

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/
Share on other sites

It could have been a trick but I think Alpharius would have at least had a slight hint that he was being tricked.

 

Well, Alpharius was ultimatly tricked. Everything he wanted to avoid happened and his legion is now a tool of the Chaos Gods.

 

This doesnt mean he was "Tricked" all it means is the Alpha Legion failed to tip the balance in the heresy, The Cabal were counting on the fact that having the number of traitor legions outnumbering the loyalists combined with the elements of surprise and planning (ensuring The Wolves, Blood Angels and Ultramarines were out the way) would result in a resounding win for Horus, what would follow was the traitor Primarchs turning on each other fuelled by chaos destroying themselves or at least leaving a greatly weakened threat the Cabal could erradicate, Alpharius obviously agreed that it would work.

 

From what we know there is no evidence to show that the Cabal had ulterior motives their gamble simply failed, Alpharius turned to Chaos of his own free will thinking it was better for the Galaxy should the imperium burn out rather than mire everything in millenia of war with chaos with his beloved father a cripple in constant-unending agony.

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2118763
Share on other sites

I'm not sure Alpharius would have known, for sure, if it was a trick. His Legion uses the deception and misdirection approach it's true, but at the end of the day there's no reason to conclude he'd be the best in the galaxy at it. The Cabal, or even Chaos itself, would have been playing that game for a lot longer than the Alpha Legion, so while I do agree the case for that theory is weak, it's still quite plausible.
Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2119511
Share on other sites

The Dark Eldar actually don't seem to worship Khaine either. They just love only themselves.

 

But I think the cabal's role is deeply ambiguous. Were they lying? Was their own vision wrong? Was Alpharius tricking them and playing for his own agenda? Where's Tzeentch during this? Where's Ahriman? Is Tzeentch also Alpharius?

 

One of the many, many things that make Legion ridiculously awesome.

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2120541
Share on other sites

The Cabal, as previously noted, are a collection of Xenos races older than man (referred to as the Old Kind by Grammaticus).

 

The Eldar mentioned, Slau Dha, was of the Craftworld variety and possessed an insectoid translator of a species I cannot remember (even though I'm currently re-reading Legion).

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2120952
Share on other sites

No i dont think they were tricked, just that the gambit failed. Its an interesting idea though.

 

I am 'considering' making some models for the cabal and counting them as a seer council in apoc...any ideas?

 

One Eldar Autarch called Slau Dha.. Thats my input :)

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2122703
Share on other sites

No i dont think they were tricked, just that the gambit failed. Its an interesting idea though.

 

I am 'considering' making some models for the cabal and counting them as a seer council in apoc...any ideas?

 

One Eldar Autarch called Slau Dha.. Thats my input :lol:

GREAT! its not like ive read legion or anything... :D

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2126080
Share on other sites

No i dont think they were tricked, just that the gambit failed. Its an interesting idea though.

 

I am 'considering' making some models for the cabal and counting them as a seer council in apoc...any ideas?

 

One Eldar Autarch called Slau Dha.. Thats my input :lol:

GREAT! its not like ive read legion or anything... :D

 

Ask for ideas and thou shalt receive... Plus I mentioned him already somewhere above if you've been reading! :jaw:

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2126140
Share on other sites

Just because the Alpha Legion turned to Chaos doesn't mean that Alpharius agreed/was going along with the Cabals plan anyway. Maybe he reckoned they could cause more damage to Horus from the "inside" than by fighting him directly. Maybe it's their fault that the Heresy ended the way it did, thus ensuring the survival of humanity for a little longer.

 

The end of Legion is pretty ambiguous. Why should Alpharius believe everything the xenos cabal said anyway (and where did it say he did)? And even if he did, maybe he'd rather humanity live on in some form than be wiped out completely just to defeat "chaos" on behalf of a load of has-been aliens...

 

We don't know for sure. Chances are (hopefully) we never will.

 

It reminds be of the Alpha Legion IA where most people assumed Alpharius was killed by the Ultramarines. I always found that strange as the article went to great lengths (to my mind) to stress how dubious that information was...

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2128277
Share on other sites

Here are the ultimate questions:

 

Are the Alpha Legion traitors, loyalists, or somewhere in between? I think probably the latter two. I imagine they are loyalist, but due to prolonged exposure to Chaos's warping effects, some have probably fallen.

 

Is the Cabal's end goal accurate? Possibly. The Eldar tend to have a hit and miss ratio with predicting things. Thankfully, the Cabal has many different races, with different abilities.

 

Is Alpharius still alive? Maybe.

 

Is Omegon? Maybe.

 

What the hell was up with the giant salamander? No clue, I'm thinking a pet got onto the gaming table.

 

Will there ever be a sequel? I hope so. I asked Santa and everything.

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2128508
Share on other sites

From what we know there is no evidence to show that the Cabal had ulterior motives their gamble simply failed, Alpharius turned to Chaos of his own free will thinking it was better for the Galaxy should the imperium burn out rather than mire everything in millenia of war with chaos with his beloved father a cripple in constant-unending agony.

 

SPOILER ALERT

 

I know that there was a huge BL discussion on how the AL jumped to Chaos and all the reasons why, but after re-reading Legion again, I don't buy the logic behind the position. Let me see if I can put the whole argument in very simple terms.

 

1. Aliens arrange a top secret meeting with the AL after saving their butts, via Grammaticus.

 

2. The Aliens tell Alpharius/Omegan, if you keep doing what you are doing, the galaxy will suffer a long slow painful decline OR you can jump over to the side you've been fighting against, help the bad guys win, which will cause the human race (including themselves) to go the way of the dodo.

 

However, all is not lost, because the rest of the known races (i.e. xenos scum) will have been saved. The Aliens don't even offer to think fondly of them on New Years. To reinforce this position, they take the Alpha Legion to the galactic equivalent of IMAX and really wow them. In the process, their one super psyker's head explodes. What a coincidence that the one guy who just might be able to discern the truth experiences a migraine with extreme prejudice.

 

3. Alpharius/Omegan look the aliens straight in the eye and say, "what we do, we do for the Emperor", or words to that effect.

 

Does anyone really believe that the AL would sell out the human race so that the rest of the xenos scum can live happier ever after? Really?

 

It seems much more likely (at least to me because I am a secret AL groupie) that the AL are either:

 

i. playing both sides to extend the conflict as long as possible until they can effect a solution

ii. Still loyal to the Emperor, but playing both sides to extend the conflict as long as possible until they can effect a solution

iii. Or they could be playing both sides to extend the conflict as long as possible until they can effect a solution

 

I don't see the AL possessing the self-loathing that would justify that kind of action. I think it much more likely that they are stalling for time.

 

My two yen.

Link to comment
https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/178649-the-cabal/#findComment-2135778
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.