Best representive scene for each Legion in HH works

[Indefragable]

Looking to get a feel for what people consider defining examples of each Legion during the HH series so far. Not so much each Legion's "finest moment" or the biggest hurdle they overcome, but rather the most flavorful scene. Ideally, this is a single scene or “moment” that showcases the spirit/essence/differentiator/”vibe” of each Legion, especially in contrast to its brethren.

 

My own thoughts (to be updates as I recall more moments):

Hidden Content

I Dark Angels.

 

II: Redacted

 

III: Emperor’s Children. Fulgrim: it’s been a while so the details are fuzzy, but the scene where they assault the Laeran platforms, and like an orchestra, every unit and action is precisely choreographed down to the minutes.

IV: Iron Warriors.  

 

V: White Scars. Scars: The Terran-born WS Captain asks his Chogoran-born fellow commander “why didn’t you wait for my heavy support squads to suppress the enemy?” The Chogoran commander looks back at the Terran completely bewildered and asks back with total sincerity: “why the hell aren’t you on a jetbike?”

VI: Space Wolves.

 

VII: Imperial Fists. Imperium Secundus: Like many others, I have not encountered too much of the IF specifically, but in Imperium Secundus there is an IF Captain on Maccrage who demonstrates to the UM what it means to really prepare a world for defense. The UM do all the usual stuff like put guards at abc, patrol def, have rally points, etc... the IF Captain takes it to the next level asking if they have anyone to vet and screen refugees coming in, since that would be an ideal way for an enemy <cough Alpha Legion cough> to get onto the planet, if each defense post is a fortress in-and-of-itself able to do its job if cut off from the rest, and so forth. He points out how truly defending a world is not just a set of military techniques, but a mindset and a way of life that needs to work even when they are relaxed and there are no visible threats to ward against.

 

VIII: Night Lords. Pharos: granted I have not read too much of the NL, but Pharos is almost more about them than it is the I/XIII/VII/IX Legions. 2 scenes stand out to me the most: A) Where NL are boarding a UM ship and they constantly jam the airwaves with the sounds of torture and horrified mortals. Once it dawns on their foes that those sounds are coming from their comrades right on the other side of the door, it takes on a whole other effect. Even the UM who are immune to the “fear” this technique imparts in their mortal comrades admit it’s a helluva distraction, and thus an excellent use of psy ops. B ) The apparent SOP of the NL where they fight to disable opponents as quickly as possible, and then nail the wounded and incapacitated to the walls as they go. They then circle back to torture them as soon as they can. What’s so fascinating (in truly gruesome way) is how they do this in such a military fashion. Obviously they take perverse pleasure in skinning their foes, but it’s as much about interrogation and extracting immediately actionable intelligence as it is a psychological tool.

 

IX: Blood Angels.

 

X: Iron Hands.

 

XI: Redacted

 

XII: War Hounds/World Eaters

 

XIII: Ultramarines.

 

XIV: Dusk Raiders/Death Guard. Flight of the Eisenstein:

 

XV: Thousand Sons.

 

XVI Luna Wolves:  Horus Rising; scene where Loken duels Lucius. Lucius is clearly more skilled with a blade and preens on about how the Emperor’s Children become the unmatched masters of whatever skill they set their mind to. Loken sucker punches Lucius right in the kisser and says the Luna Wolves always go for the win and worry about the details later.

 

XVII: Word Bearers.

 

XVIII: Salamanders.

 

XIX: Raven Guard

 

XX: Alpha Legion. Legion (of course): ok, sort of breaking my own rule here, but pretty much the entire novel Legion is a demonstration of the XX way of doing things…especially the fact that 75% of the book is from non-Astartes perspectives. However, specifically, I would have to point out the first time we see an Astartes in the novel, when one of the characters infiltrates the enemy city and slips into a meeting point only to find it is in fact a safe house filled with Alpha Legion warriors. It’s got such a Zero Dark Thirty type vibe to it.

 

[Kais Klip]

Thread of my dreams. This is one of those things that I'm always looking for in a novel. Pleasant to see I missed some nifty parts in them!

[karden00]

Ultramarines. From Betrayer. When the hopeless Ultramarines commander (was it Orfeo? Cant recall) offers to accept the surrender of Admiral Lotara Severn (sp). Its haughty, arrogant, and hilarious, but it also spoke to me of Orfeo's conviction. He might just have been a little serious in his offer. In his mind, he cannot conceive of how the traitors could possibly be successful in the grander scheme of things, so it is only practical for him to offer their surrender there and then. 

Might not have been at all what ADB was going for, but thats how I read it, and I loved it. 

[Indefragable]

Ultramarines. From Betrayer. When the hopeless Ultramarines commander (was it Orfeo? Cant recall) offers to accept the surrender of Admiral Lotara Severn (sp). Its haughty, arrogant, and hilarious, but it also spoke to me of Orfeo's conviction. He might just have been a little serious in his offer. In his mind, he cannot conceive of how the traitors could possibly be successful in the grander scheme of things, so it is only practical for him to offer their surrender there and then. 

Might not have been at all what ADB was going for, but thats how I read it, and I loved it. 

 

Working through audiobook of Betrayer now. 

 

The UM are a tricky one for me because they appear SO much in the HH (blah blah poster boys blah blah)...yet since they are the consummate jack-of-all-trades, least quirky of the Astartes, it's hard to fine sort of those definitive examples of UM being UM. 

 

Hidden Content

I suppose the UM Captain who is first to reinforce Sotha in Pharos stands out to me, even though he does not get a huge amount of face time. The whole idea of we need you do it all: get there as soon as is phsyically/warpishly possible, fight their fleet, fight their ground forces, and capture the valuables intact while preserving life as much as possible. I was impressed with how RG himself is like "this guy is capable of that." It stands out as an example of that XIII ideal: switching between all elements of warfare breathlessly while maintaining a square jaw and proper military poise the whole time. 

 

[Xisor]

 

Ultramarines. From Betrayer. When the hopeless Ultramarines commander (was it Orfeo? Cant recall) offers to accept the surrender of Admiral Lotara Severn (sp). Its haughty, arrogant, and hilarious, but it also spoke to me of Orfeo's conviction. He might just have been a little serious in his offer. In his mind, he cannot conceive of how the traitors could possibly be successful in the grander scheme of things, so it is only practical for him to offer their surrender there and then. 

Might not have been at all what ADB was going for, but thats how I read it, and I loved it.

 

 

Working through audiobook of Betrayer now. 

 

The UM are a tricky one for me because they appear SO much in the HH (blah blah poster boys blah blah)...yet since they are the consummate jack-of-all-trades, least quirky of the Astartes, it's hard to fine sort of those definitive examples of UM being UM. 

 

Hidden Content

I suppose the UM Captain who is first to reinforce Sotha in Pharos stands out to me, even though he does not get a huge amount of face time. The whole idea of we need you do it all: get there as soon as is phsyically/warpishly possible, fight their fleet, fight their ground forces, and capture the valuables intact while preserving life as much as possible. I was impressed with how RG himself is like "this guy is capable of that." It stands out as an example of that XIII ideal: switching between all elements of warfare breathlessly while maintaining a square jaw and proper military poise the whole time. 

 

Great thinking. Pretty sure he's in a short that preceded Pharos too - both of them are great examples of a... type of Ultramarine, I suppose. I really liked the presentation of them in KNF too - but Pharos via that guy was a nail-on-head moment.

 

In Fantasy, we had Ludwig Schwarzhelm and Kurt Helborg - one an immensely stern and competent type, the other an amazing, all things to all people sort. They're masterfully done; I'd love to see more Ultramarines taking a leaf out of those books.

[Jareddm]

For the Death Guard I would switch it for Distant Echoes of Old Night.  I feel it does a wonderful job of capturing the true terror of the Death Guard.

[Roomsky]

Oh, what fun.

 

 

 

I Legion, Dark Angels: The Lion's Arrival, The Unremembered Empire

A crowning example of Abnett doing what he does best. From Guilliman's "younger" brother reverence for the Lion, to the for once entirely reasonable suspicions on both sides, to the Lion's perfectly choreographed entry, it shows all the pomp and self-aggrandizement the I legion love.

 

III Legion, Emperor's Children: Eidolon at the Kallium Gate, The Path of Heaven

Chris Wraight is my favorite Emperor's Children author, and their introductory scene here is one of the main reasons why. It shows a legion remarkably unconcerned with the wider war, just a bunch of warriors in varying states of corruption fighting for their own ends. It made Eidolon into a likable villain, and showed the in-the-moment hubris of the legion when he briefly thought he could take the Khan.

 

IV Legion, Iron Warriors- Petty vengeance, The Crimson Fist

The Iron Warriors in this story are about what I'd expect from a legion lead by a violent psychopath who had been denied proper recognition for over a hundred years. While perhaps light on memorable individuals, the general sadism exhibited by their warriors never peaked into stupidity, and instead showed a force terrifying for how spitefully violent it could be while remaining totally cohesive.

 

V Legion, White Scars- Torghun's friendship, Brotherhood of the Storm

The clashing ideals at play while 2 leaders seek to work around each other fantastically outline the culture of the White Scars and their way of war. It shows the tension in the legion, but also the degree to which they want to close that gap, all while dressed in an action piece that demonstrates how effective the Scars' emphasis on speed makes them. 

 

VI Legion, Space Wolves- Hawser tells a tale, Prospero Burns

The Space Wolves are stereotyped as several things, none of which are the whole picture of a much more nuanced legion. What they respect, what they desire, what they scoff at, what they are seen as and what they wish to be is all on display when Hawser finally understands his role as a skald. There is a real sense of brotherhood here, but never once is it at the experience of showing space marines for what they are: eternal soldiers, designed only to fight and die.

 

VII Legion, Imperial Fists- The Battle of Phall, The Crimson Fist

This showcases both the Fist's implacable stoicism and their unfailing discipline, be it to their benefit or detriment. Pollux commands the battle with cold logic, refusing to fall give into a need for vengeance over victory. When Dorn's call for a return to Terra occurs, while perhaps in an unflattering situation, it shows an adherence to chain of command that demonstrates the Fists are soldiers first, no matter the situation or temptation.

 

VIII Legion, Nightlords- Sevatar kills the competition, Prince of Crows

I think its oft forgotten that Curze was so convinced that his own ways were the right ways that some of that would probably trickle down into his legion. That Sevatar is glad that his primarch is indisposed, and his willingness to murder the rest of the legion's command so he could run things his way, shows that the astartes too believe that their personal goals and the goals of the legion at large are the same thing. 

 

IX Legion, Blood Angels- Sanguinius banishes the Lion, Angels of Caliban

As far as the novel series has shown, the Blood Angels consist of 4 characters: Sanguinius, Azkaellon, Amit, and the rest (haven't read MoM yet). They are so without character that I have to resort to one of my favorite moments from the primarch only. Sanguinius' cold fury that the Lion went behind his back shows a leader at odds with himself, and with what he is leading. He shows that Horus was right, Sanguinius would have made the best warmaster, he has a level of awareness beyond himnself that many primarchs lack.

 

X Legion, Iron Hands- Disdain for the weak, The Damnation of Pythos

Between the professed insistence that the locals were useless, to the frequent dissent between the hands and the resident Salamander and Raven Guard, the tenth shows they truly believe in their darwinist perspective, even when it is difficult to do so. The utter defiance of death and weakness make a nice contrast to their fellow legionaries as well, viewing that dying for the sake of others is never preferable to fighting on.

 

XII Legion, World Eaters- Angron's punching bag, After De'shea

Beyond really liking the killing of things, the twelfth are defined by the desire to appreciate and be appreciated by their broken lord. They are willing to send their best into a one-man meatgrinder in pursuit of the vain hope that maybe, just maybe, they'll convince him they aren't so bad. The story also gave us the first glimpse of a truly sympathetic Angron, ironically the primarch most attuned to battle, but the least competent in war.

 

XIII Legion, Ultramarines- Guilliman's counter-attack, Know no Fear

Caught on the backstep for most of the story, the retaking of the defense grid shows how frighteningly effective the Ultramarines are once given a chance to evaluate the situation. In the face of a crushing defeat built on deceit and near-insurmountable odds, the Ultras manage to isolate the one variable that will turn the situation on its head, and succeed with aplomb.

 

XIV Legion, Death Guard- Unstoppable force vs immovable object, Scars

Sometimes, a primarch is the best showing of their legion. Echoed in the battlke about them, the Khan against the Death Lord showcases just why the 14th are so fearsome- there is no efficient way to deal with them. It doesn't matter if their skill or strategy is lesser to yours, they will weather your strikes and outlast your resolve, and dispose of you with ease when you have expended all you can.

 

XV Legion, Thousand Sons- A legion's naivete, A Thousand Sons

Only the fifteenth would trust a bunch of cultists who refuse to show their faces in their quest for knowledge, and so too are they the only ones that could take out 2 shadow titans without any kind of heavy ordnance. To be as receptive to knowledge as they are, the Thousand Sons are largely ignorant to anything beyond their present interests, something they never learn from (until Prospero) because they possess so much power that they can diffuse most any situation with sheer power. 

 

XVI Legion, Luna Wolves- Going for the throat, Horus Rising

The first thing the series delivers is character for the sixteenth. They are flashy, but effective showboaters, who prefer grand decapitation strikes over any kind of cautious warfare. They remain commendable, however, because they absolutely have the skill to pull such things off. Maybe they aren't the most disciplined, or the best tactically minded, or the best warriors, but damn if they aren't the best at what they do.

 

XVII Legion, Word Bearers- Betrayal at Calth, Know no Fear

The opening shots of this battle show exactly what the seventeenth has become after years of subjugation to chaos. Warriors still, but ones who know well the sheer monumental suffering required to appease their masters. They aren't drunk with power like the Emperor's Children, they simply prioritize sadism over efficiency, and to horrifying effect.

 

XVIII Legion, Salamanders- Seeing the best in monsters, Artefacts

That Vulkan thought he could teach Curze to be a decent person, and that there was a general air of surprise when he failed, is everything the sallies should be. They put too much trust in everyone, even after being privy to some rather suspect occurrences among their brothers, and their desire for atonement puts the blame on their shoulders for the betrayal, not those who actually fell. It is the sort of decency that makes their legion lovable.

 

XIX Legion, Raven Guard- Lycean Brotherhood, Ravenlord

The nineteenth have a fairly unique relationship with their primarch in that so many of the high command fought alongside Corax as brothers, not underlings. The immediate trust shown to Arendi, even though justified, shows the growing seams in the legion, and how what was once the closest of groups can splinter an otherwise effective force in the face of adversity. It is the kind of tragic weakness that the legion's history seems built upon.

 

XX Legion, Alpha Legion- I am Alpharius, Legion

The value of secrets and opacity over cohesion with other units exemplifies the Alpha Legion in my eyes. The refusal to share anything deemed important with even their allies, up to and including who is in command, exemplifies all that makes them frighteningly effective while at the same time largely dismissed by their peers.

 

 

[bluntblade]

Sevatar reorganising the Kyroptera was going to be mine as well.

[b1soul]

Some passages I think exemplify the Vth

 

Shiban on the nature of the Vth

 

 

 

Of all the things [the Khan] said, or was supposed to have said, only one truly struck at my heart. He said: 'Laugh when you are killing.'

 

If we had needed an epigram, if anyone had ever asked what made us what we were, then I would have told them that.

 

No one ever asked. By the time anyone cared enough about us to seek us out, everything had already changed. We were suddenly needed, but there was no time to think about why.

 

I followed his recommendation: when I killed, I laughed. I let the ice-wind pull my hair free, and I felt hot blood against my skin. I ran far and strongly, daring my brothers to keep pace. I was like the berkut, the hunting eagle, free of the jesses, out on the rising air, high up on the horizon.

 

That was what we were back then; that was what we all were Minghan Kasurga - the Brotherhood of the Storm.

 

That was our ranking name, the one we used to differentiate ourselves.

 

In private, we were the laughing killers.

 

To the rest of the galaxy, we were still unknown.

 

 

 

The Passing of Qin Xa

 

 

Qin Xa had been cut from his battleplate. His body was exposed under the medicae-lumens – a mass of churned flesh and broken bone. His face was held together with a criss-cross of pins, and nutrient tubes gurgled as they entered the many lacerations made by Jaijan, the battleship’s emchi Apothecary. His armour had been heaped to one side, bloodied and hollow like so much scrap. Atop it all was the dragon-helm, now in two pieces.

Qin Xa saw Arvida approach through his one working eyeball, and the blood-trails around his mouth bubbled into a weak smile.

‘Sorcerer…’ he rasped, barely above a whisper.

Arvida leaned closer. It was dangerous to use the warp again so soon, particularly when surrounded with the Legion’s elite, but in this case there was little choice.

+Do not weaken yourself,+ he sent, placing his mind-voice within Qin Xa’s. +Speak to me this way.+

For both of them, the apothecarion dissolved in a white haze, and then they were facing one another, their bodies restored.

The mind-image of Qin Xa laughed. Freed of the horror of his ruined body, it sounded just as it always had done in life – sonorous, good-natured, preternaturally calm. All the old guard of the plains had sounded the same, though Qin Xa was the last of them, save Yesugei – the last of those who had fought with Jaghatai on Chogoris, braving Ascension beyond the customary age, and surviving.

We failed, Qin Xa’s thoughts proclaimed, matter-of-factly.

+It was an impossible task.+

I would have driven them out of that place. I would have seen them run, just as we made them run on Peressimar.

That had been two years ago now. A great victory, driven by surprise and speed, perhaps the last of them.

+You did your duty, keshiga. That is all he will want to know.+

In the mindscape, Qin Xa’s craggy features wrinkled in a smile, as if the too-bright sun of the home world glared back from the endless grass. He will blame himself. It will seem to him that we have stayed in the void too long.

Arvida nodded. +If he speaks to me, I will tell him otherwise.+

All the ways were watched. Even if we had wished to, we could not have broken through.

+He knows this.+

He has been a just master, all the years I served him. Blame is now of no use, for any of us. The search must continue.

+Ravallion said she knew of a way. This is why we did these things. She may yet be proved right.+

Whether or no, Qin Xa sighed inwardly, he made the oath over the ruins of his brother’s realm, and it will drive him. He must reach Terra.

+And if no path remains?+

Qin Xa’s outline grew more vague. The wind became chill, and the sky deepened to night-blue. His smile disappeared, to be replaced by growing pain. His soul was shearing from its foundations, pulling free of the body. Do you not see one? You are the fate-scryer.

Arvida did not know how to respond to that. He could not even see his own future-skein, except for the visions that came while in the warp, and those were not ones he wished to recall.

And yet, there were times when truth was a cruelty.

+The road will be found,+ he sent, confidently. +If Ravallion is wrong, another way will be made. The Khagan is a force of the universe – we both know this. He will not be denied by it.+

Qin Xa tried to smile again, and failed. The pain of the real world became etched on that of the imagination, and the old warrior’s once-hale face began to dissolve. You neither, sorcerer. Now take this final command – cure yourself, before you cure any more of us. Promise me.

Arvida stiffened. How much did he know?

+I no longer make promises,+ Arvida sent. In the real world, moving blindly, he took up Qin Xa’s smashed hand, and pressed his gauntlet against it. +The hunt will be eternal for you. And I swear this – your name will be remembered on Terra.+

And then the mind-images dissolved, and the spartan apothecarion reasserted itself around him. Qin Xa spoke no more, whether in the mind or in the real world.

 

 

 

Entrer Jubal

 

 

‘The sound-weapons,’ Namahi said, disgusted. ‘No blade, no matter how fast, parries them.’

Arvida was struck by the edge of grief in Namahi’s voice. The Khagan’s own brotherhood were as close to one another as blood-kin. And there was more: another link to the sundered home world cut. The strands were becoming frayed.

‘What did he tell you?’ asked Jubal.

Jubal was different. He had been far away from the Legion during the upheaval on Chondax, carried into the furthest reaches of the galaxy at the head of an ikhan, a great hunt that had arced beyond the galactic plane in pursuit of the xenos mjordhainn raiders. By the time his strike force had returned bearing the head of the xenos’ controlling patriarch on a silver shield, the Imperium was turning in on itself, and he had been thrown into the heart of combat with no opportunity to ask why.

A lesser warrior might have succumbed to fate in the confusion and void war that had followed, but Jubal had always been a spirit of fire, and all the traps laid for him were broken. The Lord of Summer Lightning he had been on Chogoris, a capricious spirit who had defied restrictions even by the standards of a Legion that placed little value on them. Almost alone among the White Scars, his name was known across the wider ranks of the Great Crusade, whispered alongside the most exalted company, held up as a legend of elusive renown on worlds that had never seen a son of the Altak. That he had lived to fight his way to the Khan’s side again was one of the few causes of joy in an otherwise harrowing campaign, a sign that their most vital soul had not yet been quenched.

Regarding him now, Arvida saw just how different Jubal was to Qin Xa. The keshig-master had been quiet in voice, solid in manner, his strength coming from within like a deep well sunk into bedrock. Jubal was the other side of the Legion’s soul – flamboyant, artful, unfettered. Somehow he had retained that during the long retreat, his guan dao still flashing defiantly as blood flowed across worlds.Perhaps his time had come now. Perhaps this was the age of wildfire, of the Master of the Hunt rather than the Horde.

 

[HeritorA]

Sevatar reorganising the Kyroptera was going to be mine as well.

Nope, it was badly created - one of the worst scenes of novella.

 

Some passages I think exemplify the Vth

 

Shiban on the nature of the Vth

 

 

 

Of all the things [the Khan] said, or was supposed to have said, only one truly struck at my heart. He said: 'Laugh when you are killing.'

 

If we had needed an epigram, if anyone had ever asked what made us what we were, then I would have told them that.

 

No one ever asked. By the time anyone cared enough about us to seek us out, everything had already changed. We were suddenly needed, but there was no time to think about why.

 

I followed his recommendation: when I killed, I laughed. I let the ice-wind pull my hair free, and I felt hot blood against my skin. I ran far and strongly, daring my brothers to keep pace. I was like the berkut, the hunting eagle, free of the jesses, out on the rising air, high up on the horizon.

 

That was what we were back then; that was what we all were Minghan Kasurga - the Brotherhood of the Storm.

 

That was our ranking name, the one we used to differentiate ourselves.

 

In private, we were the laughing killers.

 

To the rest of the galaxy, we were still unknown.

 

 

 

The Passing of Qin Xa

 

 

Qin Xa had been cut from his battleplate. His body was exposed under the medicae-lumens – a mass of churned flesh and broken bone. His face was held together with a criss-cross of pins, and nutrient tubes gurgled as they entered the many lacerations made by Jaijan, the battleship’s emchi Apothecary. His armour had been heaped to one side, bloodied and hollow like so much scrap. Atop it all was the dragon-helm, now in two pieces.

Qin Xa saw Arvida approach through his one working eyeball, and the blood-trails around his mouth bubbled into a weak smile.

‘Sorcerer…’ he rasped, barely above a whisper.

Arvida leaned closer. It was dangerous to use the warp again so soon, particularly when surrounded with the Legion’s elite, but in this case there was little choice.

+Do not weaken yourself,+ he sent, placing his mind-voice within Qin Xa’s. +Speak to me this way.+

For both of them, the apothecarion dissolved in a white haze, and then they were facing one another, their bodies restored.

The mind-image of Qin Xa laughed. Freed of the horror of his ruined body, it sounded just as it always had done in life – sonorous, good-natured, preternaturally calm. All the old guard of the plains had sounded the same, though Qin Xa was the last of them, save Yesugei – the last of those who had fought with Jaghatai on Chogoris, braving Ascension beyond the customary age, and surviving.

We failed, Qin Xa’s thoughts proclaimed, matter-of-factly.

+It was an impossible task.+

I would have driven them out of that place. I would have seen them run, just as we made them run on Peressimar.

That had been two years ago now. A great victory, driven by surprise and speed, perhaps the last of them.

+You did your duty, keshiga. That is all he will want to know.+

In the mindscape, Qin Xa’s craggy features wrinkled in a smile, as if the too-bright sun of the home world glared back from the endless grass. He will blame himself. It will seem to him that we have stayed in the void too long.

Arvida nodded. +If he speaks to me, I will tell him otherwise.+

All the ways were watched. Even if we had wished to, we could not have broken through.

+He knows this.+

He has been a just master, all the years I served him. Blame is now of no use, for any of us. The search must continue.

+Ravallion said she knew of a way. This is why we did these things. She may yet be proved right.+

Whether or no, Qin Xa sighed inwardly, he made the oath over the ruins of his brother’s realm, and it will drive him. He must reach Terra.

+And if no path remains?+

Qin Xa’s outline grew more vague. The wind became chill, and the sky deepened to night-blue. His smile disappeared, to be replaced by growing pain. His soul was shearing from its foundations, pulling free of the body. Do you not see one? You are the fate-scryer.

Arvida did not know how to respond to that. He could not even see his own future-skein, except for the visions that came while in the warp, and those were not ones he wished to recall.

And yet, there were times when truth was a cruelty.

+The road will be found,+ he sent, confidently. +If Ravallion is wrong, another way will be made. The Khagan is a force of the universe – we both know this. He will not be denied by it.+

Qin Xa tried to smile again, and failed. The pain of the real world became etched on that of the imagination, and the old warrior’s once-hale face began to dissolve. You neither, sorcerer. Now take this final command – cure yourself, before you cure any more of us. Promise me.

Arvida stiffened. How much did he know?

+I no longer make promises,+ Arvida sent. In the real world, moving blindly, he took up Qin Xa’s smashed hand, and pressed his gauntlet against it. +The hunt will be eternal for you. And I swear this – your name will be remembered on Terra.+

And then the mind-images dissolved, and the spartan apothecarion reasserted itself around him. Qin Xa spoke no more, whether in the mind or in the real world.

 

 

 

Entrer Jubal

 

 

‘The sound-weapons,’ Namahi said, disgusted. ‘No blade, no matter how fast, parries them.’

Arvida was struck by the edge of grief in Namahi’s voice. The Khagan’s own brotherhood were as close to one another as blood-kin. And there was more: another link to the sundered home world cut. The strands were becoming frayed.

‘What did he tell you?’ asked Jubal.

Jubal was different. He had been far away from the Legion during the upheaval on Chondax, carried into the furthest reaches of the galaxy at the head of an ikhan, a great hunt that had arced beyond the galactic plane in pursuit of the xenos mjordhainn raiders. By the time his strike force had returned bearing the head of the xenos’ controlling patriarch on a silver shield, the Imperium was turning in on itself, and he had been thrown into the heart of combat with no opportunity to ask why.

A lesser warrior might have succumbed to fate in the confusion and void war that had followed, but Jubal had always been a spirit of fire, and all the traps laid for him were broken. The Lord of Summer Lightning he had been on Chogoris, a capricious spirit who had defied restrictions even by the standards of a Legion that placed little value on them. Almost alone among the White Scars, his name was known across the wider ranks of the Great Crusade, whispered alongside the most exalted company, held up as a legend of elusive renown on worlds that had never seen a son of the Altak. That he had lived to fight his way to the Khan’s side again was one of the few causes of joy in an otherwise harrowing campaign, a sign that their most vital soul had not yet been quenched.

Regarding him now, Arvida saw just how different Jubal was to Qin Xa. The keshig-master had been quiet in voice, solid in manner, his strength coming from within like a deep well sunk into bedrock. Jubal was the other side of the Legion’s soul – flamboyant, artful, unfettered. Somehow he had retained that during the long retreat, his guan dao still flashing defiantly as blood flowed across worlds.Perhaps his time had come now. Perhaps this was the age of wildfire, of the Master of the Hunt rather than the Horde.

 

Yes to all. Shows the epicness and progression of Chris Wraight as a writer

[bluntblade]

The Alpha Legion's secrecy gambit at the close of Legion sums them up in epic style, I'd say. Likewise when Bjorn mortally wounds one, demanding some kind of attack, and the legionary looks like he really, really wants to tell, but then reverts to "For the Emperor."

[Guest]

For the VI'th 2 quotes stand out to me. Going to steal them from kaspers sig, since I feel too lazy to type.

 

 

 

"The 6th Legino has a reputation." said Bear.

"All the Legions Astartes have reputations," replied Hawser.

"Not like ours," said Ogvai "We  are known for our ferocity. We are thought to be feral and undisciplined. Even brother Legions consider us to wild and bestial."

"And you're not?" asked Hawser.

"If we need to be," said Ogvai. "but if that was our natural state, we'd all be dead by now."

He leaned down towards Hawser like a parent addressing a child.

"It takes a vast amount of self control to be this dangerous" he said.

 

-Prospero Burns.

 

 

This really speaks out because the SW's are on the verge of going bestial and become the wulfen. They seem undisciplined, the way they act and fight, but they must control it. It takes vast amounts of discipline to be so vicious and ferocious, but not push too far and become wulfen.  

 

Think about it if the SW's really undisciplined and unruly, why aren't they all wulfen. Why don't they go on wild charges and end in one glorious charge. It takes more discipline to contain a beast within and utilize it to your advantage, than it is to simply to go from a neutral stance to a fierce stance.

[m_r_parker]

For the Iron Warriors, I would take 'The Iron Within' from 'Age of Darkness' - the introduction of Dantioch, and the battle of the Schadenhold.

 

For me this shows the complete knowledge of how the Iron Warriors conduct sieges, both from the traditional attacker perspective, but also showing how that same knowledge can create a highly defensible bastion that is resistant to siege. The concept of the Schadenhold, being an inverted bastion hanging from the ceiling of a cave above a lake of lava, is so perfectly Iron Warrior in it's conception. It's the accumulation of siege tactics, and then completely spun around to make it as difficult as possible to conduct traditional siege warfare. I'm sure many people will point to the Imperial Fists when it comes to creating fortifications and defensible positions, but to me this is something different; the creation of a defensible position from the perspective of a siege engineer - spoiler below

 

 

With the ultimate difference in position between the Iron Warriors and the Imperial Fists - the Fists will stoically defend something to the last man, but the Iron Warriors will bleed the attacker and then deny them their prize. The knowledge that the Schadenhold will eventually fall is what sets the Iron Warriors apart, and with the final strategy from Dantioch he detonates explosives holding the Schadenhold to the cavern ceiling, allowing it to fall into the lava below to complete destruction (and denying it to the Iron Warrior attackers), whilst falling back to a last stand section complete with armour, weapons, and a teleportation system that allows him and his compatriots to get away from the destruction. The fact that he uses it to get aboard one of the primary attackers ships, and then proceeds to take it over is pure genius.

There is the difference in the Imperial Fists and the Iron Warriors; Fists will defend until the very end, but Iron Warriors know that eventually all defences fail.

 

[A D-B]

 

Ultramarines. From Betrayer. When the hopeless Ultramarines commander (was it Orfeo? Cant recall) offers to accept the surrender of Admiral Lotara Severn (sp). Its haughty, arrogant, and hilarious, but it also spoke to me of Orfeo's conviction. He might just have been a little serious in his offer. In his mind, he cannot conceive of how the traitors could possibly be successful in the grander scheme of things, so it is only practical for him to offer their surrender there and then. 

Might not have been at all what ADB was going for, but thats how I read it, and I loved it. 

 

Working through audiobook of Betrayer now. 

 

The UM are a tricky one for me because they appear SO much in the HH (blah blah poster boys blah blah)...yet since they are the consummate jack-of-all-trades, least quirky of the Astartes, it's hard to fine sort of those definitive examples of UM being UM. 

 

Hidden Content

I suppose the UM Captain who is first to reinforce Sotha in Pharos stands out to me, even though he does not get a huge amount of face time. The whole idea of we need you do it all: get there as soon as is phsyically/warpishly possible, fight their fleet, fight their ground forces, and capture the valuables intact while preserving life as much as possible. I was impressed with how RG himself is like "this guy is capable of that." It stands out as an example of that XIII ideal: switching between all elements of warfare breathlessly while maintaining a square jaw and proper military poise the whole time. 

 

 

 

Man, what order are you reading the series in? Egads. Your list makes way more sense to me now, but still. Dang.

[Sandlemad]

For the Iron Warriors, I would take 'The Iron Within' from 'Age of Darkness' - the introduction of Dantioch, and the battle of the Schadenhold.

 

For me this shows the complete knowledge of how the Iron Warriors conduct sieges, both from the traditional attacker perspective, but also showing how that same knowledge can create a highly defensible bastion that is resistant to siege. The concept of the Schadenhold, being an inverted bastion hanging from the ceiling of a cave above a lake of lava, is so perfectly Iron Warrior in it's conception. It's the accumulation of siege tactics, and then completely spun around to make it as difficult as possible to conduct traditional siege warfare. I'm sure many people will point to the Imperial Fists when it comes to creating fortifications and defensible positions, but to me this is something different; the creation of a defensible position from the perspective of a siege engineer - spoiler below

 

 

With the ultimate difference in position between the Iron Warriors and the Imperial Fists - the Fists will stoically defend something to the last man, but the Iron Warriors will bleed the attacker and then deny them their prize. The knowledge that the Schadenhold will eventually fall is what sets the Iron Warriors apart, and with the final strategy from Dantioch he detonates explosives holding the Schadenhold to the cavern ceiling, allowing it to fall into the lava below to complete destruction (and denying it to the Iron Warrior attackers), whilst falling back to a last stand section complete with armour, weapons, and a teleportation system that allows him and his compatriots to get away from the destruction. The fact that he uses it to get aboard one of the primary attackers ships, and then proceeds to take it over is pure genius.

 

There is the difference in the Imperial Fists and the Iron Warriors; Fists will defend until the very end, but Iron Warriors know that eventually all defences fail.

 

 

In doing so, with Dantioch's final line to Krendl, it also highlights that certain suppressed spitefulness that is characteristic of the IW. It's not excessive, it's not a mania, it completely coincides with the pragmatic attitude to siegecraft. Dantioch didn't go out of his way or hobble his strategy to give vent to his bitterness but while he had the chance, by god he twisted the knife.

[Indefragable]

 

 

 

 

Ultramarines. From Betrayer. When the hopeless Ultramarines commander (was it Orfeo? Cant recall) offers to accept the surrender of Admiral Lotara Severn (sp). Its haughty, arrogant, and hilarious, but it also spoke to me of Orfeo's conviction. He might just have been a little serious in his offer. In his mind, he cannot conceive of how the traitors could possibly be successful in the grander scheme of things, so it is only practical for him to offer their surrender there and then.

Might not have been at all what ADB was going for, but thats how I read it, and I loved it.

Working through audiobook of Betrayer now.

 

The UM are a tricky one for me because they appear SO much in the HH (blah blah poster boys blah blah)...yet since they are the consummate jack-of-all-trades, least quirky of the Astartes, it's hard to fine sort of those definitive examples of UM being UM.

 

Hidden Content

I suppose the UM Captain who is first to reinforce Sotha in Pharos stands out to me, even though he does not get a huge amount of face time. The whole idea of we need you do it all: get there as soon as is phsyically/warpishly possible, fight their fleet, fight their ground forces, and capture the valuables intact while preserving life as much as possible. I was impressed with how RG himself is like "this guy is capable of that." It stands out as an example of that XIII ideal: switching between all elements of warfare breathlessly while maintaining a square jaw and proper military poise the whole time.

 

Man, what order are you reading the series in? Egads. Your list makes way more sense to me now, but still. Dang.

I did "Horus Rising" to "Legion," skipped "Battle for the Abyss," and did "Mechanicum" and "Fallen Angels," then "Fear to Tread," "First Heretic," and then "Thousand Sons"/"Prospero Burns." All within a few months 2 years back or so.

 

"The Unremembered Empire" was a turning point for me: I got it since I was dying for more on Sanguinius, but felt hoodwinked because he literally appears in the last 5 pages and that's it. I've been much more selective since then. On a different noteI am still struggling to wrap my head around the whole Imperium Secondus thing.

 

Since then it's been a matter of availability, interest, reputation (fair or unfair) and cost (as a good puppet of GW, I am already $pending plenty on models).

 

So in short, yea it's a weird reading order. Based as much on chance as choice.

[HeritorA]

 

 

 

Ultramarines. From Betrayer. When the hopeless Ultramarines commander (was it Orfeo? Cant recall) offers to accept the surrender of Admiral Lotara Severn (sp). Its haughty, arrogant, and hilarious, but it also spoke to me of Orfeo's conviction. He might just have been a little serious in his offer. In his mind, he cannot conceive of how the traitors could possibly be successful in the grander scheme of things, so it is only practical for him to offer their surrender there and then.

Might not have been at all what ADB was going for, but thats how I read it, and I loved it.

Working through audiobook of Betrayer now.

 

The UM are a tricky one for me because they appear SO much in the HH (blah blah poster boys blah blah)...yet since they are the consummate jack-of-all-trades, least quirky of the Astartes, it's hard to fine sort of those definitive examples of UM being UM.

 

Hidden Content

I suppose the UM Captain who is first to reinforce Sotha in Pharos stands out to me, even though he does not get a huge amount of face time. The whole idea of we need you do it all: get there as soon as is phsyically/warpishly possible, fight their fleet, fight their ground forces, and capture the valuables intact while preserving life as much as possible. I was impressed with how RG himself is like "this guy is capable of that." It stands out as an example of that XIII ideal: switching between all elements of warfare breathlessly while maintaining a square jaw and proper military poise the whole time.

 

Man, what order are you reading the series in? Egads. Your list makes way more sense to me now, but still. Dang.

I did "Horus Rising" to "Legion," skipped "Battle for the Abyss," and did "Mechanicum" and "Fallen Angels," then "Fear to Tread," "First Heretic," and then "Thousand Sons"/"Prospero Burns." All within a few months 2 years back or so.

 

"The Unremembered Empire" was a turning point for me: I got it since I was dying for more on Sanguinius, but felt hoodwinked because he literally appears in the last 5 pages and that's it. I've been much more selective since then. On a different noteI am still struggling to wrap my head around the whole Imperium Secondus thing.

 

Since then it's been a matter of availability, interest, reputation (fair or unfair) and cost (as a good puppet of GW, I am already $pending plenty on models).

 

So in short, yea it's a weird reading order. Based as much on chance as choice.

 

You are reading only the stuff you like, or only the one you get so far? Cause that's one curious order of reading. Plus Haley himself (author of Pharos) wrote and amazing story about Corvo in 'Mark of Calth' anthology, where he actually introduced him for the first time.

[A D-B]

Great answer, Frag. Thanks for the enlightenment, dude. 

[rendingon1+]

Alpha Legion - definitely the Serpent Beneath/ the Harrowing.

[HeritorA]

Alpha Legion - definitely the Serpent Beneath/ the Harrowing.

Serpent Beneath is the best AL story ever, nobody still haven't beat it. Not Abnett, not Wraight, not French, not Sanders himself.

[rendingon1+]

 

Alpha Legion - definitely the Serpent Beneath/ the Harrowing.

Serpent Beneath is the best AL story ever, nobody still haven't beat it. Not Abnett, not Wraight, not French, not Sanders himself.

 

Agree. Though I like the Harrowing it feels a bit like a Forge World's Alpha Legion advertisemnt. Nevertheless, still waiting for a full Alpha Legion book by Sanders.

[Indefragable]

 

 

EDIT: <stuff and stuff and walls of text>

 

You are reading only the stuff you like, or only the one you get so far? Cause that's one curious order of reading. Plus Haley himself (author of Pharos) wrote and amazing story about Corvo in 'Mark of Calth' anthology, where he actually introduced him for the first time.

 

 

Long complicated answer that not many people outside of GW Marketing Insight interns will find interesting:

Hidden Content

A combo of the two. If I could do math, I would try to make an algorithm that shows how (interest + availability)x reputation all divided by timing or something is what makes me read Title A instead of Title B. But I can hardly do math (not good for a hobby based on dice probability) and that would bore everyone to death.  

 

Scars I read because I knew I would eventually want to read it and it happened to be on the book store (remember those?) shelf when others were not*. In contrast, alot of the Salamanders story arcs (Deathfire or something?) I have seen on many shelves, yet their reputation (fair or unfair) means I will probably never read them. I find the Salamanders interesting....but not interesting enough, if you will**. So a consistent reputation among the faithful community (again, whether fair or not) means that they get shunted way down the priority list. 

 

*Why did I know I wanted to read it? Combination of things: 

1) a cool shtick ("Mongols in spaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaace")

2) ....that had not really been explored much at that point

3) ....reputation ("hey, this one's really good!") 

 

**Why I am not that interested in the HH Salamanders?

1) what exactly is their "thing?" Compare to "Mongols in spaaaaaaaaace". Arguably, being more complex and nuanced should be a good thing, but it's kind of hard to figure out what makes the XVIII interesting besides FIRE!!!!!

2) Vulkan should be one of the coolest dudes in all of the HH literature: the closest thing to a genuine good guy among all the grimdark. Yet--as far as I am aware--he has not (yet) had his moment in the sun to really get to know him. I understand that Vulkan Lives might be the closest thing to that moment for him...is that true? If so, then it's still a bit less appealing to pick up a book that is essentially one giant torture scene compared to ones that have primarchs laughing while riding into battle (again, fair or unfair, that's how the mind works). 

3) the reputation collective voices in the community have towards titles such as Promethean Sun and Deathfire. 

 

Now...all of the above flows together and multiples itself. So I could be totally wrong about Vulkan/Salamanders, but because I have stayed away from them, I am thus less likely to pick up those arcs or "invest" in that whole storyline. It all feeds into each other and exasperates the extremities of opinion. Kind of like what's happening in our modern political world, eh? Something something echo chambers something something. 

 

[bluntblade]

I'd say the Scars have two. One being in Scars, where they break the cordon and surprise the Alpha :cussing Legion of all people. The other comes at the end of Path of Heaven, where Eidolon, having thought he'd outwitted all their feints, found out that Kalium itself was just another decoy.

[HeritorA]

 

 

Alpha Legion - definitely the Serpent Beneath/ the Harrowing.

Serpent Beneath is the best AL story ever, nobody still haven't beat it. Not Abnett, not Wraight, not French, not Sanders himself.

 

Agree. Though I like the Harrowing it feels a bit like a Forge World's Alpha Legion advertisemnt. Nevertheless, still waiting for a full Alpha Legion book by Sanders.

 

WE all waiting with baited breath for a full Sanders AL novel. It would probably never happen - but still we can dream.

 

 

 

 

 

 

EDIT: <stuff and stuff and walls of text>

 

You are reading only the stuff you like, or only the one you get so far? Cause that's one curious order of reading. Plus Haley himself (author of Pharos) wrote and amazing story about Corvo in 'Mark of Calth' anthology, where he actually introduced him for the first time.

 

 

Long complicated answer that not many people outside of GW Marketing Insight interns will find interesting:

Hidden Content

A combo of the two. If I could do math, I would try to make an algorithm that shows how (interest + availability)x reputation all divided by timing or something is what makes me read Title A instead of Title B. But I can hardly do math (not good for a hobby based on dice probability) and that would bore everyone to death.  

 

Scars I read because I knew I would eventually want to read it and it happened to be on the book store (remember those?) shelf when others were not*. In contrast, alot of the Salamanders story arcs (Deathfire or something?) I have seen on many shelves, yet their reputation (fair or unfair) means I will probably never read them. I find the Salamanders interesting....but not interesting enough, if you will**. So a consistent reputation among the faithful community (again, whether fair or not) means that they get shunted way down the priority list. 

 

*Why did I know I wanted to read it? Combination of things: 

1) a cool shtick ("Mongols in spaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaace")

2) ....that had not really been explored much at that point

3) ....reputation ("hey, this one's really good!") 

 

**Why I am not that interested in the HH Salamanders?

1) what exactly is their "thing?" Compare to "Mongols in spaaaaaaaaace". Arguably, being more complex and nuanced should be a good thing, but it's kind of hard to figure out what makes the XVIII interesting besides FIRE!!!!!

2) Vulkan should be one of the coolest dudes in all of the HH literature: the closest thing to a genuine good guy among all the grimdark. Yet--as far as I am aware--he has not (yet) had his moment in the sun to really get to know him. I understand that Vulkan Lives might be the closest thing to that moment for him...is that true? If so, then it's still a bit less appealing to pick up a book that is essentially one giant torture scene compared to ones that have primarchs laughing while riding into battle (again, fair or unfair, that's how the mind works). 

3) the reputation collective voices in the community have towards titles such as Promethean Sun and Deathfire. 

 

Now...all of the above flows together and multiples itself. So I could be totally wrong about Vulkan/Salamanders, but because I have stayed away from them, I am thus less likely to pick up those arcs or "invest" in that whole storyline. It all feeds into each other and exasperates the extremities of opinion. Kind of like what's happening in our modern political world, eh? Something something echo chambers something something. 

 

 

 

Frag - amazing points on WS and Salamanders!