Ferrus Manus: Gorgon of Medusa

[Izlude]

Just finished the book and wanted to give my two cents while it was still fresh in my head. Overall I was pretty disappointed with this book. I would say it ranks as my least favorite, probably less so than Guilliman. I came into this book excited to get more on Ferrus since most of what we know of him was in small bits through the series. Some of the big things I wanted to read more about was why some considered him a top contender for Warmaster (at least I thought some did) and why Guilliman thought so highly of him...unfortunately all it did was made me realize he was a douche and deserved to be the first loyalist primarch to die. He really came across as one-dimensional, petty, and perpetually angry. There really was nothing likable about Ferrus. At least in my opinion Ferrus more one dimensional than Angron (and that is saying alot) and has less of an excuse (hello you don't have nails drilled into your brain).

 

There were some decent aspects i liked like the Terran and Medusa differences in culture and some stuff about DuCaine (since he was the commander before Ferrus). Unfortunately there was alot about the book I did not like that some people have brought up:

 

1. IH supporting cast: Santer, Moses, etc were all so flat and boring they were easily interchangable. Nothing memorable about them.

 

2. IH and EC relationship: Honestly I never had a good sense of why Fulgrim and Ferrus were such buds and hence the relationship of their respective legions. I felt it was explained as "they were so different and that is why they are so close." And Akurduana and Santer leading the other legion forces just seemed so fake and forced. 

 

3. Akurduana: So basically this guy is close to perfect as one can get. I guess he is suppose to represent the good aspects of the EC: Perfection, humility, always striving, etc. The book was more about him. Also this is a good example of how petty Ferrus is. The part where Akurduana goes to town on all of the IHs in front of Ferrus so he rolls up his sleeves and thinks he is the man for beating Akurduana...just shows what a baby Ferrus is.

 

4. Commander: A tactician he is not...just throw everything at them (which I guess he admits). Maybe as a UM fanboy with some obvious conflict of interest, but the whole scene with Cicerus was sort of made my blood boil. Not only due to Ferrus obvious use of the UM and others as cannon fodder to spare his own. Also Cicerus came off as sort of weak for a UM. The whole situation which got him where he was seemed unrealistic as far as UM tactics goes. 

 

In the end if the goal was to set up Ferrus for his death in the HH series I think that was accomplished. This does nothing to show me why "I should be Warmaster" only that good on Fulgrim for cutting off your head.

 

I am sure there were more but was a choir to read. As it stands not a big fan of Guymer (sort of on par with Annandale in terms of writing). I thought in the Beast series his two books were among the worse and this book did not help. This is just my opinion and getting this for 12 bucks on amazon didn't make me feel so bad. 

[Manchu warlord]

I just got three chapters into the book.  So far, I'm not impressed.  

[Ingo Pech]

Regarding "Akurduana":

 

I think, Guymer tried to use him as a proxy for Ferrus Manus, to discribe his perfection in some parts and his flaws in others, to show his otherness, his tediousness, his weary-ness, whatever...

 

Both try to find their way and place in the Great Crusade and the Emperors plans, both struggle to find someone who can beat them in an 1:1-situation and in the end both concentrate on what they can and what they are made for (swordman/brutal conqueror, not leader/Warmaster) and both will sacrifice their life for the big picture...

 

At least, that's how I see it and Guymer dropped some hints in this direction on his twitter-account.

 

But I still would have preferred a different way of characterization- and that he had concentrated on Ferrus' strength (like in the FW-books...) and his past instead of his weaknesses...

 

I would love to hear from Guymer or some BL-official, what they tried to show with this book (especially regarding the other and better Primarch-series-books) and why their description of Ferrus diverges so much from his appearences in the Forge World-books and the mentions in other HH-books like "Know No Fear"...

[Bellarius]

 

But I still would have preferred a different way of characterization- and that he had concentrated on Ferrus' strength (like in the FW-books...) and his past instead of his weaknesses...

 

That is the exact problem here, and it's part of why I cited Codex: Clan Raukaan as likely influencing his works. It's been this way for years now, to the point where if you stop and compare chapter introductions in codices, those of other First Founding groups will cite their tactical strengths, while those of the Iron Hands will only cite abject failings. It's why part of me honestly thinks that Wrath of Iron remains the only good Iron Hands novel, and why Forgeworld was such a breath of fresh air to the chapter's fans, because their themes did more than retain a tunnel vision focus on their failings. Save also for one or two very short stories in the Meduson collection and perhaps Damnation of Pythos, works written prior to the aforementioned codex, everything else continually describes their failures while adding in new ones and having them fail in new battles.

 

It's to the point now where, despite Isstvan V being an utterly unwinnable battle with the loyalists outnumbered more than three to one, the blame of its entire loss is placed on Ferrus. Right down to how the Iron Hands themselves spend one minute hating him for being a fool who didn't single-handedly turn the tide against eight full legions at one point, only to have authors still trying to have them hold the Salamanders and Raven Guard in contempt because of it as well.

[b1soul]

So IH have not progressed beyong stupid metal men

[bluntblade]

Pity that the anti-Ferrus faction weren't explored a bit more. Kyme turned them first into mad golem-worshippers and then, perversely, the voice of reason who abandon Meduson when he's written into repeating Ferrus' error.

[Tymell]

Just finished this one myself. I have mixed feelings on it.

 

On the positive side, I like Guymer's writing for the most part. His prose can get a bit verbose at times, but he's far from the worst offender in this regard. There's just the odd moment here and there where it feels like less would be more. Some authors really get that, and it's very rewarding. His character work is also pretty good: I like Ferrus when we see him (more on that later...), he's certainly brutal and straightforward, but not without moments of humility and a sense of humour lacking in some of his other brothers. I feel that fits for someone with a legendary temper, to have that side to him when he's in a rare good mood. Several of the other main cast (Akurduana, DuCaine, Moses) are genuinely likeable characters.

 

There are also some really good individual scenes and parts, like the viciousness of Ferrus' final assault, and some of the human perspective on Astartes/Primarchs and their inherently alien nature.

 

But the book also felt like it had a number of issues for me. First and foremost, it just doesn't really feel like "The Ferrus Manus Primarchs book". There's very little work done to develop the culture of the legion or to impress us with Ferrus Manus' prowess as a leader. Members of other legions are there, but there are never any scenes of Ferrus commanding them effectively, making use of their different skills, etc.

 

I don't want to sound like a fanboy who wanted this book to be nothing but "OMG the Iron Hands are teh win!", but I do kind of feel like they needed something that at least explored their character somewhat, even if it didn't just big them up. Ferrus himself is the first Primarch to die in the Heresy, right at the outset, and they spend the rest of the Heresy a shattered legion. More than most, I feel like they really needed a book to show them, and Ferrus, at their best. This definitely doesn't achieve that; more often than not, they're being upstaged by the Emperor's Children. Akurduana in particular, while an enjoyable character, seems a bit too good at everything he does. There is a brief passage late in the book about how he's not a good commander, but it feels tacked on after a hundred and fifty pages of him dominating in every regard.

 

In short, I come away from this liking what I've read on a basic level, but not feeling like I've learned anything about the Iron Hands, nor been impressed by Ferrus.

 

There are also some really bizarre timeline issues in this book:

• DuCaine wears Thunder Armour, and is even referred to as a Thunder Warrior at one point.
• This seems to take place in 30,869, but DuCaine has apparently seen looks of incredulity about Unification for 150 years, and Akurduana has been an Astartes for 300 years. Akurduana also has a very odd reaction to seeing wounded for someone with three centuries of war experience.
• Fifteen Primarchs have been found by this point, but this apparently includes Jaghatai (previously indicated to have been found sometime in the 880s), Mortarion (who was still being tutored on Terra in the 930s, though Ferrus may still have known about him before then) and Corax (who was one of the last Primarchs found, and likely well after 869).

Lastly, though this is no criticism of David Guymer, I have some real issues with the book quality from BL's end. While minor, there were two glaring typos towards the end of the book. I don't think I've ever found an outright typo in the HH series up until now, and now I find two in almost as many pages

 

Less minor, for me anyway, is the very poor quality of the spine printing.

 

This is an image of the spine compared to my copy of Fulgrim: The Palatine Phoenix. The Fulgrim book I've owned for three months, which included moving house with it. Ferrus Manus I've had less than a week and has been on my table aside from one brief trip out in my satchel.

 

https://ibb.co/ik60Gn

 

Needless to say, for someone like me who wants to own these physically to display on the shelf, this is very disappointing. The lettering doesn't even feel embossed like it does on Fulgrim, it's just painted on. Has anyone else with a copy experienced this? I'm pondering a complaint to BL about it.

 

Anywho, poor printing and proof-reading aside, I have to give this one a 6/10, putting it down with Guilliman's book among the weakest of the Primarch offerings so far. I enjoyed the writing for the most part, and there are some good scenes, but it just doesn't feel like it does a good job of being Ferrus Manus' Primarchs book. Fulgrim, Perturabo and Lorgar remain kings of this series for me.

[Fedor]

I finished this earlier and agree with much of Tymell's post. Guymer is a good writer and tells a solid story with a lot of good individual scenes/lines, but a lot it feels to me like "wrong place at the wrong time" in the context of it being the first Ferrus/Iron Hands great crusade showcase.

 

The book essentially takes what Forgeworld suggested was one of the Iron Hands notable Great Crusade triumphs and turns it into a bungled attempt at a textbook compliance...a humbling for a very ambitious Ferrus with lots of foreshadowing of the character traits that led him to accept the challenge of Fulgrim on Isstvan rather than retreat with his bros.

 

Putting aside i think a different conflict should have been used for such a plot rather than Gardinaal, i think the broad strokes of this book would have been more enjoyable if this were part of say...a Great Crusade series on the Iron Hands, a few books in after establishing the strengths and deeper character of the legion, then something like the battle in this book would be a good way to tie in with his later opinion in Fulgrim of eventually not wanting the position as it would be too much hassle/realises he's not best suited.

 

Yet as the standalone Primarchs book for Ferrus, which will quite likely be the only book we get for years exploring him, i found it to be overly negative on him and the Hands in general. We get only a little glimpse of the efficient, skilled leader of worldwide combined arms warfare Forgeworld depicted, and was hinted at by Horus and Guilliman before the assassination attempt turns him full Angron.

 

The Emperors Children trump them every time, fair enough for one or two points and Akurduana was not your average Captain melee-wise, but eventually imo taken way too far with Akurduana having to use his own initiative to save the entire assault force from falling into the same situation(times 100) Ferrus had torn into Cicerus and Amar for failing to anticipate. If Guymer wanted to depict Ferrus failing in his attempt Warmaster application, having him be unable to restrain himself from destroying most of the planet after the assassination attempt seems enough. Then getting completely outmaneauvered by the same trick the Gardinaal had already used in what was by then a largely symbolic attack of no strategic value makes him look incompetent. I wonder how many other Primarch books will end in such a fashion?. Harsh on the brutally rugged giant.

 

 

A few lines i found funny were Ferrus getting excited at Dorn hitting him and that he seemed to think he would beat the Emperor if they fought again. The whole "no one can beat me" thing was a bit on the nose though. Also interesting that he didn't think of Horus as the best of those found so far(maybe Horus was one of the few that accepted a cage bout with him) and seemed to lean towards Sanguinius or Fulgrim as best Warmaster options of those he bothers to mention. The way his metal arms are written is interesting too, they seem psychically linked to him and able to be used as a really formidable melee weapon, not just for working at the forge.They tore apart the Gardinaal lord mech's shields and armour much easier than Forgebreaker.

[Indefragable]

<snip>

 

I was working on my own review of this book, but then you posted. Basically my review is "yea, what he said" to Tymell's review.

 

Thinking about this Primarchs novel a bit more, it's not an outright bad story by any means as it's written. The issue is the lack of self-awareness it has about the audience and its place in the 40k pantheon. It does nothing to combat the character debt that Ferrus Manus has always experienced and continues to suffer from. If we had numerous other tales from Ferrus' perspective, or far more writings delving into his psyche, backstory, etc.. this book would be a great look at a moment where he breaks down a bit. But rather we have nothing to off of other than Ferrus losing his head both literally and metaphorically. That continues to be his defining feature. It's hard for it not to be a letdown as a result, most especially when this could* have been THE story about ol' iron hands.

 

As for the quality of the physical book itself, I would absolutely write to BL about it with pictures. If nothing else, GW tends to take pride in that sort of thing and I can easily see them replacing it for you.

 

*don't know the author's intentions or original thoughts, so maybe that thought never occurred

[Manchu warlord]

 

https://ibb.co/ik60Gn

 

 

 

 

lol.

[Plaguecaster]

I finally finished the( book even though at some points I really didn't want) and was really disappointed in it yeah it's an average read about a battle during the great crusade but it was anything but being a true iron hands novel about Ferrus Manus . The Iron hands were pretty much shown as a incompetent force with Akurduana from the Emperor's children easily humbling just about the entire legion's elite, seriously why? . I understand that the Emperor's children were pretty close to the Iron hands but did they really need to be included at all especially with how much of an important role they play in the entire book.

A few of the snippets involving the past of Ferrus were quite interesting but then again they were so brief and vague they didn't really add anything apart from making Ferrus look even worse. Looks like this will be another book I never read again or try selling

[godking]

Just finished it.

 

:cussing hell Ferrus is almost as miserable and negative as Perturabo is with less skill as a commander then Perturabo has !

 

I am sure that he never faced Horus or Sanguinus in his little arena or worse for him Angron !

 

Ferrus seems to believe that nobody can beat him because he can goad Dorn in to throwing a punch at him and facing a reluctant to hurt him Vulkan in his little arena.

 

The book was good but Ferrus came across to to much of a bullying brute.

 

 

[Fedor]

Vulkan was one of the ones mentioned that  actually outright declined his sparring invitations. The few he did face were left open purposefully for us to guess at, though we're given the impression he was disappointed in them. Of course sparring is not a real stakes bout and it may have been the whole process that left him disenchanted given how much we are shown he wants to face someone who can beat him again.

 

Personality-wise i'd bet on Horus, Russ and the Lion being the most likely to have taken him up on the offer. These kind of vs bouts are probably best left vaguely hinted at though, which was enough to serve the character purpose here. or done with an additional nuance  in mind like ADB's Russ vs Angron encounter. If Guymer had come right out and said Ferrus was feeling depressed with no challenge available because he'd smashed Horus or whoever else with ease it would have given fuel for forum/reddit etc arguments and memes for years.

[Plaguecaster]

Vulkan was one of the ones mentioned that actually outright declined his sparring invitations. The few he did face were left open purposefully for us to guess at, though we're given the impression he was disappointed in them. Of course sparring is not a real stakes bout and it may have been the whole process that left him disenchanted given how much we are shown he wants to face someone who can beat him again.

 

Personality-wise i'd bet on Horus, Russ and the Lion being the most likely to have taken him up on the offer. These kind of vs bouts are probably best left vaguely hinted at though, which was enough to serve the character purpose here. or done with an additional nuance in mind like ADB's Russ vs Angron encounter. If Guymer had come right out and said Ferrus was feeling depressed with no challenge available because he'd smashed Horus or whoever else with ease it would have given fuel for forum/reddit etc arguments and memes for years.

Vulcan did decline but in the end it is hinted he actually accepted once Ferrus offerered to forge Vulkan weapon finer than what he forged for Fulgrim. I'd say he actually ended up fighting Vulkan as we do know Vulkan has wielded The Furnace's Heart which was actually forged by Ferrus Plus we do know Vulkan did not view the weapon favourable rumoured as some dark history so maybe that was the reason, Vulkan fought Ferrus for the promise of getting a mighty forged weapon but in the end lost.

[Tymell]

 

Vulkan was one of the ones mentioned that actually outright declined his sparring invitations. The few he did face were left open purposefully for us to guess at, though we're given the impression he was disappointed in them. Of course sparring is not a real stakes bout and it may have been the whole process that left him disenchanted given how much we are shown he wants to face someone who can beat him again.

 

Personality-wise i'd bet on Horus, Russ and the Lion being the most likely to have taken him up on the offer. These kind of vs bouts are probably best left vaguely hinted at though, which was enough to serve the character purpose here. or done with an additional nuance in mind like ADB's Russ vs Angron encounter. If Guymer had come right out and said Ferrus was feeling depressed with no challenge available because he'd smashed Horus or whoever else with ease it would have given fuel for forum/reddit etc arguments and memes for years.

Vulcan did decline but in the end it is hinted he actually accepted once Ferrus offerered to forge Vulkan weapon finer than what he forged for Fulgrim.

 

 

I read it the other way personally. Ferrus says the bars have few stories to tell (i.e. few of his brothers have taken him up), then mentions the offer he made to Vulkan. Akurduana asks "And?", and Ferrus replies: "And these bars have few stories to tell". I took that to mean "And he still turned me down."

[Mellow]

I finally got round to finishing this one.

 

I didn’t like it at all. Ferrus is still shown as being a rediculous one track mind Primarch who still manages to get upset when his rubbish legion get schooled by the Emperors Children.

 

I didn’t see anything in the novel that would suggest he was a potential warmaster.

[Noserenda]

Much the same thoughts tbh, i enjoyed reading the story and most of the characters were intriguing... I even caught what Guymer was apparently trying for with Akurduana (Though his death was random as all hell to me) but Ferrus and to an extent Santar both came off reeeeally badly, which is like the opposite of a Primarch novel surely? Damn shame as again as noted above the Iron Hands seem to keep getting the short end of the stick.

[Slan Drakkos]

 

Vulkan was one of the ones mentioned that actually outright declined his sparring invitations. The few he did face were left open purposefully for us to guess at, though we're given the impression he was disappointed in them. Of course sparring is not a real stakes bout and it may have been the whole process that left him disenchanted given how much we are shown he wants to face someone who can beat him again.

Personality-wise i'd bet on Horus, Russ and the Lion being the most likely to have taken him up on the offer. These kind of vs bouts are probably best left vaguely hinted at though, which was enough to serve the character purpose here. or done with an additional nuance in mind like ADB's Russ vs Angron encounter. If Guymer had come right out and said Ferrus was feeling depressed with no challenge available because he'd smashed Horus or whoever else with ease it would have given fuel for forum/reddit etc arguments and memes for years.

Vulcan did decline but in the end it is hinted he actually accepted once Ferrus offerered to forge Vulkan weapon finer than what he forged for Fulgrim. I'd say he actually ended up fighting Vulkan as we do know Vulkan has wielded The Furnace's Heart which was actually forged by Ferrus Plus we do know Vulkan did not view the weapon favourable rumoured as some dark history so maybe that was the reason, Vulkan fought Ferrus for the promise of getting a mighty forged weapon but in the end lost.

Few things that seem wrong in this post

 

1. It was outright stated in Fulgrim that Vulkan didn't use the gun because he didn't make it.

 

2. Vulkan's a master artisan. Why would he need or even want a gun made by Ferrus?

 

3. Even if Vulkan lost (pretty sure he declined), he still would have wrecked Ferrus in a real fight.

[Lord_Caerolion]

Plus, that also sounds crazy-petty of Vulkan. That sounds more like something Fulgrim would do, rather than the down-to-earth Vulkan.

[bluntblade]

FW fleshed it out a bit, with Vulkan's creative philosophy being artistic rather than brutally utilitarian like Ferrus'. Vulkan took it up for Isstvan V as a reaffirmation of their brotherhood, in the face of Horus' betrayal.

 

Also, I see nothing to suggest that the two wouldn't have been evenly matched in a duel.

 

Nonetheless, I really wish the Ferrus job had gone to one of the writers who has displayed a knack for portraying the Legion's strengths.

[Slan Drakkos]

Also, I see nothing to suggest that the two wouldn't have been evenly matched in a duel.

 

in a duel, I could see Ferrus winning.

 

In an actual life or death battle, based off of how Vulkan explicitly said that he holds back against his brothers, based off of his feats, and based off of his displays of skill, Vulkan would rip him a new one.

[bluntblade]

It's worth mentioning that Ferrus has pulled down a machine the size of a Reaver Titan.

[Kelborn]

No Primarch could defeat Vulkan in a battle of death, thanks to his special gift.

Though I have to admit, I don't know how resistable he is against witchcraft and the likes like Magnus or Lorgar could afford it.

[Mellow]

Vulkan is meant to be completely unkillable. He’s also meant to be the strongest of all of them. I doubt he’s any more vulnerable to psychic attack than any of the other “non-psychic” Primarchs.

 

He’s basically Thor right? Dude with a big hammer.

[Slan Drakkos]

It's worth mentioning that Ferrus has pulled down a machine the size of a Reaver Titan.

that's cool. Vulkan shrugged off having trillions of tons of force hit him in the face at a not insubstantial fraction of the speed of light.....

Vulkan is meant to be completely unkillable. He’s also meant to be the strongest of all of them. I doubt he’s any more vulnerable to psychic attack than any of the other “non-psychic” Primarchs.

He’s basically Thor right? Dude with a big hammer.

he also crafted at least two of his hammers so that they'd return to his hand whenever he wants them to.