HH Book 47: Old Earth

[Ogun]

Nick Kyme's afterword in the Vulkan Lives hardback points out that the bare bones of the story he is telling was originally outlined by Alan Merritt in a subsequently removed section of the original Visions of Heresy. Its not mentioned why it wasn't in the final version, though space is a likely factor. Getting Vulkan from 'disappeared' to holding 'the Gate of Terra' was always likely to be a two volume minimum job in a story as big as the Heresy. 

 

I agree we need more on certain legions. A fall of the Death Guard novel has been pencilled in for pretty much as long as I can remember, and that one will be coming up soon. What is nearly certain is that the Blood Angels and Fists will be getting far more attention when it comes to the Siege.

[Mellow]

Well if his Hammer had teleported him to Terra instead of Macragge then it would only have taken 1 book. Plus he would have had more help in the form of Malcador soothing his broken soul.

[Phoebus]

Or Nocturne, for that matter. Vulkan showing up at Macragge achieved nothing other than putting even more spotlight on the Imperium Secundus storyline.

 

Ogun, thank you for remind my of that important bit of context. With that in mind, I think you put it perfectly: it's not so much an issue of there being too much of the Salamanders so much as it is about there not being enough of certain other legions by comparison.

[Xisor]

One of the arguments in favour of Nick doing HH material is that it's low-labour. He knows the pitfalls that cause trouble, so it's light on editorial oversight, knows deadlines and holes in the schedule.

 

In that light, I think the idea is that it's not that Nick's Salamanders are taking up space, but that they are already an extra, without which we'd just have HH minus Nick Kyme's work.

 

I could do without Deathfire Nd Promethean Sun, but I'd be gutted to lose Scorched Earth, and I'm very fond of Vulkan Lives!

[SpAcEGhOsT095]

With Vulkan on Terra during the siege, this could be where he begins down the road that leads him to where he was in the Beast Arises. Instead of dropping all of his responsibilities like some of the other primarchs, he decides that he will just defend one world. Ignored and out of the way, since he knew quite well that the time of the primarchs was over.

These are just my thoughts on the matter, not having read all of the books I very well could be wrong about why Vulkan ended up where he did.

And is it just me or does Vulkan look a bit on the thin side? 

[The Doctor Of War]

This'll be one i'll wait for the Mass Market Paperback. I don't want to be a negative nancy so i'll leave it there.

[Ogun]

With Vulkan on Terra during the siege, this could be where he begins down the road that leads him to where he was in the Beast Arises. Instead of dropping all of his responsibilities like some of the other primarchs, he decides that he will just defend one world. Ignored and out of the way, since he knew quite well that the time of the primarchs was over.

These are just my thoughts on the matter, not having read all of the books I very well could be wrong about why Vulkan ended up where he did.

And is it just me or does Vulkan look a bit on the thin side? 

 

It will be very interesting to see the development of Vulkan's thinking. With the exception that he spent a long time fighting daemons at the gate and argued against the 2nd Founding, I don't think we know anything until he crops up on Caldera 1500 years later. What struck me about his reappearance in The Beast Arises was just how comparatively un-surprised people were that he still existed. There was no scoffing or denial that he might be alive, it was more like that he had been off the radar for so long that all but Veritus had forgotten that he might even be an option. To my mind, that would suggest you are probably close to the mark. 

 

As a bit of an off topic bit of speculation, I seem to recall that the 6th ed Space Marine Codex indicates that Vulkan also reappeared around 3000 years after the Heresy. Interestingly, according to Lexicanum, that would be around the time of the War of the False Primarch...

[b1soul]

As a WS fan, I'm so glad we got Wraight...

 

I sincerely feel for the Salamander fans

[DarkChaplain]

The horse is so dead, it lies deeper in the ground than dinosaurs ever did...

 

I wasn't at all happy with Vulkan's appearance in The Unremembered Empire, but I cannot fault Kyme for that. Abnett was in charge, and his Hulk Smash Vulkan was simply terrible to read about. Kyme's has been pretty good so far as he was alive.

I wonder how many potential ties to future stories we'll be able to find in Old Earth, actually. Deathfire hinted at The Crimson King already, had implications for Imperium Secundus as a whole and seeing how it Old Earth is supposed to put an end to the Tybalt Marr vs Shadrak Meduson rivalry, I wouldn't even be surprised if there were ties to the Keys of Hel in there as well.

[Sith’ari]

Love or hate Nick Kyme's work, that cover art is BAD ASS! Makes me want to start a small force of Sallies.

[Indefragable]

Speaking of Unremembered Empire....

 

 

I wouldn't be surprised if this entire book has nothing whatsoever to do with Terra itself, beyond some line about "dreaming of Old Earth," and then the last few paragraphs of the entire book talk about "and now I, Vulkan, and what's left of my Legion, shall head to Terra itself."  In other words, a somewhat deceiving title/depiction and Vulkan does not actually make it to Terra in time to participate in the Siege.

[DarkChaplain]

Nah, that's Abnett's calling card, not Kyme's.

[veterannoob]

 

Now THAT'S a cover!

Good cover does not make it a good book...

It's KYME - HE HAD 2 ATTEMPTS with Vulkan Lives and Deathfire - why do you think this one would be better?

In my humble opinion I don't mind Salamanders - I'm disappointed with what and how Kyme do to/with them

 

b1soul

'Kyme never disappoints...looking forward to this' - best joke EVER.

 

Plus we all know how it will all go:

Vulkan speech we need to go to Terra > Salamanders prepare to go to Terra > some warband in the way > bolter porn > Vulkan and co enters the Webway > Vulkan and co fight daemons > more bolter porn > Vulkan save Custodian and arrive on Terra > Vulkan guards the Webway entrance under the Imperial Palace > The end.

 

That's true, but I speak only of a cover here. ;) It's interesting, with the exception of Deathfire the Vulkan novels have my fav covers, despite the rest. Vulkan Lives is still the most powerful cover in the HH series, IMO. So much so that is joins the ranks of posters and prints I own. 

[Mellow]

Speaking of Unremembered Empire....

 

 

I wouldn't be surprised if this entire book has nothing whatsoever to do with Terra itself, beyond some line about "dreaming of Old Earth," and then the last few paragraphs of the entire book talk about "and now I, Vulkan, and what's left of my Legion, shall head to Terra itself." In other words, a somewhat deceiving title/depiction and Vulkan does not actually make it to Terra in time to participate in the Siege.

Yeah, I agree with you.

 

It's always the way when a title sounds good that you believe it's going to be a story about X when ultimately it's going to be a disappointing story that doesn't really do anything other than show Vulkan is a perpetual and his legion are rubbish at warfare.

 

Of course I do really hope I'm wrong.

[Chainsword Cookie]

I like the Salamanders, but I dislike the Salamanders books, HH ones in particular. 

 

Of all the legions the Salamanders have been so far the most boring to read about and Vulkan gets little character spotlight save for his "pepetual" trait. In a way all the authors see in the Salamanders is their smith skills, that they are tough to kill and fire everywhere. Also I dislike that there are almost no "bad apples" among the Salamanders, they stand faultless in the books and thus anything but the most humane of legions. 

 

I hope that this book would be less about fire and smiths and more about the grim reality of a fratricide on a galactic scale. That and it needs more "bad" Salamanders, the nasty, broken and disillusioned ones. 

[Brother Bovus]

Yessss its my boi Vulkan.  I am forever hungry for all things Salamander-related.  Looking forward to this one.

[HeritorA]

As a WS fan, I'm so glad we got Wraight...

 

I sincerely feel for the Salamander fans

I think they wish for another author as a Christmas present.

 

 

Love or hate Nick Kyme's work, that cover art is BAD ASS! Makes me want to start a small force of Sallies.

I wish the books were that good as the covers ...

 

veterannoob

Strange, isn't it :)

[Calas Typhon]

I strongly hope that this brings in some good reading for the Salamanders and we get some proper glimpses into the "Unbreakable Line" they are supposed to be famed for.

 

They genuinely have one of the best Primarch/Legion meetings, a very cool culture base and the obsidian black skin and overall colour scheme is devilishly great. I really do like the Legion and I really want to get even further into them, but they have had an extremely poor showing outside of that one short set on Isstvan V that leads into the short in the Meduson series which has kind of put me off. 

[Roomsky]

I think cautious optimism is a little generous for how I think of this one. Its more a feeling of awareness that it might end up being okay, despite the odds. I know the Kyme negativity is tiresome, but I think its a little naive to ignore what came before this in the name of hype.

 

I did enjoy both the pacing and ideas behind Vulkan Lives. There was a willingness to let the story play out organically that I was happy to see, and in fairness it was too bombastic to find boring. The concept of Vulkan and Curze being cognizant of their diametric opposition was also a neat avenue to explore, and Barthusa Narek is generally a pretty good character. On the other hand, this novel contains the worst prose I have ever seen in a publication. Mount Deathfire is literally described as fiery at one point. I've also spoken before about my dislike at seeing too much of the finer details of a primarch's actions, which this book is the absolute nadir of with a first person primarch as one of the characters. Stunningly enough, the regular human Kyme has difficulty convincing me that Vulkan's mind is anything special. Kurze too suffers, basically a parody of himself, whom Horus (for some reason) allowed to expend vast swathes of time and resources to torturing a dangerous prisoner instead of cutting him into giblets and shooting them out the airlock between warp jumps.

 

Deathfire improves the prose somewhat. That is all I have nice to say about that book.

 

I don't hate Kyme, I've argued in his defense before. Many of his shorts are quite good, and I think he even has my favorite portrayal of Fulgrim under his belt with Imperfect. My fingers are crossed that Old Earth will be about interesting subject matter, with enjoyable characters and acceptable prose, all things well within his ability. But man, after Deathfire I have a hard time being optimistic.

[HeritorA]

I think cautious optimism is a little generous for how I think of this one. Its more a feeling of awareness that it might end up being okay, despite the odds. I know the Kyme negativity is tiresome, but I think its a little naive to ignore what came before this in the name of hype.

 

I did enjoy both the pacing and ideas behind Vulkan Lives. There was a willingness to let the story play out organically that I was happy to see, and in fairness it was too bombastic to find boring. The concept of Vulkan and Curze being cognizant of their diametric opposition was also a neat avenue to explore, and Barthusa Narek is generally a pretty good character. On the other hand, this novel contains the worst prose I have ever seen in a publication. Mount Deathfire is literally described as fiery at one point. I've also spoken before about my dislike at seeing too much of the finer details of a primarch's actions, which this book is the absolute nadir of with a first person primarch as one of the characters. Stunningly enough, the regular human Kyme has difficulty convincing me that Vulkan's mind is anything special. Kurze too suffers, basically a parody of himself, whom Horus (for some reason) allowed to expend vast swathes of time and resources to torturing a dangerous prisoner instead of cutting him into giblets and shooting them out the airlock between warp jumps.

 

Deathfire improves the prose somewhat. That is all I have nice to say about that book.

 

I don't hate Kyme, I've argued in his defense before. Many of his shorts are quite good, and I think he even has my favorite portrayal of Fulgrim under his belt with Imperfect. My fingers are crossed that Old Earth will be about interesting subject matter, with enjoyable characters and acceptable prose, all things well within his ability. But man, after Deathfire I have a hard time being optimistic.

 

True. I will read it though I know the suffering it will entails. But we all slaaneshi servants - so a little pain is nothing new.

I will read it just to be in line with the HH 'new' fluff and partly cause I do want to see that moment Meduson gets Marr head

[hopkins]

http://www.blacklibrary.com/coming-soon/december/old-earth-ebook.html

 

 

Reborn in body and spirit beneath Mount Deathfire, the primarch Vulkan gathers his most trusted sons and prepares for the final part of his journey. The Legions shattered at Isstvan V have stalled the Warmaster’s advance across the galaxy, but fresh cracks are spreading through the alliance between the Iron Hands, Salamanders and Raven Guard, along with mysterious rumours of the return of Ferrus Manus. Haunted by a sense of destiny unfulfilled, Vulkan must choose between joining their war of vengeance against the traitors, or following his own barely understood path all the way to the Throneworld itself.

[HeritorA]

 

http://www.blacklibrary.com/coming-soon/december/old-earth-ebook.html

 

 

 

Reborn in body and spirit beneath Mount Deathfire, the primarch Vulkan gathers his most trusted sons and prepares for the final part of his journey. The Legions shattered at Isstvan V have stalled the Warmaster’s advance across the galaxy, but fresh cracks are spreading through the alliance between the Iron Hands, Salamanders and Raven Guard, along with mysterious rumours of the return of Ferrus Manus. Haunted by a sense of destiny unfulfilled, Vulkan must choose between joining their war of vengeance against the traitors, or following his own barely understood path all the way to the Throneworld itself.

 

 

Well - I already see that part 'fresh cracks are spreading through the alliance between the Iron Hands, Salamanders and Raven Guard, along with mysterious rumours of the return of Ferrus Manus.' going into word conflict on a bridge of Meduson flagship - and Marr with SoH appear atop of them - the battle commence.

 

Shattered Legions forces triumph - Salamanders move to Terra, IH and Raven Guard stay to fight on the flanks.

 

In my humble opinion - is what would happen.

[hopkins]

just give me as much vulkan as possible

[HeritorA]

just give me as much vulkan as possible

 

sarcasm?

Or just an honest wish "do you want to know more?"

[Corswain]

I'm looking forward to this. Never had a problem with Kyme's writing.

 

Curious about the changes to Vulkans hammer and armour (I didn't read Deathfire so maybe I missed something), maybe it's just artistic licence....