Gaunt’s Ghosts: Anarch

[QuintusSertorius]

A loose end that didn't seem to be tied up:

 

House Gethenti, who not only gave the Qimurah the route into EM14 and the Beserker virus, but broadcast the signal calling the Archenemy sleeper cells to attack. There was an oblique reference in one of the command post scenes to dispatching Valkyries to the source of the broadcast, but that was it.

 

I was expecting at least a paragraph in the epilogue dealing with their fate, given how much of the book was devoted to the ordinate and his House.

[wtwhizz]

Really enjoyed the book and read it through in one sitting.  Though, I can always nitpick and that's what makes for the most interesting conversation.  So, that being said. . .
 

1.  A recurring problem I find in BL novels is that the bad guys' really aren't fleshed out all that well.  They're just "We're Chaos.  We're bad.  We wanna climb the Chaos ranks.  Etc."  We got a little bit of depth with the poor Damogaur that Mkoll hijacks to get into the enemy base.  He talks about converting all the Imperials and how they just can't see the (Primordial) Truth, etc.  Past that?  Not much.  We finally get around to THE guy.  The freaking Anarach.  Sek himself.  And the couple of lines we get from his perspective is just him being pissed at losing and how he's gonna get revenge by killing everyone.  This is a guy who knows specifically about the Ghosts and their importance.  He builds an overarching plan around using them to achieve his victory.  Yet, he doesn't actually converse with any of them except to acknowledge who Milo/Mkoll are right before they kill him.  We never get to see behind the curtain on the Anarach and his plans.  We never get a look into his relationship with Gaur and why he wants to be the man instead of following his old boss.  While Dan did an amazing job describing Sek's appearance from the viewpoints of Holofurnace, the officer, Milo, and Mkoll, I'd love to have gotten more backstory on him.  He was supposed to be kind of a big deal, not just another mini-boss on the road to finishing the game.
 
2.  Similar to the above, Mabbon.  The stuff with him in the book was phenomenal.  There just wasn't enough.  We get that nice conversation between him and the Qimurah, but that's it.  He was such an interesting character and to shuffle him off without diving in a little more there was disappointing. 
 
3.  The Dalin twist.  Asphodel making some evil kid jack-in-the-boxes that wouldn't go off for years is a stretch, but this is 40K and I can roll with it.  In Yoncy's case, it works fine.  She was always a minor, ancillary character who we hardly ever spent time with.  Her weird factor was already established, too.  So, good job there.  But Dalin?  Dalin?!  I walked hand in hand with Dalin through some of the worst crap I've ever seen in 40K back on Gereon in Armor of Contempt.  He makes it through all of that without a scratch.  There's never a single solitary hint that he's anything other than a solid, dependable line trooper.  Dan pulled this one out of his bum.  It doesn't work.  Especially since we don't get any setup to it before all the scary stuff starts going down.  I was just really baffled by this choice.  Felt like it came out of left field, was a decision that didn't have to be made, and ended up falling flat on its face.

 

Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?  It was pretty great. 

[Moonreaper666]

Really enjoyed the book and read it through in one sitting. Though, I can always nitpick and that's what makes for the most interesting conversation. So, that being said. . .

 

1. A recurring problem I find in BL novels is that the bad guys' really aren't fleshed out all that well. They're just "We're Chaos. We're bad. We wanna climb the Chaos ranks. Etc." We got a little bit of depth with the poor Damogaur that Mkoll hijacks to get into the enemy base. He talks about converting all the Imperials and how they just can't see the (Primordial) Truth, etc. Past that? Not much. We finally get around to THE guy. The freaking Anarach. Sek himself. And the couple of lines we get from his perspective is just him being pissed at losing and how he's gonna get revenge by killing everyone. This is a guy who knows specifically about the Ghosts and their importance. He builds an overarching plan around using them to achieve his victory. Yet, he doesn't actually converse with any of them except to acknowledge who Milo/Mkoll are right before they kill him. We never get to see behind the curtain on the Anarach and his plans. We never get a look into his relationship with Gaur and why he wants to be the man instead of following his old boss. While Dan did an amazing job describing Sek's appearance from the viewpoints of Holofurnace, the officer, Milo, and Mkoll, I'd love to have gotten more backstory on him. He was supposed to be kind of a big deal, not just another mini-boss on the road to finishing the game.

 

2. Similar to the above, Mabbon. The stuff with him in the book was phenomenal. There just wasn't enough. We get that nice conversation between him and the Qimurah, but that's it. He was such an interesting character and to shuffle him off without diving in a little more there was disappointing.

 

3. The Dalin twist. Asphodel making some evil kid jack-in-the-boxes that wouldn't go off for years is a stretch, but this is 40K and I can roll with it. In Yoncy's case, it works fine. She was always a minor, ancillary character who we hardly ever spent time with. Her weird factor was already established, too. So, good job there. But Dalin? Dalin?! I walked hand in hand with Dalin through some of the worst crap I've ever seen in 40K back on Gereon in Armor of Contempt. He makes it through all of that without a scratch. There's never a single solitary hint that he's anything other than a solid, dependable line trooper. Dan pulled this one out of his bum. It doesn't work. Especially since we don't get any setup to it before all the scary stuff starts going down. I was just really baffled by this choice. Felt like it came out of left field, was a decision that didn't have to be made, and ended up falling flat on its face.

 

Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play? It was pretty great.

Isn't it the nature of Chaos, especially Tzeentch, to be unpredictable?

 

Can't fear Chaos or understand why it's more dangerous/insidious than anything else if you don't get surprised out of nowhere

 

 

Not great storytelling but great as a war trope

 

 

Besides, Erebus did something similar during the Heresy

[SkimaskMohawk]

But that was also ridiculed...

[Demigod]

I don't like the fact that the Ghosts in the end again don't get their reward. I mean yes being a Honor Guard regiment is a big thing , but Mkoll killed Sek ,revealed the location of the Chaos command base on Urdesh, rescued a Space Marine and gave him a chance at a honorable death. The Ghosts managed to kill an elite Chaos assault group , save the entire Crusade high command ( x2) , have the trust of a high level Inquisitor and their former commander is now second in command to the warmaster.

 

Their actions don't qualify them for a planet, they have done enough on Urdesh alone to get a system and a prosperous one at that. Instead they are given Honor Guard status which is pretty great for a regiment that is fighting for status but the Ghosts are on the verge of no longer even existing. 

 

Also House Gethenti for a house that just makes bayonets and could barely scrouge up standard IG equipment somehow had access to a virus that could disable all Mechanicum systems and schematics to the their base. That is a bit too much.

[DukeLeto69]

@demigod - fair points but USE SPOILER TAGS!!!!

[Moonreaper666]

I don't like the fact that the Ghosts in the end again don't get their reward. I mean yes being a Honor Guard regiment is a big thing , but Mkoll killed Sek ,revealed the location of the Chaos command base on Urdesh, rescued a Space Marine and gave him a chance at a honorable death. The Ghosts managed to kill an elite Chaos assault group , save the entire Crusade high command ( x2) , have the trust of a high level Inquisitor and their former commander is now second in command to the warmaster.

 

Their actions don't qualify them for a planet, they have done enough on Urdesh alone to get a system and a prosperous one at that. Instead they are given Honor Guard status which is pretty great for a regiment that is fighting for status but the Ghosts are on the verge of no longer even existing.

 

Also House Gethenti for a house that just makes bayonets and could barely scrouge up standard IG equipment somehow had access to a virus that could disable all Mechanicum systems and schematics to the their base. That is a bit too much.

Haven't other Regiments done the same things or better than the Ghosts?

 

(Cadians, Death Korps and Scions do amazing :cuss all the time)

[QuintusSertorius]

It's been literal years since I read the earlier books in the series, and since I'm concentrating on writing, rather than re-reading things, could someone fresher answer this?

 

When/how did Mkvenner and Kolea get injured with the ailments the Saint healed when she manifested in Sanian on Hagia?

[Phoebus]

 

I don't like the fact that the Ghosts in the end again don't get their reward. I mean yes being a Honor Guard regiment is a big thing , but Mkoll killed Sek ,revealed the location of the Chaos command base on Urdesh, rescued a Space Marine and gave him a chance at a honorable death. The Ghosts managed to kill an elite Chaos assault group , save the entire Crusade high command ( x2) , have the trust of a high level Inquisitor and their former commander is now second in command to the warmaster.

Their actions don't qualify them for a planet, they have done enough on Urdesh alone to get a system and a prosperous one at that. Instead they are given Honor Guard status which is pretty great for a regiment that is fighting for status but the Ghosts are on the verge of no longer even existing.

Also House Gethenti for a house that just makes bayonets and could barely scrouge up standard IG equipment somehow had access to a virus that could disable all Mechanicum systems and schematics to the their base. That is a bit too much.

Haven't other Regiments done the same things or better than the Ghosts?

(Cadians, Death Korps and Scions do amazing :cuss all the time)

The context isn’t the same with every regiment.

 

To begin with, not every regiment is promised a world of their own. The Death Korps of Krieg are the utterly brainwashed product of a world dedicated to churning out soldiery like a factory produces tools. Death in battle isn’t just their expected end-state; it’s the fate they themselves desire. Likewise, Cadia is essentially Grimdark Sparta With Guns in Space. Their entire life — everything they’ve known — has hinged around training for war and soldiering. They’re not looking forward to laying down their lasguns for plows. Ditto for the Scions, who are the product of yet another program of total indoctrination.

 

The Tanith, on the other hand, were an isolated, independent-minded people who were conscripted as part of a Tithe demanded of their world. They recognize the existential threat of the Ruinous Powers, and have every reason to want vengeance for the annihilation of their people, but they’re nothing like the units you mentioned. They were promised a world as compensation for losing everything they had ties to. Those ties don’t mean anything to Scions or Krieg troopers. Insofar as lands and such go, Cadians only care about one world and the ground they’ve been told to defend.

 

Even then, that’s assuming the Tanith care about getting a new planet — or are even expecting to get one. Think about everything they’ve seen after 16 years of war (not counting the 10 years they lost during their return from Salvation’s Reach). Think of what their eyes have been opened to. They’ve seen what a razor’s edge the Sabbat Crusade is riding on: the margins that secure heroic victory versus a catastrophic defeat. What world could Gaunt give them where they’d feel safe?

[Sothalor]

It's been literal years since I read the earlier books in the series, and since I'm concentrating on writing, rather than re-reading things, could someone fresher answer this?

When/how did Mkvenner and Kolea get injured with the ailments the Saint healed when she manifested in Sanian on Hagia?

 

Kolea was hurt pulling a wounded Criid from a loxatl firefight at the end of The Guns of Tanith, a major TBI that renders him a mental invalid.

 

Mkvenner gets hurt at the climax of the forest scouting expedition line of Straight Silver, getting his ribs pulped as part of a Blood Pact assault on a little farmhouse the Ghosts are holding until reinforcements arrive.

[Moonreaper666]

 

 

I don't like the fact that the Ghosts in the end again don't get their reward. I mean yes being a Honor Guard regiment is a big thing , but Mkoll killed Sek ,revealed the location of the Chaos command base on Urdesh, rescued a Space Marine and gave him a chance at a honorable death. The Ghosts managed to kill an elite Chaos assault group , save the entire Crusade high command ( x2) , have the trust of a high level Inquisitor and their former commander is now second in command to the warmaster.

Their actions don't qualify them for a planet, they have done enough on Urdesh alone to get a system and a prosperous one at that. Instead they are given Honor Guard status which is pretty great for a regiment that is fighting for status but the Ghosts are on the verge of no longer even existing.

Also House Gethenti for a house that just makes bayonets and could barely scrouge up standard IG equipment somehow had access to a virus that could disable all Mechanicum systems and schematics to the their base. That is a bit too much.

Haven't other Regiments done the same things or better than the Ghosts?

(Cadians, Death Korps and Scions do amazing :cuss all the time)

The context isn’t the same with every regiment.

 

To begin with, not every regiment is promised a world of their own. The Death Korps of Krieg are the utterly brainwashed product of a world dedicated to churning out soldiery like a factory produces tools. Death in battle isn’t just their expected end-state; it’s the fate they themselves desire. Likewise, Cadia is essentially Grimdark Sparta With Guns in Space. Their entire life — everything they’ve known — has hinged around training for war and soldiering. They’re not looking forward to laying down their lasguns for plows. Ditto for the Scions, who are the product of yet another program of total indoctrination.

 

The Tanith, on the other hand, were an isolated, independent-minded people who were conscripted as part of a Tithe demanded of their world. They recognize the existential threat of the Ruinous Powers, and have every reason to want vengeance for the annihilation of their people, but they’re nothing like the units you mentioned. They were promised a world as compensation for losing everything they had ties to. Those ties don’t mean anything to Scions or Krieg troopers. Insofar as lands and such go, Cadians only care about one world and the ground they’ve been told to defend.

 

Even then, that’s assuming the Tanith care about getting a new planet — or are even expecting to get one. Think about everything they’ve seen after 16 years of war (not counting the 10 years they lost during their return from Salvation’s Reach). Think of what their eyes have been opened to. They’ve seen what a razor’s edge the Sabbat Crusade is riding on: the margins that secure heroic victory versus a catastrophic defeat. What world could Gaunt give them where they’d feel safe?

What are the chances the Tanith Regiment even survives the Sabbat Worlds Crusade?

 

(They and Gaunt's descendants don't appear in the 41st or 42nd Millenium)

 

 

It would be VERY Grimdark if the Alpha Legion's massive uprisings before and after the Great Rift recaptured the Sabbat Worlds

[DukeLeto69]

I think THEY WILL ALL DIE by the end...except MKoll...

 

He will be in the pub getting free drinks from people as he recounts his tales!!!!

[Phoebus]

If I had to guess, Mkoll will die right before the happy ending.

 

As an aside, Trazyn the Infinite appears to have had at least a few Tanith snipers trapped in his Tesseract prison — see Gathering Storm I: Fall of Cadia. So technically some of them must have survived at least to 999.M41, only to die fighting Abaddon’s hordes!

[Demigod]

 

I don't like the fact that the Ghosts in the end again don't get their reward. I mean yes being a Honor Guard regiment is a big thing , but Mkoll killed Sek ,revealed the location of the Chaos command base on Urdesh, rescued a Space Marine and gave him a chance at a honorable death. The Ghosts managed to kill an elite Chaos assault group , save the entire Crusade high command ( x2) , have the trust of a high level Inquisitor and their former commander is now second in command to the warmaster.

 

Their actions don't qualify them for a planet, they have done enough on Urdesh alone to get a system and a prosperous one at that. Instead they are given Honor Guard status which is pretty great for a regiment that is fighting for status but the Ghosts are on the verge of no longer even existing.

 

Also House Gethenti for a house that just makes bayonets and could barely scrouge up standard IG equipment somehow had access to a virus that could disable all Mechanicum systems and schematics to the their base. That is a bit too much.

Haven't other Regiments done the same things or better than the Ghosts?

 

(Cadians, Death Korps and Scions do amazing all the time)

 

 

They have but other regiments  are not led by a commander that has already received the landing rights as Gaunt has . Previously Gaunt could not claim his right because he was just a middle tier officer ( with a very large claim )  and the Generals would always claim the Ghosts simply did not do enough in the war so to claim the world. Later on they started being sent on suicide missions so again no opportunity to push the  claim.

 

But at the moment he is the second most powerful man in the Crusade, he has the respect of both the Saint and the local Inquisition and has been promoting officer he likes to the top tier ( Grizman ). There is no reason why he can not push his claim and get the world he was promised for the Ghosts. The Ghosts have every right to claim that they had won Urdesh for the Imperium. They killed Sek, they killed his entire elite unit, provided a location for the Navy to bombard the Chaos high command and foiled every plan of Sek. Urdesh should have been given to to them.  Giving them Honor Guard status is simply just too small of a prize. 

 

Honor Guard is a big thing when you are a regiment from a planet that has a tradition so being given Honor Guard status is acknowledging the planets role in the Imperium. The Tanith are simply being bleed dry,

[Phoebus]

 

 

I don't like the fact that the Ghosts in the end again don't get their reward. I mean yes being a Honor Guard regiment is a big thing , but Mkoll killed Sek ,revealed the location of the Chaos command base on Urdesh, rescued a Space Marine and gave him a chance at a honorable death. The Ghosts managed to kill an elite Chaos assault group , save the entire Crusade high command ( x2) , have the trust of a high level Inquisitor and their former commander is now second in command to the warmaster.

Their actions don't qualify them for a planet, they have done enough on Urdesh alone to get a system and a prosperous one at that. Instead they are given Honor Guard status which is pretty great for a regiment that is fighting for status but the Ghosts are on the verge of no longer even existing.

Also House Gethenti for a house that just makes bayonets and could barely scrouge up standard IG equipment somehow had access to a virus that could disable all Mechanicum systems and schematics to the their base. That is a bit too much.

 

Haven't other Regiments done the same things or better than the Ghosts?

(Cadians, Death Korps and Scions do amazing :cuss all the time)

 

They have but other regiments  are not led by a commander that has already received the landing rights as Gaunt has . Previously Gaunt could not claim his right because he was just a middle tier officer ( with a very large claim )  and the Generals would always claim the Ghosts simply did not do enough in the war so to claim the world. Later on they started being sent on suicide missions so again no opportunity to push the  claim.

 

But at the moment he is the second most powerful man in the Crusade, he has the respect of both the Saint and the local Inquisition and has been promoting officer he likes to the top tier ( Grizman ). There is no reason why he can not push his claim and get the world he was promised for the Ghosts. The Ghosts have every right to claim that they had won Urdesh for the Imperium. They killed Sek, they killed his entire elite unit, provided a location for the Navy to bombard the Chaos high command and foiled every plan of Sek. Urdesh should have been given to to them.  Giving them Honor Guard status is simply just too small of a prize. 

 

Honor Guard is a big thing when you are a regiment from a planet that has a tradition so being given Honor Guard status is acknowledging the planets role in the Imperium. The Tanith are simply being bleed dry,

You can’t give the most important Forge World in the region to a disbanding regiment. It’s politically and militarily unfeasible.

[SkimaskMohawk]

There's also you know, the Urdeshi Regiments themselves... Imagine fighting constantly for the Imperium, having your home taken multiple times, finally reconquered for good, and then being awarded to a different regiment.

[Knockagh]

Took me forever to finish this, life kept getting in the way. Brilliant, most enjoyable GG book for a while. The assassination was a nice touch.

DA handled Gaunts promotion well showing his changing role but keeping him as a soldiers officer.

I never liked the kids, they freaked me out from day one. I’m not sure Abnett had their ending in mind when he created them.

I agree with some comments, it would have been nice to retire the regiment. We could have had an Abnett special about a retirement adventure for the old soldiers some time. A Forge world would be a little too much of a gift but their are more than a few worlds in the Sabat system needing new leaders!

[DukeLeto69]

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2019/04/17/coming-soon-the-sabbat-worlds-crusade/

 

A new updated and expanded hardback edition of the Sabbat Crusade background book by Dan Abnett is coming in December! This is fantastic news for people like me who are lore junkies and GG fans... Whoop whoop!

[Burni]

I only recently sold my copy of the old one (signed by Dan no less). I don't follow the Ghost's novel anymore but my hope for this book is that it sells well enough for them to do more books like it. It's a shame they don't do the in universe reference books anymore - Liber Xenos etc are great. And since the Infantryman's Handbook is coming back this week, there's a possibility we are seeing the start of them doing more.

[Knockagh]

I only recently sold my copy of the old one (signed by Dan no less). I don't follow the Ghost's novel anymore but my hope for this book is that it sells well enough for them to do more books like it. It's a shame they don't do the in universe reference books anymore - Liber Xenos etc are great. And since the Infantryman's Handbook is coming back this week, there's a possibility we are seeing the start of them doing more.

Where did you see the news that the Infantryman's Handbook was coming back out again?

[Viridia]

So I bought the book this morning, about two thirds into it, and all I can say is 'goddamn'. Just...wow.

 

EDIT; Finished it...I'm both elated and absolutely gutted. I thought Only In Death and Salvation's Reach were the bloodbaths of the First and Only, but this was turned up to 11.

[Roomsky]

Anarch

 

I've been chugging through Gaunt's Ghosts for just under a year now, and it's been quite a ride. Despite a disappointing start, to my own tastes the books largely got better and better as they went on. With The Lost a good series became a great one, and with The Victory now finished, it may be BL's best. I'm aware Abnettn has plans for more, but right now this is as good a finale as any. It's climactic, it's heart-breaking, and if future books don't turn out, or never land at all, this would be one of the best conclusions I've ever read in a long-running series.

 

Where to begin? How about that fact that on book 15 of a series that has worked quite hard to make you care for the cast, we get what is basically a horror novel, with named character being (literally) mulched left and right. Certainly, it's been a series about war and deaths were common, but that came with certain expectancies. 1, maybe 2 big name deaths per book, and the non-coms were generally safe. Not here. I've always yearned for a story to spring horror elements on the consumer at the last minute where it's most effective, and damn was it effective. Just the fear in your gut as fan-favourites run from something that may very well be unkillable. Just fantastic.

 

If that doesn't tickle your pickle, how about that Chaos gets another book to be something other than a horde of faceless mooks? We get further insight into their beliefs and culture. We finally get a look at Sek, who is far more the main antagonist of the series than Gaur has managed to be. We get some elites that are actually a threat to our heroes, instead of re-branded fodder whom we are told but not shown are significantly more dangerous than your average frothing cultist. This is all wrapped up in the great mix of blue-and-orange morality combined with acts of unimaginable horror common to all great portrayals of the arch-enemy.

 

How about that in a cast so wide, most everyone gets at least one big moment to shine. Arcs spanning anywhere from 2 to 13 books reach their bloody end, and damn is it all satisfying. No drip-feeds of development here, no single interesting sub plot amidst another adventure of the week. I mentioned this felt like a finale, and you get all that here. No fat, no pointless scenes, it's all in service to wrapping up what's come before. Certainly, things are left open for further adventures, but the sheer amount of character change, and character death, is just so refreshing. Nothing will be the same in-series after this. And again, it could stop here, and be more than enough. Bittersweet in all the best ways.

 

Does it have a few issues? Sure. Dalin's status as a woe machine is low on build-up. Blenner is just sort of there. Mkoll seems to be some kind of superhuman. But god damnit, just look at what else we have! Annoying plot armour and fake-out deaths: gone. Rushed endings: not this time. Character building to violence ratio: perfect. 

 

Is it the best Black Library book I've read? In a vaccuum, maybe not. But in the context of the series at large, it's everything I hoped it would be and more. If this is the end, I don't think we could have asked for a better one.

 

 

TL:DR It was amazing

10/10

[caladancid]

 

 

Anarch

I've been chugging through Gaunt's Ghosts for just under a year now, and it's been quite a ride. Despite a disappointing start, to my own tastes the books largely got better and better as they went on. With The Lost a good series became a great one, and with The Victory now finished, it may be BL's best. I'm aware Abnettn has plans for more, but right now this is as good a finale as any. It's climactic, it's heart-breaking, and if future books don't turn out, or never land at all, this would be one of the best conclusions I've ever read in a long-running series.

 

TL:DR It was amazing

10/10

Truth. This man is on point.

[Fire Golem]

Do you have to read the whole Gaunts Ghosts series from the start to follow the story?

[DukeLeto69]

Do you have to read the whole Gaunts Ghosts series from the start to follow the story?

No but I highly recommend you do