Rynn's world.

[NemesorSobekta]

Well, we knew what happened to rynn's world and the imperial fists since the first edition. I think that Pedro Cantor and thrugg bullneck were like the first started characters in the game.

 

We finally get the the details. The novel is not a bad 40k novel, it is kinda cookie cutter, few surprises, no real shocks.

 

I was disappointed to see that thrugg played no part nor was he mentioned tho. A nod to tge original 40k scenario with thrugg retrieving some loot he'd hidden miggt have been nice.

[lansalt]

It's a shame that they retconned the original Battle at the Farm scenario and what happened with the surrounded beakies in the original Rogue Trader cover. Another missed opportunity by GW/BL.

In fact, along the Legacy of Dorn characters, I've found that BL stories about the Crimson Fists are shallow and by the numbers compared to the better SM novels. They could have included a conspiracy subplot about what caused the infamous missile incident or something.

[NemesorSobekta]

Yes, it was a standard fare novel, not bad, not memorable.

[DarkChaplain]

We finally get the the details.

 

This line made me chuckle. "Finally" in this instance was in Jan/Feb 2010 :') It's book one of the Space Marine Battles series, after all. It was also collected along with Traitor's Gorge and the shorts in 2014, as a hardback, during the SMB novel + new novella trend. Even Legacy of Dorn is closing in on its fourth year.

 

Curiously, Rynn's World never received an audiobook, while other (and often lesser) SMB books of the later series did. Traitor's Gorge, the novella, got one, but not the main novel. Stupid, BL, stupid.

[NemesorSobekta]

Well, chuckles, the first mention of rynn's world was in 1987 so even if this was written in 2010 it was still 23 years after we first heard what happened these.

[Pacific81]

A while ago since I read it, but I didn't think it was a bad book. Certainly well enough written, some good action sequences etc. 

 

My main problem with it (and I think this is a problem with me, rather than the book perhaps!) is that it perfectly exemplifies the change that has happened within the 40k universe setting over the past 20 years. Namely, at one time that cover of the Rogue Trader book (which is an illustration of the Crimson Fists) symbolised everything about that universe - it was showing us the death of heroes. No-one is coming to save them, they are fighting and dying in a thankless universe. And that was what in some ways made it special, and heroic, because despite this they are still fighting on. 

And then you've got the cruel satire - it turns out it was their own missiles that have misfired, and then land on their own fortress monastery, wiping out the chapter. 

 

Contrast it with the re-master cover (used on the Space Marine codex) released many years later; the looks of pain and desperation on those few marine faces you can see are replaced by looks of anger, fortitude, of heroism. These are no longer marines falling and dying amidst mud and dirt, they are stood face on with the enemy, facing them, and glorious in their aspect. 

 

Anyone, apologies for that I digress! The point I am trying to make is the story of the Crimson Fists, and that iconic cover, was once the story of 40k. Of mankinds fall into darkness. And this book, along with all of the other ways that 40k has changed, paints the Crimson Fists as pretty much victors in the conflict. So I disliked the book because of that - it reminded me of how the game universe has changed from its original format. Lots of people will like that new universe, but I definitely feel its lost something that made it unique before (but again, like I say that might just be on me). 

 

Also the cool, characterful stuff. You mentioned Thrugg the Ogrynn. Why would you have a story and not include something like that? It was a fun idea, and sometimes BL forgets that you need bits like that in amongst all of the horror for some light relief, and to help better illustrate the darkness. 

[DarkChaplain]

Wait, which cover exactly are we talking about in this instance? Rynn's World had many; it originally released with art by Jon Sullivan, who did the original run of SMB, before they went weird with it.

https://www.artstation.com/artwork/eJa1Xb

 

I don't think that one looks triumphant; it's a desperate last stand waged against uncountable orks. They're on their last legs, willing to sell their lives for as high a price as they can manage, but clearly damned. Of course, this might be clearer on the full art than the front cover, considering how Sullivan approached his art for the series; they're all much wider, designed to run around to the back... and BL has of course planted barcode and co onto that, which covers up detail unnecessarily. Later artwork from other artists ended up mostly recycled stuff from other publications, and was merely cropped, rather than crafted specifically for the series' signature style of being mostly white with an art strip at the bottom.

 

Then, I would agree that The War for Rynn's World, which collects the novel plus Traitor's Gorge lost a lot with its artwork (it follows the post-Sullivan pattern there), and the new omnibus is just not even in the same ballpark anymore.

 

To me, Jon Sullivan's art was one of the main appeals of the Space Marine Battles series originally. Few artists BL hired over the years have gotten the grit and horror of the setting down as well as him. It'll never not be a mark of shame that they stopped working with him. Heck, even the dismissed / wip artworks of his are insane, like The Gildar Rift's draft from 2010 - compare that to the upcoming Huron Blackheart novel, which isn't bad by any means, but certainly not of the same level. The version of The Gildar Rift that made it to publishing is this one. Meanwhile, this wasn't the last Huron novel in SMB! Tyrant of the Hollow Worlds followed years later - with a rather disappointing cover that illustrates the change in tone for the series rather well...

 

That is to say, I certainly agree that there has been a tonal shift especially over the last ten years, with artwork becoming more clean and sterile, rather than maintaining its hardcore look. Omnibus covers in particular have been often terribly bland the past couple of years, and Rynn's World is no exception there.

[Tyriks]

Wait, which cover exactly are we talking about in this instance? Rynn's World had many; it originally released with art by Jon Sullivan, who did the original run of SMB, before they went weird with it.

https://www.artstation.com/artwork/eJa1Xb

 

I don't think that one looks triumphant; it's a desperate last stand waged against uncountable orks. They're on their last legs, willing to sell their lives for as high a price as they can manage, but clearly damned. Of course, this might be clearer on the full art than the front cover, considering how Sullivan approached his art for the series; they're all much wider, designed to run around to the back... and BL has of course planted barcode and co onto that, which covers up detail unnecessarily. Later artwork from other artists ended up mostly recycled stuff from other publications, and was merely cropped, rather than crafted specifically for the series' signature style of being mostly white with an art strip at the bottom.

 

Then, I would agree that The War for Rynn's World, which collects the novel plus Traitor's Gorge lost a lot with its artwork (it follows the post-Sullivan pattern there), and the new omnibus is just not even in the same ballpark anymore.

 

To me, Jon Sullivan's art was one of the main appeals of the Space Marine Battles series originally. Few artists BL hired over the years have gotten the grit and horror of the setting down as well as him. It'll never not be a mark of shame that they stopped working with him. Heck, even the dismissed / wip artworks of his are insane, like The Gildar Rift's draft from 2010 - compare that to the upcoming Huron Blackheart novel, which isn't bad by any means, but certainly not of the same level. The version of The Gildar Rift that made it to publishing is this one. Meanwhile, this wasn't the last Huron novel in SMB! Tyrant of the Hollow Worlds followed years later - with a rather disappointing cover that illustrates the change in tone for the series rather well...

 

That is to say, I certainly agree that there has been a tonal shift especially over the last ten years, with artwork becoming more clean and sterile, rather than maintaining its hardcore look. Omnibus covers in particular have been often terribly bland the past couple of years, and Rynn's World is no exception there.

I didn't know the name Jon Sullivan before reading your post, but looking at his art I think he did all of my favorite BL covers. I get why something a bit clearer visually can be appealing to new people, which might be why they changed, but I do really prefer his style.

[Pacific81]

Ah sorry DarkChaplain, reading my post again it has confused even me so not sure how I expected anyone else to understand it! 

 

I was going off on a tangent and comparing the old 40k Rogue Trader cover to the more recently released rendition. I thought the story in this book (rather than the actual art on the book itself - I agree with you it does capture the spirit of a desperate last stand very well) was a perfect example of how the portrayal of the fall of the Crimson Fists, which is the iconic moment in 40k lore and sets the scene for the entire fantasy universe, has changed over the years. 

 

(In a confusing manner, I was referring to these two pieces of art, and the tonal shift between them)

http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120416204535/warhammer40k/images/thumb/e/e0/RT-Crimson_Fists_Chapter_Last_Stand.jpg/734px-RT-Crimson_Fists_Chapter_Last_Stand.jpg

 

https://d1w82usnq70pt2.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/Crimson_Fists_Last_Stand.jpg

 

On a separate point I do like the Jon Sullivan art. Is that the same chap that has done art for 2000AD (most notably some of the Slaine comics?) It looks quite similar, but as its a digital art I'm not completely sure. 

[Cactus]

I read a lot of 2000ad and don't recognise Sullivan's name from Slaine. Are you thinking of Clint Langley who *rowing desperately back to a BL topic* also did the cover of the Eisenhorn omnibus?

[Pacific81]

Thanks Cactus - yes I've looked it up and it was indeed Clint Langley. It looked to me like a very similar art style.