Upcoming BL Stuff - 2023

[Sothalor]

Yup - the SMB series gets poo-poo'd often as "oh it's just bolter porn," but I think they go underappreciated for how often they strived to be more - for every Purge of Kadillus we got something like Helsreach or Wrath of Iron.

 

I think many of the authors deserve kudos for how they used the series to explore things like Chapter cultures, Astartes worldviews, intra-Imperial institutional dynamics, and the like. 

[SkimaskMohawk]

5 hours ago, Roomsky said:

Haven't seen them in the usual places: a few more omnibuses seem to be on their way, as per my local book store:

 

Lords of Blood by Guy Haley

"This omnibus by Guy Haley contains the novels Dante, The Devastation of Baal, Darkness in the Blood and Astorath: Angel of Mercy as well as the short story Redeemer."

 

For Honour and Glory

SMC collection, Fist of the Imperium, Apocalypse, and Of Honour and Iron

 

Oh man, I feel bad for those novels with Apocalypse, such a great book.

[Felix Antipodes]

Hmm, still no sign of an update to the BL coming soon webpage.  We will probably get it updated for the March releases on April 1st 

[Felix Antipodes]

Well that was quick…they have just announced the next Dawn of Fire novel on WarCom

 

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2023/03/15/the-faith-of-the-indomitus-crusade-is-tested-in-dawn-of-fire-martyrs-tomb/

 

And for those complaining about it being an old boys club this one is by Marc Collins

 

 

Edited March 15, 2023 by Felix Antipodes
Added images

[Kelborn]

What was that about the growing gap between each DoF release? ;)

 

It's also the third one with BTs being present. While I'm happy to see my boys getting some love, a bit more diversity on that side would be cool.

[Lord Nord in Gravis Armour]

For those who skipped Void King, this is at least a partial followup to that book, being the third appearance of Katla Helvintr. It will probably not pick up on the main plot points other than her specific thread, though.

[Roomsky]

Very stoked to see Collins on the next one - probably my favourite author to tackle an entry so far. I hope it, like the other DoF, leans harder towards the intrigue Collins is so good at.

[theSpirea]

Super happy GW/BL is announcing the next book in the DoF series already. Also glad they are taking on new authors, not everything has to be done by Kyme/Thorpe/Haley/Abnett. Not that happy it's Collins. I will still give him a chance but Void King was probably the biggest disappointment last year for me.

[System Sound]

13 minutes ago, Lord Nord said:

For those who skipped Void King, this is at least a partial followup to that book, being the third appearance of Katla Helvintr. It will probably not pick up on the main plot points other than her specific thread, though.

I wonder how important it will be to read Void King.

 

 

Although I'm not particularly interested in even more Black Templar and Martired Lady. Other chapters and orders exist....

Edited March 15, 2023 by System Sound

[RedFurioso]

7 minutes ago, theSpirea said:

Also glad they are taking on new authors, not everything has to be done by Kyme/Thorpe/Haley/Abnett.

I don't think it would be bad to have Abnett book in your main book series. I am Slaughter was probably the best book of its series.

For me, it's the opposite. To not involve Abnett/French/Wraight is a big mistake.

[Urauloth]

Glad to see a new DoF already, and excited to see what Collins brings to the series. Cautiously optimistic to see some Death Guard in the spotlight (please be good, please be good)

[DarkChaplain]

1 hour ago, System Sound said:

I wonder how important it will be to read Void King.

 

 

Although I'm not particularly interested in even more Black Templar and Martired Lady. Other chapters and orders exist....

 

Considering that we're talking about the Golden Chain / shrineworlds stuff, the Martyred Lady is an obvious choice, and the Black Templars are among the most zealous Chapters out there.

 

But more than that, I think this might be an attempt to link up to the Our Martyred Lady audio drama set, which featured Celestine and Greyfax, and the attempt to repeal the Decree Passive. This is stuff that happened years ago in publication history, but hasn't been picked up on by other publications as far as I'm aware. We also have Greyfax's journey to secure the Eye of Night on Guilliman's orders, which also has not been acknowledged yet. There's a certain distance in the meta-narrative that Dawn of Fire can yet close, and this novel could lead us closer to that end, even if just by putting the Ecclesiarchy and the Martyred Lady back into view.

 

I'm also reasonably sure I've read the name "Gaheris" before in BL works. I just don't know where or when. I might be wrong and conflating it with other media, but I had a weird "oh, him"-moment when I read his name, and can't pinpoint it. He's not in Marc's Helbrecht or Champions, All. Also not in Haley's Crusaders of Dorn / The Eternal Crusader.

 

And considering that Marc Collins is bringing at least one major character from Void King over, the whole "DoF is the spine"-concept I keep drumming on about clicks into place once again.

 

1 hour ago, RedFurioso said:

I don't think it would be bad to have Abnett book in your main book series. I am Slaughter was probably the best book of its series.

For me, it's the opposite. To not involve Abnett/French/Wraight is a big mistake.

 

On the flipside, I Am Slaughter was written years before the series was actually fully planned, or even the author roster laid out. It was written so early, that it's blatantly obvious that it was done to a wholly different brief than the remainder of the series. It set the stage magnificently in many ways, but also fell short on doing anything with it - even the actual threat is not elaborated on much, leaving it for other authors to fill in. It's clear that The Beast Arises isn't at all what I Am Slaughter was really building towards, even before we consider the late rewrites introducing Sisters of Silence and Deathwatch into the plot, to promote the new models (for which they even changed the cover art for some books after the series was already announced and selling digital cover art collections.

On top of that, it was apparently one of the last contributions to BL that Abnett made before dipping out for a couple of years like a few other authors at the time, due to corporate meddling and the increased focus on marketing over creativity.

 

In a sense, it's like one author starting a new idea of his in style, just for that to fall by the wayside, and then other authors being assigned to do something with it and write a series off of it, while the higher ups keep throwing new "you must include this new toy"-stipulations late into the process.... all while the novels were intended for monthly releases, with multiple books being written in parallel with little interaction between their individual authors, other authors then having to fill the gaps without actually having read the bookends they're squeezing between, and so forth.

 

TBA was a mess, and you can't even blame the authors properly, because the entire system it was commissioned and written in was a worse working environment than the Eye of Terror. Abnett might've been the only author in the series to hold creative authority over what he wanted to write - and seeing the concepts he introduced at the time (despite not picking them up at all in his Siege installments) it's clear he had plenty of freedom compared to most of the others writing TBA.

 

But generally, I think keeping Abnett out of Dawn of Fire - which we still don't know is actually a thing that's intended! - is a good thing overall. Abnett has his own stuff to deal with, and we don't need him reinventing the wheel halfway through. His name on the tin would also overshadow authors like Marc at the end of the day, simply because of his enormous reputation and attracting these amounts of praise - which inevitably will have people putting down other entries by comparison, no matter how fair or unfair the judgment actually is. We've seen it on the forum, too.

 

Putting Dan, Chris and John in here would again put too many eggs into one basket, and actually result in something that was being complained about on the DoF-is-bad thread: It'd actually tie up authors in something they might not have much personal interest in and keep them from writing other books they have on their agenda. Dan's got Bequin to finish, Interceptor City, more Ghosts, he has so many things hinted at it's nuts. And then you have John French, who still hasn't finished The Horusian Wars, and Wraight's got Watchers of the Throne still left, and wanted to do a Lords of Silence sequel.

 

Then, Chris is already indirectly involved in DoF by way of his series tying into DoF at certain points/events/reveals. Communication clearly happened between him and Haley to slot things in. And I wouldn't be surprised if Horusian Wars 3 was on hold because of certain events unfolding up until Godblight, and the Siege, which may have big ramifications for the finale. At the end of the day, those authors' works will link up in one fashion or another, and there's simply no need to force them into the "main series".

[theSpirea]

The DoF series is a chance for upcoming writers to shine. Just like French/Wraight did for the HH. They just finished one big series and they have their own stuff to focus on.

 

Abnett is already involved in almost everything and he's pushing his ideas too much into the setting and shrinking the universe. I don't believe he's an author who can join a collaboration like this without changing the main direction. Unlike Wraight who can take pretty much any topic/chapter/theme, honor the existing material, and can still come up with new/interesting things. Let Abnett work on GG and Bequin.

 

Get Harrison, Crowley, Rath, Flowers, Farrer, etc involved. So many WH fans have this stubborn mindset "not Abnett/ADB = don't care".

[System Sound]

3 hours ago, DarkChaplain said:

But more than that, I think this might be an attempt to link up to the Our Martyred Lady audio drama set, which featured Celestine and Greyfax, and the attempt to repeal the Decree Passive. This is stuff that happened years ago in publication history, but hasn't been picked up on by other publications as far as I'm aware. We also have Greyfax's journey to secure the Eye of Night on Guilliman's orders, which also has not been acknowledged yet. There's a certain distance in the meta-narrative that Dawn of Fire can yet close, and this novel could lead us closer to that end, even if just by putting the Ecclesiarchy and the Martyred Lady back into view.

I honestly would love it if this book would tie into Our Martyred Lady, Hand of Darkness and Eye of NIght. It would go a long way in my opinion to make the setting just a bit more connected, instead of being just a bunch of unrelated stories.

 

3 hours ago, DarkChaplain said:

I'm also reasonably sure I've read the name "Gaheris" before in BL works. I just don't know where or when. I might be wrong and conflating it with other media, but I had a weird "oh, him"-moment when I read his name, and can't pinpoint it. He's not in Marc's Helbrecht or Champions, All. Also not in Haley's Crusaders of Dorn / The Eternal Crusader.

I checked all my ebooks (that's most BL stuff available in ebook format). Gaheris comes up 12 times, but only in one book. Astorath: Angel of Mercy, by none other than Guy Haley. I haven't read it my self, but is there any chance that it also ties back to Dante/Mephiston stuff?

[Lord Nord in Gravis Armour]

1 hour ago, System Sound said:

I honestly would love it if this book would tie into Our Martyred Lady, Hand of Darkness and Eye of NIght. It would go a long way in my opinion to make the setting just a bit more connected, instead of being just a bunch of unrelated stories.

 

I checked all my ebooks (that's most BL stuff available in ebook format). Gaheris comes up 12 times, but only in one book. Astorath: Angel of Mercy, by none other than Guy Haley. I haven't read it my self, but is there any chance that it also ties back to Dante/Mephiston stuff?

 

That Gaheris was a member of the Red Wings chapter. Probably a different character than the Black Templar in this book.

 

I wouldn't hold my breath on Our Martyred Lady being retconned all the way back to the first decade post-Rift. It COULD happen, but it really shouldn't. The Ecclesiarch in that story had clearly been in position for a while and it was a completely different character from the one just installed by Guilliman in The Regent's Shadow. Maybe if it turns out that she died almost immediately and Guilliman was way too distracted to properly vet her replacement.

 

But this is Black Library. They probably WILL do just that.

[Tolmeus]

8 hours ago, System Sound said:

I haven't read it my self, but is there any chance that it also ties back to Dante/Mephiston stuff?

 

If my memory serves me right, it is a rather singular story about Astorath and how the Red Thirst and Black Rage might/ might not affect the new Primaris Marines. 

[Nagashsnee]

With primaris Dante leaked what are the chances we get  a Haley novel around it? Or do we think they will leave it for whenever they move DOF over the rift?

[DukeLeto69]

As a big fan of virtually everything Abnett has written for BL (except TUE) I wholeheartedly DO NOT want him involved in the DoF series.

 

Agree with reasons put forward by @DarkChaplain and @theSpirea and also that BL need to nurture the newer and lesser known authors. Let the big hitters do THEIR thing now (with SoT almost over).

 

I want original series and one-offs by Abnett, ADB, Wraight, French. Work that allows them a bit more leash to flex their creative chops.

 

Glad to see Marc Collins getting a crack at DoF. One of the leading lights of the next gen authors.

[Felix Antipodes]

5 hours ago, Nagashsnee said:

With primaris Dante leaked what are the chances we get  a Haley novel around it? Or do we think they will leave it for whenever they move DOF over the rift?

Technically the Indomitus Crusade has already crossed the Rift.  A Battlefleet crossed over in the Arks of Omen: Angron book and set up a HQ bastion there.  Didn’t go well for them once Angry Ron arrived.  Will be interesting to see if their fate is even commented on in future books since it's a significant loss for the Crusade.

[Felix Antipodes]

4 hours ago, DukeLeto69 said:

As a big fan of virtually everything Abnett has written for BL (except TUE) I wholeheartedly DO NOT want him involved in the DoF series.

 

Agree with reasons put forward by @DarkChaplain and @theSpirea and also that BL need to nurture the newer and lesser known authors. Let the big hitters do THEIR thing now (with SoT almost over).

 

I want original series and one-offs by Abnett, ADB, Wraight, French. Work that allows them a bit more leash to flex their creative chops.

 

Glad to see Marc Collins getting a crack at DoF. One of the leading lights of the next gen authors.

Frankly, I don't see a need for any of the forum’s “Big Four” favourites to write any of the last four books in the series.  They have been tied up with the SoT wrap up for awhile now and have other series of their own to finish up, which is what they are most likely doing as we speak.

Plenty of other talent to pick up the DoF slack and run with it.

[byrd9999]

With the announcement of Dante crossing the Rubicon, I hope we get another book from Guy Haley to tie in. I really enjoyed Dante and Devastation of Baal.

[System Sound]

46 minutes ago, byrd9999 said:

With the announcement of Dante crossing the Rubicon, I hope we get another book from Guy Haley to tie in. I really enjoyed Dante and Devastation of Baal.

I wonder how they gonna explain that he did cross it. Because in darkness of the blood he was rather against it.

[Lord Nord in Gravis Armour]

18 minutes ago, System Sound said:

I wonder how they gonna explain that he did cross it. Because in darkness of the blood he was rather against it.

 

They'll probably either pull another "He's wounded so bad that the Rubicon is his only chance of surviving" or just let him receive another vision from Sangy telling him to have faith and take the leap.

[DarkChaplain]

20 minutes ago, Lord Nord said:

 

They'll probably either pull another "He's wounded so bad that the Rubicon is his only chance of surviving" or just let him receive another vision from Sangy telling him to have faith and take the leap.

 

Considering how the announcement video looks, it's happening at his point of failure, when he fears he is dooming the Imperium by losing Nihilus. He's lying broken in the video, before being restored as Primaris. So yeah, he'll have to choose to get back up and try crossing the Rubicon Primaris to not plunge Imperium Nihilus into darkness.

It's not his own life that he's risking it for, but the repercussions that his death would bring.

 

In Darkness in the Blood, that point hasn't arrived yet, obviously. He's still doing okay leading in there.

 

Considering that the omnibus with Dante, Devastation of Baal, Darkness in the Blood and Astorath is coming soon, I wouldn't be surprised if Haley had a new novel lined up for later this year - BL has recently announced the next Minka Lesk novel right alongside the omnibus of the previous ones and a miniature, too. Haley's output isn't anywhere near what it was a few years back, in part due to his work on Dawn of Fire, so I think it'd be feasible for him to have written another Dante novel in secret.

 

  

2 hours ago, Felix Antipodes said:

Technically the Indomitus Crusade has already crossed the Rift.  A Battlefleet crossed over in the Arks of Omen: Angron book and set up a HQ bastion there.  Didn’t go well for them once Angry Ron arrived.  Will be interesting to see if their fate is even commented on in future books since it's a significant loss for the Crusade.

 

Well, the Indomitus Crusade doesn't end with Dawn of Fire. Guilliman himself takes the Indomitus Crusade into Nihilus after Dark Imperium, leading into The Devastation of Baal. The whole timeline retcon of Dark Imperium puts the Triumph at Raukos as a significant milestone for the securing of Imperium Sanctus, which the Dawn of Fire era focuses on, rather than the end of the crusade. It's nowhere near over yet.

 

Right now in DoF's first 10 years, there's no clear route to cross with fleets. Guilliman sent Fabian Guelphrain with a rogue trader to see if they can make it through and deliver a message to Dante (which we know will fail, as Baal is cut off), but there are no major organized fleet pushes across the Rift just yet (and Vigilus is still contested, with Fabian set to link up with Calgar before making the attempt to cross, and Marneus ain't Primaris'd yet).

 

I haven't read the Arks of Omen supplements, but it seems more likely that it's talking about post-Dark Imperium, where the studio timeline currently is anyway.

Edited March 16, 2023 by DarkChaplain

[skylerboodie]

Can we use spoiler tags for plot points for books when posting in the general upcoming BL stuff thread please?

I avoid the specific book threads until read them, but wouldn't expect spoilers / synopses in here, thanks.