Warhammer 40K Fluff Discussion XV: You Must Be THIS Tall To Witness The Grimdark

[Silverraptor]

Truly, today is the day of many gifts, for another Astartes is up too

Yes, that's what I posted...

[Artanis]

Yes, that's what I posted...

Sorry, I got my tabs mixed up and thought you had posted to a new TTS episode

[JNAProductions]

So, what's the ideas for the next thread title?

[Artanis]

So, what's the ideas for the next thread title?

Warhammer 40K Fluff Discussion XVI: If the Emperor Had An Astartes

[comicshorse]

When I wish upon a Astartes

[The Glyphstone]

Cut out the extra 'a' to make When I Wish Upon Astartes and it's got my vote.

[Silverraptor]

Warhammer 40k Fluff Discussion XVI: Boy! Ears, Cover, Now!

[Platinius]

Warhammer 40k Fluff Discussion XVI: More War! More Hammer! More 40K!

[LeSwordfish]

Cut out the extra 'a' to make When I Wish Upon Astartes and it's got my vote.

I'm not sure why we can't match the quote with When You Wish Upon Astartes but sure, I like this.

[The Glyphstone]

I'm not sure why we can't match the quote with When You Wish Upon Astartes but sure, I like this.

That's an acceptable variant.

[Lord Torath]

I remember reading a bunch of fan-written stories a while back, but I lost the website. Can anyone help me out?

I remember three stories in particular.

One is called "The Intruder" and talks about a red-and-white daemon that invades the Inquisition's northern base on Terra, leaving lumps of anthracite in bedrooms once a year.
Another is called "A Millennium of Pain" and is the story of a Dark Angels dreadnought.
The last one I remember the title of was called "The Prisoner" and was about a criminal being cloned and executed for his crime repeatedly - I think he was sentenced to die like, 33,000 times.
There was another story about Imperial Fists defending a shrine world from Khornate cultists and marines.

There were a bunch of other stories, too.

Thanks in advance!

[hamishspence]

I remember reading a bunch of fan-written stories a while back, but I lost the website. Can anyone help me out?

I remember three stories in particular.

One is called "The Intruder" and talks about a red-and-white daemon that invades the Inquisition's northern base on Terra, leaving lumps of anthracite in bedrooms once a year.

The Night Before 986996.M41, on the Kaptin Gavrin site, is similar, but not identical:

http://www.kaptingavrin.com/humor.html

[The Glyphstone]

Gregor Eisenhorn is getting his own live-action TV show.

Here's hoping it has a better script than Ultramarines.

[lord_khaine]

I have a lot more trust in this.
partly because the Eisenhorn story lends itself a lot better to a serie.
And in part because it seems Dan Abnet is still involved somehow.

All the same i do wonder if they will keep the story quite as tragically dark as the books.
I mean the first did make me feel a little bad for a inquisitor of all people.

[Cheesegear]

All the same i do wonder if they will keep the story quite as tragically dark as the books.

One of the best scenes in the entire series is Fischig kneecapping Eisenhorn, and then Fischig getting killed-and-Daemonhosted for this treachery.
They'd better leave it in.

[Wraith]

I know it's a scene from a 17 year old novel, but I feel that it still warrants a spoiler tag?

I mean, I'm entirely down for seeing that happen, too - in fact I hope they just plan 3 series for Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus in order - but let's not be those guys who spoil it for newcomers?

....That being said... I know for a fact that among my small circle of friends, I'm the only one who has read the books and now I REALLY want to run a game of Dark Heresy, starting off on the hibernating ice world and seeing how far they get....

[LansXero]

I know it's a scene from a 17 year old novel, but I feel that it still warrants a spoiler tag?

I mean, I'm entirely down for seeing that happen, too - in fact I hope they just plan 3 series for Xenos, Malleus and Hereticus in order - but let's not be those guys who spoil it for newcomers?

....That being said... I know for a fact that among my small circle of friends, I'm the only one who has read the books and now I REALLY want to run a game of Dark Heresy, starting off on the hibernating ice world and seeing how far they get....

Spoiler: Bible

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Jesus dies

I just dont get spoiler fear. This is a thread to discuss the surrounding narrative of a fictional universe, There is a TON of stuff I hadnt read before that I got interested into from tidbits here and there; its not like a throwaway line will ruin a whole trilogy, and if it does, that person is really weird.

As for the books themselves, I think the most difficult part will be Becquin. She has to be atractive and push people away at the same time. They may go too waifish on her, too bombshell or too bitch. Hard character to balance.

[Forum Explorer]

As for the books themselves, I think the most difficult part will be Becquin. She has to be atractive and push people away at the same time. They may go too waifish on her, too bombshell or too bitch. Hard character to balance.

Yeah, that one is going to be tricky. Or trying to show how Becquin causes Gregor physical pain without it being flashy at all.

The parade in the third book should be pretty awesome though.

[LeSwordfish]

I cannot wait to see a big-budget version of -

Spoiler

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- Cherubael punching out a warlord titan.

[lord_khaine]

Well.. i kinda see the spoiler idea.
Likely in part because the serie is 17 years? old.
I guess that means there is a respectable chance those under 30, or new to the hobby, hasnt read it.

Spoiler

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One of the best scenes in the entire series is Fischig kneecapping Eisenhorn, and then Fischig getting killed-and-Daemonhosted for this treachery.
They'd better leave it in.

Its stupidly symbolic. Since Fischig were kinda being set up as Eisenhorns concious/moral compass.
To him the whole deal was a last ditch efford to stop Eisonhorn from ending as the corrupted Inquisitor they take out in book 1.
And of course he ends being shot and then used as a host for a demon prince.

I equally well like Aemos burning himself out stopping Cherubal. And dying with his trademark phase on his lips.
Or Maximillian confessing with his dying breath that he lied when he said they didnt mean anything to him.

[Manticoran]

Yeah as someone who has never read this, I don't know who those people are and will forget by the time I watch the show, but am very interested in watching it because I keep hearing good things about the books.

[Wraith]

I just dont get spoiler fear. This is a thread to discuss the surrounding narrative of a fictional universe, There is a TON of stuff I hadnt read before that I got interested into from tidbits here and there; its not like a throwaway line will ruin a whole trilogy, and if it does, that person is really weird.

It's not fear, it's just good manners. Just because you've had things spoiled, doesn't mean everyone else deserves it too.

I also disagree, in the context of Eisenhorn, that one line is not able to spoil the premise.
Consider Eisenhorn in the first chapter when he meets Fischig for the first time; straight-laced, hardline, loyal, Amalathian.

Spoiler

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Then to know that at some point in the series Eisenhorn and he try to murder each other and one of them is using Chaos Sorcery? That's literally the entire character arc of the trilogy, that's what the story is about.

You might as well sit people down to watch The Usual Suspects and tell them who Kaiser Soze is during the opening credits.

[Manticoran]

It's not fear, it's just good manners. Just because you've had things spoiled, doesn't mean everyone else deserves it too.

I also disagree, in the context of Eisenhorn, that one line is not able to spoil the premise.

Spoiler

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Consider Eisenhorn in the first chapter when he meets Fischig for the first time; straight-laced, hardline, loyal, Amalathian. Then to know that at some point in the series Eisenhorn and he try to murder each other and one of them is using Chaos Sorcery? That's literally the entire character arc of the trilogy, that's what the story is about. You might as well sit people down to watch The Usual Suspects and tell them who Kaiser Soze is during the opening credits.

You say, using far more specific wording and telling us what this means in a way that makes it much more likely to be remembered without spoiler text, as you argue for spoiler text.

[Wraith]

Apparently spoiler tags aren't needed in the fluff thread, I'm told.

[LeSwordfish]

Some spoilers are just people being cautious about vague descriptions of entire arcs (harry beats voldemort. eisenhorn goes radical) but some are plot beats that really benefit from surprise - for example, I can't wait to see people's faces in Eisenhorn Series 3, when eisenhorn and his scrappy band of wierdos are ambushed by-

Spoiler

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- a goddamn warlord titan.

[Lord Torath]

Anyone know how big Imperial torpedoes are? I've seen a length of 200 ft (61 m), but nothing on diameter or how much of that size is taken up with fuel vs how much is available for warhead space.

How many troops can fit in a boarding torpedo?

[Drasius]

Anyone know how big Imperial torpedoes are? I've seen a length of 200 ft (61 m), but nothing on diameter or how much of that size is taken up with fuel vs how much is available for warhead space.

How many troops can fit in a boarding torpedo?

IIRC, you ride into the first level in Spacehulk: Deathwing in a boarding torpedo, that's a squad of terminators at least. Most of the other fluff I can recall has either a combat squad of termies or a full squad of power armoured marines, so I'm guessing cargo space is somewhere between a Rhino and a Land Raider, with everything else being engines, armour/shielding and breaching mechanism.

Replace the cargo bay and breaching mechanism with high yield explosive or atomics and you'd have the standard Imperial Navy torpedo, job's a good'un boss.

As for diameter, judging by the fact that it's enough for a terminator to simply walk out without ducking, I'd be guessing at least 10ft (~3.3m) diameter as I struggle to imagine there'd be less than a ft of armour plating on the outer edge, possibly more.

[Wraith]

Anyone know how big Imperial torpedoes are? I've seen a length of 200 ft (61 m), but nothing on diameter or how much of that size is taken up with fuel vs how much is available for warhead space.

It varies - there's a list of different types of torpedo used by the Imperium, and no doubt each type has its own sub-types just as lasguns and boltors do.

Given that warp-capable craft generally start around 1.5km in length with Imperial warships mostly in the 3-8km range, I think that 200m per torpedo feels like a lot? I have nothing with which to back up that statement, save that such ships carry dozens, if not hundreds, of torpedoes, so expecting a Light Cruiser to carry armaments which are 1/15th the length of itself seems a bit weird.

How many troops can fit in a boarding torpedo?

Breachers come in squads of up to 20 Astartes, and the various Horus Heresy novels (particularly the earlier ones) say that there's 1 squad per drop-pod/torpedo/whatever.
That seems like a fairly safe assumption, and also gives us a rough idea of how big such a craft would need to be; Astartes are 7-8 feet tall when standing, plus a couple more feet for armour and shock absorption on either side, fixed in two rows of 10 side-by-side.... a cylinder with a 15 foot diameter by 30-40ft length doesn't seem preposterous.

[The Glyphstone]

So out of curiosity, I went looking for real-world comparisons. A modern Virginia-class submarine has a length of 115m, and a Mk-48 torpedo is 5.8m long. So real-world submarines carry torpedos that are roughly 5% of their hull length, or 1/20. That would equate to a 75m long space torpedo, if we assume a 1.5km hull and linear scaling. Not at all factual or canonical, but as far as napkin math goes it might be useful.

[Tehnar]

I think the link above states that torpedos are up to 200 ft (not meters) so that kind fits with your submarine figures.