Wednesday 8 July 2015





Post 1

Although I’ve known about the Heresy since I was a child it has all bee a little surreal watching Forge & Black Library World bring it to life. I’m obsessed with the Forge World books in particular. Delving into the minutiae of how the Imperial war machine fights, fleet disposition, the character of the Legions and how they go about prosecuting their expeditions has been refreshing break from the mysticism of the 41st millennium.

With Heresy events across the country springing up I’d like to to participate beyond hosting painting workshops for people. I need a force but one that will hold my imagination - this is an expensive endeavour, I don’t want to find a month down the line that I want to switch legion.
Which Legion?

I struck off any legions that overly make use of artillery or siege tactics. I have a romantic dint in me that stems from a Homeric understanding of war. Battle boiling down to individuals, wars being won on the edge of a single champion’s blade stroke. With the swelling crush of Trillions of fighting men in the Heresy this may be a naive view, but it is one shared by a few within the legions.

I needed a legion to engage with, something that sets off the nostalgic tuning fork in my gut.

1st Dark Angels. Although I own a 3rd edition Deathwing Force the whole monastic imagery never quite hit true. Although after reading the 4th Forge Word book; Conquest I had a serious wabble. Alan Bligh mentioned in the Alpha Legion section that the Dark Angels designation is the Angelis Tenebrarium - the Void Angels. But the Latin has overtones of the religious void, a place between creation, heaven and Hell. This makes them a thousand times cooler.

Emperor’s Children. Pre-Heresy Emperor’s Children are appealing. The devotion to perfection and the beauty of the models make for a satisfying collection. I’d struggle the farther into the Heresy as they turn from perfection to perversion.

White Scars. collecting and painting an all jet bike force would be a truly unique Heresy expereince, one that could not be duplicated in the 41st millenium. But I'm not inspired by the jetbike that forge world have produced. 

Considering this sharpened my views on what I want from this project. I want a time specific, themed force that could only function in the Heresy. I don’t want a collection that could be broken down and used as a regular 40K army. If the Jetbike resembled Sammael’s I would have plunged into the lighting warriors of the 5th.

World Eaters and Word Bearers - Betrayer may be my favourite book. Not just of the heresy, but of the entire literary cannon (I have a first English degrees I inonenhoe bold of a statement this is). Aaron Debski Bowden wrought a masterpiece from a base IP that can be little more than visceral action adventure. Angron, an embodiment to destruction, transcends what could so easily be a one dimensional lunatic, into a being of genuine pathos. I could fill this entire discussion with character analysis but it will suffice to say here that I’m hard for Angron. If the World Eaters did not have that horrid white and blue colour scheme then I would hammer the butcher’s nails into my brain right now.

Again, the Word Bearers hold a direct interest from the book Betrayer, and again they transcend the usual moustache twirling most 17th Legion characters suffer from. I understand their point of view. I empathise with them bearing the knowledge that there are gods in the univere and have an influence in the physical universe like gravity or time. Ritual and sacrifice are important, even though they are hellish in form. They did not want the underlying truth of the universe to be so, but they will not look away. I’ve completed several tester pieces for the force as well as fluff pieces written. 

Until the red thirst took me…




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