Horus Heresy series analysis thread

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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Imperial Overlord »

The Grim Squeaker wrote:In all fairness, even Adrian-Dembsky Bowden has...Difficulty explaining the Emperor's behavior with Angron. (Angron's own warriors point out that for any other Primarch, the Emperor would have wiped out the attacking army. On the other hand, most of the Emperor's other children didn't need help, though exceptions exist. Mortarion would have chocked to death without the Emperor's help, and I think the Salamander Primarch almost fell of a cliff into a volcano while competing with him in feats of strength?)
The Emperor didn't seem to know what to do with Angron. Angron was broken and the world surrendered to the Imperium so in theory the fighting should be over, but there was no way Angron and his rebels were going to go for that. So the Emperor takes Angron and lets the locals takes out the rebels, which of course makes Angron furious. The Emperor probably left Angron with his legion so they could bond and with Angron bonding with his genetic sons who are loyal to the Emperor and thus get past the whole incident in time.

This didn't work.
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by The Grim Squeaker »

Imperial Overlord wrote:
The Emperor didn't seem to know what to do with Angron. .
"The only Primarch who Failed to conquer his world". Heh. (And To think Lorgar was selfcentered enough to call himself "The only failed Legion/Primarch":D).
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Given all the recent stuff pertaining to Angron and the Emepror (bearing in mind I haven't paid attention to any of the Angron stuff ADB wrote - Tome of Blood and Betrayal are mainly what I go by) its quite evident that whatever his intention, Big E really screwed things up with Angron. Not exactly a first for him when it comes to the various Primarchs, which actually makes you wonder if the Emperor's foresight is less reliable when it comes ot them (can he just not 'read' them, does he choose not to, etc. I remember that the Sensei back in Realms of Chaos days had Primarch like elements, and the Sensei themselves were supposedly immune ot the Emperor's awareness..) or if this was some of his own blind spots fucking things up (like it did with Lorgar in 'First Heretic' - after reading 'The Last Church' you can quite easily read the Emperor's pathological hatred of religion in his reaction at the start of the book.) That said, there's always that 'point of view' aspect to alot of the Heresy stuff too... (EG Outcast Dead and the Thunder Warriors...)
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Black Admiral »

Connor MacLeod wrote:(like it did with Lorgar in 'First Heretic' - after reading 'The Last Church' you can quite easily read the Emperor's pathological hatred of religion in his reaction at the start of the book.)
Lorgar's acting like a complete moron (thanks to his obsession with the outward forms of religion) didn't exactly help that. You would think that if he was really serious about worshipping the Emperor, Lorgar might be concerned about what the Emperor actually wants him to do - which he's manifestly not.
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Zinegata »

In Pariah Abnett all but confirms that Franc is in fact France.

There's a French word in the novel which was supposedly a word in "Old Franc"; which also implies French survived in some form to at least M30.
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Cykeisme »

Black Admiral wrote: You would think that if he was really serious about worshipping the Emperor, Lorgar might be concerned about what the Emperor actually wants him to do - which he's manifestly not.
This is the best argument against criticism toward the harshness of the Emperor's castigation of Lorgar. Sure, the Emperor might have been rather heavy-handed in reprimanding the Word Bearers, but the question remains: if Lorgar worshiped the Emperor (who clearly told him to stop the silly church building and cult forming), wtf was Lorgar doing?
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Cykeisme »

Imperial Overlord wrote:
The Grim Squeaker wrote:In all fairness, even Adrian-Dembsky Bowden has...Difficulty explaining the Emperor's behavior with Angron. (Angron's own warriors point out that for any other Primarch, the Emperor would have wiped out the attacking army. On the other hand, most of the Emperor's other children didn't need help, though exceptions exist. Mortarion would have chocked to death without the Emperor's help, and I think the Salamander Primarch almost fell of a cliff into a volcano while competing with him in feats of strength?)
The Emperor didn't seem to know what to do with Angron. Angron was broken and the world surrendered to the Imperium so in theory the fighting should be over, but there was no way Angron and his rebels were going to go for that. So the Emperor takes Angron and lets the locals takes out the rebels, which of course makes Angron furious. The Emperor probably left Angron with his legion so they could bond and with Angron bonding with his genetic sons who are loyal to the Emperor and thus get past the whole incident in time.

This didn't work.
It's not really the same with Mortarion and Vulkan. Mortarion had defeated all the other evil necromancer-warlords on his world, to the point where only his foster father remained, unassailable in his toxic mountaintop fortress but also contained and helpless there. Vulkan had both personally beaten the ever-living shit out of Dark Eldar raiders and organized the Nocturnians to defend themselves adequately.

I'd never thought about it before, but Angron is indeed the only Primarch who failed to end oppression, overthrow tyranny, to bring deliverance the people of his homeworld.
It's still shocking that the Emperor didn't rescue the rest of Angron's cornered rebel army, either by evacuating them or simply driving off the local ruling regime's army with a simple fuck-off orbital bombardment (either a warning shot or actually obliterating them).
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Imperial Overlord »

It's not directly stated, but I'm pretty sure that Angron signed his army's death warrant by how he talked with the Emperor. If the planet has surrendered, there's no need of the rebel army and since Angron's revolution had failed Angron controls nothing there and is widely hated. It looks to me as if the Emperor thought the best thing would be to get Angron the fuck away from the planet and his blood crazed fellow revolutionaries and give him no reason to ever come back. Sure Angron's going to be pissed about it, but he's already fucking crazy. Let the bonds of blood between him and the Warhounds and the Angron and the Emperor get him to come around in some place far, far away.

Except, of course, the wound never healed. But I can understand the impulse to get the toxic sinkhole of fail out of the equation.
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Ahriman238 »

Cykesime wrote:I'd never thought about it before, but Angron is indeed the only Primarch who failed to end oppression, overthrow tyranny, to bring deliverance the people of his homeworld.
It's still shocking that the Emperor didn't rescue the rest of Angron's cornered rebel army, either by evacuating them or simply driving off the local ruling regime's army with a simple fuck-off orbital bombardment (either a warning shot or actually obliterating them).
Maybe the not only one. Lorgar wound up starting a vicious religious war, and he's sort of vindicated by the evidence from the First Heretic that the Colchisian Elders were probably Chaos worshippers, except for everything Lorgar does post-Monarchia.

Do we know much about Perturabo? I seem to remember it as: he came to Olympus and was adopted by a man of wealth and power. Then one day the Emperor came. Similarly, the surface of Prospero was still infested with monsters and the people huddling in the one shielded city, despite the best efforts of Magnus the Red.
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

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We don't find out much about Perturabo's past so far, even Angel Exterminatus doesn't include much specifically relating to Olympia and his time there that I can recall. Not that I'm adverse to a reread though, since it's a decent book (also, I'm really getting the impression that Graham McNeill's a Raven Guard fan, because every time he writes one or more of the sons of Corax, he writes them as eleven different kinds of awesome).
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Cykeisme »

Well, even if Lorgar's pre-discovery actions were questionable (starting a religious war), even if the Colchisian religion was indeed Chaos, he did win and become boss of his world.

Even if they didn't completely get rid of it, the psychneuein problem on Prospero was kept out of their cities and pushed back into the wilderness even before Magnus landed there, so it's hardly like the situation was out of hand.

Contrast this with the case in point: the Emperor was afraid that Angron, a Primarch, would be killed by the armies of his planet's oppressors.
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Imperial Overlord »

Ahriman238 wrote: Similarly, the surface of Prospero was still infested with monsters and the people huddling in the one shielded city, despite the best efforts of Magnus the Red.
What do you expect Magnus to do, create new cities out of thin air in one human generation? The surrounding area was pacified and the city was a glorious utopia. He didn't have the population base to wage a world wide war against monsters or the need to do it. Magnus was also honing his formidable psychic abilities and was in frequent conversation with the Emperor. What else was he supposed to do?
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Vaporous »

Cykeisme wrote:Well, even if Lorgar's pre-discovery actions were questionable (starting a religious war), even if the Colchisian religion was indeed Chaos, he did win and become boss of his world.
It's also baffling how the Emperor didn't realize how big a problem this might pose later on. It's suggested in Angel Exterminatus that the Emperor tested and delved into the minds of each of the primarchs in a tower on Terra, so how he missed "Lorgar has been touched by the Chaos Gods and is predisposed to need to worship something" is something I don't quite grasp. Also his two closest advisers are Chaos Cultists. Maybe overlooking the little people is part of being a semi-divine ego-maniac, and maybe they hid their thoughts with warp-sorcery, but isn't that sort of thing you should check up on before you give your post-human galactic conquering clone-child a hundred thousand other post-human galaxy conquerors and send him out into the void? Because then you don't have to come clean up his mess in the most hamfisted and brutal way possible a hundred years later, setting the stage for your own destruction.
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Next up for HH: Fallen Angels. Two part update all at once. I want to pick up the pace again and try to catch up with the series.

Fallen Angels is sort of a sequel to 'descent of Angels' in one sense, in that it deals with the aftermath of Luther being exiled to Caliban, and the beginnings of the Fallen. WE also see the Lion in action in the midst of the Heresy, and him generally acting like a dick. It also, I believe, sets the stage for events to follow in the upcoming Anthologies (meeting Curze, heading to Ultramar, his growing Paranoia WRT Guilliman, etc.) which plays on earlier stuff introduced long ago in 'Angels of Darkness' Its an okay book, not great, not bad. not quite teh filler that Battle for the Abyss was, but its nothing like Prospero Burns or A Thousand Sons either.


Part one of two:


Page 13
Though he had been given many of the same physical augmentations as Zahariel and the rest, Luther had been too old to receive the gene-seed as they had.
So he was artificially enhanced. I believe Kor Phareon was a similar exmaple too.. so this wasn't the only Legion to have guys who did that.


Page 18
The Emperor’s servants had descended on the planet with enormous machines that cleared dozens of kilometres of forest a day and left flat, lifeless earth in their wake. Mines, refineries and manufactorums had followed, ready to transform the planet’s abundant resources into vital war materiel for the Emperor’s Crusade.
The civilizing influence of the Imperium, industrializing Caliban.


Page 19
They marched through the rain and the wind for ten kilometres, passing through curtain walls made from permacrete and studded with defensive shield projectors and automated weapon emplacements.
walls with defensive shields and automated weapons.


Page 19-20
Yet Aldurukh rose above all else, a bastion of strength and tradition surrounded by a sea of constant change. Its granite flanks had been scraped bare by Imperial construction machines; even now, titanic excavators scaled its sheer sides, carving out ledges and boring tunnels deep into the rock as the fortress continued to expand into the heart of the mountain itself. Zahariel had heard of plans to one day create a series of gates at the foot of the mountain that would provide access to the fortress’s subterranean levels as well as lifts that would carry passengers up into the centre of the fortress within seconds.
Imperial technology in action, again.


Page 22
By all accounts, the current Cypher was more of a reclusive, scholarly figure than previous bearers of the title, spending long hours poring through the libraries and record vaults hidden within the castle – though the paired pistols at his belt hinted that he was as capable a fighter as anyone else in the brotherhood.
A dead indicator that the 'current' Lord Cypher becomes the Cypher we know and love, protected by an unkonwn Warp PAtron in modern 40K.


Page 23
Strangely, he had also refused even the basic physical augmentation and rejuvenation that men such as Luther had received.
Luther got rejuv and physical augmentation.


Page 31
Nemiel listened idly to the vox chatter over the fleet command net and turned his attention to the constellation of warships and transports that surrounded the primarch’s battle barge. He could remember a time, fifty years past, when the 4th Expeditionary Fleet numbered no more than seven vessels; at Gordia IV the flagship was accompanied by twenty-five ships of various types, and that was barely a third of the fleet’s total complement. The remainder were organised into discrete battle groups that were in action across the length and breadth of the Shield Worlds, fighting the Gordian League and their degenerate xenos allies.

The warships anchored around the flagship constituted the fleet’s reserve squadrons, plus vessels damaged in recent actions against the League’s small but powerful space navy. Tenders were pulled alongside the grand cruisers Iron Duke and Duchess Arbellatris while repairs were underway on their battle-scarred flanks. Plasma torches twinkled coldly in the dark as hundreds of servitors repaired damaged hull plating and wrecked weapons emplacements. After several minutes of idle study, Nemiel noticed frantic activity around a dozen other warships as well.
50 years have passed since "Descent of Angels" 4th Expeditionary fleet has enlarged from 7 vessels to over 75-80 or so ships. Composition includes grand cruisers and at least a dozen other warships. Assuming 75 ships as "standarD" for a Crusade Primary fleet - I highly doubt this is a secondary deployment group anymore - we're talking close to 350,000 warships. For shits and giggles, if it WAS still a secondary deployment group, we're talking 4.5 million ships total. But I doubt that, as it is consistent with the size of other primary fleets lead by primarchs, and it is acting as a primary expedition fleet. Anyhow, at least 50-70% of those ships will be warships, the rest military transports. With 400,000+ Secondary deployment group warships we have between 750-800 thousand ships in the fleets, plus however many are detached for garrison duty (hundreds of thousands, if not millions more.) And all the transports, support and supply fleetss and other elements maintaining the military machine/


Page 34
The crozius aquilum marked him as one of the Legion’s select order of Chaplains, charged with maintaining the fighting spirit of their battle brothers and preserving the ancient traditions of their brotherhood.
Crozius Aquilum rather than arcanum. Chaplains as a result of the Chaplain edict. Rather like how they chose such a blatantly religious-sounding name for them too.


Page 39
"They have virus-bombed Isstvan III, the most heavily-populated world in the system, and have rendered it lifeless. An estimated twelve billion human lives have been lost."
..
A detailed, three-dimensional map of the Eriden sector flickered into existence before the assembly. Imperial systems were displayed in bright blue, while at their heart, the Isstvan system pulsed an angry red. Jonson pressed another set of keys, and many of the star systems surrounding Isstvan changed colour in an irregularly-expanding sphere. Nemiel and many others in the assembly were shocked to see a score of systems switch from blue to red, and scores more flicker from blue to a dull grey.
This is taking place just at the time of Isstvan 3 then. also marking the scale of the dissention as "scores" of systems declare for Horus in this sector of space. At least 60 or so Imperial worlds in the Sector.


Page 40
"News of the rebellion has spread like a cancer through the sector and beyond."
...
"In the short space of just two and a half months, Imperial authority in the Ultima Segmentum has been severely compromised, and dissent is beginning to spread into Segmentum Solar as well."
...
"It’s likely that agents loyal to the Warmaster are operating all across both Segmenta, helping fuel the growing dissent. Note how the outbreaks of lawlessness spread from system to system along the most stable warp routes leading back to Terra, the direction from which any large-scale retaliation is certain to originate."
..
To his eyes, the instances of revolt in the Ultima Segmentum appeared haphazard
Ultima segmentum has begun to collapse in just a little over two point five months, and spreading into segmentum solar at last.

We learn something important here. Isstvan is somewhere in Segmentum solar. Probably far to the north or something, since they're nowhere near Calth. Horus is starting to spred dissention and take control of Segmentum Ultima as well. They've traveled a good 40-60K Ly in 2.5 months to spread this dissention, an average speed of at least 192,000-288,000c. This is almost certainly conservative as it would involve many stopovers in hundreds, if not thousands of worlds to spread rumors and dissention and speak with leaders. I'd expect it to be at least several times faster in other cases.

There's also the warp storm activity to consider, which should be starting up around this time as well.


Page 41
"As soon as word of the Warmaster’s rebellion reached Terra, the Emperor began assembling a punitive force to confront the rebel Legions and take Horus into custody." Jonson continued gravely. "According to the despatch we received, a full seven Legions, led by Ferrus Manus and the Iron Hands, are en route to Isstvan, but it will be at least another four to six months before they arrive."
4-6 months for the Legionary forces to reach Isstvaan. Ferrus gets there earlier I believe, along with the salamanders and the Raven guard, and the traitorous ones get there a bit after. 50-60K LY from Terra to Isstvan is at least 100-150,000c, up to 180,000c or so.


Page 41
"I now believe that our deployment to the Shield Worlds was part of an effort to scatter the Imperium’s most loyal servants as far as possible in order to minimize the number of Legions he would have to face at any given time."
"shield worlds" must be far away fro TErra and Isstvan then, similar as with the other loyalists.



Page 41-42
"...surviving a planetary siege from such a force, let alone defeating it, will require transforming Isstvan V into a veritable fortress world. That will require an enormous amount of supplies and equipment on very short notice – the sort of materiel that only a fully-operational forge world can provide."

The primarch adjusted the controls on the projector, and the sector view blurred, focussing in closely on the Eriden subsector and its neighbours. One system very close to Isstvan, stubbornly blue in a sea of grey and red, was suddenly highlighted.

"This is the Tanagra system, located at the edge of the adjoining Ulthoris sub-sector. As you can see, it is only fifty-two-pointseven light years from Isstvan, and lies along the most stable warp route to and from Terra. It also happens to be one of the most heavily industrialised systems in the entire sector, with a Class I-Ultra forge world named Diamat and more than two dozen mining outposts and refineries scattered throughout the system."

"Historically, Tanagra was rediscovered by Horus’s Legion and became compliant relatively early in the Great Crusade. It has been a key logistical centre for the region ever since."
mention of forge worlds. Despite claims that they haven't found any of their lost colonies, they apparently have, or else they have started colonizing and bulding on other worlds to found new ones n the centuries since. They may not have many, since Terra is still footing the bill for the bulk of the war, but they exist, and they're making shit.


Page 43
"As you’re well aware, the Shield Worlds campaign is at a critical juncture. We’ve been fighting the Gordians and their degenerate xenos allies for months..."
Status of the Shield worlds campaign.



Page 44-45
"I will personally lead the expedition to Diamat, with a battle group of fifteen warships. We will travel light, leaving the slower tenders and supply vessels behind, and trust that we will be able to replace our stores when we reach Tanagra. Our Navigator believes that if current warp conditions persist, we should reach Diamat within two months."
...
"When we reach the Tanagra system, eight weeks from now, we need to arrive fully prepared to fight."
The size of the force and the ships involved affect teh speed of warp travel. Supply vessels are slower than warships.

The fact the Lion is far away from Isstvan (thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of light years) suggests a considerable distance to travel. We know its at least hundreds of lightyers (a different sector) and probably thousands.. so 1000-12,000c at least. IF its 20,000 LY away its 120,000c.

Given the Colelcted visions book, its implied that the Dark Angels were located on the Eastenr Fringe when Horus dispatched the Night Lords out that way I don't know if the Shield Worlds were here, but if so then he probably had to haul ass across Ultima Segmentum to reach Isstvan (at least 50K LY) - in eight weeks that would be 300,000c If 70K LY we're talking close to 450,000c



Page 48
"I am thus proud to present you with four thousand, two hundred and twelve new Astartes, ready to join their brothers in the Legion’s front-line chapters. This represents a certification rate of nearly ninety-eight per cent; an extraordinary achievement by the standards of any of the Emperor’s Legions. I am also pleased to report that the Magos Logistum has certified two thousand suits of new Mark IV armour, a hundred new suits of Tactical Dreadnought armour and two hundred of the new Thyrsis pattern jump packs for transhipment to the fleet from the forges at Mars. The manufactories here on Caliban are including two thousand new chainswords for the fleet armoury and twelve million rounds of bolt gun shells. We are expecting a shipment of armoured vehicles from the Mechanicum within the next two months, and will expedite the transhipment as soon as they have been certified. If all goes as planned, they will be accompanied from Caliban by two new divisions of Jaegers, who are performing their final training manoeuvres this month."
Indication of the (annual?) resourece allotment for Jonson and his crusade by Luther's actions.

If we take the 2000 suits/swords as indicative of the supply provided to his forces.. we're looking at maybe 6000 rounds of bolt ammo per Marine. Assuming 200-300 round per Marine that's about 20-30 engagements worth.

Mass conveyance form Mars takes at least 2 months to reach Caliban, upper limit speed of a few hundred thousand c.

2000 marines per year for 200 years and 20 legions is an upper limit of around 8 million Astarte,s to within an order of magnitude.



Page 48-49
"Brother Luther and the training masters concur that further reduction of the cycle time would only degrade the fitness of new recruits, so we’ve reached an optimal training time of twenty-four months, incorporating accelerated surgical implantation into an ongoing regimen of conditioning and instruction. Current projections indicate that we will have another five thousand new Astartes ready for battle by late 315. The Mechanicum has assured us that shipments of wargear will continue on an accelerated basis until you order otherwise."
2 years, with accelerated surgical implanting and the rest. That's better than 6-10 years that there usually is. Aslo given the 2000 suits mentioned earlier, we're probably looking at the equipment providence from both Caliban and the Admech as being annual (it would take 2 years to provide 4000 or so recruits their equipment.) That also means they take less than a year to bring the needed supplies from Terra. Caliban is maybe 30-40 thousand light years from Terra (having to cart around the Eye of Terror somehow) and that means 30-40,000c at least, but no more than 180-240,000c for that time.

If Mars was keeping a similar production pace for all the other Legions? We're looking at maybe 40,000 suits of armor annually.. which seems rather low. Bi-yearly production of astartes is maybe 80-100 thousand. If they suffer mor than 10% losses they're going to be in trouble..


Page 49
"I regret to inform you that Master Remiel has taken his leave of the Legion at the age of one hundred and twelve. I am proud to say that he left on horseback, riding the Errant Road with lance in hand."
I dont think he used rejuv, so its pretty fantastic that he remained so active at that age.


Page 53
Luther depended on him more and more, leaving him to make decisions that affected the lives of tens of millions of people each day.
implied population of tens of millions on Caliban.


Page 53
Civilization spread across the globe, and the ranks of the Legion increased as Luther found ways to reduce the training cycle from eight years to only two.
...
Meanwhile, reports of Jonson’s exploits made their way back to Caliban, swelling their hearts with pride as the Dark Angels marched from one victory to the next. Transport ships from hundreds of distant worlds carried battle honours and war trophies back to Aldurukh...
8 years to 2 years training cycle. Implied that Jonson has conquered hundreds of worlds in 50 years in the name of the Emperor. Rather an under-estimate probably.


Page 61
"The primarch needs those warriors in the Shield Worlds," he said. "If we delay them, it could lead to disastrous consequences."
He still thinks the Lion is in the Shield worlds. Apparently the situation is pretty dire there.


Page 63-64
"Long-range surveyors are picking up thirty vessels anchored in high orbit above the forge world.

Reactor and sensor emissions suggest a mixed group of capital ships and heavy-grade cargo transports."
...
"None of the vessels in orbit are flashing ident codes." the captain replied. "But Commander Bracchius, aboard Rapier, claims the reactor signatures from two of the larger craft match those of the grand cruisers Forinax and Leonis."
30 ships in orbit around the planet. Considering Horus had an armada of over 3000 that isn't surprising. You can also tell the difference between cap ships and cargo transport types form the reactor and sensor emissions. Two grand cruisers in the force.



Page 64
"Formidable ships, but well past their prime. I expected as much: Horus has sent a second-line fleet comprised of renegade Imperial warships and Army units to plunder Diamat, while holding back his Astartes to protect Isstvan V."
Even in HEresy Era Grand cruisers are "second line" ships past their prime.


Page 64
Tiny red icons dotted the face of the world facing the approaching Dark Angels battle group, marking the approximate size and location of the enemy ships in orbit. Two of the icons had been tentatively classified as the two rebel grand cruisers, while others were given probable classifications based on their size and reactor emissions. Currently, the plot was showing no less than twenty cruiser-sized contacts anchored at Diamat, clustered around another ten heavy transports.
20 cruisers and 10 transports.Which may or may not include the 2 grand cruisrs.


Page 65
During the twomonth voyage from the Gordia system the news of Horus’s betrayal and the nature of their clandestine mission had left indelible marks on the crew’s psyche.
2 month trip from Gordian system, again.



Page 66-67
"Any picket ships?"

Stenius nodded. "Bracchius reports three squadrons of escorts in a staggered sentry formation." he reported. "They have detected our scouts and are coming about to engage. Time to contact is one hour, fifteen minutes at current course and speed."
...
The battle group had reached the point of no return. At this point, more than one and a half astronomical units from Diamat, the battle group still had time and manoeuvring room to come about and retreat from the system. If Jonson chose to press ahead, it would commit his small force irrevocably to battle.
...
"Execute attack plan Alpha," he said calmly, "and send the signal to launch all Stormbirds. Bracchius is to maintain speed and engage as soon as the pickets come within range."
The Crusade fleet has translated out some 1.5 AU from the planet (2.5 AU from the star), 1 hour and 18 minutes til the two forces contact at "current course and speed" Since that's a converging course it means both sides are moving forward. AT those times and distances we're probably talking hundreds of gees easily, averaged for all ships (escorts and such are probably several times faster) and velocity of around 5-10%c per fleet.. figure converging speed is between 10-20% of lightspeed.. at least against the Escorts. They are maintaining speed on approaching the `

assuming the escorts travel at negligible speed, the Imperial ships might travel at up to 16% of c to reach the target.



Page 68
As soon as the Dark Angels’ battle group had arrived in the Gehinnon star system it had effectively split into two forces. Six of the group’s sixteen ships were sleek, swift destroyers, which the primarch immediately ordered ahead of the main division with a trio of light cruisers to provide support. These scout squadrons quickly pulled ahead of the larger and slower cruisers, their long-range surveyors sweeping the void ahead of them and attempting to fix the size and disposition of the enemy fleet.

Now that the enemy was sighted, vox signals went back and forth between the two destroyer squadrons and the trio of light cruisers hanging back in their wake. As the rebel picket ships – no less than fifteen enemy destroyers, organised into three large squadrons – deployed into a standard crescent formation, Jonson’s light cruisers flared their thrusters and moved up to form a battle line with the rest of the scouts.

Thousands of kilometres behind them, the main body of Jonson’s battle group was altering formation as well. The Invincible Reason and the strike cruisers Amadis and Adzikel drew ahead of the two grand cruisers and two heavy cruisers that comprised the rest of the main force.
Disposition of Imperial forces.. the escorts nad light ships are thousands of km ahead of the larger ships. Jonson has grand cruisers and heavy cruisers to go with the six destroyers and two light cruisers. Versus fifteen enemy destroyers in this engagement.


Page 69
...seven squadrons of the heavily-armed assault craft were speeding ahead of the formation, racing to join up with the distant scouts before the rebel destroyers reached extreme firing range.

With four minutes left to contact, the rebel pickets suddenly increased speed; perhaps the flotilla commander detected the oncoming Stormbirds, or gave in to his eagerness to open the engagement, but it was too little, too late. Jonson’s Stormbirds were streaking through the scout squadron’s firing line just as the enemy destroyers opened fire.
4 minutes to contact.. average velocity of 8-9 km/s at least. single digit gees easily.





Page 69
Thirty of the huge missiles – each one powerful enough to blow a destroyer-sized ship apart – sped towards the scouts in a wide arc that left the Imperial ships with no room to escape.

Surveyor arrays aboard the Stormbirds detected the launches at once, and the Astartes pilots spread out their formations as widely as possible to intercept the oncoming torpedoes. They swept through the volley of missiles in the space of a few seconds; lascannons spat bolts of searing light, spearing through the torpedoes’ casings and detonating their huge fuel tanks.
At a few seconds for the torpedoes to strike... maybe 100-150 thousand km or so given a .16c combined closing speed. We don't know velocities of the torpedoes sadly.



Page 70
Almost half of the torpedoes were destroyed; the rest sped onward towards their targets, too fast for the assault ships to alter course and come around for another pass.

...
The scout squadrons opened fire on the incoming missiles as soon as they came within range. Macro cannons and rapid-cycle megalasers filled the vacuum ahead of the small ships with a veritable wall of fire. Energy lances – massive beams of voltaic power – swept in burning arcs ahead of the light cruisers. More globes of flame bloomed along the path of the onrushing scouts, blending together into a seething field of vaporised metal and radioactive gas.

Five torpedoes slipped through the maelstrom. They crossed the remaining space to their targets in less than a second, flying into a second, smaller cloud of exploding shells as the destroyers’ flak batteries opened fire. The servitor-crewed guns succeeded in destroying two of the remaining missiles.

Three torpedoes out of thirty struck home. One of the weapons smashed into the prow of the destroyer Audacious but failed to detonate; Hotspur and Stiletto, however, were not so fortunate. The torpedoes’ plasma warheads tore the lightly-armoured destroyers apart, transforming them into expanding clouds of gas and debris in a single instant.
Point defense against torpedoes. 15 taken out by fighters. Cruisers use lances, destroyers use macro cannon and megalasers, which take out 10 (implied range? thousands ot tens of thousands of km, in under a second with a few seconds of preparation - thats some damn fast targeting and tracking there!) Flak accounts for two more, servitor controlled guns. One destroyer survives a torpedo impact. May or may not have involved shields.

The interesting thing is that as far as combined speed noted above goes (remember they didn't slow down) you had a torpedo that has to mass at least 100 tonnes, if not thousands of tonnes, smashing into a destroyer's bow. 5e12 kg*m/s worth of momentum, and 1.3e20 joules - 30 gigatons of KE at least.. if not an order of magnitude more. Ship doesn't blow up or take severe damage or vaporize. Warhead has to be alot more powerful than that (especailly if its an omnidrectional blast.)

The question I wonder is.. did the shields play a role? this leads into the questiona bout space combat - is it relative velocity or absolute velocities that matter as far as void shield interaction goes? Ah, mysteries.





Page 71
Hungry for vengeance, their surveyor crews strained at their scopes, searching for engine telltales amid the storm of interference. Moments passed; points of heat swelled like stars in the radioactive haze. Ranges and vectors were calculated and relayed down to the torpedomen, who entered the data into their deadly charges. While the enemy pickets were still trying to reload their tubes, the scouts launched a torpedo salvo of their own.

By this time, the two formations were at extreme weapons’ range, and the enemy pickets were faced with a dilemma: fire at the oncoming Stormbirds, the torpedo salvo or the scout squadrons behind them. The flotilla commander was forced to make a split-second decision, ordering all gun batteries to target the scouts and leaving the rest to the flak guns.
"moments passing" suggests perhaps the engagement range of the escorts was a bit longer than I estimated, but not dramatically so - a few hundred thousand km maybe.. a ligth second or two.

Guns targeting stormbirds at thousands/tens of thousands of km


PAge 71
The Stormbirds reached the pickets first, each squadron orientating on a target and thundering in at full power. Explosive shells and multilaser bolts hammered at the oncoming assault craft...
...
They swept in low across the destroyers’ upper decks, pummelling their hull and superstructure with cannon fire and melta rockets. Four of the pickets staggered out of formation, their bridges smashed and their decks ablaze.

Stormbirds vs Destroyers.



Page 72
Seconds later the Imperial torpedoes struck. Seven of them hit their targets, blowing the rebel destroyers apart. The four surviving ships plunged onwards, doggedly trading blow for blow with the scout squadrons. Their void shields blazed beneath a rain of explosive shells and ravening lance beams as they plunged into the Imperial formation. At such close range the gunners could scarcely miss their targets...
...
Forty seconds had passed since the rebels’ first salvo.
interesting. 40 seconds at 50,000 km/s converging closing velocities is somewhere around 2 million km range or so. hundreds of thousands, millions of km for torepdoes.

Also note the close range gunnery battle, similar logic for macro cannon shells can apply to torpedoes in this case.. we're talking gigatons of KE per shell. It probably also means some tens to hundreds of thousands of kms distance for the lance and cannon fire, perhaps several LS worth to smash opposing fleets.



Page 72-73
"Increase speed." JONSON ordered, watching the telltales update on the tactical plot. They were less than a quarter of a million kilometres from Diamat now, well within range of the battle group’s surveyor arrays, and they were getting positional updates on the enemy fleet in real time.

It had been more than an hour since the initial engagement against the rebel pickets. The Stormbirds had been recovered and were being rearmed for another sortie.
...
...the enemy squadrons that had weighed anchor and were forming a battle line between Jonson’s force and the planet. The rebel transports were still in high orbit above Diamat, surrounded by a protective cordon of eight cruisers.

Nemiel felt the rumble of the battle barge’s thrusters reverberate through the deck plates as the Invincible Reason went to maximum acceleration.
They must have spent time slowing down after the engagement with the escorts.. probably for braking purposes that makes sense.

Note that the "hour" suggests 2.5 hours or so have passed for engagmeent times, so initial velocities might have been slower, but not dramatically so (About half what I estimated) - it won't change the calcs as an order of magnitude estimate at all. Figure closing speeds are in the tens to hundreds of km/s range by now.

Assuming an engagement range ofa round 150,000 they cross 100,000 km in 18 minutes.. about 90-100 km/s. If engagement range is 50,000 km, velcoity is 180-200 km/s. 231 km/s upper limit. not including acceleration.

Also despite sayng 'maximum acceleration' they must not be accleerating for very long (less than a minute) as they don't dramatically change their velocity, unless they are changing their orientation alot as well. They also have to be in combat mode, so they can't be having maximum power diverted to engines either, so "maximum power" in this case may be very context dependent (maximmum combat accelertion, or something.)


Pgae 73
The Astartes’ ships, designed to force their way through a hostile planet’s defence network and deploy their landing companies, were even more heavily armoured than typical ships of the line. Jonson calculated that the enemy ships would focus the majority of their fire on the battle barge, buying his other ships precious seconds to close to effective firing range.
Marine warship design.



Page 74
"There’s signs of heavy ionization in the atmosphere, though, so we might not get a signal through until we reach orbit."

"Atomics?" the primarch asked.

The captain nodded. "It looks like the rebels have launched dozens of orbital strikes, likely targeting troop concentrations and defence installations."
Atomic orbital stirkes.


Page 74
"What does that leave the defenders with?"

The primarch paused, consulting his memory. "Eight regiments of Tanagran Dragoons, plus two armoured regiments and several battalions of heavy artillery."
Nemiel nodded. It was an impressive array of force.
...
"What forces can the forges muster?" Jonson shrugged. "An unknown number of Mechanicum troops. The scions of Mars are not obliged to share the secrets of their defences."
Defenders.. garrison force plus whateve rthe Forges have.



Page 75
"They’ll trust the reserve cruisers to keep them at bay, which leaves us facing no less than twelve ships of the line."
"Ten minutes to contact."
...
"We have two squadrons ready for launch, and Amadis reports that they have one squadron standing by. Adzikel has a fire in her hangar bay from a crash-landed Stormbird. They estimate another fourteen minutes before they can resume flight operations."
"The battle will be over in ten."
ten minutes to contact. Using my previous assumptions at the "quarter million km" figure the velocity range is between 150-300 km/s now.


Page 75
On the tactical plot the distance between the two fleets was dwindling rapidly. They would be in extreme weapons range within moments.
Extreme range in momennts, whatever that is.


PAge 75-76
The main body of the enemy fleet was centred on four grand cruisers; at this range the officers aboard the flagship had positively identified them as the Avenger-class grand cruisers Forinax and Leonis, and the Vengeance-class ships Castigator and Vindicare. To either flank of this powerful group of ships were arrayed a squadron of four cruisers each: a mix of Crusaders, their hulls bristling with weapon batteries, and swift, lance-armed Armigers.

Against such a force, the Dark Angels had their battle barge and two strike cruisers, plus the Avenger-class grand cruisers Iron Duke and Duchess Arbellatris and the Infernus-class heavy cruisers Flamberge and Lord Dante.
Enemy fleet vs Imperial forces.


Page 76
The seconds ticked by. Captain Stenius watched the readouts on the tactical plot. "We’re at extreme torpedo range." he announced.
...
"Two minutes to extreme firing range."
Assume between 50-100,000 km for extreme torpedo range or thereabouts

Extreme firing range is 2 minutes closer than extreme torpedo range. If the ships are travelling at between 150-200 km/s they cover 18,000-24,000 km. so around 25,000-80,000 km effective range for the guns, and maybe 100,000 km or so for torpedoes again as an OoM estimate (tens of thousands to thundreds of thousands.)

It may seem contradictory with my earlier assessment, but it is quite possible that combat ranges are dependent on relative velocity as much as on other factors. With a higher closing speed ranges probably open up, while at lower velocities they become slugging matches.


PAge 77
Two minutes later the Aegis Officer called out, "Incoming fire!"

"All ships brace for impact!" the primarch ordered.

Lance beams leapt from the prows of the rebel cruisers, raking the void with searing beams of force. They slashed across the prow of the Invincible Reason and the two strike cruisers, causing their shields to flare with incandescent fury.
Lance strikes.


Page 77
As they closed to optimum firing range the enemy force began a slow turn to starboard so they could bring their fearsome broadsides to bear on the Imperial ships. But as they began their turn, Nemiel saw the scouts begin their course change. The nimble escorts swung around in a tight arc directly behind the enemy ships, their presence hidden by the rebels’ own reactor emissions.
Optimum firing range.. broadside firing now. Unsurprisingly broadsides have shorter ranges than lances.


Page 78-79
More lance shots leapt from the rebel ships, and now the enemy weapon batteries were going into action as well, hurling streams of blazing shells at the oncoming Imperials. At the same time, torpedoes leapt from the tubes of the Astartes ships and the oncoming scout vessels, bracketing the rebel grand cruisers from both fore and aft.

Heavy blows pummelled the battle barge to port and starboard.

Wreathed in a maelstrom of fire, the Imperial ships swung ponderously to port, aiming away from the centre of the enemy formation and instead towards the four rebel cruisers on the enemy’s flank. Along the dorsal gun decks of the battle barge, enormous turrets slowly traversed, bringing their massive bombardment cannons to bear on an Armiger-class cruiser. At the same time the battle barge’s starboard weapons batteries went into action, hammering at the rebel ship’s void shields with a hail of macro cannon shells. The enemy cruiser’s shields flickered angrily under the relentless barrage before collapsing entirely. At the same time her lance batteries lashed at the Invincible Reason, raking her void shields from stem to stern. Beams of force pierced the defensive field and clawed through the barge’s armoured hull.

Seconds later the battle barge replied with a rolling salvo from her bombardment cannons.
..
The shells glowed as they sped through the void and smashed into the flanks of the rebel ship. Nemiel watched in awe as a series of massive explosions rippled through the cruiser’s decks, until finally it blew apart in a flare of escaping plasma.
"beams of force", macro cannon shells hammering into shields (direct impacts) along with torpedoes. The velocities are slower, and this may seem odd, but again remember that it's all relative. Note as well that logically the shells probably travel pretty fast as well (thousands/tens of thousands of km/s) simply to have any accuracy at range (hitting within a few seconds) so that won't alter the KE much. Especially for bombardment cannons. Anyhow, individual shells will be packing hundreds of kilotons or megatons of KE at least at the "lower" velocities, but arguably there they should be ignoring shields, so they should be travelling many times faster regardless. Torpedoes are going to have at least single or double digit MT ke.



Page 79-80
The Imperial ships plunged through the rebel formation, exchanging thunderous broadsides with the enemy. The smaller cruisers suffered greatly under the punishing blows of Jonson’s larger ships; a Crusader received a broadside from both the Amadis and the Iron Duke that ripped her open and left her a burning hulk, while the second Armiger blew apart in another massive fireball as her reactor core was breached. Lances and shells hammered the Imperial ships as well; the flagship and the strike cruisers bore the brunt of the enemy fire, their armoured hulls riddled with multiple impacts and the glowing tracks of lance hits. Duchess Arbellatris staggered beneath a hail of fire; her hastily-repaired hull plating gave way beneath the onslaught, wracking the proud vessel with devastating internal explosions that left her drifting out of control. Flamberge and Lord Dante suffered as well, their upper decks and superstructure smashed by a hail of enemy shells, but the battered heavy cruisers held their course and returned fire with every weapon they had left.

The exchange lasted barely fifteen seconds, though to Nemiel it seemed like an eternity.
Combat exhcange.. fifteen seconds. Oddly though if they passed through each other, velocities actually should be higher. At 20,000 km engagement range, for example ships should be traveling at 500-1000 km/s depending on how speeds balance out on either side. Hundreds to thousands of km/s seems to be the rule here. Oh well... alot of the beforehand was approximate anyhow! It's still reaosnably accurate to within an Order of magnitude.



Page 81
"Brother, it’s time you made your way to the drop pods. We’ll be over Diamat in another ten minutes."
They're outside the orbit of Diamat then some distance, I gather.


Page 84
After learning of the situation from Luther, he had spent every free moment sifting through the vast message archives in the fortress’s library. The Imperium operated and maintained Caliban’s fast-growing vox and data networks, and every bit of message traffic – fr om personal calls to news broadcasts – were captured and archived as standard procedure. So far he’d managed to work his way back through several years’ worth of data, and his Astartes training had taught him exactly what to look for.
In the Grim Darkness of the Future, there is no Phone Privacy. But there are news broadcasts.


Page 89
"The constabulary has been unable to deal with the crisis, so I’ve despatched ten regiments of Jaegers to restore order."
I wonder if these are a garrison or part of the divisions ready for Jonson's use.


Page 94
"Our forests are gone, our villages ploughed under, our mountains cracked open like nuts and scraped clean by huge mining machines!"
More on the glorious industry of Caliban.



Page 96-97
"What about medicines, or better education? What about art and civilization?"

Malchial snorted derisively. "Medicines and education that make us better labourers, you mean. And what good are art or entertainments when you’re too busy slaving in a manufactory to appreciate them?"
Discussion of the advnatages and disadvantages of Imperial culture. You can already see some of the possible signs of the "modern" 40K we know and love.. wage slavery... although conditions are still better now than they will get (you still have education and medicine)


Page 102
Nemiel barely noticed; he was already tapping into the fleet command net through the pod’s vox array.

Readouts flickered coldly across the lenses of his helmet. Icons of red and blue flared to life, silhouetted against the curve of a planet. At first he struggled to make sense of the torrent of information, but within a few seconds a coherent picture of the orbital battle took shape. The reserve squadron had formed a wall of steel between the heavy cargo carriers and Jonson’s onrushing ships.
Command net linkup, engagement with the reserve squadron, getting a view of the ground and space battle.



Page 104
Seconds later the schematic of the orbital battle disappeared, replaced by a detailed map of a battle-scarred city and the outlying districts of a massive forge complex. The city – identified in the image as Xanthus, Diamat’s capital – was built along the shore of a restless, slate-grey ocean, and stretched for dozens of kilometres north and south along the rocky coastline. Twenty kilometres east of the city outskirts, far inland along a desolate plain of black rock and drifts of red oxide, rose the conical slopes of a massive volcano that lay at the heart of the Adeptus Mechanicum’s primary forge on Diamat. Many hundreds of years in the past, the scions of Mars had bored into the corpus of the dormant volcano and tapped the geothermal energies within, fuelling the vast smelters, foundries and manufactories that surrounded it. At the far edge of the great plain, the city sprawl and the forge’s warehouse complexes met. Squalid subsids and reeking shanty towns fetched up hard against a towering permacrete wall that separated the orderly world of the Mechanicum from the haphazard lives of ordinary humans.
Capital extends for dozens of km. Primary forge runs on geothermal. Must be a nascent hive - nothing like Mars for example. More lika n industiral world.


Page 105
Xanthus proper had been subjected to prolonged orbital bombardment over the course of several weeks. The city centre was a burnt-out wasteland, and the great artificial bay of the harbour district was dotted with the hulls of hundreds of broken or capsized ships.
Weeks of orbital bombardment.. probably of teh tactical variety.


Page 106-107
Since the cruisers and the transports they guarded were in geo-synchronous orbits over Diamat’s main forge complex, this brought the two forces into point-blank range. Weapons batteries and lance turrets blazed away at the Imperial ships, which responded with a spread of torpedoes and the deadly bombardment cannons of the flagship and her strike cruisers.

The battle barge was wreathed in a hail of explosions as she drove ever closer to the enemy battle-line. At the last moment, the Invincible Reason and her strike cruisers slewed to starboard, almost paralleling the enemy cruisers as the flagship prepared to release its drop pods. Less than fifty kilometres to port – appallingly close range for a naval engagement – a rebel Armiger-class cruiser raked the battle barge’s flank with its heavy lance batteries.
Point blank range engagement.



Page 107
The flagship’s bombardment cannons fired a rolling volley into the Armiger. At such close range, each and every shell found its mark. The giant rounds – five times the mass and explosive power of a standard macro cannon shell – punched through the cruiser’s armour and touched off a chain of catastrophic explosions inside the hull that overloaded the ship’s plasma reactor.

The huge warship disintegrated in a tremendous explosion, hurling molten debris in every direction.
bombardment cannons. 5x the mass and explosive power of macro shells. Size and power seem to scale. This probably is true of other munitions as well. Note that like macro cannons, the bombardment cannons are direct impact weapons. Considering how powerful Macro shells can be (gigaton range, as per Execution Hour), that suggests that Macro cannon shells are in the high megaton/low gigaton range too.


Page 107
One piece of the destroyed cruiser – a hunk of armoured superstructure as large as a city block – smashed into the flagship’s port side just as she began her drop sequence. The Invincible Reason lurched to starboard under the tremendous impact, throwing off the precise manoeuvres directed by the ship’s Ordnance Officer. But it was too late to abort; the automatic sequence had activated and the pods were firing at a rate of two per second.

Within ten seconds all two hundred Astartes had been launched, their pods scattering through the atmosphere over the battle zone.
City-block sized piece of ship lurches battle barge.. no serious damage though.

20 drop pods released at 2 per ssecond.


Page 109
The turbulence of re-entry rose to a bone-shaking crescendo and then held steady for a punishing nine-and-a-half minutes until a warning icon flashed on the display and the retro thrusters kicked in. The Ordnance division aboard the flagship had programmed the pods to deploy their thrusters at the last possible moment, just in case there was a significant anti-aircraft threat over the drop zone.
...
An ear-splitting roar swelled up from beneath their feet as the thrusters flared to full power for three full seconds, right up to
the point of impact.

9.5 minutes to make landing. Average descent velocity 3.4 km/s maybe? assuming 2000 km launch distance.


PAge 110
The pod had come down squarely atop a multistorey hab unit, punching like a bullet through at least four or five floors before finally coming to rest in the building’s decrepit basement.
Drop pod doesn't get destroyed on impact with building.. or rather throu multiple stories of building.


Page 113
They were lightly-armoured Testudo personnel carriers, armed with a turret auto-cannon and capable of transporting a full squad of troops.
Testudo APC. Chimera variant perhaps?



Page 113
..one of the Astartes stepped out of cover and raised the muzzle of his stubby meltagun. Brother Marthes brought the antitank weapon to bear on the flank of the lead Testudo and touched the firing stud, unleashing a blast of high-intensity microwaves that converted the vehicle’s metal hull into superheated plasma.
It sounds impressive, but the APC just blew apart as the fuel tank was ignited, so I dont think much of it was plasmatized. alternately part of hte hull plasmatized right over fuel tank and caused it to lbow up. microwave meltas too. Assuming 10 cm thick, 20x20 cm area melted and iron composition.. hundreds of MJ at least.. probably several GJ.



Page 113
Brother Vardus opened fire a second later, raking the rear Testudo with an extended burst of heavy bolter fire. The massreactive rounds exploded against the APC’s armoured hide and gouged craters in its solid tyres. Here and there the rounds found a seam in the armour plates and penetrated into the APC, wreaking bloody havoc on the men crammed within. The Testudo lurched to a stop, smoke pouring from the holes punched in its
side.
APc armour plating resists heavy bolter fire. Weak points, however, do not.


Page 119
"What are the rebels going after this time?" Zahariel asked as he reached Luther’s side.

"A Type II cargo hauler loaded with ten thousand tonnes of promethium."
Carrying capacity of a cargo hauler. It prboably masses around that much itself. Hundreds of TJ to lift it to orbit, though.


Page 119
"Contact! I’ve spotted a group of rebels operating a lascannon from the back of a civilian truck two kilometres outside the perimeter. Engaging now."
At least a 2 km range for lascannon. Probably more like 3-4 km or more, since it doesn't include the permieter (or altitude0 of the hauler.)


Page 120
"We need to push the perimeter out another five kilometres or so, and increase our mobile patrols. Sooner or later they’ll realise that vehiclemounted lascannons are too easy to spot and switch to shoulderfired missile launchers, which will make our job that much harder."
Missile launchers have at least as much range as lascannon. 7+km range upper limit (perhaps) for lascannon and missile launchers though.


Page 122
Her shaven head was adorned with tattoos etched in holographic ink, drawing on her own bioelectric field to project shimmering images of the Imperial Aquila a few millimetres above her skin.
holographic ink.


PAge 128
"How large was the relief force?" Luther asked.

"A reinforced company." Morten replied. "Two hundred men, plus heavy weapons and ten Condor airborne assault carriers."
Reinforced company and airborne assault carriers. These troops are well equipped,


Page 131-132
Nemiel heard the battle cannon fire and watched the corner of the building Coitus was standing at disintegrate in the space of a single heartbeat. The two Astartes disappeared in a blizzard of pulverised stone and fragments of structural steel.
..
He was wounded, perhaps seriously, but still functional. The walls of the building must have shielded the Astartes from the worst of the blast.
Batle cannon pulvzerized astartes-diameter section of stone and steel.


Page 133
"One battle tank and four APCs, three hundred metres south." he said, his voice rough with pain.
Range to target.


PAge 133
"Three hundred metres is too far away to have a good chance at a kill with the meltagun. We’ll have to get closer."
Maximum range of meltagun against a tank.


Page 136
A las-bolt struck Nemiel full in the chest; another dug a glowing crater out of his left pauldron, but his ceramite armour withstood the worst of the impacts. Askelon was struck several times as well, but his ornate harness, forged by the master craftsmen on Mars itself, shrugged off the hits with ease.
Lasfire useless against power armor, like always. Implied perhaps of a few hundreds of metres range.


Page 136
A las-bolt flashed through the building’s open doorway and struck him in the midsection; he felt a searing pain as the bolt found a weak spot in his armour, but the ceramite plating still managed to deflect most of its energy.
Weak spots can allow penetration but even then bolt is greatly eweakened.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Part 2


PAge 138
The pain was so intense it took his breath away. Even with the autohypnotic rotes at his command, the wound very nearly sent him into shock. His armour sensed the damage and immediately compensated, stiffening the pseudo-musculature of his left calf and immobilising it, like a ceramite splint.
Deep powersword cut through the left calf.


Page 138
The rebels closed in on Nemiel from all sides, firing their laspistols as they came. He was hit in the head, shoulders and chest; the armour stopped the blasts, but the integrity sensors began to shade from amber to red.
Durable as it is, even power armor cannot indefinitely resist lasfire.


Page 139
But the rest of his retort was swallowed in a thunderous explosion as the tank outside fired its battle cannon into the derelict building. The blast pulverised a ten-metre-wide section of the building’s front entrance, showering the Astartes in a hail of jagged stone and metal.
Battle cannon vs building again. tens of kg of TNT maybe?


Page 141
No sooner had they settled onto one knee than the four charges detonated in carefullyorchestrated succession.

The blasts went off so close together that the sound merged into a single, thunderous explosion. Molten stone and vaporised earth sheeted out from the pile, channelled away from the pod by the precise placement of the charges. In one stroke, Askelon removed ten cubic metres of rubble from beneath one end of the drop pod.
Meltabombs. Molten ston to remove 10 cubic metres of stone and earth. 46.5 GJ total, minimum (not including vaporized earth) hundreds of MJ per round assuming 100-200 meltabombs.


Page 142
...the tank fired its cannon once more. The shell flew into the pod where Titus had been standing a moment before and blew it apart.
Tank fires a shell, blows apart drop ship.


PAge 145
Sitting in the assault tank’s troop compartment, Zahariel adjusted the settings of the tactical display on the bulkhead next to his station and switched from light-enhancement to thermal view. Instantly the blocky outlines of the plant’s main buildings and its sifting towers were painted in stark silhouettes against a vivid green background, their flanks studded by bright spots of white that marked the locations of hot chem-lights.
Land Raider. Internal tacticla display, low light and thermal modes.


Page 148
..Broadsword Flight consisted of three Stormbirds, each loaded with a full suite of air-to-ground ordnance. Luther had put enough firepower at his disposal to destroy an entire armoured regiment.
3 Stormbirds with AtG ordnance can destory an entire regiment


Page 150
The heavilyarmoured Land Raider was impervious to all but the most powerful anti-tank weapons, but in the confines of the industrial plant a rebel team with melta bombs – or worse, a meltagun – could be a serious threat.
Land Raiders under threat from melta weapons.


PAge 150-151
The staff was both a weapon and a focus for the Librarian’s psychic abilities, and Zahariel took a moment to meditate upon it as Israfael had taught him to do. He began with a series of slow, steady breaths as he interfaced first with the crystalline array of the psychic hood built into his power armour. The array, built into a metal shell that rose from the back of his cuirass and partially enclosed his bare head, served as a crucial buffer that shielded his brain from the terrible energies of the warp. Without it, he risked madness – or worse – every time he unleashed his psychic powers in battle.
Force Staff and psychic hood. The Force staff is made of Adamantium.


Page 157
Still, it surprised him to see so much damage to a site that couldn’t be more than eight months old. Reinforced permacrete was built to resist the elements
for centuries.
Lifespan of reinforced permacrete. Not much different than concrete, I think. AT least hte mateiral itself. If its constructed buidlings thata a different story.


PAge 163
Two hundred metres north, at exactly the same spot where Kohl and Nemiel had reconnoitred the fortifications a half-hour before, Brother Titus stepped around the corner of the burnt-out building and readied his assault cannon.
...
Diamantine-tipped, light armour-piercing rounds raked across the northern bastion and then down along the parked APCs. The shells blasted craters in the formed permacrete; enemy troops caught in the open were literally blown apart by the highvelocity projectiles. The rounds punched through the thin armour of the easternmost APCs turret and touched off one of the shells in the ammo feed; it blew apart in a yellow fireball and filled the vehicle with a storm of deadly shrapnel.
Assault cannon. Diamantine Armor piercing rounds, blow apart troops, and penetrate turrets.


Page 164
There was a tremendous crash, and a grinding of metal on stone, and the forty-tonne APC bucked skyward...
40 tonne APC (testudo maybe?)


Page 165
Las-bolts began to strike the side of the APC in a staccato hail of small explosions.
Explosive vaporization.


Page 166
"Grenades!" he ordered. Ephrial and Cortus immediately pulled a pair of fragmentation grenades from their belt dispensers...
Frag grenades from belt dispensers.. possibly the mini/micro grenades.


Page 169
They poured fire from their lasguns at the advancing Astartes, but the las-bolts were meant for lightly-armoured humans, not walking juggernauts like the Dark Angels. Nemiel advanced doggedly into the whirlwind of fire, pummelled by shot after shot. Warning icons flashed insistently on his helmet display, and he over rode each and every one.
Lasguns are for lightly armored targets.


Page 169
He was wounded half a dozen times. Las-bolts burned through weakened spots in his armour and seared the flesh beneath.
Las bolts penetrating weakend spots agian, burning flesh underneath.


Page 169
Ephrial fell during the charge, shot through the right knee.
Lasbolt penetrates through knee.


PAge 171
"If they’re Tech-Guard, they could have surveyors that rival those of Brother Titus."
Tech guard have Astartes grade surveyors.


Page 172
As they emerged from the shadows between the buildings, Nemiel could see that they were massive individuals, each one easily as large as an Astartes, and just as powerfully built. Articulated armour plates covered their hyper-muscled bodies, and even from this distance Nemiel could clearly see that their limbs and heads were heavily augmented with bionic and chemical implants.

Their arms were fully weaponised, with an assortment of fearsome- looking energy and projectile weapons and lethal close combat attachments.
...

"But their weapons systems and combat surveyors are fully active."
..

"They’re skitarii; more specifically, a unit of Praetorians. They’re the Mechanicum’s elite guard."
This is from a Techmarine.. soo... yeah. The designations and design of SKitarii and tech guard must vary from forge world to forge world.


Page 182
Zahariel’s keen eyes detected scores of small craters where lasgun bolts had eaten into the pavement around the emplacements.
craters in pavement. asusming a 5 cm crater... 10-20 kj could blast it out easily.


Page 183
He pulled his auspex unit from his belt and tested it. The screen flickered and then filled with a cascade of data. The Astartes tried several different detection modes, then shook his head in disgust and put the unit away.
Astartes auspex with multi-detection mode.


Page 185
There were four industrial-grade lifts that provided access to the tower’s lower levels, but they were deathtraps as far as Zahariel was concerned. If the enemy ha access to a meltagun – and the Jaeger reaction force had carried two – then a single blast into such a tight space could wipe out half his squad.
Meltaguns effective weapons in confined spaces, even against Astartes.


Page 188-189
It was swift as a tree viper but as thick as Zahariel’s upper arm, with hundreds of chitin-sheathed legs and a broad head set with a half-dozen compound eyes. In a flash it had wrapped around Gideon’s torso and lifted the huge warrior off the ground, lunging and snapping at the back of his helmet with its curved mandibles.
...
Zahariel blew the creature’s head apart with a single shot from his bolt pistol just as a powerful impact struck the back of his helmet and pitched him off his feet.
...
..he was able to aim behind him at the creature’s thrashing body. It took three bolt pistol shots in rapid succession to blow the thing apart, showering him with fragments of chitin and reeking ichor.
centipede like crature. 3 bolts to blow it apart.


Page 189
...Zahariel could see three more of the monsters rearing up from the walls like snakes, their mandibles clashing as they prepared to strike. Without hesitation, he summoned up the full force of his will and unleashed the psychic fury of the warp.
...
..the three creatures were engulfed in a torrent of raging fire that coalesced from the very air itself. They burst apart in the intense heat, their carapaces exploding from within.
Psyker attack against creatures.


Page 190
For a dizzying instant his awareness sharpened to a supernatural degree, reaching into dimensions beyond the understanding of ordinary humans. The permacrete and metal of the corridor faded into near-invisibility, while living matter was etched with vibrant clarity. He could see the layers of root and vine blanketing the walls and ceiling, and every one of the thousands of insects living in their midst.
Terrorsight.


Page 191
In the space of a single heartbeat the Praetorians erupted into a blur of deadly motion, bringing their weapons to bear and charging across the last few metres between themselves and the Astartes. Multi-barrel slug throwers pounded at the Dark Angels, the explosive shells bursting in a series of sharp flashes across the ceramite surfaces of their armour. The warriors staggered under the hail of shells, blood spraying from wounds to their arms, torsos and legs. Urgent red telltales flashed on Nemiel’s helmet display; pain flared across his chest, and his arms suddenly felt twice as heavy. A Praetorian shell had likely cut a bundle of synthetic muscle fibres beneath his breastplate.
Praetorians attack the Dark angels. Much more effective than lasgun armed troops.


Page 192
The Terran staggered backward under a punishing barrage of explosive shells, roaring a curse in some forgotten tongue and returning fire with his bolt pistol. The shells struck one of the charging skitarii in the chest and head, flattening against the augmented warrior’s armour plates without inflicting serious damage...
Bolt rounds flatten without exploding.


Page 192
Off to Nemiel’s right there was a shriek of superheated air as Brother Marthes shot one of the oncoming skitarii point-blank with his meltagun. The anti-tank weapon blew the Praetorian apart in a shower of sparks and charred bits of flesh.
Meltaguns more effective, naturally.


Page 192
The Praetorian rushing at Nemiel was a massive brute that seemed more machine than man; a composition of bionic joints, synthetic musculature, adrenal shunts and pitted armour plating. His head was encased in a faceless metal shell, studded with multi-spectrum auspex nodes in place of ears, nose and mouth. His breastplate was decorated – if that was the word – with barcode emblems and small plaques of glittering, iridescent metal.
...

The Praetorian’s left hand had been replaced by a huge, three-fingered power claw, its curved edges plated with adamantium and sharpened to a mirror-sheen.
Praetorian again.


Page 193
Marthes’s shot vaporised the Praetorian’s claw arm at the elbow and blistered the warrior’s armoured shoulders and chest. The skitarii reeled backwards, his auto-senses momentarily overloaded.
Meltagun again.


Page 199
"I expect we have no more than two and a half weeks, three at most, before they return. We need to make the most of it"
Jonson's estimate on the time for Horus' forces to return to Isstvan and to make another assault.

1-2 weeks depending on if its a retreat and a round trip (and not including delays) 1-2000c maybe, minimum.


Page 202
"Keep in mind, however, that time is not on Horus’s side. He knows that a huge force of Astartes is on the way to attack Isstvan, and could arrive here at any time in the next few weeks."
Given eight week or so initial arrival we're leaning towards 3 or 4 months timeframe for the Isstvaan dropsite force.


Page 205
But then it hit Nemiel; Jonson hadn’t united Caliban. The plan was his but the person who convinced the knightly orders and the noble families to put aside their ancient traditions and unite under Jonson’s banner was Luther. It had been his oratorial skills, his personal charisma and sense of diplomacy, and above all his keen insight into human nature that had allowed him to forge the grand alliance that had changed the face of Caliban. Jonson, by contrast, had spent his early years alone, living like an animal in the depths of the Northwilds, one of the most forbidding and inaccessible wildernesses on the planet. He didn’t say a word for the first few months at Aldurukh, and was always considered cold and aloof even in later years. He was thought of as an intellectual and a scholar, and Nemiel knew that to be true but now he also wondered if Lion El’Jonson, the superhuman son of the Emperor himself, could not relate to the people around him. He could predict how they would behave on the battlefield to an uncanny degree, but he couldn’t tell an honourable man from a craven one. Are we all ciphers to him, the Redemptor wondered? If Jonson had so little in common with humanity, what did that make him?
Jonson vs Luther.. Nemiel figures the psycho Primarch out - he isnt able to relate to others. I believe someone described him as a sociopath in that regard. Considering his relationship with Russ... this may be true or not depending on which version you believe.


Page 210
...the world had slowed near to a standstill, transforming the desperate battle into a kind of grim tableaux. Zahariel could see through the bodies of friend and foe alike; he saw hearts beating and veins coursing sluggishly with hot blood.
...
Zahariel’s horror was transformed into pure, righteous rage. He summoned the fury of the warp and swept his staff in a wide arc, hurling tendrils of searing white fire towards every creature he could see. Like thunderbolts, they sank through the monsters’ flesh and boiled the liquid within.
...
A dozen of the creatures exploded, showering the squad with shattered chitin and a mist of stinking ichor. Zahariel reeled backwards, stunned by the intensity of his vision. Terrorsight, Israfael called it. He’d only experienced it once before, when he’d fought the Calibanite Lion. For that one instant, he had extended his consciousness partly into the warp.
Terrorsight again. Zahariel's super psyker powers steam explode all the creatures. Assuming each creature masses 100 kg we're talking hundreds of MJ at least for boiling steam explosions.


Page 211
. He focused his rage on the force staff in his hands, wreathing it in a crackling aura of psychic power. Every worm he struck was incinerated in a flash of blue fire and a sizzling clap of thunder that hurled their shattered husks into the air. He destroyed a half-dozen of the worms in as many seconds, and then as suddenly as it had begun, the battle was over
Incinerate.. single digit MJ perhaps (severee burning, not cremation.)


Page 214
The chamber was a huge, man-made cavern that rose to a curved, dome-like ceiling thirty metres above their heads. The huge cylinder of the thermal core itself dominated the centre of the chamber, rising from a bore that had been drilled more than five hundred metres into the bedrock of the planet and disappearing through an opening at the apex of the dome, where it carried geothermal heat to power exchange units that supplied the rest of the plant.
The Geothermal power source.


Page 219
Zahariel yelled. "One step back! Five rounds rapid. Fire!"
..
Bolt pistols barked in a rolling volley. Green clad bodies jerked and blew apart in the storm of mass-reactive rounds. The first rank of corpses disintegrated under the fusillade.
...
"Five rounds rapid. Fire!"
The bolt pistols thundered again. Each round found its mark, and fifty more bodies were reduced to bloody fragments.

At Zahariel’s command, the squad took one last step back and fired five more rounds into the press. Firing bolts locked back on empty magazines as fifty more bodies erupted into gory mist. The mob had been cut in half in the span of twenty seconds...
They fired from a distance of two metres. Bolt pistol rounds blowing apart creatures again.


Page 222
The force staff punched through the thick bone with a flash of blue-white light and an angry clap of thunder as the Librarian channelled every erg of psychic force he could command into the creature’s body. Nerves fried and brain matter boiled; the worm’s remaining eyes burst and its armour plates cracked as steam erupted from its core. Zahariel snuffed out the monster’s life force in a split second with the raging winds of the warp itself.
The queens were big enough to pick up marines in their mandibles, if that tells us anything. Assuming it masses a ton or more we're talking hundreds of MJ again easil.


Page 235
He found Kohl and Techmarine Askelon at the topmost level, supervising the installation of advanced ballistic calculators that would help the Dragoons call down effective artillery fire on the attacking rebels
advanced ballistic caluclators for accurate artillery fire. We've seen basilisks and earthshakers allocated things like this beofre (Storm of Iron, etc.)


Page 237
"Brother Askelon, what sort of threats are we likely to encounter?"
"There will be an array of electronic sensors covering each of the storage sites." he replied, "Plus skitarii patrols with a full-spectrum auspex arrays."
Askelon is a techmarine. It occurs to me that having some Mechanicus trained forces who are loyal frist to the Chapter is.. useful. And yet some think they would betray the Chapter.



Page 238-239
These Tech-Guard weren’t the massive, bionically enhanced killing machines of the Praetorians, but were simple soldiers akin to the Tanagran Dragoons, albeit in fine carapace armour and wielding high-power lasguns. Compact auspex units were mounted to the front of their helmets and flipped down over their faces like strange, insectoid masks.
Lower tier Tech guard, still pretty well equipped.


Page 242
He stepped forwards, his enhanced vision easily picking out details even in the near-absence of light. "Lots of carbon scoring," he observed. "Looks like high-power lasgun fire."
Kohl nodded, stepping up beside Nemiel. A gauntleted finger moved through the air, roughly tracing the outline of the stains. "I’d guess ten to fifteen individuals, shot at close range," he reckoned. "Judging by the intensity of the lasgun fire, they must have been nearly blown apart."
10-15 individuals blown apart by high-powered lasgun fire. I'd gues single barrages. We dont know how many lasguns sadly.. but as an oder of magnitude calc it suggests hundreds of kj to megajoules


Page 256-259
The Watchers in the Dark weren’t human. Of that, Zahariel was certain. This was the form they chose to show him, because he was quite certain that the sight of their true nature would very likely drive him mad.
...
"You’re a xenos species that has been guarding something here on Caliban for a very long time. "
...
"How long has Caliban been tainted by this evil?"

Always, was the watcher’s wintry reply.

"Then why have no Calibanites succumbed to its touch before now?"

Because of our efforts, you foolish human, another watcher said
...
And, ironically, by the great beasts themselves, another watcher said. They were born of the taint, and lingered near the places where its corruption rose close to the surface. They killed nearly all of the humans who strayed too close, and those few who did survive were ultimately slain as warlocks by your own people before they could grow too strong.
...
"The thermal cores." he mused. "They sank the thermal cores deep into the earth and released the taint in the Northwilds."

And now others feed it with fire and slaughter, a watcher added.
Zahariel encounters the Watchers again, we learn the purpose of the Watchers, the Beasts, and so on. Apparently geothermal taps are yet another dangerous source or releasing chaos corruption if a planet is infested.


Page 263
The forge’s massive Titan foundry was actually a collection of cyclopean structures that filled an area of five square kilometres, not far from the complex’s southern gate. It was a self-contained manufactory, with facilities for creating everything from adamantine skeletal segments to tempered plasteel armour plate, and everything in between. Broad trackways, made to accommodate heavy load-haulers, connected to the towering structure at the centre of the foundry: the giant assembly building, where up to four of the gargantuan war machines could be built at the same time.
5 square km titan foundry. 4 titans built at once.


Page 264
"There are several small, cybernetic sentries prowling the building." Askelon whispered. "They follow predictable routes and use their surveyors to scan for signs of heat or motion, but they’re very short-ranged. "
Sentry units.



PAge 268-269
Three hundred metres down the tunnel, the passageway fed into a large, square structure that echoed the permacrete blockhouse they’d entered at the manufactory. The plasteel rungs of another ladder climbed upward, presumably into the foundry’s assembly building. Sitting at its feet, just as Nemiel suspected, crouched a matte-black sentry gun. Armed with a turret-mounted twin-linked lascannon, the automated unit crouched on four stubby legs like a hungry spider waiting for prey. Nemiel could hear the hum of its power unit as they approached. Its twin guns were aimed straight down the tunnel at the approaching Astartes. A single shot would cut through their armour like tissue.
Sentry guns.



Page 273
The assembly building was rectangular in shape, with an open floor plan surrounded by six huge niches that stretched from floor to ceiling. Giant servo arms were set into either side of these niches, able to climb to different heights along trackways set into the permacrete, and huge cranes hung from similar tracks high overhead. The Titans were assembled inside each niche, starting with the skeletal structure of the feet and working upwards to the head.
Titan assembly niches.


Page 273
Each chain, more than fifty metres in length, had been strung with dozens of hooks, and on each hook hung a fresh corpse. Nemiel saw the bodies of Tanagran Dragoons, skitarii – even the mangled bodies of dead Praetorians – along with the smaller figures of tech-adepts and half-mechanical magi. Their corpses had been riddled by bullets or torn apart by energy bolts, sliced open by power claws or crushed by mechanical fists, and their fluids leaked from them..
corpses ... I assume torn apart by energy bolts is akin to the "blown apart" mentioned earlier.


PAge 274
There were six of them, Nemiel saw. Their chassis were so wide that they could only be arrayed in a single file that stretched from one end of the assembly building to the other. Their armoured hulls were supported by dual sets of treads on each of the vehicle’s flanks, with a sloped front that rose like a sheer-sided hillock more than two storeys high. Void shield generators studded the vehicle’s sides, along with automated quad-laser and mega-bolter emplacements, but Nemiel scarcely noticed them. His gaze was drawn to the enormous cannon built into the centreline of the vehicle’s hull. A complicated series of hoists and giant braces surrounding the cannon’s barrel indicated that it was meant to be elevated and fired like a conventional artillery piece. The aft section of each vehicle was segmented like the body of a giant insect, and appeared to be even more heavily armoured than the rest of the hull.
...
"Siege guns," he said, his voice tinged with awe, "but far larger than any I’ve ever seen before. Those look like macro cannons, fitted to a custom hull." He pointed to the nearest vehicle. "See those dual treads? Those aren’t part of a contiguous drive train. They are distinct drive units, similar in size and power the ones used on Baneblade super-heavy tanks. There are three to a side, and that’s just to form the foundation for each vehicle."
Macro cannon super-artillery. The 40K version of SheVas


Page 275
"It’s an MIU interface chamber," he said, "A neural interface link, much like we employ on our Titans. It looks like they’re refurbishing the control leads and making it ready for use."

"So a single operator could control one of these behemoths?"
...
"Of course. They’re big, but far less demanding than a bipedal Titan." he replied. "And the MIU makes it nearly impossible for them to be used if captured."
Super artillery controlled by single operators and MIU


Page 278
A burst of heavy bolter fire answered them, stitching the two Astartes with a stream of shells. Both warriors staggered beneath the hits, but their armour turned aside the blows.
Another instance of power armor deflecting heavy bolter rounds.


Page 278
Marthes shouldered his way onto the catwalk and fired his meltagun at the distant heavy bolter. The microwave burst struck the weapon and the gangway beneath it and superheated the metal in a split second, vaporising them in a fierce concussion and hurling burning skitarii to the assembly floor below.
Assuming it melts a 2 cm thick, metre diamter hole (several skitarris tanding on it.).. 900 MJ



Page 283-284
The Northwilds arcology had been built according to the standard Imperial template; it was an irregularly-stepped pyramid that, even still in its initial stages, was five kilometres wide at its base and rose more than three kilometres into the cloudy sky. Narrow streets radiated away from the arcology across the plain, surrounded by hundreds of smaller buildings that had yet to be subsumed by the structure’s ever-expanding footprint.
Each arcology was constructed in a similar fashion on newly-compliant Imperial worlds: first would come the labourers and their families, relocated by the tens of thousands from towns and villages all over the hemisphere. They would be resettled in a town at the site of the new arcology, which would spread outward in all directions as its population swelled. Then, once there was a large enough labour pool that had been sufficiently trained to begin work, the digging of the arcology’s foundation would begin. The structure would grow in stages, expanding outwards, upwards and downwards at the same time. Little by little, the arcology would swallow up the town, its residents progressively reassigned to districts inside the structure itself. The population would continue to grow as well, along with the civil services and bureaucracy that went along with it. In theory, the population and organisational growth would match the growth of the structure so closely that by the time the structure was complete, the arcology would be fully populated and self-sufficient.
..
"You mean civilians? About five million, all told," Morten replied. "About a quarter of that are Imperial citizens from offworld: Administratum officials, engineers, industrial planners and the like."
...
"A stage one arcology is built to support twice that number," he observed. "So half of the structure is still unoccupied?"
...
"The Imperium’s industrialisation plan calls for twenty stage-one arcologies across Caliban, but the planet’s population won’t be able to support that for some time yet."
"arcology" seems to be the Great Crusade era version of a Hive.. or a proto hive or whatever. Considering they're half the diameter of the conical mountain-type hives.. maybe 1/8 or 1/10th the volume, althotugh the implication is they can be expanded. Population of at least 5-10 million. With 21 planned arcologies (lower limit) 100-200 million. Possibly a variation on hives.
It does show grater degrees of planning for habitation goes on on Imperial worlds at this stage than it does in the United States (for example.)


Page 285-286
"Sir, you must be aware that an unknown number of the natives – excuse me, citizens – are also likely members of the rebellion. It’s much more sensible from a military standpoint to keep them isolated and restore service to them than turn them loose in another part of the arcology where they can cause more mischief."
...
"Is this sort of tactic normal when dealing with civil unrest?"
...
"Of course," Morten replied. "You’ve got to get it through their heads that when they destroy Imperial property they’re only going to make their lives harder and more miserable. Sooner or later the lesson sinks in."
Yet again we see the Imperial Truth is not a great deal different from the Imperium we know and love. And we see some of te more questionable practices (yet again) which draw shock and disgust from those who encouter them.

PAge 287
Zahariel unfurled the heavy cloak with a snap of his wrists and drew it about his shoulders. When he closed the clasp, the cloak’s cameleoline outer layer activated, matching the grey hues of the compartment in less than a second.
Cameleoline cloak.


Page 292
He found himself in a small room, perhaps five metres to a side..

Page 293
"I’ve heard stories about the legendary toughness of the Astartes, but I rather doubt even you would survive a point-blank shot from a plasma gun."
"None of us would survive, you idiot," Zahariel said scornfully. "In a small room like this the thermal effects would incinerate us all."
Plasma guns nasty in a 5x5x5 metre room. Assuming it raises the entire temperature to 1000-1500c we're looking at hundreds of MJ or therabouts. Several MJ at least for "incinerating" all the people in there (if we assume 3rd degree burns.)


Page 302
"Five million people, crammed into three levels built to hold a quarter of that number."
That osunds more like a hive world.


Page 311
Orders were passed to the torpedo deck. The senior torpedomen checked their firing data and turned their launch keys. Less than half a second later, they were dead.

As each torpedo received the electronic signal to launch, its plasma reactor overloaded, detonating its warhead inside the tube. The rakish bows of the sleek destroyers vaporised in expanding balls of plasma, transforming them into burning, broken hulks. The light cruisers fared only slightly better, their torpedo decks destroyed and fires burning out of control on their lower decks, the small squadron had no choice but to break off and try to save their ships.
Internal torpedo detonation failures. Assuming a 5 million ton destroyer of pure iron.. 40,000 TJ.. 10 MT at east. at least an OoM or two greater for "plasma."


PAge 312
The explosions signalled to the rebels that their stealthy approach was at an end. Thrusters ignited, surging to full power; void shields crackled into existence, forming shimmering spheres around their vessels like ephemeral soap bubbles before firming up and fading from view. Surveyors blazed to life, painting the surprised Imperial ships with invisible energies and feeding targeting data back to the rebel gunnery officers.
ships go into action.. surveyors feeding targeitng data to gunnery officers.



Page 313
Nemiel saw Marthes stagger as two of the autocannon’s explosive shells struck him in the chest. There was a double flash, coming so close together that the sound of the blasts merged into a single loud thunderclap. The Astartes staggered forward a few steps more, then fell forward onto his face. His status indicator in Nemiel’s helmet display went abruptly black.
2 autocannon rounds impacting and detonating kill a marine.


Page 314
The skitarii scrambled to their feet, their armour smouldering from the heat of the vehicle’s flames. Nemiel and the others raked them with bolter fire, killing several


Skitarri armour seems to protect them somewhat from flames.


Page 317
"It’s only a matter of time before those Tech-Guard bring up a missile launcher or a lascannon and destroy Titus"
Titus is a dreadnought.



PAge 317
They saw the Astartes at almost the same instant; with three hundred metres between them, the enemy troops hurriedly dropped the trails on the four guns and began to frantically wheel them around to bear on the squad.

"Charge!" Nemiel cried, but the rest of squad hardly needed prompting. They broke into a full run, firing their bolters as they went.

Nemiel watched the mass-reactive shells strike the armoured splinter plates of the gun carriages and ricochet harmlessly away. The crews worked quickly and with remarkable precision, connecting the weapons to their power units and energising the guns in the space of seconds. If they had been preparing to fire on human troops, it might have been enough, but the Astartes reached the enemy with seconds to spare.

Page 318-319
He was about to order Askelon to disable the abandoned lascannons when the heavens split and trails of fire descended on the forge from on high.
These were no simple meteors, falling in thin streaks of light before vanishing into oblivion. Nemiel counted eight separate streaks of smoke and flame, plunging down in a steep arc and converging on a common point: the heart of the forge complex, some thirty kilometres away. When they struck, the entire northern horizon blazed with terrible, white light.

Nemiel had witnessed more than one orbital bombardment in his time, but those had been blazing trails of lance fire that carved across the ground like a burning blade, or salvoes of poorly-aimed macro cannon fire that saturated a target area with huge shells. He’d never been close enough to experience the fury of a barrage of bombardment cannons, and wasn’t prepared for what followed.

The eight shells struck the target area more or less simultaneously, their magma warheads detonating with the heat and force of a fusion bomb. His onboard systems registered the overpressure from the blast and had just enough time to yell, ‘Get down!’ before the blast wave hit.

He dropped to the ground and pressed his helmet to the permacrete as a roaring wall of superheated air howled over him. His temperature sensors spiked, pushing into the red zone, and the force of the wind lifted him off the ground and tossed him like a toy down the narrow lane. The thunder of the blast was something he felt through his armour, reverberating down into his bones. His autosenses overloaded and shut down at once to prevent permanent damage.
It was over in a matter of moments. One second the entire world felt as though it were coming apart at the seams, and the next, everything was almost eerily silent. Nemiel lay on his back, trying to regain his bearings. Icons blinked on his helmet display, informing him that his autosensors and vox-unit were resetting. As his vision cleared, he saw tendrils of smoke rising from his scorched armour.
Bombardment cannon barrage.


page 321
It was only then that Nemiel fully saw the devastation that the bombardment had wrought.
An enormous column of ash and smoke rose into the sky off to the north, where the volcano and the forge’s centre used to be. The rising sun tinged the climbing column of debris in shades of blood red and fiery orange, whilst closer to the ground Nemiel could see thin veins of pulsing orange, tracks of real magma flowing like blood from the volcano’s shattered flanks. Fires blazed out of control from horizon to horizon, consuming the shattered husks of wrecked buildings in a vast swathe surrounding the epicentre of the blast. For all intents and purposes, the forge complex had been destroyed.
results of the bombardment cannon barrage.


Page 332
"Did you never wonder why Jonson named an unknown young knight as the new Lord Cypher, entrusting him with all of our traditions and secrets?"
..
"He chose someone with no ties to the Order’s senior knights or masters, whose loyalty was to him alone," he said, thinking aloud. "Someone who could be counted on to act in Jonson’s best interests above everything else."
"And would keep his secrets, regardless of the consequences to everyone else"
The new Lord Cypher was a former Knight of Lupus.


PAge 339
Though an Astartes could go for many weeks with minimal nourishment, he knew that Luther’s body hadn’t received the full suite of metabolic enhancements. By the look of things, Zahariel feared that he’d been fasting for weeks.
Self explanatory.


Page 342-343
"He knew. Jonson knew about the taint all along and he’s spilled an ocean of blood to keep the truth from us."
..
"Jonson knew that the Imperium would one day destroy Caliban. That’s why we’re here. He didn’t just forsake us, brother. He sent us here to die."
They only suspect, but franlky it wouldnt surprise me.


Page 345
"You tampered with my mind, brother," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.
"Of course," Israfael said, his tone unapologetic. "The Emperor himself commanded it. I would expect you to do the same."
And.. the Emperor fucks up. again. Bad enough what Jonson did, but this only compounded matters.


Page 346
Skeins of searing white fire leapt from the Librarian’s fingertips, but Sar Daviel was already moving, putting his body between Israfael and Remiel. The psychic blast tore into his chest, searing his flesh and setting his robes on fire.
single digit MJs maybe.. to set fire to clothing (125 J per cm sq)



PAge 346
He leapt to his feet and focused his will into his armour’s psychic hood. The hood’s dampener was not only for self-protection; it could also be used to combat the power of other psykers within a certain distance from the device
dual purpose of psychic hood.


PAge 346-347
Israfael ducked as Astelan tried to strike him with the butt of his bolt pistol and lashed out with his hand. His fingertips seemed to brush lightly against Astelan’s breastplate, but Zahariel felt the psychic discharge that flung the chapter master through the air at him. Zahariel ducked barely in time, but his concentration on the dampener faltered for a fleeting instant.
Librarian ninja skills.


PAge 347
With a savage cry, he raised his hands and unleashed a torrent of crackling energy upon Luther.

Zahariel felt the heat of the blast as it burned through the air past his head and struck Luther full in the chest. But the knight did not burn – instead, the wards painted upon his skin flared with an icy luminescence, deflecting the energy in a boiling wave away from his body.
Luther has wards on his body.. which protect against Librarian attacks.


Page 347
...he staggered backwards before a searing bolt of plasma struck him full in the chest. The Librarian’s eyes went wide. There was a crater in his breastplate as large as a man’s palm, its edges still molten.
..
Lord Cypher slowly lowered his plasma pistol ..
Amazingly Israfael survives the plasma shot. Fist sized hole through astartes plate, melted. ASsuming silicon.. 1-1.5 MJ for penetrating armour at least. Maybe another half kj or so for boiling 15 cm into flesh, but that's conjecture.

Page 357
"Barely half a company, out of a starting strength of twenty thousand men."
total strength of the Tanagran Dragoons force on Diamat.


PAge 359
"Lascannon emplacements, target the main battle tanks and open fire at four hundred and fifty metres."
Lascannon range.


PAge 363
Boltguns blazed, wreaking carnage among the Dragoons; plasma guns spat bolts of charged particles that bored into the front armour of the Testudos and blew two of them apart.
Sons of Horus weaponry. Plasma guns described as charged particle bolts. (PBW)


Page 369
Force Commander Lamnos lay in a coma, his primary heart and his oolitic kidney ruptured by an autocannon blast..
Another marine felled by autocannon.


PAge 369
"I want you to find Techmarine Askelon and instruct him to prepare a demolition device that will destroy the assembly building and everything within it. According to him, the siege guns’ ammunition sections are fully-loaded. If he can rig the shells to detonate it should devastate everything within a five kilometre radius."
Effect of siege gun ammo. Sadly we dont know whta "devastate" means (thermal, blast, combination, etc.)


Page 370
Nemiel hurried back to the rear section of the war machine and scrambled up onto the dorsal hull. The armoured deck stretched for a hundred metres from one end to the other, nearly as long as an Imperator Titan was tall.
Imperator titan "nearly a hundred" metres tall. Also the length of the super-artillery platform.


Page 374-375
The war machine rose like a plasteel and ceramite mountain over the Astartes, its Hydra flak batteries and mega-bolter turrets along its flanks traversing to bear on the enemy ranks. The multi-barrelled laser batteries opened fire, unleashing a torrent of bolts at the stationary battle tank. The tank all but vanished in the glare of hundreds of detonations as the laser bolts pounded the armoured hull. Individually, each shot lacked the power to penetrate the mighty tank’s reinforced ceramite plates, but one among the hundreds of impacts landed a direct hit on the plate steel bolted hastily over its former wound and burned straight through. Smoke billowed from the tank’s open ports as the thermal effects of the bolt incinerated the crew in a split second.

A pair of mega-bolters roared to life next, sending a stream of heavy calibre shells over the heads of the Dark Angels and into the enemy’s ranks. Rhinos shuddered beneath dozens of hits and were torn apart in seconds; the Astartes standing alongside them fared little better. The Sons of Horus recoiled under the storm of shells; dozens of the warriors fell, their armour riddled with holes. The rest wavered for a moment more and then broke, retreating swiftly back into cover among the surrounding buildings. Mega-bolter shells pursued them the entire way, slaying a dozen more before the rest could escape.
Super artillerywar machine in action. Note the Rhinos take dozens of hits from mega bolters and blow apart in "seconds".. but not instantly. Soul Hunter implied Mega bolters constitute at least .2-.5 kg of TNT for cratering, so "dozens" of hits (2 dozen t least, as an OoM estimate means 5-12 kg worth of TNT analogue to "destroy" a Rhino, minimum, and could be an ooM or greater. Considering mega bolters penetrate as well as detonate.. its a bit more complicated than that anyhow.

Since laser battery bolt incinerates battle tank crew (4-6 crew) in split second... if cremate it menas 4-6 gigajoules.. 3rd degree burns might mean 4-6 MJ (or half that, depending on how generous/conservative you are) "hundreds" of bolts destroy a tang (hundreds or thousands of mj if badly burn type incineration.) to hundreds or thousands of GJ.



Page 376-377
Behind him, heavy plasteel machinery rattled and groaned as the siege gun’s auto-loading mechanism fed a magma shell into the cannon’s breech. Recalling what such shells had done to the forge, he felt a deep sense of dread.
..
The air blazed with a flare of orange and yellow light as the cannon fired, rocking the massive war machine back against its drive units. Nemiel felt the concussion of the blast like the fist of a god striking his chest; several of the Astartes staggered beneath the blow, while downrange the pressure wave hurled the wrecked Rhinos about like broken toys. The magma shell roared skyward, flaring like a shooting star until it was lost from sight behind the planet’s thick overcast.

They waited in silence, counting the seconds as the shell reached its apogee and began to fall to earth once more. Two minutes after the shot there was a flash of searing white light on the southern horizon, followed by a furious rumble that shook the earth where the Astartes stood, more than thirty kilometres away. A hot breeze wafted against their faces, smelling of molten steel and ash, and a slowly-rising pillar of dirt and debris climbed portentously into the sky. With a single stroke, the enemy ground force had been utterly destroyed.
Siege cannon fires.. 30 km range and 2 minutes suggests something like a 66 degree angle and a velocity of around 600 m/s. We dont know the effects beyond that because we dont know what kind of weapon it was.



Page 384
"Make sure the checkpoints are issued thermal auspex units," Zahariel cut in. "Even a thermal lasgun sight will do. The corpses will have a much lower heat signature than the civilians around them."
Thermal auspex, or thermal lasgun sight for guardsmen.


Page 395
Two of the creatures thrashed and hissed, bathed in streams of fiery promethium. A third blew apart as a pair of meltagun shots struck in at the head and midsection, showering the rest with splashes of steaming ichor.
Meltagun blows apart creautre (high KJ range per shot maybe for efficient exploding, double digit MJ for stem explosion)


PAge 396
A plasma shot from Lord Cypher struck the opposite side of the queen’s skull a moment later, leaving a glowing crater gouged into the bone and boiling its brains in the blink of an eye.
hundreds of kj to several MJ, depending on mass of brain (sevreal kg to several tens of kg maybe?)


Page 409-410
. A vast, reddish-brown stain, like old blood, hung in the planet’s ochre sky. The dust and ash blown into the atmosphere by the destruction of the forge – and to a lesser extent, the devastation of the star port, hours later – would have far-reaching effects upon the planet. The few thousand inhabitants who remained would face lean and difficult times for generations to come.
Devastation wrought by orbital bombardment and superheavy artillery, respectively.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Next up on the horus Heresy Network is Nemesis by James Swallow. The story deals with the Assassinorum, prior to them becoming temples. Highlights include finally learning more about Vanus and Venenum, a Pariah covered in daemonskin, Horus schooling Erebus, and an assasination attempt on Horus. It's one of the few 'non-Astartes' HH novels, less filler than Battle for the Abyss (but still a sort of filler, in that nothing significant really happens.) and Par for James Swallow's work, but it wasn't a horrible novel either (in the sense I enjoyed it, even if there wasn't anything truly epic going on.)

Two post update, like usual.

Part 1


Page 11-12
Gyges Prime was a murdered world, dead now, all but an ashen ember. Around the encampment, porous black rock ranged away under a cowl of low mist, the haze itself the remains of cities pounded into radioactive dust by countless bombardments from orbit. Arsenals of nuclear munitions had been emptied to bring the planet to the executioner’s block, and now the cooling corpse of the world lay swaddled in its own death-shroud, a virulent and silent pall of radiation that smothered everything.
...
...high walls of shield rock did their best to cut the fiery winds from the shattered landscape. Men, such as the soldiers that had crisped and burned like paper in the onslaught, would have died for the sake of living an hour outside in this nightmare, had any of them survived this long. The invaders had no such weaknesses, however.
...
They would not stop to consider that the air now passing into their lungs was laced with the particulate remains of every man, woman and child that had called Gyges Prime home.
Nuclear bombardment of the world (whether by nukes or a nuke-like weapon we don't know) triggered a mass extinction event - entire population reduced to ash and cities demolished - implies nuclear firestorms of some large scale at least. Teratons to petatons total firepower, although how many and how long and the other details we dont know.

It's apparently still cooling however


Page 12
The dozen other colony worlds of the Gyges system, each of them more valuable, more populous than this one, they would look through their mnemoniscopes and watch this ember cool and fade.
13 colony worlds in the Gyges system. Again the Imperium seems to populate densly, at least in some systems.


Page 13
In the dimness of his dormitory capsule back on the warship, Tobeld had used a quarter of the elements of his weapons kit to fabricate a strong dosage of counter-radiation drugs; the rest he had turned to the building of the compound that nestled inside the finger-long glass vial strapped to the inside of his wrist.
Venenum assassin as we learn. apparently he has a kit that allows him to synthesize any needed poison from basic elements. Or medicines (radiation fighting meds)


Page 14
Two years had passed since the betrayal at Isstvan, the bloody backstabbing that opened the way to Horus’ insurrection against the Imperium and his father, the Emperor of Mankind.
At this point in time, two years since Isstvaan.


Pgae 15
He was one of Clade Venenum’s finest tox-artisans; in his apprenticeship he had manufactured killing philtres from the most base of components, he had terminated dozens of targets and left no trace.
Assasssin's clade/temple, and again sythesizing poisons from basic elements.


Page 20
He twisted wildly in Korda’s grasp, catching the Astartes fractionally off-guard, stabbing downwards with the glassy cylinder. Motion- sensing switches in the crystalline matrix of the vial obeyed and opened a tiny mouth at the blunt end, allowing a ring of monomol needles to emerge. Little thicker than human hairs, the fine rods could penetrate even the hardy epidermis of an Adeptus Astartes.
Useful toy. even the vials can be weapons, at least for a Venenum agent.


Page 24-25
"Perhaps, if he were not kept ignorant of the threats to our campaign, he might—”

“Push on to the Segmentum Solar, and to Earth?” Erebus seemed to close the distance between them without actually moving. “That is the root of it, am I right? You feel that the measured pace of our advance is too slow. You wish to lay siege to the Imperial Palace tomorrow.”
...
“A month would be enough,” retorted Sedirae, showing teeth. “It could be done. We all know it.”
Implies they could Reach Terra and attack/conquer it within a month. Not sure about the conquest part, but it at least implies they're able to take no longer than weeks or a month to reach Terra from their current location. At least 10-20K LY away, although later we hear Horus is 'half a galaxy away' from Terra. call it 10-60K LY, with a travel speed of at least 120,000c, up to 720,000c for a month. The actual value could probably fall within an order of magnitude of tha (tens to hundreds of thousands of c easily.)


Page 33
For all the grand words and high ideals spouted by the Adeptus Arbites, at least on Iesta Veracrux that particular branch of the Adeptus Terra was less interested in the policing of the planet than they were in being seen to be interested in it.
...
...the installation of an office of the Arbites here during the Great Crusade had done little to change that state of affairs. The Lord Marshal and his staff seemed more than happy to remain in their imposing tower and allow the Sentine to function as they always had, handling all the “local” matters. Quite what the Arbites considered to be other than local had never, in twenty years of service, been made clear to Yosef Sabrat.
Arbites have been around during the Crusade era for at least 20 years. What they do, and how effective they are really isn't known, but this example implies they are pretty useless at this point.


PAge 34
On splayed tripod legs, a quad of gangly field emitters stood at the corners of an illdefined square, a faint yellow glow connecting each to its neighbours. The permeable energy membrane allowed objects above a certain mass or kinetic energy to pass through unhindered, but kept particulates and other micro-scale matter in situ to aid with on-site forensics.
Interesting forcefield tech, used for forensic/criminal investigatory purposes (to keep a crime scene as sterile as possible.) It also displays an interesting variation of 'selective permeability' that many forcefields (powerfields, voids, etc.) show - allowing objects of a cerrtain 'mass' or 'kinetic energy' (which I take to mean velocity, since KE can include mass) to pass through. In this case it seems to keep the small stuff (microbes, etc.) out but let big stuff in.


Page 39
The walls of the chamber, dark mahogany panels adorned with minimalist artworks and a few lume-globes, concealed lay ers of instrumentality that rendered the room and everything in it completely dead to the eyes and ears of any possible surveillance.

There were counter-measures that fogged radiation detection frequencies, devices that swallowed sound and heat and light, working alongside slivers of living neural matter broadcasting the telepathic equivalent of white noise across all psychic spectra. There was even a rumour that the chamber was cloaked by a field of disruption that actually dislocated local space-time by several fractions of a second, allowing the room to exist a heartbeat into the future and out of reach of the rest of the universe.
Stated and implied security measures against spying and eavesdropping.


Page 40
Masks covered their countenances from brow-line to neck, and like the room they were in, these outer concealments were far more than they appeared. Each mask was loaded with advanced technologies, data-libraries, sensoria, even microweapons, and each had a different aspect that was the mirror of its wearer..
Heads of the clades/Temples. Shows perhaps the height of imperial miniaturization tech at this stage of things.


Page 42
"When the day comes that someone invents a rifle you can fire from the safety of your chair and still hit Horus half a galaxy away, you can save us all."
Horus is 'half a galaxy away' suggesting an upper limit to the implied FTL speed I guessed before.


Page 42
"“My clade’s predictive engines and our most diligent info-cytes have concluded, based on all available data and prognostic simulations, that the probability of Tobeld’s survival to complete his mission was zero point two percent."
Vanus seems to do a fair bit of predictive and probability simulation stuff.


Page 43
“We all remember that day on Mount Vengeance. The pact we made in the shadow of the Great Crusade, the oath that breathed life into the Officio Assassinorum. For decades we have hunted down the enemies of our Emperor through stealth and subterfuge."
origins and implied lifespan (at this time) of the Officio Assasinorum.


Page 57
Operations. That seemed to be the current word of choice to describe the actions of the Arbites on Iesta Veracrux. A colourless, open term that belied the reality of what they were actually doing – which was quietly dredging the lower cities and the upper echelons alike for the slightest evidence of any anti-Imperial sedition and pro-Horus thinking, ruthlessly stamping out anything that might blossom into actual treason.
Guess I was wrong, and the arbites are pretty active at this time, although in their typically ruthless manner. Possibly more so, given the situation of the Heresy (everyone seems to be reacting extremely as a result.)


Page 74
His bulk was hidden beneath the ill-defined layers of a sandcloak which concealed an articulated suit of ablative armour. It was by no means a relative to the elaborate and majestic Custodian wargear that was his normal garb; the armour was unsophisticated, scarred and heavily pitted with use.
...
At his side was a careworn long-las inscribed with Techno-mad tribal runes and an explorer’s pack containing survival gear and supplies, the latter for show. With his enhanced physiology, Valdor would have been able to live for weeks on the plains on drops of moisture he sucked from the dirt or the sparse meat of insects.
Valdor's disguise. Long-las seemed more common (civilian use?) back when in the Heresy, if they can be used in that manner. Some sort of ablative (solid) armor, a form of carapac eperhaps.

Also Custodes can surive for weeks on small amounts of water.


Page 75
Wearing a sandcloak similar to the Custodian’s, the smaller man was busy with a pane of hololithic text projected from a cybernetic gauntlet clasped around his wrist. With his other hand he manipulated shapes in the hologrammatic matrix...
...
A tight nest of dreadlocks drawing over Tariel’s head did their best to hide discreet bronze vents in the back of his skull, where interface sockets gleamed alongside memory implants and dataphilia. Unlike the cohorts of the Mechanicum, who willingly gave themselves fully to the marriage of flesh and machine, Tariel’s augmentations were discreet and nuanced.
...
They called Tariel’s kind “infocytes”; essentially they were human computing engines, but at the very far opposite of the spectrum from the mindless meat-automata of servitors. In matters of strategy and tactics, the insight of an infocyte was unparalleled; their existence cemented Clade Vanus as the intelligence-gathering faction of the Officio Assassinorum.
Vanus agent of this little excursion, as wlel as his equipment/enhancements.


Page 83
Eurotas counted high admirals, scions of the Navis Nobilite and even one of the Lords of Terra among his circle of friends; his business clan could trace its roots back to the time of Old Night, and it was said that the hereditary Warrant of Trade held by his family had been personally ratified by the Emperor himself. Such was his high regard that the man served the Adeptus Terra as an Agenda Nuntius, the Imperial Court’s attaché for every human colony in the Taebian Sector.
Rogue Trader who also acts as a local agent of the Adeptus Terra. Probably representative of one of those higher level Rogue Traders in the Imperium (at least at this time) as far as Warrants of trade go.


Page 84
...her superior was sweeping all that aside in favour of doing everything possible to appease the Consortium; because Iesta Veracrux supplied wines to the entire Ultima Segmentum, and without Eurotas, the planet’s economy would die on the vine.
Segmentum-scale mercantile trade in wines, which has certain implications. One such is that it is tightly regulated/monopolized by specific cartels who have control over long-distance travle.


Page 86
They wore the patchwork gear of a junkhunter gang, armour cobbled together from a dozen disparate sources, faces hidden behind breath filters and hoods. All of them were armed with large-gauge weapons – different varieties of stubber guns mostly, but he also spied a couple with twinbarrelled laser carbines, and one with the distinctive shape of a plasma gun held at the ready.
Probably Terran equivalent of Hive Gangers or Ash nomads (basially feral types with access to high tech.). Note the double barrelled las weapon, which seems to qualify as 'large gauge'. Does this mean it fires a wider beam like some other lasweapons we've noted?


Page 86
Only eight, eight humans, some of them likely to have reflex enhancements, perhaps even dermal plating, but still only eight. He knew with complete certainty that he would be able to kill them all in less than sixty seconds, and that was if he took his time about it.
Augmentations avialable even to 'lower order' types at this scale (bandits or again gangers.) Although this is Heresy era again, its still interesting. And VAldor thinks he can still take them easily.


Page 87
The first was the figure standing up through a hatch in the GEV’s cab, behind the pintle mount of a quin-barrel multilaser. The gunner had an unobstructed arc of fire that was directly centred on Valdor, and as resilient as he was, without his usual wargear to protect him the heavy weapon would put the Custodian down before he took ten paces.
5-barreled multilaser, which would be unable to penetrate Custodes armour. If Valdor had it.


Page 87
In the distance, perhaps a kilometre away, maybe more, the Custodian thought he saw something brief and bright. A glint off a metallic object atop a low butte.
Vindicaire assassin, approximate range.


Page 88
Looking again, the Custodian could see a second, unmanned weapon mount on the rear of the hover-truck. Untended, it pointed the mouth of a surface-to-air missile tube skyward.
40K the NRA's dream where a civilian can own surface to air missiles. And hover-vehicles for civilian use again. :P


Page 89
A heartbeat later, the gunner’s upper torso exploded into chunks of meat on a blast of pink fluids.
...
The junkhunter’s body bifurcated at the spine with a wet chug, collapsing to the sand.
...
The Custodian let his arm fall, and stood still as three more of the gang were torn apart where they stood.
Exitus rifle. Damage is easily comparable to say, a bolter, but we dont know what kind of ammo is being used. Also note that with the earlier stated range (1 km or so away) we get a muzzle velocity of at least about mach 3 or so at least (depending on exact range and the timeframe one uses for heartbeat - I just gneeralized at about a second)


Page 91
“How did you know when to fire?”

“His weapon’s scope contains a lip-reading auspex,”
Exitus rifle scope.


Page 95
The notification for a citizen ident read Not Found. That meant that the killer was unregistered, which was a rare occurrence on Iesta Veracrux, or else they were from somewhere else entirely. He chewed on that thought for a moment.

“He’s an off-worlder.”
Every citizen of the planet has at least their blood types/genetic patterns (if not other details) well known to the government and law enforcement agencies, making them easy to identify and track down, as wlel as to separate offworlders from natives. Implication is that the check is not 100% perfect, but close enough that it is more or less a reasonable assumption for the law enforcement ot make.


Page 99-100
...the Consortium ran every inter-system ship that came to Iesta Veracrux, and as a part of Imperial transit law, all travellers were required to submit to cursory medical checks in order to prevent the spread of any potential biosphere-specific contagions from world to world. That data would exist in the Consortium’s records.
A sane policy.


Page 101
He sighed and used a micropore kerchief to dab at his head before returning to the nested layers of hololith panes floating above his cogitator gauntlet.
Vanus gauntlet thingy is a cogitator.


Page 103
...he returned to the hololiths, leafing through them as if they were pages made of glass hanging suspended in the air. Anyone watching him would have only seen the motions of his hands and nothing else; Tariel had tuned the images to a visual frequency only readable by his enhancile retinal lenses.
More on the Vanus computer toys.



Page 103-104
The infocyte sent a small swarm of organic-metal netfly automata out to chew into any opti-cables they found, and parse what rich data flows they located back to him. Each fly was by itself a relatively unsophisticated device, but networked en masse, the information the swarm returned could be cohered into a dense picture of what was happening in the surrounding area.

Tariel had already assembled maps of the nearby structures, the flows of foot and vehicular traffic, and he was currently worming his way into the encoding of several hundred monitor beads scattered throughout the zone.
Another bit of Vanus toys... as wlel as their info gathering capacities. And yet another case of some sort of insect sized/shaped spy gear.


Page 104
...images of men, women and other humans of indeterminate gender performing acts upon one another that were as fascinating as they were repulsive.
40K humanity seems to have broken the dual-gender barriers in some fashion. Abhumans perhaps? Probably not mutants, although that is possible as well (IT's not as if there is always a well regarded difference between the two that is always adhered to.)


Page 105
The persona-implants that had been used to bolster the cover identity were crumbling like sand, and recollection of any particular point of them was difficult.

It wasn’t important. The false overlay was drifting away, and beneath was revealed her real self; such as it was. Iota was not a blank slate, as those who did not fully understand the works of her clade might think. No. She was a fluid in the bottle of herself, a shape without definition, a form needing direction, a space to fill.
Culexus agent's mental nature, and the availability of mental/personality overlays.


Page 106
Without the dampener device concealed in the necklet, the icy void inside her would have spread wide.
Another case of a pariah/untouchable having a device that damps out/reduces their null signature.


Page 107-108
The other woman came into the room striding like a man, and around the back of her scalp she wore an emitter crown, the delicate filigree of crystalline psyber-circuits and implant tech glowing with soft light. She towered over the diminutive Iota, nearly two metres tall in elevated boots of shiny blue leather....
...
She carried a device that resembled a bulbous tonfa in one hand, one end of it bladed, the other crackling with energy.
...
He was on the other end of the emitter crown, somewhere nearby, his body in repose while he forced his consciousness onto the flesh of the proxy.
An interesting use of MIU/psychic links and implants I suppose. No idea what the bladed device is.


Page 115
...but if psykers reflected the far extreme of a spectrum, and ordinary men and women the brief candles of life in the middle ground, then what could represent the opposite end of that balance?
...
They were called pariahs. Chance births, less than one in a billion, children born, so it was said, without a soul. Where a psyker burned sun-bright, they were a black hole
Untouchable/Pariah frequency. and the comparison between psykers, normal humans, and untouchables/Pariahs


PAge 116
The Clade Culexus harvested pariahs wherever they were found, and rumour suggested that they might even grow them wholesale from synthesis tanks in some secret fleshworks in the wilds of Terra.
Culexus Pariah origins.


Page 117
Over the disarray in the street below them, his spy mask’s audial sensors had detected the sound of gravity-resist motors.
...
“Gunships,” said Tariel, studying his hololiths. “Cyclone-class."
Cyclone class anti grav gunships.. private use on Terra.


Page 119
The sapphire eye-clutch shimmered and the punishing gaze of the weapon known as the animus speculum was turned upon him.

Power, raw and inchoate, sucked in from the fabric of the warp and from the guardian’s abortive attack, drawn in like light from the event horizon of a singularity, was now unleashed. A pulse of energy flashed from the psychic cannon and blasted the warlord’s bodyguard backward, slamming him into the wall of the courtyard. As he tumbled to the ground, he combusted from within, the fire consuming his flesh and his screams.
Animus speculum in action.


Page 119
A black blur fluttered in the light of an explosion and the armoured windscreen cracked and crazed as indigo fire lashed across it. Great gobs of polymer glass denatured and collapsed, smothering the servitor in a suffocating blanket of superheated plastic. The car spun out and collided with a bollard.
Info on vehicle building materials, and the Culexus' powers allowing her to melt through it.


Page 120
Jun’s lips were pressed to the cold steel of the mask, and agony spiked through him. He fell back, and spat dust. Raw pain boiled at his extremities as his flesh blackened and became thick ash, crumbling before his eyes until those too rotted in their sockets and shrivelled to nothing. Jun Yae Jun’s very energy of life was drawn from him, leached into the force matrix webbing the assassin’s stealthsuit, until there was nothing left of him but a slurry of indeterminate matter.
A literal kiss of death. Life draining touch of the Culexus. Whether it is a purely technological device or a result of Cuelxus technology we dont know. The ominous implication here is how it ties to C'tan feeding and biotransference.... to me at least. Considering pariah origins that isn't neccesarily a coincidence either.


Page 124
The planet was a trading partner with Iesta Veracrux, a few light years distant down the spine of the Taebian Sector’s mercantile routes...
...
By the interstellar scales of the Imperium of Man, Dagonet was practically a neighbour.
Scale of distances between worlds in the Imperium, at least at the sector scale.


Page 128-129
“Iota is designated as a protiphage. She’s not human, Kell, not like you or I. The girl is a replicae.”

“A clone?” The sniper looked back at the silent Culexus. “I would not think it beyond the works of her clade to create such a thing.” Still, he wondered how the genomasters would have gone about it. Kell knew that the Emperor’s biologians were greatly skilled and possessed of incredible knowledge – but to make a living person, whole and real, from cells in a test tube…

“Exactly!” insisted Tariel. “A being without a soul. She’s closer to the xenos than to us.”
Apparently you can clone Pariahs with some success. One wonders why the same is not true of psykers (or maybe it is and we just don't hear about it.) One possibility is that its a cost/benefit thing. One in a billion (pariahs) isn't quite the same as one in a million (psykers) after all.


Page 136
He had a dim understanding of the other times, the times when he would lie in the baths of amnio-fluids as the patient machines of his clade healed his wounds or upgraded the stimjectors and drug glands throughout his body. The times when, in the dreamless no-sleep between missions, hypnogoge data streams would unfold in his head like blossoms of information, target profiles linked to mood-triggers that would give him bursts of elation for every kill, jolts of pleasure for each waypoint reached, jerks of pain if he deviated off-programme.
Inside the mind of an Eversor, at least in part. Overall they're described as beings who live basically in the present - they only have dim memories of their pasts (even in the short term it seems) and not care about the future. They exist only in the present more or less, and require external guidance to function as anything other than a killing machine. Unsurprisingly they have to use conditioning to get them to do anything as well (through stimulating pain/pleasure responses.)


Page 137
He had taken and employed several light stubber guns, using each until the ammo dram ran dry, then making the weapons into clubs he used to beat his kills to the floor; but the stubbers were only good for a few hits before his violence broke them across the frame and he was forced to discard them.


Some sort of stubber that apparently isnt a machine gun, but is also bigger than a pistol.


Page 142
one hand he had a stubber carbine, liquid dripping from the blunt maw of the barrel.
Stubber Carbine. Might be what he was using in the previous quote.


Page 142
There were rumours that every Eversor had an abeyance meme encoded into their brains, a nonsense string of words that would lull them into inaction, or even send them into neuro-death if spoken aloud...
Seems like a good precaution given what happens if they get loose without being conditioned properly.


Page 142-143
Among the many implants beneath the flesh of an Eversor were passive sensing baffles that could confuse the detector heads of many conventional scanners.
Eversor seem to incorporate some sorts of stealth measures.


Page 143
She let the force matrix built into the structure of her stealth-suit come alive, allowing it to reach its web of influence beyond the real and into the etherium of the warp; but the process was slow. Had she been fighting a psyker, she could have drained them dry in a moment, siphoned off their power for herself. But here and now, there was nothing but the commonplace energy of air and heat and life. She felt the eye of the animus speculum slowly iris open – but even as it did she knew it would not be ready in time.
Implies that the animus speculum might be able to charge itself from the warp directly (or perhaps from just conventional energy sources like heat/light or human energy, although that may just be referring to diferent energy sources than what the animus uses) - but it's a much lengthier process than tapping it through a psyker.


Page 144-145
Time seemed to thicken and slow, the hazy man-shape falling down towards her; then she was distantly aware of a heavy report and suddenly the Garantine’s fall was deflected.

He jerked away at a right angle, as if pulled on an invisible cord.

Iota saw the steaming wound in the rage-killer’s chest as he stumbled back to his clawed feet, shaking off the strike.
...
The white colouration faded into ink-black as the Vindicare deliberately reset his cameoline cloak to a null mode, allowing the Eversor to see him clearly.
...
The first shot had been a kinetic impact round, the kind of bullet that could shatter the engine block of a hover track or reduce an unarmoured man to meat; that had been enough to attract the Garantine’s attention.
Effects of an Exitus Rifle again (I'd guess the implied effects are at least AMR grade, which sint surprising) and the Eversor shrugs it off.


Page 145
The round was a heavy dart, fashioned from high-density glassaic. It contained a reservoir of gel within, pressure-injected into the target’s flesh on impact; but it was not a drug or philtre. An Eversor’s body was a chemical hell of dozens of interacting combat medicines, and no poison, no sedative could have been enough to slow it. The gelmatter in the rounds was a myofluid with a very different function; when exposed to oxygen it created a powerful bioelectric charge, a single hit strong enough to stun an ogryn.
An interesting nonlethal round.


Page 153-154
Outwardly, the Ultio resembled the class of light bulk transport ships that travelled a thousand different sub-light intrasystem space lanes across the Imperium. It was a design so commonplace that it became almost invisible in its ubiquity; a perfect blind for a craft in service to the Officio Assassinorum. Small by the standards of the mammoth starcruisers that comprised the fleets of the Imperial Navy and the rogue trader baronage, the Ultio was every inch a lie. A stubby trident, the shaft of the main hull – what appeared to be space for cargo – was in fact filled with the mechanisms and power train for an advanced design of interstellar warp motor. The craft had been constructed around the old engine, the origins of which were lost to time, and it was only the forward arrowhead-shaped section of the ship that was actually given over to cabins and compartments. This module, swept back and curved like an aerodyne, was capable of detaching itself from the massive drives to make planetfall like a gun cutter. Inside, the crew sections of the Ultio were cramped and narrow, with sleeping quarters no larger than prison cells, hexagonal corridors and a flight deck configured with advanced gravity simulators so that every square centimetre of surface area could be utilised.
Officio stealth ship of some kind. Implied to be very compact (but not so small it can land easily - between 500-1000 m perhaps?) with much of that internal space taken up by the wapr drive, apparently. Rather interesting considering we do have a few (rare) cases of smaller warp capable ships - you'd think the Assassins would have a warp drive like that.


Page 155
There was no body to the pilot, not anymore; like the venerable dreadnoughts of the Adeptus Astartes, a being that had once been a man many centuries ago was now only a few pieces of flesh interred inside a body of iron and steel. Somewhere deep inside the block of computational hardware that filled the rear section of the crew deck, parts of a brain and preserved skeins of nerve ganglia were all that remained. Now he was the Ultio, and
the Ultio was him, the hull his skin, the fires of the fusion core his beating heart. Kell tried to comprehend what it might be like to surrender one’s self to the embrace of a machine, but he could not. He was, on some base level, appalled by the very idea of such a merging; but what he thought counted for nothing.
Yet another case of 'Dreadnought like' fusion between ship and a pilot... this was treated as some sort of heretical/revolutionary thing in Gildar Rift - although since this is the Heresy era, it could be that in the intervening time the methods were lost (although I kinda doubt it, given that similar interfaces are pretty commonplace on ships and Titans, although perhaps not to this degree...) And of course there are all those servitor pilots and such.


PAge 156
Although the Garantine was not tethered to the deck by any chains or fetters, there was no way he could have come to his feet. The gravitational plates beneath the floor of the Eversor’s compartment were operating well above their standard setting, confining the assassin to the floor with the sheer weight of his own flesh. Veins stood out from his bare skin as his bio-modified physiology worked to keep him alive; an unaugmented human would have died from collapsed lungs or crushed organs within an hour or so.

The Garantine had been in the room for two days now...
Antoher indicator of Eversor resilience.



Page 163
The cloud of satellites and Trojan asteroids surrounding it were full of human colonies, factories and forges, powered by drinking in the radiation surging from the mammoth planet, feeding on mineral riches that in centuries of exploitation had yet to be fully exhausted. Jupiter was Terra’s shipyard, and its sky was forever filled with vessels. Centred around Ganymede and a dozen other smaller moons, spacedocks and fabricatories worked ceaselessly to construct everything from single-crew Raven interceptors up to the gargantuan hulls of mighty Emperor-class command-carrier battleships.
The shipyards of Jupiter. It's hard to find any hard numbers, but I learend that Jupiter radiates roughly 1.5-2x the energy it receivesf rom the sun.

Note that according to here it receives 13 watts per square meter, and 10 watts internally. call it 20-30 watts per square metre. With a surface area of 6e16 m^2 roughly we're talking something roughly in the 1-2e18 watt range for powering those shipyards. That also means they have some means of capturing and transforming the energy radiated by the moon into something useful, although it makes you wonder why they just don't capture the energy from the sun directly if they can capture it from jupiter. *shrugs* Since they'd probably have to do it with admech help, maybe they just didn't think of doing it in a practical manner - this is the AdMech after all....


PAge 163
In the opening moves of the insurrection, an alliance of turncoats, men of the Mechanicum and traitors from the Word Bearers Legion, had assembled in secret a dreadnought called the Furious Abyss, constructing it in a clandestine berth on the asteroid-moon Thule. The small Jovian satellite had been obliterated during the ship’s explosive departure and the ragged clump of its remains still orbited far out at the edges of the planetary system; but the shockwave from Thule’s destruction and the Abyss incident was still being felt.
This sets some pretty firm upper limits on the construction time of the Furious abyss - far less than a century at the worst, and probalby well within the roughly 40 year timeframe implied in First Heretic for Word Bearer treachery. In any case it's still involving a effing huge ship (remember the size of the 60+ km Mass Conveyor in Thousand Sons - the AByss should be bigger) and this was done in secret.

It's not known whether Mars or Jupiter could still do this post-Heresy, but its certainly possible.


Page 164
Secure in its falsehood, the vessel passed under the shadow of the habitats at Iocaste and Ananke and then deeper into the Galiliean ranges, passing the geo-engineered ocean-moon of Europa and Io’s seething orange mass.
A sampling of the moons of Jupiter and their current state.


Page 164
It was said that only the Venus orbitals could surpass Saros Station for its luxury.
Venus has been inhabited at this point too.


Page 173
His reactions were perfect; his flawless new love for Jocasta – for that was what it was, the most pure and exact rendition of neurochemical release – was the final product of weeks of carefully tailored pheromone bombardment. Tiny amounts of meta-dopamine and serotonin analogues had been introduced to Rei over time, the dosages light enough that even the ultra-sensitive scanners of his machine-aide would not detect them. The cumulative amounts had pushed him into something approaching obsession; and combined with a physiological template based on his taste in female bed partners, the trap had been set and laden with honey.
Callidus hunting methods


Page 174
The small weapon concealed between Jocasta’s tongue and the base of her mouth was pushed up, held in place by clenched teeth. A lick of the trigger plate was all that was needed to fire the kissgun. The needle-sized round penetrated the roof of Rei’s mouth and fragmented, allowing the threads of molecule-thin wire to explode outward. The threads whirled through the meat of his nasal cavity and up into his forebrain, shredding everything they touched. He lurched backwards and fell to the bed, blood and brain matter drooling from his lips and nostrils.
After hearing about them in several of his other books, we see them in action. Rather nasty. Also shows a level of minaturization for such weapons as well as yet another kind of needle round (chemical/toxin, explosive, and now some sort of monomolecular flechette/wire)


Page 175
The killer spat out the kissgun and discarded it, then drew sharp nails along the inside of a muscular thigh. A seam in the skin parted to allow a wet pocket to open, and long fingers drew out a spool and handle affair from within.
...
The spool unwound into a thin taper of metal, which rolled out to the length of a metre. Once fully extended, the weapon became rigid; it was known as a memory sword, the alloy that comprised the blade capable of softening and hardening at the touch of a control.

Koyne liked the memory sword, liked the gossamer weight of it. Koyne liked what it could do, as well. With a savage slash, the blade sliced down the thin silk curtain and the motion alerted the mechanoid – but not quickly enough. Koyne thrust the point into the aide’s chromium chest and through the armour casing around the biocortex module that served as the robot’s brain. It gave a faint squeal and became a rigid statue.
Memory sword. Seems like a replacement for C'Tan phase blades (because there are no C'tan at this point, I think.)

Also robots have a 'biocortex' making them just a more extreme form of servitor/cyborg.


Page 175
Bio-implants and heavy doses of the shapeshifter drug polymorphine made skin, bone and muscle become supple and motile. Those who could not control the freedom it gave would collapse and turn into monstrosities, things like molten waxworks that were little more than heaps of bone and organs.
...
The Callidus did not recall any birth-gender; that data was irrelevant when it was possible to be man or woman, young or old, even human or xenos if the will was there.
Callidus shapeshifting. Also they seem to be asexual, which is interesting considering the earlier statements regarding 'intermediate gender'.


Page 177
Koyne sat and concentrated on Gergerra Rei, on his voice, his gait, the full sense of the man. Skin puckered and moved, thickening. Implants slowly expanded to add mass and dimension. Moment by moment, the killer changed.
Callidus MASS INCREASING tech :P


Page 180
The Callidus concentrated and retched, opening a secondary stomach to vomit up a packet of white, doughy material. With shaking hands, Koyne ripped open the thin membrane sheathing it and allowed air to touch the pasty brick inside. It immediately began to blacken and melt, and quickly the assassin pressed it to the glassaic of the cupola.
...
The assassin sat down in the middle of the room and drew up into a foetal ball, forgetting the face of the civilian, forgetting Gergerra Rei and the Queen Jocasta, remembering instead something old. Koyne let the polymorphine soften flesh into waxen slurry, let it flow and harden into something that resembled the chitin of an insect. Air was expunged, organs pressed together. By turns the body became a mass of dark meat; but still not quickly enough.

The Crusader maniple advanced into the observation cupola just as the package of thermo-reactive plasma completed its oxygenation cycle and self-detonated.
...
Koyne’s body, now enveloped in a cocoon of its own skin, went with them into the dark.
Callidus has a void capable survival form, can throw up explosives (at least a package), and we have a 'thermo reactive plasma' explosive, which seems to be some sort of chemical high explosive. Probably useful for some of the more extreme high performance chem weapons at least.


Page 183
..there to meet the great elliptical hulk of the Iubar, flagship of the Eurotas Consortium and spaceborne palace of the rogue trader who led it. A handful of other smaller ships attended the Iubar like handmaidens around a queen; and Yosef only thought of them as smaller because the flagship was so huge. The support craft were easily a match for the tonnage of the largest of the system cruisers belonging to the Iestan PDF.
The rest are probably escorts or maybe light cruisers, which goes to show the scale/scope of 'system ships' that PDFs use.


Page 195
The Iubar had decks filled with cogitator engines that hummed and whirred like patient cats, gangs of progitors moving back and forth between them with crystalline memory tubes and spools of optic coil. According to Hyssos, the devices were used to gather financial condition data from the various worlds along the Eurotas trade routes, running prognostic models to predict what goods a given planet might require months, years, even decades into the future.
Rogue trader with some (presumably) high end economic prediction engines. Useful stuff- wonder if thsi predicitve stuff can apply in other cases.


PAge 212-213
The killer had been made this way, taken from some human stock now so corrupted that its origin could not be determined, sheathed with a skein of living materials that seemed cut from the screaming depths of the warp itself. Perhaps a fluke of cruel nature, or perhaps a thing created by twisted genius, Spear was soulless, but unlike any stripe of psionic null Perrig had ever encountered.

It was a Black Pariah; the ultimate expression of negative psychic force. Perrig had believed such things were only conjecture, the mad nightmare creations of wild theorists and sorcerous madmen...
...
In them she saw her own mind reflected back at her, the power of her own psionic talents bubbling and rippling, copied and enhanced a thousandfold. Spear had tasted her blood, the living gene-code of her being – and now it knew her. It had her imprint.
...
And then, they met in the non-space between them. Beyond her ability to stop it, Perrig’s psionic ability unchained itself and thundered against Spear’s waiting, open arms.
...
In stillness, Spear released its burden and reflected back all that Perrig was, the force of her preternatural power returning, magnified into a silent, furious hurricane.

The woman became ashes and broke apart.
Black Pariah. Seems to be a Culexus and then some. No animus speculum for one thing.


PAge 213-214
The ship’s sight-blind Navigator took it through the routes that were little known, the barely-charted passages that the upper echelons of the Imperial government kept off the maps given to the common admiralty. These were swift routes but treacherous ones, causeways through the atemporal realm that larger ships would never have been able to take, the soul-light glitter of their massive crews bright enough that they would attract the living storms that wheeled and turned, while Ultio passed by unnoticed.

The phantom-ship was barely there; its Geller fields had such finely-tuned opacity and it engines such speed that the lumbering, predatory intelligences that existed inside warp space noted it only by the wake it left behind. As days turned and clocks spun back on Terra, Ultio flew towards Dagonet; by some reckonings, it was already there.
Several interesting details. The size and crew of a ship have a direct impact on its ability to transit the warp, whiwhc makes sense. A bigger ship with more crew will be more noticable to the warp entities, and draw their attention, which can create more turbulence or stresses on the hull which in turn can limit speed.

Secondly, some of the fastest wapr routes seem to be 'secret' knowledge, which makes you wonder who else (SpaceMarines, AdMech, etc.) might be concealing such routes as well.

Third, the Ultio seems to be extremely fast - covering the distance between Terra and Segmentum ultima (probably close to the eastern fringe - many tens of thousands of ligth years) in days or less. Indeed it may imply that due to the weird time dilation of the warp in this case, less time passes in realspace than passes in the warp (not unlike the routes in Dark Creed.) It must be borne in mind that in this caes, the speed is possible both because of the Ultio's design as well as the secret routes.


Page 217
“The animus speculum, yes,” said Soalm. “I’ve heard of it. But it is an ephemeral thing, isn’t it? Its use depends on the power of the opponent as much as that of the user, so I am led to believe.”
...
The woman plucked one of the grenades from the case and sniffed it. Her eyes narrowed. “What is this? It smells like the death of suns.”

“I am not permitted to know the full details,” admitted the infocyte.“But the devices contain an exotic form of particulate matter that inhibits the function of psionic ability in a localised area.”
Culexus weapons. Psyk out grenades are a recent design 2 years after Isstvaan, and the Animus Speculum again.


Page 217-218
“Toxin cordes.” The Vanus pressed a control and a belt threaded with glassy stilettos extended from a sealed drum marked with biohazard trefoils.
...
The Venenum carefully retrieved one of the daggers and turned it in her fingers. She held it up to the light, turning it this way and that so the coloured fluids inside the glass poison blade flowed back and forth.
Glass poison knifes. Implied to be mainly Venenum weapons of average quality, but might be usable by Callidus (who reaches for them as well, but doesnt know what they are either, so..)


Page 218
The weapon was a spindly collection of brass pipes with a crystalline bulb where a normal firearm might have had an ammunition magazine. Soalm took it and peered at the mesh grille where the muzzle should have been.

“A bact-gun,” she said, weighing it in her hand. “This may be useful.”

“The dispersal can be set from a fine mist to a gel-plug round,” noted Tariel.
Another Venenum weapon. You'd think they'd make use of needlers too given their use as poison weapons. Or maybe Virus grenades.



Page 219
There was a quiet cracking sound as the Callidus’ right hand stretched and shifted in shape, the human digits reformed and merging until they became something more approximate to the alien handprint. Koyne pressed home on the case and it sighed open, drooling droplets of purple liquid on to the decking. Inside the container, the organic look was even more disturbing; on a bed of fleshy material wet with more of the liquid rested a weapon made of blackened, tooth-like ceramics. It was large and off-balance in shape, the front of it grasping a faceted teardrop crystal the sea-green colour of ancient jade.

...
“It rips open minds, tears intellect and thought to shreds. Those it touches remain empty husks.”
Callidus neural shredder.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Part 2

Page 220
“I have weapons of my own, just not as obvious as yours. An electropulse projector, built into my cogitator gauntlet. And I have my menagerie. The psyber eagles, the eyerats and netfly swarms.”

Kell thought of the pods he had seen elsewhere aboard the Ultio, where Tariel’s cybernetically-modified rodents and preybirds and other animals slept out the voyage in dormancy..
Vanus 'weapons'.


Page 220-221
Every Vindicare used a longrifle that was uniquely configured for their biomass, shooting style, body kinestics, even tailored to work with the rhythm in which they breathed.
...
“Spectroscopic polyimager scope. Carousel ammunition loader. Nitrogen coolant sheath. Whisper-head suppressor unit. Gyroscopic balance stabiliser.” He paused. “As much of your original weapon as possible was salvaged and reused in this one.”
Vindicaire Exitus rifle.


Page 223
He returned Skelta’s nod and took a wary step through the field barrier and into the room, careful not to disturb the cluster of small mapping automata that scanned the crime scene with picters and ranging lasers.
CRIME SOLVING ROBOTS!


Page 227
“Oh. Yes. It’s a winestock. Many of the smaller lodges store vintage estufagemi here, holding barrels of it for years so it can mature undisturbed.”

“How many staff?”

Sabrat shook his head distractedly. “It… It’s all automated.”
Automated wine storage :P


Page 233
...vessels that were built as pleasure yachts or shuttlecraft, suborbitals and single-stage cargo barges for the runs to the near moons. Many of them had fallen foul of the system frigates blockading the escape vectors, torn apart under hails of las-fire; but more had simply failed. Ships that were overloaded or ill-prepared for the rigours of leaving near-orbit space had burned out their drives or lost atmosphere.
Ships fleeing the warzone. It seems (for civilian craft at least) total weight for liftoff matters as to whether or not they can make orbit. This may reflect the drive system (Chemical rockets would not be impossible on many insystem 40K ships, or it may just be something omre realistic than magical.)

Also frigate-scale system defense vessels.


PAge 233-234
Cloaked in stealth technologies so advanced they were almost impenetrable, it easily avoided the ponderous turncoat cruisers and their nervous crews...
...
The pilot’s brain drew information from scans of the traitorous ships to alter the electropigments of the hull, and by the time the assassin craft touched down at the capital’s star-port, it wore the same blue and green as the local forces, even down to the crudely crossed-out Imperial aquila displayed by the defectors.
Stealth capabilities of the Assasinorum vessel. also note the mention of system 'cruisers'


Page 237
Hyssos aimed the gun and fired at the place where a man’s heart would have been, but down came the arms and the shot was deflected away. He smelled a slaughterhouse stink coming off the creature, saw the sizzling pit in the limb from the impact as it filled with ooze and knit itself shut.


Spear's defensive abilities.


PAge 242-243
The iron-hard proboscis that penetrated there had licked at the matter of the lawman’s brain and siphoned off the chains of chemicals that were his memories, his persona. Then, Spear’s daemonskin had patterned itself on those markers, shifting and becoming. The change was so strong, so deep, that when Spear surrendered control to it, the camouflage aspect was not merely a mask that the murderer wore; it was a living, breathing identity. A persona so perfect that it believed itself to be real, resilient enough that even a cursory psionic scan would not see the lie of it.
...
With a guttural choke, Spear spat the proboscis from the soft palate of his mouth and into the skull through its right eye. Seeking, penetrating, it dug deep and found the regions of the dead man’s brain where his self was growing cold.
The Spear's 'stealth' impersonation capability. Seems like he is able to do something akin to what Space Marines and Lictors can do - basically absorb the thoughts/personalities of individuals and actually 'become' them, which alsos eems to includ ethe psiritual/psychic aspects. In this respect it's not only a Culexus but also a Callidus.

We learn the 'personality/thought' aspect is so strong that unless it is purged it can remain as a somehwat independent aspect of Spear.


Page 244
It fit snugly, but the adjustment of the fluid-filled morphing bladders layered underneath the Callidus’ skin allowed the assassin to alter body mass and dimension to accommodate it a little better.
The 'mass alteration' seems to involve bladders of some kind, but whether they ingest air, moisture or what we dont know.


Page 247
Spear pawed at a face that now resembled that of the Eurotas operative. It felt odd and incomplete. The churn of new memories and personality sucked in from Hyssos was curdling where it mixed with those of Sabrat, making him thought-sick. It seemed it would be necessary to purge the stolid reeve’s self sooner rather than later.
...
....Spear found the cage and tore it open, clawing inside to gather up the mind-scraps that were all that remained of Yosef Sabrat.
...

Then he began the purge, ripping and tearing, destroying everything that had been the man, vomiting up every nauseating, cloying skein of emotion, little by little sluicing Sabrat’s cloying self away.
More on the mental aspect of Spear's camo trick.


Page 248
...the toxin-filled stiletto hidden in a wrist sheath flew out in a shallow arc, piercing the stomach of the man on the left. The liquid inside was a consumptive agent that feasted on organic matter, even down to natural fibres and cured leather. He fell to the floor and began to dissolve
Callidus toxin stilletto.


Page 248
Koyne watched with detach ment as the Culexus’ dark power enveloped the man and destroyed him. His silent scream resonated and he became a mass of material like burned paper. In moments, a curl of damp smoke was all that marked the man’s passing; the other hapless soldier was now a puddle of fluids leaking away through the gridded decking of the elevator floor.
Culexus power in action. I still can't tell if it cremates or not.


Page 249
“His name was Mortan Gautami,” Iota said suddenly. “He never told anyone of it, but his mother had been able to see the future in dreams. He had a measure of postcognitive ability, but he indulged in narcotics, preventing him from accessing his potential.”

The skull head turned slightly. “I used that untapped energy to destroy him.”
Culexus destroy psykers with their own power. As a side effect it gives them some of the targets memories and knolwedge. Also some mention of pre and post coginition.


Page 250
The assassin learned quickly that the astropath was one of only a handful of its kind still alive in the Dagonet system.
...
...some of the newly empowered nobles had thought otherwise and made sure that at least a few telepaths capable of interstellar sending were kept alive.
The Dagonet system had a large number of astorpaths.. having 'a few' or 'a handful' alive implies there were a great many more to begin (double digits?)


Page 262
Beye knew that the patrol flyers carried nine-man teams with cyber-mastiffs and spy drones.
Police surveillance gear.


Page 262
Beye saw the glint of metal nozzles at her wrists just as she pursed her pale lips and blew out a long breath. A vaporous mist jetted from the nozzles and engulfed them all.
Venenum assassins seem to have all manner of dispensers or such for poison.


Page 286
Under Tariel’s guiding hand, the simple drive-brains of the monorails had obeyed his command and cut fast routes through the network that confused the PDF spy drones sent to follow them.
Automated trains and PDF spy drones.


page 294
The Venenum was precise in what she did; surgical and clean. Collateral damage was a term she refused to allow into her lexicon, and yet here they were, their presence more damaging to the locals than the guns of the nobles.
An interesting peek into Venenum philosohpy. And with the exception of perhaps the Eversor and (maybe) the Culexus, this is probably true of Vindicaire and Callidus as well.


Page 294
The man reached for her robes to stop her, and she tapped a dot of liquid onto the back of his hand from one of her wrist dispensers. The effect was immediate; he went pale and fell to the ground, the muscles in his legs giving out.
More Veneneum poison dispensers.


Page 298
"Hundreds of clanner troops, a dozen fan-jeeps and armoured GEVs, all of it scrap at the bottom of the Redstone river."
Fan jeeps and armoued GEVs. some sort of flyers/skimmers I'd guess. Not sure what GEV is - Gravitic Engine Vehicle maybe?


PAge 299
Grohl opened the case and produced a memory spool, the commercial kind that any core world civilian home of moderate means possessed.
Data storage tech.


Page 303
Spear had extruded a number of eyes and allowed them to wander the room, sweeping for surveillance devices.
Spear can create/emit independent 'eyes' for detection purposes.


Page 307
“Sadran turned his fury on the thing and it reflected it back.”
...
“Fires, lord. Sadran was consumed by his own fires.”
...
“I’ve never encountered a pariah capable of that…”
...
“It may be a fluke birth,” says the injured one. “Or perhaps some throwback from the experimentations of the Adeptus Telepathica.”
Spear's reputed origins. He must be a rare pariah variant, although we learn more later.


Page 314
Hair-like tendrils emerged from his epidermis, sampling the air and the ambient light all around. In moments Spear’s body became wet with sticky processor fluids, changing colour until it was night-dark. His features retreated behind a mask of scabbing crusts, and then he leapt soundlessly to the high ceiling. Secreted oils allowed him to adhere there..
Spear has camo and wall-climbing abilities too.


Page 315
It had been easy to sample the Void Baron’s breath; simply by standing close to him, Spear’s daemonskin sheath had plucked the microscopic particulate matter and DNA traces of his exhalations from the air, and stored them in a bladder.
Another useful trick.


Page 319
Once they were within the boundaries of the Segmentum Solar, security around the Eurotas flotilla would increase tenfold..
Security in Segmentum Solar is, for whatever reason much more intense. Whether this is internal (flotilla) security or Segmentum security we don't know


Page 319
The killer kept to the lines of tiles that glowed phosphor-green through the gelatinous lenses the daemonskin had grown over his eyes; normal human vision would have noticed nothing to differentiate the tiles on the floor of the reliquary, and so a luckless entrant would wander into one of the zones of contra-gravity stitched into the chamber..
Spear's Daemon-enhanced vision.


PAge 320
The daemonskin’s fronds waved gently as he moved, continually tasting the ambient atmosphere and temperature to keep the intruder cooled in synchrony. The thermal monitors studding every square centimetre of the reliquary walls looked for the glow of body heat, but saw nothing. All the patient, clever machines continued to believe the chamber was still empty.
Spear can fool thermal sensors too, it seems.


Page 324
“He is blood kindred to you. The animus speculum reads the colour of your auras. I saw the parity between them the first time I watched you through the eyes of my helm."

The culexus speculum can read auras. Interesting.


Page 338
Inside the case, concealed inside clever modules and secret sections, there were vials of powder, flat bottles of colourless fluid, thin strips of metallised chemical compounds, injectors and capsules and dermal tabs. The manner and means to end an entire city’s worth of human lives, if need be
More Venenum tools of the trade.


Page 339
It was a tarnished voc-locket, a type of portable recording device that lovers or family members gave to one another as a memento. The device contained a tiny, short-duration memory spool and hologram generator.
Fun visual/audio recording device in pendant form.


PAge 342
But in the depths of warp space, things were different. Here, with only metres of steel and the gauzy energy web of a Geller field between him and the thunder and madness of the ethereal...
...
Eurotas had granted him the use of a ship called the Yelene, a fast cutter from the Consortium’s courier fleet designed to carry low-mass, high-value cargoes on swift system-to-system runs.
Hull thickness of a rogue Trader fast cutter.


Page 352
He led Soalm out of the caverns through a vaulted hall of rock that had once held fuel rods for Dagonet’s long-dead atmosphere converters, and to a waiting GEV skimmer.

Once they were on their way out into the wilds, the noise of the hovercraft’s engines made conversation problematic at best.
GEV further defined. Seems to be some sort of hover craft. Also fuel rods mentioned.


Page 358
Four men, each armed with heavy-calibre weapons, were crowded around the only hatchway that led inside. They had hard eyes and the solid, dense builds of humans from heavy-gravity worlds. The assassin knew immediately that they were, to a man, career soldiers of long and lethal experience.
This seems to imply 'heavy gravity' worlders tend to be common soldiery (because heavy gravity always means high strength, although as discussed before on this forum this isn't inherently so without modification. Or maybe its weird warp magic BS tied to belief :P)


PAge 359
She knew the design; the chest was of advanced Martian manufacture, a highly secure transport capsule fitted with its own internal support fields, capable of longterm survival in a vacuum, even atmospheric re-entry.
Another reentry-capable security chest.


Page 362
..the husks of gutted space stations or the hulls of dead system cruisers still burning with plasma fires.
system defense cruisers.


Page 362
Places where the map-logs said there should have been cities were smoke-wreathed craters glowing with the aftershock of nuclear detonations; other settlements had simply been abandoned.
Cities cratered by nuclear detonations. We dont know how big of cities or whether it was just oen or multiple nukes, but it would imply fairly high yields (megatons is a fair approximation for city killers, but a big enough city with a big enough crater could be gigaton for a single detonation. Of course, multiple smaller detonations could be much lower, kiloton range.


Page 363
“This craft has a cogitator core aboard. Is it capable of taking us to orbit on its own?”

“Aye,” said the pilot, uncertain of where the question was leading. “It’s not recommended, but it can be done in an emergency.”
...
“if the crew are incapacitated...
Shuttle autopilot.


Page 365
..the location that Tariel had selected for the hide was a good one, high up inside an empty water tower on the roof of a tenement block a kilometre and a half from the plaza.
sniper position. Exitus rifle has at least a 1.5 km range.


Page 365
The water tower was too obvious a locale to make the hide. It was too… easy, and if Kell thought so, then any officer of the PDF down in the plaza might think the same, make a judgement and have counter-snipers put in place.
Might imply that other non-Assassin snipers (or PDF troops) could have weapons of similar range, which we know as likely from other sources.


Page 366
..arranged his cameoline cloak between the heat-distorted frames of two chairs. Combined with the deadening qualities of his synskin stealthsuit, the marksman would be virtually invisible.
Vindicare stealth systems


Page 366
An encrypted burst transmitter in his gear vest sent a signal lasting less than a picosecond.
Vindicaire transmitter.


Page 369
He frowned and went to work on the rifle, dialling in the imager scope, flicking through the sighting modes.
..
Microscopic sensor pits on the muzzle of the rifle fed information directly to his spy mask, offering tolerance changes and detailing windage measurements. He flicked down the bipod, settling the weapon. Kell let his training find the range for him, compensating for bullet drop over distance, coriolis effect, attenuation for the moisture of the late rains still in the air, these and a dozen other variables.
More Exitus rifle features.


Page 369
A figure swam into view, blurred slightly by the motion of air across the kilometres of distance between them. A middle-aged man in the uniform of a PDF troop commander. As he looked in Kell’s direction, his mouth moved and automatically a lipreading subroutine built into the scope’s integral auspex translated
the words into text.
Implied range and the lip-reading functions of the Exitus rifle.


Page 375
The massive craft passed in front of the sun, throwing a partial occlusion of black shadow across the landscape far below. It sank into a geostationary orbit, stately and intimidating, hanging in place over the capital city as the dawn turned all eyes below to the sky.

Every weapon in the battleship’s arsenal was prepared and oriented down at the surface – torpedo arrays filled with warshots that could atomise whole continents in a single strike, energy cannons capable of boiling off oceans, kinetic killers that could behead mountains through the brute force of their impact. This was only the power of the ship itself; then there was the minor fleet of auxiliary craft aboard it, wings of fighters and bombers that could come screaming down into Dagonet’s atmosphere on plumes of white fire. Swift death bringers that could raze cities, burn nations.
Firepower, both direct and indirect, of an Astartes 'battleship'.

Torpedoes that can demolish continents. We dont know whether 'strike' means single torpedoes or single salvoes, but it implies gigaton/teraton range at least (depending on how one defines the destruction and the size of the continent and other factors.)

Kinetic Killers that can demolish mountains is more probably megaton range (gigaton isn't impossible, but I doubt there are many 10 km mountains..) depending on whether it just demolishes the mountain or the mountain and the ground beneath.. On the other hand what does 'kinetic killers' mean? Is it a dedicated bombardment weapon, some sort of turret weapon (like a bobmardment cannon), or is it a broadside weapon?

"boiling off oceans" for energy cannon is perhaps the most energy-intensive feat. For an Earthlike (or similar habitability) planet we're talking e26-e27 J (depending on whether it just boils or if 'boil off' is meant to imply vaporization.) The one problem is that it doesn't imply duration - others indicate 'single' strikes, but that's not neccesarily the case here. But even if we assumed over a year of constant bombardment, at the yields above we'd probably be talking e19-e20 watts sustained firepower (still in the gigaton range!) On the other hand of course, it could be 'years' :P Or more likely it may not refer to oceans entirely (maybe just 10-15% of an ocean? :P)

Overall its probably more reasonable to say a battleship could amass gigaton/teraton range firepower per 'salvo/strike' - which isn't neccesarily 'per second' either - it depends on delay per weapons. It's also for a battleship - not the biggest of battleships, but not neccesarily a minor one either, which means cruisers and escorts would have less firepower (megaton range perhaps for a gigaton range battleship, depending where in the 'gigaton range' it sat.)

Oh and then there's the attack craft which can destroy 'cities' or 'nations' Again might be anywhere from 'megaton' (for a city, depending on how one defines 'destroy') up to gigaton/teraton ranges for a nation (Depending on the nation and the method.) And no duration is given here - it could mean in a single strike, or multiple attack runs.)


PAge 380-381
Who could have known that something as rare and as disgusting as a psychic pariah would be found here on Dagonet?
...
Unseen by the mortals around them, for a brief second the psyker bitch’s aura of icy negation had clipped the raw, mad flux of the daemonskin and the ephemeral bond that connected it – and Spear, as its merge-mate – to the psionic turmoil of the warp.
..
The girl was an engineered thing, something vat-grown and modified to be a hole in space-time, a telepathic void given human form. A pariah.
rather interesting.. the 'Pariah' in this book is acutally a type of pskyer (or anti pskyer).. which is a bit different from how they're portrayed elsewher. Its' not strictly impossible.. Swallow's blood angels novel had a psyker experiment that was similar.. and there were the SoulGuards from Inquisitor and Annihiliaton Squad Gav Thorpe invented (which were psychic/sorcery constructs.) And we know untouchables in Eisenhorn technically had souls (FRauka) besides looking over the old 2nd edition fluff for Pariahs.. it isn't explicitly 'non psyker' - that tended to evolve later when Necrons came about. And in any case there's plenty of.. variation in the material to imply different kinds and capabilities of pariah just as psykers can diversify.


Page 382
Ambient moisture levels began to drop and the Exitus rifle’s internals automatically compensated, warming the firing chamber by fractions of degrees to ensure the single loaded bullet in the breech remained at an optimal pre-fire state.
More of the Exitus rifle's internal systems.


Page 383
The Vanus crouched by the side of the Lance, and laid a finger on the side of its cylindrical cowling. The device was almost as long as the footprint of the tower, and it had been difficult to reassemble it in secret.
...
..through the cowling Tariel could feel the subtle vibration of the power core cycling through its ready sequence.
The Lance.


Page 383
The infocyte was careful to be certain that he would not be seen by patrol drones or ground-based PDF spotters.
More patrol drones.


Page 384
He took a moment to check the tolerances and positioning of the hyperdense sentainium-armourglass mirrors for the tenth time in as many minutes. It was difficult for him to leave the mechanism alone; now that he had set a nest of alarm beams and sonic screamers on the lower levels to deal with any interlopers, he had little to do but watch the Lance and make sure it performed as it should.
The lances' 'mirrors' - not a normal mirror/lense I'd gather. At least not in the way we know them. Also the Vanus security devices.


Page 386
Between them and the barriers, the faint glitter of a force wall was visible with the naked eye, the pane of energy rising high in a cordon around the point of arrival. Nicran’s orders had been to place field generators all around the entrance to the hall, in case resistance fighters tried to take his life or that of one of the turncoat nobles.
Forcefield generator defenses.


PAge 387
He dropped into the open gallery, where uniformed officers pored over sensor screens and glared out through smoked windows overlooking the plaza. Their auspexes ranged all over the city, networking with aerial patrol mechanicals, ground troops, law enforcement units, even traffic monitors. They were looking for threats, trying to inpoint bombers or snipers or anyone that might upset the Governor’s plans for this day.
PDF/Police defenses.


Page 388
All of them were moving in slow-motion compared to him, not a one could hope to match him. The Eversor killed with break-neck punches and brutal, bullet-fast stabbing.
implied speed of the Eversor


Page 389-390
The single shot in the chamber is a .75 calibre bullet manufactured on the Shenlong forge world to the exacting tolerances of the Clade Vindicare. The percussion cap is impacted, the propellant inside combusts. Exhaust gases funnel into the pressure centre of a boat-tail round, projecting it down the nitrogen-cooled barrel at supersonic velocities. The sound of the discharge is swallowed by suppression systems that reduce the aural footprint of the weapon to a hollow cough.
Exitus Rifle firing. Should I be amused its the same calibre as a bolt round? also note the supersonic velocity.


PAge 390
The Lance marshals its energy to expend it for the first and only time. It will burn itself out after one shot.

The round crosses the distance in seconds, dropping in exactly the expected arc towards the figure in the plaza. Windage is nominal, and does not alter its course. Then, with a flash, the bullet strikes the force wall. Any conventional ballistic round would disintegrate at this moment; but the Exitus has fired a Shield- Breaker.

Energised fragments imbued with anti-spinward quantum particles fracture the force wall’s structure, and collapse it; but the barrier is on a cycling circuit and will reactivate in less than two-tenths of a second.
Shield breaker and how it works, as well as the round taking 'seconds' to travel at supersonic velocities. I'd guess at least mach 2 or 3 at least given implied ranges earlier, and it can't be TOO many seconds.


Page 390
The energy of the Lance follows the Shield-Breaker in as the force wall falls; the Lance is a single-use X-ray laser, slaved to Kell’s rifle, to shoot where he shoots. The stream of radiation converges on the exact same point, with nothing to stop it. The shot strikes the target in the throat, reducing flesh to atoms, superheating fluids into steam, boiling skin, vaporising bone.

The only sound is the fall of the headless corpse as it crashes to the ground, blood jetting across the white marble and the Warmaster’s shining mantle.
The Lance is an x-ray laser. Which has some implications given before. One, the Imperium has the ability to build 'mirrors' for X-ray lasers (something that I think we haven't quite managed, except in a sort of way, I could be wrong though.)

secondly the Lance is a rather large, cumbersome device, so Imperial lasweapons (at least the small arms and quite probably lascannon) aren't X-ray lasers. at least, those that are acutal lasers aren't.

Third, the effect of the weapon is to partly (or totally?) vaporize and/or explode a Space Marine's head. Considering they mistook this guy for Horus, he must be a damn big marine (bigger than 3 metres or so, anyhow) - in armour and a helmet, so we're talking a lot of energy.. maybe high kj to low MJ. Of course whether this corresponds to any other laser weapon (and what kind) is up in the air.. it could be a lascannon sized weapon for all we know, or bigger. Then again something similar happened in Black Tide so...

It also explains the daemonskin.


Page 393-394
More than just a pariah, she was… She was in a small way like him. But where Spear’s abilities were inherent to the twisted, warp-changed structure of his soul, the girl was only a pale copy, a half-measure. She needed the augmentation of the helmetweapon just to come close to his perfection.
Parallels between the Culexus and Spear.


Page 395
Impossibly, his psionic signature was changing, transforming. The sinuous nimbus of ghost colours spilled from the peculiar flesh-matter shrouding his body, and with a sudden leap of understanding, Iota realised she was seeing into a hazy mirror of the warp itself; this being was not one life but two, and between them gossamer threads of telepathic energy sewed them both into the inchoate power of the immaterium. Suddenly, she understood how he had been able to resist the animus blast. The energy, so lethal in the real world, was no more than a drop of water in a vast ocean within the realms of warp space. This killer was connected to the ethereal in a way that she could never be, bleeding out the impact of the blast into the warp where it could dissipate harmlessly.
more on Spear's nature and abilities


Page 396
Where the clever mechanisms of the animus speculum sucked in psionic potentiality and returned it as lethal discharge, this man… this freakish aberration…

he could do the same alone.

It was the blood that let him do it. Her blood, ingested, subsumed, absorbed.
More Culexus/Spear parallels.


PAge 399
With a small movement, the warrior raised the barrel of his bolter and shot the Governor at point-blank range, blasting his body apart.
Bolter blows apart a human body.


Page 400
She managed to fire two quick bursts from the bact-gun as she tumbled, rewarded with the pop and hiss of acids striking flesh.
Venenum assassins apparently use acidic weapons (either mutagentic acids, or the corrosive virus weaponry type stuff.)


Page 405-406
Nearby, system boats in service to the PDF’s space division were either turning to flee from the ships of the Warmaster’s fleet...
...
The Vengeful Spirit’s gunnery crews had been sparing with the use of their megalaser batteries, striking the ships hard enough to cripple them but not enough to obliterate them.

Now the PDF cruisers would burn up in the atmosphere...
...
The Vengeful Spirit and the rest of her flotilla encroached slowly on Dagonet’s orbital space, approaching the staging point where Luc Sedirae’s vessel, the Thanato, was waiting for them.
Again the Thanato is the 'ocean boiling' battleship mentioned before.. already in orbit. It isn't the biggest ship, but its not neccesarily the smallest either. Sedirae was an important leader after all. Also mention of more PDF 'cruisers.' and the megalaser batteries.


Page 409
The missile-like bolt shells could not fail to find targets, and for each person they hit and instantly killed, others fell dead or near to it from the shared force of impact. The blasts rippled out through flesh and bone, the crowds were so closely packed together.
Bolt rounds killing from direct hits as well as proximity kills. This acutally makes them somewhat more practical.


Page 411
A heavy thunderclap shot rang out, and the bolter blew a divot of brick from the third floor. A body, trailing threads of blood, came spiralling out with it, killed instantly by the proximity of the impact.
Another bolter proximity kill.


Page 412
The knife was the size of a short sword, and the fractal edge gave off a dull gleam.
Astartes combat knife.


Page 412-413
...in the next second a crash of bolter fire echoed and impact points appeared in a line of silver blooms across the chest plate and left shoulder pauldron of the Astartes.
...
...Koyne saw a man-shape moving faster than anything human should have...
...
...the Garantine sprinted around the Astartes in a tight arc, rolling over fallen counters and leaping from pillar to wall. As he moved, his Executor pistol was snarling, spitting out low-gauge bolt shells that clattered and sparked off the towering warrior’s armour.
Eversor vs Astartes. Note the 'low gauge' bolt shells.


Page 413
The Astartes let the combat blade drop and brought up his bolter; the weapon was of a far larger calibre than the Executor. A single direct hit at the ranges these close quarters forced upon thecombatants would mean death for the Eversor...
Astartes vs Eversor weapon. I wonder which one is the .75 cal? :P Apparently as well Eversor toughness isn't up to handling a bolt round, which means Astartes are tougher than (Heresy era) EVersor assassins. The Eversor has the edge on speed though.


Page 413
Stimm-glands chugged and injectors hissed as the Garantine’s bloodstream was flooded with biochemicals and cocktails of drugs that pushed him beyond the speed of even an Astartes’ enhanced reflexes.
As noted, Eversors have greater speed/reflexes than Astartes.


Page 414
...the Astartes punched and bludgeoned the Eversor, but if any pain impulses reached the Garantine’s mind, the brew of rage-enhancers and sense-inhibitors swimming through his bloodstream deadened them to nothing.
Pain resistance seems to be the primary defense of the Eversor.


Page 415
Koyne’s neural shredder was at hand and the assassin fired a full-power discharge into the skull of the Son of Horus; the blast disintegrated tissue in an instant wave of braindeath.
Neural shredder in action.


Page 417
A bombardment had begun, and the people of Dagonet’s capital feared it was the end of the world. They knew so little of the reality of things, however. High above in orbit, it was only the warship Thanato that fired on the city, and even then it was not with the vessel’s most powerful cannons. The people did not know that a fleet of craft were poised in silence around their sister ship, watchful and waiting. Had all the vessels of the Warmaster’s flotilla unleashed their killpower, then indeed those fears would have come true; the planet’s crust cracked, the continents sliced open.
Implies the sum total of horus fleet (dozens? hundreds?) of ships could have wiped out all life on the planet. Implied in a single salvo, but not definite.. crust cracking and sundering continents implies far more firepower than the 'one billion' threshold at least.

Also the one in orbit mentioned before (with the 'ocean boiling' guns) was apparently the Thanato, Sedirae's flagship. It's not the largets batleship


Page 436-437
“A genetic lock,” Tariel said, nodding to himself. “Powerful psionic rituals require the use of an organic component as an initiator.”

“A blood rite?” Koyne shot him a look. “That’s primitive superstition.”

“It might appear so to a certain point of view.”
..
“The Vanus watch all. Our stacks are filled with information on all the clades. It is how we maintain our position.”

Koyne nodded. “You blackmail everyone.”
...
“Indeed. We know that the Culexus seek to improve upon their psychic abilities through experimentation. They gather subjects from the care of the Silent Sisterhood. Those they do not induct into their ranks, they spirit away for… other reasons."
...
“There was a project… it was declared null by Sire Culexus himself… they called it the Black Pariah. A living weapon capable of turning a target’s psionic force back upon it, without the aid of an animus device. The ultimate counter-psyker.”
The origins of the Black Pariah and the importance of obtaining the victim's 'blood'. also mention of the Culexus experimenting to enhance their abilities.

Als the Vanus means of maintaining power. I rather like the rational approach of the Vanus to it.


Page 438-439
Koyne snorted. “THE Emperor’s blood? That cannot be! This is madness… Horus’ assassin tears a page from some ancient tome and with that he can strike at the most powerful human being who ever lived? The very idea is ridiculous!”
...
“Synchrony with the God-Emperor’s gene-marker."

...
“The same thing that happened to Iota, but multiplied a million times over. A collision of the most lethal psychic forces conceivable.” The infocyte swallowed
hard. “Throne’s sake… He might even… kill him!”
...
Koyne gave a sarcastic snort. “The Emperor of Mankind wounded by something so fantastic, so ephemeral? I can’t believe it is possible. Spear will be swatted away like an insect. This woman’s reason cannot be trusted! Her kind are governed by archaic spiritual fanaticism, not facts!”
I quoted this bit for two reasons. One, it shows or implies a relative power level of the embodied emperor.. implying he is many thousands, or a million times more powerufl than more mundane psykers (or Pariahs).. and even then Spear might only kill him. Though this is only approximate since there is no hard data we're going by, but more belief.

The second factor is the amusing hypocrisy behind the 'Imperial Truth' in the Callidus assassin's statement. He/she/it dismisses Spear's abilities as supersition and sorcery, yet finds it utterly impossible for someone to 'kill' the Emperor of Mankind.


Page 441
The stubby aerodyne had a single, medium-wattage lascannon mounted along the line of the fuselage, and Spear aimed it with twists of the jetbike’s steering handles, lashing along the battlement of the wall with lances of yellow fire. Bodies exploded in blasts of superheated blood-steam as shots meant to knock down aircraft eradicated men with each hit.
Jetbike equipped lascannon blasts apart humans with single shots. Depending on mechanism, there are several ways to calc it. One way is comparing it to explosives. As I've covered many times before, a grenade level explosion can easily blast someone apart, and that is around half a MJ to a MJ of TNT equivalent, although it assumes a high intensity, pulsed (micro to nanosecond) laser discharge.

On the other end of the spectrum is 'vaporizaiton' - we dont know what percentage of vaporization (other than it is *probably* less than total) but this could mean tens or hundreds of MJ, depending on extent of vaporization and efficiencies. You wouldnt need to totally vaporize the body to blow it apart (steam explosions) but a fair chunk of it probably owuld have to be, esp for an inefficient lasweapon.

Method three is from flash burns as I've discussed before. 400 j per square cm will flay the skin to the bone (Steam explosions.) andwe just need surface area. If we just assume the chest was blown apart (say 30-40 cm square, or 30x30/40x40 cm) you get between 360-640 kilojoules per shot. at a 1-2 meters (whole body) by half a metre or so we might call it 2-4 MJ.

None of the above really account for any thermal effects (third degree burns or cauterization)


Page 441
The little turret turned to track the jetbike as Spear came in but it did not fire; the sensors saw nothing when they looked at him, only a jumble of conflicting readings the primitive machine-brain could not decipher
Defence turret with a 'machine brain.' rare inorganic mechanical?


Page 442
..he glimpsed a small drum-shaped vehicle on fat tyres; it was a mechanised fuel bowser, governed by simple automata. The device was one of many such systems in the star-port, machines that could do the jobs of men by loading, unloading or servicing the ships that passed through the facility...
...
..no one had thought to stand down the robots, and so they went on at their programmed tasks..

...
The automaton had dutifully done its job, and refuelled the shuttle with fresh promethium.
Automated/robotic star-port personnel, and promethium-fuelled starship. Its a shuttle of some kind probably not a warp capable one.


Page 446
There was a high-velocity Splinter round in the chamber – on impact with an organic target it would fracture into millions of tiny hair-like fragments, each a charged piece of molly-wire. The wires would expand in a sphere and rip through flesh and bone like a tornado of blades.
vindicaire splinter shot. Nasty.



Page 452
If his purpose on Dagonet had been known, if the forces of the arrogant Emperor had really, truly understood the threat Spear posed to their precious liege lord, this world would have been melted into radioactive glass the moment he set foot on it.
Spear considers that if his presence were known to the imperium, they would destroy the planet to kill him. I'm not sure if 'radioactive glass' means they simply just nuked it, or if they actualy melted the crust via bombardment (if not both) but its still pretty hefty either way. And it shows they can at least superficially melt planets (we know they can slag them from other sources, anyhow.) We dont know how many ships or how many bombardments (or how long) to do it - wec an guess (hundreds or scores of ships maybe? Millions of bombs?) but its just a guess. Radioactive would imply some sort of fusion or nuke or something along those lines - its not impossible that it is somethinc like cyclonics but they generally don't seem to leave much radiation behind either.


Page 453
In a corner formed by two fallen walls, Tariel dropped into a lotus settle and used the cogitator gauntlet to bring up a schematic of the building. It was among the millions of coils worth of files he had copied from the stacks of the Dagonet governmental librariums over the past few weeks, the data siphoned into his personal mnemonic stores.
We dont quite know what the storage space of a 'coil' is, but if we assuemd something between a floppy disc (hundreds of kb to a MB) or a CD/DVD (hundreds to thousands of megabyttes) we're talking anyhwere from millions of megabytes to billions of gigabytes. Even at the 'hundreds of kb' stage we're probably talking hundreds of gigabytes.


Page 458
It was the particles in the air; they were hurting him in ways that the killer thought impossible, frequencies of psionic radiation blasting from every single damned speck of the glittering powder, bathing him in razors. Spear’s mouthparts gaped open and the sound he released from his chest was a gurgling cry of pain. His nerves were alight with phantom fires unseen to the naked eye. In the invisible realms of the immaterium, the shockwave was sawing at the myriad of threads connecting the killer to his etheric shadow. The daemonskin was battering itself bloody, tearing at his subsumed true-flesh as it tried to rip away and flee into the void.
Psyk-out grenades against Spear (EG royally fucks him up.) Seem to be psychic particles, which I assume is the Emperor derived residue crap (what kind of residue it is best not to think about.,)


Page 461
He hesitated, the question spinning in his thoughts, the pulse generator humming and ready. Attack or flee? Flee or attack?
...
Tariel triggered the blast of focussed electromagnetic force, but it was too late.
...
Wicked talons punctured the Vanus’ torso and tore through dermal flex-armour and meat..
VAnus has dermal armour, and his EMP generator seems to work on living beings. Neural/electircal disruption?


PAge 462
Koyne pivoted to touch down on altered legs, shifting the muscle mass to better absorb the shock of the landing. The koans of the change-teachers learned in the dojos of the clade came easily to mind, and the Callidus used strength of will to forcibly alter the secretions of polymorphine from a series of implanted drug glands. The chemical let bone and flesh flow like tallow, and Koyne was a master at manipulating it from moment to moment. The assassin allowed the compound to thicken muscle bunches and bone density, and then attacked.
Callidus can alter its body shape (Create glands, improve muslces/bone structure, etc.) to better make it able to fight, jump etc.


Page 462
Spear opened his mouth and shouted awls of black cartilage into the air. Glancing hits peppered Koyne’s green-eyed hood and the darts denatured, dissolving into tiny crawling spiders that ate into the ballistic cloth with their sharp mandibles.
Spear's weird attack. Probably part of the daemonskin shot at the target. Callidus covered in ballistic cloth of some kind.


Page 464
The killer and the assassin fell into a blade fight, fat yellow sparks flying as the molecule-thin edges of Koyne’s rapiers cut into the organic swords and broke off brittle, sharp fragments with every hit.
Memory swords again/


Page 464
Where blood was drawn, it was slow to clot. The tooth-matter exuded some kind of oily venom that kept the wounds from scabbing over.
spear's bone blades exude anit-coagulants.


Page 465
Koyne did the trick with the koans once again, marshalling the density of bone and lining of musculature for a leap into the air that defied human potential. The Callidus jumped upwards and pivoted in mid-flight, falling out of Spear’s line of sight over a buckled wall
Callidus super jumping skillz.


Page 468
A breath of faint energy, a pinprick of ultraviolet light.
...
The bullet entered the killer’s head through the hollow black pit of his right eye, the impact transferring such kinetic force it blew Spear off his feet and into a spinning tumble, down into the debris and floodwater. The shot fractured into thousands of tiny, lethal shards that expanded to ricochet around inside the walls of his skull, shredding the meat of his brain into ribbons.
Vindicare bullet. Headsplodes. Also UV targeter.


Page 470-471
The skull, already malformed and inhuman in its proportions, had been burst from within by the lethal concussion of the Shatter bullet. Cracked skin and bone were visible in lines webbing the face; it looked like a grotesque terracotta mask, broken and then inexpertly mended.
Shatter bullet did the damage beofre.


Page 472
It was so ingrained in the matter of his being that even the obliteration of his cerebellum was not enough to end him. The proxy-flesh of his warp-parasite contained the force of the bullet detonation – or as much as it was capable of, forcing the broken pieces of Spear back together into some semblance of their undamaged form.

But the daemonskin was a primitive creature, unsophisticated. It missed out petty things like control and intellect, holding tight to instinct and animal fury. The killer was self-aware enough to know that he had been murdered and returned from it, but his mind was damaged beyond repair and what barriers of selfcontrol it had once had were in tatters.
Daemonskin (on Spear) self repair capability, and its limits.


Page 474-475
Kell’s gun came up and he fired. The weapon bucked with a scream of torn air and the heavy-calibre Ignis bullet crossed the short distance between gunman and target.

The round slammed into the meat of Spear’s shoulder and erupted in a blare of brilliant white fire; the hollow tip of the bullet was filled with a pressurised mixture of phosphoron-thermic compound. On impact, it ignited with a fierce million-degree heat that would burn even in the absence of oxygen.
...
Kell took aim again and fired a second shot, then a third, a fourth. At this range he could not miss. The rounds blew Spear back, the combustion of hot air boiling the water pooled around him into steam. The white flames gathered across the killer’s body, eating into the surface of his inhuman flesh. Kell did not stop. He emptied the Exitus pistol into the target, firing until the slide locked back. He watched his enemy transform from a howling torch into a seething, roiling mass of burned matter.
...
..Kell watched as Spear’s blackened, crumbling skeleton hissed and crackled like fat on a griddle.
Exitus pistol Ignis bullets in action. entire clip seems to be enough to cause the creature to cremate, although whether the rounds, or something in the body contributing it is hard to say. The ronds at least carry enough reactive whatever to do severe (million degree) burning, at least, which is pretty damn impessive consideirng the bullets (Even at heavy calibre) can only have grams of incendiary material at most (if it was heating a gram of air to a million degrees, for example would require a single megajoule. Most chemical reactions have tens or a couple hundred kj per kg, by contrast.)

If it DID cremate them with the enitre clip alone (and its not impossible, the ASsassin codexes have awlays had something similar) this is a very impressive, and very magical incendiary material. Assuming 10 rounds in the clip and 20 gram bullets.. hundreds (thousands) of MJ of incendairy effect from a few hundred grams worth of bulllets. Insane.


Page 478
The pilot had reconfigured the gravity field in the cockpit to off-set the g-force effects of their headlong flight, but Kell could still feel the pressure upon him. But he was thankful for small mercies – had he not been so protected, the lift-off acceleration from the port would have crushed him into a blackout, perhaps even punctured a lung with one of his cracked ribs.
Internal gravity field doubling as inertial damper. implied grav compensation of 10 or more gees (tens?). Seems like it isnt perfect - it masks most of the acceleration but not all (Suggesting that depending on efficiency there may still be limits.


Page 480-481
“put us on an intercept heading with the command ship. Put all available power to the aura cloak.”

The cyborg helmsman clicked and whirred. “Increased aura cloak use will result in loss of void shield potentiality.”
...
The sensors were showing the first curious returns from the picket ships in Horus’ fleet. They were sweeping the area for a trace, uncertain if their scry-sensors had seen something; but the Ultio’s aura cloak was generations ahead of common Naval technology. They would be inside the fleet’s inner perimeter before anyone on the picket vessels could properly interpret what they had seen.
Ultio's Aura cloak. Like reflex shields, it seems to affect void shield protection to allow for stealth, but it seems to be a different thing entirely. Ultios cloak is 'generations' ahead of Naval sensors (Whether this means the Navy has aura cloaking we dont know, it doesnt imply whether the generations aead is vs sensor technology or naval tech in general)


Page 482
Fusion motors unleashed the tiny suns at their cores and pushed the craft away, climbing the acceleration curve in a glitter of void shields and displaced energy. In moments, the vessel was rising towards one-quarter lightspeed.

Picket ships on the far side of the Warmaster’s fleet, ex-Imperial Navy frigates and destroyers crewed only by human officers, saw it running and opened fire.
...
Targeting solutions on the odd craft that had suddenly appeared on their holoscopes behaved unexpectedly, however.

Weapon locks drifted off it, unable to find a true. Scans gave conflicting readings; the ship was monstrously over-powered for something of its tonnage; it seemed unmanned, and then it seemed not. And strangest of all, the glimmer of a building warp signature built up around its flanks the further it strayed away from the gravity shadow of the planet, racing for the jump point. Warships dropped out of formation, and powered after it, following the unidentified craft up and out of the plane of the Dagonet system’s ecliptic. They would never catch it.
The Ultio's drive section breaks from the planet to escape. The 'rising towards one quarter light speed' is interesting, given the acceleration it implies. However, it isn't neccesarily saying t is AT that speed within moments, it sjust heading towards that speed. Even if it wasn't we're talking a matter of minutes or hours to reach that speed tops. For 'moment's hundreds of thousands or millions of gees. For minutes- thousands to tens of thousands of gees. For hours? hundreds to thousands of gees. The higher (and crazier) accels would require some sort of magical aid to boost acel - fusion engines will no way in hell provide that (hell no reactiond rive would) - mass lightening of some kind is a possibility :P

Also of interest is how the Naval ships are moving to pursue and opening fire on (and very shortly hitting) the target. If it is moving at or close to a quarter lightspeed (or even a fraction of it) the weapons would have to propogate very quickly - Projectile cannon (macrocannon, railgun) - and it is likely they are using them since they ARE NAvy ships after all - would have to be capable of that magnitude of speed to reach the targets. Of course its possible they were firing just laser and plasma weapons, but its doutbtful.


Page 491
Displays showing tactical starmaps, fragments of scout reports and feeds from long-range observatories shimmered into clarity. “News from the Taebian Sector is, at best, inconclusive. However, it appears that most, if not all, of the prime worlds along the length of the Taebian Stars trade spine are now beyond the influence of Imperial governance.”
They know their trick has failed, but the ship hasn't arrived yet. apparently Horus' fleet is still within the system and planet 9as we learn later) - hours or days to receive detailed info from the Segmentum Ultima to Terra.. across tens of thousands of light years.

Also mentioned ar e'long range observation posts' we dont know how they are observing, but they must be able to monitor the sector in detail to note all this, which implies some sort of FTL (psychic) scanning/observation method.


Page 492
“My clade has already engaged with the information emerging from the Taebian Sector,” said Sire Vanus. “My infocytes are in the process of performing adjustments in the overt and covert media to best reflect the Imperium’s position in this situation.”

“Papering over the cracks with quick lies, don’t you mean?” said Siress Callidus.

The colours of the Vanus’ shimmer-mask blue-shifted. “We must salvage what we can, milady. I’m sure—”
Vanus seem involved in spin doctoring, damage control, and general information manipulation on the homeworld. Possibly for dissemination elsewhere.


Page 495
“My warriors intercepted a starship beyond the edge of the Oort Cloud, attempting to vector into the Sol system,” Dorn told them. “It identified itself as a common freighter, the Hallis Faye. A name I imagine some of you might recognise.”
The Ultis' emergence point in sol was the Oort cloud. I'm not sure thats what that really was, I supsect it means the Kuiper blet or so (unless it really WAS thousands of AU out, which I doubt - because that would mean the Imperial Fists and Terran security is scanning/detecting and intercepting ships light yeras from the system. Not impossible but.. interesting to say the least.

This also implies the passage of the ship could have been no more than days or weeks tops, possibly even less than that. Again hundreds of thousands or millions of c implied.


Page 503
Dagonet was all but dead now, her surface a mosaic of burning cities, churned oceans and glassed wastelands. And yet this was a show of restraint from the Sons of Horus; had they wished it, the world could have suffered the fate of many that had defied the Warmaster, cracked open by cyclonic torpedo barrages shot into key tectonic target sites, remade into a sphere of molten earth.

Instead Dagonet was being prepared. It would be of use to the Warmaster and his march to victory.
...
The far side of the vast bowl of dirty glass and melted rock was lost to him through a mist of poisonous vapour...
Fate of Dagonet from conventional bombardment. not sure if 'churning oceans' means they are boiling but thats possible. Not sure if 'glassed' surface means parts or much of the surface is melted, but I doubt it. We see, ot be having a lesser or incomplete mass extinction effect (something more in the teraton range tops) over however long it took (hours? Days?) Megatons/s sustained bombardment at that rate. But that is 'restrained' too.

Cyclonics would have turned it into a ball of slag. Not quite conventional bombardment but still damn impressive. Certainly many petatons of firepower in totality, at least.


Page 507
On his command, the lines of melta-bombs buried beneath the hundreds of thousands of survivors detonated at once...
[/quote]

Horus is pretty nasty. but it also shows the scale of the 'bombardment' more clearly. also if people are still alive on this planet after everything that started we can't be talking more than hours or days as I alluded to before.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Well looking back I inadvertantly discovered I broke the pattern by posting Nemesis before A Thousnad sons. In any case, I've decided I'm gonna chuck out a bunch of anthologies (because they make alot of these for HH) and then get back to the main line. I'll probably post First Heretic after that, then ATS along with Prospero Burns as a compare/contrast, because they really work the best that way IMHO.

First up Age of Darkness, the second anthology. Didn't care for it as much as Tales of Heresy, but meh. They're anthologies. Then will come Shadows of Treachery and The Primarchs. So yeah, 3 updates, and a pretty huge infodump, but it will also take a hefty bite out of what I have for HH and allow me to catch up (as we have a bunch more coming out in recent months.)

2 parts, and we start with Part 1

Page 9
He wanted to weep, but the last two years had turned his heart to stone. Too much had been asked of him, too much had been lost,
Guilliman writes the Codex two years after the Heresy begins. Note that despite what earlier sources have hinted (and it causes confusion here, as we learn later) two years does not seem to be the full span of hte Heresy (which is a number I adhered to before.) as in 'The Primarchs' we learn that the Lion has been harassing the Night Lords for close to three years. Mind you, three years is not really THat significant a departure (compared to say, five or ten years instead of two), and there's always time/space fuckery of the warp to consider, but its still worth noting for 'retcon' purposes, I suppose.

Page 14
Gathered in carefully placed groups, the three thousand Legiones Astartes of the 4th Company took their rest behind the high wall, and Remus threaded his way through them.
As we learn in HH Betrayal, the definition of a 'Chapter' in the Crusade/heresy era can differ than it does in modern times. Heck, from what I remember in 'Know no Fear' it may even vary within the Legion - there's alot more diversity in the Army and Legions in the GC/HH era than in modern, hard as that may be to believe.


Page 15
It felt strange to devolve command autonomy to a set of predetermined strictures, but if there was anyone who could devise a tactical doctrine to meet any foe and any situation, it was Roboute Guilliman.
This is actually interesting compared to what we learn later, but it also hints that the GC armies were alot more open ended (that is disorganized) when it came to military approach. given that each Legion and Primarch did things his own way, and had overall command of the forces under him, this is hardly surprising.


Page 16
"Are we really going to play this out basing our tactics on a book?"
...
"The primarch’s book."
...
"I know, and I mean no disrespect by these questions, but can any book – even one written by a primarch – cover every tactical eventuality?"
Again, the idea of some sort of 'centralized' doctrine seems abnormal to Crusade/heresy era Astartes.


Page 18
A trio of missiles leapt towards the Dreadnoughts, and one fell silent as it was struck in the flank by two warheads. The second was dealt with moments later as a multi-melta scored a direct hit on its sarcophagus.
Dreadnought durability.


Page 19
Tactical feeds flickered and scrolled on his visor, casualty rates, kill-ratios, projected outcomes, and a dozen other battlefield variables. The flow of information would have left even an augmented Imperial Army Tacticus overwhelmed, but Remus’s genhanced cognitive architecture processed it in the time it took to blink.
Space Marine officer tactical feeds into his helmet, and perhaps another explanation of why Space Marines were designed mentally as well as physically superior - to avoid informational overload even whilst on the battlefield.


Page 22
The World Eaters had dropped on Prandium after a punishing saturation bombardment that levelled most of its great cities and set the world ablaze from pole to pole. In truth, there was little worth saving. Millions of people were dead and the detonations of volatile munitions had polluted the atmosphere and seas for millennia to come.
...
Even if Prandium was reduced to a barren, lifeless rock, it was still a world of Ultramar...
World Eaters bombardment. WE get a bit of clarification later, so I won't draw too many conclusions now, although note the 'volatile' munitions.



Page 23-24
Battle-logisters pumped information into the plotter, real-time strategic data that depicted a world torn apart by war.
...
As senior captain in the grand strategium, he had overall command of Ultramarines forces on Prandium..
...
He stepped up to the tactical plotter and took in the strategic overview in a heartbeat. The motion of armies, divisions and cohorts – a thousand elements of planetary warfare – was a spider’s web of furious advances, flank marches, brutal battles and encirclements.
Main overall command center, again a reflection on Space Marine command and control and how it plays into their enhanced physiology.


Page 24
The primarch’s teachings were indelibly etched on his mind: options, variables, parameters, action paths, outcome responses and a thousand detailed plans covering every possible eventuality of war.
Space Marine memory can actually make the 'Codex' work, I suppose, since their reflexes/mental capabilities allow them to both memorize and acess it in timeframes that would not be possible to a normal human (EG IG General wouldn't be able to do this. Unless you stuck a cogitator in his brain, that is.)


Page 27
The beautiful wild woods of the southern provinces were ashen, atomic wastelands, the crystal mountains of the east irradiated with toxic fallout that would take thousands of years to dissipate. Glorious cities of soaring gold and silver marble had fallen to ruin, pounded to rubble by orbital barrages that wiped them from the face of the world as if they had never existed.
More on the bombardment/devastation the World EAters unleashed, presumably.


Page 32
"The Thunderhawk is just a stopgap design. It won’t be around for long"
..
It irked Remus to see the hasty work, the shoddy specifications and unprofessional workmanship that had gone into the design and construction of the aircraft.
..
This aircraft had all the hallmarks of servitor-assembled work..
Which is amusing considering what happened in 'modern' 40K. Thunderhawks were a stopgap that.. became the premier (even high tier) aircraft for the Astartes.


Page 33
Remus linked his helmet’s inloaders with the forward picters mounted in the gunship’s prow..
Helmet link to Thunderhawk systems.



Page 43
Hulking, armour-plated behemoths, each Terminator was a full head and shoulders taller than the Ultramarines..
Height of Salamanders Termiantors

Page 44
One swing of the hammer put a man-sized hole in the wall. Masonry and steel reinforcement bars were smashed aside by the lethal weapon.
Thunder hammer vs wall. Bear in mind these are Salamanders and their use of Thunderhammers is a bit.. high tier given their great strength.


Page 47
Remus squeezed the trigger and the bolter spat a single shot. Though the weapon fired at supersonic speed
Supersonic bolt rounds.


Page 49
Prandium was now lost, the devastation begun by the World Eaters now concluded by a viral bombardment that stripped the ruined planet of all living matter in a viral hellstorm. All that was left of Prandium was a barren rock.
This is interesting given the 'volatile' and 'atomic' mentioned earlier. This either means virus bombing was used in conjunction with other stuff (trigger the firestorm shit) or was a result of the firestorm. OR its some weird sort of viral weapon that ALSO triggers nuclear detonations as well.


Page 49
Iax had been firebombed until the Garden of Ultramar was an ashen wasteland.
we dont know how it was firebombed, but its worth knowing.


Page 61
"You credit me with too much, Remus. I am not infallible. This last engagement should have shown you that."
..
"You followed my teachings, and they led you to defeat. If this and Calth have taught us anything it is that we must always be adaptable and never too hidebound in our thinking."
"But your teachings…"
"Are yet flawed," said Guilliman. "No one, not even one such as I, can anticipate every possible outcome of battle. My words are not some holy writ that must be obeyed. There must always be room for personal initiative on the battlefield. You and I both know how one spark of heroism can turn the tide of battle. That knowledge and personal experience can only be earned in blood, and the leader in the field must always be the ultimate arbiter of what course of action should be followed."
Guilliman lectures Ultramarines for taking the Codex too seriously. The humor and tragedy of this is that millenia later, this happens precisely (especially in the 5th edition SM codex :lol:)

An interesting thing ties into what I mentioned at the start regarding the timeframe of writing: Guilliman's context is that Horus is still running around... meaning he wrote the Codex some time after Calth was nuked and some time before Horus was known to have been beaten. This story also lays some groundwork, methinks. Guilliman has a plan, and we know he met with Sangy after 'Fear to Tred', and we know that the Lion is heading to Ultramar to 'deal' with Guilliman believing him a traitor.


Page 66
...at the summit of the Skyhook, was the planet’s lone astropath. The psyker’s sole duty was to parse news into palatable forms and send it down the telegraph.
Agriworld skyhook and a single astropath. The planet is mentioned as having a population of about a million, and the skyhook carries its tithe to orbit to be transported elswhere.


Page 68
Virger-Mos II was an agri-world, a breadbasket colony so far off the axis of the core Imperial worlds that it was almost invisible; still, it was one of hundreds of similar planets that fed a hungry empire...
...
But it was an isolated place in the Dominion of Storms, ranged in the deeps of the Ultima Segmentum.
AGain the world with the skyhook - its location and role. Its implied there are at (least) hundreds of agri world in the Imperium, at least in the GC era. Whether that grows, shrinks, or remains the same later on is up for debate, assuming its taken literally to begin with.


Page 68-69
Tipping his head back, the space elevator seemed to thin away to a thread’s diameter as it went towards orbit. Inside, automated systems that few human beings had ever seen worked without pause, gathering the cargo pods full of grain that arrived via the railheads on drone-trains, and carrying them up into space.
..
Every system inside the Skyhook, from the cargo handlers to the complex mesh of diamond ropes that hoisted the pods towards space, was run by automata.
The Skyhook in detail. completely automated (and NOT with servitors. HERETICAL AI ONCE AGAIN.) Also note the fancy 'diamond rope'. This is of course a James Swallow story, and part and parcel of his writing is a more 'technical' approach to 40K (he's also one of those authors who describes Space Marines as 'transhuman'.)




Page 78
The train of empty cargo capsules passed through the ultraviolet anti-bacteria field and out of the throat of the Skyhook..
Safety/health measures. Given the risk that contamination can have with another planet (nevermind another continent, like plagues humanity in real life) this is a reasonable precaution. One presumes such measures are still utilized (at least in some level) in 'modern' 40K.



Page 78
..In two hours’ time, they would be in the microgravity zone of the loading station in low geostationary orbit. There, mechanical menials would unload the train and move the cargo to a staging area, ready to await the arrival of the next interstellar freighter.
Time for the cargo to reach 'low' geostationary. I dont know what they define that as, as geostationary could be hundreds or several thousand km, but 'geostationary' is ~30-40 thousand km (for an Earthlike planet. This could mean anywhere from hundreds to thousands of km/hr depending on how you choose to interpret things.





Page
Across the yard, the other, empty pods ground to a sudden halt as they moved beneath the unblinking eye of a terahertz-wave scanner.
again, its a swallow story, so fancy shit abounds. Bear in mind I've heard that Gav Thorpe intended the 'TERRORSIGHT' from Angels of Darkness to be 'terahertz' scanning, so its not exactly unprecedented.


Page 78-79
An alert horn hooted twice and the train shunted sideways, all six pods opening automatically. Chem-nozzles on spidery manipulator arms unfolded from the ceiling and began to probe the interiors of the capsules, coughing spurts of caustic foam into the darkened corners.

The sensor had detected something inside one of the pods, and initiated a pest-control subroutine. It wasn’t unknown for creatures from other biospheres to make their way through the loading–unloading process, and off-world vermin had the potential to wreck a colony’s entire ecosystem.
Context: guy basically rides/climbs up the skyhook elevator and triggers the anti-vermin security measures (chem/boiling water sprayed at them to kill the vermin and presumably sterilize/sanitize at the same time. Brutal but effective.). Again it reflects the concern the Imperium demonstrates of 'foreign contamination' of other biospheres.


Page 79
The transports that came for the planet’s bounty occasionally off-loaded supplies, but mostly they came to gather up the harvest and take it away. The crews of those vessels didn’t bother to venture down to the surface; they let their cogitators handle the business of arrival and departure.
Again, the transfer of cargo is handled automatically, whether its pick up or drop off.


Page 79
..bracketed it with bursts of hot liquid; but the life-form inside walked through the boiling rain ...
...
..the man doffed the plastoid oversuit that had protected him from the chill..
The aformentioned 'pest control' measures. The guy surivved presumably because of the oversuit, which gives an indicator of the protective capability of such (and similar) gear.


Page 79
Even as he crossed the room to the auto-bar on the far side, ..
..
He ordered a bottle of a coarse local beer from the mechanical tending the counter..
An auto-bar. Basically the 40K version of a vending machine. Or possibly an actual vending machine.


Page 82-83
Within a couple of hours, he had slowly allowed himself to lose a small amount of Imperial scrip..
..
..Mendacs offered to cover the loss with a single gold Throne..
..
He tossed the coin..
Thrones mentioned as well as imperial scrip. What's not clear, however, is if they're the same thing or something different, although given my understanding (and brief research) into such things they probably aren't. And the interesting thing is it could go either way: scrip could be the Imperial issued 'tender' (analogus to those references to 'credit'.) and the thrones are the local money or vice versa (although 'thrones' tend to be defined as a catch all term for local currency as a rule, so it could be argued thrones are a variation of scrip, I suppose. 40K never made its exact economics clear understandably lol.)


Page 84
"He’s the telegraphist here. Brings the regular weekly news broadcast from the wires."
..
"On this day, news from the core reaches the agricultural colony of Virger-Mos II. "
...
"There are victories at Calth and Mertiol and Signus Prime. You have nothing to fear. "
Implies they have at least weekly contact with Terra via astropath. The story seems ot imply they're out on the edge of the Imperium, in Segemntum ultima, which seems to suggest a good 60 thousand LY or so (give or take thousands of LY perhaps), which would suggest astropathic transmission speeds of millions of c roughly. Whether that is constant or not is up for debate, but we could say its 'roughly' a week. But evne if its deep in Ultima Segmentum (unlikely as that is ) we're still talking a good 10 thousand LY, which is still at least half a million c average transmission time at the absolute WORST.
One factor affecting the timescale is that we dont know how many times astropathic ocurrs within that week to transmit all the info. The info comes from that single astropath and gets disseminated from the skyhook to the rest of the city via more conventional communications, and the time between the astropathic reception and the dissemination to other towns would ALSO be within that week.


Page 86
"What madness sunders the Legions and makes them attack one another? More than two solar years now.."
Again events in this story (and others as we learn) are roughly two years into the Heresy, and no obvious end in sight.


Page 87
he spent another hour moving around the suite by lamplight with an auspex in his hand, letting the device sniff the air for electromagnetic waves, thermal patterns or anything else that might indicate the presence of a listening device.
searching for spy devices.



Page 87-88
Mendacs opened up the smaller valise case and disengaged the thin hide-panels over the real contents. He worked a crystal control and set the systems inside to a waking mode. The autonomous cogitator programs inside the mechanisms would run a series of tests to ensure the unit was in full working order, but he expected no problems. The unit was highly resilient.
...
The valise’s innards were a suite of advanced microelectronics and crystallographic matrices; it was capable of many functions: vox communications, variable range narrow/broadcast, frequency jamming, countermeasures, simulation, data parsing, and more.
...
..even in the core worlds, technology of this kind was both rare and prohibited.
More spycraft gear. Magic crystal computer technology. Or possibly optical computers.


Page 89
Mostly, they were low-calibre stubber rifles and shot-rods used for keeping down the population of grain vermin.
stubber rifles again.


Page 89
Dallon Prael had the only thing that could be considered a ‘modern’ weapon, and even that definition stretched credibility. The laslock rifle he held tightly was over a hundred and forty years old, bequeathed to the Prael family by a great-great-grandmother who had served with honour in the Imperial Army.
The Imperial army uses laslocks as well as lasrifles. Again standardisation in the GC era is a bit of a joke, although to be honest the 'standardised' approach in MODERN 40K isn't a whole hell of alot better.


Page 90
Prael had no doubt in his mind that the message on the telegraph was authentic. After all, there were mechanisms in place to make sure that the astropathic signals from the Sol system and the core worlds were immune to distortion. He had been told this by other broadcasts and he believed it.
Which may be true, or it may be propoganda.


Page 90
They all knew the stories of the worlds razed to ash for daring to show defiance to the Warmaster – like the planets of the Taebian Stars and other nearby sub-sectors, burned and left as dead balls of stone.
Again, it may be true or it may be propoganda. That's actually kind of the point of this story, because alot of what happens away from the town turns out to be manipulation of some kind or another.


Page 91
The Virger-Mos system was so very far from Terra, so isolated and remote that it was barely part of the Imperium..
Again strongly hinting its out on the fringes of the Imperium, rather towards the core. Of course, its within Ultima Segmentum, so we know its at LEAST 10-20 thousand LY away, but it implies its much further than that.



Page 94
Prael found the laslock coming up to his shoulder, his eye peering down the iron sights.
..
The old laser rifle warmed up and went live.
Laslock rifle needs a brief time to warm up, and also has iron sights.


Page 95
Acrid smoke curled in the air and he smelled burned flesh.

He stopped, and found himself looking at Silas Cincade’s corpse, lying where the body had been blown out of the saddle of an idling rover trike. A good quarter of the mechanic’s face was a blackened ruin of meat, where the las-bolt had hit just above his right eye.
Effect of the laslock's bolt. Assuming we just go with 'surface' burns (flash burns, as per 6th edition) and figure betwene 50 (third degree) and 400 ('flaying flesh from bone) j per sq cm, and a quarter of the face (5-10x5-10 cm at least) is a good 25-100 sq cm. At least a kilojoule of energy for the burns alone, up to 40 kj. If the depth of cooking was significantly deeper (assume up to 10 cm 'deep' we're talking between 100-800 grams of tissue cooked perhaps. Assuming between 'scalding' (3rd degree burns from a scald temp) and boiling point water (100-270 kj per kg) we get between 10 kj and 216 kj per shot.
So at the very least we're talking single and double digit kj at least, and possibly low triple digit kj. Mostly thermal damage covered here, we dont know if there's any mechanical damage (or if the weapon's design or capability is that.)
Note that despite my earlier allegation that alot of things in this story may or may not be true, one would be hard pressed to argue this scene has been faked given the guy gets shot in front of the whole town :P

Page 96
[quoteThe title of the book was Insignum Astartes: The Uniforms and Regalia of the Space Marines, and it was a real tome in the traditional sense of the word. Not a pict-book to be read by a data-slate, but a physical object made of plaspaper..[/quote]
PLUG!
Also note that 'real' books in the GC era can include plastic pages. lol.

Page 97
Pride of place went to a single cylinder made of heavy-gauge brass, polished to a bright sheen: the spent casing of a bolt shell.
..
..but the casing had fallen from the ejection port of a Space Marine’s bolter..
Bolter casings. Whehter this means they really use casings (and plenty of novels do imply that) or whether its a fake (which is also alleged) is up for debate - which is in line for this particular story.


Page 99-100
The remembrancer was working at a pict-screen, moving a stylus across it.
..
Mendacs offered him the device, and Leon took it gingerly, cautious not to touch any of the tabs or buttons around the pict-screen’s frame.
stylus drawing on a computer screen isn't exactly new, even on a compact scale, but its interesting to note it exists nonetheless given the otherwise low tech expectations in 40K.


Page 101
"He thinks the Imperium ignores us out here on the periphery. "
Again we're more likely dealing with the edge of the Ultima Segmentum rather than close to the core.

Page 101-102
"It’s strange, isn’t it? How fathers and sons can be so close but at the same time be so far apart?"
...
"Do you imagine that Horus Lupercal shared a measure of what you feel now, Leon?"
..
"The Emperor and the primarchs are not like us."
...
"Even those who transcend humanity must stem from it. The bonds of family, of brotherhood and fatherhood… They still exist in them. They cannot escape such truths."
Its an interesting point, since its played a major role in things up til onw, even as far back as Horus Rising. We see not the least Space Marine in this story, but it shows that the view of things from the side of the 'Traitor' legions is not remotely LOL CHAOS at this point - Chaos' influence is, by and large, more subtle except in certain cases (EG Fulgrim's bunch, Word Bearers) and a good many of the traitor marines (and their minions) genuinely believe in their cause. Indeed, the 'villain' of this piece does not come across as being particularily villainous - he's just doing his job, as horrible as it is, and he doesn't see himself as a bad guy. Which in its own way may be the most horrific thing about the whole thing, because it plays into that 'gray area' aspect of 40K that is so neat.



Page 107
The gravity plates in the deck of the transfer station shifted the orientation of ‘up’ and ‘down’ so that the colony was actually at his back.
Skyhooks have their own AG it seems, even though they're largely automated.



Page 107
The vessel at the occupied airlock was greatly undersized in comparison to the grain carriers that usually made port there. It was just a simple warp-cutter, little more than a courier ship.
we dont know the exact size of the ship, but it implies it might be fairly small/compact. Of course if its designed simply as a courier hsip it doesn't need much to work either,


Page 107-108
Mendacs cocked his head, watching the play of a nimbus of green-orange light that enveloped the woman, the radiance issuing from an iron box the size of a man’s torso. The stasis generator had performed its function perfectly.
..
He had been on Virger-Mos II for almost two solar months, yet for the woman, only seconds would have passed.
Stasis device. Whether or not its Imperial or not we don't know, but its very compact and translets months into seconds.


Page 108
"It is not something that can be done at a whim. There must be preparations. A certain readiness is needed–"
..
"Don’t lie to me. You can transmit at a moment’s notice if need be. I’m not some Administratum tech that you wish to baffle with the mystery of your talent."
...
"Without correct foundation, I could be injured! The warp eats the unprepared mind. "
Its possible for astropaths to 'talk' on very short notices, albeit obviously not without risks. This suggests much of the preparation before or after pertains to what we might term 'psychic security' measures - encryption, protection against the daemonic and other warp-based dangers, etc.


Page 109
"Very well. To where do you wish me to speak?" Mendacs reeled off a set of spatial coordinates committed to his memory
..
"Send exactly this, no different. Seven words."
...
...and then, as quickly as it had come, it dissipated.
"It is done"
The implication is that it's a 'realtime' contact point to point, (given that she knows she sent it to the exact destination given by the coordinates.) Considering this is another system we're talking crossing multipel LY in a matter of seconds or minutes, millions of c or faster, easily.

Page 112
"A handful of small asteroids captured from the Oort cloud and kicked into the atmosphere by automata-drones.."
Given the two month timespan he spent roughly on planet or thereabouts, it would imply a velocity of several thousand km/s from the Kuiper belt. Even if we figure he's spent a goood year or two on planet (highly unlikely) we're talking an average velocity of 70-150 km/s. A pretty impressive feat for just drones.

Page 112
Mendacs turned back to the astropath and executed her, the howl of a single las-bolt resonating in the chamber as it blew through the psyker’s heart and killed her instantly.
..
..gagging on the stink of burnt meat.
single lasbolt penetrating to heart. Probably at least single digit kj, but with extensive burn injuries it probably would be considerably more.



Page 116
He tore the door off its hinges, closing his eyes as the flames swept out and over him.
STrength of a space marine.


Page 118
The Immortal Emperor’s Legiones Astartes, His Angels of Death – no, that wasn’t right – his Angels of Death, created to protect mankind from threats beyond the stars. A billion, billion worlds; a million, million cultures all compliant – now at war.
Might imply a billion or more worlds in the Imperium, but I doubt its a quintillion worlds.


Page 120
The drop-ship was taking fire from all sides. Much of its armour plating was punched through by lascannon blasts and several of its heavy bolter armaments were destroyed.
armed dropship damaged by lascannon fire.


Page 122
They brought autocannon and multi-lasers, Rapier and Tarantula guns.
Iron Warrior support/heavy weapons.


Page 123
He reached the first of the battle tanks, a Demolisher that the primarch lifted with his bare hands and turned over. A second he punched through the hull with his hammer, wrenching out the crew within before the Pyre Guard.
...
Vulkan was enraged, battering tanks aside like children’s to.
Vulkan's strength. He's noted to be 'unrivalled' in strength and fortitude, although I suspect Ferrus Manus or Angron could say something about the former, and Mortarion about the latter.

Page 124
Had Ferrus Manus lived there might be cause for debate, but with the Iron Hands primarch’s head lying separate from his body in the shrinking snow that point was now moot.
The Salamanders knew that FErrus manus was dead. This may explain how/why the message was transmitted to Terra in 'Outcast Dead', although why the Iron Hands did not know this millenia later we have no idea. Perhaps because they never recovered his body (and we know Fulgrim took the head and gave it to Horus.). At least the other Primarchs who 'died' were usually recovered (EG Sanguinius.)


Page 127
He towered over the visitors in a bespoke rigger, an exo-skeletal frame of bronze that added a metre to his height and bulked out his limbs with its chassis. Weapon mounts, ordinarily positioned at either shoulder and below the abdominals, were absent, a concession that this was to be a peaceful engagement.
clave-noble exosuit or osmething I think that qualifies as a sort of power armor.


Page 127
..wore only ceremonial flash-sabres – no barb-whips, no rotor-threshers or other hand-held cannon
jmilitary weapons. I dont know what they do.

Page 128
A naturally occurring thermo-nuclear resource provided light and heat, heavily shielded and stockpiled in underground silos that ran throughout Bastion like arteries.
Oh goody, a 'naturally occuring' thermonuclear power source that can be mined. I wonder if they call it promethium? Or maybe its pyrum-petrol stuff used in meltas?

Page 134
He wore a rebreather, anti-rad coat and sumper-boots.
Anti radiation coat

Page 135
Heavier-armoured marshals entered the gallery and levelled rotator-cannons at the Ultramarine.
Rotator cannons.

Page 143
Before the Edict of Dissolution, she had been a sculptor – it made the transition to artificer easier. It also meant she wasn’t pressed into the service of the Imperial Army or sent into the manufactorums to make shells and bombs. She heard about the conditions of those places, of the relentless overseers that made men and women into the blood-gruel of the Imperial war machine. Gone was the era of hope, of glorious conquest she’d longed to be a part of – in its place reigned an age of darkness instead.
The Edict gets mentioned a few times in this anthology - basically the whole Remembrancer order was disbanded and its members were pushed into 'useful' jobs. Because civil war is horrible and you dont want artists and writers and shit writing and artisting about it, because they might say or do the wrong thing. I mean look at Karkasy. This is meant to be a rather big symbol of how the era has changed with Horus' betrayal. all the talk about 'truth' has been replaced by the need for secrecy. Although as I mention throughoug the HH series, the notion of 'Imperial Truth' is itself a bit of a hypocritical joke, so we might just be saying the 'secrecy' has only increased by degree and openness.

Page 145-146
A bank of screens displayed some of the other geothermal nuclear sites on Bastion.
..
Persephia moved on, drawn by curiosity and the distant nuclear glow coming closer.
..
..why the route to the nuclear core was open.
So its not only a 'naturally occuring' thermonuclear fuel source, its ALSO geothermal. meaning some planet's geothermal power sources are some sort of glorified nuclear reactor (or even more, FUSION reactions.) And this is by far not the only case of a 'atomic' geothermal power.
On the other hand this might help explain all those geothermally powered defense lasers!!

Page 154
The human iterator, despite his outward frailties, had a formidable intelligence; in a fit of pique, Arcadese thought he’d been mind-augmented or hypno-conditioned.
Methods of improving speaking and intellectual capabilities.


Page 158-159
The rifle was custom – it looked almost ceramic. That’s how he’d avoided detection.
the planet's security systems couldn't find a ceramic rifle. so much for being military buffs.

Page 161-162
Rolling up to its full height, it disengaged the holofield trapping it in the landman’s form.
..
..the landman was merely a projection, courtesy of a holofield.
cloaking holofield.
Page 163
"That’s not a Custodian,’ Heka’tan interjected. ‘It is similar, but its movements are copied, its form a facsimile, a simulacrum."
..
"Because if it was real, we’d already be dead."
Indication that Custodians are vastly more powerful/dangerous than regular Astartes, which has often been in contention depending on who you ask. Sometimes Custodians are better/more powerful, sometimes they aren't. Much like whether or not Terra still has oceans.


page 169
Heka’tan growled, bearing the lacrymole down, for it could be no other xenos abomination.
..
Vampiric shapeshifters, the Emperor and his Legions had taken great pains to ensure the annihilation of the lacrymole..
Lacrymoles. It can shape change and grow edged weapons from its limbs or body as hard as steel.

Page 170
The lacrymole needed to taste their prey, absorb them, before they could copy them biologically. To emulate one almost perfectly, it meant this alien had somehow bested and consumed the biological matter of one of the Emperor’s lions.
Lacrymole impersonation ability. Not unlike the Space MArine's ability to absorb knowledge form the brains they eat.

Page 175-176
Cooking off in the wake of the incendiaries, Bastion’s thermo-nuclear stockpiles were tearing the planet apart.
..
Long chains of fire stitched the world’s surface like its seams had been unpicked and were slowly being burned apart. Continents cracked and mountains sank. The oceans boiled to gas and the cities were consumed. Billions would look to the artificial nuclear sunrise, their retinas seared away in seconds, the skin of their bodies flaking like parchment only to become as ash on the wind.
The 'naturally occuring' geothermal nuke shit goes off. Oceans boiling away points to e27 joules at least.

Page 177
It spun through space, a kilometre-long barb of crenellated metal, trailing the burning vapours of its death like the tatters of a shroud.
kilometre long starship of unknown type.


Page 177
Each was a blunt slab of burnished armour thrust through space on cones of star-hot fire. They carried weapons that could level cities and held companies of the finest warriors.
Iron Fists warships having 'city levelling' weapons. Whether individually or together we dont know.

Page 178
Each boarding torpedo carried twenty Imperial Fists of the Legiones Astartes
boarding torpedo capacity.


Page 178-179
Four melta charges later, a glowing hole had been bored through two metres of metal. The breach still glowing cherry red the first Imperial Fist moved through, bolt pistol raised, tracking for targets.
2 metre thick metal door big enough for Imperial Fists to move through (1-2 m wide, 2 metre tall) doorway implies 4-8 cubic metres affected. We dont know if it was melted, vaporized or merely blasted through, but assuming it heats the door to 'cherry red' at least, and iron composition we can figure a max temp of between 900-1100K (which means a temp increase of 600-800K assuming a 300K enviroment) is between 30-60 tons approximately and betwen 360-480 kj per kg at least. at least 10-29 GJ for 4 melta charges (whether meltabombs or something else we aren't sure)


Page 179
They advanced, red target runes in their helmet displays pulsing over the hunched man in grey.
Targeting gear in visors.

Page 183
"I do this for the Sigillite. This is his domain and I am his hand in this."
Iactan Qruze is now an agent of the Sigillite. IIRC, this is meant to indicate he is now what we will come to know as an Inquisitor (or rather the start of that organization, along with Garro and others)


Page 191
"Then the Edict of Dissolution came through. The remembrancers were no more, by the order of the Council of Terra. We were to be removed and dissolved back into mundane society. Those already amongst the war fleets were no longer to be allowed to record events"
The Edict again.


Page 198-199
"The weapons of this age of darkness are silence and secrets. The enlightenment of Imperial truth, those were the ideals you fought for. But you cannot trust any more, and without trust those ideals will die, old friend."
..
"I say it because I am a remembrancer. I reflect the truth of the times. The truth is not something this new age wants to hear."
This is the key point of this story, its an indicator of the shift from the Great Crusade to what we know 40K to be. Qruze the Inquisitor, Dorn hiding the truth... they're a foretaste of what that great, shining Impeirum is to become, and Dorn is being tested at this moment - does he let the truth free, or does he bury it?
And even more.. Horus did it to strike at Dorn with that fact. It was meant to be an obvious symbol of the death of truth, at Dorn's hand. Of course, with what we learn in the HH series, just how much 'noble truth' there actually was (what with everything Big E held back, and others held back from him, etc.) it comes across a bit hypocritical.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Part 2



Page 205
The Geometric pulled into high orbit, running silent, hull-lights extinguished. Two hundred kilometres down, the planet was almost as dark. It was void-black, laced with cracks of angry red where magma, or maybe surface fires, scored the crust.
..
The planet had a deathly aura to it..
..
The gaps between the rivers of fire were a deep sable, like shafts opening out onto nothingness.
200 km is not normlaly what I'd ca'' 'high orbit', but we may not read too literally into it. In any case, we see the surface of Prospero pre Wolf visit, which basically means the planet is effectively destroyed, mass-extinction style. Crust broken, seemingly no surface water remaining, no visible reflected light from the surface (except the magma, etc.) Which seems to largely fit with events from 'Prospero Burns' and 'A Thousand Sons'.


Page 208
"What do you know of the destruction of this planet?"
Again Prospero is destroyed, as if we needed further confirmation.


Page 208
"We were ordered to leave orbit six months ago.."
..
"Weeks. We’d been in the warp."
...
"Even so, it took you a long time to come back"
"Warp storms held us. They were impenetrable for months."
Implying it took less than several months to destroy Prospero. Far less than a year. And far less than a year to return (weeks) depending on how far away they travelled.


Page 211
The air of Prospero sighed into the load-bay. Kalliston could taste the afterglow of the furnace through his helm’s rebreather. The atmosphere was still warm, still bitter with floating motes of ruin.
..
The sky was the dark red of an old scab, broken with patches of messy shadow where the smog-clouds raced. Ruined buildings broke the horizon in all directions, skeletons of libraries and treasure houses, armouries and research stations.
More on the surface. Still has its atmosphere (or at least some of it) so it wasn't totally blasted off, which *probably* means that the oceans weren't blasted away either. Also lots of dust loading and shit blocking sunlight, although there is residual heat (presumably form the bombardment.)


Page 212
Kalliston blink-clicked a rune to enhance his night vision lens-feed.
...
There were no target runes, no life-signs, no proximity warnings.
Thousand Son power armour sensors and vision modes.

PAge 212
... a rare survivor of the firestorms that had raged through Tizca.
Mention of firestorms, again an indicator of the scope of the bombardment.

Page 213
or some malfunction in the long-range augurs in his armour.
Again power armour sensors.



Page 216
Why was Prospero destroyed?
..
My Legion is scattered, my primarch missing, my home world blasted into a ball of lifeless slag.
If we take that literally it means the surface was melted (and possibly the oceans blasted away), which could mean well into the e27+ joule range. THe question, of course, is if it is taken literally...



Page 221
There were still no target runes on his helm display, but auspexes could be jammed.
Mention of jamming.




Page 222
"I decided to seek survivors on Prospero, perhaps the primarch himself. We knew that there were unlikely to be any.."
BEcause the bombardment killed them all.



Page 217-218
A brace of white-hot plasma bolts flew directly at Arvida.

..
..darting back into the protection of the statue as the energy-pulses hammered into the stone. It broke open on the second impact, cracking from head to foot and toppling into pieces.
two plasma bolts blast apart stone statue big enough to hide a Space Marine. At least 2 metres tall and a metre wide. Figure maybe equal to 200 grams of TNT per bolt (or close to a megajoule) Woudl be consistent with blowing a person apart (Grenade style.)



Page 228
...he pivoted out of contact and fired three rounds into his enemy’s face at point-blank range. They detonated immediately..
..
His enemy’s face was ruined, a hollow shell of blood, armour-chips and skull-fragments.
Bolter headsplosion, three round burst. Albeit against armoured, astartes sized head.



Page 241
Arvida didn’t see the captain of the World Eaters collapse to the ground, his helm carved in two by the detonation of the bolt-round..
Effect of single bolt round this time. I should note the shot was precog-guided.


Page 244
Sooner or later, he’d have to rest, to sleep, to find something to eat. His enhanced constitution could stave off that need for days, but not forever. The Wolves had burned Prospero almost completely to the ground, so there would be meagre hunting ahead.
Space MArine endurance.



Page 245-246
Only one certainty remained. Arvida knew, as only a Corvidae could know...
..

He would survive. He would discover the true causes of his Legion’s destruction, and live to fight them. He would neither pause nor stumble until everything had been revealed to him, everything that would give him a weapon to employ.

"Knowledge is power." he breathed.
...
..the dim red light of the angry magma fires caught on his shoulder-guard, exposing the serpentine star set about the black raven-head of his cult discipline.
I think it goes without saying that the intent here was to strongly imply a connection betwene the Thousand Sons and Blood Ravens. From what I understand though, not every author agrees with that sort of connection (I hear ADB is opposed to it) so while its a strong correlation I wouldn't totally rule out someone writing an alternate explanation.



Page 247-248
Six vessels prowled the void. At their head was the battle-barge Dedicated Wrath, its flotilla of two strike cruisers, one grand cruiser and two destroyers spread across hundreds of thousands of kilometres of space.
...
"Tell Industrious to close to within fifty thousand kilometres of the source.."
Size of world eater flotilla and composition and spacing.



Page 250
As the World Eaters flotilla powered up their engines the Salamanders cruiser turned out-system and darted for its next patch of cover – a cloud of asteroids some five hundred thousand kilometres from Isstvan VI.
If we knew the timeframes this might be useful.



Page 250
...the more powerful engines of the Dedicated Wrath pushing the battle-barge to the front of the pursuit.
Battle barge has more power than the rest of the aformentioned ships, including the destroyers.



Page 250
If the strike cruiser was allowed to gain the sanctuary of the asteroid field the less manoeuvrable battle-barge would likely lose its prey
This means that despite having more powerful engines, they're only a benefit in straight-line acceleration, rather than manuvering.



Page 250
The Salamanders were still several thousand kilometres from safety when the gunnery captain reported that they were now within maximum torpedo range. Delerax held off the order to fire, judging the distance to be too great.
Again if we knew timeframes this might help, and the're within maximum torpedo range, although obviously the hit probabilities at 'max' range are fucking lousy.


Page 250
The strike cruiser’s position was highlighted by a glowing reticule but the ship itself was still too distant to be seen, even with full magnification.
Strike cruiser BVR even with magnification. Given a 4-5 km strike cruiser we're probably talking thousands of km... and with magnification of at least 10-100x we'd be talking hundreds of thousands of km.



Page 251-252
The battle-barge shuddered as the gigantic missiles were launched. They appeared instantly on the screen, four flares of yellow plasma against the stars that suddenly winked out of existence as their warp drives engaged.

Skipping in and out of warp space, the torpedoes left a trail of multicoloured flashes in their wake, describing an arc that slowly curved to the right as the Salamanders craft tried to evade them. Then they were out of sight, reduced to warp-echo registers on the scanners.

"Twelve thousand kilometres to target." reported a weapons officer, reading from a glowing green screen. He was Skanda Vior, a World Eater too, and like Delerax and Kordassis was clad for battle in his armour. Unlike the officers, he had painted much of his armour red, a growing trend amongst the Legion; an acknowledgement of Angron’s warrior cult. Vior waited a few seconds.

"Eleven thousand kilometres to target."
Er.. wait what? First off they were 'beyond visual range' which they most assuredly aren't going tob e at a mere 12,000 km. Secondly, we know that WEAPONS BATTERIES, nova cannon, and lances can all hit targets at hundreds fo thousands of km, nevermind torpedoes (which outrange all those weapons, being guided and all. )

And if that wasn't crazy enough.. we learn these are warp capable torpedoes.. which take... seconds to cross 1000 km or so. An implied torpedo velocity of hundreds of km/s. which is respectable if this were realspace but.. warp? shouldnt they be FTL? Otherwise why bother travelling through the warp at all? Its not like they have to avoid anything in realspace at this point anyhow - they just re-emerge and MIRV once they ge tinto range, and when they do they're still vulnerable!



Page 252-253
Delerax ceased his pacing at seven thousand kilometres.

"Six thousand kilometres to target."
..
"Switching to onboard data scanners; preparing for spread."

A sub-screen flickered into life on the main viewer, showing an aggregate view from the torpedoes, rendered in a stark black and red monochrome. Strange shapes whirled and Delerax realised they must have switched view while the torpedoes were in mid-jump. A moment later they rematerialised in the real universe and the strike cruiser flashed into view.

It was long and thin, with a launch bay built on its dorsal superstructure. Pinpricks of plasma erupted like sparks from the flight deck as the Salamanders launched attack craft to intercept the incoming torpedoes.

"Five thousand kilometres, spread launch"

...
The torpedo-generated image swirled into static for a few seconds as the missiles separated, each disgorging four hundred warheads at the Salamanders cruiser. When the relay returned the view was filled with a cloud of sixteen hundred glimmering projectiles. Explosions blotted out the stars as the Salamanders craft swooped and climbed and rolled through the mass, blasting away with cannons and lasers. As the warhead launchers continued to power towards the strike cruiser – each containing a five megatonne nuclear charge – the defence turrets of the Salamanders vessel opened up. Ripples of plasma blasts and flashes of high-velocity munitions streaked across the view, detonating even more of the warheads.

The torpedoes were close enough now to relay a direct-image. The construct-based picture was replaced by a near real-time view of the strike cruiser. It was dark green and banded with broad irregular stripes of yellow, the badge of the Legion visible against a huge white circle near its prow. Through the haze of detonations, it turned away, the captain trying to narrow the ship’s profile against the swarm of incoming warheads. Plasma engines shone like stars through the fog of explosions, distorted by a shimmer of energy fields.
Even more crazy. First off the torpedoes have a telemetry link between the ship and the torpedoes and its 'nearly' realtime, which suggests its a bit more than a light second or so away.. so.. yeah.

Secondly, there is a strong implication that the torpedoes are travelling at close to 500-1000 km/s... as between the time they emerge into space and the timeing (6000 km to 5000 km) in mid jump (implying no more than a second or two tops.) Which is consistent with the earlier 'hundreds' of km/s but exactly what one would expect speed-wise from a warp travelling missile.

And lastly, they mirv.. into 400 separate warheads of unknown strength. And the launchers, each of which is at least 5 megatons in yield (presumably)

Point defenses engage these targets, meaning that some 1600 incoming projectiles is not an especially daunting task for antimissile defenses of the strike cruiser, interesting in and of tiself. The fact its engaging at approximately 5000 km is also worth noting, albeit its fighters first.


Page 253
Blue and purple lightning flickered as the remaining warheads, several hundred of them, slammed into the strike cruiser’s shields. The vessel was engulfed by a blaze of detonations, so bright it appeared on the main display like a nova being born. More explosions followed as the shields overloaded and the remaining warheads struck the cruiser’s armoured hull. Plasma billowed from a ruptured engine duct.

A moment later the mini-screen vanished as the warhead launchers detonated.

"Scanners confirm severe engine damage and moderate damage to the starboard gunnery decks."
hundreds of unnknown-yield warheads plus at least 4 5 megaton charges strike an unshielded strike cruiser.. and don't destroy it. Cripple yes, but not destroy. Rather interesting given that 12 megatons was implied to potentially wipe out a battle barge in 'Deliverance Lost' but thats a matter of interpretation like most things.


Page 255
"Dozens of destroyed ships," said Branne. "More ships than the entirety of the Luna Wolves fleet."
givne we know from some sources that the Luna Wovles have hundreds of ships.. that really tells you something about the scale of destruction, since that was far frm the total fleet assets.



Page 255
It showed signs of wear from Valerius’s constant fidgeting during the long warp jump from Deliverance to Isstvan.
We know in Raven's Flight and Deliverance Lost that Corax was onplanet for 98 days, and that they didn't leave Deliverance for some 30 days. Given the 8 days or so to get inssystem, we're looking at 60 days transit time as I've mentioned in 'Deliverance Lost' which is easily hundreds of thousands, if not millions of times c.



Page 256
His fleet, composed of three Raven Guard vessels including his battle-barge and a handful of Imperial Army transports and frigates, had entered Isstvan perpendicular to the orbital plane.
The fleet from Deliverance.


Page 256
"Activate sensor dampening protocols.."
..
"Rig reflex shields for silent approach. We’ll come in across the star to mask our signature."
...
"What about my vessels?" asked Valerius. "We don’t have that capability."
..
"Quiet running will slow us down.."
Raven Guard stealth measures. The Imperial Army vessels do not have it. We learn what reflex shields are in 'Deliverance lost' (they're a modified form of void shield)


Page 256
Five days closer to Isstvan V, where the majority of the fighting appeared to have taken place,
The trip form the edge of the system to Isstvan V takes more than 5 days.


Page 256-257
A space battle, or rather several battles in a short period of time involving nearly a hundred vessels, had raged around Isstvan V and out-system towards Isstvan VI.
Again more than 5 days to cover distance between Isstvan VI and V. At least tens or hundreds of millions of km distance.


Page 258
Three days out from orbit of Isstvan V, Branne’s fleet ghosted in on minimal power..
..
Branne spent most of his time on the bridge of his battle-barge, the Avenger.
8 days total between VI and V. Of course unless its considerably more than 1 AU this is not terribly impressive accel or velocity wise, so it doesn't tell us much more than we know from other sources.


Page 261-262
"Run the reactors at one hundred and twenty per cent."

"We risk plasmic extrapolation, lieutenant-commander." the engineer replied. "It could shut down the whole system."
...
Angron was due to initiate his final assault on the Raven Guard in six hours and Delerax was determined that he would be there to take part. Already the rest of the flotilla had been left half a day behind, unable to keep up with the battle-barge’s superior power.
Possibly eighteen hours between Isstvan VI and V, given all of this, at least for the battle barge, also the ability to over-run the reactors by 20%, to provide increased thrust (but also at the risk of fucking up the engines/reactor.)



Page 270
"How long until we reach the Raven Guard ships?"

"Twenty-six minutes, lieutenant-commander" the man replied. "Twenty if we overcharge the reactors."
Suggesting a 30% overload of reactors, rather than 20%.


Page 272
Weapon bays opened along the length of the Dedicated Wrath revealing banks of macro-cannons, plasma drivers and missile bays...
...
Along the dorsal superstructure, bombardment turrets swivelled, their cannons extending from armoured towers.
World Eaters Battle barge armament.


Page 274
Muzzle flash blinded the World Eater and an instant later he felt the side of his skull exploding.
World Eater has head partly 'sploded by bolt round.


Page 275
"They’ve withdrawn to a hundred thousand kilometres"
And this is supposedly outside weapons range.


Page 275-276
Blood and brains leaked from the side of Delerax’s skull. The World Eaters lieutenant-commander could feel his life leaking away with it.
World eater cna survive with partially destroyed skull, at least briefly.


Page 278
He had gathered fifty-eight full battalions of the Imperial Army about him, war hosts from the Momed voidhives, along with a flotilla of siege hulks from Nahan Instar, a half-broken cadre of Salamanders, some Mechanicum claves, and a White Scars raid-force...
..
Dwell, with its fortified cities, orbital batteries, ship schools, and eight million pinnacle-grade fighting men...
Combined Army/PDF forces on planet. Probably the majority is PDF, which gives you a good idea of PDF sizes for worlds that probably have a population in the billions.


Page 279
The dreamless Luna Wolves were surely the purest of all.
..
And, since Isstvan, Little Horus Aximand had begun to dream.
Much as with the 'Tome of Fire' novels, we get the strong impression Space Marines don't dream as a rule, although authors vary on this interpretation.


Page 289-290
The Tyjunate Compulsories...
..
The troopers were armed with long power swords, with energised axes and pikes, with munition-loaders, with sonic tubes, with plasmic-system weapons and las-rifles. Entering combat, they engaged individual, segmented force shields, light-absorbing fog that dimmed the glory of their ritual uniforms and made them look as if they’d each been enveloped in a hand-cut piece of storm cloud.

The shields were annoyingly effective, and deflected most gunfire over a certain range. When a Legiones Astartes bolt-round did pierce them, either through a direct hit or by finding the joint between segments, the Compulsory inside detonated, and his explosive demise was contained, pressurised, inside the shield, like a firecracker destroying a piece of soft fruit inside a bottle.
I'm not quite sure what these 'shields' are - sometimes I gather its something akin to a storm shield, but in other cases it sounds like body armor, Or perhaps osmething in between. In either case it represnets one of those 'up-teched' sorts of Imperial Army/Gaurd Forces abnett is fond of. And it shows why Abnett really needs to write some HEresy Era Imperial army novels and stop fucking aroudn with Space Marines. The defenses are also capable of stopping even bolter fire, whcih says something. Although if they do penetrate, the entire body blows apart, grenade-like.




Page 290
The force shields, certainly not the best he’d ever seen, but made effective by their individual mounts and portability..
They're apparently mobile enough to move and fight in, as Litlte Horus gets charged by shielded guys later on. What's more, its not the first time Little Horus has met regular troops with shields. Is this meant to imply its common for ground troops to have forcefield defenses, albeit static ones?



Page 290
...to call in an orbital barrage, ranged shelling, or even one of the squadrons of superheavy armour pieces ...
..
...any of those actions would also raze the Precinct. The Compulsories were protected by the very buildings they were defending.
Implying that artillery, orbital barrage, and superheavy squadrons are in the same magnitude of firepower, and can raze whole city blocks or more.


Page 291
Double-edged, power-active, Cthonic bluesteel, etched along the fuller..
Luna wolf sword. Power knives!


Page 292
Transhuman dread. Aximand had heard iterators talk of the condition. He’d heard descriptions of it from regular Army officers too.
...
If you saw an Adeptus Astartes, you knew you were in trouble. The appearance alone cowed you with fear.
...
The sight of an Adeptus Astartes was one thing, but the moving fact of one was quite another. The psychologists called it transhuman dread. It froze a man, stuck him to the ground, caused his mind to lock up, made him lose control of bladder and bowel.
Speaks again to that highly psychological aspect of the Space Marines, quite probably meant to tap into the 'emotion/belief' efect on the warp. Probably another way of Abnett trying to rationalize the 'melee/close combat' ability of Space Marines charging or shit.



Page 292
...especially not anything in excess of two metres tall and carrying more armour than four normal men could lift.
2 metre tall marines in powea rrmor, implied weight of said armour is in the hundreds of kg.


Page 293
The shields were good enough to stop blades too. Bayonets, that was. Pole arms. A sabre. Maybe even a powered blade.

But not, not for a moment, a powered blade driven by transhuman arm.
Limits on the aformentioned shields, at least against high-momentum attacks/



Page 295
..blood-smoke cooking off the powered blade.
Luna wolf power blades/knives have a thermal component.




Page 299
Henricos’s sword was a long blade of augmented-function Medusan steel.
Not sure what 'augmented function' means, except it seems to imply a way of making steel 'better', so it cuts through all manner of shit normal steel shouldn't cut through. magic steel!
It might be something like what happened to the Iron Fist swords 'enhanced' in the novel Sons of Dorn.

Page 308
Imperial Army sentries from the Ninth-Ward Angeloi Adamantiphracts..
..
..the flared muzzle of his heavy carbine lowered and scalemail glove outstretched.
Adamantiphracts Imperial Army unit. Wide beam las carbines.

Page 309
During the process of Compliance, as part of the Emperor’s strategy and holy decree, thousands of bastions and citadels had been built on thousands of worlds, so that the architects of the Great Crusade might watch over their conquered domain and the new subjects of an ever expanding Imperium. Many of these galactic redoubts, castles and forts had been designed and built by Dantioch’s Iron Warrior brothers..
Implying that the Iron Warriors garrisoned thousands of worlds, and that there were thousands of staging points/military areas. That might correspond to one per sector, incidentally.


Page 312
..Dantioch had had his Apothecaries and Adeptus Mechanicum advisors hard at work creating the muscle that would build his mega-fortress. Iron Warrior laboratories perfected genestock slave soldiers, colloquially known as the Sons of Dantioch...
...
Taller and broader than a Space Marine, the genebreeds used the raw power of their monstrous bulk to mine, move and carve the stone from which the fortress was crafted. As well as physical prowess the slave soldiers had also inherited some of their gene-father’s cold, technical skill...
...
..the Sons of Dantioch found new roles in the maintenance and basic operation of the citadel and as close-quarters shock troops for ..
More 'gene-crafted' troops, ogryn like but not ogryns. apparnetly the Great Cruade era humanity practiced alot of genetic engineering without restraint.


Page 313-314
The Schadenhold had been hewn out of a gigantic, conical rock formation protruding from the roof of the cave.
...
This hung upside-down, but all chambers, stairwells and interior architecture were oriented skywards. The communications spires and steeple-scanners at the very bottom of the fortress were hanging several thousand metres above a vast naturally-occurring lake of crude promethium, which bubbled up from the planet depths.
A great stalactite fortress of doom. Its several km above the surface of the cave.. which becomes.. noteworthy later.


Page 315
"The flagship Benthos hails us, my lord."

"So, the 51st Expedition returns," Dantioch rasped. "We’ve had them on our relay scopes for days. Why the slow approach? Why no contact?"
days to approach the planet from an unknown distance.

Page 319-320
"Out here, in the darkness of the East, we hear disturbing rumours of this cosmos conquered.."
...
"This system is the terminus of a little-known trade route. Merchants and pirates, both alien and human, run wares between our hinterspace and the galactic core. In the last few months they have brought terrible news of consequence to the Emperor’s Angels here on Lesser Damantyne. "
Implied transit time of 'a few months' between core regions and the East (possibly the fringe) tens or hundreds of thousands of times c, depending on exact distance.


Page 321
..Dantioch’s garrison turned to dust and bones, their armour rusting, bolters jamming and fortress crumbling about them. Only then, after the intense entropic field created by the migratory hrud swarms had aged stone and flesh to ruin..
Time disrupting effect of Hrud.


Page 325
..gaping twin-autocannons were already loaded, primed and aimed right at them. The weapons crashed, chugging explosive fire at the two rearguard Space Marines..
...
At such close range, the heavy weapon reduced the two Legiones Astartes to thrashing blurs of blood and shattered armour.
Dreadnought autocannon fire pulverizes armoured marines.


Page 333
I walked amongst Colonel Kruishank’s Ninth-Ward Angeloi Adamantiphracts as their disciplined las-fire lit up the ramparts and cut their traitor opposites to smouldering shreds.
Wide-beam lasfire effects... shreds and burns enemy troops, may imply severe (fourth degree/steam explosion flaying) flash burns. Lethal flashlights! We don't know area of effect but assuming between 5-20 cm diameter beam we could be talking between 20-400 sq cm which is between 8-160 kj.

Page 335
While Adamantiphracts lanced the long corridor approach to the blockhouse with broad-beam las-fire from the flared barrels of their carbines..
again 'wide beam' lasfire. It seems though that unlike the lasguns in 'Legion', these are fixed-setting weapons, indicating that lasguns come in different configurations that aren't neccesarily adjustable - at least not without swapping out components.

Page 338
Angeloi Adamantiphract marksmanship seared the length of the approach, hammering the plate of storming Iron Warriors and cutting up their Imperial Army opposites, las-fodder from the Expeditionary Fleet’s Nadir-Maru 4th Juntarians.
again lasfire 'cutting up' enemy troops that aren't Space Marines!


Page 340
On his other arm he supported the weight of a huge storm shield. The shield was as tall as the Ultramarine – a sub-rectangular plate, the curved, semi-cylindrical surface of which crackled with a protective energy field.
Storm shield.

Page 345
The Omnia Victrum was an Imperator-class Titan. A mountain of rust-eaten armour, striding across the cavern like a vengeful god. At its sides it mounted weaponry of titanic proportion: monstrous instruments of destruction, capable of razing cities and felling enemy god-machines.
Capabilities of Imperator titan.


Page 345
The Imperator was huge and certainly tall enough to stand beside and beneath the Iron Warrior citadel. It could disgorge a siege-ending horde of traitor Iron Warriors and reinforcement foot contingents of the Bi-Nyssal Equerries.
Recall that the distance betwene the stalactite fortress and the ground was 'several thousand metres' Which implies... the Imperator is several km tall. You try ot make sense of it.


Page 357-358
Every bolt-round found its mark, and had Nicodemus not been advancing behind the storm shield he would have been run through by a relentless onslaught of armour-piercing shot.

..
One of the adamatium-core Space Marine killers passed through the armour plating and clipped the Ultramarine’s shoulder.
...
This time the adamantium slugs found their target and punctured holes through the shield and the Ultramarine’s artificer armour.
probably kraken rounds. Inteestinglyenough, despite their AP properties, it suggests that adamantium (or at least this kind) is much denser than steel, or led, or perhaps denser than tungsten and uranium, given their use instead of the other materials.

Also power armour does fuck all against these rounds, and the storm shield isn't much better.

PAge 369
It was rendered exempt from paying Imperial tithe even when all other worlds began to suffer such demands from the fledgling usurers of Terra..
The Administratum began 'collecting' tithes apparently (or trying to) some time after the Caliban ws discovered.



Page 370
Two years. Two years since Horus committed his first act of insanity. Two years since the VIII and I Legions both found themselves ordered into the void, feuding over possession of an entire subsector..
Again as previous short stories hinted, we're two years into the heresy and not yet at the end. In 'The Primarchs' and later we learn its up to three years.


PAge372
"Parthac fell earlier this evening." the Lion gestured to one of the systems ringed by Martian glyphs. "The Fabricator-Governor of Gulgorahd reported his victory four hours ago."
...
"He was less elated when I informed him that his push to take Parthac left Yaelis open to attack. The rebels took Yaelis less than an hour ago."
Implied astropathic communciations between different systems in 1-4 hours. ASsuming a 10-100 LY distance and simply single, one way trnamsissions, we're takling nearly 90,000c. IF its 100 LY, thats 900,000c. Tens to hunreds of thousands of c at least.



Page 373
"No, our astropaths are still rendered mute by the warp’s turbulence. I believe the last recorded contact is currently listed as four months and sixteen days ago."
They're close to the eastern fringe (within the same subsector as the Night Lords) and contact iwth terra takes far less than a few months (implying multiple attempts to ocntact in that 4 1/2 month period) Hundreds of thousands of c transit time minimum implied, under these conditions, and its probably MUCH, much faster.


Page 374
"For twenty-six months I have chased him. For twenty-six months, he has fled from me, burning worlds before we arrive.."
Which is a few months more than two years, but eh.


Page 375
" An entire subsector with its forge-worlds bleeding their genius and materiel into surviving, rather than supplying other Imperial forces. The knight worlds do the same, as do the harvest worlds, the host worlds, the ore worlds."
Mention of presumably AdMech and other Imperial holdings within a subsector., Multiple forge worlds, as wlel as the knight worlds, and ore (mining) worlds and harvest (agri) worlds. not sure what host worlds are.





Page 375
The Lion exhaled slowly, indicating a world on the hololith at the edge of the Eastern Fringe.
Again they're out and around the eastern Fringe.



Page 376
Momentum desistors fired along the ship’s prow and central spine, lesser brake-engines howling to slow the warship’s forward flight.
Momentum desistors. I'm pretty sure they're just retros though rather than any fancy sort of drive system.


PAge 378
The Angel fleet, modest as it was, arrived piecemeal over the course of the next three hours.
As we knmow from other sources, fleets emerging from the warp do not neccesarily arrive simultaneously, or even in order given the ability of the warp to distort or dilate time and space.


Page 380
On a raised platform above the flat chamber deck, a choir of nine robed astropaths sang with closed eyes. Their Gregorian chants ..
..
.. it took for his vision to clear of the chemical-scented mist from their teleportation.
Apparenlty astropaths were involved in teleportation, although in waht function we don't know.


Page 384
"You are Dorn’s hound, running here to the Eastern Fringe because he ordered you."
They're out on the Eastern Fringe, if we needed reminder.


Page 385
.. for their identities were known throughout the million-strong ranks of the Legiones Astartes.
Implies that the size of the Legiones Astartes was a million, which is a bit less than hinteda t in other sources.




Page 389-390
Corswain was watching both primarchs yet still never saw what happened, such was the speed of the Lion’s movements
...
The next, Curze’s features twisted into a taut rictus of pain, blood running between his clenched teeth. The Lion held tight to the grip of his blade, buried to the hilt in his brother’s stomach. More than a metre of shining, bloodstained steel thrust from the back of Curze’s armour.
Implied speed of Lion's blow. Considering he had to move at least a few metres (simply to impale Curze on the sword) and that his speed/reflexes outdoes astartes (1/20th of a second as per 'Space Wolf') we're talking a good 40-60 m/s movement speed for The Lion.



Page 390
His visor display realigned, targeting reticule skipping left and right, locking onto nothing.
targeting sights again in Dark Angels helmet.



PAge 391
Corswain caught sight of the Lion through a small forest of pillars, advancing on the retreating Curze, their weapons crashing together several times a second.
Speed of blows exchanged betwene Curze and Lion.


Page 391
The Night Lord ignored the bloody wound in his belly, letting his arcane genetics quickly seal the injury shut.
Primarchs can heal from belly wounds from Primarch-sized swords even as they're fighting for their lives.


Page 400
Corswain’s muscles ached with the sudden influx of chemical stimulants as his armour’s internal systems sought to keep him alive.
Chemicla pain suppressants injected by body armour.


PAge 408
"No, Cor. The hail comes from Guilliman and our cousins within the Thirteenth Legion. Knowing we have been unable to reach Terra, it seems the Lord of Ultramar wishes us at his side instead."
...
"It seems Horus is not the only soul to believe he is heir to the empire."
Thus begins what seems to be a developing subplot involving Guilliman, The Lion, and (now as of Fear to Tread) Sanguinus out and around Ultramar. Also reflects the Lion's delusional, paranoid nature we've come to expect since 'Descent of Angels'
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Next up 'The Primarchs' It was an okay anthology, although the Emperor's Children one was pretty blah and undid alot of what parts of Fulgrim I actually liked.

3 parts, 1 update


Page 32
..the holo zoomed towards the fifth world of the newly-named system. A haze of multi-coloured light surrounded the planet like a polar borealis effect, and as the image magnified still further, Lucius saw a world of overlapping bands of deep black and glittering diamond.
A number of orbitals followed the rotational axis of the planet, colossal freight handlers and processing stations with docking facilities for bulk carriers. Smudges of iron and steel indicated the presence of several such vessels, and pinpricks of winking lights spread between them were clearly defence platforms.
Implied scale of the crystal processing/harvesting facility on the planet. Makes it seem like it may encompass the whole planet.


Pgae 37
These men were brutes, crudely enhanced to be bigger and stronger than most mortals, but there was little subtlety to their power. Anyone could pump a man full of growth chemicals and graft a host of combat augmetics to his frame, but what good was that if they were not trained in their use?
A weaponised servitor creature encased in azure war plate and bearing little that could be called organic came at him. Its shoulder mounted cannon spat a torrent of shells, tearing up shards of glassy, volcanic stone...
Admech forces defending said planet, and the augmentations.


Page 38
It had taken the fleet, led by Andronius and Pride of the Emperor, a mere ten hours to batter a path through the picket line of system monitors and cripple the last defence orbital. Three bulk carriers had been captured, kilometres-long behemoths loaded with billions of tonnes of shimmering, reflective crystals.
ten hour battle against planetary defnese fources, and 3 bulk carriers carrying 'billions of tonnes' of crystals. We dont know how many billions of tonnes or whether that is per carrier or in total, but assuming 2 billion tonnes, simply lifting that much to orbit from teh ground would require something on the order of e19-e20 joules. Assuming a 1000 km/s transit across the system to the warp point would be in the e23-e24 joule range.
Bear in mind those numbers above are TOTAL expenditures, and they say nothing on the rate (accumulated over hours, days, weeks, etc.) to either move it to orbit, or to move it from orbit to the edge of the system.


Page 38
Marius Vairosean led his company of shrieking Kakophoni against the western flank of the facility, systematically razing its defences with grim, methodical dogma. Shrieking harmonics of dissonant vibrations echoed from the iron canyons between the towering structures as monstrous sonic weapons tore the atoms of matter apart with resonant frequencies that echoed between worlds.
Buildings collapsed like paper, and coruscating sound waves tore deep gouges in the basalt rock of the planet. The screams of the dying mingled with the musical crescendo of clashing sound waves, a howling symphony of destruction that brought the rapturous madness of the Maraviglia to mind.
Noise Marines in action.


Page 40
He vaulted onto the remains of a toppled battle engine, a ten-metre-high biped with its princeps compartment breached and pink amniotic gel drooling from the cracked cockpit. Lucius had seen the machine stomp from an armoured hangar at the edge of the defences and briefly considered taking it on. His colossal vanity had intervened, and he had laughed the idea away. Only a fool would dare face such a machine alone, and it had fallen in the crossfire of sonic cannons before it had taken a dozen paces.
10 metre tall.. warhound probably. Also downed by Noise marines.


Page 41
The battle engine’s arms swung up to fire, clattering as auto-loaders drove heavy-calibre shells into the breeches of monstrously oversized guns. Lucius stood defiantly atop the broken carapace of the Titan’s brother, leaping clear as its weapons fired with the deafening thunder of a thousand hammers beating at a war god’s anvil. He rolled as he hit the ground, momentarily blinded by the hurricane of stone splinters, dust and propellant gases.
...
The guns roared again, and Emperor’s Children warriors vanished in a spraying blitz of shells that churned the ground to splintered rock. Armour disintegrated under the barrage, flesh vaporised, and the screams of the dying were musical, pain-filled and short.
Return fire sprayed the Titan, its shields sparking and flaring with bright squalls of energy discharge. Heavier impacts tore gouges in the invisible energy, like stones hurled into fluorescing water. A missile streaked towards the Titan and the warhead exploded with a red bloom of superheated plasma. Shrieking frequencies ripped the air, but still the shield held; though Lucius knew it must be close to collapse.
Another (probable) Warhound firing on the Emperor's children, and the mention of the autoloaders.


Page 42
He bore a flint-knapped blade in one hand and a long-barrelled pistol worked in silver and onyx in the other. His stark white hair flew around his glorious features as the heat bleeding from the Titan’s reactor washed over him.
..
Fulgrim shot with the calm poise of a duellist on a misty heath. A shining spear of incandescent light imbued with the heat of a newborn star spat from the gun and struck dead centre on the Titan’s shields. A shrieking flare of overload banged like a host of shattering mirrors and a powerful sphere of energy pulsed out like a solar flare.
Fulgrim vs Titan. It seems that daemon possessed primarchs, like Sorceror Primarcsh (Eg Magnus) are quite up to the task of fucking over Titans. Especially given his gun of some kind seems to have enough power to take a Warhound's shields down (or at least some quality that can fuck over voids.)


Page 43
The Titan’s auto-loaders ratcheted canisters of shells around from its rear hoppers, and the breeches snapped shut on a fresh load.
Titan autoloaders again. I find it interesting that its entire 'cannisters' of shells rather than a individual shells or a belt of shells.. llike it was a shotgun or something.


Page 45
Spires of glittering, diamond-sheened crystal speared up from the black ground, towering monuments to the galaxy’s endless geological wonder. None were less than a hundred metres tall, and even the slenderest was ten metres or more in diameter. Hundreds of thousands of these spires stretched into the distance, covering a vast swathe of ground with their glittering majesty.
They sprouted from the ground in thick clusters, growing like an organic forest of greenery with curling paths between them. He changed direction at random, plunging deeper and deeper into the shimmering forest of crystal with no thought to any direction. It would be easy to become lost in this shifting forest of mirrors, and Fulgrim recalled an apocryphal tale of a lost warrior trapped in an invisible maze upon the Erycinian Highlands of Venus.
...
He reached out and ran his fingers along the smooth flanks of the spires, revelling in the tiny imperfections of their silicate surfaces. Some were milky and translucent and others opaque, but the vast majority were sheened with a mirror finish, like a million spear heads belonging to a giant army buried in the black sand.
The crystal forests in terms of size and numbers. Each tree being at least 10 m wide and 100 m tall (assuming diamond density of around 3500 kg*m^3) call it ~28,000 tons per tree. Now we get between 200,000 and 1 million trees by that estimate, which is between 5.6 billion and 28 billion tons of trees.
As I noted before this is probably a lower limit, as the entire planet seems to be covered in trees. Indeed, given how billions of tonnes were in orbit already, we're probably talking more (unless they harvested a significant portion of the planet in a single go, which seems unlikely). Even assuming 1 tree per square km, and only 1/4 of the planet covered we'd be talking nearly 130 million trees (514 million square km IIRC).. which is scores or hundreds more forests of the above kind.


Page 51-52
The fleet remained in orbit around Prismatica for six days, gathering the crystal forests from the Mechanicum silos and packing the hold of five captured bulk carriers with glittering cargo. Fulgrim demanded every shard, every powdered fragment and every spire that could be taken from the world, though he gave no clue as to what purpose he intended to turn this haul of captured minerals.
Six days to load up all the crystals of five bulk carriers (whether extra or including the 3 mentioned above with the 'billions of tonnes') At a minimum we're talking billions of tonnes, tens of bmillions of tonnes more, and more probably orders of magnitude that. Gives a strong indicator of the transport/carrying capacity of Crusade-era bulk carriers (EG they carry a shit ton of stuff, easily.)
Safe bet is that we're talking hundreds of billions of tonnes or more, given the implied scope of the forests across the planet and the fact they could be alot bigger than I estimated. 1000 trees per square km (1 tree per 30x30 m area, roughly) for an Earthlike planet orughly, assuming 30% density coverage would be 170 billion trees. with each tree massing tens of thousands of tonnes easily we'd be talkin quadrillions of tonnes of crystal potentially, so even if I exaggerated by a factor of a thousand we're still well above just a couple billion tonnes total.


Page 56
Energised carbon steel clove the air, but Lucius was already moving.
Phoenix Guard halberd. again made of STEEL. But recall as well that we know that 'enhancmeents' of all kinds can be worked on weapons (EG Sons of Dorn.)

Page 61
Like staring deep into an abyss that looks back, Lucius saw a dreadful anguish there, a bottomless well of agony and torment that took his breath away. His mouth fell open in a wordless exhalation of enjoyment to feel such exquisite pain. What manner of being could feel such despair? No mortal or Adeptus Astartes could plunge to such unknowable depths of wretchedness.
Only one such being could know such horror.
Lucius met the eyes of the portrait and knew in a heartbeat the nature of the being held captive within its golden prison.
[spoiler="Its a secret!""]Someone is trapped in a painting, and its not Fulgrim. As we learn, he's overpowered the daemon that possessed him in fulgrim and taken command again. Which means he's still the same self absorbed asshole he became by the end of that novel. so much for him being respectable or redeemed, I guess.[/spoiler]


Page 68-69
The hissing, clicking chirurgeon machine that squatted at his back like a parasite reached over his shoulder, caressing Lucius’s cheek with a slender blade. Lucius felt its feather-light touch, the blade so sharp that he only knew he had been cut when the blood ran over his lips.
..
..still very much aware of the blade at his throat. Just by speaking, he caused its monomolecular tip to pierce his skin.
Sharpness of Bile's Chirurgeon thingy.
Page 68
"I too have seen things that have given me cause to wonder what our beloved primarch is becoming"
..
"A change in the composition of his blood and flesh," replied Fabius. "It is as though his molecular structure has begun to dissolve the bonds linking its constituent parts into a cohesive whole."
...
" It is as though his form is preparing for some great ascension, a wondrous shedding of a redundant form as his flesh is remade into something extraordinary."
More than probably it means the ascencion to Daemonhood. Interesting to know aspects of what aoccurs doing that.


Page 79-82
..Marius Vairosean unleashed a barrage of shrieking reverberations from his cannon. Statues split under the sonic assault, and Lucius felt a delicious frisson throughout his body as the aural blast wave threw him to the flagstones of the gallery.
..
Even as the warrior fell, Fulgrim swept up the maul in his right fist as Ruen darted forwards and rammed his envenomed blade to the hilt into Fulgrim’s side.
...
Fulgrim stepped in and drove the heel of his palm into the captain’s face. Daimon had no time to scream before his face was smashed hollow.
...
The captain’s howl of pain was music to Lucius’s ears, as Fulgrim tore the absurdly small blade from his body. Fulgrim kicked Ruen away, sending him spinning across the gallery to slam into a statue with a crack of shattering plate and breaking bone.
...
The Kakophoni unleashed a roaring series of blasts from their sonic weapons, filling the Gallery of Swords with clashing echoes and reverberating harmonies that drew blood from the ears of all that heard them. Fulgrim shrieked in pleasure as the sound vibrated his flesh and bones with a ferocity that should have killed him thrice over.
Heliton stepped in and drove the spiked fist of his cestus gauntlet into Fulgrim’s lower back, a blow that would have shattered the spine of even an armoured Adeptus Astartes. The primarch took the blow and spun on his heel. A jabbing elbow put Heliton on his back, his lower jaw hanging by a thread of glistening sinew and pulped bone. Abranxe screamed to see his boon companion laid low and swept his twin swords for Fulgrim’s neck. The primarch deflected one sword with the head of Daimon’s maul, as Abranxe spun inside the weapon’s reach to slide his second blade across Fulgrim’s throat.
Blood cascaded down Fulgrim’s throat, and his eyes widened with genuine surprise. Lucius felt a fleeting moment of bitter disappointment and venomous jealousy at the thought of a merely competent swordsman like Abranxe landing such a blow. But no sooner had the blood begun to flow than it stopped, and Fulgrim took hold of Abranxe by the neck and hurled him away.
..
..Julius Kaesoron stepped in and delivered a thunderous left hook with his crackling fist. Augmented with strength enough to tear apart a battle tank, Kaesoron’s blow drove Fulgrim to his knees, but before he could strike again, Kalimos jerked on his lash as Krysander plunged his dagger between the primarch’s shoulder blades.
Fulgrim closed his fist on the gnawing lash and gave what appeared to be no more than a gentle tug. Kalimos was plucked from his feet and spun around the primarch, slamming into Krysander and sending the pair of them crashing to the ends of the gallery.
...
Even in his wounded state, Fulgrim would kill him.
...
Julius Kaesoron rose up behind Fulgrim and slammed his energised fist down on Fulgrim’s skull. A blow that should have pulped its victim’s head to a smeared red ruin merely drove Fulgrim to the ground. The Phoenician shook his head and his bloody rictus grin put Lucius in mind of the deathly iconography he had seen carved into Isstvan V’s ruins.
As Fulgrim sought to push himself to his feet, Marius Vairosean jammed the end of his sonic cannon into Fulgrim’s neck and unleashed a barrage of squalling harmonics that filled the gallery with ear-bleeding noise. Lucius cried out in pain, and Fulgrim’s eyes rolled back in their sockets as he let out a groan of what sounded very much like delirious pleasure.
Battle between 50 Astartes and a Primarch. Even though we learn it was (probably) staged later, its a good indicator of the kinds of abuse they can take, and dish out.


Page 87
"I know everything about how it was put together, the secret powers alloyed to its flesh and bone, the unique organs crafted for the creation of such a numinous being. What the Emperor created, I have broken down into its constituent parts and remade in a greater whole."
Fabius boasting of his knowledge of Primarch bodies. Implies a strong 'magical' element to Primarch construction, which has indeed been hinted at before.


Page 88-89
"A daemon?" laughed Fulgrim. "And how else would you describe a primarch? Are you so naïve as to believe that all things named daemon are evil? Daemon or primarch, both are creatures fashioned from immaterial energies, hybrids of flesh and spirit brought into this world by unnatural means. If you knew anything of my creation then you would not bandy such words so carelessly."
...
"Have you become so eager for conflict that you consciously blind yourself to reality? I have already told you that by Marius’s dull definition, yes, I am a daemon! A daemon willed into creation by a being who seeks to win his immortality through storming the realm of gods by clambering over our corpses."
If Fulgrim is to be believed here, there is little difference between a daemon possessing a body or perhaps an object (or at least incarnated in a corporeal manner) and a Primarch. Again its one of those 'half and half' situations.. there probably is at least an element of truth to it, but whether there is more than that is another question (daemons lie, especially when it comes to the Emperor and the creation of Primarchs.)
Why I find this plausible at all is that the Primarchs, as a rule, do serve a daemonic purpose, as do the Astartes. They are part of the Emperor, an extension of his body, his power, his will. They are his avatars and could very well serve similar roles (in a way) as Champions, daemons, and the like. We know they have psychic element ot their makeup, as well.


Page 90-91
"It is a neural parasite I have engineered from gene-spliced xenos brain fluids and nanotech recovered from the Diasporex hybrid-captains."
..
"Once placed upon the subject, nano-fluid is introduced to the subject’s body, whereupon it latches onto the brain stem and follows the neural pathways into the brain. The various xenos species employed in the creation of the serum were possessed of enhanced psychic potential, and the invasion of the brain chemistry allows the manipulator of the device to access any area of the brain and stimulate it as required.’"
..
"Mechanical animals of flesh and blood, but driven by essentially mechanistic imperatives. What we mistake for personality and character are simply expressions of response to stimuli. With a complex enough algorithm, it would be possible to exactly replicate a functioning machine persona that would be indistinguishable from a living creature. Knowing this, we can stimulate certain areas of the brain, enhancing whatever aspects we choose while blocking others. "
Some sort of xenos-derived torture device Fabuis has invented. IT HAS NANOTECH!


Page 92
With one swift, even pressure, he severed the finger at the middle knuckle, and a squirt of blood pulsed from the wound before slowing to a drip.
Healing sped of a primarch, or at least coagulation speed.


Page 93-95
Lucius felt his pulse race as Fabius lifted a cutting torch from the bench, snapping the igniting mechanism three times before the flame caught. Used to cut through sheet steel, the flame sharpened to a cone of blue-hot light as Fabius adjusted the gas flow
...
Kaesoron nodded, and Fabius brought the flame down on the sole of Fulgrim’s foot.
The flesh curdled, running like molten rubber as it withered beneath the incredible heat. Fulgrim’s back arched and his mouth stretched wide in a soundless scream as the veins and sinews at his neck lifted from his skin like colliding tectonic ridges.
Lucius watched bone rise from the melting skin as it peeled back, emerging white and gleaming for an instant before turning black. Marrow burned with a rich, fatty hiss, and the scent of seared flesh was a rich, gamey texture in the back of the throat.
...
Fabius played the flame over Fulgrim’s foot until all that remained below the ankle was a blackened mass of fused bone and boiled marrow that drooled to the tiled floor of the Apothecarion.
Julius Kaesoron took hold of the charred bone.
...
The flesh had been burned away, yet it appeared as though a thin, translucent film was forming over the bone, which had begun to lose the solid, vitrified look that had been burned onto it. Like a snake that had recently shed its skin, the filmy texture of Fulgrim’s foot was oily and new, raw and yet to assume its final form.
"Look," said Lucius. "He’s healing. You have to keep up the pressure."
Again, whilst being tortured Fulgrim has his foot burnt away by a torch (or at least mostly burnt off) and then it starts regenerating. again indication of their relative resilience. It isn't so much (nesccesarily) that they resist the attack, but it doesn't really put them down (either due to redundancy, rapid healing, or both)


Page 118
Infinitesimal vibrations, growing steadily in significance, registered on his helmet’s auto-senses as minute seismological anomalies in the basin’s tectonic structure.
Earth burrowers tunnelled beneath them, closing on the line of Iron Hands fast.
Iron Hands armour seems to have seismic sensors of some kind.


Page 119
Faint heat signatures, baffled by the sand, suggested there were another four score still fully submerged. A host of dun-cloaked foot troops with anti-gravitic weapon arrays followed them and the air chimed to the shriek of their cannons.
Thermal sensors.


Page 119-120
Fashioned of reinforced plates, with the barrel-like shoulder guards adorned by pteruges that overlaid the thinner and more dexterous arm greaves, their Cataphractii Terminator armour was near-inviolate against the alien weapons. Intended for frontal assault, a tactic in which the Iron Hands excelled, the armour made them giants. Hulking, implacable, they passed through a hail of heavy bow-casters, fusion blasters and shuriken cannon with impunity.
..
Cataphractii war-plate was rare amongst the Legions, but the Iron Hands boasted a great many suits, especially amongst the clan companies of the Avernii, the Morlocks. It was cumbersome, akin to wearing a battle tank bereft of tracks, but still retained all its resilience and stopping power.
Cataphractii armour. Not sure whether this is a variant of Terminator armour, or what Terminator armour was called back then. Or even an older version.


Page 121-122
In his mind’s eye, Santar painted a blood-red crosshair over the advancing scorpiad-creatures.
..
"Heavy divisions on this position," he grated with machine-like cadence, relaying coordinates sub-vocally. "Rapiers and missile launchers."
..
Seconds later, a storm of ordnance lit the desert basin in magnesium white, so bright it almost overloaded the retinal buffers in Santar’s battle-helm.
..
He blinked away the after-flare quickly and was already stomping into the smoke-clouded blast zone ahead. Vitrified sand crunched underfoot and fire licked at the edges of his boots as he crushed a burning eldar skull.
..
After the barrage from Ruuman, there were a few score remaining of the aliens’ hundreds-strong kindreds. The scorpiad-creatures were all but wiped out. A few dogged defenders were left, together with any creatures deep enough beneath the earth to have survived the blast. They waged war amidst the smouldering carcasses of their fallen...
Iron Hands artillery. Seems to burn.obliterate hundreds of eldar and lizards, although we dont know how much artillery is involved. SEems to be realtively minor arty though like rapiers and such.


Page 125
"Ruuman, we are clearing this area in short order. I want it thoroughly sanitised, above and below the surface."
..
Behind the forward line, the first captain could already see the Ironwrought bringing divisions of mole mortars and unmanned Termite incendiary drones into position.
Termites an dmole mortar underground artillery stuff.


Page 125
Together they passed lines of foundered Army tanks and minor Ordinatus of the Mechanicum. Most of the vehicles were weatherbeaten and in need of serious repair and maintenance. Neither warrior spared the struggling troopers a glance.
'Minor Ordinatus'. Not unlike from the Word Bearers novels as I recall lol.


page 126-127
The Ironwrought’s disregard for mortal flesh came from the fact he was now more machine than man.
..
"And do what, Gabriel? Some theatres of war are not meant for mere men."
..
"Are we not men, then, Vaakal?"
Desaan was a staunch adherent to the Creed of Iron, that which espoused Flesh is Weak. His ostensible elitism and lack of human empathy often spilled over into disdain, sometimes worse.
..
"I agree with you, captain. Flesh is weak. The Creed has been borne out in this desert, in the fatigue of our Army divisions and their failing resolve. But isn’t our purpose to shoulder this burden and promote strength through the demonstration of strength?"
...
"I am still a man, flesh in part. My heart pumps blood, my lungs draw air. They are not machine, unlike this," said Santar, brandishing his left arm, the bionics within whirring in simpatico with the first captain. "And these,’ he said, tapping a claw blade against his armoured thigh. ‘Does my flesh make me weak, brother?"
A bit on Iron hand philosophy. Its nice to see they might run a gamut from 'actually think humans have value' to 'I taught Gdolkin how to think' (Gdolkin being the pompous ass from the Iron HAnd novel by Jonathan Green.)


Page 128
"We are warriors and when the war is done, we’ll need to find new vocations or be put to use as praetorian statues adorning the Palace on Terra. Perhaps we’ll form ceremonial honour guards for our defunct warlords."
..
"A warrior without a war to fight is like a machine without function"
..
"Do you know what we face?"
..
"Becoming obsolete."
The whole idea of 'what happens after the Crusade is over' has been a big issue for the HH series, and what happens to the Marines. Indeed it proved to be one of those pivotal issues that lead to the Heresy to beign with (with the help of Chaos at least.) Some Primarchs like Corax had anticipated (and even welcomed) that, whilst others seemed less certain (Horus, even though he encouraged his sons to learn other trades than war.)


PAge 130
Venting pneumatic pressure heralded the opening of the strategium blast door. Half a metre thick and bound with adamantium rebars, it could double up as a bunker if ever the landship was attacked. Not that its sole occupant required such a refuge.
door thickness of a bunker-liek facility inside Ferrus Manus' command vehicle.

PAge 130
"…cannot afford to have our purpose divided. Be mindful, brother, but let the humans look to their own protection. "
...
He exhaled, and his displeasure lessened like a storm cloud passing across his features. His face was a rugged cliff, colonised by scars and framed by a jet-black skullcap of close-cropped hair. The primarch was, for all intents and purposes, Santar’s father but his demeanour was anything but paternal.
...
"I love my brother," rumbled Ferrus, apropos of nothing, "but he drives me to distraction with his desire to nurture and coddle. It is a weak predilection and can only breed weakness in return."
Nick Kyme's Ferrus Manus was a bit interesting. At first in the story I was dismayed in an 'oh fuck, not Jonathan Green's 'Iron Hands' assholes again', instead of being more like Graham McNeill's Fulgrim Ferrus Manus, but that sort of changed as the story progressed. The whole point of the story, indeed is that fixating on one aspect over the other degrades the Iron Hands, and there is value for the flesh as well as the iron - at least in the 40K galaxy.
The other aspect of this is that Ferrus is presented as being far more complex than just 'asshole' or nice guy, alot of what is explored in this story is what drives him, and what makes him a driven, impatient, and demanding taskmaster type.


Page 134
"Of how I bested a storm giant in a feat of strength or how I scaled Karaashi, the Ice Pinnacle, with my bare hands? Or perhaps you are familiar with the day when I swam deeper than the Horned Behemoth of the Suphuron Sea? Do you know these stories?"
..
"No… it was Asirnoth, he who was called Silver Wyrm and the greatest of the ancient drakes. No blade could pierce his metal skin, no spear or lance that I possessed."
..
"I burned it, held its writhing body beneath the lava flows of Medusa until it was dead, and when I withdrew my hands they were…" he held out both his arms, "like this. Or so the saga speakers would say."
...
The tale was simply that, a story crafted by bards and the tribal orators of the clans as related in the Canticle of Travels. It was told differently every time the first captain had heard it. No Iron Hand could claim its veracity, for none had been present during the lightless days of the primarch’s arrival on Medusa. Only Ferrus Manus himself knew the truth and he kept that inside the locked cage of his memories.
Ferrus recounts the stories attributed to him. One of the interesting parts of the story is that Nick Kyme never really confirms or denies their truth, although the way Ferrus talks he seems to think they're a load of shit. But its still a secret either way.


Page 139
Unlike many of his brothers, Henricos did not possess a full array of bionic enhancements. His hand had been severed and replaced with a mechanised simulacrum, as was rite and ritual amongst the Legion, but the rest of the seventh sergeant was organic. He suspected that shred of empathy he had experienced came from this bias of biology.
He wondered if his more cybernetic brethren were surrendering more than just the weakness of flesh to the altar of mechanised strength and resilience. Were they giving up a part of their humanity too?
The 'humane' Iron Hand of the story. Very symbolic.

Page 141
The primarch glanced at a geographic hololith projected from a slate in Santar’s hand
In the rogue Trader novels this would be archaeotech :D


Page 155
The eldar had done something to them, crafted some malign sorcery to affect their cybernetics. To a man, the Morlocks all had extensive bionics.
Eldar messing with Iron Hand augmetics.


page 158
A pity they did not have any jetbike divisions to circumvent the storm and assess it more fully. Not for the first time, Henricos considered the lack of tactical flexibility in the Legion.

Page 158-159
Tarkan was a sniper, part of one of several such squads in the Tenth, and he handled his long-barrelled rifle with a marksman’s grace. It was fashioned for his hands and carried a scope-sight that would connect to his bionic eye and forge an infallible link between firer and target.
Looking down the scope, Tarkan lined the green crosshair over the witch’s helmeted head and fired. The expulsion of the shell rocked the weapon but Tarkan had compensated for that already. Still tracking through the scope, he grinned with mirthless satisfaction as the alien’s cranium burst open and it fell from the pillar without a head or much of its upper torso.
Iron Hands sniper blowing head and upper torso away of Eldar iwth rifle of some kind. Other than that its its a projectile with a casing and it seems to explode. Might be a bolter sniper rifle variant of some kind.


Page 160
Henricos reached him as the monomolecular knife was about to pierce flesh.
Another Monomol Astartes combat knife.


Page 161
..he wrenched out his Medusan steel-edge and fed power into the blade.
guess its a power weapon of some kind?


Page 184
The node itself was immense and wreathed with a crackling energy shield the Iron Hands were struggling to crack. Santar could see no power source, no objective they could attack and neutralise to bring the defences down. It was generated by some other means unknown to them.
Heavy impacts blossomed in bright azure bursts, and the shield rippled to diffuse their explosive energy across its curved surface.
Ruuman refused to concede defeat. His Rapiers and missile batteries kept up a constant fusillade, charging the air with their noise and actinic stench.
..
..Meduson’s vanguard, spearheaded by the Morlocks, tried to force an opening several hundred metres deeper into the field.
The Eldar of the story seem to have some sort of defensive shield protecting them, generated by non-technical means. (EG psykers)


Page 185
Devastatingly powerful ranks of plasma cannons and Tarantula gun platforms boomed across the battle line, filling the rear echelons with light and thunder.
Not only Rapiers, but Tarantulas. Nick Kyme like a few other authros seem to like to resurrect this stuff for nostalgia sake.


Page 186
Meduson carried a holo-slate in his bionic hand and was appraising the tactical dispositions of his force. Heavies gave support fire from range, while three wedges of Iron Hands from the Sixteenth, Thirty-Fourth and Twenty-Seventh clan companies provided a relentless assault on the entrenched eldar positions. Santar recognised the sigils of the Vorganan, Burkhar and Felg clans battling tirelessly at the front.
Holoslate again, this time indicating the sort of info it can display.


Page 186
Five hundred metres ahead of him, the flesh and iron versions of Meduson’s army were doing the actual fighting.
Rows of legionaries strode implacably into the teeth of the enemy, bolters kicking up a steady barrage. Meduson had positioned smaller divisions of conversion beamers and graviton cannons amongst the bulk of the battalions, identified by the sporadic flash from their barrels and arcing lances of power, but the enemy was resolute.
Graviton and conversion beamer weapons as well. Might give a rough indicator of range but we dont knwo where veryone is exactly.


Page 187
In his time as equerry, he had learned much from Ferrus Manus. Often the Gorgon stood in Guilliman’s shadow but he was just as adroit a tactician. Others claimed his only drawback was that his single-mindedness sometimes left him slightly myopic. Though he would never speak of it aloud, Santar believed Ferrus didn’t have the Battle King’s patience for endless scenario-making either.
Guilliman vs Manus. Note that Guilly is called the 'Battle King' - its important at the end of this story.


Page 190
Death did not unnerve the Gorgon, even the prospect of his own. Long ago, in the desolate wastes of Medusa, he had come to terms with the inevitability of his own mortality. He would live longer than most, perhaps even millennia, for who could say what the limits of the Emperor’s gene-science were? But he was a warrior and warriors would eventually meet their end at the edge of a blade. Ferrus hoped his ending would be glorious. He also hoped, one day, for peace. But without war he wondered what would then become of his purpose and function?
Interesting that it leaves the issue of Primarch (and Space Marine) agelessness/immortality open ended again, as this is a recurring theme for the Marines and shit in the series as well. Also a further reflection of the 'post war' fate of the Astartes as a whole.


Page 192
Pain that would kill a hundred lesser men flooded his veins and nearly crippled him. Ferrus was bowed, down on one knee and hurting. Spitting phlegm and blood, he unleashed a peal of anger and fought the poison down.
nearly cripples, but does not actually halt him. Indicator of Primarch pain threholds.


PAge 196
Ferrus was remarkable and on Medusa he was a king of kings. None could match him. But when his father came and brought him to seventeen remarkable brothers, he realised his place. Unlike Vulkan who had accepted his position gladly and humbly, Ferrus railed. Was he not the equal of his siblings? When faced with the glory of Horus, the majesty of Sanguinius or even Rogal Dorn’s dogged solidity, it was easy to believe that some sons would wait in the wings while the chosen few enacted their father’s grand plan for the galaxy.
Ferrus wanted that light for himself, to be equal. He wasn’t vain; he merely wanted to be acknowledged. His entire existence until that point had been spent in the pursuit of strength. He could not believe that all of that had been done in an ancillary role. Ferrus could not believe his father had brought him from one shadow to merely consign him to another.
I will make you proud, father. I will prove my worth.
First, Manus was reclaimed after the two missing primarchs (and their legions) were long gone.

Second, we learn a bit about Ferrus' mindset and his place amongst the other Primarchs, particularily contrasted with Vulkan (no surprise Vulkan plays a prominent role in this story since Nick Kyme is writing it, is it?) He's really driven to measure up to the other 'high end' Primarchs and prove he's just as good as them to the Emperor. Which is understandable in a way. It also puts his relationship with Fulgrim in a different light - they both strive to improve themselves, but for different reasons and to different ends.

Page 197
He remembered the forge and the solace of working metal. The only salve to his wrath, the one thing that could placate his volcanic anger. In spite of such anger, Ferrus knew patience even if it sometimes felt like he was grasping at smoke. Unlike Vulkan, patience did not come easily to him. It was an early lesson for all forge smiths. Tempering could not be rushed, metal needed time, it needed to wait until it was ready; so would he.
Ferrus Manus is also not a patient man.. he struggles with his own temper and tries to maintain the sort of patience Vulkan innately has. That makes his tendency towards being an ass a bit more understandable, which is why I can appreciate this story, I think.


Page 200-201
"Nothing. Everything. I see a billion, billion futures and possible outcomes, some so infinitesimally different you could spend aeons looking for the variation and still not find it."
..
"Will he die? Am I undone?"
"Yes and no."
"Your meaning is needlessly cryptic."
"We are fighting a war of fate. We two are merely agents in this conflict. Through hubris you allowed the Primordial Annihilator–’ the other touched the spirit stone around his neck at mention of the name ‘–a piece of its essence, at least, into your cage and now it is trapped with your intended prey. Chaos has a way of clouding the path of fate."
And the Eldar's purpose/role in this story is shown. Again we aren't shown - alot - but the Eldar seem to be taken an active hand in quite a few different ways in the pre-Heresy/Heresy stuff. There's the Eldar with the Cabal, there's these guys, and there was Elrdad Ulthran in Fulgrim. I don't think there's any sort of GRAND ELDAR CONSPIRACY behind it, rather the Eldar seem to be trying to survive in their own, individual ways, trying ot avert something worse from happening, and Chaos is trying to stop them from interfering. Another aspect of the HH series as a whole seems to be that there was a whole hell of alot


Page 203
Caught between an energy shield that only allowed them out and the advancing legionaries, there was nowhere for the aliens to run and they were crushed underfoot.
The eldar behind them answered with heavy, relentless fire from their gun platforms.
..
Bullying their way forwards, the Morlocks reached the crackling edge of the shield.
The eldar inside fell back, but kept up their fusillade of fire. Overhead, Ruuman’s cannons and the tanks of the Army divisions pounded.
More on the Eldar shield - it lets things out, but not letting them in (EG one way).


Page 205-206
Taking advantage of the respite, the robed conclave of eldar was already re-establishing parts of the shield. It grew like an organic energy web behind the Morlocks. Shells and las-bursts from the heavy divisions caromed off the rapidly regenerating veil.
..
If they stayed, they could destroy the node, or at least slay the witches that had refashioned the shield.
Again the Eldar's shield is psychic in nature.


Page 207
"The shield was breached and only partly regenerated,"
..
"The shield is constructed of kinetic energy but created psychically. Whether the xenos have some form of generator sympathetic to their abilities or another piece of fell alien technology, I can only theorise. As we’ve seen, it can be breached, but only through excessive force."
I'm not sure how you can make a shield out of 'kinetic enregy' but maybe we shouldnt read too much into it. Basically its a shield that blocks shit going one way but not another, and its partly generated by eldar psychic tech.,


Page 218
No mind-fashioned shield could stay the destructive fury of Forgebreaker, not when wielded by its master. The defences were shattered and the psychic shards bit into the eldar as painfully as any blade. It recoiled and threw a jag of arc-lightning that Ferrus deflected with his shoulder guard. Ozone-stink filled his nostrils but he was not about to be deterred.
His bellow shook the fabric of the constructed world around him, the psychic echo of his rage unpinning it at the seams.
I'm not sure whether this is intended to mean that Primarchs have some innate means of bypassing or disrupting psychic defenses, or if it means just the sheeer, brute power of his attack was impossible to block by any psychic defense an Eldar seer/farseer could create. I'm banking on the former, though, myself.

Page 221
The node fell quickly, though much of what followed was a blur for Henricos. He carried Salazarian back to friendly lines. Barely three hundred of the veterans returned alive with him.
They would later be honoured for their part and recognised as adopted sons of Medusa. They were the first of the Chainveil, destined to be its captains, and living proof of the concession that, from that day, not all flesh was weak.
As I said before, a big theme of this story was that 'humans hav value' in contrast to Iron Hand arrogance. They learn a lesson when they run across an enemy they need humans to help defeat. The humans take horrendous losses to do it, but they manage, and this describes the Iron Hands honoring them for that.
Pity the damn fuckers don't carry this attitude over into the 41st Millenium.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Part 2

Page 222-223
"I have allowed a war to come to pass that will decimate our race when we are already so few."
..
The Diviner’s attention was on the webway around them. He kept his senses alert to any crack, any seemingly insignificant fissure. Many sub-realms had already been devoured and more would follow as the conflict Lathsarial had fought so hard to prevent came to pass.
Such things were inevitable, and so the Diviner’s mood was sanguine.
"It was not your war to avert,"
...
As the other farseer faded from consciousness, the Diviner revisited his vision of prescience. Three times he had seen the exact same eventuality unfold. That, in itself, was remarkable.
"There is hope," he muttered. "In the empire of the Battle-King, he who would install an heir. Even if the Gorgon falls and fails to heed our warning, there is another who will listen, one who was lost."
And we're back to the Eldar. It seems that trying to convince Ferrus of.. something wsa important but it failed. At least to one Eldar - the other didnt seem to think it would be likely. givne the stupid way the Eldar in question went about 'convincing' the damn human its not surprising. So, they failed to avert the Heresy, but apparently we get that whole 'no, there is another'. And its in Ultramar (Guilliman being the Battle King, you recall.) This is.. interesting.. as it makes me wonder if its supposed to play into the shit we learned in Know No Fear. We won't know until events develop, unfortunately.

It also represents the second time an external alien force (first he Cabal and now this) have tried to intervene in human affairs to avert a war. Again it really adds to that idea that its far more than just Imperium vs Chaos here, which helps to add some mystery to all the 'de-mythifying' shit going on.


Page 229
Eighty-two days had passed since his confrontation with Konrad Curze on the desolate world of Tsagualsa. Eighty-two days had been enough for his body to heal, for the most part, the grievous wounds the Night Haunter’s claws had inflicted upon the Lion’s superhuman flesh.
82 days since the last story where Curze and Lion met, and Lion started on his paranoid fantasies about Guilliman being another Horus. Get prepared for more of that. Lion has healed from those injuries in that time.


Page 232
"The Night Lords refused engagement at Parthac, my liege, but we arrived too late to stop the destruction of the primary orbital station there. The remaining docking facilities cannot cope with anything larger than a frigate, as I suspect was the enemy’s intent."
...
"That’s three major docks they have taken out in the past six months," said Stenius. "It is clear that they are denying us refitting and resupply stations."
..
"The Night Lords cruisers and battle-barges require such stations as much as ours. I am forced to conclude that they have abandoned any ambition of claiming Parthac, Questios and Biamere and seek to hamper our fleet movements for some manoeuvre in the future."
...
"For more than two years we have duelled across the stars.."
This probably represents Curze following Horus' orders to keep Jonson occupied and away from Terra. Denying them resupply and docking will make it harder for them to return to Terra in time to stop them. That Curze is keeping this up implies it takes far less than a year (under 6 months?) for Jonson to return to Terra from the Eastern fringe, but that's purely conjecture.

Also over two years of constant pursuit. Probably no resupply though.


Page 232-233
"The normal fleet movements and scouting reports are in my latest briefing, my liege."
...
"There was one report that I found odd, my liege," said Corswain. "A broken astropathic message, barely discernable from the background traffic. It would be unremarkable except that it contains mention of the Death Guard Legion."
...
"A handful of ships, a few thousand warriors at most. The transmission does not seem to originate from the Thramas theatre, my liege, but from a system several hundred light years from Balaam."
...
"The message fragments also mention a task force from the Iron Hands in the same vicinity."
Despite the warp storm turbulence Horus and the Chaos Gods have stirred up to hinder the Imperials, a message manages to reach across hundreds of light years. For the record they aren't in the Balaam system - at least I dont think so.


Page 234
" I shall lead the task force personally. The Invincible Reason will be my flagship, Captain Stenius. The Fourth, Sixth, Ninth, Sixteenth, Seventeenth and Thirtieth Orders are to muster at Balaam."
"More than thirty thousand warriors!"
A dozen ships and 30K warriors. This is implied to be a significant proportion of the Dark Angels legion, but perhaps not all of it. Jonson thinks he can take on Guilliman so he must be one of the bigger forces anyhow.


Page 234
Although almost as tall as the Legiones Astartes warriors with whom she travelled the warp, Theralyn Fiana of House Ne’iocene was far slighter, willowy of build with slender fingers.
A 7-8' tall Navigator.


Page 234
Now that warp-sight was employed moving the Invincible Reason away from the translation point at Balaam. The streaming threads of the warp currents were tugging hard at the ship, which sat cocooned within an egg-shaped psychic field, buoyed upon the immaterial waves like a piece of flotsam on the ocean tides.
Apparnetly Gellar fields provide a force against which warp currents can act, not unlike the sails on a sailing ship.


Page 235
Fiana looked for the bright beacon of the Astronomican, and as she had done for the last two and a half years she felt a part of her soul grow dim at the realisation that it could not be found. That the light of Terra no longer burned had been a source of constant argument amongst the Navigators attached to the Dark Angels Legion, with Fiana amongst the growing camp who believed that the only explanation was that the Emperor was no longer alive. This was not a popular viewpoint, and one not to be raised with the primarch, but the logic was inescapable to Fiana.
In the absence of the galaxy-spanning Astronomican, the Navigators relied on warp beacons – tiny lanterns of psychic brightness from relay stations in real space. They were candles compared to the star of the Astronomican, and only one in ten systems in the sector had them, but they were better than moving wholly blind; so much so that both the Night Lords and Dark Angels had tacitly agreed to treat the beacon stations as no-go areas. The risk of stranding one’s own ships in the warp was too great to chance the destruction of the fragile orbital stations.
Perditus was not a beaconed system, and was located only one hundred and fourteen light years from Balaam, on a two-hundred-and-thirty-degrees, seven-point incline heading from the Drebbel beacon, which in turn would be found on a path at one-hundred-and-eighty-seven degrees, eighteen-point negative incline three days out towards the Nemo system. Glancing at a hand-drawn chart draped over the edge of her rotatable chair, Fiana confirmed this and examined the currents lapping at the barrier of the Geller field surrounding the Invincible Reason.
The astronomican is blocked out by the warp storms, meaning that it cannot be navigated by. We get mention of the astropathic relay (warp) beacons, which serve as a means of identifying where worlds are/might be and as an aid (and a backup) to Astronomican navigation - when the aStronoican is present, it helps Navigators be more precise, and when its gone, it still allows them to avoid blind navigation or non-piloted jumps (the 4 ly or so short range ones.)

As I've speculated before, it probably allows non-Navigator psykers like Astorpaths (who have to be able to locate their brothers within a certain range to send messages in some cases) to help navigate a ship. Or sorcerers for that matter. Or perhaps even Librarians.

Also we get a metnion of distance from Balaam to Perditus. Rather odd since they mention Balaam earlier as being 'several hundred ligth years' and now its a mere 114 light years. Maybe distances change relative to the warp or soemthing? Either way its not an astronomican jump so its not the fastest or most precise given the conditions.

Oh also mention of warp beacons - they're not in every system (although later on in the Imperium they may be, or may even be between systems for important routes), but apparently 10% of systems in a sector have them (which means on average for a 200 ystem sector a score or so, and for a millionw orld Imperium that means 100,000 beacons total.) Are beacons meant to be separate from general astorpaths on every planet who might throw out a signal? I wonder...


Page 235-236
Yet Fiana’s warp sight allowed her to sense an approximation of its tidal powers and whorls of immaterial confluence. The Balaam system had been chosen for the rendezvous because from here a near-constant current ran through the warp almost as far as Nhyarin, nearly three thousand light years away. Nothing was ever certain with the warp, and its strange ways meant that sometimes the Nhyarin Flow ran backwards or could not be located at all, but eight times out of ten it could be relied upon to speed travel to the galactic south-west, fully across Aegis and two other subsectors. The worlds along its route were amongst the most hotly contested between the Night Lords and the Dark Angels.
Importance of currents to the speed and precision of warp navigation.


PAge 236
A few minutes later, the Geller field bulged to starboard, its psychic harmonics adjusting to the controls of the crew so that the Invincible Reason edged out of its current course and into the outlying streams of the Nhyarin Flow. Psychic power gripped at the shields like waves tugging at a leaf, and though there was no real sensation of movement, Fiana felt in her thoughts the battle-barge surging ahead, flung forwards across time and space at incredible speed.
Around her, the pinpricks of light that had been the other ships of the fleet winked out of existence. Within half a dozen minutes, nothing could be seen of the flotilla, scattered to the four points of the compass and stretched through time by the eerie workings of warp space.
Again Gellar fields used to navigate and propel a ship in the warp. And the difficulties of keeping formation and tracking other ships in the warp. Given the 'ranges' the Macharius and Contagion engaged in in Execution Hour, this might mean ships are separating from hundreds of km in a matter of minutes. That implies a warp 'speed' of kilometres per second (at least relative to the individual ships in the fleet) or some such. If we knew absolute speeds we might be able to derive a 'ratio' between ship speeds vs FTL speeds in some approximate manner (VERy approximate given hwo time and space are malleable in the warp..)


Page 236-237
The whole of the warp was alive with tempests, but the Nhyarin Flow seemed stable enough for the moment.
...
Just before her othersense was curtailed she thought she glimpsed another ship, riding on a swirl of energy behind the battle-barge. It was probably another Dark Angels vessel, caught by fortune on the same timeflow as the Invincible Reason.
again the turbulence of the warp at this time, and the fact that some ships CAN travel together if they're in roughly the same time 'zone'.. again reflecting how time and space are variable in the warp.


Page 237
There had always been talk amongst the household, of what the warp really was, and whispered stories of the strange phenomena that the Navigators sometimes glimpsed on their travels. Now Fiana was certain that there was something else out there; not just aliens living in the warp as she had been warned, but something that existed as part of the immaterium itself.
And the stories had grown in number, and in horror. Ships had always gone missing, but the frequency with which they were now lost was frightening, as if the warp itself was rebelling at their presence.
The Navigators seemed as unaware of the 'true' nature of the warp as the rest of humanity, save a select few. Rather odd, that.


Page 237
This was the fourth audience in seven days that he had granted her, and twice also had he received representation from her through Captain Stenius.
7 days in the warp so far.


Page 238-239
"for the past several days, since we translated from Balaam, I and my family have witnessed a ship following in our wake. At first we thought it coincidence; a companion vessel of the fleet that happenstance had tossed upon the same course as ours."
..
"It is my understanding that it is extremely difficult, perhaps impossible, to trail a vessel in warp space."
"What was our understanding also, lauded primarch. Many times have Navigators attempted to stay within reach of each other, but ninety-nine times out of a hundred all sight is lost within a day, and always within two days. We sometimes make analogy between the warp and the currents of the sea, but it is a simplistic comparison. The warp flows not only through space, within another realm beside our own, but also upon different streams of time."
..
"An hour passes in the warp and several days have turned in real space. If a ship translates a day before another, it could be weeks ahead in its journey. You have not yet explained why coincidence is not a suitable explanation, Navigator. I have made hundreds of warp jumps in my life; it is not remarkable that on one journey another ship might be caught upon the same current."
...
"It is remarkable that we have changed stream four times in the last five days, seeking the fastest current to Perditus, and within the hour the ship is behind us again. It is following us, lauded primarch, and I know of nobody who possesses that capability."
Again 'several days' have passed (which means at least seven) and cmmentary on the variability of time and space in the warp, and it simpact on keeping formation and travel in general. Of particular interest is the 'time dilation' effect in both directions (realspace faster than warp spcae and vice versa.) And whilst encountering ships in the warp is not unusual, being pursued is (again like in Execution Hour) It is known Daemon ships can do l ikewise.


Page 240
"No Navigator can track another vessel in the warp with such accuracy. We work on suggestions and instincts far too vague for such precision."
No Navigator, thought the Lion, but not impossible.
Again, comment on the limits of Navigators and the way they navigate.


Page 240-241
"Do you think it is possible to elude this enemy without undue risk or excessive delay to our journey? "
..
"I am not sure I would know what to do, lauded primarch," said Fiana. "It is not something a Navigator learns."
...
"Surely you have experienced pursuit by other than a ship?" said the Lion. "There are denizens of the warp that are known to chase vessels."
"Of course," said Fiana. "I know a small repertoire of evasive manoeuvres, but the usual response when facing such a crisis is an emergency translation into real space."
Evasive manuevers in the warp, as well as commentary that beasts exist in it that may pursue and attack starships (yet another danger.)


PAge 241
For two days Fiana and the other three Navigators aboard the Invincible Reason performed several manoeuvres that would, in normal circumstances, separate them from the following ship. They frequently changed flows within the warp, shifting the battle-barge from the fast-moving stream of the Nhyarin Flow to the more sedate currents that drifted from its outer edges. They dived into swirling eddies, a risky proposition even before the recent tumults that had engulfed warp space. Twice they turned the ship fully about and forged into counter-flows, taking them away from the route to Perditus.
Always the other ship found them again, sometimes never breaking away, other times vanishing only to appear on the edge of detection an hour or two later, following unerringly in the battle-barge’s wake.
2 days of evasions, differences in warp flow speeds (and changing to manuver or alter speeds/directions, etc.) - I expect factors like Gellar field strength, ship strength/durability, and engine power cna all affect the kinds of currents you can use (EG warsips probably can use faster currents than merchant or civilian ships.)

While this adds 2 days to the journey it also is worth noting they aren't going straight line either.


PAge 242
"Three days ahead, perhaps four, there is a well-known anomaly, which we call the Morican Gulf. It corresponds roughly to the Morican star, a dead system. There is a region that is like a gap in the warp, a bottomless gulf surrounded by a turbulent maelstrom. It is possible to run the outer edges of this whirl, and the storm should mask our departure route."
...
"The null space, the void in the eye of the storm, can becalm a ship, leave it stranded for days, for weeks, sometimes forever."
3-4 more days to the journey, it would seem. Also a dangerous warp anomly.


Page 243
"We have no idea of their capabilities. As I understand it, any translating ship creates ripples, an echo along the warp currents. If the Night Lords have a psyker or some other means to track our normal movements, a translation would be as clear as a summer day to them."
"An emergency jump even more so, lauded primarch," added Fiana. "The backwash would be like dropping a boulder into a lake; even an inexperienced Navigator could detect it."
"There is also the danger that our warp engine rift will collide with the Geller field of the other ship," said Stenius. "Whatever means they have to follow us, they have to stay close to use it."
The detectability of warp translations into and out of the warp, as well as emergencies. The violence and disruption seems tied to the speed of the translation, so it could be that the variation in translation entries and exits is tied to this (amongst other things) Sort of like easing into a pool of water slowly rather than just jumping in. Of course a slower translation also means you need to keep the warp portal open longer (meaning more power) and if you're trying to escape that could be dangerous. At the same time, high speed jumps also require more precision to avert dangers (since warp translations are space-time distortions amongst other problems.) Warp 'weather' can probably also influence the speed of jumps - jumping fast into a bad 'warp storm' is probably inadvisable, since speed will affect your ability to manuver/avoid hazards (nevermind that the faster you move, the less time you have to avoid said hazards once you detect them.)


Page 245-246
Fiana and her fellow Navigators each surveyed a stretch of the warp, seeking the conjunction of flows needed to bring the Invincible Reason quickly back towards the phantom ship.
...
Three warp streams, one very strong, the other two weaker but approaching each other at steep angles, came together to create a three-dimensional whirlpool.
..
..Fiana could sense the tortured mass of the Invincible Reason as its Geller field realigned, shoving the battle-barge from one streaming eddy of warp energy into another.
..
She anchored the Geller field onto the strongest and then pushed aside her companions to collapse into the only chair in the chamber.
More on warp navigaton and the gellar field as a propulsion as wlel as a protective device.

Also, Navigators can pool their talents (in emergencies) to improve warp navigation. Trade off being tha tyou need to HAVE multiple Navigators, but also that you can't 'switch off' giving one time to rest whilst the others work.


Page 246
There was no time to waste. Even from their prepared idling state, it would take several minutes for the warp engines to charge to full power. Any longer and they would be right on top of the phantom ship, their Geller fields merging. The effect of translating in such close proximity to another vessel would be certain destruction for both ships.
Minutes to recharge warp engines in this case. Important for cases like EH or other novels. Going by 'stellar power' for example, the energy input vs the sustained power is 1/00-1/1000th (so for e21 joules energy to enter the warp, e18-19 watts are needed to charge up over a 2-59 minute period or so.


Page 247
The navigation aides moved quickly from station to station in the bright glow of their screens, monitoring power outputs and safety thresholds as the plasma reactors of the battle-barge went up above one hundred per cent output in preparation for the warp engine activation.
Warp translation - at least under these circumstance, requires full reactor power output. It could be that the speed of warp engine recharge is affected by the percentage of power allocated. No reason it is neccesarily fixed.


PAge 250
The systems of the Invincible Reason scoured the surrounding space for seven minutes.
..
"Twenty-two thousand kilometres from starboard bow. Eclipse-class light cruiser. Night Lords. Broadcasting as the Avenging Shadow."
Shortly after translating out of the warp, at 'close range' (hundreds of km as per Execution Hour?) the Night Lords ship is 22,000 km away. Gives a rough idea of the ratio (scores if not hundreds of km in realspace for every km in the warp) Although that doesn't quite mean much as far as FTL speed goes. It does show that warp translations can be dangerous (risky) because they encompass relatively large volumes of space in the wapr and out, so you can risk carrying things into it (that can be risky) as well as out.

This could have benefits however. If one can extend the gellar field for protection, such a 'area effect' translation can carry more than just the ship into warp space (sub-stellar ships, for example, or perhaps crippled warships.)

Also a new kind of light cruiser.


Page 250
...Lion, having made the navigational calculations in only a couple of seconds; even with the aid of a trigometric cogitator Stenius would have taken at least two minutes to get the exact heading required. "Ready torpedoes, tubes three and four. Flight crews to Thunderhawks and Stormbirds."
Calculation abilities of Primarch vs Human literally orders of magnitude faster thinking than a normal human when it comes to computation.


Page 250-252
"I do not wish to destroy them, captain. We will capture the ship and seize whatever technology they have employed to track us here. I am inputting the torpedo guidance codes; they will not miss."
...
"The warp interference surrounding the enemy vessel is highly unstable. The ship could be dragged back into the warp while you are aboard."
...
"Torpedoes bearing on target, my liege," declared a weapons tech, stilling any reply that Corswain might utter; he had none. "Firing solution has been plotted as per your calculations."
"Launch when at optimum angle," said the Lion. "Engines all ahead full towards the enemy."
..
"Tube three cycling. Tube three launching. Tube four cycling. Tube four launching."
...
On the main screen, the beleaguered Night Lords ship was dead ahead, the streak of the two torpedoes racing from the battle-barge towards it.
"Twenty-three seconds to torpedo separation. Twenty-seven seconds to impact." grated the weapons servitor. Already the blazing plasma drives of the torpedoes were just another glimmering pair of stars against the backdrop of the galaxy, gradually dwindling with distance.
They don't move towards the ship til they laucnh torpedoes (or at least until the yturn around to face the ship they aren't moving towards it.) so the range is still roughly 22,000 km at launch. 27 seconds to hit over that distance for torps means an average velocity of 815 km/s, and an acceleration of around ~6000 gees (at least.) Separation at 23 seconds means separtion of the torp into submunitions, which is what Gav Thorpe always makes torps do in his books. 4 seconds out from impact at the aforementioned velocity is ~3300 km, which is a bit shorter than in 'Age of Darkness' short story but not by much (5000 as opposed to 3300 here. If we assumed 5000 km insted of 3300 km as approximate then velocity would be 1250 km/s for teh 5000 km 'separation' distance if time was held constant.)

This is perhaps one of the higher than Execution Hour, Iron Hands. Age of Darkness (1000 km covered in 'a few seconds') or the other cases - indeed one of the highest known torpedo velocities possible. It goes without saying that broadside weaponry (macro cannon, missiles, etc.) should be MANY times faster potentially than this, which reinforces the whole 'thousands to tens of thousands of km/s) projectile velocity for broadside weapons some people seem to rage at (as if you could somehow hit a target with unguided shells from tens of thousands of kms away at tens or hundreds of km! Nevermind the whole point defense issue, which to my knowledge is never an issue with broadside weaponry, only ordnance.)

Oh and assuming between 100 tons and 2000 tons for torpedoes, at 815 kps, we're talking between 3e16 and 6.7e17 J of KE for the torpedoes alone, nevermind the KE of the engine exhaust (which is going to be at least as much in addition to push the torpedo to that speed, if not much greater) and the warhead yield itself is going to be even greater still.. so defintiely mucho megatonnage at least, and quite possibly gigatonnage with a large torpedo and fairly high exhaust velocity (For example if the torpedo exhaust velocity was 3000 km/s, which would require expending 550 tons of propellant... KE would be 2e18 J.)


Page 252-253
"The Night Lords ship is doing something strange with its warp engines."
..
"My liege, the enemy ship is turning, trying to break free from the warp breach. They are closing quickly with our position."
The Night Lords ship is plotting something to escape, and is starting to move closer to the Dark Angels ship now (meaning it wasn't before the torpedoes were launched.


PAge 253
The air was filled with static hiss for several seconds while the automated decryption systems deciphered the incoming transmission.
Lion's ship has its own language translation software :D


PAge 254
"The enemy ship is activating its void shields and warp engines, my liege!"
..
"The feedback from the void shields will tear them apart."
..
"That same feedback will create a wave in the warp breach, ripping it apart. Activate Geller fields, prepare for unplanned translation!"
..
The light cruiser appeared to fold in upon itself, the implosion releasing another blast of warp power as its void shields tried to shunt raw psychic energy back into the warp itself, creating a loop that fed into the breach between universes.
Yet another mention of void shields being warp based. As if we needed another one! Apparently this can be used to create a sort of warp detonation of some kind. It also shows why warp interference might affect void shield activation.


PAge 254
"Torpedoes separating."
..
There was a brief twinkling as thrusters fired and the torpedoes ejected their multiple warheads towards the Night Lords ship.
As I noted, Gav Thorpe style torpedoes are always MIRVs.


Page 255-256
The visual screens had gone blank, unable to replicate the vortex of power that was whirling about the ship.
Visual screens cannot replicate the warp space, which means that the 'windows' aren't always windows but viewscreens.


PAge 256-257
"Starboard gun decks, levels eight and nine."
...
"Warp interference prevents us raising void shields, my liege. We would suffer the fate of the Night Lords. The same is true of the Geller field; we’ve not fully translated and to activate it would risk a massive feedback loop. Warp engines are still cycling back to potential from our translation"
At least nine gun decks on the Invincible REason, as well as why void shields can't be raised.


Page 257
Stepping off the conveyor at gun deck nine, his retinue of ten legionaries in close step behind him...
...
It was possible, though highly unlikely, that the Night Lords had managed some form of long-range teleport as a last-ditch act before their ship was destroyed; it would not be the most unbelievable act the Night Lords had performed recently.
The gun deck was composed of a main corridor nearly a kilometre long, with access passages every two hundred metres leading to each of the gun turrets, which in turn were self-contained keeps housing the macro-cannons and missile pods used for close attack against enemy ships. They were designed to withstand boarding and Corswain could see that the defence bulkheads had been dropped on the closest platforms, isolating them from the rest of the ship. How any attacker had managed to breach several platforms at once in such a short space was beyond his reckoning.
Again nine gun decks, with each gun deck (a km long at least) having maybe 5-6 turrets/batteries per broadside per deck. That means at least 45-54 turrets per deck. This is probably conservative as each seems to be a 'nest/battery' comprised of multiple turrets (guns and missiles) per battery. What's more, these seem to be only the short range weapons, not the longer range stuff (lances, lasers, plasma cannon, etc.)

Also mention of long range teleport attack (20,000 km or so estimated range, although it means no less than 10,000 km or so probably for 'long range teleport' attack, so even if there was a range closure for the torpedo case, it can be no less than half the range, and thus half the velocity estimated, which is still significant.)


Page 259
The bulkhead slammed down just in front of the maniacal aliens, cutting off the infernal fire, and eerie silence descended.
Trying to make sense of what he had seen, Corswain noticed that the bulkhead was starting to glow at its centre, the unnatural flames of the attackers now turned to the purpose of burning through the metres-thick portal. As he watched the glow spreading, droplets of molten material starting to stand out on the plasteel like the sweat on his brow, the seneschal judged that it would only be a matter of a few short minutes before the creatures escaped their temporary prison.
metres thick bulkheads.


PAge 261
She concentrated on the solidifying apparition, channelling the energy stream that allowed her to pierce the veils of the warp. Here, in real space, that stream erupted as a scourging beam of black light that struck the beast between the waving fronds surrounding its fanged maw. The thing withered under Fiana’s psychic glare. Its insubstantial form scattered into tattered mist as the energy that bound it to the material plane was thrust back into warp space.
Interesting in it suggests a warp eye acts a bit like 'radar' - eg it emits a 'beam' of warp radiation or something, in order to scan thruogh the warp. Thus Navigators are more of an active sensing (sepcialized sort) rathre than purely passive detection.


Page 265
"I swore an oath also, to uphold the Edict of Nikaea. To unleash further sorcery will endanger us even more. Think again, my liege!"
...
"My authority is absolute," the Lion said, clenching his fists, his lips drawn back to reveal gleaming teeth.
"The Edict of Nikaea was issued by the Emperor, my liege," said Nemiel. "There is no higher authority."
...
The Lion moved and a split-second later a cracked skull-faced helm was spinning through the dull-glowing lights of the strategium, cutting a bloody arc through the air. Nemiel’s headless corpse clattered to the floor as the Lion held up his hand, pieces of ceramite embedded in the fingertips of his gore-spattered gauntlet.
...
For a moment he saw a vision of satisfaction, the Lion’s eyes gleaming as he stared at his handiwork. It passed in a second. The Lion seemed to realise what he had done and his face twisted with pain as he knelt beside the remains of the Brother-Redemptor.
And.. the Lion goes all psychopath again. Gav Thorpe (which most other authors seem to follow) have this idea that the Lion is sort of a schizo, paranoid loon. He doesn't trust people, and he can't tolerate anyone disobeying him, even if it means obeying the Emperor over him (who he SUPPOSEDLY is supporting, I might add.) Playing back into Angels of Darkness, it just really emphasizes that Jonson brings alot of the problems he has down on his own head with his attitudes and his inability to trust.

It goes without saying this is the smae sort of Dark Angel Primarch that the Space Wolves view him as :P
Oh and if one recalls from the previous two Dark Angels themed novels - Nemiel was the friend of Zahariel and they were both made Dark Angels. If Zahariel (now an Ally of Luther) finds out Nemiel was killed by the Lion... oh dear.


Page 267
This day he would go armed, and he took up two blades, heavy hand-and-a-half broadswords by the reckoning of normal men but easily held in each fist by the giant primarch.
Lion can wield in one hand (easily) what normal man needs two hands to wield.


PAge 270
It was not impossible – the nephilla could be destroyed by weight of fire or a particularly powerful blast of a lascannon or such – but it was hard work and the force was expending ammunition and power packs at a prodigious rate.
Durability of daemons.. at least when they have a strong connection t the warp.


Page 271
They had less than half the stores they had set out with by the time they reached the conveyors and stairwells that dropped down into the warp core chambers.
They had encountered all manner of horrifying foes on the two-kilometre journey aftwards...
The Invincible Reason is at least 3 km long. More probably two or three times that if nto more.


Page 275
The core itself was in a heavily shielded octagonal structure at the centre of the high-domed chamber, enclosed by layer after layer of protective sheaths. Mechanicum symbols were etched into the housing, forming an intricate web of lines and shapes filled with gleaming metal against the obsidian-like stone of the warp core.
Warp core. Seems t be made of stone.


Page 277
[quoteA]s all four of those black eyes fixed upon him, Corswain felt something inside his head, like a warp translation but sharper, like a pinprick in the centre of his mind. He tried to block out the sensation of fingers pulling apart his thoughts and memories, examining them one by one, but could not stop the creature’s mental assault.
Suddenly the seneschal’s limbs went numb. He stood up, with no volition, but was otherwise immobile.[/quote]
Interesting hwo an intrusion into the mind (telepathic assault/mind control) is likened to the sensations of a warp translation. I wonder if that reflects the daemon 'invading' Corsawin's mind through the warp, via the 'soul connection' every human being has in the warp? Maybe daemons have an easier time finding it in realspace?


Page 280
That is not true. However, you do not desire power, that much is plain. Your ambition is woefully stunted for one of your abilities. You are happy to let your brothers dwell in the light of your father’s adoration. You even sacrifice your own to stay true to the memory of what once was.
..
Freedom, Lion of Caliban. I can give you freedom. You know that you do not really care for these lesser beings. They are a distraction to you. Their frailties, their petty squabbles, are unnecessary trifles to be avoided. Even this war that you fight, it is without consequence.
Tzeentchian demon assessing Lion. I suppose its supposed to explain his lunacy, but really it just makes him seem more sociopathic to me. Primarch version of Dexter, maybe.


Page 282
... hammering his fist into the pommel of the half-buried sword, driving the blade fully into the nephilla. The primarch felt a moment of contact, something deep within him connecting with the substance of the nephilla. His anger raged, finding conduit through his arm, into his fist, given vent along the blade of the buried sword like white fire pulsing from the Lion’s heart.
The creature’s piercing shrieks ripped through the Lion’s mind. Its body burst into a globe of power, filling the chamber with expanding flame that sent the primarch reeling, droplets of the molten sword pattering against his armour.
Like with Ferrus Manus 'breaking' that Warp shield the Farseer threw up in the last story, this is interesting for the way in which it implies the Primarchs seem to have some innate offensive capabilities pertaining to psykers and warp beings especially. In this case, the Lion is somehow able to destroy/banish through some massive surge of (psychic?) energy what is probably a Greater Daemon of Tzeentch. And melting his hand and a half sword in the process (Megajoules at least)
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Part 3

Page 284
It was eight more days of travel before the Navigators announced that they were in the vicinity of Perditus. Lady Fiana had recovered a little more from her ordeal, and was able to take her place in the rota of Navigators steering the ship. On reaching their destination, she requested an audience with the Lion before she would allow the Invincible Reason to translate back to real space.
So 3-4 days to the anomaly, plus another (possible) 2 days or os of evasions, plus 7 days before, was at least a good 15-21 days all told. Call it roughly 2 or 3 weeks of warp travel to cover either 114 or 'several hundred' light years. AT 114 LY the distances are 2000-3000c average warp speed. Assuming 'several hundred' is 300 LY it is 5200-7800c roughly. So either high thousands or low thousands of c, which is not too bad considering the conditions and all the delays and shit they've encountered.


Page 284
"By all calculation and observation, we have reached Perditus, yet for the last three hours we have been unable to sight any warp beacon to confirm this categorically."
"The storms?" suggested Corswain.
"On the contrary, the warp is incredibly placid in this locale, disturbingly so. There is almost no movement whatsoever, as if the currents have been flattened, stretched into non-existence. It is this dampening effect that I believe obstructs the beacon signals."
Mention of warp beacons again. They apparently serve a function in identifying (key) systems as far as destinations go (in theory you could tell a system apart by the beacon, I imagine, if all the beacons are different.


Page 285
Several Dark Angels ships had already made transition to the Perditus system when the Invincible Reason broke through into real space and established contact, though nearly a dozen vessels were still in transit in the warp. Fleet movements had never been easy through the warp, and the storms had exacerbated the problem considerably. It was one of the main reasons the Dark Angels had been unable to force a decisive encounter with the Night Lords in Thramas; by the time sufficient vessels arrived in a system to confront the enemy the elusive Night Lords had time to escape direct conflict.
Size of the Dark Angels contingent arriving at the planet, and the problems with pinning down same forces, at least during the adverse warp storm activity present.


Page 285-286
the primarch saw no cause for delay and directed the five ships present in his fleet to advance in-system at full speed.
Passing the uninhabitable gas giants at the edge of the system, the Dark Angels picked up sensor readings of two fleets engaged in a protracted manoeuvre for position around Perditus Ultima, the closest planet to the star, on the very edge of the habitable zone. Ident-codes and intrafleet signals marked out the vessels as Iron Hands and Death Guard ships, each flotilla numbering no more than half a dozen ships; even combined they would be no match for the might of the Dark Angels that would be arriving. Despite hails, communications could not be established with either fleet, or the ground station on Ultima.
Crossing the orbit of Perditus Secundus, just five days from their destination, the warriors of the First Legion were in range to detect forces deployed onto the surface of Perditus Ultima.
5 days from the edge of the system (unknown distance) to the planet in question. At least 2 other planets in addition to the main habitable one. I'm going to call it a couple billion km in this case, because otherwise 5 days isnt going to be more than a couple gees and less than 1% max travle speed (probably less) At aroudn 13-14 AU you get between 4-5 gees and 3-3.3% of c. Probably quite good by Gav Thorpe Engine Performance standards. :D


Page 287
"Until we can establish the loyalty of both factions here, and that of the Mechanicum as well, we should not suppose any aid from either side. The Iron Hands have been leaderless since Manus was slain at Isstvan. Who can say what their current agenda is or where their true loyalties lie? Similarly, it has been reported that those Legions that sided with Horus did not do so wholly. Whole companies and fleets have been spread far across the galaxy, and with the warp storms isolating many sectors we must not hastily pre-judge any situation, little brother."
Lion is again quite paranoid, although in this case it has some merit (despite being disturbing for the degree of paranoia the dude has.) IT shows at least that the whole Traitor/Loyalist line is perhaps not as absolute as before, and that some of the troops from legions that sided with Horus are quite possibly loyal, or at least not actively aiding Horus. It isn't clear whether there are some 'loyalist' legions who have definitively sided with Horus or not, but the absence of Ferrus Manus seems to have largely crippled the Iron Hands legion (and quite probably the Salamanders, given Vulkan's disappearance.)


PAge 289
From his vantage point behind the armoured windows that pierced the central tower of Magellix station, Captain Lasko Midoa had an uninterrupted view of the whole Mechanicum complex. His attention was directed to the south and east, towards outposts Seven, Eight and Nine, currently occupied by his Death Guard adversaries. Behind the low octagonal structures spread the mirrored screens that ran the circumference of the entire facility...
...
The ever-present mist layer distorted the distances, so that although the outer stretches of the facility were several kilometres away, their bulk was magnified to make them seem almost within bolter range. Heat shimmer from the mirror wall compounded the problem. It did not help the captain’s sense of perspective to know that his foes were inside the stubby keeps, ready and able to launch an attack at any moment.
Implied size of the station/facility. 'several' implies at least 2-3 km, although whether it is larger than that in raidus or diamater (EG 10 km or more) we don't know.

Also implies a bolter range is far less than 'several' kilometres.


Page 290-291
"Course and speed are consistent with an orbital heading. They will be in high orbit in less than three hours."
...
"We will engage the Death Guard ships and provide a screen for the arriving Dark Angels. They have two battle-barges amongst their flotilla, which would be valuable orbital support."
Dark Angels are 3 hours out, and have 2 battle barges.


Page 291
It took most of the next hour for Midoa to gather together the forces he required for the counter-offensive. Squads and companies were drawn in from their positions across Magellix and the surrounding rocky plateau, moving in secret along underground highways that had been dug beneath the surface of Perditus Ultima long before the Emperor’s compliance fleet had arrived.
The Iron Hands sallied forth from the main gateway of Tower Two, Predator battle tanks and Land Raider armoured carriers spearheading the thrust, while the force’s Rhinos and the larger Mastodon transports followed behind the more heavily armed screen.
Almost immediately, defensive fire from Tower Eight punched through the gloom of Perditus’s atmosphere: stabs of laser and the flare of heavy cannon fire. The vanguard of the column spread out into covering positions, the tanks taking up stations behind enormous scattered boulders, jagged escarpments and the shallow ferrocrete blocks that housed the station’s atmosphere filtration fans. Soon the return fire of the Iron Hands was lancing into the slab walls of the outer towers, ripping trails through ferrocrete and cracking massive glassite observation decks.
Assault occurs when the Dakr Angels are now 2 hours out. WE dont know the ranges quite involved, except it may be far less than a kilometre (but no more than the 'several kilometres' implied earlier.) One possibility lies with the towers: with at least nine (if not ten) towers, each tower is probably and a 4-6 km diameter 'facility', each tower is perhaps 1.2-1.4 km to 1.9-2.1km apart in circumference, assuming they're all placed around the edges. If Tower one and tower nine are between two and eight, there would be three 'segments' between 2 and 8, and that is roughly 3.6-6.3 km 'around' the edge. Which would imply multi-km ranges for the weapons firing on the transports. for lascannon at least, that's not surprising, and depending on how heavy the cannon are (autocannon or battle cannon) it is not unreasonable either.

The above is PROBABLY limited by line of sight - if we knew the height of the towers we could estimate limits, but unless these are titan grade guns I'd e surprised if they were much more than 10 km (if that.)


Page 292-293
...Rhinos, hatches and .doors battened down as the transports roared across the undulating rocky ground at full speed.
...The slower, bulkier Mastodons, each quadruple-tracked and towering above the Land Raiders...
...
Before they reached Tower Eight, the Iron Hands came into range of the guns at Tower Nine. Midoa had known this and speed was the best defence against the strengthening crossfire. There were three hundred metres of ground to cover where both towers could fire at full intensity, before the bulk of Tower Eight obscured the arcs of fire of its neighbours.
...
..ten metres behind him Sergeant Haultiz’s transport was struck full-on by a lascannon beam.
...
The fifteen seconds it took to dash through the blazing kill zone was the longest fifteen seconds Midoa had felt in his life. He was crouched in the rear compartment with his command squad, all of them tensed and ready to extract if a hit forced them to bail from their transport even while it was moving.
...
by the time the lead transports were within a hundred metres of Tower Eight’s secondary gate, seven of the Rhinos and three Land Raiders had pierced the cordon of fire. A further eight Mastodons followed behind, each carrying forty Iron Hands warriors, their power fields soaking up autocannon shells and lascannon blasts with actinic flashes of energy.
Advance on the tower. My earlier estimtaes probably were a tad off, considering they were in range of towers eight but not nine (But the difference was not significant. Also 15 seconds at top speed for a Rhino.as far a sthe 'kill zone' goes. 300 m in 15 seconds is ~72 kph, which is about right for the 'on road' speed of a Rhino. Assuming that the 'kill zone' range didnt include the 100 m they stopped (that further implies a lower limit of 400 m range to the target, which is probably conservative, and points at greater than a km range.

Also heavy astartes transports called Mastodons, which have power fields and carry 40 Iron Warriors, and are bigger (and slower) than Land Raiders.


Page 293-294
With them they had brought a phase field generator; a device Midoa had overseen the creation of since arriving, with the aid of his Mechanicum allies. It took only a few seconds for the Iron Hands legionaries to assemble the four-legged platform and install the phase field generator, the bulk of the machine taken up with an energy distillation dish at the centre of which were thousands of wire coils to transmit the phase field into place.
...
...Midoa made a last few adjustments to the machine which he had painstakingly assembled and rigged from old tunnel-delvers and other pieces of warp-tech machinery left over by Perditus’s previous inhabitants. They had used the channelled power of the warp as freely as the Imperium employed plasma and electricity, much to the amazement of Midoa.
...
Everything within the field disappeared, including a circle of the Tower Eight wall some three metres in diameter. After a few seconds, Midoa signalled for the machine to be shut down...
...
Inside, the phase field had displaced a swathe of the room within the tower, along with another interior wall and the ceiling twenty metres further on, exposing the floor above and a basement level below. Neatly severed cables sparked while sliced atmosphere recycling pipes dribbled contaminant-laden steam into the air.
Phase field generators. Warp tech, but not Imperial tech per se. Permanant effect. Apparently also warp powered.


Page 294
"The Terminus Est’s dearthfield is still functioning, no communication is able to pass from surface to outer orbit."
"And the Dark Angels continue on their course directly towards Perditus Ultima?"
...
"They will have orbit in less than two hours, commander."
Terminus Est.. battle above did not take long, if there's still two hours. also the source of the comms jamming (Chaos tech at work)


PAge 295
Bolter fire echoed along the five-hundred-metre length of the interchange, the shells expelled by the exchange hurtling in both directions in a criss-cross of bright flares. Now and then the miniature blue star of a plasma shot shrieked across the gap or the red flare of a missile trail illuminated the murkiness.
Implied bolter, plasma, and missile launcher range of 500 m.


Page 296
He was expecting word from Vioss at any moment, telling him that the Dark Angels were in orbit, but until then he was determined to press on with the attack.
Dark Angels are probably in orbit above the planet.


PAge 297
When he had been a member of the Librarius his powers had been considerable. Mortarion’s hatred of warpcraft had finished Typhon’s exploration of his other nature when the Dusk Raiders became Death Guard, and so he had committed himself to becoming First Captain.
Typhon is a former psyker, which probably explains how he came to be affiliated with Nurgle. This also suggests that the Librarian project's origins lie prior ot the discovery of at least some of the Primarchs.


Page 299-301
"We have more urgent concerns, commander. The Lion’s battle-barge has launched a torpedo towards Magellix."
..
"We have detected a cyclotronic warhead. It will obliterate everything at Magellix and a hundred kilometres around. It will destroy Tuchulcha as well as us. The fleet also reports detection of seven more Dark Angels vessels heading in-system"
...
Typhon turned his gaze as instructed. He saw a flash of light in the upper atmosphere, and what appeared to be a suddenly-spreading electrical storm set the jade clouds roiling. Seconds ticked past before the crack of the torpedo’s detonation reached the commander’s audio pick-ups.
Cyclonic (which Gav continues to call 'cyclotronic') torpedo deployed. This seems to be one of hte 'tactical' sort Gav Thorpe likes to stick in his stories periodically (They showed up in Annihilation Squad and Deliverance Lost as well) which still causes massive destruction but far less than the Exterminatus scale implies.

A 100 km or so 'blast radius' assuming the weapon behaved anything like a nuke would be worth a few gigatons (2-3 at least, but probably not much more than that.) If the damage mechanism is more thermal than mechanical then the effects might be greater (EG melting, etc.) but we're probably not quite on the 'continent scale' destruction either, so much above double or low triple is unlikely for that reason as well. Of course, if its NOT like a nuke (and there are versions that suggest that) then the above doesn't mean much :P


Page 301
"The rest of your force will remove themselves to two hundred thousand kilometres from orbit. "
Which seems to be considered a 'safe zone' as far as this particular engagement goes. Considering they're in high orbit (the Dark Angels are, at least) we're probaly talking at least another 35-100 thousand km or so on top of that. (250-300 thousand km away total.)


Page 306
The primarch knew it for what it was immediately: an electoo, a hidden mark that could be realised into being by a pulse of bio-electricity.
...
“The Order of the Dragon, something of a defunct sect now, I am pleased to say. It is remarkable that you could see that pigmentation beneath my skin, I had quite forgotten it.”
Electoos and mention of the Order of the Dragon. I have a feeling they'll play a role later in the series.


Page 307
The thing itself was still there; the sentience, or at least semi-sentience that had enslaved a whole star system hanging in mid-air like a world in the firmament.
Powers of the alien.. device, sentience or whatever.


Page 308-309
”We could not discern anything of its construction or workings, but it seemed likely that it had some means to communicate with the Perditians before we were forced to wipe out their society. It took us nearly thirty years simply to devise this crude interface. We have learnt a lot from Tuchulcha. It is very cooperative, if a little enigmatic and, well, alien.”
...
“I am everything, Lion. Everywhere. I was once Servant of the Deadly Seas. Now I am the Friend of the Mechanicum.”
...
“You cannot destroy me, Lion. Not physically, nor do you desire it. All things desire to possess me. The one they call Typhon dreams much about me. The mind of the other, Midoa, is closed to me. It contains too much iron for my liking. You… You are neither open nor closed.”
The alien device again. They apparently left it alive so that the Mechanicum could play with it. Imperium messing around with the Filthy Xenos. imagine that. I guess this is okay but NEVER THE Interex. Alien tech is only useful when its actively harmful to the Imperium at this point (First the Laer, now this.)


Page 310-311
”It was agreed with the Mechanicum that Perditus Ultima and the device were spared only because you thought it might have some purpose we could harness for the Imperium.”
..
Before the Lion could offer any protest, he felt his mind and body lurch, the sensation somewhere between that of a warp translation and a rapid teleportation.
...
“Five minutes to full enclosure. Repeat, we have unexpectedly translated to the warp, Geller field is being raised, be prepared for attack.”
...
He eventually realised that Tuchulcha must have moved the battle-barge into the warp and displaced itself, the primarch and tech-priest onto the vessel an instant later.
...
“We are adjoined to the place you call Perditus, Lion.”
...
“Adjoined? We are in the warp. How is this possible? We were far too close to the world, to the star, for a translation.”
“Tuchulcha does not have to worry about that sort of thing, Lion,” the tech-priest said with a toothless grin. “It is able to burrow directly from real space to warp space, without any backwash or graviometric displacement.”
More about why the alien was spared, why the Mechanicum wnated it, and more of what it can do - namely, translate into the warp whilst close to a planet. It's interesting how they draw a distinction between teleportation and warp translations - whilst they both use the warp as a means of travel, the mechanisms involved seem to be quite different. Could teleportation have more in common with something lik the webway? The Ork shokk attack gun would imply that if their teleportation is anything like imperial teleportation, anyhow.

I expect that the unexepected stillness/stability of the warp around Perditus also has something to do with the ability to translate so close (the 'backwash' - at least as far as dealing with things on the warp side go, as there is still the gravitic difficulties (the graviitc displacement probably means that the spatial distortion of a warp portal is distorted or pulled on by the gravity of nearby bodies.)


PAge 317
”The fleet is to assume formation for the bombardment of Perditus Ultima.”
...
“I too received Guilliman’s summons. I do not concur with his plans, and I would no more trust him with this engine than any servant of Horus. I consider Ultramar no safer place for this device than Perditus, and even if Guilliman does not use it for his own purposes I cannot allow it to fall into the hands of the Emperor’s enemies.”
...
“Perditus Ultima and its prize will be destroyed within hours. “
Lion threatens to destroy the planet 'within hours' with the fleet. A dozen ships can destroy a planet 'within hours' which is far less than a day. Call it an average of 1000 MT/s, assuming a 1 billion MT Extinction threshold, all 12 ships, etc. If 2 hours and 12 ships, we're looking at around 11.6 Gt/s. This can vary depending on how you figure the 'extinction' occurs. I mean if the atmosphere is blown away or oceans boiled or crust burst/melted, the yield could become significnatly higher.

One complicating factor is whether or not cyclotronics were involved (or any sort of bombardment, we know they do 'layered' bombardments after all), and if so how many.



Page 318-319
”Lauded primarch, my family and I are detecting a distortion in the warp around Perditus Ultima.”
...
“It is like a miniature vortex, a hole burrowing through the warp.”
...
“Detecting a power surge from the Terminus Est, captain”
..
“The warp disturbance is local, very small.” Navigator Ardal’s voice was reedy over the internal comm. “I do not know how, but it seems to be originating from the Death Guard flagship.”
...
“Where is it directed?”
“Perditus Ultima, lauded primarch. It’s some kind of warp tunnel, straight into the heart of the facility. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
..
“Assemble your guard, and the Librarians, at teleporter chamber two. “
Typhon has some neat tricks up his sleeve different from warp teleportation and much longer ranged (the ship is in high orbit, teleporter range of 30,000-40,000 km in this case, Typhon's trick is in excess of 200-300,000 km.)


Page 320
”‘It will have to transport itself back to Terminus Est, for I do not have the power. It is of a far greater mass than it looks, the bulk of its construction existing only in warp space.”
The alien device/entity is multi-dimensional.


Page 323
It was just the beginning, of course. The Grave Wardens were only the first. The Father wanted them all. The Father wanted the love and loyalty of every Death Guard; the love and loyalty of Mortarion above anything else.
Mortarion being turned to Nurgle happens (seemingly) years (2.5 to be exact) after Isstvan, but some time before Terra. And it began (unsurprisingly) with that ass Typhon.


Page 324
Iaxis and his device were safely stowed in the deepest holds of the Invincible Reason. Magellix station had been turned to molten slag and rubble in a few hours; nothing was left for any other Legion to claim.
The base was 'melted' in a few hours. we dont know if one ship (or which) or if the whole fleet did it. Or if the entire planet was destroyed as the Lion said. a 'few hours' fits with the 'within hours' timeframe the Lion established before. Asusming the 4-6 km diameter fo rthe base.. the base was mentioned to extend at least 500 m belowground earlier as well. Assuming that the belowground is melted as well as the topside Call it between 7 and 20 or so gigatons to melt the belowground (not factoring in empty spaces due to tunnels, but its unlikely they contribute a significant degree) Over a 2-3 hour period we're looking at an average firepower of 650 kt/s to 2.8 MT/s at least. If over a dozen ships (rather than a single vessel) fo rthat single base it works out to an average of 54 kt/s to 233 kt/s per ship on average. Naturally, if the base is larger, the destruction is larger. If we assume a ~200 km diameter base (based on the Cyclonic) you get between 17 and 22 teratons to destroy, which is 'only' 1,574 to 3,055 MT per second, and 131 to 255 Mt/s if averaged out amongst 12 ships.
If the planet was destroyed by the fleet within'a few hours' we're looking at more like the previous estimate on the 2-3 hour timesscale 7.7-11.6 GT/s per ship.

And there is of course the small detail of 'whether or not cyclotronics were involved' :P


Page 324-325
”Guilliman is a misguided fool at best, and a traitorous dog at worst.’ He took a deep breath. ‘I know that, but I would no sooner bend my knee to him than to Horus. Curze has the truth of it, but I was blinded by my anger. It has fallen to me to be the scale upon which history will be balanced.
...
There is only the Emperor, none is worthy of inheriting that mantle. I will ensure the Legiones Astartes destroy themselves before another matches the power upon Terra. That is true. Faced with the prospect of mutual annihilation, my brothers may come to terms. Horus will be forced to acknowledge the Emperor again, and Guilliman and the others will not usurp their true master.”
...
“Come what may, I have to stop Horus and Guilliman.”
The full extent of the Lion's Madness. Yep, he's going after Gillie because he think's he might be a traitor too (based more on Curze's comments more than anything.) Which again shows you what massive issues this guy has with trusting people.


PAge 332
”I have always suffered a touch of the sight. What the Chief Librarian used to call a ‘foreboding.’ Useful in the chaos of battle – momentary glimpses of blades before they strike and las-bolts before they are sent my way.”
“You have prognostic abilities.”
Alpha Legion Librarian


PAge 336
"You heard him yourself – the Pylon Array calms the immaterium. An astrotelepathic message might reach Ancient Terra from there."
Yet another device for stabilizing the warp to facilitate travel and communication.


Page 342
.. Setebos caught sight of three Imperial jetbikes rounding the volcano’s flank.
White Scars using Jetbikes.


Page 350
The sky roared above her. It was difficult to peer into the brightness-blotched heavens, but a carrier or shuttle of some kind hovered above the roof of the villa. As her vision cleared and acclimatised to the Drusillian day, she shielded her brow with the palm of one hand and saw the armed carrier bank for another pass. A silent Sister sat harnessed into an open doorway in the side of the shuttle – she wore a targeting helmet, and in her grip Xalmagundi could see the long barrel of some exotic rifle.
The Silent Sisters hav etheir own antigrav/floating shuttle or troop carrier of some kind. I wonder if its like those antigrav Rhinos the Custodes have access to?


Page 356
Every living soul within fifty kilometres would have heard the pulverising boom of successive floors and constructs falling in on themselves.
...
As it fell inwards upon itself, the colossal city-spire sent a cloud of dust and debris into the sky. The sound was excruciating: shearing metal, ancient stone cracked asunder; the ear-bleeding roar of the spire’s sheer mass crashing down into the hive below.
Implied size of the hive world is at least 100 km diameter.


PAge 357
The amulet field generator concealed upon his person disguised the perfection of his true form, cloaking him in the vague impression of mortal mediocrity.
disguise field amulet.


Page 359
"A consignment for twenty thousand decatonnes of stone from a dead-world quarry in the Beta Ghastri system, to be transported by talon brig to Parabellus. That’s Quall sub-sector."
..
"Serebite. Inert feldsparic silica. Sparse and precious, according to the consignment slate. "
20,000 decatonnes is 200,000 tonnes of stone. Not a huge amount overall, but quite a bit to transport.


Page 363
"But the technology is… remarkable. Potentially even superior to the devices on Perditus."
...
"It is clearly xenos in origin. Ancient."
..
"why are you building a replica of the Tenebrae Pylon Array on the agri-world of Parabellus?"
...
"The technology," Auguramus told him delicately, "– alien though it may be – could revolutionise the Imperium. It could secure our astrotelepathic network and the immeteorology of our trade routes."
It's possible, with the right technology for the Imperium to stabilize its communications and wapr travel through technological means. THey unfortunately do not have or keep the tech (since as we learn its Cabal given) so they are deprived this benefit. It is interesting to know it exists and that 'calm' Immaterium is of great help to warp travel (at least in reliability if not speed.)

Also interesting is how it links to Perditus from the previous story, they're both similar for that regard, and it implies similar capabilities are bestowed (EG calming the immaterium not only improves reliability of travle and communications, but makes warp translations in-system safer.)


Page 365
A few hours earlier, Omegon had had Arkan shut down everything with a power signature within the torpedo – heat, gravity, life support.
'power signature's that sensors can pick up on, although it might mean that the power allocated ti the AG is detected rather than the gravity itself.


Page 377
"Xenos?" Isidor enquired.
"Indeed. The demiurg are a spacefaring race that rarely enters Imperium territory."
..
"They are technologically advanced but seem to enjoy cordial relationships with other xenos cultures, several of which were eradicated during the Great Crusade," the artisan told them. "Principally they are miners and traders."
"The demiurg are mining the asteroid."
..
"The interior cave systems and caverns of the asteroid house a small host of automated mining machines, harvesting rare and precious metals."
...
"The demiurg operate a hidden “shunt network” across our space. They use unmanned electromagnetic conveyer stations to propel resource-rich asteroids from prospecting fields to their xenos clients’ homeworlds. It takes hundreds of years, but by the time the asteroid arrives in-system, the automated mining machines have excavated and processed the arranged shipment."
Yeta nother mention of the demiurg. Distinctly alien, operating their space based tech, even as far back as the Heresy. All under the Imperium's nose, it would seem. Seems they're not quite the same as the squats, but they are still substituted in for them nonetheless (Golgotha.)
Also an indication of the scope and sophistication of their technology.


Page 379-380
... giant machines were tearing into the rocky bowels of the asteroid in the silence of the void. Bulbous and brazen, they reminded Omegon of pregnant arachnids, stabbing into the cave floor with the stiletto points of their many legs. Set in their bellies were rotating maws of pulverising metal teeth that bored into the rock like a drill, and from their tapering abdomens dribbled a thread of molten, metallic ore which was carried away along an electromagnetically guided path. It was this web of glowing issue seeping from the monster machines that lit the cavern, though every few moments the bronze shimmer was overwhelmed by the flash of a fat beam of light; it was with these cutting beams that the automatons were taking the cavern apart.
...
The giant mechanical mites were the backbone of the endeavour, tearing away tirelessly at the guts of the asteroid, shredding regolith and ion-bleeding source elements. But they were not the only automated machines to haunt the caves: an array of smaller, clinker-shell drones seemed to hover methodically from one mining monster to the other, monitoring production lines and administering continuous maintenance.
...
Following a growing number of molten streams, Setebos took the squad into what appeared to be some kind of storage chamber. Being careful not to disrupt the fields guiding the liquid metal...
...
Before them was a floating lake. Streams of liquid ore had been guided to a containment vessel: a reservoir of molten metal, hanging in the weightlessness of the great cavern and held in check by crackling brassy orbs which drifted lazily around it. It was remarkable – no trace of the heat or energy field showed up on any sensor sweep, even at close range. Little wonder, then, that the demiurg shunt-network had remained hidden from the Imperium for so long. Omegon could well imagine chambers like this throughout the asteroid, where the extracted ore of rare and precious metals was stored ready for trade, once the asteroid reached its distant destination.
More demiurg mining tech. Very sophisticated automation and force field tech.


Page 387
Thermo-crystal magnareactors boomed their supercharged energy output and occasional arcs of lightning seared between them, roasting the air.
Power source for the base. Non geothermal, but definitely magic crystal. May not be imperial tech per se.


Page 388
..beneath the surveillance pict-mounted barrel of a multi-laser sentry gun that hung silently on its ceiling rail.
The Spartocid were muscular but humourless warriors. Their helmets covered their faces – bar two grim slits for their eyes – and each sported a miserable crest, the length of which being some indicator of rank. Threadbare cloaks hung from the carapace of their shoulders, their armour being a collection of mismatched plates patched with inferior metals. They carried stubby broad-burn lascarbines with fat barrels and chunky powerpacks.
The Seven-Sixty had an illustrious history but the Great Crusade had eventually run the Geno regiment into the ground. A long forgotten and inglorious war with the abhumans on Dycenae plunged the proud warriors into obscurity. Cut off, poorly supplied and never reinforced..
...
As the broad muzzle of the soldier’s carbine met the primarch’s chestplate...
More 'geno' soldier types, although down on their luck sorts. Also yet more lasweapons with 'broad-burn' muzzles, which suggests a wide aperture beam of some sort (shotgun laser?)


Page 395
Surprised but fully functional, the sentinel brought its stubby volkite arm attachment up to meet the hulking Space Marine standing over it. Charmian’s helmet – opened up by the shot – dashed the ceiling with broken ceramite and fragments of skull.
Not sure what a volkite arm is or the weapon is, but it blows apart a Space Marine's head just fine, including the helmet.


Page 414
"We consider the warp a reality alternate to our own and consisting wholly of raw energy. An ocean immeasurable. "
..
"Our thoughts and our vessels traverse this tumultuous realm. When storms wrack the warp, then the immetereology becomes unstable – both destructive and obstructive. Astrotelepathic communication and navigation become impossible."
...
"Within an ordinary meteorological system," Auguramus went on, "like an atmospheric weather system, there are areas of high and low pressure. Storms form in response to the extreme pressure differences in these areas."
...
"The immetereology of the warp is not dissimilar. The unfathomable workings of the Pylon Array produce an area of unprecedented calm within the warp. The range of astropathic communication is extended."
"But this creates storm fronts and immetereological disturbances in the regions beyond,"
Nature of warp travel and the importance of the array. I love the term 'immeteorology.' My new term for warp weather.


Page 415
"Upon building this technology in the Octiss System, and charging it with immaterial energies sapped from the Mechanicum’s psyker slave-stock, we have succeeded in enveloping bordering regions in a communications blackout: Draconi, Tiamath, Chondax and the Scellis-Trevelya straits. We have not only restricted the White Scars Legion to the Chondax system, which was Alpharius’s promise to Horus, but we have kept Jaghatai Khan veiled in ignorance. He is blind to the atrocities of civil war and deaf to Dorn’s commands to return. "
...
"The loyalists have also been denied reinforcement from the Regnault Thorns, the Seventh-Suckle Parthenari Shieldmaidens, and the Uzuran Sabreteurs: seventy-two thousand fighting souls, all delayed at Draconi. The Legio Cybernetica Maniple Theta-Iota and the Legio Gigantes Titan Legion were also lost, presumed destroyed, while in transit through Scellis-Trevelya."
Meaning that the Alpha Legion have been fucking around close to Segmentum Solar and Prospero, which also means they're keeping the White Scars trapped away from Terra, as well as immobilizing and destroying other Legions. Horus' forces seem to have gotten hold of alot of technologies and magics that can fuck around with the warp, don't they?


Page 415
"Seismic charges and super-critical magnareactors cannot provide the kind of assurance we need"
..
"The very material from which the Pylon Array is constructed – remaining in certain configurations – is likely to maintain a residual immaterial presence. My calculations show that a blanket orbital bombardment could provide the coverage required, but even with the Beta at your disposal, or one of the Mechanicum vessels, Tenebrae 9-50 would simply disintegrate and spread recoverable evidence of the Pylon Array’s existence all over the system."
Seismic charges and the problems with destroying the Array facility.


Page 418-419
...a three-quarter squad of Spartocid soldiers rounded a corner ahead of Omegon. They were clutching their las-carbines to their chests and running with their faded cloaks rippling behind them, and a Geno subalterix clutched a vox-unit to the side of his plumed helmet, trying to get clarification over gunfire crowded channels. Upon sighting Omegon, in his Legion plate, the group slowed and angled the broad-burn muzzles of their stubby weapons at him.
..
As they burst around the junction corner they opened fire, slashing the empty darkness beyond, scanning for an enemy but blinded by the blurred flash of their own weaponry.
Omegon allowed them to take a few more steps before he moved. Bringing up his freshly loaded pistol he blew gaping holes through the backs of their skulls...
More of the geno weapons and equipment including the broad burn stuff, as well as a bolt pistol hedsploading the poor helmeted buggers.


Page 424
Omegon reached down his armour and found three fat, ragged punctures in the lower cuirass. He explored each opening with a fingertip and checked the position of each wound. To the side of the navel. Above the hip. Omegon nodded to himself. They had all missed the spine. He knew his body had gone into overdrive, with different organs, suprahormones and engineered processes interacting to reduce the severity of the wounds.
We learn this is actually not a Primarch but an Astartes (SPOILER) so it gives a good indicator of Astartes resilience.
Page 427
...Omegon found the fat carcass of Volkern Auguramus. The Artisan Empyr had indeed been discovered by Spartocid soldiers, and his robed body was riddled with merciless las-fire.
I guess they're not purly thermal beams, they do have some penetration.


Page 435-436
The command deck of the Beta was quiet. Officers and retainers went about their business calmly and professionally. There was little indication that the Alpha Legion battle-barge had just launched a massive orbital bombardment and that a crater-dashed mountain range on the planet below was about to be levelled.
Alpharius stood in his ceremonial plate to one side of the bridge, gazing out through the great viewports at the unfolding apocalypse. The agri-moon of Parabellus was an unremarkable planetoid – a red dustball streaked with dark ranges of crop-yielding ziggurat mountains. Even from orbit, the angular terraces were visible, giving the moon the appearance of an abstract map complete with lines and contours.
The primarch watched the largest of the black smears disappear beneath the flare of the first cataclysmic detonation. Down on the surface, entire mountains were collapsing and terrace-farming communities were being annihilated by the heaven-dropped fires of armageddon.
...
" He took the gift the Cabal had bequeathed us to aid the Warmaster, and perverted it for his own gain. That is why this unfinished Pylon Array on Parabellus must be destroyed, why the Parabellan farmers must now die with their crops in a nuclear winter."
..
"Now millions of people have to die as a result."
(single?) Bombardment from the beta indirectly triggers a mass extiction event via destroying mountain range/chain and triggering nuclear winter. Based on here[/url and [url=http://www.enotes.com/mountain-chains-r ... ain-chains]here we can guess a mountain range is at least tens of km wide, and hundreds of km long, if not hundreds of km wide and a thousand plus km long (chain/range may be treated as the same thing.) Figure a gigaton or two for at least 10 20 km diameter craters and we're talking a good 15-20 gigatons for that salvo at least. quite possibly hundreds of gigatons or more, which would be closer with the need to kill off millions of people. (At the other end of the scale, 100+ km mountains need hundreds or thousands of gigatons apiece, which could mean single/double digit TT, which is actually closer to potential extinction thresholds.)


Page 437
"Our Navigators tell us the immetereology in that region is calming; our Astropaths believe that messages might get through once more. Our operatives report that the White Scars Expeditionary Fleet has almost completed its compliance and that the Khan could soon make preparations for warp transit."
..
"Perhaps it’s Malcador, or the Angels of Caliban – somebody has gotten to the Tenebrae installation. We must accept that and move on. We must read the moves ahead of time, and position the fleet to the greatest advantage. Dorn will recall the White Scars, and the Khan’s loyalty is still firm. If the Warmaster is to succeed then we cannot allow the V Legion to reach Terra."
The funny thing is, the Magos in the mission supposedly 'died' in a back alley, not being recurited for the mission we just read about, and Alpharius still thinks the station is alive. In short, Alpharius doesn't know about the mission that happened in the story and Omegon is lying to him. Omegaon planned and executed it all without his knowledge, and to purposes only he knows about (so far). We don't know who he's working for, or why, or what end he's working towards - other than that it's different from the Cabal's agenda, or differnet from either the Imperium or Horus. and quite possibly different from Alpharius. And at a single stroke this story has made the entire conflict (at least from the cabal/Alpha Legion perspective) far more complicated, especially given all that has happened up to this point.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

And we finish this mega-update Quoteinatus bombardment with the most recent anthology Shadows of Treachery. I have to say I'm not too thrilled with the plethora of HH anthologies we get. I mean there's relatively few compared ot the series as a whole (what, 22-23 books now? That means almost 1/6th of the series is anthology) but they really tend to be a mixed bag. Some are good, some are meh, some are yawn. But they really come the closest to being the sort of filler we see in many 'arc-driven' shared franchise. That can be good or bad in some ways. Good in the sense we're getting that sandbox filled in with details and we dont' always see the same shit over and over. Bad in that.. well.. its filler and that detracts from the storyline. The books themselves aren't wholly bad - they're a mixed bag, but within the context of the HH series they are, aside from Battle for the Abyss, one of the weaker elements.

But Shadows of Treachery is, IMHO, even weaker than others, in that most of the stories are basically recycled. There are seven stories, two of which are new. The two that are new are quite good (ADB is always good, and I'm growing to like John French.), and they are the two longest stories in the book (together comrpising over half the novel), And while the rest of the stories aren't bad, they're basically recycled material. Kaban Project, Dark King/Lightning tower, etc. Or they've been audio books (RAven's Flight.) I can graps they want to make money, and they've already published this stuff (EG they did that with an anthology in Heart of RAge) but.. it just seems really cheap. I mean if you've never read or heard about the stories or audio books its all new to you so you might get value, but its also a blatant attempt to bilk the loyal fanbase out of more money. Which is pretty funny considering *I* paid for it, but I actually have passing familiarity with some of the stories - I covered Kaban Project in Collected visions, for example.

So join me once again as we dive back into Anthology land. It could be worse, it could be another Space Marine anthology - Oh shit. Treacheries of the Space Marines.
AAAAUUUUGHHHH!

Also given I covered the whole 'World eaters get shot by Alpha Legion' short story which ties onto stuff from Ravens Flight (and leads into Deliverance Lost)... chronology isn't a big issue at this point :P

Page 28-29
...there were others more worthy to lead a force that was still a fifth of our Legion’s full strength.
...
Five hundred and sixty-one ships and three hundred companies had left the Phalanx. First Captain Sigismund had been given command but the primarch had taken him back to Terra, and so we had jumped towards Isstvan under Yonnad’s command. The storm had seized us as we entered the warp and it had not let go. The Navigators could not find the beacon light of the Astronomican, and every course took us deeper into the tempest. We were lost, drifting on the currents of a malign sea. After what seemed like many weeks the Navigators perceived a break in the storms, a single point of stillness. We had fled towards it, and the storm’s fury had followed.
...
Two hundred warships lost, their remains left spinning in the light of a forgotten star. They had found me in the remains of one of those broken wrecks. I was one of the few.
Ten thousand Imperial Fists gone. I could not grasp that loss.
Three hundred and sixty-three warships remained. The fates of over twenty thousand of my brother Imperial Fists were now in my hands. It was a weight that I had never carried before.
We pick up this story up from where the events of 'Flight of the Eisenstein' left off. A fleet has been dispatched by Dorn to Isstvan to deal with the traitor, whils Dorn ran to terra. We learn what hpapens to the fleet whilst outside events (like the drop site massacre) go on. 561 ships and 30K Marines depart, 363 warships and 20K Marines survive, comprising 1/5 of the total legion. That puts the Legion size at around 100,000, and the fleet complement at some 1800 ships.

They've also spent weeks in transit, which might be useful if we figure out the distances between Isstvan and such.


Page 32
It had been many weeks since Dorn had heard and seen the evidence of his brother’s treachery. Sigismund remembered the rage in his father’s eyes.
Weeks since the meeting in Flight of the Eisenstein.


Page 32
Thirty thousand Imperial Fists and over five hundred warships had struck out towards Isstvan, a force great enough to subdue a hundred worlds, bearing a brother’s wrath. Now a second force from many Legions gathered to strike at Isstvan, but no word had come from the Retribution Fleet.
reiteration of the REtrbution fleet size, as well as reference to the Isstvaan V strike force amassing.


Page 38
Each of those assembled commanded one of the fleet’s two-dozen battlegroups
Two dozen battlegroups of 363 vessels, each battlegroup comprises an average of 15 vessels. Meaning a 'battlegroup' might be considered 15-16 ships.


Page 38-39
"Is there word from Terra?"
..
"There has been no word from Terra, or anyone else."
..
"We lost another two astropaths in our last attempt to send a message through the storms."
..
"Fleet master, we have lost half the remaining astropaths in the fleet trying to get word to Terra. We cannot continue like this. The storms beat on our minds even when we sleep. It’s like they are alive."
Trying to get in contact with terra multiple times.. in weeks.


Page 46
Each shield was a thick plate of plasteel two-thirds our height. The snouts of bolters jutted from the vertical slot cut into the right-hand side of each shield. Stood shoulder to shoulder, we created a wall of metal. In battles fought in the guts of starships this is what keeps you alive and allows you to win.
Boarding action shields. Not unlike Police riot shields.


Page 50
The chamber had been an ordnance magazine. Its walls were three metres thick, and its triple-layered blast doors sealed by stratified layers of cipher codes.
Ordnance magazine. gives idea of internal thickness of starship walls.


Page 52
"The search units I sent to Phall II found it floating in the oceans, but it has clearly been exposed to the void. The adepts tell me that the machine components have several purposes."
..
"Most of it is made up of high-gain augur arrays and broad-spectrum sensors effective over a relatively short range. Then there is the human component. Apparently it would have been in a state of hibernation, kept alive with minimal power usage. Their assessment is that it was in orbit around Phall II, suffered damage and fell to the planet’s surface"
...
"Some form of servitor-controlled sensor vehicle? An asteroid survey unit, perhaps?"
..
"The adepts think it unlikely. In addition to the sensor equipment some of the systems seem to be a form of psy-amplifier."
..
"This created the psy-attack?"
The Fists were subjected to a telepathic attack, so apparentl ythe servitors can be designed to create powerful psychic signals (or are psychic themselves, more likely). A remote telepathic/psychological attack weapon, which is interesting

Also the fact servitors can be used as sensor probes/drones/vehicles, or survey uints (like for asteroids) is also worth noting. Such vehicles are also able to surrive uncontrolled reentry.


Page 53
"The sensors, the augur and communication sifters. The psychic screams we all felt were not attacks. They were a message"
Recon drones as we learn, with FTL capability


Page 55
"Imperial counter-strike massacred on Isstvan V. Vulkan and Corax missing. Ferrus Manus dead. Night Lords, Iron Warriors, Alpha Legion and Word Bearers are with Horus Lupercal."
By this point the Drop Site Massacre has happened. Recall that the entire passage of events for this story up to the point included both before and after the masscre occuring, and there's a 140 day timeframe (max) to maybe 60 days (minimum) given the events mentioned (140, eighty eight, and 28 days are mentioned. Sixty days assumes events overlap somewhere between 88 and 28, while 140 means Dorn receives the report on the same day as the attack on Phall.)

Given the 'halfway across the galaxy' type stuff I've mentioned for Isstvan in previous sources we're probably figuring covering tens of thousands (more like 50-60 thousand) light years in between two and seven months. Roughly speaking that comes out to another tens to hundreds of thousands of times c for the Dropsite Massacre fleet, although as we know Ferrus Manus got there much faster.


Page 75
The old astropath had been teetering on the edge of death ever since the psychic onslaught had washed through the Phall system.
...
Each day that I visited him he was weaker, a step closer to death and further away from life. He often slept, his acolytes wiping mucus from his lips as he twitched in the grip of dreams
Daily visits imply that astropathic messages are being sent (or scanned for) on a daily basis, which might likewise imply that messages to (and from) TErra - or anywhere else - take about a day for a round trip. Hundreds of thousands or millions of c roughly, in Terra's case.


Page 76
Only three decades had passed since Hammer of Terra’s burnished hull had slipped the docks of Mars.
Which implies she took no more than 170 years to build, assuming she was started at the time of the Great Crusade


Page 76
The bridge was the mind of a warship, and the vessel it controlled was a battle-barge. Eight kilometres long, crewed by thousands of serfs and servitors, its weapons could pound civilisations to dust. She carried three hundred Imperial Fists, a might almost equal to that of her guns.
Imperial Fists battle barge.


PAge 77-78
The Hammer of Terra and its battlegroup of twelve lighter ships were on the outer surface of the sphere formation, close to the system’s edge.
..
Ready statuses were already coming in from the dozen strike cruisers, destroyers and frigates in his battlegroup.
The size of the battlegroup, which is close to what I estimated. That suggests that the Retribution Fleet (post catastrophe) had one battlebarge/battleship for every battlegroup, which means several dozen. The rest are escorts and cruisers (Grand cruisers, strike cruisers, heavy cruisers, etc.)


Page 78
The green glow of holo-screens and red of alert lights filled the bridge as metre-thick shields descended over the viewports. Pertinax knew his ship would be at full readiness in less than ten seconds.
readiness rate of the 8 km Imperial Fists Battlebarge, as well as thickness of viewport shields.


Page 82
Within seconds of the death of the Hammer of Terra twelve of its sisters followed, consumed by nova-shell explosions and torpedo spreads. The grand cruiser Sulla fired a single salvo before macro-shell fire stripped its shields and its hull became molten slag. The six destroyers clustered around it ended in the explosion of its plasma reactor. The Crusader and Legate lasted scant seconds longer. They and their escorts took a trio of vortex warheads and vanished into the hungering dark.
Space combat in action. Note the variety of weapons and the effects. Also note the times, seconds and minutes happen alot in this battle, and assuming typical combat ranges (Thousands or tens of thousands of km) that implies similiarily rapid projectile velocities (EG macro cannon.)

Also vortex warheads :P


page 82
Twenty-four grand cruisers and battle-barges made up the tip of the Iron Warriors fleet. In close formation around the Contrador they moved as one. They rammed through the debris of their kills, fire and molten metal smearing their prows. Turbolasers, macro cannon and plasma annihilators scoured the void around them. Bombers and assault craft swarmed through the void behind the warships, killing crippled craft with thousands of small explosions.
More combat. Of note are the size of the Iron Warriors first wave contingent, as well as their weapons. also not ethe bombers and assault craft taking 'crippled' ships, rather than fully ready ones. also 'thousands' of explosions.


Page 83
Crenellated gun towers sheared off, scattering clouds of stone and metal in their wake. Hundred-metre armour plates flaked off its hull.
That's either the width, length, or thickness of the hull plates.


Page 84
The Iron Blood had no viewports. There was no need for them, or so Berossus had heard Perturabo say. Why would you need to look at the void? War in space was a matter of calculation, sensors and firepower. That or hacking your enemy apart in spaces so small you could smell their blood. Windows onto the void were a weakness indulged for vanity.
Apparently not all pre-Heresy Imperial starships had viewports :P


Page 85
"Is the fleet fully deployed?"
..
"Forrix says that full deployment will be complete in twenty-seven minutes."
...
Around the Iron Blood hundreds of warships followed in close formation. Behind them hundreds more pulled themselves from the warp to add to the Iron Warriors fleet. Months ago scout units had captured details of the Imperial Fists fleet, each capturing a single snapshot of data and pushing it into the mind of the astropath slaved to each machine. The psykers’ death screams had cut through the storms, carrying dream images of the Imperial Fists fleet. They had used that data to plan, and that plan was a timetable for obliteration.
Deployment time for the Iron Warriors fleet. We dont know if its to move into position in realspace, whether its time to emerge from the warp, or both. It could be argued any of those ways. But it does imply at least (given the early assessments of mere minutes passing since the battel began) that it takes under an hour for a fleet of hundreds (much larger than the Imperila Fists fleet at least) to drop from the Warp.

Also we learn more on those FTL servitor drones that could launch psychic attacks. Apparently each had an astropath - or an astropath mind, and could send messages. Or rather, psychic death screams, which was what blanked out the Fists. What was thought to be an attack was actually data transmission (although it has the useful side effect of being an attack, so making it offensive is quite possible.)

Again either we're having some sort of psychic servitor or just a psychic brain or part of a psychic in those drones, since what we saw of the drone didn't give it enough size to be large or carry lots of people. These seem to be like the warp-capable, FTL drones we saw in Dark Creed. It also probably lends credene to that 'psychic servitor' theory I still cling to. :P


Page 86
Behind them fresh arrivals advanced in a tight block. These were the macro-vessels, vast cliff-sided ships filled with battalions of Iron Warriors and thousands of slave troops. Beside them lurked the hell burners. Old system ships, orbital haulers and tugs, they had ridden through the warp on tethers behind the macro-ships. Unstable plasma fuel and munitions filled each of the ramshackle craft. Their slave crews, lobotomised into blind obedience, drove the hell burners into the throats of the Imperial Fists guns.
Basically heavily armored troop transports/assault ships and fire ships to use the BFG term.


Page 88-89
A spread of graviton torpedoes hit it in its flank, burrowed deep and detonated. The ship shivered as competing forces pulled at its structure, breaking armour, cracking bulkheads. For a second it drifted on, quivering as its bones splintered and distorted. Then its spine broke and it crumpled as if crushed in an invisible fist.
Graviton torpedoes


Page 91
Fifteen kilometres of cold iron and battle-blackened adamantium. Cooling trails of debris spilled from her flanks to drag in her wake. Her spine was a mountain range of gun fortresses and macro-batteries. Tyr felt his skin go cold. He knew her, had seen her once long ago, when she had been an ally. She was the oldest daughter of the ship forges of Olympia, a breaker of fleets and planets.
Iron Warriors battlebarge, Perturabo's flagship.


Page 98-99
A roaring sound spilled out of Lezzek’s mouth, like air sucking through a furnace grate. A booming, hollow voice came from the burning man, speaking the message that was killing him.
"Sons of Dorn, return to Terra. Return immediately. This is the will of Rogal Dorn, Praetorian of Terra."
...
His head snapped up, his empty eyes fixed on me. For a second I thought that he was trying to tell me something, that he was trying to give me another message in that blind look. Then he spoke again. "Return to Terra. This is the will of Rogal Dorn."
..
Word from Terra. Astropathic messages require careful interpretation to sift meaning from the mystery of their dreamlike content. It can take days and even then not be clear. For a message to imprint so clearly and directly onto Lezzek’s mind it must have held staggering power. We had waited months for a message, for any message.
Word from terra arrives, although given the adverse conditions and the power of the message and age of the recipient, it kills him. It's interesting for twofold reasons: The manner of the message, and the implied timeframe.
First, the timeframe, it implies a timeframe of days (receiveing the message taking less time to decipher it) and fewer than 140 days (the timeframe of the battle). Actually less, since we know multiple messages must have been sent (on both sides) so we might say its closer to days or weeks. Either way, and given the adverse conditions, lower limit on message propogation rate is hundreds of thousands, to millions of c, unless Phall is absurdly close to Terra :P


Page 99
To punch through the warp storms and kill a fleet’s worth of astropaths the message must have been less a sending, more a tidal surge of psychic energy. No matter how it had reached us, the message was undeniable, its meaning not open to doubt.
An indicator of the strength of the message. When you consider all such must be going on throughout the Imperium, Astropath attrition must be horrendous.


Page 101
"Fire wasp!" shouted Timor. A bulky shape moved into view in front of them. Its curved armour plates were black with soot and striped with yellow chevrons. Blue pilot flames hissed at the tips of its weapon pods.
Drone/CAT like thing (the little recon robots from Space hulk.) except its armed. We learn more about those in HH betrayal.


Page 113
My men brought their boarding shields together, their edges touching those of the men next to them. Together we formed an unbroken circular wall of plasteel. Volley fire, disciplined and relentless, lashed against the shield wall. I switched to the optical feed from the front of my shield and saw the muzzle flare of bolters firing from loopholes in sloped metal barricades.
More boarding shields. Optical feeds, gunports.


Page 131-133
"This is not order, Curze, it is murder. "
..
"Are they not the enemy?"
"Not any more," said Dorn. "They are prisoners now, but soon they will be a compliant population and part of the Imperium. Have you forgotten the Emperor’s purpose in declaring the Great Crusade?"
"To conquer," said Curze.
"No," said Dorn, placing a golden gauntlet on his shoulder guard. "We are liberators, not destroyers, brother. We bring the light of illumination, not death. We must govern with benevolence if these people are ever to recognise our authority in this galaxy."
..
"These people resisted us and must pay the penalty for that crime," said Curze. "Obedience to the Imperium will come from the fear of punishment, you know that as well as anyone, Dorn. Kill those that resisted and the others will learn the lesson that to oppose us is to die."
..
"You think these people will bend the knee meekly to us because we show compassion? Mercy is for the weak and foolish. It will only breed corruption and eventual betrayal. Fear of reprisals will keep the rest of this planet in check, not benevolence."
...
Dorn sighed "And the hatred planted in those you leave alive will pass from one generation to the next until this world is engulfed in a war the cause of which none of those fighting will remember. It will never end, don’t you see that? Hate only breeds hate and the Imperium cannot be built upon such bloody foundations."
..
"All empires are forged in blood," said Curze. "To pretend otherwise is naïve. The rule of law cannot be maintained by the blind hope that human nature is inherently good. Haven’t we seen enough to know that ultimately the mass of humanity must be forced into compliance?"
..
"...you and I will have words, Curze. You have crossed the line and I will no longer countenance your barbarous methods of war. Your way is not the way of the Imperium."
An interesting little discussion between Curze and Dorn. Whilst on one hand Dorn sounds all great and noble.... Curze has a point. I mean, we've seen what 'compliance' is from the HH series (As far back as Horus Rising and Ignace Karkasy) and its not so nice and neat and noble. Some guys may try to build what they destroy (EG Guilliman) but it doesn't always fix the problems, and the Imperium is built on the same idea as the tau -'you can join us willingly and benefit, or you can be made to join us, but either way you will join us.' - nevermind the purging of aliens (some of which who do deserve it but many who do not.) And should we forget 'First Heretic' when the noble Emperor and Guilliman... ruthlessly decimated an entire planetary populace just because they were religious?

What about the mere existence of the Space Wolves (the Executioners) and the World Eaters themselves? Or the existence of the Night Lords?
Furthermore, think about how the Heresy-era and Post-Heresy Imperium functions - a good deal of Curze's philosohpy seems to go into the 'current' rulership of 40K (Inquisition, anyone?) and its certainly not adverse to mass executions or retirbuition/punishment to make people obey.

When you consider facts like that, Dorn's little speech, as noble and as proper as it is, also comes across as incredibly arrogant, self serving and deluded crap. Curze has a notion of the truth, although his problem is he takes it too far - a product of both his upbringing and his notions of 'justice.' Misguided, and a bit insane, as we discover.

Another interesting thing about this whole passage is how it highlights the influence of the various Primarchs on the Imperium now and what it becomes. THe influence is varied and undeniable - Lorgar obviously had a role in formulating what eventually becomes the Imperial Cult. Dorn and Guilliman leave their marks in various ways (military in particular, eg the Codex Astartes.) Cuze's emphasis on terror to enforce obedience can be seen as manifesting in the way both Space MArines AND the Inquisition operate. When you consider that sort of legacy, and then the fact that the Imperium did, in some ways, turn on the 'traitor' legions, there's an undeniable level of hypocrisy in the Imperium (which we've seen repeatedly in the HH Series itself up to and including the Emperor.) - but its something Chaos takes and twists so the Traitor Legions really lose any right to sympathy given their subsequent behaviour - Curze included.


Page 134
"The Master of the Fists recovers, my lord. A lesser being than a primarch would be dead thrice over with the wounds you dealt him."
Curze royally beat the shit out of Dorn. I think we can take this to mean Dorn (or other Primarchs) are at least 3x as durable as 'lesser beings' which in this context can include Space Marines as well as normal people.


Page 135
Moved by Fulgrim’s apparent concern, Curze had confided in his old tutor, telling him of the visions that had plagued him since his earliest days on Nostramo.
A galaxy at war.
Legionaries turning on one another.
Death awaiting him at his father’s hands…
...
The present had faded and the future had seized his mind with agonising visions of a galaxy locked in a cycle of unending war where the alien, the mutant and the rebel arose to feast on the rotting carcass of the Imperium.
This then was the future the Emperor was creating? This was the ultimate destiny of a galaxy where the fear of punishment was not the agent of control. This was the inevitable result of allowing weak men to craft the destiny of mankind and Curze knew that, of all the primarchs, only one had the force of will required to mould the new Imperium from the soft clay of its present form.
It's easy to call Curze a madman, and he is (or becomes one) but one must also remember that ultimately, he's a victim of his past and the enviroment he grew up in, as well as his own nature and powers. He has seen humanity at its utter worst - grown up in that enviroment for years. And on top of that he has been tortured for years by all manner of visions which are equally horrific. Small wonder even a Primarch might go off the deep end. Again, that said, Curze is deluded and that drives him to the horrific extremes we have come to associate with him and the Night Lords. What's more, they secretly enjoy it.

That's really what really makes the ADB Night Lords writing so great. He doesn't try to portray the CSM as sympathetic, nor does he glorify them per se, but he does show they have certain (even legitimate) reasons to feel and act the way they do rather than making them mustache-twirling villains. Even up to (and including) Curze.


Page 137
His vision shifted subtly and his perceptions broadened as he blended with the shadows of the dimly lit chamber.
He slowed his breathing and stretched out his senses, the darkness a second home to him after so many years spent in its embrace as a predator on the weak and guilty.
..
His breathing deepened and the tenebrous chamber came alive to him.
Curze felt power in the darkness; the cold intellect of hunters and creatures of the night that killed beneath its cloak. Lethal instincts honed on a thousand battlefields were now heightened to undreamed of levels and would now serve him equally well on this one.
He spread his arms wide and a ripple of psychic force pulsed like the blast wave of an explosion with Curze at its epicentre. The hanging glow strips filling the chamber exploded in quick succession, detonating one after another in showers of pellucid sparks. Broken glass tinkled musically to the steel deck in a glass rain.
Sputtering power cables swayed from the ceiling, hissing and fizzing like angry snakes as electric discharge strobed blue across the room.
An interesting... effect. It seems that Curze has some measure of (limited?) tangible psychic ability. Although I'd guess its more in his nature - an ability to create shadows in various ways (since his nature of that is the Night Haunter, who lurks and strikes from the shadows.) So destroying lights and creating/playing with shadows would be a natural part of that.

Then again maybe he's a psyker to some degree too. We know Lorgar had some lesser psychic abilities. Neither has the power or scope of Magnus, of course, but we know that various Primarchs have 'minor' or highly specialized abilities.


Page 138
The warriors below would have the senses of their battle plate to penetrate the darkness, but they paled in comparison to those of the Night Lords primarch. Where others saw only light and dark, Curze saw all the myriad hues and shades that were invisible to those who had not become one with its fuliginous depths.
Curze's vision vs regular Marine vision.


Page 138
Curze spun around the column, looping lower with each revolution and holding his hand out like an axe blade. The warrior died with his head sliced cleanly from his shoulders, the iron flesh of the primarch smashing through his armoured gorget.
..
Another warrior fell with his torso ripped open, blood squirting from torn arteries like ruptured pressure hoses.
Curze is able to apparently pierce/shred/slice flesh like a bladed weapon with his bare hands. Whether this ability is unique to him or shared by other Primarchs, we don't know.


Page 139
A sensation unlike anything he had felt previously danced in his blood and Curze savoured it as he understood it for what it was.
Contrary to Guilliman’s rash pronouncement, it seemed Space Marines could know fear…
This fear – such as it was – was something to be treasured. Mortal fear was a rancid, sweaty thing, but this… this was caged lightning in the marrow.
Curze can sense fear. Which again, makes sense for him.


Page 143-144
The primarch marched along the central walkway of the strategium to stand beneath the image of Nostramo. The moon was emerging more fully from behind the planet and reflected light glinted on the hulls of the Night Lords’ fleet – a half century of vessels arrayed in battle formation above the diseased, corrupt boil that was the labyrinthine, crime-ridden spires of Nostramo Quintus.
\
Implied size of the (current?) Night Lords fleet around Nostramo.


Page 144-145
Far below was a great wound in the surface, a plunging chasm his fiery arrival had smashed in the planet’s crust.
..
"All ships. Open fire."
Incandescent spears of blinding white light leapt from the barrels of uncounted batteries, stabbing down at the world below. Converging and multiplying their energies, the power of a thousand caged stars coalesced into a pillar of light thicker than the widest spire of Nostramo Quintus.
The great beam dispelled the darkness that shrouded Nostramo, the skies bathed in light and fire blooming into life as the awful heat of the Night Lords bombardment ignited the air for kilometres in all directions.
The blinding lance of pure energy penetrated the impermeable adamantium crust of Nostramo through the ancient fault line torn by the primarch’s arrival.
Unimaginable energies tore downwards through the planet’s layers until they reached the core in a cataclysmic explosion the likes of which the galaxy had rarely seen.
Night Haunter watched the death of Nostramo with calm detachment, feeling the enormity of the action he had just taken settle upon him like a dark shroud. Strangely, it was not the burden he had expected. As he watched tectonic plates split apart and the molten heart of the planet ooze up to swallow the landscape and burn away the atmosphere...
..
Nostramo burned...
The destruction of Nostramo, which.. really doesn't differ much from the Index Astartes version really. If anything its more explicit because we know how many ships are involved and a very good idea of the approximate duration. And since its described as beam weapons... it seems even more unlikely you can scream 'technobabble' - unless we assumed it was like that one planet in 'Age of Darkness' that had that naturally occuring fusion fuel that blew up... which it might but we have no proof of (or assume Adamantium is naturally volatile, which would make even less sense given they make starships out of it..) So its quite probably brute force (despite the howls of outrage this is bound to elicit from a 'NO BIGGATONS' crowd. Don't like it, take it up with Graham McNeill.) On the other hand we know of lots of cases where shit like 'volatile geothermal sinks' also happen (nevermind any sort of volatile power source on planet, which is also possible - eg fuel reserves) so those may be possible contributors or causes to the overall devastation, although again that's speculation.

Just for comparison, here's the Index Astartes version:
Index Astartes II wrote:The Night Lord's ships orbited Nostramo, hundreds of weapons trained on the shrouded planet, the rays of the system's dying sun glinting from barrels too numerous to count. AS the fabric of space buckkled and twisted, disgorging the few craft able to keep pace, the lances and mass drivers of Night Haunter's flagship opened ifre upon the planet.
Beam after beam of incandescent light joined the fusillade, all concentrating upon the same point, a weak spot in Nostramo's adamantium crust theorised to be left b ythe Primarch's initial landing. The lasers of the Night Lord's ships focused a blinding lance of pure energy into the planet's core, and with a cataclysmic explosion, the dark planet burst apart.
Aside from the inclusion of mass drivers its pretty much the same thing.

Now that said, even if we infer there is a 'chain reaction' (naturally occuring fusion fuel, for example) its not going to INSTANTLY blow apart - the planet where we knew that happened certainly didn't, after all. But there are definite immediate effects - the crust cracking, magma rising up, the atmosphere boiling away (and presumably the oceans) Figure its at least 'mass extinction' scale, to quite possibly 'blowing off atmosphere' e23-e26 joules (which should also account for the surface disruption.) from scores (possibly hundreds or thousands - we know that most Space MArine fleets are bigger than a mere 50 or so ships.)

We know from the Night Lords series and others that the planet was (eventually?) mass scattered, Although strictly speaking it only describes the planet breaking up/shattering, it doesn't neccesarily mean mass scattering.

My guess would be that the planet had an incomplete or lesser mass scattering (e29-e30 joules perhaps). I'd figure they bombarded the core of the planet, heating it violently and causing the planet to rupture. We DON'T quite know how long it takes, except that iw as accomplished before pursuit ships (already emerging into the system) could catch up, which could be hours or weeks depending on how you want to interpret travel calcs.
Either way its a tremendous feat to accomplish with starships from a mass/energy perspective.


Page 150
It was not so much an edifice as a handcrafted landmass. The artisan masters built it upon Terra’s greatest mountain range, and transformed the monstrous peaks into its bulwarks.
..
By the time it was complete, it was the largest single man-made structure in known space. Its footings sank deep into the planet’s mantle, its towers probed the airless limits of the atmosphere. It owned the words ‘the palace’ wholly, without any need for qualification, as if no other palaces existed.
Details of the construciton of the Emperor's palace on Terra... which only highlights the 'impressiveness' beyond the fact we knew it was a continent-scale hive. anchored into the mantle, sub-orbital towers, etc.


Page 150-151
He had raised dark curtain walls around the golden halls, and cased the soaring towers in skins of armour ten metres thick.
..
..he had implanted uncountable turrets and ordnance emplacements. He had dug mighty earthworks out of the surrounding lowlands, and fortified them with a million batteries. He had yoked platforms into synchronous orbits to guard from above, their weapon banks armed and trained, day and night.
Mention of the defenses Dorn built for Terra.


Page 152
Singh was a tall man, taller than the primarch, but skeletally thin. His guild gene-bred their bloodline to favour height for purposes of surveying and overseeing.
Seems Terra was really fond of gneetic engineering back in the Great Crusade/Unification era. It really sets the groundwork for the idea that alot of the human populations in the 40K galaxy might be genetically engineered in various ways (or to various degrees) nevermind augmetics, latent psychic powers/connection to the warp and general mutations in all its forms, etc...
The fact he's as tall as a primarch is.. also interesting, since he's probably taller than 7-8 feet.


Page 153
The palace was so immense, the precipice walls bred their own microclimate. Greasy stars swam in the heat ripple of the palace’s new reactors. The void shields were being tested again.
we knew they had forcefield defenses to protect the palace, but its nice to remember it had void shields specifically.


PAge 154
Ministers and ambassadors conducted business beneath the kilometre-high roof of the Hegemon.
Height of room inside the palace, gives a good idea of the lower limit of the paace's height as well.


Page 155
Dorn heard stone splinter. He looked down. He had punched his fist, his Imperial fist, through a block of stone in the parapet. He had barely registered the impact. The block was pulverised.
Dorn's punch can pulverize stone


Page 158
The second and eleventh plinths had been vacant for a long time. No one ever spoke of those two absent brothers. Their separate tragedies had seemed like aberrations. Had they, in fact, been warnings that no one had heeded?
Which seems to imply the fates of the second and eleventh Primarchs might be tied up either in heresy or rebellion, or chaos, somehow. It seems doubtful that rebellion is the likely answer, or else why be so shocked at Horus' betrayal? Its not an ironclad reason to dismiss that, mind, just seems rather unlikely. some involvement of Chaos (corruption or mutation?) seems likelier, given the way they wre stolen from Terra to begin with.


Page 229
"Depending upon the warp tides, Lord Corax and his legionaries would have arrived at Isstvan seven days ago"
Raven's flight starts approximately just as Corax and the others have arrived at Isstvan.


Page 230
"I wanted to travel with the Legion," Valerius said. "I spoke with Lord Corax before he departed."
..
"Lord Corax swore to me that the Space Marines would put this right, without our help. Then he laid his giant hand on my shoulder and said 'If I need you, you will hear my call'. What do you suppose that means?"
Implying that Corax had left from Deliverance to reach Isstvaan (or at least, to reach the rendezvous point if he did.) Given the maps in Horus Heresy: Betrayal location for Isstvan (as well as repeated references to Isstvan being 'halfway across the galaxy' from terra) and the distance from Deliverance to Terra, we're probably talking some 80-100 thousand LY distance to cover.
Also the dreams are significant. Valerius believes Corax has contacted him.. except Corax can't have consciously done so, because Corax made no attempt during the story (or any other short story/novel with these characters.) So it was either an unconscious message, or some warp power at work (divination/foretelling.)
(Which reminds me, they mention Deliverance many times in this novel, and we learn in other short stories like in AGe of Darkness that Valerius travelled from deliverance to Isstvan)


Page 235
"‘A dream? You want me to ship out to Isstvan, against the primarch’s orders, because of a dream?"
..
"Maybe if I took my men there, just to be sure? If all is well we can simply return, a few weeks lost and nothing more."
..
"Nobody is leaving Deliverance, least of all your Imperial soldiers. This is Legion business."
..
"You must be ready for Lord Corax’s return. "
Valerius says a trip from Delivarance to Isstvan and back would be 'a few weeks' Assuming 2 or 3 weeks (and for the sake of argument, only one way) given the estimate before it would be between 1.3 and 2 million c for 80,000 LY approximately. If 100,000c, 1.7 to 2.6 million c.

This is unusual as warp speeds go but not impossible, and warp speeds seem to be more consistently faster in the Heresy era than modern as a rule. That said, even assuming 'weeks' meant something more like 'months', we'd be talking hundreds of thousands of c for a round trip, easily.

Also we learn again Corax left from Deliverance to either rendezvous before going to Isstvan, or shipping directly to Isstvan himself. We know as well THAT took less than a year, so the speed again would be hundreds of thousands of c, easily.
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Connor MacLeod
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Connor MacLeod »

Part 2.. and I'm done for now! to make up all the infodumping, I'll note that since I have Rennie's stuff caught up I've just got Last Chancers, HH, and Dark Heresy on my plate. So I'll be adding Deathwatch, Rogue Trader, (the FFG RPG stuff) and I'll finally delve into the Ultramarines novels (mostly Graham McNeill, but also Assault on Black Reach).
Also, in the near future after I get caught up in that.. We'll get into Cain, Ravenor, and the IG novels (probably) Plus occasional updates of the existing stuff (probably)


Page 236
..blood from the tears in his armour, rapidly thickening to stem the flow. There was no pain. No physical pain, at least.
...
Pieces of shrapnel protruded from its ceramite skin – shards of armour from his bodyguard. Grisly lumps of flesh clogged the joints, slivers of bone trapped in strands of sinew and gobbets of muscle. He didn’t know the names of those that now stained his armour.
..
"You should allow me to see the wound, lord," said the apothecary.
"It is nothing." Corax replied, truthfully.
"That same blast killed five legionaries. I would not dismiss such a thing so lightly."
..
"My body recovers."
Corax suffers a relatively non-serious injury from an explosion that killed (blew apart, more like) five Space Marines. Indeed, it is so minor he feels no pain and what damage he take rapidly heals even as he talks.



Page 238-239
he primarch had removed his winged helmet and listened intently, his superhuman ears better than any autosense the technorati could yet devise. He could tell every vehicle by its unique timbre of roar and grind of gears: Rhino transports, Land Raiders, Predator tanks, Thunderstrike assault guns.
Corax's hearing.


Page 239
Corax cared little for the criticisms of the other primarchs. Their Legions were larger than his, their Terran forces bolstered by populous home planets. Deliverance had not the vast resources of many other worlds and only a few thousand more legionaries had swelled the ranks of the Raven Guard.
..
"Advancing in double column, six transports in the vanguard, half a kilometre ahead. Two outriding squadrons of bikes, twenty in total."
Corax apparently considers (most?) other Legions to be considerably larger than the Raven Guard, meaning they're probably over 80,000. Not all of them are, as we know the Thousand Sons were much smaller in 'A Thousand Sons'


Page 240
The cloud in the highlands was low. He heard no jets. It was unlikely that the Iron Warriors had aerial forces, they would be virtually useless in this weather. Further up, beyond the atmosphere, their frigates and battle barges peered down upon Isstvan V with their long-range augurs, but finding a force as small as Corax’s would be all but impossible. It was a gamble, but Corax had to hope that the recon column – one of three that had been scouring the hills since the massacre – did not have attached orbital support.
Corax believes that orbital sensors could not detect some 4000 Raven Guard survivors or the Primarch. This may be 'groups of that size' in general or may refer to the Raven Guard specifically, who we know have historically been Space MArine ninjas and have various means of being stealthy.


Page 241-242
Corax watched the exchange from a narrow defile a few hundred metres behind the Iron Warriors’ positions.
..
As the gravel sprayed underfoot, a lone Iron Warrior, his silver armour dappled with water droplets, turned towards Corax, perhaps somehow hearing the crunching footfalls over the din of the battle. The primarch acted without hesitation. Stooping in his run, he snatched up a shard of rock. With a flick of his arm, he hurled the stone at the Iron Warrior. As a dark blur it struck the Space Marine in the throat and erupted from the back of his neck, silently felling him. Corax sprinted onwards, readying his heavy bolter.
..
Fifty metres behind the assault guns he stopped and took up a firing position, bringing the heavy bolter up to his left shoulder as an ordinary man might heft a rifle.
We know from 'Fear ot Tread' that Sangy can probably punch throw shit at near-supersonic or supersonic velocities, so its probably not surprising that Corax can throw a rock like a bullet. The distance is between several hundred metres and fifty metres, which again implies a throwing speed (given the accuracy) many times faster than a normal human.

Also, Corax can carry (and wield) a heavy bolter like a rifle.


Page 243
Bolter rounds were pattering from Corax’s armour, nothing more than a distraction.
..
..a Predator tank slewing in his direction. Its lascannon sponsons swivelled towards him.
Twin blasts of energy exploded around the primarch, hurling him to his back, his chest plastron a semi-molten slurry, the heavy bolter a mangled ruin in his hand. Pain flared across his chest but disappeared as quickly as it came. Corax tossed the heavy bolter aside and pulled himself to his feet as the Predator’s turret opened fire, autocannon rounds shrieking past the primarch.
He broke into a loping run, shells ringing from his helmet and shoulder pads as he sprinted into the teeth of the metal storm.
Durability of Corax's armour. Stands up to bolter fire effortlessly, and autocannon fire from a Predator bounces off it pretty easily. LAscannon penetrate, but only injures him somewhat.


Page 242
Corax leapt upon the Predator. Driven by his indignant rage, he drove his fist through the driver’s slit, crushing the skull of the Iron Warrior within. Jumping onto the turret, the primarch tore away the hatch covers, sending their jagged remains scything through the Iron Warriors squads advancing on him from the transports. The tank’s commander looked up in surprise as dim light flooded the interior of the Predator. Corax reached in, his gauntlet enveloping the Space Marine’s head. The helmet resisted for a moment before giving in to the titanic pressure, the tank commander’s skull collapsing between Corax’s fingers.
Dropping to the ground, the primarch grabbed one of the sponson lascannons and braced a foot against the tank’s hull. With a heave of his shoulders, Corax tore the mounting free, the gunner within dragged halfway out of the hole. Corax brought his fist down onto the Iron Warrior’s back, the force of the blow cracking his armour and shattering his spine.
Corax punches a tank and its crew literally to death, rips off the hatch and lascannon sponson with his bare hands.


Page 242
Four squads of Iron Warriors poured their fire at the primarch..
Again Corax's armor stads up to it


Page 242
The smoking trail of a missile cut through the air a moment before the projectile crashed into Corax’s left shoulder, sending shards of ceramite in all directions, staggering the primarch to one knee.
Corax tanks a missile of some kind (frag or krak) we dont know


Page 243
Corax covered the hundred metres in a few seconds..
Implying a speed of between 20-50 m/s depending on one defines a 'few' seconds. AVerage speed of 70 to 180 kph. Which is about as fast as we know Space wolves can sprint (Wolf's Honour) or Night Lords (Void Stalker.)


Page 243
..the primarch snatched up their weapons and stormed into the rest of the squad, a blazing bolter in each hand.
..
...before the ammunition belts were exhausted.
Corax John-Woo's a pair of bolters like pistols. Also the Iron Warriors bolters seem to b belt fed.


Page 246
A long twin-barbed whip uncoiled in his hands, writhing with a life of its own. The primarch had requested the Mechanicum of Mars to fashion the lash for him.
..
Flickers of energy sparking along its length, the whip flicked out in Corax’s hand and caught the closest Terminator with a thunderous crack, slicing him from shoulder to waist. His remains fell to the ground in three, wisps of smoke drifting from the neatly sliced body parts.
...
Corax’s whip slashed the head from another and cut the legs from under a third.
Corax's power whip. apparently self-powered as well as having a powerfield. Powerful enough to slice effortlessly through Terminator armour.


Page 247-248
For thirty nights he had snatched no more than a few hours of sleep, waking early every morning with the stench of burning flesh in his nostrils and the cries of the dying in his ears.
..
His command staff had done as he asked and the regiment had been mustered and supplied ready for the journey to Isstvan.
..
"Fifty per cent of the infantry and eighty per cent of the armour has been embarked, Praefecto" reported First Tribune Marius. He referred to a wafer-thin data-slate before continuing. "Seven transports are squared away and ready to leave. The captains of the three others report that they will be warp-worthy within five hours. Frigates Escalation, Garius and Vendetta stand ready for escort service."
..
"Be prepared to leave orbit as soon as possible."
Thirty days have passed and Valerius is hours way from travelling to Isstvan. This is important for later.
Also note the 'wafer thin' dataslate.


Page 249-250
"No, we are not Space Marines, we are not the Emperor’s favoured. We are simply men. Men that believe in the Imperial Truth, in the forging of this new Empire every bit as much as you!"
"Men are weak," replied Branne..
...
"It is not wise to stand in judgement of your betters."
..
"You created the Imperium, of that I am sure. But without us weak, frail men, what would you be? Who pilots the ships that carry you, grows the crops that feed you, makes the weapons you wield and raises the children that will be your future generations? Not the Space Marines."
Branne is pretty damn arrogant isn't he? One of the ideas of Raven's Flight is a contrast between Branne of the Raven Guard and of Corax himself, as we soon see, and the value of humanity. Bear this passage in mind, as his conflict with Valerius stands in contrast to Corax's musings later.


Page 255
So it was that the primarch of the Raven Guard stole into the Urgall Depression and drew upon that ability he had possessed since his first memory but had revealed to no one. He knew not how it came to be, but if he focused his thoughts, he could pass unseen amongst others. Long he had honed his power in the fighting against the slavemasters, walking through their defences in plain sight.
..
It was not that he literally disappeared – more than one encounter with an automatic scanner had taught him that – it was that the minds of others ignored Corax if he wished it. Like a predator that only recognises the shapes of its prey, those that Corax wished to deceive simply did not register his presence. Such was their unconscious disbelief that they even refused to acknowledge a return on a scanner sweep or the glow of a thermal monitor. To any naked eye Corax could, for want of a better term, become invisible.
Only one other knew of this – the Emperor.
Corax's special ability - invisibilty. It was long rumoured in earlier fluff that one of the Primarchs could 'turn invisible', and Corax an do so - after a fashion. Rather fitting that it's him as well, too.


Page 258
Corax had seen untold atrocities and, in the name of Enlightenment and the future had even committed a few. Of these he was not proud, but he was sure that his cause had always been just.
This is especially amusing given Dorn's lecturing of Curze in 'Dark King'.


Page 258-259
For the first and last time in his life, Corax cried. He cried not for the loss of life, though it was great. He cried not for the degradation that had been heaped upon his dead warriors, though it was obscene. He cried for all Space Marines, for the shame that Horus had brought upon them.
..
"Will they ever trust us again?" he whispered as a single tear rolled down his cheek and dropped onto the fallen Raven Guard.
Should they trust us, was the next question, one that Corax did not want to ask and certainly could not answer. The Emperor made us gods and mankind followed us, Corax thought heavily. In us he poured the hopes and dreams of humanity...
...
Not all of us follow Horus, but none of us are beyond blame. Perhaps it is better not to trust us. Perhaps the galaxy is better ruled by normal men, who live and die and whose ambitions are not so grand.
Corax laments the turn of events, showing guilt and grief which rather punctuate the significance of this passage. The Heresy will mark the Astartes with great mistrust, and Corax seems to almost be foreseeing it. His attitudes seem to differ from other Primarchs as well, which is notable. Both here, and Deliverance lost Corax is shown to be one of the more human Primarchs.

This is also interesting given Branne's attitudes towards Valerius, its a contrast that the Space MArine is arrogant and dismissive of his 'merely' human subordinate (something that happens frequently in the novels) whilst Corax himself extends greater compassion.


Page 264
The primarch was not sure he yet understood what the Emperor had been saying, for he had said a great many things that referred to the time before his Unification of Terra, references to ancient Earth and his own life that were far beyond Corax’s knowledge.
"Each of those parts that they put into me, I gave to each of you," the Emperor had said. Corax had asked who had put what into the Emperor but he had shaken his head and refused to answer, telling Corax that it was not important anymore. Reunited with his primarchs, he would be whole once again.
I find this passage.. interesting.. for the connections to early fluff it has and the implications. we know that throughout the HH series they've revived and incorporated elements of very old (1st and 2nd) edition fluff in various forms. (Oll Persson and the Perpetuals, anyone?) The origins of the Emperor are one such thing. One of the older fluff bits of course was the references to the Emperor's 'composite' nature - the STar Child and Sensei, the shamans reincarnating into the New Man (who is the Emperor) and so on. And here we learn that the Emperor purportedly bestowed 'part' of himself (given to him by others) into his Primarchs. It could just be poetic or hyperbole of course, but.. what if it's not? Might this mean that part of the Emperor's composite nature (star child or New man or both, whichever you prefer) which was imbued into the Primarchs? It's certainly possible and it has some interesting implications about the nature of the Primarchs and how the Emperor brought them about (hinted at many times before by Chaos after all.) not to mention their roles and why the Emperor simply did not make new Primarchs - there were parts he could not easily replace/replicate and have them be the same!

Another interesting thing is the implications this holds for Space Marines, if true. The Space Marines are tied to their Primarchs, both genetically and by stronger bonds (EG Sanguinius and the blood angels) and through the Primarchs, the Emperor. That would imply that every Space Marine also holds a (small) part of the Emperor much as the Primarchs do. The idea that Space Marines are avatars/Champions of humanity, or might have a part of an old 'shaman' in them.. is actually kinda cool. It makes them more than just killtastic superwank humans. Pity this never gets played up, huh?

Page 265
Was the wildness, the savagery of the army that raged towards him something that hid inside every Legion?
Corax could not believe it was so. Duty, honour, loyalty. For the strong to fight for the weak, that was purpose. Freedom of the type craved by Angron was an empty existence, removed of all measure and boundary, so that no act had meaning because it served no further end. Corax had freed Deliverance from the slavemasters and then guided them into the fold of the Imperium. Perhaps he had merely swapped one master for another, but at least he was free to choose the master he would serve.
Corax is a philosopher. :P


Page 266-267
lack dropships emblazoned with the sigil of the Raven Guard. The Space Marines scattered to give the landing craft space to make planetfall.
..
"Lord Corax!"
"Receiving your transmission."
"This is Praefector Valerius of the Imperial Army, serving under Commander Branne, my lord. We have a short window of evacuation, board as soon as you are able."
...
"We survived, lord." Aloni’s tone conveyed his utter disbelief at the truth of this. "Ninety-eight days!"
Valerius left Deliverance 30 days after Corax reached the planet. Corax has survived ninety eight days on the planet (confirmed in 'Deliverance Lost'.) We know in 'Age of Darkness' and the short story 'FAce of Treachery' that the Avenger and its forces spent roughly eight days crossing the system to reach Corax. That means 60 days of transit through the warp.

As I noted before, the approximate distance between Delivrance and Isstvan is some 80-100 thousand LY. That means a warp speed somewhere between 480 and 600,000c roughly. This is also just for transports, so you could argue warships (esp Astartes warships) are faster alone.

This is much longer than the 'weeks' implied but we dont know warp conditions (This is post Dropsite massacre some weeks/months, so warp conditions could have gotten progressively worse in that time, as we know that was happening after Horus masscared the loyalists.) Or its just the sheer randomness of the warp. In the worst case, we simply conclude that the 'weeks' actually meant 'a few months' (you could stretch the definition of 'weeks' to 'less than several months' after all without too much trouble.) and the actual timeframe would simply fall between those two assumptions.


PAge 267
"I came to Isstvan with eighty thousand warriors. I leave with less than three thousand."
Raven Guard numbers, pre and post Isstvan.


Page 272-273
My father wanted to apprentice me to the Mechanicum of Mars, but my grandfather would not hear of it. The priests of the red planet had been the enemies of Terra two generations ago, and my grandfather... ...still held grudges from that chaotic time.
Making weapons and war machines for the Imperium of Man was a waste of time for someone with the skills I possessed.
Which implies that the time between the AdMech making their deal with the Emperor and the time befor that was less than a century or two.. which again puts some fairly narrow constraints on the time the AdMech had to build the Emperor's pre-Crusade fleet (hundreds of thousands from A Thousand Sons, remember.) Decades more probably than centuries again.


PAge 277
Suffice to say, I was soon travelling into the darkness of space, where shoal after shoal of starships thronged the heavens and greedily sucked fuel and supplies from the enormous continental plates locked in geostationary orbit.
The continental plates of Terra.


Page 277-278
At last I saw the vessel that would be my home for nearly two hundred years..
..
I quickly established myself on board, and though my possessions were meagre, my wealth was substantial, and my vanity only scarcely less so. All of which allowed me to extend my span and retain the appearance of youth with superlative juvenat treatments.
..
What difference do a few less lines around the eyes and smoother skin make when every breath might be the last and a pleasing bliss enters my mind as portions of my brain begin to fade out?
Comments on juvenat and the advantages and drawbacks. Physical youth, although the brain will invariably degenerate. This may suggest why some rejuvenations had to be mindwiped (like Baal Firenze from Inquisition War) - being completely rejuvenated would invariably mean regenerating the brain and undoing alot of the stuff like memories and shit.. which probably is too costly for some.

Incidentally the guy is a remembrancer, which further marks the limits of the Admehc construction time.


PAge 294
The wounds have closed, though not cleanly. Blood loss is severe. Cranial damage and oxygen starvation are still both potentially terminal, or crippling. Haemorrhaging is rampant. Organs I cannot even name are lacerated and severed from vein networks we’ve never seen before. If he were human – if he were even one of us – a single one of his wounds would be enough to see him dead. He’s sustained eleven such lethalities.
Extent of Curze's injuries as suffered against the Lion. Gives an indicator of his durability.


Page 294-295
"Another four vessels have reached the edge of the system."
...
"We’ve mustered close to one-twentieth of the fleet’s strength here."
There are at least five to seven vessels present, quite probably more, so we're talking at least 100-150 ships in this one location alone.


Page 297
" We lost dozens of ships; both our own and those of the humans that follow us. "
Fleet losses of the Night Lords to the Dark Angels.


Page 298
"There is nothing more we can do here – and I say that delaying the Dark Angels for almost three years is more than long enough"
They've been here three years.


Page 306
How did a Legion function without its guiding hand? Without its lord, mentor, and genetic sire? Father was too trite a word when dealing with such concepts. Father implied mortality. Fathers died.
..
..he’d been blade to blade with the Iron Hands when Lord Manus, their primarch, fell. He’d seen the psychic echo rip through them. Subtle in some, ravaging in others – every single warrior in the black of the X Legion had reacted with a fury suddenly unrestrained. All hesitation cast aside, all notion of a defensive battle forgotten.
This is interesting as it implies that the psychic connection between Space Marines and their Primarch exists in all MArines, not just ones like the Blood Angels. The Iron Hands apparently suffered it when Ferrus Manus died, and one of the big parts of this story (which ties into Talos the Soul Hunter and his visions, I suspect) is that the bond between the Night Lords and Curze is also strong.

Indeed, given what we've learned in Raven's Flight about the nature of the Primarchs and the Emperor, you wonder if this speaks to those 'parts' of the Emperor that was put into those Primarchs (and in turn, perhaps infused into the Space Marines themselves in small measure.)


Page 306
Sevatar still carried scars from that battle. He could’ve had them sealed and healed by augmetic surgery or synthetic skin grafts..
Medical procedures for Scars.


Page 309
"I was given to understand all warriors of the Legiones Astartes were gifted with eidetic recall. A hololithic memory, if you will."
space Marine memory.


Page 318-319
"He walks the same path as the rest of you, Sevatar. He is merely closer to the end of it. You’ll all be like him, one night."
..
"There’s still nobility in him. Still strength."
..
"He is not always this bad. He had a… difficult few months, before the ambush. His dreams were bleak, poisoned by doubt. He knows when and how he’ll die, Sevatar. He’s always known. The knowledge pains him more than you or I could ever understand. The pressure of it, the inevitability, is a tide against his consciousness."
..
"He told me the same thing once. Did he tell you when he believed the time would come?"
..
"Yes, he did."
..
"I do not believe in fate, or prophecy, or destiny. The primarch is a visionary and a genius, but even he can play the fool."
A big aspect of this story is Curze's relationship between himself and his Legion, as well as why he behaves the way he does, why he uses terror as a weapon. It can be said that ADB manages to turn an utter asshole into someone who is still an asshole, but you can at least understand why he acts the way he does, and maybe even sympathize. He's under horrible burdens - knowing his fate, his future (or thinking he does) and the visions, the foreknowledge seems to drive him mad. His foresight is quite a bit stronger than Sanguinius' in this regard.

It also shows that despite sharing bits of himself, his Legion, as a whole, does not really understand him. Some don't even try to understand him. All they seem to understand is enjoying their superiority, to inflict pain and terror simply because they can and enjoy it. THat plays a role much later on.
Also, we reaffirm that notion that the Legion shares a strong bond with their Primarch, quite like Sanguinius and the Blood Angels, it would seem.


Page 327
"What you’re looking at, brothers, is over a third of the Legion’s fleet. We’ve had contact with the other mustering points at Ykresh, Taur, and Sotha. "
..
"The Dark Angels destroyed just over twenty-five per cent of the fleet in their ambush. They killed a quarter of the Legion in three hours."
..
"It’s only been two weeks. There may be several dozen vessels still in the warp, or caught away from the fallback points. But the confirmed casualties alone are grievous. Every shipmaster saw other vessels die. Collating that list shows a fifth of the Legion dead in the void, or on the surface of Sheol. "
Losses of the Night Lords against the Dark Angels. A quarter of the fleet (roughly) destroyed. We learned earlier that 'dozens' of ships were destroyed, which implies somewhere between 24-36 at least 96-144 ships.


Page 331
He’d duelled Sigismund of the Imperial Fists once – the only warrior ever to beat him to a deadlock in over a hundred years of warfare. The duel had lasted almost thirty long, long hours of sweat, swearing, and the crash-clash of iron against iron.
Sigismund and Sevatar have thirty hour long fight.


Page 333
..Curze looked less wretched, less weakened by the strains of commanding a guerrilla void campaign out here in the deepest black for more than two years, across hundreds of star systems.
two years to cross hundreds of star systems, fighting all the way. Average FTL velocity of thousands of c, but its probably much faster than that when you factor in the fighting and allow for the fact it assumes each planet is relatively close by.


Page 337
The boy rose from the wreckage, wearing nothing more than smears of ash and dirt clinging to his pale skin. He looked at the sky, dark as the void, blind without a sun’s eye. He looked at the metal ruin of his cradle-engine, still hissing steam through its cracked, blistered armour plating. And then, still with nothing resembling an expression on his slender face, he looked to the horizon.
Guess that story about crashing through the Adamantium crust of the planet is... exaggerated.. at least according to ADB.


Page 347
..at least the wound had stopped bleeding. The Night Haunter tested his arm, rotating the wrist, working the elbow joint and flexing his fingers.
Sore, nothing more. The bullet would leave a scar, but then, didn’t they all? He’d not looked at himself in a mirror for some time, but running his calloused fingertips across his chest and back offered more than a slight pebbling of scar tissue from bullet holes. He couldn’t dodge everything, no matter how much faster he was than the humans that hunted him.
The Night Haunter is injured by gunfire... but not seriously wounded. So the bullets can penetrate his skin to some degree, but not seriously inconenience him. Interesting in light of 'Dark King' where he supposedly can decapitate people with his 'iron hard' flesh. Some sort of psychic powerfield analogue?


Page 354
Spaceflight was no mystery to them, albeit in the most stunted and warpless sense, reaching out to a handful of worlds in neighbouring star systems. Nostramo had traded its abundance of adamantium with these worlds for generations, though under the Night Haunter’s kingship, planetary exports rose to unparalleled level..
The Nostromans had sublight travel between star systems.


Page 356
"‘I am Rogal Dorn"
...
In his mind’s eye, he saw the giant die, dragged down by a hundred murderers in a dark tunnel, their knives and swords wet with the warrior’s blood.
Of the four Primarchs Naught Haunter foretells, Dorn's is the most mysterious/interesting. We know from Index Astartes Dorn was supposedly killed board a Despoiler class battleship (although the Despoiler was 36th Millenium, not 31st) during a Black crusade. That could be what we see above, although tis possible some new fate awaited Dorn.


Page 356
"I am Lorgar Aurelian,"
...
He saw this warrior crowned in psychic fire, screaming up at a burning sky.
Probably reflects Lorgar coming to his realization about daemons and Chaos, or perhaps becoming a daemon prince.


Page 357
"I am Ferrus Manus"
...
The Night Haunter remained silent, seeing the warrior’s head clutched by its empty eye sockets in another man’s armoured fingers.
And we know Ferrus Manus died at Fulgrim's hand.


Page 357
"I am Fulgrim"
..
He saw this final giant in only the faintest of images; always slithering and laughing, never entirely visible.
As we know he gets possessed by a daemon and becomes a daemon prince (turning around the possession as in The Primarchs, and thereby becoming a colossal asshole.)


Page 362-363
"Why are you the only primarch to hate his own Legion? What have we done to you?"
...
" The Emperor praised me for my rule over this world. Even Fulgrim admired it. A model of compliance. An obedient world, they said. Were my people happy? Did that even matter? I made these people human, despite their feral drives. I made them civilised, despite their baser instincts. I raised them above the level of beasts. That was my responsibility to them, as a superior being. And I fulfilled it."
...
Sevatar almost laughed. "Sire, you are no different. The Legion is disorderly and vile because it is cast in your image."
...
"No, you don’t understand. I’ve never claimed to be perfect, Sevatar. But I became the sinner, the monster, the Night Haunter, so my people would never have to. And look at the result. Look at the recruits from Nostramo, less than a decade after I departed. Look at the filth they sent me. Look at the disgusting dregs of humanity my own Apothecaries infused with my genetic material and reforged into transhumans. The Eighth is poisoned, Sev. Generations of men who are murderers in my image, yet devoid of my conviction. They are killers and abusers because they want to be, not because someone had to be."
...
"Fear is supposed to be the means to the end. Look at the bloodshed my Legion has wrought these last years, even before the Crusade was done. Fear became the end itself. It was all they desired. They fed on it. My sons were strong, so they bled the weak for their own amusement. Tell me, captain, where the nobility is in that."
Curze argues with Sevatar about the nature of his Legion and his own methods and reasons for doing them. You really can kind of see Curze's logic and given his powers and the conditions he 'grew up' in, one can hardly blame him for thinking this way, as twisted and misguided as it might be. There's just this wonderful complexity to the way ADB writes the Night Lords that just appeals. Curze is a horrific, misunderstood, pitiable creature, and he's neither completely sympathetic yet the ADB Curze/Night Lords are far more than the blurbs in Index Astartes make them out to be, and that depth is what makes the series (and this story) compelling.

This is only part of the discussion, mind. Sevatar continues to argue with Curze and (to summarize) criticizes Curze for the flaws in his logic and his condemnation of his Legion. He points out that the other Primarchs were able to maintain compliance on world without terrorizing them into submission and that their compliances didn't flal apart the minute Curze was gone (indeed, this is what EXACTLY happens in Dark King!) and that his attmept to justify his actions with high-minded ideals is foolish - basically Curze is no better than the rest of his Legion and is just deluding himself. Which could have a point - Curze's nature is one of conflict - conflicted with his visions, with the enviroment he finds himself in and his struggle to find some purpose and nobility in it (indeed, perhaps to live up to the ideals of the Emperor, and perhaps feeling secretly he cannot?) Again that's ADB at his best - he's good at arguing both sides of an issue without giving undue weight to one (Again Lorgar vs Curze is good too.)

Oh and as another aside from all this thematic - note yet again how the Emperor and others 'Admire' Curze (including Fulgrim) for his model compliance... and yet Fulgrim (someone Curze reaches out to in his agony), his other brothers, and even his father seemingly turn against him. They admire the results, yet deplore the actions used to achieve them. I've already discussed the 'compliance' hypocrisy - but given that its not surpising Curze (and by extension, his Legion) might feel betrayed (and turn against) the Imperium. Again, its alot more complex than good/bad.


Page 368
" I need at least fifty ships willing to remain for the attack."
..
Over half of the fleet volunteered to stay.
1/3 of the fleet, and they have at least 50 ships (and definietley more) so that's again 150 ships minimum.. indeed if over half the fleet volunteered yet he needed only 50 vessels, that suggests that 'half' the fleet would be far more than merely 50.

'
Page 370-371
The Wrath-pattern starfighter was a sleek shark...
..
..the Wrath was an outdated model, rare to begin with and increasingly replaced in Imperial fleets by the mass-produced Fury-class. It was said the Fury had a finer temper. They handled more smoothly, they glitched less. Furies were the future, the modern face of void warfare. No rivals. No limit of sub-sector variations. No performance issues that so blighted previous models.
..
Flying was more than some sterile interaction with manufactory-spec machines. She could outrun and outfight a Fury in her slower, older Wrath any night.
Wrath class starfighter, and its relation ot the fury. Basically the Fury is all around better (purportedly) - faster, more reliable, easier to build. Although its implied the Wrath might have more potential in the hands of a skilled pilot.


Page 371
..her gunner, Vensent..
..
Vensent shared a glance with the naviseer, Kyven,..
..
"Spinal connection," a servitor mumbled, "optimal function." The lobotomised slave withdrew its connectivity spikes from Taye’s spine.
Wrath fighter's crew. Pilot, navigator, and gunner. The pilot (Taye) has spinal connections, presumably to link her to her craft.


Page 372
Scrambling a fighter wing was a cascade of coordination, and the Nightfall had several of them to get into the air at once.
..
Twenty-two of her twenty-four fighters were about to ride skywards.
Implied size of a Night Lords fighter wing, as well as the number of wings the Nightfall possesses.


Page 372
Taye was first up the ladder, thumping down into her restraint throne and aligning her spinal sockets with the interface ports in the seatback.
..
Connection came with several insidious snicks as the needles slid into her spinal column.
..
Taye heard the beeping and pulsing of his systems coming online, recognising his [Kayven's] bio-imprint in the chair.
The fighter crew plug in.


Page 374
Sevatar watched the approaching armada, still too distant for visual confirmation but shining bright on the tactical hololith. Fire-control directions, updated every few seconds, passed between every vessel in the fleet, sent onwards to their escort vessels and fighter squadrons.
BVR, and still not in weapons range. Fire control data being shared amongst ships.


Page 374
If Yul’s plan worked, they’d inflict maximum damage with minimal losses, and if it didn’t work, the majority of the VIII Legion fleet would be long gone, anyway.
Again the 'majority' of the fleet is escaping, whilst 50 or so ships remain behind to fend off the Dark Angels. It makes sense, given its unlikely they'd sacrifice the majority of their fleet simply to let a small number get away, so this again suggests the total fleet strength of this part is over 100-150 ships, and that is merely 1/3 of the total force a good 300-450 ships. And this may not even include the destroyed vessels.


Page 376
The Nightfall and the Invincible Reason knifed through space to reach one another, abandoning their strengths as long-range weapons platforms in favour of mauling each other face to face. Imperial void battles were usually fought at breathtaking distances, with mathematics and logistics as vital as a captain’s instinct.
Nature of Space warfare.


Page 377
The void surrounding the VIII Legion formation was bitter with the flaring rage of three hundred firing solutions. Ship after ship dissolved under the First Legion’s fire, their hulls pockmarked by laser batteries and sliced open by lances.
300 firing solutions.. does that mark the size of the Dark Angels fleet pursiing the Night Lords, or is that individual guns?


Page 378
Taye breathed a Nostraman curse into her rebreather, pulling out of the dive too hard, too fast, leaning right into a brutal arc. Inertial dampeners kicked with enough force to slam all three of their helmets against the sides of their restraint thrones.
Wrath class fighter has inertial dampers, although they don't seem to work smoothly or efficiently (Then again depending on your source, evne big ship ones don't neccesarily, especially in turns.) so some 'gees' seem to bleed through. Still even a bit of compensation helps, and its likely that the Fury (as noted before, a better fighter than the older Wrath) probably has it as well.


Page 383
The ships were abeam now. He could tell without needing to see, discerning it purely from the Nightfall’s distinctive shivers. Lance fire didn’t rattle the decks the same way impact damage or las-batteries did. Every tremor of torment had its own sensation. This was the grinding vibration of massed broadsides against unshielded steel, the void-war equivalent of pulling in close to your prey and knifing them in the ribs.
comments about the differences in nature of weapons fire. Apparently lances and lasfire differe - presumably its a comment on the sustained/piercing nature of lances (possibly more thermal effects) vs more (probably) pulsed/explosive nature of las batteries (scaled up lascannon/lasguns I'd guess) - more akin to physical impactors than a heat ray really.


Page 385
"Half the turrets are deactivated; the hangars are locked open; the primary and secondary lance arrays are silent; and most of the torpedo racks aren’t responding. Spinal battlements are still firing from reserve generators. Life support and artificial gravity are still feeding from their secondaries, but the void shields are down for good."
"Navigation?"
"Dead. The arterials to the secondary power reserves are cut."
Commentary on Great Crusade/HEresy era Space Marine (or at least Night Lords) ship design. They seem to emphasize redundnacy on power generation/transfer, with at least some weapons having some reserve power (backup reactors or generators, or perhaps capacitors, etc.) The ship also has 'primary' and 'secondary' lances, although whether that refers to size/power, placement, or what we don't know. Key systems (AG and life support) also have backup power, as does navigation. Again redundancy seems to be a key element of Imperial starship design (unsurprising considreing some starships can have as few as five or as many as thirty reactors.)


Page 386
All the while, the curved Nostraman rune for Hollow pulsed in her heads-up display. She needed to land and reload. Vespera’s missile racks had been empty less than a minute after the fighter raced from the hangar bay
Anti-fighter missiles it seems, as she's pursuing an enemy fighter int he process.


Page 387
The Nightfall’s shields were down and enemy bombers buzzed around with clingy, verminous tenacity, spitting plasma bombs into the flagship’s structural weak points.
Even with shields down, bombers seem to have to target weak points in the ship's structure to do any damage. That suggests attack craft simply do not overwhelm an opposing ship by brute force firepower.


Page 390
Close to the bridge would bring them in range of a hundred and more defensive turrets.
Invincible Reason has at least 100 anti fighter turrets, just around the bridge itself.


Page 390-391
Taye, for her part, leeched everything Vespera could give, burning the engines dangerously hot, engaging no one, rolling in spirals and pitchbacks to shake loose any of the black Furies that tried to latch onto her. She was all too aware of the g-force her ‘passenger’ would be suffering, but had to keep the engines flaring for maximum manoeuvrability.
..
No amount of biological enhancement, nor even the most advanced suit of Maximus-pattern power armour, could shield him from the gravitational forces pressing against him. He felt nausea for the first time in over a century, which was novel enough to make him grin.
The pressure against his skull and limbs, however, was less entertaining. The suspensor-wire pressure flightsuits worn by Taye and her crew shared some basic functionality with one of the layers in his own ceramite armour, but it didn’t render him immune to physics.
..
..he suspected the feeling of inertial forces threatening to pull his bones apart was fairly approximate on the continuum of pain.
Commentary on the potential acceleration rates of a Wrath pattenr starfighter. It's strongly implied they are pushing hte limits of Space Marine acceleration tolerances, which depending on your source could be tens of gees (White Dwarf magazine on land speeder accel gave it 17 gees as being Space Marine limits) to a hundred gees (implied in the novel 'Black Tide'). Certainly at a bare minimum, the Space MArines being tougher and more capable than humans can endure far more (many times?) the acceleration of a normla human, which would suggest 10, 20 or more gees perhaps. And again, this is for an older, slower craft, so Furies presumably would be faster.

Also 'suspensor-wire' flightsuits to help counteract gee-forces, which apparently has some similarity to something in Space Marine armour. Note that we've seen similar flight suits mentioned in other sources (like Warriors of Ultramar.) so the Imperium still has them around. Note they also demonstrate that if fighters have inertial damping, its imperfect (else why use the suits?)


Page 392
The closest munitions officer was a man by the name of Halles Korevi, and he was directing a loader team to rearm this latest in an endless stream of landing and redeploying fighters, when it jinked above the deck and shot him to pieces with a volley of roaring blue energy from its lascannons.
Lascannon fighter fire blows apart a human.


Page 392
He fired down as he ran along the backswept wing, four bolts bursting in the chests of four armsmen, spreading viscera across their fellows
Bolter bursts chests with single bolt each.


Page 394
Sevatar knew the STC Gloriana-pattern battleship as well as he knew the contours of his own armour. The Nightfall was born of the same breed.
Nightfall is of the same class as the Invincible Reason, and has similar capabilities. Such as fighter complement, number of guns, etc.


Page 395
A Gloriana battleship was the size of a densely compacted city, and accordingly populated not only by officers and expert crew, but by a slave-caste numbering tens of thousands of souls. Most were consigned to live in the warship’s lightless bowels, breathing poorly-ventilated air and furnace fumes, but many still saw service on the upper decks.
Size and complement of a battleship. Tens of thousands may be an underestimate, comparing it to a 'densely compacted city' might imply hundreds of thousands or even millions and this would be consistent with FFG mateiral. Then again we know fo lots of sources indicating they have much smaller crews (in teh tens of thousands) too so that could be quite accurate.
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Ahriman238
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Re: Horus Heresy series analysis thread

Post by Ahriman238 »

I seriously enjoyed the hell out of Shadows of Treachery, especially the Fists portions as they're always placed... third-ish among my favorite chapters. I was particularly surprised how one conversation between Dorn and Sigismund turns him, Sigismund- Mr. Black Templar before it was cool, into a complex and interesting character. That's some skill right there. It was also good continuing the theme from that Age of Darkness story that Dorn is going to destroy the Imperium to save it from Chaos. Oh he promises himself he'll put it all back and make it like it used to be, but even he doesn't really believe it.

What price security indeed? An Imperium that must constantly be on guard for traitors and corruption, that doesn't dare trust its own people cannot be the Imperium Dorn was talking about to Kurze earlier.


It's always interesting, as the Primarchs become less like cardboard cutouts (the Angry one, the sneaky ones) how much they're products of their environment, and how much their father's sons. Empy meant to raise them himself, so if, say Angron, was prone to violent fits at least they'd happen in controlled conditions where the behavior could be shaped accordingly. Scattering them across the galaxy was a big monkey wrench in the Emperor's plans.

I mean, I'm sure Empy was pleased that his sons survived and made themselves leaders and strong men, but some of them, Angron, Corax and Kurze were severely messed up by their childhoods while others, Perturabo, Lorgar, probably Mortarion too, had attitudes and beliefs extremely unhelpful to the life Empy had planned for them. I'm pretty sure he'd have preferred to be there and hold Magnus' hand while he took his first steps into the Warp to.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
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