Warhammer: After 18 years, finally an end

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Marshal Prolapse: Jun 23, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

MonsterEnvy posted:

I recall the Emperor was once seen by a blank who described him as underwhelming as he�s not even actually huge like a Primarch.

Is it just me or do blanks just seem like not the best source for analysis of a persons personality?

# ? Feb 19, 2022 03:34

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# ? Jun 3, 2024 01:02

Chemtrailologist: Jul 8, 2007

Here's the passage where Aleya meets Guilliman if anyone's interested:

quote:

I was wrong about that, at least to begin with. The High Lords, they told me, were no longer governing the Imperium. A scandalised member of the Adeptus Astra Telepathica told me so, her eyes wide with a kind of outraged pleasure. Rumours ran through the entire Senatorum and beyond concerning Guilliman, who was, so they all said, working his way through the echelons of power like a grox through a fodder warehouse. Everything was changing. Everything would be better. The corruption would disappear, the victories would start to roll in.

Humanity. So stupid, so weak. They would cling on to anything at all rather than look themselves in the eye and try to be honest about how they had failed. Guilliman was an individual. A tall one, no doubt, with an impressive sword, but one just the same. He could be ended by a stray vortex grenade, or a Titan�s payload, or a lone warp-core breach, and then we would be back to where we were before, only weakened by that delusive old scoundrel, hope.

At least, that is what I thought then. I would like to think the same now, but I can�t, not quite. Not since I met him.

[...]

Then he arrived. In my chamber. Unannounced, without an escort, dressed in simple robes and carrying no visible weapon. I must have stared at him, stupidly, for too long. �Forgive me, Sister,� he said, bowing. �I have so little time, and they burden me with so many pressing things, but I had to take the opportunity, while I was here. They told me you were returned to health.�

What does a baseline human see, when they see a primarch? I do not know. Perhaps they perceive the warp flowing through their veins. Perhaps they are dazzled by that. Maybe they are shocked into silence. I saw an old, old man. It didn�t matter that his body was perfect, and that he carried himself with the balanced poise of a Space Marine, or that his eyes burned with a cold and clear light. He was ancient. His skin might have been stone. He was cast out of time, a relic spun from its prescribed orbit and sent hurtling into the unwelcoming present. Stripped of soul-fire, he resembled an old furnace, once booming with flame, now dark and echoing. If I had been alive in his own time, perhaps I would have had the same impression as I did just then. Or maybe the long aeons had changed him, stripping out that which once made him vital, and leaving only the ossified shell, the thing that made him so physically strong.

[...]

But he had something, I�ll give him that. It was hard to look him in the eye. You could not have laughed at him.

[...]

He was no fool, though, Guilliman. If he was not quite a literal mind reader, then he was perceptive enough to know what mattered to people. �I do not know why or how your kind was ever permitted to wither,� he said. �The answers may never be found. But if any clues remain, they will be there, in the ruins of Somnus.� And that was what did it, of course. He was giving me the chance to uncover answers to questions that refused to go away. And Somnus was not quite on Terra, so that was something. For all I knew, things were different on Luna. I could possibly make a greater mark there. I could help ensure that the mistakes of the past were not repeated. So I said yes. I gave the simplest gesture for the affirmative, and he took it to mean that I acquiesced to both his requests. In truth, though, I only ever agreed to the second offer. Perhaps he had misunderstood my reply, and my subsequently getting wrapped up in that damned ceremony was a genuine mistake on his part. But I don�t think he made many mistakes, and, as I look back at that brief conversation, it annoys me how expertly he handled me.

Primarchs. I remain glad we only have to contend with one of them.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 04:00

Kevin DuBrow: Apr 21, 2012; The uruk-hai defender has logged on.

I've been listening to the Vaults of Terra audiobooks and John Banks does a fantastic voice for Gorgias the servoskull. Such a rich tone normally that suddenly sounds like the personality cores from Portal.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 04:21

Improbable Lobster: Jan 6, 2012; "From each according to his ability" said Ares. It sounded like a quotation.; Buglord

MonsterEnvy posted:

I recall the Emperor was once seen by a blank who described him as underwhelming as he’s not even actually huge like a Primarch.

We stan a short Emperor

# ? Feb 19, 2022 14:00

FPyat: Jan 17, 2020

Finished Bloodlines. A good adventure. Cell-draining would be totally legal on a more grimdark planet.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 15:39

Biplane: Jul 18, 2005

FPyat posted:

Finished Bloodlines. A good adventure. Cell-draining would be totally legal on a more grimdark planet.

It's like two steps removed from being legal on this planet.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 17:46

wiegieman: Apr 22, 2010; Royalty is a continuous cutting motion

Biplane posted:

It's like two steps removed from being legal on this planet.

If there existed a process for the old and rich to drain the years of the young, it would be commonplace.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 18:39

bob dobbs is dead: Oct 8, 2017; I love peeps; Nap Ghost

peter thiel, the republican, has a company basically to do it for him and some anonymous plutocrats right now

# ? Feb 19, 2022 18:41

Improbable Lobster: Jan 6, 2012; "From each according to his ability" said Ares. It sounded like a quotation.; Buglord

Luckily IRL it mostly ends up giving you blood clots and aneurysms

# ? Feb 19, 2022 19:00

D-Pad: Jun 28, 2006

FYI the illustrated Eisenhorn is out on GW website along with a bunch of other goodies. I would get it soon if you want it because it will probably sell out fast.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 19:12

Count Thrashula: Jun 1, 2003; Death is nothing compared to vindication.; Buglord

Picked up the Sigismund LE, the illustrated Xenos, the Eisenhorn bookmark, and the Brother Corbulo model since it's getting retired and I love my blood angels. :toot:

Also my LE collection is getting out of hand, I should offload a couple

Count Thrashula fucked around with this message at 19:28 on Feb 19, 2022

# ? Feb 19, 2022 19:24

Azubah: Jun 5, 2007

That is an awesome collection. I'm still bummed I missed out on Ravenor, looks like most people are trying to bundle the two books together and I only want the first one.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 19:37

Arquinsiel: Jun 1, 2006; "There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first."

God Bless Margaret Thatcher
God Bless England
RIP My Iron Lady

bob dobbs is dead posted:

peter thiel, the republican, has a company basically to do it for him and some anonymous plutocrats right now

That's because he didn't realise that you actually needed to sew the whole young mouse onto the older one to see any benefit. Wait until he actually reads the paper and he'll go full body thief.

# ? Feb 19, 2022 21:22

aphid_licker: Jan 7, 2009

Stuff the young torso + brain stem in a backpack and hook them up to the host billionaire's circulatory system

# ? Feb 19, 2022 22:47

Warden: Jan 16, 2020

Well then, time to spend my next Audible credit. Twice Dead King: Reign, Black Legion or Carrion Throne?

Edit. I am going to get them all eventually, I mean what should I get right now?

# ? Feb 20, 2022 21:36

bob dobbs is dead: Oct 8, 2017; I love peeps; Nap Ghost

tdk

# ? Feb 20, 2022 21:37

Gravitas Shortfall: Jul 17, 2007; Utility is seven-eighths Proximity.

Warden posted:

Twice Dead King: Reign

# ? Feb 20, 2022 21:42

OPAONI: Jul 23, 2021

I'll post a review of the Twice Dead King series when I finish the second audiobook.

# ? Feb 20, 2022 21:59

D-Pad: Jun 28, 2006

Definitely Reign, assuming you already read Ruin. Just a great series.

# ? Feb 20, 2022 22:41

Philthy: Jan 28, 2003; Pillbug

So, uh, someone just tossed this up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7U93YjucD0

Hopefully we get the rest of it.

# ? Feb 21, 2022 01:05

MariusLecter: Sep 5, 2009; NI MUERTE NI MIEDO

# ? Feb 21, 2022 01:37

BigShasta: Oct 28, 2010

I'm working through some older Abnett books that I either picked up because of the OP, or they came up in the thread over the past couple years. Riders of the Dead was flat out excellent and hard to put down. Brothers of the Snake was really enjoyable, and I hope to see another betcher's gland payoff eventually. Now I'm reading Fel Cargo, and just read the part typed below and felt obligated to stop and post about it. It's a silly reference, but I'll spoil it just in case anyone wants to read an old book and find the silly reference for themselves.

'What do you see, in these dreams?'

Roque shook his head. 'I have not the words, Sesto. No words to do it justice. Blood, there is blood. Pestilence. I see the future, I think. Fire and sword, fire and sword. Wholesale war. And darkness. Such suffocating darkness. Is that what is to come, Sesto? A grim darkness of the far future where there is only war?'

'I know not,' Sesto said.

# ? Feb 21, 2022 04:06

Sephyr: Aug 28, 2012

Warden posted:

Well then, time to spend my next Audible credit. Twice Dead King: Reign, Black Legion or Carrion Throne?

Edit. I am going to get them all eventually, I mean what should I get right now?

Black legion! I want to hear the nurgle faction being voiced at last.

# ? Feb 21, 2022 17:02

Marshal Prolapse: Jun 23, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

Sephyr posted:

Black legion! I want to hear the nurgle faction being voiced at last.

Actually you can also hear it voiced in the first Dark Imperium.

# ? Feb 21, 2022 17:10

Count Thrashula: Jun 1, 2003; Death is nothing compared to vindication.; Buglord

Lords of Silence audiobook was delightful for that very reason

# ? Feb 21, 2022 18:01

thocan: Jan 18, 2014

Warden posted:

Well then, time to spend my next Audible credit. Twice Dead King: Reign, Black Legion or Carrion Throne?

Edit. I am going to get them all eventually, I mean what should I get right now?

I haven't listened to the others yet, but the black legion books far are fantastic.

# ? Feb 21, 2022 18:31

Marshal Prolapse: Jun 23, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

Quick little report on the audiobook version of the Emperors Legion from Watchers on the Throne�excellent. Each of the main three characters is voice by a different voice actor and it�s fantastic. Highly recommend as both the book (about a 1/3 in) and acting is superb. It�s funny I wonder what an audiobook version of Draco sounds like with a high quality narrator? lol

# ? Feb 23, 2022 15:10

Count Thrashula: Jun 1, 2003; Death is nothing compared to vindication.; Buglord

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2022/02/23/the-latest-primarchs-series-novel-is-nearly-here-and-its-got-a-distinctly-deathly-pallor/

Yes, YES, YES!!!

# ? Feb 23, 2022 17:07

Philthy: Jan 28, 2003; Pillbug

Marshal Prolapse posted:

Quick little report on the audiobook version of the Emperors Legion from Watchers on the Throne�excellent. Each of the main three characters is voice by a different voice actor and it�s fantastic. Highly recommend as both the book (about a 1/3 in) and acting is superb. It�s funny I wonder what an audiobook version of Draco sounds like with a high quality narrator? lol

Do they do sound effects as well? Cuz if they do...

# ? Feb 24, 2022 03:09

drgnvale: Apr 30, 2004; A sword is not cutlery!

I don't remember sound effects, so if there were any they were subtle or forgettable.

Even though there are three voice actors, they do not interact at all. Each chapter is told from the perspective of one of the three main characters, and each has their own voice actor. It's fantastic, and so is the followup.

Currently working through Valdor from the recent humble bundle, and I think I have a new favorite BL author. I can't believe I've managed to avoid everything Chris has done until now.

# ? Feb 24, 2022 21:28

Warden: Jan 16, 2020

I also recently went through both Watcher's of Throne books and Valdor, and really liked them all. Valdor's also got sections that are basically vox logs that have two different voice actors, some sound effects, and no narration, which really enhances the effect.

Also, it has Steven Pacey as the main reader who is super good.

# ? Feb 24, 2022 21:56

Marshal Prolapse: Jun 23, 2012; by Jeffrey of YOSPOS

Yeah it's the three narrators for each of their chapters and it's really just top notch. I almost wonder what it would be like to have a black library book narrated by an American or just someone who�s not British.

With that said I'm already half done the first watchers and it IS EXACTLY what I wanted. It manages to make me not even care when an action is happening, but when it does like the initial crowd press against the palace, it is very well done.

It�s been so good I haven�t even started plague wars yet and the first book was the most recent example I could think of actually completing a piece of fiction, even if just via audiobook, in a long while.

# ? Feb 24, 2022 22:35

D-Pad: Jun 28, 2006

drgnvale posted:

I don't remember sound effects, so if there were any they were subtle or forgettable.

Even though there are three voice actors, they do not interact at all. Each chapter is told from the perspective of one of the three main characters, and each has their own voice actor. It's fantastic, and so is the followup.

Currently working through Valdor from the recent humble bundle, and I think I have a new favorite BL author. I can't believe I've managed to avoid everything Chris has done until now.

Wraight is just as good as Abnett and ADB in my opinion. DO NOT sleep on Lords of Silence. It's the death guard version of ADB's Night Lord's.

# ? Feb 25, 2022 08:05

quantumfoam: Dec 25, 2003

If I really struggled to complete Dan Abnett's first Gaunts Ghosts omnibus collection, how am I going to enjoy Abnett's newer stuff or anything post 2013 in the Black Library?

# ? Feb 25, 2022 09:30

Ardent Communist: Oct 17, 2010; ALLAH! MU'AMMAR! LIBYA WA BAS!

If you struggled before the third book, probably not. If you struggled with the third book, probably. One of them was just an amalgamation of short stories, and the other I can't remember. But the third book, about the battle of vervunhive.. if you didn't like that then you won't like much of black library. Maybe some of the crime or the weirder authors, but that book just nails the atmosphere.

# ? Feb 25, 2022 09:40

quantumfoam: Dec 25, 2003

Ardent Communist posted:

If you struggled before the third book, probably not. If you struggled with the third book, probably. One of them was just an amalgamation of short stories, and the other I can't remember. But the third book, about the battle of vervunhive.. if you didn't like that then you won't like much of black library. Maybe some of the crime or the weirder authors, but that book just nails the atmosphere.

Cool, thanks for the feedback.

Gaunt's Ghosts collection vol 01: I was distracted during most of it with a heavy sense of reader deja-vu.
Somewhere around the end of the GG short story amalgamation book or early book 3 was when I made the connection of how many of the characters & the scenarios were pulled directly from Combat! the 1960's tv-series (btw, Combat! the tv-series rocks and holds up extremely well on most fronts despite it's age). After that I was still engaged in the GG collection but pretty detached, not giving a poo poo about who would die anymore because clearly everyone not analogues of Hanley, Saunders, Caje, and maybe Little John (characters from Combat!) were expendable throwaways (just like in Combat!) and going "oh poo poo I remember this scene" during some of the bigger action moments.

Thinking about it, I should probably skip any further Gaunt's Ghosts stories (because I can't mentally detach it from Combat! the tv-series), but should be ok with most of the black library catalog.

# ? Feb 25, 2022 11:23

Fellblade: Apr 28, 2009

I think you'll find it's a Sharpe ripoff more explicitly, but the same thing.

A lot of minor characters do become major characters, and then die just like the major characters also do, so Abnett is definitely aware of the tropes and attempting to subvert them somewhat.

# ? Feb 25, 2022 11:31

Arquinsiel: Jun 1, 2006; "There is no such thing as society. There are individual men and women, and there are families. And no government can do anything except through people, and people must look to themselves first."

God Bless Margaret Thatcher
God Bless England
RIP My Iron Lady

quantumfoam posted:

Cool, thanks for the feedback.

Gaunt's Ghosts collection vol 01: I was distracted during most of it with a heavy sense of reader deja-vu.
Somewhere around the end of the GG short story amalgamation book or early book 3 was when I made the connection of how many of the characters & the scenarios were pulled directly from Combat! the 1960's tv-series (btw, Combat! the tv-series rocks and holds up extremely well on most fronts despite it's age). After that I was still engaged in the GG collection but pretty detached, not giving a poo poo about who would die anymore because clearly everyone not analogues of Hanley, Saunders, Caje, and maybe Little John (characters from Combat!) were expendable throwaways (just like in Combat!) and going "oh poo poo I remember this scene" during some of the bigger action moments.

Thinking about it, I should probably skip any further Gaunt's Ghosts stories (because I can't mentally detach it from Combat! the tv-series), but should be ok with most of the black library catalog.

If it helps, Combat! has never been aired in the UK so this may be your Boss Baby movie moment. Back when it was new people compared it to Band of Brothers since that was the current ensemble war drama. The genre has been subverted rather a lot since then though, and it's hard to explain how without spoiling stuff.

# ? Feb 25, 2022 12:08

quantumfoam: Dec 25, 2003

Fellblade posted:

I think you'll find it's a Sharpe ripoff more explicitly, but the same thing.

A lot of minor characters do become major characters, and then die just like the major characters also do, so Abnett is definitely aware of the tropes and attempting to subvert them somewhat.

Yeah, Sharpe series makes sense as a influence now that you bring it up. I tend to discount the influence of Napoleonic Wars fiction on other mil-fiction sub-genres, mostly because I find Napoleonic Wars fiction boring.

Arquinsiel posted:

If it helps, Combat! has never been aired in the UK so this may be your Boss Baby movie moment. Back when it was new people compared it to Band of Brothers since that was the current ensemble war drama. The genre has been subverted rather a lot since then though, and it's hard to explain how without spoiling stuff.

I have no idea what Boss Baby is.
Feel free to explain how the genre has been subverted since then because I don't mind spoilers, and spoilers might be the thing to get me reading or watching stuff I wouldn't normally.

# ? Feb 25, 2022 12:42

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# ? Jun 3, 2024 01:02

Nuclear War: Nov 7, 2012; You're a pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty girl

I'd give the next omnibus a shot. the stalingrad one is weaker than a lot of people remember it i think, due to it being a fairly early book in his 40k career. He's learned a lot about what combat looks like, and about warfare jn general since then. the saint arc is next i think? thats a good one

# ? Feb 25, 2022 12:42

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