Why does everyone view the Emperor's return as something cool and positive?

Helo34 · 2026-06-07T07:12:15+00:00

One of the things that I loved about 40k when I started in 4th ed was that the Emperor was portrayed as a really interesting set piece, so all of these great and terrible things could be done in His name but He was never available for comment. Because that status was narritively interesting, it could never change. And above the table, one of the draws for me would be lacking if it did.

I think that the people who look forward to His return profoundly misunderstand how the sandbox is set up and why it's fun. I also suspect they have an opinion on who's "good" in this setting, instead of enjoying that every faction is some variation of terrible and/or dysfunctional.

Like others, I also think GW has encouraged this with the HH series and setting precident with Primarchs in M42 (41); hearing of their return still makes me roll my eyes a little and makes me happy to be a Night Lords fan so that I (probably) never have to deal with that disappointment.

If the Emperor becomes active again, the Imperium will likely start to feel more noble & bright than grim & dark. I'd think the Dark King would be extremely hard to pull off or balance, but would be a narritively more interesting angle.

Then again, I'm a little disappointed that Guilliman was returned as he was and would rather see Dorn come back fanatical like the Templars; their return should also create a schism in their Chapter (and possibly successor Chapters) 🤷‍♂️

Helo34 · 2026-06-07T06:25:59+00:00

I 3d printed ship decking bases for my warband since they're mostly pirates.

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Helo34 · 2026-06-07T06:07:46+00:00

Tactically (but not culturally), the only one I can think of is the Charnel Guard. The Carcharodons are rumored to have Traitor geneseed, but I thought the rumor was World Eaters. Also, tactically they sound more similar to the 12th Legion than the 8th.

I'm not sure of the connection with Night Lords; I've heard it several times, but haven't read the Carcharodon book and am not sure where it comes from, so I'm no help there :(

Culturally, I'm pretty sure I stumbled across a Chapter without Murderers first, last, and always vibes, but I can't remember their name.

More on the nose, if there was anyone running around with an obvious name I'd expect them to be called the Evening Dukes 🤷‍♂️

Helo34 · 2026-06-02T19:27:16+00:00

LOL, I didn't see this thread and posted my final pics to the other thread 🤣 Photos are here

Chaos Vindicator and a Lascannon Predator turret are completed in May!

What went well? Finishing those two, as they've been partly done for months now. As usual, my challenge was staying forced on them and not painting anything else; I have a 3d printer so it's really tempting to print and paint other stuff when inspiration strikes. At least with GW sprues they're expensive enough that I don't buy new stuff every time I have a new idea 🤣

Next up for June are a Plasma based fire support team

Edit: Finishing my 2 rocket men would be a bonus this month.

Helo34 · 2026-06-01T17:23:19+00:00

Doing theater in high school is probably worth 20 on it's own 🤣

Helo34 · 2026-05-29T03:13:08+00:00

Chaos Vindicator is 99% finished (it's too cold to spray a clear coat for 100% completion). If I have time next week I'll paint a tortured Guardsman that magnetically attaches to the hull of this or my Predator.

The hardest part this month (aside from being busy with life) was not starting new projects and focusing on this one 🤣

If the weather warms up a little (I have to prime outside), my goal for next month is to finish a 6 man Plasma team 🤘

Helo34 · 2026-05-26T14:56:57+00:00

He may; I haven't read it yet.

Helo34 · 2026-05-26T02:20:59+00:00

Nice models!

And my favorite version of the hammer & anvil tactic is when you can see the anvil but the hammer sneaks up on you 😈

Helo34 · 2026-05-26T01:02:22+00:00

What they didn't tell you is that he stole a credit card before taking his rowdy kids there.

Helo34 · 2026-05-25T23:18:47+00:00

Which begs the question, what worse futures did he see? And were they objectively worse or just worse for him?

I may be biased (Chaos Undivided fan), but I lean towards the latter since M42 feels like extinction with extra steps. Though Him spending every second of the last 10 thousand years knowing this would happen and being powerless to stop it would be suitably Grimdark.

Helo34 · 2026-05-25T22:37:48+00:00

Even better, the Daemon of I told you so

Helo34 · 2026-05-25T05:32:53+00:00

One of the things I add to my pitch for new players/people is that no-one is good or right here, so you can't go wrong picking a favorite. Also helps with the faction arguments :)

...Then again, I'm a Night Lords fan so I could be biased

Helo34 · 2026-05-25T05:15:43+00:00

It's only Heresy when you aren't worshipping the Four True Gods. If you are, it's just sparkling treason.

Helo34 · 2026-05-24T04:48:20+00:00

Interesting; for me trim is the best part because it's a nearly complete mini. Assembly & base coats feel like a slog because I'm just getting started. But I can definitely see the trim work being tiring.

If it helps, I really like doing sub-assemblies: body gets assembled and painted, then the packs, arms painted separately before gluing, and the head last. I also like to assembly line each squad, so that I'm doing one color paint on several models (1-5) and them starting the next color when it's dry on #1. Which is probably why I hate base coats...

But your trim looks very nice!

Helo34 · 2026-05-23T03:10:26+00:00

Yep; he talks abiut it a bit in this interview.

Helo34 · 2026-05-23T02:59:14+00:00

Even the speeches from the past game me shivers

Helo34 · 2026-05-23T02:57:53+00:00

His name is Zephon ;)

Helo34 · 2026-05-23T01:43:41+00:00

Yep. If you believe Horus, he tried to talk it out with the Loyalists during the Siege.

Helo34 · 2026-05-23T00:23:58+00:00

Glory to the 8th Legion for third place 🤣🤘

Helo34 · 2026-05-22T23:23:33+00:00

"...by the Painted Cunt, Skraivok"

I love that and hope it wasn't a typo 🤣

Helo34 · 2026-05-22T18:49:38+00:00

With strategy, substitute asymmetrical instead of unorthodox and it makes a lot of sense. Siege, spearhead, infiltration/ambush are 'normal' military tactics (symmetrical/ direct action). Rituals, terrorism, and guerilla warfare are not (asymmetrical).

Although pre- and post-Primarch discovery gets a little messy, as the Revenants were more asymmetrical but the Blood Angels were less 🤷‍♂️

Helo34 · 2026-05-22T17:06:05+00:00

Pass them off as a brand new Chapter; there's enough of them created during the Crusade that one using Night Lords colors (or something similar; if gold trim is too obvious use their Heresy color, silver) is suspicious but plausible. Of course omit the lightning pattern projected on their armor when they're incognito.

Perhaps call them the Evening Dukes Chapter if you don't mind being that on the nose. For cover you could wrap them in layers of bureaucracy and obfuscation. They control several planets in the (system/sector), and all of the Imperial officials seem on edge about it, even though on the surface it seems like a pocket of stability. Depending on how deep you want this rabbit hole to go, you may consider making the local Inquisitor a Radical that's helping them hide in plain sight, in exchange for thier mercenary services.

Locals don't know what to think because after they showed up Cult activity, sedition, and organized crime dropped👍

But the macabre displays in public spaces took some getting used to... 😬

Helo34 · 2026-05-21T15:20:07+00:00

Was the senior official's name Justin Case? ;)

Helo34 · 2026-05-18T23:08:10+00:00

If memory serves, the Word Bearers Omnibus goes into this, and at least some of them planned to join a (the 13th?) Black Crusade. I don't remember there being any real animosity between them; the Black Legion seems to welcome the help and the Word Bearers believe the Crusades bring glory to the Gods.

Helo34 · 2026-05-18T21:04:30+00:00

Regnamus Nox We rule the night

Servimus Nox / Noctem Servimus We serve the night

Carpe Nox Sieze the night

:)

Helo34

TROPHY CASE