The Terminus Decree

[Dominic]

Okay, so what do we all think is the Terminus Decree...

If you have no idea what it is, its basically as set of instructions that a Supreme Grand Master can access, when Humanity is in its darkest hour.

I'm I've read somewhere before, that when the Emperor 'dies' the psychic backlash will destroy chaos (or something along those lines), and with the Decree being named Terminus, it implies Termination, which could be about 'killing' the Emperor.

Anyways, this is only one of my ideas, so what do you guys think?

[Paul]

Okay, so what do we all think is the Terminus Decree...

If you have no idea what it is, its basically as set of instructions that a Supreme Grand Master can access, when Humanity is in its darkest hour.

I'm I've read somewhere before, that when the Emperor 'dies' the psychic backlash will destroy chaos (or something along those lines), and with the Decree being named Terminus, it implies Termination, which could be about 'killing' the Emperor.

Anyways, this is only one of my ideas, so what do you guys think?

It could be that, of course. I think it is most likely related to some Mechanicus device which requires sorcery to function, in the sense that:

The Grey Knights are sorcerers and have Part A of Plan OH ****

The Adeptus Mechanicus are, well, engineers and have Part B of Plan OH ****.

We've seen the powerful combination of sorcery and technology in the Grey Knight codex, so it would make sense that there's some doomsday device which utilizes the Emperor's psychic power (embodied in / channeled through the Grey Knights) and some amount of Golden Age technology such as the tesseract prison or similar to the Cadian pylons.

[Connjurus]

Terminus literally means "the final point." The end of the road, the last dot on the line - it does not necessarily mean termination. It can mean any number of things. Also, the psychic backlash from the Emperor's death most certainly won't destroy Chaos. Expect something along the lines of the Eye of Terror happening, but in the Warp instead of realspace. An inverse Warprift.

Of course, with spatial dimensions having no meaning in the Immaterium, this will probably end up meaning very little.

[Cyberscape7]

Well I have had my own theories on this but the emperors backlash killing chaos is probably my favourite.
FYI- My original idea of what was inside the box was a Squat...

[miteyheroes]

There's a lot of Rogue Trader-era references in the Grey Knights book: Birmingham, Jokareo... I was thinking very much of the Illuminati, Sensei and the Star Child when I read about the Terminus Decree?

[eldargal]

Honestly I doubt GW even know what the Terminus Decree is, like the missing Legions it is aimed to keep th fanbase talking about it for a long time.

I like the idea of it being Schrodingers Squat.

[Fellend]

They've secretly planted exteriminatus weaponry in every planet.
Underneath the Emperors body there is a big red button...

[JamesP]

Honestly I doubt GW even know what the Terminus Decree is, like the missing Legions it is aimed to keep th fanbase talking about it for a long time.

I wouldn't be surprised if one day they follow it up with a vague allusion that the Terminus Decree is somehow linked to one of the missing First Founding Legions or the Lost Primarchs.


I like the idea of it being Schrodingers Squat.

I see it now: in desperation the Supreme Grand Master enacts the Terminus Decree in the hope that quantum uncertainty resolves itself so that the Squats have always been a GW-supported army in 5th Edition 40K and can help the Imperium fight Chaos.

Presumably the Terminus Decree box also contains a Jervis Johnson who may or may not retcon the Squats out of existence based on whether he's been hit by a subatomic particle.

[david5th]

I know what is is.

Its an event so mind shatteringly unthinkable that when activated will literally destroy the uinverse itself.

5..4..3..2..1..

Games Workshop Price Drop!!!

[Connjurus]

I know what is is.

Its an event so mind shatteringly unthinkable that when activated will literally destroy the uinverse itself.

5..4..3..2..1..

Games Workshop Price Drop!!!

Compare old metal Grey Knights to plastic ones.

[Xas]

tbh from the way the piece is described as some sort of tome/scroll/written order I'm rather thinking that it is basically a "card blanche" for the grey knights to take over imperial rule.


like mankind's darkest hour is when the servants of chaos finally managed to undermined/infiltrate the high senate of terra. then the grey knights can turn up with that ultimate degree and unite all the un-tainted planets under their rule to cleanse the imperium of the ursurpators.




what I'd like more tbh though would be a spellbook that contains a ritual to reenact the fall of the eldar but this time feeding humankinds soul energy to give birth to a new chaos god which by means of that ritual is imbued with mind and soul of the emperor.

the dark nature as well as the huge sacrifices needed by both the mere mortals as well as the emperor himself would explain why it's the "last straw" for the imperium.

[miteyheroes]

what I'd like more tbh though would be a spellbook that contains a ritual to reenact the fall of the eldar but this time feeding humankinds soul energy to give birth to a new chaos god which by means of that ritual is imbued with mind and soul of the emperor.

Read about the Sensei, Illuminati and the Star Child. It's old old fluff, but is similar to what you want...

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Sensei
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Illuminati
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Star_Child

TL;DR? Basically the soul of the Emperor is the Star Child, something similar to a Chaos God but fuelled by positive emotions. However it's not yet truely born, because it's shackled to the body of the Emperor in the Golden Throne.
When the Emperor was alive he had children, the Sensei. These are immortal (can be killed, don't die of old age), and wander the galaxy fighting oppression etc. They're not Imperial but mostly not Chaos either.
The Illuminati is a secretive group of people who've survived daemonic possession. They have a plan: when the Emperor dies, they will sacrifice all the Sensei to the Star Child. This will give a bunch of extra power to the Star Child, enabling the Star Child to become a full God.

[JamesP]

Read about the Sensei, Illuminati and the Star Child. It's old old fluff, but is similar to what you want...

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Sensei
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Illuminati
http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Star_Child

TL;DR? Basically the soul of the Emperor is the Star Child, something similar to a Chaos God but fuelled by positive emotions. However it's not yet truely born, because it's shackled to the body of the Emperor in the Golden Throne.
When the Emperor was alive he had children, the Sensei. These are immortal (can be killed, don't die of old age), and wander the galaxy fighting oppression etc. They're not Imperial but mostly not Chaos either.
The Illuminati is a secretive group of people who've survived daemonic possession. They have a plan: when the Emperor dies, they will sacrifice all the Sensei to the Star Child. This will give a bunch of extra power to the Star Child, enabling the Star Child to become a full God.

Considering that the Illumati included members of the Inquisition (or were they all Inquisitors? - I can't remember), it's not beyond the bounds of possibility that they have infiltrated the Grey Knights or the Inquisitors that oversee the Greay Knights in some way and planted the Terminus Decree.

With the new background for the Grey Knights and Inquisition suggested in the HH novels (and, I assume, the new Codex but I haven't read it in full yet), it's perhaps more likely that the Decree, if GW ever describes it properly, will be a hand-me-down from the Emperor or Malcador or one of the surviving Primarchs.

[miteyheroes]

Considering that the Illumati included members of the Inquisition (or were they all Inquisitors? - I can't remember), it's not beyond the bounds of possibility that they have infiltrated the Grey Knights or the Inquisitors that oversee the Greay Knights in some way and planted the Terminus Decree.

With the new background for the Grey Knights and Inquisition suggested in the HH novels (and, I assume, the new Codex but I haven't read it in full yet), it's perhaps more likely that the Decree, if GW ever describes it properly, will be a hand-me-down from the Emperor or Malcador or one of the surviving Primarchs.

Maybe Malcador founded the Illuminati as well as everything else?

(Seriously, Malcador seems to be GW's New Favouritest Guy Ever. He was the head of the Inquisition, the Council of Terra, the Administratum, the Assassins... When did Malcador even start being mentioned? The first places I remember hearing about him was in the HH novels and with his FW tank, but now suddenly he's the most powerful chap ever after the Emperor!)

[wittdooley]

Maybe Malcador founded the Illuminati as well as everything else?

(Seriously, Malcador seems to be GW's New Favouritest Guy Ever. He was the head of the Inquisition, the Council of Terra, the Administratum, the Assassins... When did Malcador even start being mentioned? The first places I remember hearing about him was in the HH novels and with his FW tank, but now suddenly he's the most powerful chap ever after the Emperor!)

Not to mention in the Audio books he sounds like Emperor Palpatine.

But seriously, in the HH series, they seem to make him out as the next most powerful dude in the Galaxy after the Emperor. They haven't really delved into his abilities as a Psyker either, but isn't he supposed to be just below the Emperor in terms of ability?

[JamesP]

Maybe Malcador founded the Illuminati as well as everything else?

(Seriously, Malcador seems to be GW's New Favouritest Guy Ever. He was the head of the Inquisition, the Council of Terra, the Administratum, the Assassins... When did Malcador even start being mentioned? The first places I remember hearing about him was in the HH novels and with his FW tank, but now suddenly he's the most powerful chap ever after the Emperor!)

Well, the C'tan are currently behind everything in the 40K universe, before that it was the Eldar. I guess Malacador will turn out to secretly be a C'tan or a Farseer? :)

More seriously, part of the way GW depicts the Emperor is that he is inherently mysterious. There are very few stories written from his first person perspective - Bill King's one on the end of the Heresy is the only one that springs to mind. Having Malcador as his mouthpiece/ troubleshooter/ giver-of-exposition allows GW to preserve that mystique while still letting the Emperor's thoughts be known.

The other benefit is that, prior to Malcador, the only people close to the Emperor, both personally and in terms of power/influence, were the Primarchs. Their whereabouts during the Heresy is pretty firmly fixed in GW canon. Malcador is a fairly new character - I think his first appearance was in the Horus Heresy art books and card game - and so he can be used as a major league Imperial character by HH authors quite freely as compared to the Primarchs. Once the Heresy kicks off, their use is somewhat limited as GW does not seem to want to diverge too much from previous tellings of this period: the HH series is giving us loads more detail than we have ever had before but the major actions of the Primarchs and, in particular, their fates, aren't changing that much. Malcador is a blank slate. We know his eventual fate from the HH art books but he can be used very freely up to then.

Also, Malcador is a character of major power and personal (might) who can be used in a different way to the Primarchs. Their focus is on combat - they may be great at politics (Horus) or being sneaky (Alpharius) etc. but these are additional to their primary strength of kicking the collective heads of the enemies of the fledgling Imperium. Malcador focuses on non-combat matters, so can be used by authors in a way that the Primarchs cannot.

Is he in danger of being over-used? Certainly, though personally I don't think that's happened yet.

[Exterminatus]

I think when they activate the decree, the 2 identical seals, 1 on the parchment and the other on the golden throne, will break. The Emperor will wake up with the power of the billions upon billions of psykers soul energy he has been collecting for a while now, (sacrificed to him actually) and i think hes just gona *****-slap everything...

"To the righteous we bring hope. To the tainted we bring fire."

- Castellan Garran Crowe

[Farseer Uthiliesh]

I like the idea of it being Schrodingers Squat.

Oh god, I am dying with laughter here! Brilliant!

[eldargal]

The other possibility is it could be Maxwell Smart in stasis.:rolleyes:

[Grailkeeper]

Hydra

[murrburger]

lol Hydra...

I very much enjoyed those books. Probably the best 40k novels I have ever read.

I hope that the Star Child/Illuminati fluff never comes back. I hope the C'tan fluff is changed to something not so stupid. Honestly, that's worse than any of the new GK stuff that people seem to be complaining about.

Also, pretty sure the Terminus Decree is the Matrix of Leadership, and Marneus will light our darkest hour.

[Sister Rosette Soulknyt]

Did Matt Ward create himself an alter-ego???
:p

[Firebird]

Malcadore Has been around for sometime, it was given reference several editions ago about "someone" being in there.

As for what the decree is. I have a feeling it has something to do with the emperor's "Revival" in which ever form that comes in.

[bfmusashi]

lol Hydra...

I very much enjoyed those books. Probably the best 40k novels I have ever read.

I hope that the Star Child/Illuminati fluff never comes back. I hope the C'tan fluff is changed to something not so stupid. Honestly, that's worse than any of the new GK stuff that people seem to be complaining about.

Also, pretty sure the Terminus Decree is the Matrix of Leadership, and Marneus will light our darkest hour.

If Calgar were a transformer he would definitely be Ultra Magnus. He's blue, serious, and would likely say damnit when the thing didn't open. Dante is clearly Kup in the wrong colors so... Tu'Shan maybe?

[murrburger]

Most likely going to be that douche Sicarius to open it at the end. He seems like the perfect Hotrod to me.

[cobra6]

It's the truth - the Emp was just a psychically gifted man, and he's dead. The Imperium is built on a lie, and Chaos will eventually win.

[Fellend]

Heresy!

[Paul]

Do we ever see Malcador in the same room as the Emperor?

Not that I'm suggesting some sort of Tyler Durden relationship or anything...

[BrotherAlpharius]

Do we ever see Malcador in the same room as the Emperor?

Not that I'm suggesting some sort of Tyler Durden relationship or anything...

Even if we do we can't be sure what's what - the Emperor's psychic powers are so awesome that I bet everybody else in the room can see his imaginary friend/alter-ego too.

Schrodinger's Squat will take some beating. I like the joke ideas that it's something like a rulebook for a new edition that will swing things the Imperium's way (because Matt Ward is one of the Emperor's many guises) or that it's simply a note from the Emperor saying something like, "If you're reading this then I'm obviously dead and things haven't worked out the way I hoped. Sorry about that. Thanks for giving it your best shot. Good luck."

Joke ideas aside I think that the fluffiest answer is that it is something that will be no use at all if they ever actually need it. Knowing the Imperium it's been handed down since the time of the Emperor in such secrecy that most of the crucial bits have been lost. If they ever open it they'll probably find that they need to activate secret widget A in combination with secret widget B. This will prompt much confusion and then after sending an army of scribes to spend years searching the archives they'll learn that secret widget A was thrown away four millenia ago because nobody could figure out what the point of it was and then they'll have to launch a crusade to scour the landfill sites of the galaxy.

[Drew da Destroya]

I'm pretty sure it'll contain a finely crafted pistol, a single bullet, a cigar, and a glass of fine scotch in a stasis field (so the scotch doesn't evaporate over the 10,000 year period).

[plawolf]

I think the box will contain an ornate dog whistle. Blow it once, Leman Russ will spring out of nowhere, drop a stick at your feet and run rings around you. If you rub his tummy and scratch him behind the ears, he will sniff out the other living primarches for you. He might even dig up the dried bones of a few of the dead ones if you are not careful.

That is the optimistic version. In the ironic version, the box contains the smallest ever squad playing the Imperiums smallest violin.

[Occam]

The Emperor has a DNR order in the box, with the further instructions that "If I ever go into a persistent vegetative state, for the love of god, do now show me on television."

Cheekiness aside, who else thinks that is close to the real answer?

[Michael_maggs]

Do we ever see Malcador in the same room as the Emperor?

Not that I'm suggesting some sort of Tyler Durden relationship or anything...

in the HH novels i get the feeling Malcador is the emperors avatar; doing all the things the emperor wants done but must not be directly linked back to him. in the first heretic after Lorgarsmacks him down (and should have killed him) its suggested that Malcador only lives because the emperor wills it; i'm guessing he will be dead by the end of the heresy when horus "slays" the emperor

[miteyheroes]

in the HH novels i get the feeling Malcador is the emperors avatar; doing all the things the emperor wants done but must not be directly linked back to him. in the first heretic after Lorgarsmacks him down (and should have killed him) its suggested that Malcador only lives because the emperor wills it; i'm guessing he will be dead by the end of the heresy when horus "slays" the emperor

Malcador is left sitting on the Golden Throne when the Emperor goes off to duel Horus. Malcador is powerful, but not powerful enough- he's drained of life by the time the Emperor's body is returned and he's replaced by the Emperor.

[Duncndisorderly]

The box when open will contain a full set of euro 96 playing cards and a silver back glen hoddle

[daboarder]

Hydra

I see what you did there....


seriously those books are soooo off the wall whacked its brilliant right down to the GW published squat and the Navis nobilite with the slaanesh fetish.