Ullanor!!

[dark messenger]

Ullanor. From what I can understand one of the most singular events in the galaxy. Ever.
But there's something that has been gnawing at the back of my mind like a hungry rat...

Just what the heck happened?
What was it even about?

All I know is that there were Orks, lots of them. And I think the Emperor was banging about somewhere? Certainly his name is mentioned at the Triumph afterwards.

Guys and Gals I humbly submit my plea for help. Anything you can share, any information you choose to give, all would be welcome.

[Wildeybeast]

It's the last time the Emperor actually fights (apart from facing down his wayward son at the end of the HH) and the moment when he proclaims Horus Warmaster. The Ullanor campaign sees the Imperium defeat pretty much the biggest WAAAAGH in the history of the galaxy. I think the Emperor faces off against the Ork Warlord and nearly gets bested by him. There isn't too much fluff on it, there may be some older stuff from way back when before I started playing 40K. As for the what it was about, that's pretty simple. The humans wanted to 'civilise' the galaxy, Orks were in the way. Orks like fighting, especially SPAZ MURHINES!

[dark messenger]

Thanks for that Wildeybeast :D

Just got a pic from a mate about the Triumph and I have to tell ya, I'm surprised at the number of Legions and Primarchs present! And with the Emperor being there as you say, it's little wonder the humans won... haha
But what's this about the Emperor nearly being bested? What kinda huge, beardy, gruesome sort of Ork could nearly kill the Emperor?! Let alone an Emperor surrounded by his hard as nails sons...

That taken into account, why didn't they just push on from there and finish the Crusade? Galaxy would've been safe in no time surely?

[Wildeybeast]

I may be wrong about the Ork warlord thing, but I seem to remember that being the case. Put bluntly, they didn't need the Emperor fighting any more. He had all the Primarchs back with their legions and they were stomping over everything in their way, they would have complete the crusade if not for Horus' temper tantrum. Besides, the Emperor needed to set up systems to protect them form Chaos and if he'd succeeded in building his own webway gate they could have dominated the galaxy forever.

[Cpt Codpiece]

Besides, the Emperor needed to set up systems to protect them form Chaos and if he'd succeeded in building his own webway gate they could have dominated the galaxy forever.

until magnus broke it :)

ullanor along with nikea were the steps to give the primarchs their own key to the door if you will (an old tradition at 18 or 21), until ullanor the primarchs were still being told what to do and how (apart from magnus and lorgar.... naughty boys).

in my opinion, the emperor was near to another 'rebirth' and wanted the stuff in place so he could go and recharge his immortal batteries in the webway, with Magnus on the golden throne to power it, Horus to rule the armies, Dorn to protect terra, Guilliman to be the space police (hey they wear blue, and are like dogs poo... everywhere), the only other noteable primarchs in the plans (that i recon anyway,from the HH books) would be ferrus manus to reign in mars (if he could keep level headed ;p) and Lorgar to keep the imperium from falling into worship of the emperor as a god via the heretic lectitio divinitatus (ironic, i know LOL).

[Eberk]

But what's this about the Emperor nearly being bested? What kinda huge, beardy, gruesome sort of Ork could nearly kill the Emperor?! Let alone an Emperor surrounded by his hard as nails sons...
That Ork must have challenged the Emperor and as per the challenge rules nobody could intervene. The Emperor probably got an extra attack for every 5 Primarchs watching.

Or did the Ullanor campaign happen before 6th edition ?

:D :D :D

[Wolfshade]

The more Orks fight (and win) the bigger they get and there is no upper limit for this so if the Warboss wins enough fights he could just get bigger and bigger until he losses or is killed. Just typing this makes me think that there could be a Ork warboss teh size of a titan :eek:

[Psychosplodge]

I thought Gahzghkul Was the biggest ever Ork?

[dark messenger]

until magnus broke it :)

ullanor along with nikea were the steps to give the primarchs their own key to the door if you will (an old tradition at 18 or 21), until ullanor the primarchs were still being told what to do and how (apart from magnus and lorgar.... naughty boys).

in my opinion, the emperor was near to another 'rebirth' and wanted the stuff in place so he could go and recharge his immortal batteries in the webway, with Magnus on the golden throne to power it, Horus to rule the armies, Dorn to protect terra, Guilliman to be the space police (hey they wear blue, and are like dogs poo... everywhere), the only other noteable primarchs in the plans (that i recon anyway,from the HH books) would be ferrus manus to reign in mars (if he could keep level headed ;p) and Lorgar to keep the imperium from falling into worship of the emperor as a god via the heretic lectitio divinitatus (ironic, i know LOL).

I never thought about this. After all despite being a super psyker he was still human. Would that be called a power nap then? ;)

Now with you guys help I can kinda see what Ullanor was about thank you. I still have a few questions I'd enjoy debating though?
With the golden one retiring to Terra and his sons continuing on, it seems to me that the imperials were dragging their heels and sulking coz they took forever to get to the rest of the galaxy. As far as I can tell the conquest up to that point had only taken about 100 years? So it took Horus almost the same amount of time to finish the job? Then the Heresy only took a few years...? Or did I get my timing wrong?

Plus I'm almost certain the Orks did not slink away quietly and never bother the imperials again, but I can find very little mention of them after this event. Where did they go?

[Cpt Codpiece]

the orks never went away, they are mentioned in the new blood angels book "fear to tread"

its just ullanor was one of the biggest dangerous waaaaghs, anything else is just minor incusions.

they probably just had a respawn in the systems they were well rooted in. the old ones made the kororks at the same time as the eldar to be a hardy war race, and general clean up race. just when the old ones disaapeared (was it necrons or slaanesh.... who knows with current necron dex :() there was a change in them and they lost control, they still maintain their old belief in the old ones just they know them as mork and gork.
the necrontyr before becoming terminators...... i mean robots, were in a galactic war with the old ones, they hated their long life span as the necrontyr were very short lived (big donkey cancer causing sun). they found the c'tan and with them fought the old ones in the wars with the eldar of old and the kororks.

most of that is from last necron dex. now retconned as necrons enslaved the c'tan and will rule again. no mention of the war in the heavens or anything really :( (trazyn was at istvaan, he stole ferrus' head from the vengeful spirit, then he also stole a primarch (alpharius the lion or the khan? or one of the lost 2 or 11) for his museum)

but anyway back to the emperor :) it would appear horus already had his toes in the water of chaos when he was made warmaster (the cabal were shocked to hear it from the alphas, as they knew what would happen), though not as bad as his more fanatical brother. (i honestly dont know why its still called the 'horus heresy' anymore, not after aurelian and first heretic).

the time frame of the heresy is very disjointed as the opening trilogy covers a large span of time, then the subsequent books slot into place in forming the story, while still being mentioned in the opening trilogy.
we are at a point now with outcast dead, know no fear and fear to tread where events are unfolding away from the time line set in the first 3 books.

so the story will hopefully be more linear without much temporal jumping between books.

we are on a slippery road full of conjecture as people make their own minds up about what they read into the books, there is a long standing split in the story of the DA for example. GW will probaly never tell us the truth, yet they hint at what may have happened on caliban in one breath and then state something else within the same series, yet not in definate terms. i for one am in the green DA are the calibanites and the black 'fallen' are the lions DA camp.

oh wow what a derail LOL

[miteyheroes]

There's some good info on Ullanor in the new Fear To Tread book.

The main fighting at Ullanor was the Emperor leading the Guard & Titans in a massed steam-roller fight against the orks whilst Horus led the Luna Wolves strike force that killed the actual warlord. I think the other Astartes were fighting on other worlds against the same waaagh, not Ullanor itself? Afterward the death of the Warlord, the waaagh broke up into in-fighting.

Then there was the Triumph, where Horus was made Warmaster and the Emperor retired.

After that various Imperial forces wiped out the remaining orks from the Waaagh - notably the White Scars in the Chondax System (where the Alpha Legion intentionally kept the White Scars bogged down, as briefly shown in the Alpha Legion story in The Primarchs anthology). Of course, orks being orks you can never completely defeat them, but that's their last major part in the Great Crusade/Horus Heresy (although the Ultramarines thought Calth was going to be a muster before attacking orks...)

[-Tom-]

That taken into account, why didn't they just push on from there and finish the Crusade? Galaxy would've been safe in no time surely?

The Horus Heresy books kick off after Ullanor, and give mention to it briefly, but only really covering what is already mentioned in the thread. By the point of the books, the chapters have gone off in their own directions continuing the crusade. However I think the point to bear in mind is that space is a BIG place. At Ullanor there was a really big enemy all crammed into one place, so they needed plenty of marines/terrans to fight them, in that same one place. There's no point then continuing onto the next planet to be subjugated with that same massive force, if that planet only has 12 alien dairy farmers on it, better to split up the forces to spread in multiple directions, (which is what they did).