Mr Mystery
04-09-2015, 12:27 PM
How do?
I don't often venture onto this board, but there's an idea rattling around my noggin - possibly dislodged through concentration at work.
And it's about the ever shifting background of 40k. As a long, long time player of 40k, I've seen it shift more times than I can count (which is at least 4). Cool bits have been dropped, new bits have been written. Best example? Origin of the Horus Heresy. By admission of GW at the first Heresy Weekender, it was originally filler text, nothing more. Something written quickly to fill up a single page....well, need I say more!
But rather than delve into the whys and wherefores, what was a good change and what was a bad change (that's the benefit of a largely ignorant Galaxy really. Background is largely mythological, and in the case of the Eldar, allegorical too) I want to explore your own, personal Head a Cannon.
What's your take on what has gone before, what is now and what is to come?
Good example, and one with arguably the fewest (but not necessarily least significant) changes, Necrons.
For a long time, the C'Tan were a technologically advanced, but utterly extinct race.
Necrons were first introduced as Undead In Spaaaaaaaace as the very mysterious protectors of the Diggas in Gorkamorka. Shortly after, they arrived in 2nd Ed 40k as a mysterious race of well hard robots.
It wasn't until 3rd Ed that we actually got proper, significant background for them. And for a few years, the Internet rang to cries of 'A C'TAN DID IT!'. A long kind-of-known race turned out to be Star Gods - material Universe equivalents to the Chaos Gods (but surprisingly wussy on the board, purely in terms of scale). Suddenly, the fall of the Old Ones was known. The C'Tan kicked their arses from one end of the Galaxy to other, with the modern races biological weapons created out of desperation to harness the one thing known to knack C'Tan, Warp Power (not you, Mr Sulu. Stand down)
And that was pretty cool. Necrons were soulless automatons with vague awareness, and the slaves of the C'Tan, tricked into servitude millions of years prior.
Then, that all changed. Necrons gained character, and a deeper, far more tragic existence. Still tricked by the C'Ta , vengeance was had. The reason the star gods were a bit wimpy was that each example was a shard, the merest splinter of the whole. Still incredibly powerful, but shackled by arcane, near miraculous technological means.
And yet, as much as I like that - it's given my tinboys some heart (and we didn't have to visit some ersatz wizard neither), it's lost that Lovecraftian edge. I mean, how good are your Gods if they're your slaves now?
Here, my head cannon blends the two. The Necrons do have their own personality. But, they did not defeat the C'Tan. Sure, some were chinned, knacked, hoofed and brayed into shards, but the original four (Nightbringer, Deceiver, Dragon and Outsider) survived by hook or by crook. Being selfish creatures, they make no move to help their brothers, but instead are up to.......stuff. Planning revenge on those who turned on them.
Right, over to you! What's your head Cannon?
I don't often venture onto this board, but there's an idea rattling around my noggin - possibly dislodged through concentration at work.
And it's about the ever shifting background of 40k. As a long, long time player of 40k, I've seen it shift more times than I can count (which is at least 4). Cool bits have been dropped, new bits have been written. Best example? Origin of the Horus Heresy. By admission of GW at the first Heresy Weekender, it was originally filler text, nothing more. Something written quickly to fill up a single page....well, need I say more!
But rather than delve into the whys and wherefores, what was a good change and what was a bad change (that's the benefit of a largely ignorant Galaxy really. Background is largely mythological, and in the case of the Eldar, allegorical too) I want to explore your own, personal Head a Cannon.
What's your take on what has gone before, what is now and what is to come?
Good example, and one with arguably the fewest (but not necessarily least significant) changes, Necrons.
For a long time, the C'Tan were a technologically advanced, but utterly extinct race.
Necrons were first introduced as Undead In Spaaaaaaaace as the very mysterious protectors of the Diggas in Gorkamorka. Shortly after, they arrived in 2nd Ed 40k as a mysterious race of well hard robots.
It wasn't until 3rd Ed that we actually got proper, significant background for them. And for a few years, the Internet rang to cries of 'A C'TAN DID IT!'. A long kind-of-known race turned out to be Star Gods - material Universe equivalents to the Chaos Gods (but surprisingly wussy on the board, purely in terms of scale). Suddenly, the fall of the Old Ones was known. The C'Tan kicked their arses from one end of the Galaxy to other, with the modern races biological weapons created out of desperation to harness the one thing known to knack C'Tan, Warp Power (not you, Mr Sulu. Stand down)
And that was pretty cool. Necrons were soulless automatons with vague awareness, and the slaves of the C'Tan, tricked into servitude millions of years prior.
Then, that all changed. Necrons gained character, and a deeper, far more tragic existence. Still tricked by the C'Ta , vengeance was had. The reason the star gods were a bit wimpy was that each example was a shard, the merest splinter of the whole. Still incredibly powerful, but shackled by arcane, near miraculous technological means.
And yet, as much as I like that - it's given my tinboys some heart (and we didn't have to visit some ersatz wizard neither), it's lost that Lovecraftian edge. I mean, how good are your Gods if they're your slaves now?
Here, my head cannon blends the two. The Necrons do have their own personality. But, they did not defeat the C'Tan. Sure, some were chinned, knacked, hoofed and brayed into shards, but the original four (Nightbringer, Deceiver, Dragon and Outsider) survived by hook or by crook. Being selfish creatures, they make no move to help their brothers, but instead are up to.......stuff. Planning revenge on those who turned on them.
Right, over to you! What's your head Cannon?