vizn3r/warhammer40k-lore huggingface dataset:
Hilarion - Hilarion: Hilarion is an Agri-world and Feudal World of the Calixis Sector's Hazeroth Sub-sector in the Segmentum Obscurus. Hilarion was to have originally been named "Halarion" after the Emperor's Halo solstice effect observed by the Adeptus Mechanicus Explorator team that first discovered the world, but an error in transcription meant that the name "Hilarion" was gazetted.The majority of the inhabitants of this world are peasants or serfs whose existence is spent working the fields of their feudal masters, and in the brief time allotted to them, attending to their own crops.The villages work the surrounding lands on a field rotation system, with each field being left to lie fallow one season in five. A peasant is entitled to a small plot of land as long as he/she works a nine-hour day in the service of their master.This service need not all be in tending the land, so some peasants specialise in the other crafts required to maintain a pre-industrial population: blacksmith, charcoal burner, farrier, woodsman, hunter, fisherman, messenger, rodent wrangler, craftsman and wagoneer to name a few.Almost all of the peasants have no concept of a world beyond their horizons; apart from the fact that the God-Emperor watches over them and that their labours benefit the Imperium of Mankind.The noble Spectrum houses each control a portion of the planet's surface, as it was decreed in the beginning: One colour to each region, no house to hold too much land, but all tied together by blood. A blending of the spectra may create minor houses, but their holdings must be ratified by the governing Council of Colours, and be held only in trust.Thus the Spectrum uses the minor houses to oversee the extent of their holdings. Each house may maintain a corps of armsmen, but their numbers must be maintained in parity across all houses to ensure the military balance is maintained.Martial contests are an indulgence of the noble class, allowing the tension between individuals and houses to be settled in an "amicable" and none too costly manner.There is a considerable Ecclesiarchy presence on the planet; as a result of the significance of one of the major export products, and the weight of the Imperial Cult's beliefs with the populace.All noble houses will have a Ministorum Priest in residence, and members of the clergy can be found throughout the populace, even the meanest village will have a priest to lead services in praise of the Emperor, and to remind all of their duties to the Spectrum, and the Emperor.
Hilarion - Departmento Cartographicae Planetary Database: EQUATORIAL CIRCUMFERENCE: 59,757 Miles.YEARS AND DAYS: Hilarion takes 590 Terran days to Orbit its star and spins on its axis every 28 Terran hours.
Hilarion - Satellites: Hilarion possesses two "moons." These spin in opposite directions at 90° to each other, and at 30° to either side of the planet's axis. This causes a slight wobble in the planetary orbit, but the phenomena seems relatively stable.Due to the difference in size of the two moons, and their distance from the planet's surface, they appear quite different for most of their cycles, however during Solstice there is a great celestial conjunction celebrated across the planet.This event occurs every 5 standard years and marks the point where the sun and both moons align -- forming the "Emperor's Halo" -- a fiery corona visible around the moons. The smaller moon seems to glow with its own light during solstice, even though its larger sibling stands between it and the solar light.The majority of the populace is not aware that the smaller, closer moon is in fact artificial, simply a satellite spaceport for quarantine and administrative purposes.The agriculture of the planet, so vital to the other worlds of the sub-sector, must be protected at all costs; hence all ships visiting must be decontaminated (by crews from the satellite port) prior to receiving landing clearance.Visiting crews are encouraged to keep to themselves so as to not destabilise the resident populace with tales of the worlds beyond the sky.
Hilarion - Population: Approximately 750,000,000 -- although an exact count of the peasant class is impossible.
Hilarion - Tropospheric Composition: Nitrogen 75%, Oxygen 21.95%, Argon 0.93%, Carbon Dioxide 0.137%, trace amounts of other gases, and a variable amount (average around 2%) of water vapour.
Hilarion - Planetary Governor: The planet is ruled by the Council of Colours, which is composed of the heads of the seven great noble houses also called the Spectrum Houses.Each house is ascendant as the leader of the council in turn; dominance decreed during solstice by the divine light of the Emperor's Halo -- in the ritual of the "Eagle's Light." The statute of the council states that a majority must ratify major decisions and agreements.These decisions may not be made in the first local year after solstice, nor in the last year of the cycle. This prevents a certain amount of political backstabbing, and smooths the transition between the houses' ascension.As all major houses are bound by some degree in blood, there is rarely major tension, more often petty bickering over trade quotas, tithes and the general "one-upmanship" that goes with being the ruling elite.The Ecclesiarchy assists by providing diplomatic envoys where necessary, and provides the personnel to oversee the transport hubs where goods are assembled for export. Their neutrality ensures that one house cannot gain advantage over another; a system that has been stable for so long, that it is now rarely tested.
Hilarion - Climatic Regions: The planet surface is 59% land; the remainder is covered by water, the majority of which is fresh. Rainfall is regular and keeps the land moist and the rivers flowing.Storms occur from time to time, especially during the months leading up to Solstice, and although dramatic lightning and thunder often accompany these, they rarely cause much damage to the well-drained landscape.The soil is rich and seems to support any plant species introduced to it, returning bountiful crops. There is very little of the land that cannot be turned to agriculture, in some places it is hard to site the villages and towns, as all the land is so verdant.Spilled grain must be cleaned up quickly, not because it attracts vermin (although this can be the case) but because the seeds will sink into the loam and sprout shortly after.For this reason many larger buildings are floored with stone cut from the hills and mountains, even though this is expensive to obtain and transport.The poles are mountainous regions, which are sparsely populated, as they have little flat land suitable for agriculture.The mountains do provide an environment suitable for some herbaceous plants, so these have been seeded throughout, and are harvested occasionally by intrepid peasants who accept the solitude and hardship for the bounty theses plants provide.
Hilarion - Seas: Hilarion has several small seas, or "brines," but the greatest proportion of surface water is fresh, flowing from streams to rivers and then to the large lakes of sweetwater. These are now populated with various aquatic forms, and a subculture exists to harvest these as an addition to the available foodstuffs.Some of the brine species are particularly difficult to catch and are highly prized for feast-foods by the noble houses. A solstice feast would not be considered complete without the small rainbow-hued sweetwater motley.There are a few coastal islands, but these are the domain of the White Brethren, and trespassing is firmly discouraged.
Hilarion - Terra-Forming: None of the present inhabitants (the generations within recorded history) have conducted terra-forming -- the concept is unknown to them. The world is perfect as it is; perhaps even a little too perfect...
Hilarion - Native Flora and Fauna: There was little animal life endemic to the planet when the Human settlers arrived, but now it teems with life both botanical and zoological -- but of an introduced nature. Some areas still have native vegetation, but most of this has been replaced by introduced species.The only native species that has been adopted (and domesticated) is the Falcohawke. This species has become the hunting companion of many nobles, and the Falconer is a highly regarded servant responsible for the care and training of these creatures.Strict carnivores, the Falcohawke are avians similar to a Terran raptor, but much more vibrantly coloured; their plumage ranges from rich brown, through red and gold with some rarer individuals even sporting feathers of blues and greens.It is the ultimate vogue to have your house hunting party escorted by Falcohawkes in their Spectrum shade; for some houses this presents more of a challenge, but gives the falconers something to breed for. The feathers cover the body except for the face (which is slightly reptilian) and the feet.The legs have longer feathers similar to those on the wings, giving the Falcohawke a four-winged appearance, which is heightened by the long and flexible tail, which also sports longer feathers down the sides of the spine.Unlike the Terran avians known as raptors, the animal possesses jaws full of tiny sharp recurved teeth rather than a beak, but this does not make them any less effective as hunters.There are records of a large reptilian species dwelling on Hilarion, although these are rarely encountered, as they inhabit the mountainous regions that are sparsely populated and the deep oceans. Several families possess trophies from these beasts, but they have become far less common over the past centuries, so much so that they have slipped into legend in some areas.The peasants will blame any disappearance of stock or fellow on the beasts if there is no other obvious explanation, and those who see a fiery trail across the sky explain it as the flight of one of the monsters -- which are said to be able to breathe fire.The Ecclesiarchy priests do not discourage this talk as it helps to keep the serfs in line, and attentive to their tasks, although they know the true nature of the sky trails, none would be able to say for certain wether the beasts do exist or not.Occasionally a quest for one of these beasts will be mounted, and young nobles from various houses will come together to organise hunting parties before setting off on their expeditions. This practice keeps the lesser nobles amused, and occupied as well as encouraging cooperation between the houses. Should any trophy be returned, great prowess will go to the victors.
Hilarion - Flora and Fauna: The planet grows food sufficient to feed its population, as well as the exotic plants for export off-world. Many insect species have also been introduced as pollinators for the various crops, and there have been a few vermin species that escaped quarantine in the early days of settlement to plague the population here, as they do on so many other worlds.The noble houses have arranged for diverse species to be introduced over the years for sport, although these have to be monitored and culled occasionally if their numbers increase to a point where they impact on the industry of the planet.Beasts of burden and similar animals form the basis of the pre-industrial transport system on Hilarion. You ride or walk -- there is no other option.
Hilarion - Economy: The majority of the population of Hilarion is composed of the peasant and serf class (small distinction between these two). They work in service to the noble houses and toil to produce the spices and incenses for their lords, who then export them off world, (but this is not known to the peasants -- they simply believe that the Emperor requires their labour).The serfs and peasants use barter amongst themselves for the majority of transactions although occasionally they may come to possess some of the imperials or eagles (the local currency). The noble houses will deal with one another, using barter or coin: imperials, eagles or even throne gelt (although this is less common).7 eagles constitute an imperial, and 3 imperials constitute a throne gelt (also just called a throne). The economy is stable, feudal and balanced with no house holding unfair advantage over another, as all the houses are bound by blood, and ruled under the statute of the Council of Colours.The Imperial tithe of Hilarion consists almost entirely of the incense produced for the Ecclesiarchy and other spices produced to satisfy the demands of nobles throughout the Calixis Sector.
Hilarion - Society: Hilarion is populated by a majority of peasants. A smaller number of nobles make up the ruling class while the balance of the populace is a very small percentage of serfs who have become indentured for failure to meet their contractual obligations of service and provide for their families.The technology level is mostly medieval pre-industrial, although the noble houses have a small number of advanced devices that would be seen in the wider Imperium.The Ecclesiarchy presence on the world has perhaps the highest level of technology on the planet, used for their religious duties and to provide a means to oversee the noble houses and the production of their important crops.
Hilarion - Water Supply: Each area is responsible for producing its own food for the populace, although there is trade for particular goods amongst the houses.Water is free-flowing with many streams and rivers, and villages are not built where there is not water from such a source, unless a spring or a well has been constructed.The serfs produce food for the noble houses, and also for themselves. There has not been any incidence of food shortage during the history of the settlement, even in the earliest years when the crops were adapting.However should this occur, local custom and law provides that other noble houses share their supplies until the crisis is over.
Hilarion - Principal Exports: Incense aromatics are the principal export of Hilarion, almost all of which are used by the Ecclesiarchy throughout the Calixis Sector.The delicate nature of these fragrances, such as frankincense and myrrh, requires that the plants be harvested and processed manually -- otherwise the purity is lessened through mechanical contamination.This factor is behind the very structure of the feudal society on Hilarion -- the peasants are the only viable means of managing this production.Once this system was established it was a natural extension to include other fragrant plants and spices, which would benefit from such a hospitable environment and manual labour force, including cinnamon and saffron. These are rare commodities for trade, and their "hand-picked" nature increases their value on the interstellar market.These small quantities of luxury goods enable the noble houses to maintain their status and occasionally import luxury items in return, such as quality fabrics and off-world tutors for their children.
Hilarion - Principal Imports: Few goods are imported to Hilarion due to the strict quarantine protocols. However on exceedingly rare occasions new crops are developed that are deemed to be suitable for the Hilarion climate, and seed for these is brought down after rigorous testing and established upon one of the coastal islands.The plants are closely monitored by members of the White Brethren (the task is too important to trust to mere peasants), and are destroyed immediately at any sign of incompatibility with existing species.The White Brethren also use coastal islands for cross-breeding existing species and other purposes, although these are not defined.
Hilarion - Conflicts: Unlike many worlds in the Imperium, the political climate is relatively stable. The feudal nature of the system, given the vast majority of the uneducated peasants, requires the nobles to find diplomatic solutions to squabbles (usually these involve marriage), as drawing serfs from the fields (and Emperor forbid arming them) would mean loss of harvest and therefore income.
Hilarion - Defences: There are no defence forces on the world as far as the general populace is concerned. The spaceport satellite does in fact have the capacity to offer limited planetary defence -- mostly in the form of Defence Lasers and missiles used to defend the quarantine regulations, and encourage merchant captains to be cooperative.Should a threat majoris arise there would be very little the inhabitants could do except appeal to others for aid and offer sincere prayers to the Emperor.
Hilarion - Astra Militarum Recruitment: None. The general populace would have an extremely difficult time coping with being off-world, let alone with any type of technology beyond their pre-industrial experience.
Hilarion - Contact With Other Worlds: Hilarion is not well-known outside the Hazeroth Sub-sector, in fact the existence of the planet is not widely publicised so as to protect it from unsanctioned traffic.All planetary trade must be processed by the quarantine station on the smaller spaceport "moon" and only selected traders holding an Ecclesiarchal charter are permitted to send landing craft down to collect trade and tithe goods -- these vehicles must only land in designated zones, and are supervised during their entire planetfall by an observer from the Orders Famulous of the Adepta Sororitas.
Hippaestrum - Hippaestrum: The Hippaestrum was a decommissioned Lunar-class Cruiser that served as part of the Imperium's Hadex Fleet.It was reported lost in a resurgent Warp Storm shortly after the mutiny that ousted Emanuel Hadex.In truth, the warship was supposedly destroyed by the Rogue Trader himself, after it attempted to desert from approaching the Hadex Anomaly. However, there is evidence that the vessel has returned and is now a Renegade warship attacking Imperial shipping in the Reach.
Hippaestrum - History: When Lord-Captain Emanuel Hadex led the Hadex Fleet to investigate the Warp phenomenon that he would later call the "Hadex Nebula," tensions and fear over the anomaly's nature drew many towards thoughts of mutiny as they were commanded to move closer and closer.The lord-captain's negligence, combined with the steady erosion of morale caused by time distortions and Warp phantoms, weakened the discipline and courage of the crew.When the Hippeastrum, under the command of one Lieutenant Argord Pym, attempted to turn back from the foolhardy journey, the lord-captain ordered the macrobatteries of his flagship, the Aletris, turned against the fleeing vessel.In 809.M41 a battle-scarred Lunar-class Cruiser of ancient design began preying upon Imperial Navy supply caravans supporting the Planetary Defence Force garrisons of the Eleusis Shrine World.While this craft has yet to be conclusively identified as the Hippeastrum, degenerate crew, captured in a recent boarding action over Aurum, have identified their commander as "the Decimated Argord Pym."
His Last Command (Novel) - His Last Command (Novel): His Last Command is the ninth volume in the Gaunt's Ghosts series of novels by Dan Abnett.
His Last Command (Novel) - Synopsis: The Tanith First-and-Only are no more. Moved into another regiment under a charismatic new commander, the loyalties of the former Ghosts are put to the test when Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt, long believed dead, returns. As the enemy overrun the Imperial forces, clashing with Crusade command, and suspected of harbouring the taint of Chaos, Gaunt must fight not only to be reunited with his Ghosts, but to stop all their lives being thrown away in an unwinnable war.
Historical Revision Unit - Historical Revision Unit: The Historical Revision Unit is another one of the myriad bureaucratic departments of the Administratum, whose adepts are the indentured Human servants and servitors known as "historitors" who work within the Imperial Palace.Their job is to revise subversive records of Imperial history into versions that are more reverent towards the Emperor and the version of Imperial history that most glorifies His name. The "historicus" is the title of the unit's chief adept.
History of the Astra Militarum - History of the Astra Militarum: The Astra Militarum, informally called the "Imperial Guard" in Low Gothic, is the primary ground-based frontline military force of the Imperium of Man. The Astra Militarum has a long history and has been actively defending and expanding the Imperium for ten thousand standard years.Its immediate predecessor, the Imperial Army, fought on many fronts during the Great Crusade and Horus Heresy as the most important support and garrison force for the far more powerful but far less numerous Space Marine Legions.But following the end of the Horus Heresy and the reformation of the Imperium undertaken by the Primarch Roboute Guilliman at the start of the Time of Rebirth, the decision was made to break up the Space Marine Legions into the much smaller Chapters and refocus them on planetary assault missions.As a result, the Imperial Army was reorganised into the Astra Militarum and transformed into the Imperium's frontline ground force, recruiting its troops from different worlds and Human cultures across the galaxy.
History of the Astra Militarum - Origin: During the early years of the Great Crusade in the 31st Millennium, the Emperor of Mankind and His Space Marines were the only forces necessary for the conquest of worlds and the construction of the Imperium.Many of the primarchs, the genetically-engineered superhuman leaders of the Space Marine Legions, tried to win the fealty of Human populations isolated during the Age of Strife through non-military tactics if possible, and often incorporated soldiers that had initially been arrayed against them into the fight as part of the Imperial Army to liberate and unite even more worlds.Auxiliary Human military forces were initially used to assist the Astartes in the liberation of their own homeworld from aliens, Daemons, or all-too-Human tyrants, and these troops would remain after the campaign and the institution of Imperial Compliance as an Imperial garrison force.Later, as the scope of the war escalated beyond the sole control of the Space Marines, these forces would be brought in to mop up any remaining resistance from Space Marine assaults, and take control of the freshly conquered world, freeing up the Space Marines to move onto other campaigns.Eventually, the expansion of the Imperium of Man reached the point in the first decade of the 31st Millennium where the Astartes, fighting on every front, were spread too thinly. It was at this time the Imperial Army truly came into its own, deploying at the forefront of the Great Crusade.
History of the Astra Militarum - Imperial Army: The original Imperial Army boasted great variety amongst its forces; some utilising mutant troops like Beastmen while others had access to advanced anti-grav vehicles. Each unit drew on the strengths and technology of its homeworld, and variations were dependent on a world's religious beliefs, level of technological advancement, social customs, and specialist industries.This led to the practice of recruiting regiments from a single homeworld, as troops from different worlds would have trouble understanding each other's dialects, social customs, tactics or specialist equipment.Because of the sheer variety of Human-settled worlds in the galaxy and subsequent Imperial Army regiments, a measure of standardisation was deemed necessary to allow the Army to function as a whole, although the sheer size of the expanding Imperium by this time prevented any true standardisation.The treatise that came to be known as the Tactica Imperium was penned and distributed, and a cadre of political officers, the officers known as masters of discipline (precursors of the commissars), were established to ensure proper and effective integration and co-operation between regiments.The role of these political officers later expanded to include maintaining the quality and morale of the regiments they were assigned to, and they became almost compulsory after the Horus Heresy -- the first action of many later would-be Traitors was to kill any commissars present in their force.
History of the Astra Militarum - Horus Heresy: During the Horus Heresy, many Imperial Army regiments turned to the side of the Warmaster Horus and Chaos. Regiments seconded to Space Marine Legions that turned Traitor followed their transhuman masters into rebellion, sometimes out of fear or blind faith. Regiments were raised on worlds controlled by both sides, and were thrown into the bloodbath of combat.The control over both fleet and army elements held by a relatively limited number of people meant that the faith or corruption of a few determined on which side a force would fight.Thousands of small stellar empires were carved out by ambitious generals with no loyalty to either side, and many regiments did little more than stay out of the way, waiting for a clear victor in the galactic civil war before they committed to a side.The Horus Heresy changed the galaxy forever, both during its wars, and after, during the Great Scouring, when the Imperium made all efforts to remain in control of its vast territories. Regiments of the Imperial Army still loyal to the Emperor assisted the Space Marines in their efforts to maintain control and suppress secondary rebellions.
History of the Astra Militarum - Astra Militarum: At some point after the end of the Horus Heresy, the Imperial Army underwent a mass reformation. The Army was split into two separate entities, the Astra Militarum and the Imperial Navy. What aspects of the Imperial Army that could be standardised were, and practical traditions from the days of the Imperial Army, such as the size of regiments designed to fit inside cruiser-size starships and the recruiting of a regiment's members from a single homeworld, were retained.As part of the reformation, many of the units used by a regiment were cut down, and specialist regiments, such as those made up of Rough Rider cavalry or Ratling snipers, were split into detachments and divided amongst the standard regiments, to provide support in special skills and tactics. commissars became centrally trained by the Ecclesiarchy and Schola Progenium.These measures almost completely limited the ability for Astra Militarum regiments to be led astray by a few corrupted officers, and further measures limiting the direct power of the Ecclesiarchy that came into effect after the Age of Apostasy in the 36th Millennium have shaped the Astra Militarum into what it is during the 41st Millennium; a byword for loyalty and honour.Although similar to the regiments of the post-Heresy years, the Astra Militarum has not remained completely stagnant. The universal Lasgun was only introduced in the late 32nd millennium.Prior to this, the Astra Militarum's forces relied on solid ammunition Autoguns (and still do in some parts of the Imperium), and some elite soldiers still prefer to use them in combat.Armoured vehicles are often modified for a single campaign or operation, when the situation calls for it, but the usefulness of some modifications results in their full-scale production by certain Forge Worlds.
Hito Ulanti - Hito Ulanti: Hito Ulanti was a flag lieutenant and the first officer of the Dictator-class Cruiser Lord Solar Macharius of the Imperial Navy during the Gothic War at the beginning of the 41st Millenium.Young, hot-blooded yet supremely competent, Ulanti was one of the key players in the many successes the Macharius earned over the course of that conflict.
Hito Ulanti - Personality: A young, hot-blooded Human male with an expressive visage and sharp features, Hito Ulanti was ambitious and keen to prove himself.Educated amongst the decadent nobility of a Hive World, he was a gifted diplomat and an accomplished swordsman, having developed both skills in order to survive the treacherous politics of his homeworld of Necromunda.When first joining Battlefleet Gothic, Ulanti had an overall bad relationship with his fellow officers, his Hive World background and expectation of being treated like the scion of a noble house working against him.He did, however, temper his brashness with experience, and quickly grew into a competent and respected officer.On a more personal level, Ulanti remained a noble: used to luxury, he did not hesitate to partake in all his lofty station could offer while off-duty: games of chance, drinking, keeping a concubine, luxurious quarters and even duelling were all on his agenda.He was, however, a man of honour, and he never allowed his pleasures to infringe on his ability to effectively carry out his duties.
Hive City - Hive City: A hive city or simply a hive, is a massive arcology, or fully self-contained city, that is home to millions or even billions of Human beings loyal to the Imperium of Man. Hive cities are often found in clusters on the densely populated urban planets known in the official Imperial lexicon as Hive Worlds.Hive cities have been built up over thousands of Terran years, in many cases stretching back into the Age of Technology long before the founding of the Imperium.Hive cities are layered constructions of rockcrete and adamantium, comprising thousands of residential and industrial blocks leveraged one atop the other, forming a massive, man-made mountain usually capped by a crown of great spires that stretch thousands of metres into the sky.In general, the higher up one goes in a hive city, the more wealthy and powerful the residents, until one reaches the hive's spires where the city's nobility live, work and play.Conversely, the lowest levels of the hive, down below in the great tunnels that catacomb a hive's foundations even below the industrial and forge levels, lies the Underhive, a massive slum inhabited by violent gangs and vicious mutants who have never seen the light of their world's sun.Hive cities often exist in closely-spaced groups known as "hive clusters" and there can be several thousand hive cities on a single Hive World.These arcologies are largely economically self-sufficient, producing all the industry and processed foods needed by the countless number of people who call them home. They are also crucial to the Imperium's survival as they produce most of the manufactured goods required by Mankind.Hive cities were originally created in the Age of Technology as a way for a large number of Humans to live together in an advanced society without damaging the surrounding planetary ecologies and biosphere. However, the terrible damage wrought by the Age of Strife on Human-settled space led many hive cities to lose the technologies and behaviours that had allowed them to remain in balance with their environments.As a result, each hive creates millions of metric tons of trash and industrial waste that is directly pumped out into the surrounding world's environment.Given the massive population of most Hive Worlds, this means that their surfaces are usually reduced to industrial wastelands covered in toxic deserts where nothing can live or grow save for the hardy mutants who call these "ash wastes" home and often raid the covered train-like transports that move passengers and cargo between hive city clusters.
Hive City - Sources: Confrontation (Tabletop Game)Dark Heresy: Core Rulebook (RPG), pp. 16-17, 291-299Necromunda - Rulebook (1st Edition)Necromunda - Sourcebook (1st Edition)Necromunda: Underhive (2nd Edition)Warhammer Monthly 58, "Above and Beyond - Part 3"Warhammer 40,000: Rulebook (5th Edition)White Dwarf 130 (UK), "Confrontation," by Bryan Ansell, Rick Priestley and Nigel StillmanNecromunda Novel Series:Survival Instinct (Novel) by Andy ChambersSalvation (Novel) by C.S. GotoBlood Royal (Novel) by Gordon Rennie & Will McDermottJunktion (Novel) by Matthew FarrerFleshworks (Novel) by Lucien SoulbanCardinal Crimson (Novel) by Will McDermottBack from the Dead (Novel) by Nick KymeOutlander (Novel) by Matt KeefeLasgun Wedding (Novel) by Will McDermottNecromunda Omnibus 1 (Omnibus)Necromunda Omnibus 2 (Omnibus)The Complete Kal Jericho (Omnibus)Status Deadzone (Anthology) Edited by Andy Chambers & Marc GascoigneSpace Marine (Novel) by Ian WatsonThe Redeemer (Graphic Novel)Deathwolf (Audio Book) by Andy SmillieGames Workshop - Specialist Games: NecromundaGames Workshop - Necromunda ResourcesWarhammer 40,000 Roleplay: Imperium Maledictum (Images)
Hive Crone - Hive Crone: The Hive Crone is a flying monstrosity used by the Tyranids to establish air superiority over prey worlds. It is a creature perfectly adapted to aerial combat, able to wrestle enemy aircraft out of the skies as proficiently as any daredevil pilot at the controls of a sophisticated jet-fighter.
Hive Crone - Role: A clutch of parasitic Tentaclids nestle underneath a Hive Crone's wings, latched on until launched at enemy aircraft. Upon leaving their host, these creatures speed through the air, homing in on their target with unerring accuracy. When these living missiles strike, they emit a massive bio-electric pulse that can cripple the target's electronics or stall their engines, leaving them without power or thrust and sending them into a fatal dive.But even without these impressive bio-missiles to shoot its prey, a Hive Crone is still deadly, flying close enough to its quarry to tear through them with the bladed spurs on its underside.Once all aerial prey has been eliminated, a Hive Crone then softens up the planet's ground-bound defenders, swooping over the heads of the enemy soldiery and drizzling digestive fluids onto its victims.Before reaching a target planet, Hive Crones also protect Tyranid bio-ships in their journeys through interstellar space against attacks from enemy assault shuttles and bomber craft; in silence, a Hive Fleet's Crones glide through the inky darkness, ripping enemy vessels open to the cold vacuum.
Hive Crone - Biomorphs: A Hive Crone is equipped with many Biomorphs. These include:Drool Cannon4 TentaclidsScything TalonsIn addition, a Hive Crone may take one of the following:Stinger SalvoCluster SpinesFinally, a Hive Crone can take other Biomorphs from the appropriate list.
Hive Fleet - Hive Fleet: A hive fleet is a large armada of living, biomechanical starships created by the Tyranids for the purpose of gathering the raw materials and biomass necessary for the reproduction, evolution and expansion of their species. A hive fleet is used to attack and strip star systems of their biomass using the full range of Tyranid bioforms.Only three primary Tyranid hive fleets and a host of smaller splinter fleets have ever come into direct contact with the Imperium of Man, but they have all brought devastating damage and loss of life.The Imperium's Segmentum Ultima Command designated them as: Hive Fleet Behemoth, Hive Fleet Kraken and Hive Fleet Leviathan, and they each made first contact with Imperial space in the Eastern Fringes of the galaxy, in the Segmentum Ultima.Hive Fleet Behemoth arrived in the Milky Way Galaxy in 745.M41, Hive Fleet Kraken in 993.M41 and Hive Fleet Leviathan in 997.M41. Each hive fleet is ultimately governed by the collective psychic Hive Mind of the Tyranid species, though at the heart of any hive fleet are the Norn-Queens who interpret the will of the Hive Mind for other Tyranid organisms and who personally birth almost every Tyranid bioform present in the fleet, save for its Hive Ships.The potent psychic power of every hive fleet's connection to the Hive Mind produces an effect known as the "Shadow in the Warp" that prevents travel or communication through the Immaterium in the astrographic vicinity of the hive fleet.
Hive Fleet - Origins: The Tyranids are unlike any other intelligent species to be encountered by Humanity since Mankind first reached the stars during the Age of Terra. They are the ultimate predators, and all living things, from the lowliest insect to the most advanced civilisation, are nothing but their prey. Only now are the inhabitants of the galaxy realising the true scale of the threat; unless the Tyranids can be stopped, it will mean nothing less than the extinction of all life in the Milky Way.The Tyranids are likened to a galactic swarm of locusts consuming everything in its path, feeding on entire worlds and leaving only dead husks in their wake. Their threat is such that an unprotected planet can be infested and stripped clean of all its organic material in a matter of solar weeks without even slowing down the greater advance of the hive fleet.The Tyranids are a spaceborne species that have inveigled their way into the realms of Humanity, as well as those of other xenos, like a disease spreading through a healthy body. The Tyranids travel in great fleets of gigantic living creatures that serve as spacecraft, each of which is home to countless lesser Tyranid organisms grown in the bubbling organ-sacs of the vessel's reproductive chambers. All of these creatures are born to serve the single entity that is the ship, and the ship itself exists only as part of the entity that is the hive fleet.When a hive fleet encounters a prey world, it does not invade for territorial gain or out of a sense of pride or vengeance. Indeed, it is doubtful the Tyranids even comprehend such alien concepts. Rather, they invade to harvest valuable biomass and feed their insatiable hunger. The Tyranids require an endless supply of food, not only to nourish the hive fleets, but to grow new Tyranid organisms.Therefore, when a hive fleet invades a planet rich in life, every action of every Tyranid creature is honed to a single goal -- the total and rapid absorption of that world's population, ecosystems and bio-resources. To this end, the hive fleet creates an army with the express purpose of overcoming the prey world’s defenders before the planet is stripped of every scrap of biomatter and devoured.
Hive Fleet - The Hive Mind: The Magi Biologis of the Imperium categorise each Tyranid hive fleet as a separate force, an individual entity that competes with other hive fleets for resources. Indeed, each is self-sufficient, appearing to exhibit different strategies and developing unique bioforms to overcome its prey. However, the truth is more complex, for each hive fleet is but a splinter of one greater assemblage.The Tyranids' numbers are vast beyond counting, swarms so large that they block out the very stars, yet each and every creature is but a single cell in the living body of a single super-organism. Every thought and action, every spark of life in the Tyranid species, is bound and interlinked into a single unfathomable consciousness, a great entity that stretches across hundreds of light years of space. This gestalt intelligence is known as the "Hive Mind."The Hive Mind holds all Tyranids in a powerful psychic bond that enables them to act together in perfect unison. Under the influence of this ancient, disembodied consciousness, the Tyranids have fed on countless planets and devoured civilisations since time immemorial across many galaxies.
Hive Fleet - Shadow in the Warp: The coming of a Tyranid hive fleet is preceded by a smothering psychic signal that envelops entire star systems and disrupts all forms of Warp travel and communication. Swallowed up by psychic-static, whole worlds suddenly go deathly silent, giving no clues as to what is unfolding on the surface below, or of what terrors are about to befall them.This is the "Shadow in the Warp," and it heralds imminent invasion and horror. It is unknown if the Shadow in the Warp is created deliberately by the hive fleets, or if it is simply a by-product of the Hive Mind's innate synaptic control over its myriad bioforms.In any case, the Shadow in the Warp creates fear and panic wherever it falls, instilling a pervasive dread into the minds of a prey world's defenders, plunging entire planets into misery and despair. For highly-psychic species, such as the Craftworld Aeldari, or for luckless psykers caught within this enervating effect, the malaise is magnified tenfold.Should a psyker attempt to use their otherworldly abilities, the cerebral cacophony worsens even further; the psychic sound of a billion alien thoughts scratch at their mind, and unless they are particularly strong-willed they will be pitched into an insanity where they will repeatedly utter phrases in a tongue too alien to properly pronounce.For intelligent species such as the Humans of the Imperium of Man, whose means of interstellar communication and travel rely upon highly specialised psykers such as astropaths and Navigators, the Shadow in the Warp is one of the deadliest facets of the Tyranid menace. Bereft of their means to call for reinforcements or safely navigate the surrounding space, the worlds of the Imperium are easily isolated from the wider galaxy.This means that, by the time the Shadow in the Warp falls, it is already too late; these beleaguered planets are effectively on their own. They must fend for themselves and face the Tyranid swarm with the weapons they have at hand, or die in the attempt.
Hive Fleet - First Contact: Mankind's first recorded contact with the Tyranids happened in early 745.M41, on the eastern outskirts of the Imperium. Up to this point, Humanity was wholly unaware of the new threat on its borders, and if any of the galaxy's older empires knew of the oncoming swarm, they did not see fit to warn the upstart Imperium. For solar decades, since their arrival on the galactic rim, the hive fleets had consumed worlds with no intelligent life, replenishing the reserves of biomatter expended during their long, slow crawl through the intergalactic void.Now reinvigorated, the insectoid aliens descended upon the far-flung Imperial Ocean World of Tyran Primus -- an invasion for which the Imperium would thereafter name their species: "Tyranids." During the subsequent invasion, the Imperial forces were decimated, the planet's defences swiftly overcome by the vast invading Tyranid horde.Unable to transmit a message by means of astrotelepathy, the aliens' Shadow in the Warp having cut off all psychic communication, Magos Varnak, the commander of the Adeptus Mechanicus Explorator base on the world, compiled a data-codex containing Tyran's records. With only solar seconds left before his death, Varnak hid the codex in a bore shaft in the depths of the Mechanicus outpost, some 3,000 metres below the planet's surface, hoping that it would be recovered later by the Imperium.The courageous Tech-priest then activated the sacred self-destruct Rune of Ending, annihilating the entire outpost in a cataclysmic plasma reactor explosion. Tyran Primus was lost. The First Tyrannic War had begun.
Hive Fleet - Grim Discovery: Having scoured Tyran Primus of biomass, the alien hive fleet moved on in search of other worlds to feed upon, pushing its tendrils ever deeper into the galaxy whilst the death screams of an entire world went unheard. Were it not for a single man -- Inquisitor Fidus Kryptman of the Ordo Xenos -- the fate of Tyran might have gone entirely unnoticed.After all, the galaxy is a big place, mysteries are commonplace and the Imperium is as slow to react as only a monolithic bureaucracy can be. Whilst in time many other Inquisitors, including such distinguished names as Bronislaw Czevak, Agmar and Solomon Lok, would come to realise the true threat of the Hive Mind, were it not for Fidus Kryptman, its very existence would not have been known before it was already too late. Indeed, whether through a quirk of fate or out of some investigative instinct, Kryptman's decision to personally investigate Tyran Primus' mysterious silence proved vital to the Imperium's survival.By the time Kryptman reached Tyran, a standard year had passed since the attack. At first, the Inquisitor could not equate the husk of a planet he found to ocean-bound Tyran Primus. The world had been sucked dry; every scrap of vegetation and every drop of water was gone. A crater was all that remained of the Adeptus Mechanicus outpost, and all that could be found of the planet's Navis Imperialis cruiser fleet were acid-eaten hulks; icy shells devoid of life and adrift in space.After a long search, Inquisitor Kryptman recovered Magos Varnak's data-codex, the knowledge contained within it bought with the life of an entire planet. What Kryptman saw when he reviewed the fragmented data was a dire prophesy of doom; static-laced images of scythe-limbed aliens, footage of the skies over Tyran Primus turning black with swarming monsters, and orbital pict-views of a fleet of living voidships so vast that the stellar horizon was veiled in inky blackness.Kryptman felt hollow as he realised what he had discovered. Not wasting another moment, the Inquisitor set forth to warn the galaxy of the oncoming horror from beyond the stars, a horror he named "Tyranids" after the doomed world they had consumed.
Hive Fleet - Emerging Threats: Unfortunately for the Imperium and the other intelligent species of the galaxy, it is not only Hive Fleet Leviathan that is assailing the Milky Way. New hive fleets are even now beginning to emerge from their cold sleep through the intergalactic void. Hive Fleet Medusa, mistakenly thought by the Imperium to be another tendril of the Leviathan, was last recorded feasting upon the Ice World of Shadrac.Hive Fleet Moloch's inexorable advance from the galactic north is also gathering momentum as it devoured the Kiltor Sector and now the Tarellian civilisation. Perhaps most worrying of all are Hive Fleets Scylla and Charybdis carving parallel paths up through the Segmentum Pacificus and Segmentum Solar, the closest known Tyranid threat to Terra itself. Though the Imperium might have a little time left to prepare its defences against these twin threats, the Asuryani Saim-Hann craftworld is caught in the jaws of these two hive fleets, and cannot easily navigate a path to avoid one without risking falling into the clutches of the other.None know for sure how many other hive fleets still lie dormant within the void beyond the rim of the Milky Way, slowly approaching our galaxy to wake and feed. Nor are the threats of previous Tyranid invasions truly over. The splintered fleets of Hive Fleet Kraken are regaining their strength as they feast on a bounty of worlds ill-prepared to defend themselves whilst the galaxy looks to supposedly greater threats. Long dormant remnants of Hive Fleet Jormungandr stir to life, bringing several Imperial worlds to the brink of destruction.Rumours even abound that remnants of Hive Fleet Behemoth, thought slain over two standard centuries ago, continue to ravage populations and settlements within the Ultima Segmentum, with scattered reports of Tyranid attacks on worlds from Calth to Macragge and beyond. With so many threats emerging from unseen quarters, many Imperial worlds are holding back from reinforcing the on-going fight against Hive Fleet Leviathan in the Fourth Tyrannic War, choosing to preserve their forces for wars against the Great Devourer closer to home.
Hive Fleet - A Glimmer of Hope: However, as the ongoing Octarian War is proving, the Tyranids are encountering ever-greater levels of resistance from their prey. Whilst the Imperium reinforces whole star systems, raising thousands of Astra Militarum regiments and dozens of Space Marine Chapters solely to combat the Tyranid threat, several Asuryani craftworlds have begun to burn entire worlds to cinder, employing ancient and highly advanced weapons of destruction not used in Terran millennia.The T'au Empire, having learned well at the claws of Hive Fleet Gorgon, are developing new technologies and weaponry to fight the Tyranids and field-testing experimental prototypes to defend their realm in the Eastern Fringe. Even the Necrons and the forces of Chaos are turning their attentions towards a foe that is slowly devouring a galaxy that both believe is theirs alone to rule over or despoil as they see fit.So far these efforts are, at best, succeeding in slowing Hive Fleet Leviathan's rapacious advance, but it is only a matter of time before the Hive Mind adapts. With every lost battle, the hive fleets create new breeds of warrior-organisms and bio-constructs to counter and defeat their foes. Yet with every victory, another world dies, devoured to feed the insatiable hunger of the Hive Mind.