Light of the Imperium exists, in many ways, to further my own knowledge of Warhammer 40k just as much as those who read it. I find that since I have begun working here on the site that my drive to know more about the community, the lore, and the on-the-table technicalities has risen substantially.
It should be noted, however, that I have always been a person who struggles for inspiration in terms of long terms tasks. Aspiring writer that I am, the "My Documents" folder on my PC has become a mass grave of drafts for short stories, novellas, and a few full fledged novels that I just couldn't stick with. That being stated it is my sincere hope that the recent surge of inspiration that has given birth to Light of the Imperium will carry over into my more personal endeavors.
Nevertheless, I don't want it to be said that I don't do some of what I do out of benefit for those who read my lovely little blurbs. On the contrary, I find that in writing these columns I may be able to educate more individuals on exactly what exactly Warhammer 40k is. It also wouldn't hurt if, along the way, these people picked up interest in 40k's sister games, Warhammer Fantasy Battles and the Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game. For those already acquainted with the dark future of the 41st Millennium, I hope to offer another source for members of the 40k community to discuss topics pertaining not just to my favoured Sisters of Battle, but to all factions and aspects of this incredible hobby.
Thanks for reading my nice little ramble; more 40k content is on the way!
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
James Swallow: Faith and Fire
For another change of pace, I would like to present a short passage from author James Swallow's first book regarding the Sisters of Battle, Faith and Fire.
From his high vantage point, the Emperor of Mankind looked down upon Miriya where she
knelt. His unchanging gaze took in all of her, the woman’s bowed form shrouded in bloodcoloured robes. In places, armour dark as obsidian emerged from the folds of the crimson
cloth. It framed her against the tan stonework of the chapel floor. She was defined by the
light that reflected upon her from the Emperor’s eternal visage; all that she was, she was only
by His decree.
Miriya’s lips moved in whispers. The Litany of Divine Guidance spilled from her in a cascading hush. The words were such a part of her that they came as quickly and effortlessly
as breathing. As the climax of the declaration came, she felt a warm core of righteousness
establish itself in her heart, as it always did, as it always had since the day she had discarded
her noviciate cloak and taken the oath.
She allowed herself to look up at Him. Miriya granted herself this small gesture as a reward. Her gaze travelled up the altar, drinking in the majesty of the towering golden idol. The
Emperor watched her over folded arms, across the inverted hilt of a great burning sword. At
His left shoulder stood Saint Celestine, her hands cupped to hold two stone doves as if she
were offering them up. At His right was Saint Katherine, the Daughter of the Emperor who
had founded the order that Miriya now served.
She lingered on Katherine’s face for a moment: the statue’s hair fell down over her temple
and across the fleur-de-lys carved beneath her left eye. Miriya unconsciously brushed her
black tresses back over her ear, revealing her own fleur tattoo in dark red ink.
The armour the stone saint wore differed from Miriya’s in form but not function. Katherine
was clad in an ancient type of wargear, and she bore the symbol of a burning heart where
Miriya wore a holy cross crested with a skull. When the saint had been mistress of her sect,
they had been known as the Order of the Fiery Heart – but that had been decades before
Katherine’s brutal ending on Mnestteus. Since that date, for over two millennia they had
called themselves the Order of our Martyred Lady. It was part of a legacy of duty to the Emperor that Sister Miriya of the Adepta Sororitas had been fortunate to continue.
With that thought, she looked upon the effigy of Him. She met the stone eyes and imagined that on far distant Terra, the Lord of Humanity was granting her some infinitely small
fraction of His divine attention, willing her to carry out her latest mission with His blessing.
Miriya’s hands came to her chest and crossed one another, making the sign of the Imperial
aquila.
‘In Your name,’ she said aloud. ‘In service to Your Light, grant me guidance and strength.
Let me know the witch and the heretic, show them to me.’ She bowed once again. ‘Let me do
Your bidding and rid the galaxy of man’s foe.’
Miriya drew herself up from where she knelt and moved to the font servitor, presenting
the slave-thing with her ornate plasma pistol. The hybrid produced a brass cup apparatus in
place of a hand and let a brief mist of holy water sprinkle over the weapon. Tapes of sanctified parchment stuttered from its lipless mouth with metallic ticks of sound.
She turned away, and there in the shadows was Sister Iona.
Silent, morose Iona, the patterned hood of her red robe forever deepening the hollows of
her eyes. Some of the Battle Sisters disliked the woman. Iona rarely showed emotion, never
allowed herself to cry out in pain when combat brought her wounds, never raised her voice in joyous elation during the daily hymnals. Many considered her flawed, her mind so cold
that it was little more than the demi-machine inside the skull of the servitor at the font.
Miriya had once sent two novice girls to chastisement for daring to voice such thoughts
aloud. But those who said these things did not know Iona’s true worth. She was as devout a
Sororitas as any other, and if her manner made some Sister Superiors reluctant to have her
in their units, then so be it. Their loss was Miriya’s gain.
‘Iona,’ she said, approaching. ‘Speak to me.’
‘It is time, Sister,’ said the other woman, her milk-pale face set in a frown. ‘The witch ship
comes.’
In spite of herself, Miriya’s hand tensed around the grip of her plasma pistol. She nodded.
‘I am prepared.’
knelt. His unchanging gaze took in all of her, the woman’s bowed form shrouded in bloodcoloured robes. In places, armour dark as obsidian emerged from the folds of the crimson
cloth. It framed her against the tan stonework of the chapel floor. She was defined by the
light that reflected upon her from the Emperor’s eternal visage; all that she was, she was only
by His decree.
Miriya’s lips moved in whispers. The Litany of Divine Guidance spilled from her in a cascading hush. The words were such a part of her that they came as quickly and effortlessly
as breathing. As the climax of the declaration came, she felt a warm core of righteousness
establish itself in her heart, as it always did, as it always had since the day she had discarded
her noviciate cloak and taken the oath.
She allowed herself to look up at Him. Miriya granted herself this small gesture as a reward. Her gaze travelled up the altar, drinking in the majesty of the towering golden idol. The
Emperor watched her over folded arms, across the inverted hilt of a great burning sword. At
His left shoulder stood Saint Celestine, her hands cupped to hold two stone doves as if she
were offering them up. At His right was Saint Katherine, the Daughter of the Emperor who
had founded the order that Miriya now served.
She lingered on Katherine’s face for a moment: the statue’s hair fell down over her temple
and across the fleur-de-lys carved beneath her left eye. Miriya unconsciously brushed her
black tresses back over her ear, revealing her own fleur tattoo in dark red ink.
The armour the stone saint wore differed from Miriya’s in form but not function. Katherine
was clad in an ancient type of wargear, and she bore the symbol of a burning heart where
Miriya wore a holy cross crested with a skull. When the saint had been mistress of her sect,
they had been known as the Order of the Fiery Heart – but that had been decades before
Katherine’s brutal ending on Mnestteus. Since that date, for over two millennia they had
called themselves the Order of our Martyred Lady. It was part of a legacy of duty to the Emperor that Sister Miriya of the Adepta Sororitas had been fortunate to continue.
With that thought, she looked upon the effigy of Him. She met the stone eyes and imagined that on far distant Terra, the Lord of Humanity was granting her some infinitely small
fraction of His divine attention, willing her to carry out her latest mission with His blessing.
Miriya’s hands came to her chest and crossed one another, making the sign of the Imperial
aquila.
‘In Your name,’ she said aloud. ‘In service to Your Light, grant me guidance and strength.
Let me know the witch and the heretic, show them to me.’ She bowed once again. ‘Let me do
Your bidding and rid the galaxy of man’s foe.’
Miriya drew herself up from where she knelt and moved to the font servitor, presenting
the slave-thing with her ornate plasma pistol. The hybrid produced a brass cup apparatus in
place of a hand and let a brief mist of holy water sprinkle over the weapon. Tapes of sanctified parchment stuttered from its lipless mouth with metallic ticks of sound.
She turned away, and there in the shadows was Sister Iona.
Silent, morose Iona, the patterned hood of her red robe forever deepening the hollows of
her eyes. Some of the Battle Sisters disliked the woman. Iona rarely showed emotion, never
allowed herself to cry out in pain when combat brought her wounds, never raised her voice in joyous elation during the daily hymnals. Many considered her flawed, her mind so cold
that it was little more than the demi-machine inside the skull of the servitor at the font.
Miriya had once sent two novice girls to chastisement for daring to voice such thoughts
aloud. But those who said these things did not know Iona’s true worth. She was as devout a
Sororitas as any other, and if her manner made some Sister Superiors reluctant to have her
in their units, then so be it. Their loss was Miriya’s gain.
‘Iona,’ she said, approaching. ‘Speak to me.’
‘It is time, Sister,’ said the other woman, her milk-pale face set in a frown. ‘The witch ship
comes.’
In spite of herself, Miriya’s hand tensed around the grip of her plasma pistol. She nodded.
‘I am prepared.’
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Dawn of War: Soulstorm
As I have yet to obtain the needed models to begin the construction of my Sisters of Battle army, I think the focus of today's post will be something a little different from the norm. Previously I had been giving miniature descriptions of various aspects of Warhammer 40k, and in particular the Sisters of Battle. Today I will turn to look at an example of Warhammer 40k moving off the table top and into the virtual world.
Despite its age, Dawn of War: Soulstorm remains, without a doubt, my favourite of Warhammer 40k's entrances into the virtual world. To start off, it is the first Warhammer 40k game produced that possesses nearly every faction within 40k universe (The Grey Knights are used as units within the Space Marines and the Chaos Daemons are, as usual, placed alongside the Chaos Space Marines). It is also the first (and thus far only) game in the Dawn of War series to feature the decadent Dark Eldar or the righteous Sisters of Battle. However, the scope of the game is not its only advantage.
 |
| The Campaign Map is both beautiful and expansive. |
The shining point for this game is the campaign. Though it is a little less story driven than that of its predecessor, Dawn of War: The Dark Crusade, the sheer size of the map in which it takes place is incredible. The campaign has two modes that enable the player to take command not only of their troops on the field but also to have full control over their strategic campaign to conquer the Kaurava system, where the game takes place. It is played out over turns, where each faction moves their commander and his honour guard throughout the system, engaging in offensives against their enemy or fortifying their controlled territories with buildings and troops to resist invasion.
 |
| Players can also outfit their commanders with war-gear which is unlocked through various achievements in the game. |
Like "Dark Crusade" before it, Soulstorm's campaign allows the player to play out the battles for Kaurava's various regions by taking command of his or her troops and structures on the field, and participating in intense and visually gruesome battles. These can be quick engagements, (particularly early in the campaign) or, as the honour guards of your enemies grow, the battles can become as long as an hour or more before they are settled. Of course, this is coming from a player who doesn't typically "rush" his opponents, so of course the length of my battles may not relate to the duration another player may expirience.
Ultimately, I would encourage anyone with an interest in Warhammer 40k or even just the casual fan of Real-Time Strategy (RTS) games to check out Dawn of War: Soulstorm. For those interested, the game is available on Steam, as well as Amazon.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
The Adepta Sororitas, Daughters of the Emperor
On the battlefield the Sisters of Battle are a force to be reckoned with. They can bring to bear extremely heavy fire-power against their opponents, all the while mainting high morale due to their unshakeable faith in the God-Emperor. They are highly flexible, capable of fielding everything from the flame-throwing Immolator tank to the divine Living Saints, which are holy maidens raised to incredible power by their faith. The Sisters are also able to bolster their forces by calling in the aid of other branches of the Imperial military, such as the Imperial Guard or the Space Marines. With such a strong list of forces, it is easy to see why the Sisters are amongst the Warhammer Universe's most feared forces.
You will be able to get a much more in depth look at the individual units in the Sisters of Battle's repetoire as I begin to delve into the creation of my own Sisters of Battle army.
 |
| A Sister of Battle in the traditional armour of the Adepta Sororitas |
Since the premier focus of this blog will be the Sisters of Battle (though other 40k factions will get their time in the limelight) it is essential to introduce them, as well. I find that within the world of Warhammer 40k lore the Adepta Sororitas, or Sisters of Battle as they are commonly known, have one of the richest story lines as well as an impressive array of tactics for the battlefield.
 |
| A Living Saint in battle with the enemies of the Imperium |
The Sisters of Battle are the the fighting arm of the Imperial Ecclesiarchy, which is the official "church" of the Imperium of Man. The Sisters are utterly devoted to the God-Emperor of Terra, and are the Holy Maidens of the Imperium's armies that can trace their history back to some of the darkest eras in the existance of the Imperium. The exclusively female order of warriors serves side by side with the armies of the Imperial Inquisition to root out the enemies of mankind, as well as traitorous elements within the ranks of the Imperium itself.
On the battlefield the Sisters of Battle are a force to be reckoned with. They can bring to bear extremely heavy fire-power against their opponents, all the while mainting high morale due to their unshakeable faith in the God-Emperor. They are highly flexible, capable of fielding everything from the flame-throwing Immolator tank to the divine Living Saints, which are holy maidens raised to incredible power by their faith. The Sisters are also able to bolster their forces by calling in the aid of other branches of the Imperial military, such as the Imperial Guard or the Space Marines. With such a strong list of forces, it is easy to see why the Sisters are amongst the Warhammer Universe's most feared forces.
You will be able to get a much more in depth look at the individual units in the Sisters of Battle's repetoire as I begin to delve into the creation of my own Sisters of Battle army.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
What is Warhammer 40k?
In order to get properly started telling my Warhammer 40k story, it is important that everyone knows just what Warhammer 40k is! Therefore, without further ado, is my mini introduction to the world of Warhammer 40k. Warhammer 40,000 (Abbreviated Warhammer 40k) is a table-top war game by Games Workshop. It has its own unique story that takes place in a twisted future (the 41st millennium, hence the name) where the Imperium of Man is slowing falling apart. The armies of the Imperium fight to hold back their many enemies, even as the Imperium itself is sundering from the pressure of the "enemy within."
These battles are played out on the tabletop, where each player leads an army of one of the many factions in the Warhammer 40k universe. The scale of the conflicts range from small squad vs squad conflicts between 2 players to long protracted campaigns involving hundreds of miniatures and multiple players over the course of several days!
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| A Strike Force of Space Marines attack an outpost of the expansionist Tau Empire. |
Additional information about Warhammer 40k can be found on the Games Workshop official site (a link to which can be found under the resources section on this site). Thank for you checking out this introduction to the world of Warhammer 40k, and I hope you will find it an enjoyable experience.
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