Warhammer 40K.

[Weaver]

Just don't read Matt Ward unless you like monkeys in your army of demon hunters.
http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=&prodId=prod1140066a

To be fair, the Jokaero were talked about for a long time and were even in Rogue Trader. Hoever, I still have no bloody idea why they are in the Grey Knights army as they are a different race. GK being known for their extrodanary xenophobia and distrust of all.

 

[SckizoBoy]

So far...but I still have nightmares every night about the horrors and Stilton flavored cheese inflicted on the Grey Knights. And now the Black Templars. And possibly the Necrons. And as someone in the store was telling me today, and now the Tau.

Still, I suppose we should be thankful he hasn't touched Novels...yet (or has he? How do we know he and C.S. Goto aren't the same guy? - ED).

For good Novel authors with a decent understanding, I'd point you in the direction of Graham McNeil. For good Codex's, possibly Phil Kelly or (if he can lay off the Assualt 20 weapons for five minutes) Robin Cruddance. And for good games, depends. I'd say either the Dawn of War franchise or possibly SPHESS MAREEN (if it's any good - so far it just resembles a 40K skinned God of War clone. At least they got the weapons right for once).

LOL, he and CS Goto are the two personae of a manic schizophrenic, one can't stop coming up with crazy shit while the other can't come up with anything!

Oh yeah, I met Graham McNeil at Oxford Street Plaza GW when he was signing for the latest HH novel a couple years ago. A nice genial chat we had as well. Anyway, him and Dan Abnett (though with his you really do need to know your fluff) are the best IMO, while James Swallow, Ben Counter and someone else I can't remember the name of are pretty good too.

And as for codices, yeah, I like Phil Kelly's stuff. I wonder what the SM would be like if he did their codex...

Oh, as for Space Marine, they've put in a new weapon, some mine-launching-thing. The combat's going to be more varied that GoW, though I'm wondering if you get to play as the other squad members as opposed to just the VetSerge.

 

[GonzoGamer]

I would try and find some of the old codexes (like around 3rd edition) on ebay for cheap. Not just the army codexes but the campaign codexes like Eye of Terror. I miss Lost & the Damned.
Great bathroom reading.
They aren't still available in stores but you should try and download some of the really old books like Rogue Trader, Waaaa The Orks, and 'Ere We Go.

 

[Salad Is Murder]

Snip

People don't hate the Ultramarines. I love Marneus Calgar with his double power fists. People hate what Matt Ward did to them. The books by Graham McNeil are great supplements that give them character, but Ward is totally useless and destructive to canon.

Actually, everyone does hate the Ultramarines...even GW. My husband and I used to own a store that sold GW stuffs and he would be chatting with the GW guys about how even the Ultramarines players are ashamed to play Ultramarines. I think one of the lines was like: "Derpy durr, I'mma' paint'em just like I see onna' box!". But yeah, Ward fluff isn't really helping that image except here's the trick.

READ EVERY CODEX'S FLUFF LIKE IT'S A PROPAGANDA ARTICLE FOR ITS ARMY. Take this for example:

Link should be safe, but keep an eye open if you're at work
[link]http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Who_Watches_Them[/link]

Also, Damnation Crusade (comic book mini series) is a really good piece of work.

 

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

Snip

People don't hate the Ultramarines. I love Marneus Calgar with his double power fists. People hate what Matt Ward did to them. The books by Graham McNeil are great supplements that give them character, but Ward is totally useless and destructive to canon.

Oh. Wow.

I honestly never knew Ward existed. This makes so much more sense now. I always thought people hated them because they are so by the book in terms of laws and tactics.

Glad to know there are lot's of fans of McNeil!

 

[Continuity]

God I loved necromunda, even if my House orlock gang was boring and my Spyre Hunters kept getting rolled over by ratskins...

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Snip

People don't hate the Ultramarines. I love Marneus Calgar with his double power fists. People hate what Matt Ward did to them. The books by Graham McNeil are great supplements that give them character, but Ward is totally useless and destructive to canon.

Oh. Wow.

I honestly never knew Ward existed. This makes so much more sense now. I always thought people hated them because they are so by the book in terms of laws and tactics.

Glad to know there are lot's of fans of McNeil!

Read this [http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Ultramarines] People do still like the Ultramarines for their old school reputation as the everyman. It's just whenever Matt Ward starts changing canon to make them equal in power to the Emperor that people start to get pissed off.

 

[A-D.]

Where to start is a tough question. I'd start at first with http://wh40k.lexicanum.com mainly because, while there is a lot of fluff and non-canon in there, it gives you a good overview of the Factions and most history of the Universe. Once you've done that, try one of the Bookseries, honestly any mentioned here is good enough, though i'd start with Ciphias Cain, Gaunt's Ghosts, the first four Horus Heresy Books and Angels of Darkness/Fallen Angels.

They all give a good view into the Universe, skimming over alot of Factions and the general Feel of "everyone is a asshole ultimately". You can really pick any of those and see where you go from there, i'd suggest Dawn of War Series, the first Game including Winter Assault and Dark Crusade, as they give also some generic Idea of how the Wars are fought and the general mindset of said fights/armies.

After that, well more Books and the Table Top await.

Wait..............
..................
..................
..............what?

Aren't the Necrons souless robotic zombies, why would they ally with the Space Marines?

From what I've read, they're not all loyal to C'tan and some are actually sentient.

Actually thats not quite correct. You can play Necrons as belonging to different C'tan but they arent entirely outside their Control ultimately. At best you get a very small Warband Type which has some semblence of free will. Necrons are ultimately Slaves with little to no free will at all, some are twisted depending on which C'tan they belong to, i.e. using the Outsider for your Army, while you cant use the actual Outsider as a Unit, allows you to play your Necron army more freely due to the inherent insanity of the Outsider by itself.

Still, most Necrons are slaves to the C'tan so..at best you get maybe a handful that can really be described as having free will.

 

[thiosk]

I loved ciaphas cain and eagerly await more gaunts ghosts.

Both series get quite formulaic as they progress. But if we're reading war40k, we aren't really too worried about the literary chops of the material.

 

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

Snip

People don't hate the Ultramarines. I love Marneus Calgar with his double power fists. People hate what Matt Ward did to them. The books by Graham McNeil are great supplements that give them character, but Ward is totally useless and destructive to canon.

Oh. Wow.

I honestly never knew Ward existed. This makes so much more sense now. I always thought people hated them because they are so by the book in terms of laws and tactics.

Glad to know there are lot's of fans of McNeil!

Read this [http://1d4chan.org/wiki/Ultramarines] People do still like the Ultramarines for their old school reputation as the everyman. It's just whenever Matt Ward starts changing canon to make them equal in power to the Emperor that people start to get pissed off.

Oh...... Oh god.... Those statements.... Why?????????

This person needs to die.....

 

[cdstephens]

Horus Rising, Eisenhorn, and Ravenor (last two should be read in that order) are all good books. Hell, read anything written by Dan Abnett.

Dawn of War games are good, but skip Soulstorm. It's an unfinished games with bugs, loading issues, and terrible script. Observe: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO3MttgvHUY

Lexicanum is a good source for random fluff material.

 

[Soviet Heavy]

Alright, I'm gonna go a bit out of the norm here, but seriously, I'd recommend the 5th edition Rulebook. It has a comprehensive, well-detailed section on the universe's background and races, and it's the best place to get a first-contact for the overall feel of the setting.

A lot of people have been recommending the Horus Heresy series, and rightly so. They are the best 40k (well, 30K, technically) series of books out there, but they are not intended for a first look at the universe. In fact, it assumes you have some detailed knowledge of the background and its characters, like most retroactively-told origins stories.

I'd rather go with 4th Edition. I just felt that 5th edition was where things started going overboard. 4th Edition was pretty bleak, but there was still a glimmer of hope left in the tabletop game. 5th Edition took all the even slightly optimistic fluff and went "NO! NEEDS MOAR GRIMDARK!"

 

[TheRightToArmBears]

If you just want to get a shot of the lore without having to go through much fluff go to the Lexicanum website, it's a great WH wiki. Personally I think it's a shame that most WH lit gets written about Space Marines, Imperial Guard or maybe Chaos Space Marines, I find the Eldar to be much more interesting.

 

[Sir Shockwave]

LOL, he and CS Goto are the two personae of a manic schizophrenic, one can't stop coming up with crazy shit while the other can't come up with anything!

It gets worse. You heard the SoB are having a mini update next White Dwarf? Apparently, Matt Ward is writing that as well. Although to be fair, what I keep hearing amounts to Matt Ward is writing every update including the Kitchen Sink, so I can't say that for definate. Though if this should be the case, definately an interesting one.

Oh yeah, I met Graham McNeil at Oxford Street Plaza GW when he was signing for the latest HH novel a couple years ago. A nice genial chat we had as well. Anyway, him and Dan Abnett (though with his you really do need to know your fluff) are the best IMO, while James Swallow, Ben Counter and someone else I can't remember the name of are pretty good too.

Yes, all hail Graham McNeil. Top Bloke from experiance as well ^.^

And as for codices, yeah, I like Phil Kelly's stuff. I wonder what the SM would be like if he did their codex...

Phil Kelly wrote the 4th Ed. Marine codex incidentally O.O

Oh, as for Space Marine, they've put in a new weapon, some mine-launching-thing. The combat's going to be more varied that GoW, though I'm wondering if you get to play as the other squad members as opposed to just the VetSerge.

I hope. So far it looks like GoW: 40K edition.

 

[stutheninja]

personally, id either read the horus heresy, or, and here's a shocker, go out and find a codex you might like, and read it, i started on the grey knights but if that aint your thing there is always imperial guard, or you could read the rulebook, good comprehensive evaluation of all the races, though you might not want to spend the money

 

[Kelethor]

My first foray into the 40K world was Dark Crusade...I loved it. I looked at the many races of advanced aliens, savage monsters and super powered soldiers and I said to myself "Im gonna play as the normal guys, the Guardsmen!"

It was the best, and worst decision I made.

I loved the idea of being a "normal" man in a world with aliens and monsters and space marines, using whatever tactic or trick too simply stay alive. however, the problem I had with Dark Crusade was the Necrons. they were an overpowered race, and the Necron Lord just...he...he pissed me off so. (A typical battle against a necron lord: I move out with a few guardsmen squads and my hero, Necron Lord pops up, uses his cloud like ability which prevents the ability to fire ranged weaponry) It was a bad time. especially after I managed to purge both the space marine traitors and the chaos marines from the planet.

Despite that however, I loved the game. the constant struggle to stay alive, the universe itself....great, great stuff.

 

[SckizoBoy]

It gets worse. You heard the SoB are having a mini update next White Dwarf? Apparently, Matt Ward is writing that as well. Although to be fair, what I keep hearing amounts to Matt Ward is writing every update including the Kitchen Sink, so I can't say that for definate. Though if this should be the case, definately an interesting one.

Phil Kelly wrote the 4th Ed. Marine codex incidentally O.O

One... oh... very dear. I wonder how the Escapist's 'friendly Sister of Battle' will take that. If it's anything like the Grey Knights, faith points will be pure pwnage...

And as for Phil... I don't think he did write the 4Ed SM (Andy Chambers?), he did the 4Ed rulebook and Space Wolves, IIRC.

 

[SckizoBoy]

I think i just had a heart attack. Prepare for fluff bastardization El grande.

I think we're a bit late for that, old boy, the fluff in Blood Angels and Grey Knights were truly bewildering and infuriating in equal measure... so, if SoB gone beardy is going to give us heart attacks of the order of the earlier two, I think I'm inured to it now!