In this post, I will give a brief overview of some
influences that went into the Legion and Primarch design – a “breaking the
fourth wall” type of a look into the design decisions that came out of
discussions between the team members. This is, of course, just my
interpretation of these decisions, as some of the Legions were created by other
team members.
Red Star Legion
While the naming convention of the Legion, its homeworld,
and its Primarch is very much Russian, the Red Stars have more in common with
the chaotic post-Soviet Russia than with that nation’s long history and
extensive culture. Stefan Ignatiyev himself is, for all intents and purposes,
an oligarch rather than a
conventional politician or soldier, and though his Legion is the First, they
are but one tool of the wider arsenal. As such, the Legion and the Primarch are
heavily pragmatic in their approach, and while capable of calculated brutality,
are typically rational in their choices and decisions. After all, they are
descended from shadowy, dangerous, yet ultimately regimented and orderly
organizations, and cover their violent nature with high culture and civilized
veneer.
Jaws of the Deep
Though on the surface, the Khornate followers of the
Great Shark God Kthuln are simple creatures, we tried to give them additional
depth that would keep them from becoming a cliché. I have always thought them
to have a vaguely Polynesian feel in terms of culture, with maritime tradition
being very important to them, and some of the Legion’s practices having a very
tribal feel. Then, there is Kthuln – the man who was worshipped as an actual
god, and who believed his own legend until it crumbled all around him. Unlike
canon universe characters faced with similar dilemmas (Angron and Mortarion
come to mind), Kthuln’s reaction at learning his place in the universe is
shame. It is his shame at having fallen so short of the Emperor’s ideal which
drives him to adopt a strict code of martial honor to subdue the beast inside,
and to make penance for what he sees as savagery and dishonorable slaughter of
his youth. That, and his status as the first Primarch to be found, keep him
apart from most of his brothers, and play a role in his eventual fate.
Spears of Eternity
While Zaeed and his Legion definitely have an Arabian
influence to their naming convention, there is more to them than straight-up
proxies. Yes, they are vaguely Arabic in names, their signature psychic ability
is causing dust storms (which may bring to mind the battle at Yarmuk in the
VIIth century), and their homeworld has higher-than-average proportion of
deserts, but there are other aspects to them which are inspired by other
sources. Personally, I always got a vaguely Dune vibe from them, and the highly
morbid practice of psyker-servitors as “psychic batteries” to provide fuel for
the Sihrmagi’s power seems to fit the Warhammer universe rather well. The
eventual development of the Spears as civilized, educated warrior-mystics plays
into that as well; to me, they seem to have a considerable Sufi influence as
well.
Steel Wardens
The inspiration behind the IVth Legion was simple –
robots, lots and lots of robots. I have to admit that one of the factions from
Dan Abnett’s “Prospero Burns” (Olamic Quietude) was somewhat influential as
well, though in creating the Steel Wardens and Echelon, we hoped to avoid the
clichés. After all, the canon Warhammer 40,000 universe already has
technology-obsessed Iron Hands with their cybernetic fetish. For that reason,
we decided to use a different approach to Steel Wardens, and to portray their
addiction to internment in robotic bodies as a form of transhumanism. This made
them considerably more humane than most Twisthammer factions, as they see
themselves as a form of human evolution instead of as something inhuman.
Midnight Riders
Who doesn’t love a good dose of post-apocalyptic fiction?
Enter Midnight Riders and Ashur, who started as a deconstruction of the canon
universe “biker army” principle (looking at Space Mongols… I mean, White Scars
here), and ended up as a Mad Max biker gang with a nasty reputation, and an
even nastier temper. Add combat drugs into the mix, crank up the addiction
factor and the psychological issues of withdrawal, and the Fifth Legion becomes
one of the more disturbing Loyalist factions of Twisthammer universe.
Imperial Redeemers
The Sixth Legion started out as power-hungry empire
builders led by the most brilliant general of the age (who had a bit of a god
complex, and who was very much Alexander the Great in space). Naturally, this
made them into prime candidates to become this universe’s answer to canon Sons
of Horus, leaders of the rebellion and combined arms, flexible, disciplined
force. The temptation to make them into expies of Alexander’s Macedonians was
great, and many aspects of that culture eventually made it into “Conqueror”. At
the same time, I tried to give them a slightly different flavor by making
Apellan culture seem like a fusion of several societies of Earth. My underlying
idea behind it was imagining what would have happened if the Arabs conquered
Constantinople during the Dark Ages, and what the fusion of Greek and Arab
cultures would have looked like in its golden age. As such, the Apellans are
the epitome of civilized, educated people with a superiority complex and
accomplishments to show for it.
Illuminators
There was definitely an Eastern Asian theme to the
Illuminators and their Primarch, who had a number of Buddhist influences in his
philosophy and approach to warfare. It was an interesting challenge to have a
psychic Legion that does not actively flaunt its powers, but uses them
considerably more cautiously, and avoids the arrogance of canon Thousand Sons.
It lent itself naturally to martial arts, emotional detachment, and search for enlightenment
as the ways to maintain control over their psychic nature without compromising
their duties as a weapon of conquest.
Iconoclasts
As the Legion’s and the Primarch’s names imply, the
Iconoclasts are all about destruction (and technological aptitude of making it
happen). When the Legion was starting to take shape, the key aspects of it were
the general cruelty of the Eighth, the burned image of their Primarch, and
their utter contempt for all. From there, it went in a direction of
deconstructing the canon technologist Primarch (Ferrus Manus, Perturabo), which
led to the creation of complete monsters with Nihlus and his callous, omnicidal
sons. Incidentally, they were perfect target for the one Chaos power which
embodies entropy.
Grim Angels
The anti-psyker, paranoid, violent weapons of terror with
an agenda, the Grim Angels (in my interpretation) are the complete
deconstruction of canon Night Lords and the like. While extremely dangerous and
brutal, they are in complete control of themselves, understand who they are,
and are, on top of it, utterly loyal – if not to the Emperor, then to the ideas
of human supremacy. Coincidentally, this makes them obsessed with the purity of
humanity, which, in real world, would have brought some very unsavory comparisons.
In Twisthammer, they are par for the course.
Peacekeepers
In creating Peacekeepers, we hoped to have one of the few
unambiguously “good” factions in the setting. One of the largest challenges was
to avoid making them an expy of the Ultramarines or the Salamanders, and in
doing so, they ended up obtaining an identity as essentially the agents of
order. As such, the Peacekeepers had to draw heavily from how modern-day
Western societies see themselves (a key difference, as the Tenth Legion is all
about trying to live up to a certain ideal and contrasting that ideal with
reality of the universe). To them, anarchy is the ultimate evil rather than the
symbol of freedom, and they try to fit the universe into their structured,
regimented view based on post-Enlightenment principles (contrasting that with
the moralism of the Salamanders or the Republican Rome ideals of the
Ultramarines). There is, however, a hidebound streak to the Tenth – they may
get too moralistic for their own good, and in the universe where most demigods
are monsters of varying degree, the Peacekeepers may have the tragic
distinction of being the primary group attempting to make a stand against the
injustices of the universe... even if it, paradoxically, ensures that they let
a greater evil take root.
Warblades
The Eleventh Legion is both a deconstruction of the
“gladiator Primarch” archetype, and a reimagining of the online gaming culture.
The signs are all there – the “kill-teams”, the “frag count”, the glory-seeking
treatment of war as a game. Unlike Angron in the canon universe, Baelic’s time
in the arena made him a celebrity, not unlike many gladiators in real world
history, and taught him completely different lessons. If anything, it made him
even more naïve, and thus, more susceptible to manipulation. There was a
definite amount of youthful exuberance to the Eleventh Legion, a certain degree
of immaturity inherent in them, which becomes a key theme of the third
Twisthammer novel, “Broken Blades”.
Lion Guard
When we decided to flesh out the Lion Guard, the initial
idea was to give the Twelfth Legion a vaguely Finnish/Ugric cultural legacy,
however, it became apparent early on that the theme did not extend beyond
certain naming conventions. At their core, the Lion Guard are about numbers,
disposable conscripts, and propaganda to spin their endeavors in a favorable
light – the very idea that an individual is essentially meaningless, which
quite frankly is a horrifying thought to many of us. In that, they are probably
one of the most callous Legions, a Lawful Evil of Twisthammer factions, if you
will (compare to Lawful Good Peacekeepers, Chaotic Good Warblades, or True
Neutral Illuminators), though there is plentiful space for heroism and even
basic human decency in the ranks. It is no accident that Rogr Hemri’s realm in
the “present day” Twisthammer setting is closest in spirit to canon Imperium of
Man.
Consecrators
The original concept of the Consecrators started with a
scientist Primarch whose background included Renaissance-era, heavily
experimental and sometimes coldly callous approach to science as the means to
achieve victory. Naturally, the Consecrators as they appear in Twisthammer are
considerably different, retaining only the basic principle of their original
concept – they are all about precise, scientifically determined application of
force based on the scientific exploration of their enemy’s patterns,
weaknesses, strengths, and opportunities such traits present. This outlook gave
the Consecrators a somewhat subdued profile; they are neither flashy nor
glory-seeking, but are considerably more competent than first impressions may
suggest, and even more dangerous as a result. While these traits would normally
lend themselves to a spymaster-type Primarch or a Legion specializing in covert
operations and similar underhanded tactics, with Consecrators they led to an
almost special operations, Navy Seals type of mentality, a modern style of
rational, research-driven warfare as opposed to more ritualistic or savage
factions within the Twisthammer setting.
Gargoyles
I must admit that the Fourteenth Legion is somewhat of a
pet project of mine. Though their original concept had them be
sabotage/guerilla warfare specialists with a winged monster of a Primarch,
their background had quickly evolved into their present-day state. “Reaper’s
War” was the first Twisthammer novel finished, and it helped define much of the
setting thanks to the exploits of Angelus and his twisted, barbaric sons. I do
not believe that there was a singular cultural influence on the Fourteenth
Legion, and even the names of the Legionaries are drawn from multiple sources;
at the same time, as I wrote more of “Reaper’s War”, the savage, primitive, and
violent world of Argos came into focus, and with it, the kind of people it
would spawn. Thus, the Gargoyles ended up being a product of their environment –
a monster-infested world where oral history and superstition ruled supreme,
where the people’s psyche embraced the dark side of night terrors and made them
real.
Hellhounds
The core concept at the heart of the Hellhounds was
simple – alien hunters with boundless hatred for the Eldar, yet no compulsion
against using their weapons. From that point, however, many questions had to be
answered. Why would Griven Kall and his sons have such a chip on their
shoulders? What is at the core of the dichotomy where the Legion would use the
weapons of the enemy with pragmatism unbefitting the people given to strong
emotions such as hatred? After attempting several different narratives, we had
an idea of making it intensely personal for Mr. Kall by having him raised in
the gladiator arena of Commoragh amongst the most depraved of the Eldar kin.
That concept gave the Fifteenth Legion the push they needed, the rationale for
the undying hatred of their Primarch for the elfin aliens, and, paradoxically,
little compulsion against using the enemy’s weapons due to familiarity.
Immortals
Ah, Leto (who, despite the name, has very little Dune
influences). He came rather far from his original concept – a Primarch defined
by a world practicing biological transhumanism, eugenics, and other practices
where one’s genetics would define his or her status in the society. There still
remain hints of those beginnings, both in Leto’s experiments to improve the
human “stock” of his worlds, and in his aborted Heresy-era experiments with
Chaos, however, the Primarch and the Legion ended up going in a different
direction. Where the post-Heresy ideas for Leto and the Immortals have a
retro-futuristic feeling (all the way to the inevitable “robot rebellion”
predicted by many a science fiction author), I have always seen an almost
Foundation series-like (looking at you, Hari Seldon) scheming mind at the heart
of the Sixteenth Legion, very much a plotter, schemer, and politician as
opposed to a front-line fighter. As such, Leto does not have a singular
influence at this point, neither culturally nor thematically, though he does
address a number of tropes from the golden age of science fiction.
Liberators
If Andrieu Ulliann’s name does not make it rather clear, he
is heavily influenced by many ideological revolutionaries from the French
revolution all the way to the Communist and Marxist leaders of recent memory.
Like many of such figures, Andrieu is naïve, willingly ignorant of vile things
done in the name of noble ideals, and nearly fanatical in the pursuit of his
goals. This, ironically, creates a character who is either unaware of his
hypocrisy, or is purposely blind to it, a deconstruction of the “noble
revolutionary” archetype as he becomes the very thing he fought against. As
this character spread to the Seventeenth Legion, it lent itself well to a split
within the Liberators – on one side, the naïve fanatics guided by an impossible
ideal, on the other side, the callous opportunists who use the rhetoric for
personal aggrandizement. While there are some overt late-Industrial era
influences to the Legion’s appearance and the Primarch’s backstory, the core
influence for the Liberators is the conflict between the impossible ideal and
the cruel, unprincipled men who would use it to justify their excesses.
Doom Reavers
As yet another Legion without a clear cultural
counterpart on Earth (no “Viking werewolves”, “Italian vampires”, “Egyptian
sorcerers”, “Greek siege masters”, or “Mongol bikers” here), the Doom Reavers
started life as a deconstruction of the spymaster concept. Where in the canon
Warhammer 40,000 universe, the Alpha Legion filled the role of the shadowy,
know-it-all force, the Doom Reavers use some of the similar methods, but
produce very different results. They are the special forces of Twisthammer
universe, but, unlike the more precise and scientific Consecrators or the
organized crime-like Red Star Legion, they are the people who are called when
the job must be done, no matter the cost and casualties. Coincidentally, they
are less of a clandestine organization with an Astartes component, and more of
a Space Marine Legion that just happens to have an attached clandestine
organization. As such, they are often distrusted by their peers, and when the
Legion’s liberal use of weapons of mass destruction is added into the mix,
their reputation suffers even more, producing a bitter, angry Legion with
dubious loyalties.
Iron Locusts
Starting with the idea of a jump infantry-like Legion
with a vaguely insect-like visual theme, the Iron Locusts came far from their
roots. While the first developments included giving them a “hive mind”-like
ability, it was SIngemeister’s suggestion of Indian cultural theme and
subsequent IA entry that gave the Locusts a unique personality. At the same
time, they are more than a Hindu-themed faction in space. We wanted to give the
Locusts some depth outside of being a straight cultural expy, and though their
theme can be vaguely described in terms similar to canon universe (i.e. “Indian
entomologists”), the added touch of sympathy for abhuman populations and
strange emotional changes caused by Maikhaira’s genetic legacy gave them
exactly that.
Angel Kings
As more of the background for the Twentieth Legion came
into play, we had to work hard to give them a distinct identity in order to
separate them from certain canon factions (Dark Angels in particular). Though
on the surface, the Angel Kings seem to have certain similarities with the
canon First (knightly code, an aloof-yet-tactically-brilliant Primarch), we
decided to delve much further into certain aspects of real-world feudalism for
inspiration. As such, Angel Kings are all scions of aristocratic families, and
act as such – they have lengthy pedigrees, complex social hierarchies, and an
undying conviction that the Primarch knows better. Therefore, while the
Twentieth Legion naming convention is vaguely Middle Ages European, it is an
idealization of the knightly ideal going back to Charlemagne and Roland, or
even earlier European myths defining traditions, conventions, and rules of such
conduct. The post-Heresy Angel Kings are, therefore, an organic outgrowth of a
feudal polity where the Astartes commanders take the role of landed nobles,
line Astartes form their contingents of household knights or men-at-arms who
lord over the human commoners, and have a complex relationship with the
planetary aristocracy they are recruited from.
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