Predicting M42 Events

[War Angel]

Clearly the fighting around the Eye of Terror wouldn't just stop. It would be an ongoing war.
So yes it was a "minor Chaos victory" for game purposes but the story would go on.
And since it's said to happen as "the 41st Millenium draws to a close" future events would happen in M42.

Armageddon may be in a quiet phase right now but eventually the war would heat up again.

The Tau will continue to expand, especially since the Imperium's resources are needed elsewhere.

Then there's always whatever the Orks, Tyranids, Dark Eldar and Necrons are up to.

I'd say:
* The Imperial Fleet would focus a majority of it's forces currently in the area within the Cadian system.
They would bombard the Chaos held areas and clear territory for addtional troops to land.
Space Marine chapters would be most effective in this because it would require less in
troop numbers and each would have a higher life expectantcy after making planetfall, especially in a hot LZ.
As many Grey Knights as possible would be brought in to do the anti-Chaos special forces job they do.
The Imperial forces would regain all of Cadia, but at great cost.

* Adepta Sororitas orders in the area would be sent in to secure the cities and other valued areas
after the Grey Knights took out the fierce daemonic prescence.

* Combined with above the Agripinaa Sector and Belis Corona Sub-Sector would continue to act as
a rear area for Imperial fleets. Rotating in new one while withdrawing others for repairs and rearmament.

* The three areas would be placed in a sort of lockdown as the higher ups attempted to
bring the situation under control. However long that would take.

* The Ork's "Green Kroosade" would be having fun with MorDakka Prime and Orks on that world would
be primarily concerned with building new stuff to git da humies wit. They would decide they didn't need
the deal with Abaddon anymore as they'd have da good bits all to themselves.

* Ulthwe Craftworld having lost Eldrad would fight ever harder to stop Chaos from spreading more than it had.
The Eldar in general would be working to make sure their gains on Belial IV. Now that Altansar has been found
they'll probably stay in the area since they seem to bee Daemon fighting experts. This could result in a
complete return to Eldar control. So the question is can they somehow release it from the EOT
and reclaim one of their old worlds?

* Typhus would consolidate his control over Ulthor and turn it into a Daemonworld of his own design.
Perhaps even becoming a Deamon Prince himself. Unless being the Herald of Nugle suits him and his God better.

* Agripinaa is going to have food supply problems since it can't depend on Yaynor, Ulthor, and Dentor anymore.
Supplies will have to be brought in. Causing further problems Chaos forces will know this and every supply shipment
that makes it in will be paid for in blood.

* Tau Expantion will continue and even more worlds will be brought in making them stronger and able to better defend
worlds allready taken. Imperial policy may be just to keep the Grox dung at shoe level and not much more than that.

[TheConverter15]

Hmm, maybe Calgar and logan fall in combat (maybe turned into dreadnoughts) and Sicarius and Ragnar become chapter masters. More problems with astronomican and Golden throne (think that was mentioned somewhere at the end of M41). Celestial Lions completely wiped out. Leviathan continues to spread.

[Morkash]

Weren't both the Gothic War AND the 3rd War for Armageddon somewhere like 998999/M41?
One of the constants in the 40k (and Fantasy) universe is their frozen time, both on the brink of war just before/after Storm of Chaos/Eye of Terror.
The only try at this was Rick Priestley with his 4 Warhammer Forge Chaos books and the "End of the World" setting but never started the prject, instead leaving the company.

So, to be honest I do not expect the timeline to advance.

[Col. Tartleton]

Commissar Cain utterly beats the crap out of a lot of enemies again and again and again for Emperor and Imperium while bravely, bravely, running away.

[shadowhawk2008]

Weren't both the Gothic War AND the 3rd War for Armageddon somewhere like 998999/M41?
One of the constants in the 40k (and Fantasy) universe is their frozen time, both on the brink of war just before/after Storm of Chaos/Eye of Terror.
The only try at this was Rick Priestley with his 4 Warhammer Forge Chaos books and the "End of the World" setting but never started the prject, instead leaving the company.

So, to be honest I do not expect the timeline to advance.

http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Gothic_Sector

The Gothic War was the TWELFTH Black Crusade.

[FarseerMatt]

* The Imperial Fleet would focus a majority of it's forces currently in the area within the Cadian system. They would bombard the Chaos held areas and clear territory for addtional troops to land. Space Marine chapters would be most effective in this because it would require less in troop numbers and each would have a higher life expectantcy after making planetfall, especially in a hot LZ. As many Grey Knights as possible would be brought in to do the anti-Chaos special forces job they do. The Imperial forces would regain all of Cadia, but at great cost.

The horse has already bolted, my friend. Abaddon, the Planet Killer, and a sizeable portion of the Chaos forces have broken out into the Thesus sector - this is where the next phase of the 13th Black Crusade will be fought. However, securing the Cadian Gate is vital to limiting enemy reinforcements and so the battle for Cadia may well play out as you describe (albeit without quite as much naval support).

* The Ork's "Green Kroosade" would be having fun with MorDakka Prime and Orks on that world would be primarily concerned with building new stuff to git da humies wit. They would decide they didn't need the deal with Abaddon anymore as they'd have da good bits all to themselves.

A follow-up campaign based in Canada determined that an Imperial counterattack failed to dislodge the Orks, and so the next major battle will probably be the Orks invading the one remaining bastion of Thracian Primaris.

* Ulthwe Craftworld having lost Eldrad would fight ever harder to stop Chaos from spreading more than it had.
The Eldar in general would be working to make sure their gains on Belial IV. Now that Altansar has been found they'll probably stay in the area since they seem to bee Daemon fighting experts. This could result in a complete return to Eldar control. So the question is can they somehow release it from the EOT and reclaim one of their old worlds?

It's pretty ambiguous as to whether the Eldar want to hang on to Belial IV and Eidolon permanently, or just long enough to recover as much stuff as they can before leaving. Either way, they should find some pretty nifty pre-Fall artefacts - the question is how they will ensure that they remain untainted. Also, a "controversial" member of the Seer Council will take over Eldrad's job (it would be nice to know exactly who it is...). Eldrad himself may or may not come back - the Talisman of Vaul he got sucked into inexplicably stopped firing and disappeared, and the few still-glowing waystones that Q'sandria is keeping an eye on indicate that he is still fighting. If Eldrad does win his fight with the daemon and come back, it will be as the guiding spirit of a fully-functional Talisman that could change the course of the ongoing war.

In other news an Eldar force under Farseer Kith failed to reconsecrate some standing stones on Chinchare, due to the Imperium forcing them back before they could finish (again, this comes from the Canadian campaign). The damage to the standing stones caused some destabilisation in the webway, which was likely responsible for the gate on Medusa V getting stuck open and the Eldar having to intervene to close it.

* Agripinaa is going to have food supply problems since it can't depend on Yaynor, Ulthor, and Dentor anymore.
Supplies will have to be brought in. Causing further problems Chaos forces will know this and every supply shipment that makes it in will be paid for in blood.

This was indeed suggested in an Inquisitor article in Fanatic magazine published shortly after the EoT campaign. However, even if Agripinaa does not collapse into anarchy from food shortages, a follow-up invasion from the many Chaos-controlled planets in the sector is surely forthcoming.

* Tau Expantion will continue and even more worlds will be brought in making them stronger and able to better defend worlds allready taken. Imperial policy may be just to keep the Grox dung at shoe level and not much more than that.

The Tau have actually suffered some fairly major setbacks recently. They cancelled their improved warp drives project after Medusa V, and the planets taken by Shadowsun described in the Tau codex have been recaptured during the Zeist campaign from the Space Marine codex (which seems to be a deliberate "screw you" to that exact piece of Tau background). While the rest of the 4th sphere gains made during the EoT campaign remain secure (the Canadian follow-up campaign determined that the initial Imperial counterattack utterly failed, with forces ambushed and many leaders captured), the defeat in the Zeist sector may well shake the faith of these recently-claimed worlds and cause them to rebel.

[nagash66]

Look the fact is that GW has made it so that every factions is pretty much 'just' about to pull of their final plot against the Imperium.

The problem with talking about M42 is that the background is not made with M 42 ever coming about in mind.

Perfect example the recent BA dex making it so that pretty much every BA successor chapter being on Baal and even then victory is not assured. The background is written with rule of cool in mind and so we find ourselves with an Imperium that is pretty much going to be hovering between dead and super dead depending on how many of the doomsday plots come about.

Dragon on Mars
Nid Hive fleets
All necrons awake
Eldar make super death god
Chaos overruns Cadia
Armageddon falls or just becomes an even bigger resource sink that dooms a segmentum.
etc etc


I would LOVE for them to move the timeline along ( be it FW, an expansion or a new range that lives alongside 40k) , however i would prefer it if they 'jump' 200-300 years or so and we get a setting where the Imperium is now several human empires, the Segmentum sol is pretty much the only truly 'secure' Imperial bastion left, marine home worlds and mini empire are left and we get a new playing field where all the races can have fun.

Explanation why any of the doomsday scenarios dint work? They all balanced themselves out.

Those are my thoughts on the matter anyhow.

[TheConverter15]

@ nagash66 - I second this, I wish thery moved it far along, where current characters are old legends and myths and each race has progessed in its technology and evolution

[War Angel]

So, to be honest I do not expect the timeline to advance.

That's why I made the thread. Because GW doesn't seem inclined to move things forward
and if events such as these really played out the fighting wouldn't just stop. It's not like
Chaos would say "Ok playtime's over we're going to leave now because tomorrow is
New Millennium's Day and we're not allowed to acknowledge it."

So let's use our imaginations and come up with our own interpritations and predictions on
the most likely outcomes and future events.

I would LOVE for them to move the timeline along ( be it FW, an expansion or a new range that lives alongside 40k)

@ nagash66 - I second this, I wish thery moved it far along, where current characters are old legends and myths and each race has progessed in its technology and evolution

Glad to see I'm not the only one who wants a date rollover.

It's like GW is afraid of the M42 Bug or something.

[Lord Damocles]

There is some information on events in M42.

Inquisitor Vail's notes in the Cain archive (ie. all the Commissar Cain books/omnibuses) are written in - and refer to other publications from and events during - M42.

Cadian Blood and Atlas Infernal are set in the early years of M42.

[Azmodan666]

Well i play this hobby game for 10 years.

But nothing really changes in the story line.

[otakuzoku]

G.Eo.M dies/ astranomocone goes out
the imperium brakes down in to smaller empires.
tau expand
farsight enclave expand aswell
eldar, orks, dark eldar business as usual.
the hive fleets fragment
the inquisition F$^* with the space wolves for the last time

[Wyrmwood]

In response to Nagash's post: you know what I'd like to see? A 'Specialist Game' that focusses on pre-Unification Earth. I think it'd be killer. I know this isn't moving the time-line along; I'm sorry for the derail, guys.

[Lowmans]

I can see GW exploring more 'past' events but I doubt they'd move things forward unless it was more of the same.
A little like the Cain books - time has moved on but the Imperium still stands, same threats are brewing etc.
Seriously exploring one or more of the doomsday threats risks the setting (and GWs biggest selling setting) too much.

[El_Machinae]

The story of Armageddon is over. The place is ruined, and it will just be a question of how much money is wasted trying to rebuild it.

I have no idea regarding Cadia.

It would be the 'nid story that I'd like to see further.

[Chem-Dog]

The story of Armageddon is over. The place is ruined, and it will just be a question of how much money is wasted trying to rebuild it.

It's an ongoing grinding stalemate, most Astartes have pulled out as they are needed elsewhere and that really isn't their ideal way of waging war.

As for M42. In general terms it continues and gets gradually worse, the imperium is a house of cards and there are many people sitting there waiting to rock the table.
The Eldar continue to decline, with increasing rapidity.
The Tau continue to expand getting all the more jaded as they go.
The Hrud go to war
The Tyranid advance becomes a slow crawl as more races encounter and oppose them, but it's still an advance.
The Necrons fully reboot and start harvesting in ernest.
The Dark Eldar do their thing, failing to notice they are starting to run out of playthings.
Chaos feasts as more and more desperate idiots turn to the dark powers for salvation.
The Imperium starts to crumble with the systems ruled by the Astartes rapidly becoming the bulwarks against total collapse.
Orks just carry on fighting, not truly undertanding (or caring) why they are winning more than usual.

M42 is GrimER-DarkER and there isn't going to be M43.

[Iracundus]

It's an ongoing grinding stalemate, most Astartes have pulled out as they are needed elsewhere and that really isn't their ideal way of waging war.

As for M42. In general terms it continues and gets gradually worse, the imperium is a house of cards and there are many people sitting there waiting to rock the table.

The overall trend can continue but I would get around the doomsday scenarios by having the various threats counter each other to some extent, buying the Imperium time. It would also show the Imperium's weakening in that it is no longer single handedly fending them off but is relying on others to do at least part of the work (as shown by the original diversion of Hive Fleet Leviathan onto the Orks of Octarius).

My conception:

The 13th Black Crusade continues its drive towards Terra but is bogged down in ever increasing Imperial defenses as the Imperium strips borders to reinforce its core. Thus the two antagonists of Chaos and Imperium stalemate each other, though the Imperium buys this at the cost of sacrificing its borders.

The stripping of defenses elsewhere allows other races like the Tau, Tyranids, Necrons, Orks, Eldar, and Dark Eldar more opportunities to attack and erode the periphery of the Imperium.

The vast numbers of the Tyranids is countered by the super technology of the Necrons (who want to harvest the sentients of the galaxy for their own purposes), the numbers of Orks, and the meddling of the Eldar with their secret artifact weapons (as mentioned in the latest Tyranid Codex).

In turn, the super technology of the Necrons is countered by the vast numbers of Tyranids that still swarm under some Tomb Worlds, and the Eldar also intervene against their ancient enemies with their psychic artifacts. Thus the two juggernaut threats of Necrons and Tyranids end up battering each other to a standstill, giving breathing space for other races.

The Tau make further inroads against the Imperium but their increasing size means they engage in more conflict with Orks, Tyranids, and other races, and puts them at risk of overextension.

The Orks continue battling everyone and acting as general spoiler for everyone else.

The Dark Eldar continue to raid everyone and also act as a general spoiler.

The Craftworld Eldar continue to intervene at crucial moments, acting as the straw that breaks a camel's back or the pebble that starts an avalanche, and perhaps with the use of artifacts or ancient previously forbidden pre-Fall weaponry (maybe recovered from Belial IV?) show they may be waning but they are still a power to be reckoned with. Is it a resurgence of an ancient power or is it the last glimmer of glory of a culture in its death throes?

[Scribe of Khorne]

Chaos feasts as more and more desperate idiots turn to the dark powers for salvation..

If you just listened to us in the first place this would all be a moot point as a Chaos driven humanity would have the strength to win against the Xeno threats and we would be fine...

[El_Machinae]

Yeah, I don't really see Armageddon as a stalemate. The planet is never going to be the production center that it was, too much has been ruined, and rebuilding it will cost more than the received investment. The orks will never leave, and their constant presence will be a never-ending drain upon coffers. imo, anyway.

[SgtTaters]

IMPERIUM
buckles under weight of enemy attacks, space wolves and ultramarines basically set up their own kingdoms, this pisses off the Inquisition immensely.

SPACE WOLVES
Inquisition does something to piss them off more than usual, some inter-Imperium conflict plot line

ULTRAMARINES
Conflict of interests set up, where Ultramarines withdraw to save Ultramar but the cost is the loss of some system to xenos/chaos.

A storyline for outright schism would be interesting as honestly the game is already space marines vs space marines.

SISTERS OF BATTLE
have them actually not all die and succeed at something.

I want to see the BLACK TEMPLARS unleashed on the space wolves, they'd find great enjoyment in slaying those mutant psykers. The drunken party wolves would find the intense zeal and fervor of the Templars obnoxious. They're like sisters of battle without breasts.





ORKS
having a blast fighting everyone, solid empires forming similar to the days before da big party.

CRAFTWORLD ELDAR
Recovered Altansar, retook various crone worlds, kicked Ahirman's butt clear out of the webway. Biel Tann continues to expand its empire as more and more walk the path of the warrior and become trapped as Exarch's. Iyanden drifts around quietly. Ulthwe, galvanized by Eldrad's sacrifice continues aggressive attacks into the Eye.
**it's really weird but, at least with that EoT campaign result the "oh so tragic dying race" Eldar came out gaining ground and expanding

DARK ELDAR
enjoy piracy against all targets. Orks become prime prey as their empires expand. Ruined imperium easy prey, though not very exciting. Loot on the croneworlds may attract some into the Eye... they have webway access to the backdoors.
**and then the DE codex comes out with zero mentioning of 'dying'/'decline'/'ohsosad' living in a dimensional megacityplanetsystem with stars inside.

I can see some kind of Eldar themed Mordheim 40k where rangers and kabalites dig around daemonworlds for phat loot and plotpower artifacts.
Ork Freebooters and deff sklls would also just show up for more loot and fightin' everything.

TYRANIDS
continue to om nom nom into different empires.

TAU
Heat from the Imperium away as they withdraw into internal strife. Tau expand happily while engaging small bunches of tyranids. Technologically advanced shooty orks will take a bite out of them

CHAOS
after the embarassment of the 13th crusade and generally failing all over the place it's hard to say what could be done to make them threatening again.
Ok, have Chaos take Cadia. Cadia falls. Creed does something heroic, Krell dies doing something heroic.
Cadians are now a fleet based Regiment.