Primarch
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In the fictional universe of Warhammer 40,000, the Primarchs were engineered superhumans created by the Emperor to command his future Legions of Space Marines. Originally twenty in number, they were said to have been created using the Emperor's own DNA. Their genetic material was also used to form the basis of the legions they would command.
All were created in genetic laboratories hidden on Terra, and were almost complete before they were scattered across the galaxy. The cause of this is unknown; the forces of Chaos, the Emperor and the Primarchs themselves are claimed in varying tales to be responsible for snatching the infant Primarchs' incubation cradles from Earth and dispersing them through the Warp. As the Great Crusade progressed, the Emperor was reunited with each of them as his armies recontacted the worlds on which the Primarchs had come to rest. Most had, in the intervening time, risen to positions of power or infamy as a result of their remarkable physiology and abilities. At least two had been subject to mutation; Sanguinius, who had angelic wings and was reported to be psychic; and Magnus, who possessed a single cyclopean eye and bright red skin and was widely known to have formidable psychic talent.
Following the Great Crusade, Warmaster Horus fell to Chaos, dragging eight of his fellow Primarchs down with him. Nine Legions, along with many other traitorous forces, were incited to rebel against the Emperor during the time known as the Horus Heresy
Contents |
[edit] The Fate of the Primarchs
Today, all the Primarchs are either damned, lost or dead. Below is a table documenting each Primarch's name, the Legion he led, and his status as of the 41st millennium.
| Name | Legion | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Lion El'Jonson | Dark Angels | Disappeared during Luther's betrayal. El'Jonson is believed to have been taken by the 'Watchers in the Dark' to be healed, although it is stated in the 2nd edition rulebook Codex: Angels of Death (Priestley and Johnson, 1996) that he resides within an unreachable chamber within 'The Rock', the Dark Angels home fortress. |
| UNKNOWN | UNKNOWN | Deleted from Imperial records. |
| Fulgrim | Emperor's Children | Ascended to Daemonhood. Location unknown, believed to have laid claim to a planet within the Eye of Terror |
| Perturabo | Iron Warriors | Ascended to Daemonhood. Ruling over a fortress-world, Medrengard, within the Eye of Terror. |
| Jaghatai Khan | White Scars | Disappeared 70 years after the end of the Horus Heresy. Believed to be seen following a Dark Eldar Lord through a warp portal into Commorragh, the realm of the Dark Eldar. |
| Leman Russ | Space Wolves | Disappeared 197 years after the end of the Horus Heresy. After seeing a vision, Leman Russ sat up from his meal, said he would return for the final battle at "the wolftime," then promptly vanished. |
| Rogal Dorn | Imperial Fists | Dorn made his last stand aboard a Chaos battleship fighting in one of the early Black Crusades. His severed hand was the only thing recovered, and is maintained in stasis in the Chapter's fortress-monastery. There is contradictory material on Rogal Dorn's fate; see Imperial Fists for more details. |
| Konrad Curze/Night Haunter | Night Lords | A Callidus Temple assassin, M'Shen, is thought to have killed him, though it is believed that he let himself be slain. |
| Sanguinius | Blood Angels | Killed by Horus during the Battle of Terra. |
| Ferrus Manus | Iron Hands | Disappeared during the Drop Site Massacre. Believed to have been killed by Fulgrim, his head presented to Horus as sign of faith. |
| UNKNOWN | UNKNOWN | Deleted from Imperial records. |
| Angron | World Eaters | Ascended to Daemonhood. Led Chaos in the First War for Armageddon. Was defeated and banished back into the Warp by the Grey Knights |
| Roboute Guilliman | Ultramarines | Fatally wounded by Fulgrim. He is alive, but preserved in stasis. Some speculate that he is slowly healing, although this is thought to be impossible within a stasis pod. |
| Mortarion | Death Guard | Ascended to Daemonhood. Ruling over the Plague Planet within the Eye of Terror. |
| Magnus the Red | Thousand Sons | Ascended to Daemonhood although his physical body was shattered by Leman Russ. Ruling over the Planet of Sorcerers within the Eye of Terror. |
| Horus | Luna Wolves / Sons of Horus | Beaten by the Emperor on his Flagship during the Siege of Terra, his soul was obliterated. His corpse was later utterly destroyed by Abaddon the Despoiler along with all known clones. |
| Lorgar | Word Bearers | Ascended to Daemonhood. Overseeing his Legion's actions from the Daemon-world Sicarus within the Eye of Terror and the corrupted Forge World of Ghalmek, within the Maelstrom. |
| Vulkan | Salamanders | Disappeared during the Drop Site Massacre. Known to have survived the Heresy (opposed Guilliman's plans to disband the Legions). Said to have disappeared 1000 years after the Heresy. Salamanders believe he will return one day. |
| Corax | Raven Guard | Being unable to forgive himself for what he did to his legion to ensure its survival, he left in a ship to the Eye of Terror a year after the defeat of Horus, leaving a single word of valediction, "Nevermore.....". |
| Alpharius | Alpha Legion | Killed in single combat by Roboute Guilliman during a war between the Alpha Legion and Ultramarines post-Horus Heresy. The source of the account of this 'war' is considered suspect, even by Ultramarines. |
[edit] The Missing Primarchs
In some literature the missing Primarchs and their Legions are listed as being "Deleted from Imperial records".[1][2] Games Workshop has never released any material about them, but fan speculation is rife and many theories exist. One piece of literature contains a passage in which Horus apparently goes back in time and cracks the incubation capsule of Primarch XI before the Primarchs are scattered to the warp.[3] (the effect this has on the primarch is inconclusive). A short story featuring the Iron Hearts Chapter,[4] specifically mentions a Primarch "Rubinek", and another Primarch is referred to as leading the White Consuls chapter[5], though both instances are in direct contradiction with the majority of canon regarding Primarchs II and XI.
At one point, Games Workshop seemed to suggest that Sigmar of Warhammer Fantasy was one of the missing Primarchs. This was subsequently revised and is no longer the case.
Games Workshop has implied that it wants players of Warhammer 40,000 to make chapters of their own, inspired by the two missing legions[citation needed].
In the Computer Game Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, the leader of the Blood Ravens Space Marines tells his men to achieve victory, for 'The Unknown Primarch' when his fortress is attacked. This could lead to speculation that the Blood Ravens are one of the Missing Legions. This notion is in contradiction, however, to the canon that the Blood Ravens are a post-second-founding chapter of either the Blood Angels, or the Raven Guard. This would mean their Primarch is either Sanguinis or Corax, respectively.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ Chambers, Andy (1998). Warhammer 40,000 Codex: Space Marines. Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-869893-28-X.
- ^ 2nd edition Codex Imperialis
- ^ McNeill, Graham (2006). False Gods. Nottingham: Black Library. ISBN 1-84416-370-9.
- ^ Jowett, Simon (2003). "Hell in a Bottle", in Gascoigne, Marc and Jones, Andy (editors): Into the Maelstrom. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-671-78386-6.
- ^ Abnett, Dan (2001b). Malleus. Nottingham:Black Library. ISBN 1-84154-204-0.
- Chambers, Andy (2004). Warhammer 40,000 Codex: Space Marines, 4th Edition, Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-84154-526-0.
- Chambers, Andy; and McNeill, Graham. Index Astartes. Nottingham: Games Workshop.
- Chambers, Andy; and McNeill, Graham (2003). Index Astartes – Volume II. Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-84154-345-4.
- McNeill, Graham; and Chambers, Andy (2003). Index Astartes – Volume III. Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-84154-443-4.
- Priestley, Rick; and Johnson, Jervis (1996). Warhammer 40,000 Codex: Angels of Death. Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-872372-96-1.
- Watson, Ian (1993). Space Marine. London: Boxtree. ISBN 1-85283-840-X.
- Index Astartes – Volume IV. Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-84154-580-5.
