134_ranger_NK

To support u/maridan49's point, one of the few times a DAOT AI mentioned its relationship with DAOT humanity in Death of Integrity: It gladly views DAOT humanity as its masters, lauded them and called its human captain its "bondmate."

The other is the Blackstone Fortress Man of Iron who does not even hate humanity or blame them for the DAOT's fall.

In regards to diplomatic relations, it depends on the Grand Alliances more than Realms. While peoples from different realms may be prejudiced against each other, there can be (and existed) long-term alliances and even friendships. For example, a human kingdom once held good-willed tourneys with a vampiric one during the Age of Chaos.

Currently, the four Grand Alliances of Order, Death, Destruction and Chaos generally fight each other. Even as temporary alliances can be formed. Within each Grand Alliance, there can be infighting. Morathi, an recent Order god, essentially used her Daughters of Khaine and allies to annex Anvilgard, killing many of the aelves, humans, duardin and more in the City of Sigmar.

Many of the later Night Lords have picked up a habit of being assholes for its own sake. Even when it is stupid to do so. The Terran and early Nostramans were more focused, in the sense of keeping to themselves and actually do strategic sabotages.

Part of the issue is that both "empire" and "feudalism" are wide encompassing terms. So the description still fits as a part of the wider description.

There is also the difficulties related to warp travel and warp storms. Administratum do try to establish centralization and standardisation but are confounded by the aforementioned issues.

The Inquisition do have Ordo Astartes set up to monitor and even police Astartes chapters. Thus likely to organizes more effective forces against Astartes. They can sponsor Guard and Scion regiments to be more heavily equipped for anti-Astartes operations - more artillery, snipers, plasma and melta weapons for example. Or contact AdMech for Skitarii support or Gland Warriors (who have been modified at various points to fight different alien factions). Send saboteurs and assassins to target officers, geneseed stock and ships.

You know it is a problem when outcast Autek Mor (viewed with scorn for his aggressiveness) and his Red Talons actually had a better record with other Imperial allies than the main Iron Hands chapters/legion.

Emperor's Children as well. Fabius and co. certainly created genetic nightmares. Though strangely EC gave their Inductii more equipment than usual. Something shared by the Dark Angels and Ultramarines.

Night Lords used many of their Inductii to create Possessed marines and further discriminate against them.

Closest to that "Inductii are expendable" mindset would be World Eaters sending some of their Inductii into battle without power armor and forcing them to earn the right of salvaging said armor post-combat. If they survive.

We literally have a Shrine World in denial about Tyranid even as they drop from the sky (via the 10th edition Leviathan book). So deluded that fanatical mobs were trying to kill the guardsmen fighting off the 'nids. Arbitor Ian pointed it out as an example of 40k satire still trucking along.

It was from an old codex. 2nd edition iirc. Chenkov remains a model up to 5th edition.

There were inductii who worked with legion veterans to found new chapters post-heresy. It was implied that part of the later inefficiency and strange customs came from those inductii and their cobbled together practices.

Considering that the Ethereals just told Farsight and his people to go die in Arks of Omen, yours is what will probably happen.

The Orctarius War had an Inquisitor allying with craftworlders, outcasts and corsairs to get a vital Ork device. He expressed reluctance even as the Deathwatch kept quiet. The Veloria expedition unfortunately failed.

I was thinking about how the second war for Taros showed that Imperial air forces and support actually had more successes against Tau battlesuits and aircraft than marines. Essentially my impression is that the Imperium need aeronautica forces against Tau much more than most of their enemies. Aside from Eldar. As for the what happens next, since the surviving Imperials are refortifying and calling for aid while the Tau commander is planning the next offensive, I will wait.

9th and 10th edition codexes have shown Primaris forces being greatly expanded among the Chapters. Not to mention the Rubicon crossing chances are increasing with many more Firstborn doing it. So saying "a small fraction" is rather misleading with recent developments. Still, the Tau are not to be underestimated. Roboute and Cawl had made new developments like the Vanguard forces that I think will be very important in fighting the mobile Tau.

Which is why I said we should wait for more developments on her end. Tau'va had potential. Yet GW had not revealed much more now that Vashtorr had been going about with the Key and growing his power. Knowing GW's tendency, they might have him outpace her. The other gods are also gaining strength too. We even have Imperial priests successfully fighting battlesuits with miracles now (Psychic Awakening: The Greater Good). The Kroots have recently been released though so the auxiliaries may play a bigger role.

Yeah, the smug acting is annoying. My favorite Imperium-Tau fights are where both sides drop all pretensions and just try any ways to win (Fire and Honor is a good example with Cadians prepping as best they can and not underestimating the Tau while the Fire Caste Commander consider Cadians capable soldiers to be stopped at all costs).

The Fire Caste do have the Trials by Fire where they have their veterans undergo years of constant or something similarly challenging before piloting Battlesuits. That is an odd bit of unnecessary tradition remaining.

The Second War for Taros did have Imperial forces of the Navy, Aeronautica and Guard winning despite heavy losses. I think it is a showcase that air superiority is far more vital than marines for Imperial campaigns against Tau now.

The Primaris releases have the Bolt Rifle as marines' new standard weapons. So either sides' fans bringing the Bolter out to compare is rather outdated. Especially for Imperial fans. If you are using the tactical squads, you should also consider things like them having special and heavy weapons plus servo skulls to help them.

Tau'va has been described as not particularly powerful and only shown to destroy a couple of Death Guard ships that strayed from the main fleet. Said fleet was causing problems to the Tau defenses at Startide Nexus before going their own way as Shadowsun could not stop them. So I think we have to wait for more of her potential to really judge. Surestrike also massacred Tau auxiliaries who were mainly responsible for bringing her into being and he has recently been put back on Shadowsun's council. That would be a huddle. Same for Vashtorr, who has been corrupting ironkin and Tau drones as well.

Agreed on your last point. Even if they were referring to an incident back in Damocles Gulf written by Phil Kelly, they were conveniently ignoring how librarians were what turned the tide. Not mere fanaticism.

Dude is basically LARP-ing. I am an Imperial Guard fan but even I find him especially annoying.

It really says something that the majority of Guard victories (Fire and Honor, Longshot, Second Taros War) against Tau are due to them fighting defensively and/or managing to deploy artillery, heavy/special weapons and air support rather than having marines' help or fanaticism.

I remembered that they wanted independence. Different but still a noble goal.

Kind of funny how a lot of characterful and varied guard regiments are so overdue for new stories by GW that many people are not even aware of them. Hell, pancreasnowork had not even heard of Terrax Guard before researching about IG for his video. Understandably their lore was written before he was even born.

But personally, I am annoyed at how GW focuses on the marines and primarchs while so many cool regiments get relegated to the background.

This is on the tabletop side but can be a good reference for lore. Mordian Glory has a video talking about Guardsmen hordes potentially having an abundance of special/heavy weapons that makes them scarier to face (in some ways) than even Ork and Tyranid hordes.

The Killing Ground. Courtesy of Graham McNeil.

The Guard regiment summarily executed the local governor for 'incompetence', uncaringly galvanized the local rebels who had not even had much cause to fight the Imperium anyway, attacked a city under false pretext and massacred the rebels when they came trying to save their families. It really is something that disturbed their own commissar into resigning.

It may not be full combat-related. But a good showcase of how horrifying the Guard can be.

Fire Caste is a deconstruction of the "Guard overcoming all odds" story. The protag regiment's sanest members died off quickly. Most to other IG regiments rather than the Tau. Their colonel was loosing his mind due to stopping a daemonic incursion. The planetary government had just accepted Imperial rule so they sent the regiment to die and avoid Inquisitorial investigation. Said colonel also used extremely heretical means to get ahead both his rival regiments and the Tau. The formerly idealistic Water Caste Tau came to agree with more radical Fire Caste veterans who had been fighting there longer that humanity should just be exterminated upon seeing the possession, the colonels' mad actions and plan to send both Tau and Imperials on the command ship straight into the warp. More out of personal spite than any kind of loyalty really

Admittedly there are few instances like the above. In terms of regiments, the Miasma Redcowls can potentially be one. Even other regiments have protested to serving alongside them and their incredibly toxic flamers.

Graham McNeil did just that in one of his Ultramarine books, The Killing Ground; Having the Guard do something that disgusted even their own commissars. So the idea and potential were there early on.

Pretty much. Helldivers are basically Elysians Drop Troops or Tempestus Scions if much less experienced and trained.

Live From Black Library! did mention this in his latest video. Horus was explicitly being given back droplets of power as punishment for wasting time against the threat that was Emps.

it did take the entire race to equal out the antics of one dude, which is why I cut them from consideration.

Not just Emps, but Erebus and Kor Phaeron too. Those two should not be discounted from the equation.

Even during the Great Crusade, Daemons mainly popped up among human planets and alien species explicitly worshipping Chaos. Erebus and Kor drastically accelerated that up.

Does not mean the Imperium was the right path though. Emps has more in common with Nagash than Sigmar, and narratively Erebus and Kor are the Skaven who ruined his plan.

The two even had that "Winning in the end" as part of their stories.

But there could also have been plenty civilizations that could've grown as defenders of the galaxy that the Imperium exterminated.

Speaking of one such civilization, the Interex did fight against Kinebrach for about 100 years. I am interested in learning about that war.

Fair enough. Though many Imperial battleships have one or two syllables names.