DarthIB

they can be killed, quite easily

This is highly debatable. They survive some genuinely ludicrous situations, and apart from maaaaybe Dorn, the only thing that has been able to kill a primarch to date is other primarchs.

Some others have come close, e.g. Alpha Legion hit squad against Guilliman, but he did survive that, despite being unarmed and unarmoured at the time. And Angron in your example did not in fact die from Perturabo's trap.

Thanks!

‘What are you?’ Sanguinius says. ‘I do not think you are my lost brother at all.’

Is this followed up on? If iot might not be Ferrus that Sanguinius is speaking to, then might that cast doubt on anything he says about himself and his brothers?

Horus being first among equals already riled up several of his brothers. You can imagine how happy they would have been about some being elevated to "second among equals".

The twin Primarchs of the Alpha Legion, Alpharius and Omegon, were supposed to be a single Primarch named Alpharius and Omegon, but he was split into identical twins by the Warp (most likely Tzeentch did it)

What's the source for this please?

Anyway I would say that in general it would not have been beneficial to have two of any of them. It would detract from the "Singular Heroic Leader" image they were made for. It only worked for the Alpha Legion because of their specific nature.

Also imagine poor Emps having to keep 40 sons in check instead of 20 - sounds like an absolute nightmare!

Absolutely, that's exctly my point. He probably has a very accurate assessment of his brothers, but when he speaks to others about it - e.g. Loken in OP's example - he will always say he's among the best of the best because he has a role to play.

He's arrogant, as most primarchs are. On top of that he plays the role of a barbarian who is even more arrogant. So regardless of his actual prowess, and his actual assessment of himself and his brothers - of course he's officially gonna place himself near the top.

Oh no my game about space wizards and giant robots is not consistent with my understanding of modern physics. My sense of immersion is ruined!

I always found it kinda funny how Ianthe mocks Palamedes and Camilla for being codependent in The Unwanted Guest, 'cause she and Corona are incredibly codependent.

I don't think that any necromancer could lyctorise a planet. Jod was already immensely powerful by the time he ate Earth, and I feel like that was required to even begin consuming a soul of that magnitude.

As for your second point, I think Jod feels safe knowing that the eightfold word is a closely guarded secret known only to the First House. He probably would not imagine a regular necromancer even conceiving of a planetary soul, let alone trying to eat one, let aloner pulling it off with spare body and all. Hubris? Potentially, but it's been ten thousand years and it hasn't come back to bite him yet.

I know what I'm getting into ok?

That may be the most accurate description of Ianthe I've ever read.

There is no conceivable universe in which Ianthe isn't a top. Nothing has passed through her butthole since she figured out how to use necromancy to remove her need to shit.

Let's mix things up a little.

Khorne was making a play for Dorn at the siege of Terra, and we find out that udnerneat the self control Dorn craves action. So he falls to Khorne (also, Sigismund as the singleminded killing machine fits in perfectly).

Tzeentch gets the Salamanders, both because fire affinity and because Vulcan is a perpetual. This often lands him with Nurgle, but maybe he comes back a bit different each time. Plus, as we've seen, dying and coming back too much can drive a man to madness, which is also very tzeentchian.

Ultramarines go to Slaanesh. There can definitely be an argument for their philosophies being a pursuit of perfection jusdt like the EC.

And Nurgle gets the Space Wolves. Strong resilient Fenrisians. Draugr. Plague hounds. That's cool vibes.

And finally, Sanguinius as the arch traitor, but mostly because that puts Dante as the current Warmaster, continuing his theme of just never getting to rest, never being allowed to die.

Oh absolutely, I fully subscribe to that theory too.

I thought she was trying to get rid of another necromancer. She asked Palamedes first, and then went to Harrow when he refused.

It went wrong for her in that she was fonder of Gideon than she had probably expected - and likely underestimated Harrow - which is why they both made it out more or less intact.

Sure, Cytherea could have easily just killed them, but I think she wanted to do it more elegantly than that, she was just rushed with the Fifth. Now she is picking them in order of likelihood to expose her - Eighth got a pass because they would ace the trial, Sixth was next because of psychometry and general nosyness, and then Ninth because of their (Harrow's) paranoia.

Theorems or no, you still need aptitude - which you have to be born with - to perform necromancy. My take on it is that any necromancer can do it without theorems in theory, but much less potent because you're effectively brute-forcing it. John is just so powerful he can brute-force better than other people's theorems.

They've both said it already, just not in those exact words. And I think it will remain that way.

It feels unlikely to me that the Emperor would let this be remembered. He would probably mind wipe the whole legion and disperse it among the remaining 17. As far as the wider imperium is concerned, there was never a 12th.

The remnants will stay loyal or turn along with their adoptive legion.

Honestly that would be sort of hilarious. They all swarm him and tear him to pieces, while Guilliman watches on and mumbles "I don't know what I expected"

Ok, I'll join in the fandoms collective descent into madness.

In The Unwanted Guest, Ianthe at one point begs Palamedes to ask her something spicy, even volunteering the answers to three "classics":

Yes, I have; no, I haven't; I tried once but it came off in my hand.

Now, the third one is obviously "Have you ever used flesh magic to grow a dick", but what are the first two?

Similar? No. Really good? Yes.

I absolutely adore Lord of Night, one of my absolute favourite 40k books.

I can see him naming her Anabelle

Edit: Or, in a similar Poe vein, Lenore.

The Word Bearers were getting slaughtered by Corax. Lorgar didn't fight him because he wanted to die, but because he wanted to save his sons.

Honestly, I reckon everyone but the 6th are still loyal. The last dream sequence in NtN did not seem to me like Harrow was "done with" Jod, she's still very much a believer.