With the fantastic Horus Heresy novel series slowly drawing to its inevitable finale, what characters would you have liked to learn more about? Maybe you feel certain characters should have had more page-time, or maybe certain characters which started as big characters, somehow disappeared into the shadows?
Well share your thoughts below.
For me though, here are some characters I wanted to learn more of:
Holgoarg - Captain of the Death Guard. I don't know much about this chap apart from that he was one of the 7 Death Guard Captains. Considering Garro is no longer an acting member of the XIV, Typhon is a very busy (yet absent) First Captain, Temeter died, Ujioj (Loyalist) presumably died, Grulgor is pestilence personified and the other being possibly Kullar Hal (though he may have been EC judging by his HHCCG image). It just seems that the XIV is in dire need of some Captains. Considering Holgoarg was described by Grulgor himself as a true son of Barbarus, this guy has the makings to be a decent character even if just in the FW Black Books.
Lord Gunn - First Captain Vlka Fenryka - He should have had some serious page time in Primarchs: Leman Russ. It would have been good to have seen Russ with Lord Gunn fighting a bloody battle, and a bit joyful. Primarchs: Leman Russ was fantastic though, but it could have been a good opportunity to show Leman at his peak, before a form of depression had set in (Nikea, Prospero, Allexes, Wolf Cull etc etc). Lord Gunn would have reflected his bombastic personality well before the Wolf King Novella.
Shang - Equerry to Curze, Night Lords - Set up as a cool character with a cool helm in Savage Weapons and Dark King, I thought we were to learn more about this chap, or see him again. Instead he has faded into darkness.
Anvillus Dynat - Alpha Legion Harrowmaster - Well he has a model and was mentioned briefly in a anthology, but that is it. A bit strange in my opinion as I was expecting lots more from him.
Howl of the Hearthworld - No one sets up characters like ADB. He is my personal favourite writer in the Horus Heresy series (with Gav Thorpe a close second), for evidence of this just read Prince of Crows & Howl of the Hearthworld. I was really expecting to see them in Praetorian of Dorn or Master of Mankind. Hope to hear more of them soon.
So who do you think should get more limelight?
Drake Seta
1) Mortarion and Perturabo, generally. Mortarion especially has drawn the short straw of the HH, despite his resurgence as a character in Path of Heaven.
ReplyDelete2) I want to see a novel, a one-shot like Damnation of Pythos, confirming the origins of the Blood Ravens and Red Scorpions as loyalist successors of the Thousand Sons and Emperor's Children, respectively - even better if they're together. I think it would be perfectly fitting and tasteful for them to do that as part of the HH/Scouring - keeping it obscure enough that it's still "a mystery", yet giving the fans the nerdgasm nod. Tons of character depth to be explored there.
3) as in the article, Dynat. He's meant to be this amazing force in combat, why haven't we seen it? He is exactly what the Alpha Legion have been missing.
After that, to be honest it's more battles and broad stroke wars that I wished they'd covered more comprehensibly. The series feels too jumpy, like the connective tissue and metaphorical coverage ala Path of Heaven, Vengeful Spirit, Angels of Caliban etc came too late, and books like Nemesis, The Outcast Dead should have come a bit later to space out the Ultramar stuff.
Less focus on characters, more focus on the war. The series shouldn't rely on the detailed autistic forgeworld books to tell the story of the war, en scale.
Only two for me:
ReplyDeleteHorus Aximand- He sits in an interesting position, he's such a prominent character among the XVIth Legion and yet completely absent in the 41st millenium. I can't help but wonder how he ends up. Then there's his tactical disposition. He seems to dislike/dissaprove of the increasing influence and presence of chaos within his legion. I'd almost say he's closer to Imperial Doctrine and organisation than what will become the chaos legion.
The second is Oriax Dantallion, entirely for selfish reasons, and I'll try to keep this spoiler-lite but I would like to see his actions during the heresy and how he came to be a proponent for the codex astartes whilst Dorn was, at the time, Deadset against it.
I've got the feeling that the reason Little Horus isn't mentioned in the 41st, is simply that he unfortunately doesn't make it through the Siege of Terra. He'll probably be one of several PoV characters we follow through it, but I'm willing to bet he meets his end on Garvi's blade.
DeletePhosis T'Kar. There were a couple of fantastic illustrations of him in Collected Visions, and a cool story in A Thousand Sons. Would like more of that and a miniature, too.
ReplyDeleteGabriel santor and autek mor, be great to get more info on the first captain of the iron hands, I know there's been snippets and also the beginning of autek mor his gene seed is said to be not of iron hands so would be cool to find out whos son he really is and what happened to him after he found Retrieved the stasis casket on bodt
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on Gabriel Sanfor. Hope we can learn more about him in the Primarchs: Ferrus Manus, story.
DeleteHopefully he's a great character be amazing if they brought him out in model I thought they'd bring all first captains out but just a shame we witness him wounded at the hands of the ec then again sees his primarch fall and finally loses to julius kaesoron, I'm gutted he didn't kill julius hay ho
DeleteShang was killed in The Painted Count, that's why he faded to obscurity.
ReplyDeleteTybalt Marr is someone I personally am always willing to see more of.
Guljuk Ygethddon, the Son of Horus sergeant, who have created the World Eaters task force Ygethddon
ReplyDeleteZardu Layak of the 17th
ReplyDeleteZardu's definitely got some potential. Sadly he's only been in the Forge World books so far, but if a Black Library writer wanted to take him and run with it, that'd be good fun.
DeleteI also really want to see Cyrene's story continued. It's presently on a bit of a cliffhanger.
Kyr Vhalen, goddammit! ;)
ReplyDeleteIaxion Hale. i just need something more.
ReplyDeleteI think I have to root for autek mor, iron father of the iron hands. He and meduson could need both more screentime for their shadow wars
ReplyDeleteMarius Gage and the Tetrarchs. Which would be a good name for a hipster skiffle band, now I think about it.
ReplyDelete