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What would you do if you ran the imperium?

4K views 41 replies 27 participants last post by  MEQinc 
#1 ·
Much of the backround of the 40k sugests that the imperium is slowly but surely dieing. Worlds are regularly sacrificed and troops sent off to die to slow this eventuality.

If you ran the imperium? Through being the second Regent after malcador the sigilite or a high lord. What would you change? What other ideas could you implement to change this future? How could you save us?

Personally im thinking consolidate resources to a smaller zone maybe just a few key systems barricade them to hell then and only then try to gain more worlds. But this seems to be a plan based on luck and a lot of sacrifce . Then there would be little chance that any of the groups would agee or be willing to do any of this. And if they did would resources be enough to survive? To survive this galactical seige?
 
#34 ·
The Imperial Fist doesn't own Necromunda. They have a recruitment-center there. Infact the nicest Space Marines are the Imperial Fists, just too bad they are unsmiling hard-liners, and I thought the Ultramar-system was nine planets, eight now.

I agree with your points about hives being wasteful, I mean basically at the lower levels you can just shut off the fans making life better there, or maybe introduce Ogryns and Grox there, but then the worst human gangs are supplanted. Infact the ideal planet seems to be the Industrial planet. It combines the best of both worlds both hive and forge without the massive offset.
 
#35 ·
The Imperial Fist doesn't own Necromunda.
It's simply a turn of phrase. I know they don't own it. :)

Bottom line, that's their main listed recruitment hub, and I wanted to juxtapose it against the radically different recruitment practices of the Ultramarines, Blood Angels, and Dark Angels - all of whom rely on much different environments and population sizes, all of whom are also able to get their thousand-strong numbers (the Dark Angels probably more so, since the new Codex implies larger-than-standard Deathwing and Ravenwing formations).
 
#38 · (Edited)
Honestly, the critical problem seems to be dependency on the Emperor for warp travel, rather than Imperial philosophy (though that is heavily flawed too)...
We know the Emperor is going to die on the throne eventually, so it makes sense to pump more resources into working out inter-planetary travel that isn't warp dependent, or at the least work out how to navigate without depending on the Emprah and a psychic choir...
So it would also make sense making an alliance with the Tau: Yes, their empire is tiny in the grand scheme of things, and yes their technology isn't actually much more advanced than the Imperium's, but as I understand it they have a type of interplanetary travel that 'skims the warp' an dis faster-than-light. Yes, slower than warp travel, but it might lead to new discoveries if developed by the Mechanicum and Tau scientists...And it's better than being left with nothing when the psychic choir does eventually go out.
Regardless, a Tau alliance would actually help shore up the Eastern Fringe against the Nidz especially when allied with the Ultramarines and Eldar craftworlds in the region, leaving vital resources to be spent elsewhere (Cadia?). Also, their apparent psychic blanking ability could be useful in the fight against Chaos.

I'd also grant Ahriman an official pardon, and get him and a bunch of Grey Knights/Inquisitors (Draco etc)/Illuminati to break into the Black library again and steal some more secrets...Preferably regarding webway travel...

Then flick off the switch to the throne and wait the Emprah to become reincarnated.

The end.

Edit: Ahriman can steal the Book of Magnus and gets to keep it. He will also receive 3 cookies on completion of the mission.
 
#42 ·
So it would also make sense making an alliance with the Tau: Yes, their empire is tiny in the grand scheme of things, and yes their technology isn't actually much more advanced than the Imperium's, but as I understand it they have a type of interplanetary travel that 'skims the warp' an dis faster-than-light. Yes, slower than warp travel, but it might lead to new discoveries if developed by the Mechanicum and Tau scientists...And it's better than being left with nothing when the psychic choir does eventually go out.
The Tau travel technology is basically a more primitive version of the Imperiums, so an alliance there gains nothing (for everyone except the Tau). In fact it's basically a sneak-peak at what Imperial warp travel will look like once the Astronomicon goes out.

Also, their apparent psychic blanking ability could be useful in the fight against Chaos.
The Tau aren't blanks, that's a common misconception. The Tau have a very small warp presence but a blank has either (depending on the strength of the blank) completely zero warp presence or a negative warp presence. The Tau do not demonstrate either ability.

I'd also grant Ahriman an official pardon, and get him and a bunch of Grey Knights/Inquisitors (Draco etc)/Illuminati to break into the Black library again and steal some more secrets...
1) Why would Ahriman give a rats ass about a pardon? He doesn't believe he's done anything wrong, at least as far as the Imperium's concerned.
2) Giving Ahriman more power is just a very bad idea.
 
#39 ·
You don't need to Tau, though. There have been at least two instances where the Astronomicon concept was copied (in Ultramar, during the Heresy, though it remains to be seen what form this takes) or expanded on (the Blood Ravens' Beacon Psykana).

While the Emperor's death would be catastrophic in the short term, what is really going to do in the Imperium is that happening in conjunction with something on the scale of Abaddon's Thirteenth Black Crusade. If it's just "business as usual", the Imperium's reaction time would be slowed even more, but it's not as if the absence of the Astronomicon on its own would cause interstellar travel to cease altogether. Rather, the key question is whether the Imperium would have enough time to replace the Astronomicon with new beacons.

EDIT: where Ahriman is concerned, what's the point? His ambitions are infinitely larger than what a pardon would gain him... and besides, it's Inquisitor Czevak who knows how to get to the Black Library. All Ahriman's trying to do is catch him so he can steal the information from him.
 
#40 ·
Well, by that reasoning then, it seems the Imperium can easily build there own astromincans in each solar system. So the Emperor's death won't actually be as catastrophic as many make out. As long as they start building these beacons now in time for the failure of the throne. But we have no way of calculating if that is remotely possible within a reasonable timeframe. So I still say looking at Tau technology 'warp skimming' would be sensible, if only as a contingency plan or intermediary technology. That and it helps secure the East from the Nidz as I already mentioned to free up some resources for the 13th black crusade in the Cadia region, which by your own admission is the single biggest threat.
As for Ahriman - I would like arguably the most powerful psyker in the galaxy to be part of the team that breaks into the Black Library, and on the contrary he has A LOT to gain from this, since he is striving to understand the nature of Tzeentch and Chaos...The Black library of Chaos is probably the grand prize.
 
#41 ·
Well, it would be VERY catastrophic - just not totally so. Remember, a single hiccup with the Astronomicon led to thousands of vessels being lost. The Imperium would effectively be crippled (or, at any rate, really slowed down) for however long it took to build a new Astronomicon. It will be interesting to see how and what Guilliman and Ultramar did to get a signal that seemed like that of the Astronomicon.

Where the 13th Black Crusade is concerned, remember... this is all theoretical to begin with.

Where Ahriman is concerned, he has zero credibility to bring to the table - just a lot of power. I'd love to hear contingency plans for figuring out how to keep him in check when he gets in the Black Library. :wink:
 
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