40K: Top Narrative Reveals from Vigilus & Mystery Flyer
Vigilus is narrative writ large from GW in a way we haven’t seen ever – and there are a lot of surprises within it’s pages.
First of all, Vigilus is the most detailed and exhaustive campaign set on a single world GW has ever given us (outside of say Siege of Vraks, – maybe). The book dwarfs Eye of Terror and Armageddon, spending 115 pages detailing not just the fighting, but the world, with each hive and different warzone covered in detail, alongside many, many maps. You get geography, you get politics, you get fighting forces, you get the campaign’s twists and turns, you get a full 6 phase campaign system for a group of players, you get a dozen narrative play missions, pulled out of the campaign’s pivotal moments, and yes you get a bunch rules for new Detachments and Characters.
You will know each of these locations like the back of your hand after you read the book. What I love most is that every faction is treated seriously and is a major threat. If anything it’s the Imperium and Chaos that have to get their act together. The Orks are mean, tough and wont every say die, while the Genestealer Cult is anything but comic relief. They are ruthless, deadly, serious, and smart. They know when to run and hide and when to go for the throat. I have very high hopes for the Genestealer Cult codex after the respect they receive in Vigilus.
This is massive 200 page tome and it’s only part 1 of two:
Plot Twists
I won’t spoil the cliffhanger, but her’s some cool twists and turns along the way.
Crossing the Rubicon
Marneus was the first to undergo the transformation from a standard Marine to a Primaris – and even he barely survived (he technically died). Cawl has a lot of work to do to make the process safe, and there is plenty of talk amongst the chapters across the Galaxy , wondering if they are doomed, and meant for obsolescence. There is even talk of some chapters whispering sedition, before Calgar offered himself up as the first test subject.
The Great Father Rises
The Genestealer Cults are serious business. They have been growing for decades, and are intelligent enough to start splinter Cults to infect distant regions, while coordinating all activity across planet. They are everywhere and nowhere – and manage to pull off amazing victories like destroying all the defenders’s titans in their hangers with some Vortex warhead sabotage, as well as attempting to infect the entire population via tainted water supplies.
The Beast
The Orks invade by simply crash landing their fleets in the desert, and turning them into instant well armed factory-cities using the wreckage of any ships that didn’t survive the attempt. With an instant base of operations, they start probing Imperial defenses and more importantly starting planet wide race-ways for their Speedwaaaghs.
Sisters & Arbites
Both forces get quite a bit of mentions, but the Sisters are out in force, with named characters, and lots of action. 6 different orders are on the world and mentioned by name. I expect GW to only increase their presence as they ramp up to the new codex in 2019.
Time-Twisters
The Great Rift has so messed up the timeflow that Guilliman orders a new imperial time-date system in use across the galaxy in it’s wake. He has to consult with “the mysterious organisation of the Ordo Chronos” to find a solution. Hmmm…
Gellerpox
The Death Guard are around and spreading Gellerpox all over the place. Entire hive sub-sectors have to be quarantined and burned out to stop the spread. But the Death guard are determined foes and spread it onto vessels fleeing Vigilus – several of which escape – on a course to Terra!
The Mystery Flyer
Art that Raises Questions
GW loves to drop upcoming models into artwork so I keep an eye out for anything unfamiliar. What do you think this could be? It looks very Sororitas to me…
~Welcome to Vigilus! Come on in – but don’t drink the water!
P.S. There are only 3 pictures that include classic marines in the entire 200 pages.
