Assassinorum Kingmaker (Warhammer 40,000)

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I personally really enjoy how they showed the assassinorum temples. It's also quite nice to see one of the minor temples, which makes sense, can't really work with Culexus, and even Khornates berserkers are more cooperative than Eversor. It’s a true artefact of the conflict – with this map unfurled on your desk, you’ll feel like Rogal Dorn himself as he strives against the odds to oversee an impossible defence.

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Temple Secretum - It is whispered that there exists a "Temple Secretum," an Assassinorum temple named for its dedication to keeping the Imperium's darkest secrets by any means necessary rather than for a preferred method of killing.Cheers, Neil. As an added treat, Neil’s recently been hard at work on the cover art of the next Siege of Terra novel (as yet untitled), which you can see below. We can’t go into details of the story just yet, but based on what we can see in the scene, it looks like events are very much drawing to a head… The methods of the Callidus Assassin are those of utmost cunning and duplicity. They are sometimes used on missions where overt interference by the Imperium would upset the intricate balance of power maintained by the High Lords of Terra. Medieval sci-fi intrigue with a scattering of warhorns and knight combat. Honour and betrayal and some damn sharp shooting. Really enjoyed this.

Assassinorum Kingmaker is Awesome (Light Spoilers) Assassinorum Kingmaker is Awesome (Light Spoilers)

Kingmaker is the Assassinorum novel I’ve wanted for years. Rath realizes the Assassinorum as unique and distinct from the Inquisition despite an oft overlapping remit, giving the Officio a Cold War spy vibe that really fits. There’s no religious mumbo-jumbo and everything seems much more centralized than you get in Abnett’s or Wraight’s work. However this book is decidedly more about the process of conducting an operation than the functioning of the Assassinorum as a whole. Rath focuses on how the assassins involved, all of whom are wonderfully well depicted in their interactions with each other and their targets, plan out/perform their mission. There’s also a lot of time spent getting to know the world of Dominion, to the point that this might be the best work on Imperial Knights in the canon. I generally don’t care for the ‘medieval nobles piloting mechs’ vibe it seems every Knight House has to have (why can’t they be diverse like the Titan Legios?), but Rath clearly put a lot of time into giving Dominion an engaging political identity and sense of character. In the broad view I think it’s a brilliant move to focus so much attention on whomever the Assassin(s) are targeting. Hopefully it will mean future books in the series, if they happen, vary considerably with each entry. Two Imperial assassins take on their most dangerous mission yet – navigating the complex social landscape of a Knight World to ensure the right successor takes the throne. Acolytes of two very different temples of the Officio Assassinorum, these agents need to work together to succeed, for failure means raising the ire of the colossal Imperial Knights. Ghazghkull Thraka: Prophet of the Waaagh! by Nate Crowley I’ve wanted a quality Assassinorum novel for years. Yes I know Nemesis and Execution Force technically do exist, but I prefer to forget that fact whenever possible. If we look at the story beats on the imperial knight side of the story you'll soon see similarities with the older medieval stories, such as the various legends of Arthur and etc.Kingmaker feels like a spy movie in terms of its plot and characters. There are political machinations, hidden agendas, murky loyalties, factions maneuvering both openly and in the shadows, while characters try to navigate byzantine networks of relationships as deadly as a battlefield. It’s very much a plot-driven novel, where events and actions are the primary movers of narrative threads. This was far better than The Infinite and the Divine, and I liked that one too. Interesting look at the Officio Assassinorum and Questor Imperialis, and even more impressive how they both managed to get great representation. I also need to highlight the great characters featured within Kingmaker as Rath has created an excellent collection of enticing figures whose unique personal stories deeply enhanced the overall tale. This was a fantastic group of deep and complex characters, and their statuses within this universe ensured that they all had some unique experiences. Most of Kingmaker’s narrative is spread amongst the three members of the Assassinorum who represent a different Assassinorum Temple, and as such have very different viewpoints on the universe and the best way to operate as killers. This provides some compelling initial conflict amongst them as they try to work together, something none of them are really good at. However, they soon start to come together as a team as the novel continues, and they ended up playing off each other’s strengths and personalities to create an excellent, core group of protagonists. Unlike other warriors of the Imperium, who are able to focus on war and war alone, the Assassin must be truly autonomous. Once an operative is in the field, he must be able to cross the galaxy from one side to the other, by means fair or foul. He must not only master his own lethal calling, but also be proficient in a dozen others. He must know how to drive and sanctify everything from an armoured bike to a small spacecraft, must be able to convince truculent Machine Spirits to do his bidding, and clean, disassemble and reconsecrate his wargear whenever necessary. He must have a professorial knowledge of the Imperium's history, organisation, and common languages. His understanding of Human anatomy must be complete, and every fact the Imperium has uncovered about the physicality of the xenos is bequeathed to him under oaths of secrecy. Few Human minds can process such vast quantities of information, let alone master them. Not all survive the rigours of their training with their spirits intact, and many have fallen into madness at the sheer quantity of the trials they face. Yet an Initiate that joins the ranks of his temple's operatives will have all these skills at his command. In this way, the Vindicare can be likened to a spider or mantis, waiting motionless as stone before springing into action at the critical moment.

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In time, these servants realised that they could not hide from even their own deaths forever, and that their skills must be passed on to a new generation if their great work was to continue. Thus, they finally revealed their existence to the Emperor. He saw, sorrowfully, the necessity for their existence and the terrible duty that they had taken upon themselves and he was most pleased. Great temples were constructed and the most skillful and deadly youths were sought out to train at them. Thus was the Officio Assassinorum created in secret, and the names of Callidus, Venenum, Culexus, Vindicare, Eversor and Vanus were forever immortalised. The strongest survived their rigorous training, and in turn passed on their skills to others. New skills were learnt and new temples of death were later founded; the art of blade and pistol, poison and garrote were honed in every aspect conceivable. So it is that there is no world in the galaxy beyond the Emperor's rule; no enemy beyond the Emperor's wrath. Using this technique, the Callidus Assassin can get close to enemy commanders or powerful warlords, influencing their strategy and finally killing them when the opportunity arises. On the battlefield, they get as close to the chosen target as possible before making the kill at a critical time, often at the crux point of a conflict already in full flow.Found it interesting that the first half of the book was mission preparation but it was all made worth it as the pace continually increased in the second half.