Why is the Grim Darkness of the Far Future so Interesting?
This talk by Dr Thomas Arnold is based on an article he wrote for Blackwell’s ‘And philosophy’ website, posted 11th January 2023.
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Clinical Use of Warhammer 40K for Treatment of PTSD in Veterans
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among combat veterans presents a complex challenge for mental health professionals. Traditional therapeutic approaches often fall short in addressing the intricate layers of trauma experienced during military service. However, emerging research suggests that unconventional methods, such as utilizing immersive and narrative-driven activities, could offer novel avenues for therapeutic intervention. This abstract …
Rule Consequentialism and the Edict of Nikaea
In the Horus Heresy series, the Edict of Nikaea looms large as one of the setting’s most pivotal narrative events. With the Edict, the Emperor proscribed the use of Warp-derived psyker powers by the Legiones Astartes and nominally disbanded the psychically-gifted Librarius orders—at great cost both to the individual Astartes of the Librarius and to …
In the Name of the Emperor? Authority and Pluralism in the Grim Darkness of the Far Future
Superficially, the Imperium of Man within Games Workshop’s ‘Warhammer 40,000’ fictional universe is presented as a pastiche theocratic autocracy. Its sprawling territory is ruled by the Lord Commander of the Imperium and the Council of the High Lords of Terra on behalf of the God Emperor of Mankind. At a mundane level, Imperial authority is …
Modeling for Advantage: constructing the miniature
This paper is an exploration and examination of a series of interlinking rules for the game and in the parlance of Carter, Gibbs and Harrop, the “pastime” of Warhammer 40k (and Warhammer Age of Sigmar, Fantasy Battles or Warhammer in general). These rules are True Line of Sight, Proxies, What You See is What You …
The incomplete reformations of Warhammer 40,000 – influences from the sixteenth-century on the theology and iconography of the Imperial Cult
Warhammer 40,000 draws its influences from across history; notably the in-universe history, theology, and iconography of the Imperial Cult and the Adeptus Ministorum are inspired by the medieval and early modern Roman Catholic Church. One instance of the history of the Adeptus Ministorum paralleling the history of Catholicism can be seen in origin of one …
In the grim darkness of the far future there is only war… And gorgeous women
Warhammer 40,000 is the world’s largest and most significant miniature wargame, with some of the highest-quality models produced in the industry. It is a hobby beloved by many fans of all ages and genders. In addition to the game, Warhammer 40,000 enjoys a wealth of novels released by the Black Library – a company dedicated …
Who is the enemy? Genestealer Cults and the Diverging Political Paradigm of Warhammer 40,000
We examine how class issues, domestic terrorism, extremism, and insurrection play out in Warhammer 40,000’s Genestealer Cults, against changing British political paradigms between 1989 and 2021. Genestealer Cults are human-alien hybrid guerilla insurrectionists, concealed among the civilian population. Introduced in 1989 and rebooted in 2016, the Cults are both part of the native population and …
Warhammer Lore as Apocalyptic Literature: Finding Purpose in the Grim Dark
Jaques Derrida is quoted as saying, “The end approaches, but the apocalypse is long lived.” The lore of Warhammer 40K is an apocalyptic myth created explicitly in the image of the Roman Empire. But the obvious connections to Imperium Romanum are only part of the picture. WH40K portrays an extension of the cycle of apocalypse …
A healthy obsession with death? Finding the joy in a grimdark world
The concept of death, as expressed in games and other fictions, is not necessarily negative. It does not play the same role, or pose the same threat, as death for us, in the physical world. But few intellectual properties revel in the exploration of death in the way that the Warhammer 40k setting does. Whether …
Dominican Nuns, but with Guns: The Adepta Sororitas and Medieval Spirituality
The Adepta Sororitas ranks among the most extreme representations of nuns in popular culture. Their habit-like armour and religious accessories make them easily recognizable as women of the cloth. But if they are nuns, what kind exactly? This paper argues that the most important inspiration for the Sororitas is the female branch of the Dominican …
The Future of Animated Fear: Grimdark as a Genre Framework for Speculative Horror in Animation
Abstract Games Workshop’s Warhammer 40K (WH40K) is widely regarded as the progenitor of the Grimdark genre: a simple tagline in a magazine advertisement that read ‘In the grim darkness of the far future, there is only war’ spawned a universe of hopeless, superstitious and terrifying visions of mankind’s future. It was a black mirror that …
Warhammer 40k as safe place for neurodiverse community
As neurodiverse person and anthropologist I observe that Warhammer became more and more common place for neurodiverse people to gather. Using both questionnaires and interviews with neurodiverse people we can see why grimdark became place for them to freely share ideas and thrive. What is so compelling that people, what usually have problems with social …
Occult Infrastructures: Venerate the Machine
Within the grimdark future of 41st millennium technology is a relatively occult force, often operating in ways that both pervert physics and subvert expectations. While the tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus may have a relatively nuanced understanding of technology when compared to the Imperial laity, the praxis of the red-robed priests goes beyond the quotidian …
The medieval roots of Warhammer 40,000’s endless crusade
The Imperium of Warhammer 40,000 is constantly at war, waging an endless series of military campaigns, the largest of which are known as crusades. From the Great Crusade ten thousand years earlier, to the Indomitus Crusade of the setting’s ‘present day’, these crusades can be directed against any and all foes across the galaxy. Some …