++ The Dornian Heresy ++

[Sigismund Himself]

The Dornian Heresy

As a member of the moderating team here at the B&C I've had the chance to do some pretty cool things. For starters I get to work alongside some of the most knowledgeable, enthusiastic Space Marine players, writers and painters on the planet. I've also been able to help run various Arenas of Death, helped to judge various competitions and I even get to occasional tidbit of inside info on upcoming Astartes projects from GW. But the real reason I love what I do here is that I get the chance to help shape the direction of the B&C, one of the largest, and we hope best, 40K sites on the internet. It can be a daunting responsibility but it's also a great honour and an even greater pleasure and it's times like today, the launch of The Dornian Heresy Volume 1, itself Volume 1 of the Legio Imprint, that really drive that home for me.

The Bolter & Chainsword's mission statement is simple:

"The Bolter & Chainsword exists to help people learn about modelling, painting, understanding, and playing with power armoured armies in the Warhammer 40k game universe."

What you hold in your hands (or more likely, see on your monitor) is the first half of one of the most ambitious undertakings we've seen in the 40K community in a long time - a complete alternate history of the pivotal Heresy era of the Imperium and one of the best examples of the B&C ethos we've seen in just as long. Lead author Aurelius Rex and his co-conspirators, including Ferrata, Owlandmoonguy and a number of very talented artists, present to you 'The Dornian Heresy, Volume I'. Inspired by the Index Astartes articles that appeared White Dwarf in the early 2000's, a time many consider the peak of both that august publication and Space Marine fluff in general, this book gives you a chance to relive to those glory days from a new perspective.

A quote from Aurelius' own introduction will give you a taste of what's inside:

This premier issue is devoted to chronicling something a little different; a twisted alternate timeline in which Warmaster Horus was able to cast off the daemonic influences that sought to possess him, and where the Ruinous Powers were instead forced to corrupt Rogal Dorn to overthrow the Emperor. The Dornian Heresy is the tale of an alternate universe where choices, sometimes large, sometimes small, have led to the familiar primarchs and legions meeting very different fates. For instance, how different might things have turned out if Sanguinius had instead been found and raised by the mutant tribes of Baal, or if Angron's first meeting with the Emperor had been as an honourable ally against the slavers at Fedan Mhor?

The authors of each of the 10 full-length articles have done a tremendous job of producing high-quality stories that will resonate with 40K players both new and old as a plausible alternative to the Horus Heresy. Careful evaluation of the characters, strengths and flaws of the pre-Heresy Primarchs and their Legions has resulted in some amazing twists and turns to the familiar Heresy story, some you might guess, others will simply leave your jaw on the floor but still strike true with the 40K fluff aficionado. So what are you waiting for? Come join Aurelius and his brothers in ink as they create history anew with The Dornian Heresy Volume I!

And remember, this is just the first half of the story!

Legio Imprints

This book in particular, and the Legio Imprint in general, also represents yet another step forward for the B&C. For more than 10 years now the B&C has been the online place for Space Marine players to gather to talk about their armies, their ideas and other aspects of what might appear to be a rather unhealthy obsession with small plastic army men for many of us. For almost as many years we've been offering tools to help Astartes players around the world make the hobby easier, more fun and even cooler. These tools have included the Interactive Space Marine Painter (and its Chaos and Xenos counterparts), the Librarium and the Liber Astartes Guide to DIYing. We've also held competitions and community events and generally tried to be the only place a 40K player need come for information and advice on painting, playing or understanding Space Marine armies and fluff, to whit - The Ultimate Space Marine Resource Site.

Now the B&C is stepping up its efforts to give the wider 40K community a taste of the tremendous talent and amazing effort put into projects across this site. This will take the form of semi-regular e-publications created by the B&C community which will showcase the best of the B&C to the rest of the world. Note that the phrase 'the best of the B&C' will cast a wide net, we'll be looking for the best writing, painting, rules, gaming advice and more all across the board to appear in future volumes of the Imprint. Also note that when we say 'created by the B&C community' we mean that too, we'll be looking for authors, artists, painters and even members to help with the production processes of digital publications.

You'll hear more about this project in coming months but in the meantime, if you're interested in helping, or you've got a suggestion about what deserves to be part of the Legio Imprint or even an idea for a volume then please contact me, SCC, via PM.

Right now I'd particularly love to hear from anyone willing to lend us their desktop publishing or e-publishing skills and experience, the board itself provides us with a natural pool of talented 40K artists and authors but the real trick is producing high quality publications to do justice to their work. Again, please send me a PM if you think you can help.

- SCC
B&C Administrator

Download The Dornian Heresy Vol. I Here!

The Dornian Heresy Volume I (PDF)