Magic items in 40k?

[Token]

Are there any magic items in 40k fluff? Could a psyker and a smith work together to create magic items?

[Doctor Perils]

It depends what you think of as a magic item: force weapons and psychic hoods could perhaps be considered so, because they are used to channel psychic powers (or protect from the warp); Daemon weapons are items literally possessed (or imprisoning) a Daemon, so would they be considered magic? Some items of the ecclesiarchy (esp. Sisters of Battle) are relics said to perform miracles - what would you think of those?

 

Often though, you may be able to profit from Arthur C Clarke's 3rd law: any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. In 40k, humanity's technological peak happened 20 thousand years in their past, and humanity is surrounded by even more technologically advanced factions (Necrons, Eldar, Tau), so the setting is teeming with super-advanced artefacts whose effects could easily be ascribed to magic by characters in the setting.

 

Hope that helps :)

[MegaVolt87]

Magic weapons exist, we call them daemon weapons.   Smith and psyker working together can build them. When you run low on the rare metals to fix the hydraulics, posses the busted bits with warp energy, the new tentacles do the job. 

[Doghouse]

It's also possible that a weapon could be such advanced technology that it appears to be magic to those that do not understand how it works.

[Token]

Ok, so not in the way dwarves does it in fantasy then? To bad.. Could be cool.

 

The empire citizens believes in spirits in weapons, engines or such? Or not?

The sister stuff sounds cool, but perhaps it "works" in the way ork stuff work, that, if they believe in it, it happens? Like, red ones go fasta..

[Xenith]

Clark's Third Law:

 

 

"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."

 

 

In fantasy, "magic" is actually the power of chaos and the warp. These exist in 40k, but are a little better understood. 

[Splog]

All ork technology

[ThePenitentOne]

Ok, so not in the way dwarves does it in fantasy then? To bad.. Could be cool.

 

The empire citizens believes in spirits in weapons, engines or such? Or not?

The sister stuff sounds cool, but perhaps it "works" in the way ork stuff work, that, if they believe in it, it happens? Like, red ones go fasta..

 

Sisters stuff is very similar to D&D's divine magic. Armies like Grey Knights and Thousand Sons are so psychic that what they do on a battlefield may feel like magic- Tzeench in particular; as the Lord of Change, there's a real polymorph thing going on- they can turn you into spawn, and a dying pink horror splits into two blues, a dying blue horror splits into two Brimstones- that sort of thing. Thousand Sons with Tzeench Daemon allies is as magic as this game gets.

[Alcyon]

I think the coolest loyalist "magic" items are relics, armour and weapons blessed or formerly carried by saints. The sword of Heironymo Sondar for example seems to be able to detect warp entities and drives Gaunt towards them as if it has a spirit of its own. 

[Haywire]

Let's not also forget the likes of hexagrammic and pentagrammic wards that protect against Psykers and Daemons (Or hurt them even more if put into weaponry)

 

There's also some obscure stuff that I recall about the power of words/names within Warhammer 40K that, while more than likely headcanon, is a nice idea that I like to apply.

 

As an example, and this one is fully canon, the Book of True Names - a grimoire with the true name of every Daemon encountered by the Imperium to date. As we know, Daemons are virtually powerless against someone who can speak their true name to them, and it seems that even being in close proximity to its true name (written down) is extremely uncomfortable/painful/debilitating for them.

 

The power of names affecting beings could also go a long way, on some level, to explaining how various Space Marine Chapters ended up so heavily adhering to what their given names... though that's something for a different topic.

[Fajita Fan]

So there was this dagger back when Horus was around...

[Token]

Does the warp and such work the same in Fantasy as in 40k? Fluffwise..

 

What if you turn it around? What does the Dwarven Runesmiths do when they create/forge magic weapons?

[RandyB]

In 40K, "magic" and "psychic" are effectively synonymous. What is seen on the tabletop in the Psychic Phase is the "quick effects" that can be cast in battle. Greater effects requiring longer casting times are background w.r.t. game play, but appear in the lore.

 

"Magic weapons" in 40K would be weapons infused with warp energies, and/or the "sufficiently advanced tech" discussed here. IIRC, the Dark Mechanicum does both.

[Quantum]

All ork technology

 

Nah, even in-universe Anzion's theorem is sketchy at best. That Orks sometimes employ Rube Goldberg contraptions for simple tasks that is mindboggling to a Mechanicus Adept, have an affinity with warp/field-technology that surpasses that of the Adeptus Mechanicus, and the fact that ork mekboyz themselves cannot really explain how their contraptions work, does not mean their technology is anything else than just that; technology. 

[Panzer]

It's pretty common that when a setting with magic advances towards a more modern age it adapts a much more scientific tone. 40k is somewhat extreme since it's the far far faaaaaar future, but you can see that in many other settings as well. People of the modern age and the far future just approach the topic with a different mindset and replace the occult with science.

That being said, especially on the Chaos side in 40k, warp stuff still has a very occult tone, simply because it's not just some anonym energy one uses and manipulates but because it's usually tied to some evil entity.

Edited July 22, 2020 by Panzer

[RandyB]

That being said, especially on the Chaos side in 40k, warp stuff still has a very occult tone, simply because it's not just some anonym energy one uses and manipulates but because it's usually tied to some evil entity.

Great point! This isn't That Other Game, where Magic Is Safe To Use.