Showing results by narrator "John Banks" in All Categories

When the world of Quadravidia comes under attack by the insidious tau, only one man can defeat the aliens and save the planet in the Emperor's name – the legendary Hero of the Imperium, Commissar Ciaphas Cain. When the aliens call for a ceasefire, Cain expects the worst, and his fears are answered in the form of the dread menace of the tyranids. As a hive fleet approaches Quadravidia, Cain must try to forge an alliance between the Imperium and the t'au – but can he truly trust the inscrutable xenos?

For years, Belisarius Cawl has nurtured an audacious plan to stabilise the Attilan Gap sufficiently that the Imperium might open a stable route into Imperium Nihilus. With the primarch Roboute Guilliman having crossed the Great Rift, and now isolated on the far side, time is running out. Before Cawl can perfect his latest great work, he requires one last element: control codes preserved on an ancient necron world trapped on the event horizon of a black hole. Realising that even he cannot do this alone, Cawl recruits help from across the Adeptus Mechanicus.

As Guilliman, Regent of Terra, heads off to lead the Indomitus Crusade, he leaves behind a world still in turmoil, beset by cult activity. Stripped of its huge armies for the galactic offensive, recovery is precarious. The Custodians do what they can while keeping the Palace secure, and the Sisters of Silence rebuild their citadel on Luna. When the warship Phalanx returns, it seems that stability will at last be assured. However, as reconquest forces push out further into the slums, they come across signs that another mysterious foe is active.

Belisarius Cawl, Archmagos Dominus of the Adeptus Mechanicus, is the most brilliant mind alive. For 10,000 years he has furthered the cause of mankind, working under the aegis of the Emperor and Lord Commander Roboute Guilliman to prevent the inexorable march of the alien and the traitor. Many call him heretic, but all must recognise the magnitude of his achievements, for who else but he was entrusted to create a new generation of Space Marines?

Fell times have come to the galaxy. Cadia has fallen, destroyed by the onslaught of Chaos. A Great Rift in the warp has opened, and from its depths spew daemons and the horrors of Old Night. But all hope is not lost… A hero, long absent, has returned, and with him comes the wrath of the Ultramarines reborn. Roboute Guilliman has arisen to lead the Imperium out of darkness on a crusade the likes of which has not been seen since the fabled days of the Emperor. But never before have the forces of Ruin amassed in such numbers, and nowhere is safe from despoliation.

In the centuries since his return from Commorragh, Fabius Bile has distanced himself from the affairs of friend and foe, content only to oversee the cruel evolution of his New Men. But when his creations are threatened by the monstrous haemonculi of the Thirteen Scars, the Manflayer is forced to seek out new allies and old enemies alike in an effort to preserve all that he has built. Homo Novus must survive...even if Fabius Bile must die to ensure it.

The Throneworld is in turmoil, wracked by the opening of the Great Rift and the failure of the Astronomican. Inquisitor Erasmus Crowl, his mind and body ravaged by what he has seen in the Hollow Mountain, is missing, taking with him the clues to the conspiracy that has come to obsess him. Luce Spinoza, his interrogator, must choose whether to seek him out or defend her diminished realm from the many forces that still seek to destroy it. As enemies circle, Interrogator Spinoza enters a race against time to find the evidence she needs.

The Custodian Guard have stood watch over the Emperor's Palace on Terra since the foundation of the Imperium. Charged with protecting the Master of Mankind from all threats, within and without, their fearsome resolve is renowned throughout the galaxy, and their golden armour is the last thing that a would-be assassin or saboteur will ever see.

Once a loyal son of the Emperor's Children, Fabius Bile now loathes those he once called brother. But when a former comrade requests his aid on a mission he cannot refuse, Bile is drawn once more into the sinister machinations of his former Legion. Now, accompanied by new allies and old enemies alike, Fabius Bile must travel deep into the wilds of the Eastern Fringe, in search of a world unlike any other. A world which might hold the key to his very survival. A world called Solemnace....

The Indomitus Crusade continues its war across the stars. The primarch Roboute Guilliman has finally broken through the orkish threat bedevilling the sectors near Fenris, and makes ready to push on his bid to stabilise the Imperium Sanctus—but old and bitter foes stand in his way. Kor Phaeron, the Dark Cardinal, threatens the previously stable core of the Segmentum Solar. Waves of rebellion instigated by his infiltrating priests suggest an imminent, large-scale invasion by the Word Bearers Legion.

In the hellish sprawl of Imperial Terra, Ordo Hereticus Inquisitor Erasmus Crowl serves as a stalwart protector, for even the Throneworld is not immune to the predations of its enemies. In the course of his duty, Crowl becomes embroiled in a dark conspiracy, one that leads all the way to the halls of the Imperial Palace. As he plunges deeper into the shadowy underbelly of the many palace districts, his investigation attracts the attention of hidden forces, and soon he and his acolyte Spinoza are being hunted.

King Uthar has been defeated in the Frozen Continent. Wounded, he retreats to Norghania to regroup his forces and shield himself behind the walls of the capital. Lasgol and his friends will try to pass the fourth and final year of instruction and graduate as Rangers on their own merits. To do this they will have to take part in deeply dangerous missions and help the king against the invaders.

The Horus Heresy is an epic conflict spanning hundreds of worlds and thousands of battles, laced with countless tales of heroism and valour, betrayal and villainy. This anthology collects some of the most memorable, featuring every one of the Loyalist and Traitor Legions. Whether you're a veteran Legionary or exploring the grim setting of the Horus Heresy for the first time, this handpicked collection of 21 existing short stories features gripping tales for each of the Loyalist and Traitor Legions that waged wars of betrayal and destruction on an immeasurable scale.

The paths of Roboute Guilliman and his fallen brother Mortarion bring them inexorably together on Iax. Once a jewel of the Imperium, the garden world is dying as the plans of the Lord of Death to use it as a fulcrum to drag the stellar realm of Ultramar into the warp come to deadly fruition. While Guilliman attempts to prevent the destruction of his kingdom, Mortarion schemes to bring his brother low with the Godblight, a disease created in the Cauldron of Nurgle itself, made with the power to destroy a son of the Emperor.

He is known by many names - Clonelord, Manflayer, Primogenitor. He is the epitome of deceit and perversion, and feared by man and monster alike. Once the Chief Apothecary of the Emperor's Children, the madman known as Fabius Bile possesses a knowledge of genetic manipulation second to none.

After a long and distinguished career defending the Imperium from its many enemies, Commissar Cain is enjoying a well-deserved retirement on Perlia, teaching in a schola progenium. But when a Black Crusade threatens the sector, all able-bodied citizens must rise to the defence, including Cain and his cadets. As the forces of Chaos overwhelm Perlia, can the wily commissar prove himself to be a real hero of the Imperium one last time?

He is Fulgrim's champion, the Soulthief, and the Scion of Chemos. His name is whispered and cursed across both time and space, a peerless blademaster who even death cannot threaten. He is Lucius the Eternal, blessed by Slaanesh and the greatest swordsman of all the fell Legions imprisoned within the Eye of Terror. He's died a thousand times, but for Lucius the Eternal, there's something worse than death on the horizon unless he can control the forces that threaten to annihilate all that he has worked to build.

The Corrupt Lord of the Ice has been rejected. King Uthar is seeking to kill him once and for all. But Darthor has retreated to the Frozen Continent with his forces. Lasgol and his friends are making every effort to pass their third year of instruction, where the tests change from practical competitions to real missions and where they risk their lives. Conflicts, rivalries, and love will emerge more strongly than ever. Egil and Lasgol will discover the truth about the king's secret and the identity of the real enemy. They will choose sides and try to persuade their teammates.

Only the best have access to the Elite Specializations of the Rangers. Will the Snow Panthers make it? The war goes on in Norghana. The East supports the new King, while the West supports Arnold Olafstone, the legitimate heir to the crown. In the North the Wild of the Ice claim their lands. In the midst of the war, Lasgol and his teammates have graduated as Rangers.

As the Indomitus Crusade begins, fleets of mighty warships leave Terra on a vital quest to stabilise Imperium Sanctus in the wake of the Great Rift. The returned primarch, Roboute Guilliman, leads a huge force towards the shrine world of Gathalamor, where stable warp routes will allow the flotilla to spread across the beleaguered southern half of the Imperium.