HH Novel: The Outcast Dead, Spoilers within - do not read unless you want the book ruined Options

[Devourer of Souls]

Hi all

I am literally struggling through this book. I am 2/3rds of the way and am only proceeding out of pig-headedness more than wanting to know how it ends.

It was really tough to start with and then when the World Eater not only defeats a custode in full armour and arms while being essentially naked himself but also goes on to punch all the way through the custode's artificer armour with his bare fist and then through the black carapace and body of the custode to PULL OUT HIS SPINE?!?! I mean WTF?! I can't understand. I know that this is all a work of fiction blah blah but this was seriously a divide-by-zero moment for me...

And all this from an author who has really managed to write some awesome books.

Anyone else read it? Thoughts?

Ahh I feel better now that I got that off my chest!

[AlphaHobbies]

Like you I found it a tough read and had to force myself to finish it. Although I did like the bit about the thunder warriors making off with the marine geneseed. Would love to see that storyline fleshed out a bit more.

[General_Hospital]

Hi all

I am literally struggling through this book. I am 2/3rds of the way and am only proceeding out of pig-headedness more than wanting to know how it ends.

It was really tough to start with and then when the World Eater not only defeats a custode in full armour and arms while being essentially naked himself but also goes on to punch all the way through the custode's artificer armour with his bare fist and then through the black carapace and body of the custode to PULL OUT HIS SPINE?!?! I mean WTF?! I can't understand. I know that this is all a work of fiction blah blah but this was seriously a divide-by-zero moment for me...

And all this from an author who has really managed to write some awesome books.

Anyone else read it? Thoughts?

Ahh I feel better now that I got that off my chest!

Iirc he was a battle wounded retired custodes and the world eater was a veteran sergeant who was really pissed off so not entirely ridiculous.

[Gibbus]

I've been a big fan of the HH series, although there have been more misses than hits of late. I didn't even buy this book though, the blurb on the back turned me off. Sounds like I made the right call.

[PlasmaDavid]

Is this along the same lines as the novel with Dark Angels who killed themselves at the end because they wouldn't survive 30 days in their armour (or something) for a virus to dissapate. Uh, stasis sleep anyone?

This post has been edited by PlasmaDavid: Jun 10 2012, 02:39 PM

[Lextheimpaler]

I really liked it. Hope they expand on the proto Astarte plot line.
I really do wish they would do some unification war books.

[Sir Eggplant]

I liked the Thunder Warriors part of the story story, but I hope they expand on it, it has potential.

Thhe Outcast Dead is on my growing list of HH novels that bored me almost to tears

Mechanicum, Nemisis and Know No Fear are also on that list

[occa]

I still haven't finished Mechanicum (it's been a year or more in the reading) I am a bit disappointed I thought it would be cooler.

[Demon]

Is this along the same lines as the novel with Dark Angels who killed themselves at the end because they wouldn't survive 30 days in their armour (or something) for a virus to dissapate. Uh, stasis sleep anyone?

Oh i dont know. Does there need to be some sort of oxygen exchange process while in suspended animation? If thats so they were in the right

I quite liked that novel, from a nasty fallen fan perspective

Mucranoid

Phase 16: This implant allows a Space Marine to sweat a substance that coats the skin and offers resistance to extreme heat and cold and can even provide some protection for the marine in a vacuum. This can only be activated by outside treatment, and is common when Space Marines are expected to be fighting in vacuum.

Sus-an Membrane

Phase 12: Initially implanted above the brain, this membrane eventually merges with the recipient's entire brain. Ineffective without follow-up chemical therapy and training, but with sufficient training a Space Marine can use this implant to enter a state of suspended animation, consciously or as an automatic reaction to extreme trauma, keeping the Marine alive for years, even if he has suffered otherwise mortal wounds. Only the appropriate chemical therapy or auto-suggestion can revive a Marine from this state. The longest recorded period spent in suspended animation was undertaken by Brother Silas Err of the Dark Angels, who was revived after 567 years.

[Lextheimpaler]

Mechanicum, Nemisis and Know No Fear

To heavy on plot for you? Not enough bolter porn?

Those books were fantastic!

[Sir Eggplant]

To heavy on plot for you? Not enough bolter porn?

Those books were fantastic!

Actually as a big reader, plot is what I usually go for where the "bolter porn" usually bugs me.

Nemisis bugged me because it was too damn obvious, it was a waste of a story, we all knew their mission would fail.

Im not a fan of the mechanicum to start with, so I went into it prejudiced

Know no fear is just plain boring, remember Ultramarines are just plain, vanilla, generic, they have no real theme about them. That makes them boring on their own. Within the first few chapters you meet about 10 characters that you have trouble remembering. I havnt actually finished the book yet, Im still 100 pages out, but from what Ive heard, it doesnt actually have an end, it just stops.

[CptnAwsmBalls]

I really enjoyed KNF, ones ive intentionally missed were Descent of/Fallen Angels, Nemesis, Outcast Dead and Mechanicum. Im tempted to buy the audiobook Outcast on the black library site simply because id rather have someone read it to me haha. Im 1 story into Primarchs now, epic. I just finished one the other week...uhh....think it was Deliverance Lost....if anything solidified my hate for the Alpha Legion....this was it.

[Starfire]

Know no fear is just plain boring, remember Ultramarines are just plain, vanilla, generic, they have no real theme about them. That makes them boring on their own. Within the first few chapters you meet about 10 characters that you have trouble remembering. I havnt actually finished the book yet, Im still 100 pages out, but from what Ive heard, it doesnt actually have an end, it just stops.

Despite popular belief, nothing about the Ultramarines is plain, vanilla and generic. They have a very rich history and a deep and fleshed out background.

This post has been edited by Starfire: Jun 15 2012, 10:18 PM

[bob sprocket]

Despite popular belief, nothing about the Ultramarines is plain, vanilla and generic. They have a very rich history and a deep and fleshed out background.

Amen brother

[Lextheimpaler]

Despite popular belief, nothing about the Ultramarines is plain, vanilla and generic. They have a very rich history and a deep and fleshed out background.

+1
The g-man was awesome in KNF.

[PullsyJr]

Going back to the OP, I thought this book was retarded. That punch was ludicrous - why give Marines close combat weapons if they can use their unarmoured fists to punch through power armour and the black carapace? Against a Custode?! Sure he was battle injured, but that was an awful way to resolve that fight.

Then there was the uber-psychic thousand Sons who could find a person he didn't know existed through psychicly shielded cell walls, and then manipulate their thoughts enough to get them to do some crazy BS that they'd never do. Oh, then there was the intance where he made a pilot crash after shooting his mate (I think - it's been a while). Why have AA batteries? Just have a few TS sorcerers to make the enemy fight each other.

The plot was driven by stupid things like that. It didn't even end very well with the Thunder Warriors (and one of the other "bad guys") who just disappeared without any mention afterwards.

----

To be honest I'm bored of the authors' insistence on treating every primarch like some sort of Adonis - even the ugly ones are the most perfectly formed lovelies in the universe, and there is no doubt in my mind that the pre-Heresy Marines are all just gay for their "father" they way they entirely fawn over them. The Emperor is an idiot too with no redeeming features at all.

I think though that this is a product of the "history" being sparsely populated at the start, and writers trying to plug holes in afterwards.

[panzerallan]

40k fiction has always suffered from the protagonist being the bestest dude ever - its how you end up with a 300 year old Space Marine being able to sucker punch the manifestation of a war god. That is probably where it is coming from with the Primarchs.

I reckon the Emperor (and several of the loyalist Primarchs) being a douchebag is important to make the traitors still compelling - if they just turned for the fun of it they would not be identifiable, but considering the way their father and brothers act it becomes justified.

[GuessRange]

One twist I did find amusing (as far as trying to fit into the rest of the Horus Heresy Lore - outside of the books), is the apparent knowledge the Emperor had of his own defeat...which was given to him, courtesy of of Magnus..primarch of a traitor legion (for good reason? thanks to Nicea..) talk about an epic mind-f*&!

And yet most of the other lore seems to emphasis the point that it was only Horus' arrogance to drop his void shields and watch the final defeat which gave the Emperor (and Sanguinus and Co) their chance to strike.

If the Emperor knew this was the outcome, surely as the mastermind able to orchestrate the entire Imperium into being could have done some contingency planning...