Warhammer 40K is host to the most evil elves possible and I adore them

Part of the fun of Warhammer 40,000 is that nobody is de facto the “good man” within the setting. Take the Imperium of Man, which largely serves because the point-of-view faction in 40K books and video games. The Imperium is made up of a coalition of completely horrible sub-factions, together with murderous nuns who torch their foes, indoctrinated youngster troopers remodeled into transhuman fight marines, and flesh-hating tech monks who make brain-computers by lobotomizing criminals.

However there’s one group of men within the setting who’re so comically evil, so ridiculously impolite, that I can’t assist however love them above all else. These aliens simply aren’t blissful except they will match just a few struggle crimes in between breakfast and lunch. I’m speaking, after all, concerning the Drukhari, also referred to as the Darkish Eldar, or probably the most evil area elves who’ve ever existed.

Picture: Video games Workshop

Who’re the Drukhari? They’re a particular tradition of Aeldari, a species that when had a dominant galaxy-spanning empire. These psychically gifted elves achieved a post-scarcity society and loved quick access to know-how so refined that it’s mainly magic. Feels like a fairly candy setup, however that is the grimdark far future the place there may be solely struggle, so clearly every little thing needed to go terribly fallacious. Within the case of the Aeldari civilization, that meant falling to hedonism and extra.

In 40K, there’s a second, psychic realm that exists parallel to actuality. The Warp, or the Immaterium, is a mirrored image of the universe’s psychic power. Darkish forces dwell within the Warp, feasting off excessive emotion, and the Aeldari unwittingly gave these forces a feast. Whereas some factions determined to pack up and depart in favor of a nicer area neighborhood, many Aeldari selected to remain. The Aeldari empire ultimately collapsed into orgies and hideous violence, and all of it culminated within the delivery of the fourth Chaos god, Slaanesh. Slaanesh’s delivery tore open an enormous Warp rift referred to as the Eye of Terror, killed the overwhelming majority of the Aeldari, and shattered their pantheon of gods.

Picture: Video games Workshop

Worse but, Slaanesh hungers for the souls of all Aeldari to today, seizing them upon dying with out acceptable precautions — and no countermeasure is ideal. After dying, Aeldari souls are topic to everlasting torment as they’re consumed by Slaanesh within the Warp. Not nice! The Aeldari name Slaanesh “She Who Thirsts,” and the subfactions have every discovered their very own option to take care of this existential guillotine blade.

The Drukhari are notable for making the daring choice of wanting on the collapse of their empire and saying, Fuck it — let’s hold the occasion going. They nonetheless hate and concern Slaanesh, and Slaanesh is frequently supping on their souls and slowly killing them. The Darkish Eldar select to replenish that by consistently chugging the non secular Gatorade of sentient struggling.

I don’t imply to be controversial, however I really feel fairly comfy saying that’s objectively evil stuff. That’s why I really like the Drukhari a lot: They make completely no efforts to fake in any other case. They’re pirates and raiders, venturing out of the city-state of Commorragh that’s safely tucked between the Warp and realspace. If the Drukhari present up, it’s often for lengthy sufficient to seize a bunch of individuals and steal all of their stuff.

Picture: Owlcat Video games

For those who simply have a look at the floor of the Drukhari, it’s straightforward to get the impression that their fiction and lore are simply about gore. However the faction has gotten extra of a highlight later in latest Video games Workshop works; a Warhammer Plus sequence referred to as Iron Inside has the Drukhari present as much as raid an Imperial world, and the Rogue Trader RPG features Commorragh as a major content hub. However the Drukhari’s complete collapse into evil and refusal to enhance or attempt to be higher makes them a fascinatingly Machiavellian, and I’m desperate to see them have a bigger presence in Warhammer 40K.

The Drukhari are consistently infighting, as their society is a violent meritocracy. They staple skeletons onto every little thing, showcase all of the cool stuff they’ve stolen, and mercilessly scheme in opposition to each other. When somebody took a run on the Drukhari massive canine Asdrubael Vect, Vect despatched them a stunning current in response. Contained in the field was a black gap, which consumed everybody within the noble home’s neighborhood. That’s a degree of villainy I completely love; it’s like a actuality present, besides everyone seems to be a Skeletor. Plus, Commorragh is filled with attention-grabbing ideas, like mad scientists and flesh-sculptors, or buying and selling ports and gladiator rings for these courageous (or unfortunate) sufficient to work with the Darkish Eldar.

Right now, a lot of attention has been focused on the Emperor and his big sons — and it’s no surprise, since followers love House Marines a lot. However typically I don’t wish to examine bolter battles or tank fight. I wish to examine drama queens opening extra-dimensional rifts within the throne rooms of their political rivals. That’s an itch that the Drukhari are uniquely outfitted to scratch.