The Summer Skirmish previews gave us a sneak peak at the Gallowdark, a claustrophobic space hulk that provides the deadly setting for the latest Kill Team boxed game.
Drifting through the cosmos for untold centuries or even millennia, space hulks promise a rich bounty for any adventurer daring enough to explore the perils within. The Gallowdark, an ancient funeral vessel, is one such ship – and in Kill Team: Into the Dark, we’ll see intrepid Imperial Breachers seek to unlock its secrets before a Kroot Kinband can beat them to it.
But just what is a space hulk, and where do they come from?
It’s best not to think of a space hulk as a single spaceship – they’re more like a floating, spacebound junkyard.* Many start off as abandoned craft that came to foul ends while crossing the immaterium – but once they’re deserted by their crew, these dead starships drift aimlessly, pulled by the eddies and currents of the empyrean. Over time they collide with other hapless ships and space debris, welded together by corrosion, ice, and warp-taint into one amorphous entity.
By the time they qualify as a true space hulk, these wandering space-hazards are a cluttered amalgamation of antiquarian vessels, deserted space stations, and galactic flotsam. As such, they often contain ancient technology and precious resources. From exotic elements and holy relics to lost star charts and fragmentary STCs, space hulks are laden with tempting treasures… but it’s not all free goodies.
Over aeons of bobbing in and out of realspace, these derelicts tend to pick up passengers of a most unpleasant sort. Space hulks make a tempting home-from-home for everything from Genestealer infestations – which famously made a lair in the Death of Integrity – to reckless Orks on a devil-may-care mystery tour through the galaxy.
Chaos renegades may also hitch a free ride on a passing space hulk – such as Angron’s World Eaters, who used the infamous Devourer of Stars as a base from which to ravage Armageddon. The followers of Khorne don’t need to care about navigation, after all – no matter where they show up, they’re going to slaughter anyone in sight.
Whatever visions of fame and fortune are dancing in your kill team’s heads, one thing’s for sure – when entering a space hulk, make sure you’re armed, supplied, and ready for anything.
We’ll soon be venturing deeper into the Gallowdark on Warhammer Community – sign up to our newsletter to get the latest Kill Team news and updates sent direct to your inbox.
* One thing’s for sure – your average space hulk won’t pass its health and safety checks.