The upcoming The End and The Death: Volume III pits the Emperor of Mankind against Warmaster Horus in their final, deadly duel – a single, incredible battle born from a series of 60+ books released over a span of 17 years. The massive Horus Heresy series has all been leading up to this critical moment, so before we find out how the Warmaster’s rebellion concludes, we’re taking a look back at the series as a whole and the defining moments that shaped the apocalyptic Siege of Terra.
The novels began with Horus Rising by Dan Abnett, which introduced many important characters whose actions would reverberate throughout the series – including Garviel Loken, Ezekyle Abaddon, and Horus Lupercal himself. It begins hundreds of years into the Great Crusade and, along with False Gods by Graham McNeill and Galaxy in Flames by Ben Counter, reveals how an honourable and decent chap like Horus fell under the influence of the Chaos Gods.
While the series broadly follows the chronological timeline of the Horus Heresy – continuing with the Isstvan III betrayal in Flight of the Eisenstein by James Swallow – many events occur simultaneously, as can be expected in a galaxy engulfed by war. Fulgrim, also by Graham McNeill, covers a broad swathe of the activities of the Emperor’s Children leading up to the infamous Drop Site Massacre, including the climactic duel between the titular Primarch and his brother Ferrus Manus.
The Salamanders, Iron Hands, and Raven Guard, who suffered atrocious casualties, are revisited time and again from new perspectives. The Drop Site Massacre, for instance, is also mentioned in The First Heretic by Aaron Dembski-Bowden, Deliverance Lost by Gav Thorpe, and Vulkan Lives by Nick Kyme, from the eyes of the Word Bearers, Raven Guard, and Salamanders respectively.
Just as all of this is kicking off, Magnus the Red makes his ill-fated attempt to contact the Emperor and – through traitorous meddling – has the Space Wolves unleashed upon his homeworld of Prospero. A Thousand Sons by Graham McNeill and Prospero Burns by Dan Abnett pair up to tell the story of the Fenrisians’ brutal reprisal, and although these stories are only loosely connected to the battles in the Isstvan system, their consequences all play into an apocalyptic conclusion.
After a tumultuous start, many Legions split off to accomplish their own goals, while those further from the epicentre are thrown into a civil war they have only just learned of. Just as the Word Bearers are ambushing the Ultramarines at Calth in Know No Fear by Dan Abnett, the Dark Angels are deciding their loyalties in Fallen Angels by Mike Lee, and soon Angron pitches into the fray in Aaron Dembski-Bowden’s Betrayer.
Fulgrim meanwhile enlists the help of Perturabo for a trip to the Eye of Terror in Angel Exterminatus by Graham McNeill, and Sanguinius goes toe-to-toe with Ka’Bandha in Fear to Tread by James Swallow. As more Primarchs learn of the Heresy and tense lines are drawn between warring Legions, many of these narrative threads come together in The Unremembered Empire by Dan Abnett, as Loyalist forces, including the Ultramarines, Blood Angels, Dark Angels, and Shattered Legions congregate on Ultramar to plan their next move.
The chaotic nature of the civil war lends itself well to both devoted reading and casual grazing. The sudden appearance of dangerous foes and unexpected challenges reflects the confusion and unpredictability that reigns throughout the Heresy, even as Horus marches inexorably towards the Sol System and Loyalists prepare what desperate defences they can.
As the bulk of the Traitor forces forge a critical path to Terra through the Beta-Garmon system in Titandeath by Guy Haley and John French’s Slaves to Darkness, the Imperial Fists battle with vanguard elements of the Alpha Legion in Praetorian of Dorn – also by John French. Soon, the Horus Heresy series finally makes way for the Siege of Terra’s first salvoes in French’s The Solar War.
As the Siege of Terra series begins, everything focuses towards the single climactic conflict that will decide the fate of the Imperium. Characters from across the breadth of the series converge on Terra to make their mark on the siege, with no fewer than nine Primarchs taking part in one way or another.*
Traitor forces land on Terra in The Lost and The Damned by Guy Haley, and smash steadily through Loyalist defences over the course of the next three novels – The First Wall by Gav Thorpe, Saturnine by Dan Abnett, and Mortis by John French. The action is interwoven with incredible clashes between legendary characters, as Sigismund, Khârn, Loken, Abaddon, and more roughhouse with hated foes whose rivalries span several prior novels.
Nothing quite eclipses the drama of a Primarch-on-Primarch duel, though, and we get plenty of them as the Siege continues. Rogal Dorn and Perturabo finally meet in open battle, while Jaghatai Khan launches a desperate charge into the now-ascended Mortarion’s lines in Warhawk by Chris Wraight.
Perhaps most legendary of all is Sanguinius’ defence of the Eternity Gate in Echoes of Eternity by Aaron Dembski-Bowden, pitting the Great Angel in back-to-back bouts with a reborn Ka’Bandha and the Daemon Primarch Angron. The drama is palpable as Loyalist and Traitor efforts come down to a fight between two sons of the Emperor in front of the Imperial Palace, with only The End and The Death to tie together the epic conclusion.
Volume I and II of The End and The Death, both by Dan Abnett, are already available, and an essential read as Volume III rapidly nears its pre-order day this Saturday. The duel between the Emperor and Horus is one of the most iconic moments in the history of Warhammer 40,000, and being prepared to read about it in the most exacting detail ever is a must.
* Although not major players for most of the Siege, Vulkan and Magnus the Red have their own private conflict in the novella Fury of Magnus by Graham McNeill.