|
-rv Trivial vandalism
|
-rv Some more vandalism
|
||
| Line 64: | Line 64: | ||
====Necron Flayed Ones==== |
====Necron Flayed Ones==== |
||
* '''Flayed Ones''' are Necrons who retain some of their original consciousness and have been driven mad by their ageless imprisonment. They are quite capable melee fighters, with claws and blades that can flay a man alive in seconds. They usually adorn themselves with still wet pieces of skin and hide from their latest victims. In such a state, they are a terrifying sight to behold, so much that sometimes enemy fighters lose their nerve by just looking at them. Flayed Ones also frequently act in a manner similar to scouts, sneaking ahead of the main Necron force or even burying themselves in the ground, and use either method to gain the element of surprise during a battle. (See also [[Xipe Totec]] for the cultural reference.) |
* '''Flayed Ones''' are Necrons who retain some of their original consciousness and have been driven mad by their ageless imprisonment. They are quite capable melee fighters, with claws and blades that can flay a man alive in seconds. They usually adorn themselves with still wet pieces of skin and hide from their latest victims. In such a state, they are a terrifying sight to behold, so much that sometimes enemy fighters lose their nerve by just looking at them. Flayed Ones also frequently act in a manner similar to scouts, sneaking ahead of the main Necron force or even burying themselves in the ground, and use either method to gain the element of surprise during a battle. (See also [[Xipe Totec]] for the cultural reference.) |
||
They rock. |
|||
====Necron Immortals==== |
====Necron Immortals==== |
||
| Line 87: | Line 85: | ||
====Scarab Swarms==== |
====Scarab Swarms==== |
||
* Countless small, beetle-like robots called '''Scarabs''' often appear on the battlefield; these clouds of Scarabs are termed ''Scarab Swarms'' by their opponents. These swarms rely on sheer numbers to make themselves difficult to destroy, and are useful for disrupting enemies who are caught unaware. They can be upgraded with "disruption fields" which warp reality around their numerous claws. Large numbers of Scarab Swarms upgraded with "disruption fields" can tear apart even the most heavily |
* Countless small, beetle-like robots called '''Scarabs''' often appear on the battlefield; these clouds of Scarabs are termed ''Scarab Swarms'' by their opponents. These swarms rely on sheer numbers to make themselves difficult to destroy, and are useful for disrupting enemies who are caught unaware. They can be upgraded with "disruption fields" which warp reality around their numerous claws. Large numbers of Scarab Swarms upgraded with "disruption fields" can tear apart even the most heavily and has even been known to compleatly destroy baneblades. Tomb Spiders are the ones that produce these scarabs but with the expense of the Tomb Spiders' health. |
||
====Tomb Spyders==== |
====Tomb Spyders==== |
||
In the table-top wargame Warhammer 40,000, the Necrons are a mysterious robot-like race that have lain dormant and largely unknown by the other races of the universe for sixty million years, and are reemerging in the distant future of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.[1] The Necrons have become known and feared for their ability to absorb physical punishment, as well as their enigmatic, yet powerful, weapons and technology (Gauss). Necrons are the most technologically advanced race in the Warhammer 40,000 universe and they are made out of living metal (necrodermis).The Necrons could be likened to the undead of Warhammer Fantasy battle, most notably the Tomb Kings.
The Necrons first appeared as usable units for Warhammer 40,000 as Necron Raiders. The rules for these were first published in White Dwarf Issue 217 towards the end of the lifespan of the second edition of Warhammer 40,000.[2] At the time, only Necron Warriors and Scarabs were given game rules and the warriors were armed with Gauss-Flayer Guns.[3][4] This was quickly followed up with an expanded army list in the following month's issue of the same magazine. The Necron Lord and Necron Destroyer were part of this slightly-expanded army list. At the time, the lord was armed with the Staff of Light while the destroyers were armed with Gauss-Cannons.[5][6] The issue of White Dwarf also had the Necrons' first major appearance in a battle report in the article entitled Massacre at Sanctuary 101, a battle between the Necrons and the Sisters of Battle. This particular altercation soon made its way into the background material as one of the first times the Imperium had encountered the Necrons.[7] The first Necron miniatures, all metal, were also released during this time. In fact, a free Necron Warrior was included with issue 217 of White Dwarf.[8]
In the release of the third edition of Warhammer 40,000 in 1998, the Necrons had no usable army list. The first, full-fledged Necron army list for the new edition of the game was printed in the March 1999 issue of White Dwarf. This first army list was very restrictive, with the Necrons having mostly one choice per force organization category. The Necron Lord, Necron Immortals and Necron Warriors were the only available HQ, Elites and Troops choices respectively. This early army list had two units for the Fast Attack selections, Necron Destroyers and Scarabs. The latter were different from their current counterparts in that the original Scarabs were controlled individually and were not swarms on a single base as they are today. The Necron Immortal metal miniature was released at the same time as the publication of the army list.[9] In a later issue of White Dwarf, Games Workshop further expanded the Necron army list by providing different equipment choices (wargear) for the Necron Lord. Along with the Gaze of Flame and Scourge of Light upgrades, this was the first time that the Veil of Darkness wargear was added to the Necron Lord's available options.[10]
The Necrons received their first, full sourcebook with the release of Codex: Necrons in August 2002. The book featured a multitude of background information expanding upon the origins of the Necron race and expanded the scope of the Warhammer 40,000 history by several million years more.[11] A full army list was also introduced in the sourcebook, with heavily revamped rules for existing units and the introduction of new ones. New units introduced in the codex were Flayed Ones, Pariahs, Wraiths, Heavy Destroyers, the Necron Monolith and the infamous C'tan.[1][12] New miniatures were produced and released alongside with the release of the codex. For the first time, Necrons received their first plastic miniatures kit in the form of the Necron Warriors boxed set, which contained enough parts to make twelve Necron Warriors and three Scarab bases with four Scarabs each. The boxed set was a first for Games Workshop, as it was the first time that transparent, coloured parts were included in a boxed set along with the standard polystyrene parts. The transparent, green rods in this case were meant to be used as part of the Necrons' gauss weaponry. The Necron Destroyer model was also revamped and made into a plastic kit. Whereas the old, metal version was essentially a Necron Warrior riding a flying platform, the new Necron Destroyer plastic kit featured a Necron Immortal torso mounted and merged with a floating platform. The other miniatures released for the army were metal, such as the Flayed Ones, Immortals, Pariahs, Wraiths and the Necron Lord.[13] Two more miniatures soon followed suit - the massive Necron Monolith, the largest miniature kit produced by Games Workshop at the time, and the Necron Destroyer Lord, a Necron Lord mounted on a Destroyer body.[14]
 |
This article describes a work or element of fiction in a primarily in-universe style. Please help rewrite ittoexplain the fiction more clearly and provide non-fictional perspective. (Learn how and when to remove this message)
|
Little is known about the origins of the ancient race known as the Necrontyr. They were one of the earliest sentient races in the galaxy, older than even the ancient Eldar, appearing only a few million years after the birth of the stars. Their world was scourged by the radiation of the massive, violent star it closely orbited, cursing them to experience drastically short lifespans. The Necrontyr spent aeons expanding their technology in an attempt to extend their lives. Their technology developed Necrodermis, a "living metal", for constructing their ships with which they were able to leave their planet. These slow "tomb ships" full of cryonically frozen Necrontyr were sent to populate the stars over 60 million years ago. It was during their first difficult steps out into the wider galaxy that the Necrontyr first encountered the Old Ones. The differences between the two races were vast; where the Necrontyr had short painful lives, the Old Ones were blessed with incredible longevity, and where the Necrontyr were impatient, the Old Ones were infinitely understanding and patient beyond measure.
The Necrontyr grew bitter and jealous towards the Old Ones, and it was not long before this jealousy lead the Necrontyr into a futile war against the Old Ones' civilization. The Old Ones were powerful psykers and had an unmatched strategic advantage in the form of the webway portals which allowed them to outmaneuver the Necrontyr at every opportunity. These significant advantages won out over the Necrontyr's superior technology. Then, scientists studying the Necrontyr home star discovered a being of incredible power feeding off its massive energy output. The full weight of Necrontyr science was put behind detailing this discovery and it was not long before the Necrontyr realized the potential such an incredible power might have on the war against the Old Ones.
Being a huge mass of energy, without form, the Necrontyr forged necrodermis bodies for the C'tan to inhabit and as a result they were able to coax the C'tan into the material universe using 'The Star Bridge'. As the awesome power of the C'tan became material, the Necrontyr began to see these new beings not as guests, but as gods. The Necrontyr began to worship the C'tan as such, wanting them to destroy their hated enemies, the Old Ones. The first C'tan to pass into such a body was the Nightbringer, an incredibly powerful being who found the sweet lifeforce of the Necrontyr far more to its liking than the tasteless energy of the star and massacred many to satiate its appetite. It was only after considerable persuasion and pledges of servitude that the Necrontyr were able to stop the the Nightbringer long enough to bring to its attention the Old Ones and all of the other races in the galaxy. With slaves at its command, willing to feed its hunger, the Nightbringer turned its attention to the other races in the galaxy.
Soon after, the Necrontyr made contact with several more Star Gods, including the Deceiver. The Deceiver, a weaker and far more insidious being than its companions was much more popular with the Necrontyr to the point where it had to send many worshippers to pay homage to the other C'tan lest they grow jealous of him. He offered the Necrontyr a way to win the war: they would assume bodies of necrodermis, built for war, and live forever, unbound by their deformities.
The Necrontyr agreed to the process and their consciousness were transferred into bodies made of necrodermis. However, the transformation dulled their minds and senses. As such they became the Necrons, warrior-slaves of the C'tan, harvesting life across the galaxy for souls to feed them. With the assistance of the C'tan the Necrons won victory after victory against the Old Ones and had pushed the Old Ones to the brink of extinction. At this time the C'tan started to feed off each other. Before long there were only four of the C'tan remaining, the others having been devoured by their fellow gods.
The Old Ones, desperate to survive, delved into more dangerous methods of magic and sorcery. The Eldar and the Krork amongst other races, were linked more directly to the warp. These new psychic races brought new destructive power to the cause of the Old Ones, during what came to be known as the "War in Heaven". During the war the Eldar war god Kaela Mensha Khaine fought the Nightbringer and won a Pyhrric victory. As its necrodermis body broke, the Nightbringer exploded into shards of its deathly essence, which then shot into Khaine, permanently tainting him, while the Nightbringer simply transferred its conscious into another waiting body. However according to the Necron Codex the psychics were able to push back the Necrons, but their overuse of the warp would bring trouble as a result. C'tan, being solely of the material realm, were extremely vulnerable to psychic based weaponry and feared psychic weapons so much that they banded together to split the warp from real space. It was never completed due to cataclyism in the warp that was brewing.
The War in Heaven and countless years of slaughter saw the war going badly for the C'tan. The Old Ones forces, with the help of the young race the Eldar were beating the Necrons' forces on all sides. Through use of the Old Ones'/Eldar's webway (a psychic road of sorts that runs throughout space), their forces would pop out from unknown locations to strike with overwhelming psychic force.
Then the Enslavers appeared. The increased psychic link that the Old Ones had nurtured mirrored the destructive impulses of the warring races in the warp. Fear, desperation, hatred and warfare took a more potent role in the warp that had previously been balanced. Rather than the psychic weapons attacking the necrons, they began to dominate the psychic races for their own agendas. They pushed their way into the real world, killing millions and entering the minds of any living creatures, which they drove to fight and die for them. The Old Ones' fortress fell as their own webway was used against them. The Old Ones tried to save themselves by making new races to fight for them. One of these races is hinted at as being the Orks. But the Old Ones failed to stop their own destruction. In turn the Eldar brought along their own peril in the form of the newly created chaos god Slaanesh.
As for the C'tan they found the galaxies teeming with psychic energy and almost every lifeform trying to kill and fight everything. They lost almost all their food. In a final attempt to survive, the C'tan cleansed several worlds of life so the Enslavers could not attack them there and went to sleep to await a time when the psychic storms would end. Thus the C'tan have slept until now.
Now, many millions of years after the Enslaver Plague, the Necrons and their masters have finally awoken to reclaim the galaxy, and begin, once again, to herd the living as their cattle. Finally, after so long, the galaxy is ready for the return of the Star Gods of the Necrons. The deadly power of the invincible Eldar Empire is long gone and their race is scattered, the unstoppable might and momentum of the Emperor's Great Crusade has had 10,000 years to grind to a bloody and brutal stalemate against the inimical forces of the galaxy, and the Orkoid races have long since lost whatever cohesion they may ever have had. Even the Tyranids have shown an aversion to the Necrons, as well they might; since Necron metal could not be absorbed and digested, Tyranids could neither replenish their losses against the Necrons or engineer organisms designed to fight them. All who might have opposed the C'tan are either gone or humbled, the galaxy is a swirling maelstrom of regional and factional conflict and the lives of its trillions upon trillions of inhabitants are ripe for the picking. The deathly silent ranks of the Necrons stalk forth across their tomb worlds once again, to reassert their masters' rule and inspire fear in the living.
At present, the Necrons are still a shadowy presence rather than a fully-fledged force. They strike out of nowhere and without warning, slaughter their enemies and leave before any major reinforcements can arrive. The origins of these various attacks and their motives are unknown, though it is evident that the current Necron forces in the galaxy are only harvesters, rather than the full might of the enormous Necron war machine. Of the four remaining C'Tan, only two are known to be active: The Deceiver and the Nightbringer. The Deceiver has been active for much longer than the Nightbringer, infiltrating various cultures and manipulating events. The Nightbringer was later intentionally awakened from its tomb on Pavonis by the Deceiver, as the cunning C'tan knew it would need to draw on more of the Necron forces to take on the current war-torn galaxy. The other two gods are the Void Dragon and the Outsider, the latter of which has not been seen for millenia.
The Necrons seem to be able to attack anywhere: Necron scout ships once passed by the fleets and defenses protecting the Solar System unnoticed, reaching as far as the orbit of Mars (homeworld of the Adeptus Mechanicus) before being gunned down. Even then, the wreck of the last vessel managed to land on the surface, the speculated reasoning behind this is that one of the four remaining C'tan, the Void Dragon, is entombed deep beneath the Martian surface and is worshiped by some of the Adeptus Mechanicus as the Omnissiah or Machine God. Understandably this casts doubt on the impregnable status of Holy Terra, though this incident is a heavily guarded secret within the Imperium, which has only rarely captured a single Necron body, weapon, or craft in an attempt to learn their secrets; this is extremely difficult to accomplish as entire Necron forces simply vanish into thin air when retreating and take their "dead" with them, although it is not completely certain where the "phased out" bodies disappear to.
The Necron forces originate from uncharted tomb-worlds. Their phase technology allows them to swiftly deploy anywhere in the galaxy. In defeat they "phase-out" and return to the tomb-world for repairs. Any Necrons that have fallen in battle can either be repaired there and it will continue to fight or it will phase out and return to its tomb world to be rebuilt by the Tomb Spyders there. Very rarely does anything remain of the Necrons after an attack regardless of whether it was successful or not.
Other than direct battle, the Necrons have infiltrated the Imperium to an unknown extent. Their elite anti-psyker troops, the Pariahs, are a cross-breed with human genes and it is as yet unknown if the Necrons developed the Pariah project by themselves or with the help of Imperial traitors (or possibly even Adeptus Mechanicus). It is known, however, that the C'tan had the Pariah gene placed in the human genepool several million years ago. This has since manifested itself in the agents of the Culexus temple, specialist anti-psyker assassins and Untouchables such as Alizebeth Bequin, one of Inquisitor Eisenhorn's entourage.
Most Necrons are tall, skeletal figures made of a living metal, or in some rare cases they are a polymer-type material, which provides excellent protection in battle and also has the special self-repair effect, which means even heavily damaged Necrons can quickly return to the battle. Psychologically the Necrons are a shadow of their former selves, it is unknown how much independent thought they are capable of. However, some do retain sentience especially the Necron Lords[1], also the Necron in Xenology says that some of the Necrons have retained memories, including itself, however the Necron Lords are the only Necrons the Imperium is sure to be sentient.
Another interesting phenomenon is that when a battle has turned strongly against the Necrons, the entire army will simply vanish from the battlefield. This even includes "dead" Necrons (those who have not yet repaired themselves) and those already engaged in close combat. Because of this, enemy forces like the Imperium have had great difficulty in obtaining Necron artifacts or "corpses" to analyze.
It should be noted that the terms for the weapons and Necrons that follow are given to them by their opponents, and not by the Necrons themselves. Aside from the C'tan, the Necrons rarely communicate to non-Necrons; only the C'tan known as the Deceiver has been observed infrequently communicating with non-Necrons. One exception to this is the "Thing in cell 1" from Xenology, this is revealed to be a Necron, and it also speaks to Shasam, revealing itself as a Necron who still retains memory, it mentions at the time that it, and other Necrons like it have infiltrated the Inquisition and have had a great deal of control within it. Besides this, there has been only one other recorded incident where a Necron has spoken to a human. It was during the attack on Lorn V that a Pariah made contact with the invading forces. There is only one other similar incident, during the online article The First Pariah. In this article an unknown Necron entity gives instructions to an ex-Culexus Temple Assassin (who doesn't really count as a human anymore). The Pariah formerly known as Thomas Macabee, during the Dark Crusade, worked as the spokesman for the Necron Force, often exchanging banter with the enemy commander.
In the game, Necrons are powerful due to their devastating Gauss weapons and other powerful Wargear, such as Warscythes, The Staff of Light, and other weapons as well as their ability to self-repair. Their biggest weaknesses are their low number of unit types and high points cost, not to mention the fact that they vanish if three quarters of their force are defeated[1].
In the game, Necrons are powerful due to their devastating Gauss weapons and other powerful Wargear, such as Warscythes, The Staff of Light, and other weapons as well as their ability to self-repair. All Necron weapons listed as Gauss Weapons also have the ability to damage opponents even if normally impossible. In the tabletop, a roll of 6 on a dice scores a glancing hit automatically on a vehicle, and an instant wound on non-vehicle units. Their biggest weaknesses are their low number of unit types and high points cost, not to mention the fact that they vanish if three quarters of their force are defeated[1].
A hit from a Pylon's energy weapon is sufficient to breach almost any manner of physical shields and energy fields, instantly slaying infantry and inflicting catastrophic damage on all but the most durable of vehicles.
While Necron forces are usually land-based, Necron space vessels are not unheard of and are quite possibly much more common than people realize. They are probably simply not seen and so the Necrons seem to have the terrifying ability to appear out of nowhere. There are more than two dozen records of Necron space contacts in the Imperial archives, and there are accounts of other races battling Necron fleets.
Necron mastery of physical technology is beyond anything the galaxy has ever seen and surpasses even that of the highly advanced Eldar. Their ships are stunningly fast and agile, equipped with propulsion systems which are capable of travelling interstellar distances without entering the Warp. This is achieved, as far as is known, by making their ships unbound by inertia, allowing them to accelerate almost instantly and infinitely, which explains why Necron ships are often seen to be visibly decelerating upon reaching the site of battle. This also protects them from many of the practical problems and dangers of warp travel. All Necron ships are well-armored, equipped with self-repair systems and utilize an advanced stealth technology which makes them invisible to enemy targeting systems, granting Necron vessels surprising staying power overall. Necron naval weaponry is frighteningly devastating; one necron ship is more than a match for a small imperial fleet while larger necron ships have been known to cripple entire fleets with a single shot and are known to by-pass many conventional defense systems, such as void shields and even Eldar holofields, and strike with an unearthly accuracy.
In every battle so far, the Necrons could only be defeated by superior numbers, and engaging Necrons on even terms proved to be suicide. Fortunately, all of the Necron fleets encountered so far were small task forces that usually disengaged and phased out like their land-based counterparts rather than putting up a full fight. However, their frequency seems to be increasing and the possibility of a massive Necron attack is dreaded by the Imperium as well as other sentient races. Even as a raiding force, they are a serious threat since they are fully capable of outmaneuvering most other fleets (probably with the exception of Eldar and their dark kin). This often leads to catastrophic losses for enemy fleets and forces them to stall for reinforcements to arrive, at which point the Necrons simply phase out again.
See here for a list of known Necron spacecraft.
Living Metal is the basis of Necrontyr technology. It is extremely durable and can dynamically restructure itself to change shape or to adapt to an outside effect, as well as having the capability to mend itself when damaged. The physical shells that contain the C'tan are made from it, so called Necrodermis as are the Necron metal bodies (including starships and vehicles) and some of their weapons. The C'tan Phase Sword and C'tan Phase Knife also utilise similar technology. Literally, the name means "corpse skin" (from Greek νεκρος (as discussed earlier), and δερμις dermis).
The C'tan are encased in Necrodermis upon their creation, resulting in a trapping of a horrific amount of energy. On the battlefield, if this Necrodermis is somehow ruptured or broken, either by means of weaponry or accident, the C'tan encapsulated inside the Necrodermis will escape, resulting in a massive release of this energy. This creates a damaging explosion with a large radius, damaging Necron and enemy alike. The Necrodermis has the capacity to absorb energy and use that energy to repair itself, allowing it to house the energies of C'tan.
{{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help){{cite journal}}: line feed character in |title= at position 18 (help)
|
| |
|---|---|
| Rule books |
|
| Spin-offs |
|
| Video games |
|
| Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay |
|
| Published fiction |
|
| Animation |
|
| Other |
|
