I'm coming hard from the end of the video as well as pissing also I would like it if 40k took itself seriously sometimes and they had actual trade and politics instead of Xenos bad and suck in every way like would you guys actually prefer 40k if it was just humanity?
the Wolfblades are a poor man's Varangian Guard. They are bodyguards for navigator house Beilisarius on terra since before the Horus Heresy. Even tho they weren't seen or mentioned in the custodian books. Tho I don't hate the wolfs I agree with most of this.
Pepperidge farm remembers. But pepperidge farm just isn't going to keep it pepperidge farm's self free of charge. Maybe you go down to your local store and buy a box of these milano cookies, maybe this whole thing goes away.
the TS also killed Custodes left and right (except for CV) in that book - pretty retarded. On the other hand the SWs butchered some GKs, a GKGM and an Inquisitor without much trouble. Fucking bullshit.
To add onto the Months of Shame point. I'd like to bring up the Celestial Lions. They didn't slight the Inquisition nearly as much as the Wolves and the Lions still got pretty much obliterated via 'ork snipers"
Not only that, but after they were nearly destroyed that time, they sent an assassin ACROSS the warp rift just to kill the Lions' chapter master... They will go to any lengths for literally any reason
I actually think it’d be pretty cool if the wolves used actual viking raiding tactics. Rolling up and striking where they’re least expected and strangling enemy trade routes like an angry Homer Simpson.
@@guccifer764 I mean, if you're going that "realism" route, then the same thing applies to pretty much every pre-modern warrior culture. Samurai and knights were every bit as bad as vikings were. All of these groups had no resemblance to the noble, honorable portrayal that they got in later literature. A real historical knight or samurai were more like the "Crips and Bloods", or Al Capone, than the literary characters created to make them look good. Actual peasants who had to live under these sword-swinging gangsters absolutely hated them and rebelled against them pretty much every chance they got.
"Bad Magnus! Bad! You can't use psykers! The Edict of Nikaea says you can't!" "Oh, our guys aren't psykers. They're just channeling the spirits of Fenris. It's different."
"What's that Magnus? You can sense that an entire Khornite Daemon is possessing my Chapter Master's primary weapon?" "Uhh, no it's not... maybe your brain is fried from all your warp experiments, the Axe of Morkai just naturally exudes an aura of bloodlust. That's totally normal."
I love how one of the thousand sons( I think hairyman) took the time to psychically eviscerate a space wolves' librarian and show him that he was 100% using warp juice only to smite the everloving fuck out of him. like lol your whole life is a lie, also I'm better at your job than you and I don't even care about you relaying this information to your dudes
Pancreas is in a room with four things, a gun with one bullet, a space wolf, a Khorne demon and some poor peasant who committed the sin of being born in bretonia. Who does he shoot?
Mentioning Yarrick and Armageddon reminds me of how comedically bad GW are with scale, which also ties into that Fenris spirit thing. Second war of Armageddon was a massive, planet spanning war on a major hive world. Several hives fell with massive casualties, sometimes near total. After all of it, the casualties were an immense… “hundreds of thousands dead and wounded”. It’s just comical, especially since the imperium is so big that they likely have over 1 quadrillion people.
That is honestly quite common in sci fi writing and some do it even worse. Did you know that in star wars there were a total of 6 millions clones made during the clone wars? Biggest wars in centuries, that spans through most of the galaxy and one side has less troops than germany during ww2.
My issues with the Space Wolves are how contradictory their lore is. Every factions has their strengths and weaknesses narratively speaking. Dark Angels are so secretive that they *knowingly* shoot themselves in the foot. Ultramarines are overly orthodox. Iron Hands are assholes who actively try to remove their humanity, etc. The Space Wolves read like someone's OC, where everything that should be a hinderance just isn't. They get drunk and act like a bunch of rowdy frat boys, but are still just as disciplined and elite as any other chapter, because its just an act to make it look like they're undisciplined or some bullshit. They ignore the codex astartes, but never catch flak for it. They hate the use of psykers, and persecuted the Thousand Sons over it, but are fine using their own Rune Priests, because "nuh uh, our stuff is different".
Space Wolves are the kid who demanded to use the best controller at your house because "IM THE GUEST YOU HAVE TO" but then when you're at their house it's the "NUH UH ITS MY HOUSE I GET THE BEST CONTROLLER"
There’s also the fact that they’re said to be a more rebellious and free-spirited legion, but aside from that one time they killed an inquisitor (which they never received any punishment for, btw) I’ve never seen them do anything any other space marine hasn’t done. They even got semi-called out on this in the books when Angron calls Leman Russ and his legion nothing more than the Emperor’s obedient attack dogs.
I have a personal theory that Fenris was a former Eldari world. As the word 'World Spirit' appears when talking about Exodites and it's pretty much a planet sized infinity circuit. That and those gems the wolves wear for no reason, maybe the world spirit of Fenris is them drawing on the souls of the world's previous inhabitants. Maybe the gems have connections to that infinity circuit or maybe soul trapped souls for extra battery?
But there would be a hole in that theory. The other craftworlds who have fought the space wolves would notice and if escaped would rat out on the space wolves misuse on their cousins. Biel tan would never tolerate a human living on a maiden world, let alone letting them use the souls of the exodites. Even then, gw doesn't tend to let more than one person let alone a faction to have common sense. It is a theory, but I am not sure if it's the theory. Perhaps i am missing something.
@@hex_2384 I agree that would be a hole. I just find it strange that the Space Wolves and Eldar share two specific motifs, The word 'World Spirit' and wearing a single gem on the chest of their combat armour.
@@hex_2384 I mean, primaris go against almost all the themes of 40k and are still allowed to exist, fenris being a dead expedite world would actually be super interesting and a cool way to give them more relevance
@@LoRdInTeRwEbS yeah but the primaris where kinda necessary they beefed up every enemy so hard the space marines needed a reinforcement I mean come on tyranids gazkul necrons the orks basically got a demikrok size monstrosity with brain damage and two insanely difficult to fight zenos where introduced not to mention the fact that chaos was finally starting to be an actual threat the primaris are there so the setting can make at least a little sense and answer why the imperium isn’t a goner as for the wolves eh honestly could be a minor warp entity those do exist but we literally know jack shit and gw writers don’t have any creativity beyond hur dur grimdark or hur dur war
A breakaway group of Space wolves working for/living amongst the Eldar as Varangians would actually make me like them. That kind of interspecies mercenary work would be awesome to see, especially seeing the Eldar begrudging tolerate these particularly useful Mon'Keigh.
Fun fact they do have an equivalent of the varangian guard. The Wolfblade (of course they have wolf in the name) is an order of 20 space wolves that are sent to be bodyguards of the Belisarius, a navigator house that has a close relationship with the space wolves. It's from Ragnar's books (the 4').
I always thought that the Wolf Priests just thought they were using the spirt of Fenris to cast spells, but it really was just the Warp the entire time, not a separate source of energy.
I think that's exactly what they do, they use the warp just like other chapters librarians, but they're special space vikings so they get all different terminology
They do Malacador said it Magnus said it Emperor said it Jagahtai said it Litetally 3 of the most qualified people to make that diagnosis said it. Leman is an absolute tool bag
it is the warp but Fenris itself is kinda weird with the warp. For starters, some monsters on the planet are severely mutated and only exist deep underground or in the oceans and they are not natural creatures at all. one example is a "Nightganger" which is some kind of humanoid troll that can breathe underwater and regenerate.
Yeah the Wolves aren’t space Vikings, they are space savages. That’s it, their whole deal is being savages, their culture is not even a shadow of Viking culture
I wish you had mentioned before saying how he telephoned onto the ship with Grimnar. How when Bjorn was awakened and met with a inquisitorial delegation, that when the envoys realized who he was and that he had walked with the emperor they fell to their knees and and were awestruck.
There's having a theme and then there's having an obsession. Space Wolves are certainly the latter. Like seriously you can still keep the wolf theme and not have wolf in everything, there are plenty of other wolf-adjacent nouns and adjectives you can use to mix it up, or even more nordic words you could use. Edit: Also yeah seeing more parallels to actual Viking history in the Space Viking faction would be something I'd be so in for.
I think the idea is the wolves are supposed to be more like warriors in Valhalla, drinking, fighting and hanging out with Odin (Logan) as they are often recruited at the brink of death after proving themselves worthy to a spectating Wolf Priest. They are then taken by flying gunships (Valkyries) to then become Sky warriors. So them not being actual vikings makes sense in the context of them being reborn into Odin's personal army after dying to their old life. Not supposed to do much trading and adventuring in the afterlife. The wolf thing is definitely mega cringe though. 30k wolves were so much cooler and better written, especially the books with Russ in them.
There's a very common bit of fan theory that basically says the Space Wolves call everything wolf because of poor translation. The language on Fenris probably has a ton of unique names for it's stuff, or just a bunch of unique words to describe wolves (like how some eskimo languages have a million words for 'snow') but everything just gets interpreted as wolf.
@@milliondollarmistake That doesn't really change anything though or make it less eye-roll worthy, cause all we get is, "wolf, wolf, wolf" for the millionth time, regardless of any in-lore reason (even if it is just a fan theory).
Same universe where ultramarines hold a section of the galaxy called Ultramar. Or the angry primarch is called Angron. I’m just saying, yeah gw isn’t very inspired sometimes.
@@Ynwell_theslaaneshi Doesn't make the space wolves' naming convention better or any less worthy of criticism. Those both deserved to get made fun of as much as the space wolves and any other of GW's more eye-roll-worthy names. I criticize the Space Wolves specifically because this is a Space Wolves video I'm commenting on and not an Ultramarines or Angron video.
Thanks for the shout-out to Crowe, my favorite Grey Knight, he’s also smart because he doesn’t try to tap into the power of the sword. He just uses it like a regular sword and probably blue-balls the daemon within. He’s also why I named one of my Lepers after him in Darkest Dungeon. Unfortunately he isn’t as pure as Crowe and ended decapitating his own Occultist under the influence of the Crimson Curse.
@@ghosthippie8465 Come on, man, using the power of occult, eldritch magic to stitch flesh back together is a tough craft to master. Just being able to critically heal nothing is a feat in and of itself.
As I recall, the reason the Space Wolves were more or less exonerated for what happened during the Months of Shame was because the Inquisitor who was picking a fight with them over the refugees of the 1st Armageddon War drastically overstepped his bounds. The Inquisition still unanimously agreed that the refugees needed to be dealt with, but they also agreed that declaring Exterminatus on a world that the Space Wolves may or may not have dropped off some of the refugees on was going a bit too far. Plus, the Wolves HAD been acting in self-defense and hadn't technically done anything wrong by taking in the refugees. Bjorn recognized that things weren't going to keep working in the Wolves' favor though, and he managed to get Logan to quit while he was ahead.
@@Turd_Rocket Because a bunch of other Inquisitors sided with the Space Wolves and said that they were in the right to act in self-defense towards a rogue Inquisitor in defense of their charges, and the Grey Knights also admitted that they fucked up and that the Space Wolves weren't wrong in their actions because the Grey Knights themselves found fault with the orders they had been given. It also doesn't hurt that Space Marines technically only answer to the Emperor himself and by law are allowed to essentially ignore all other organizations, including the Inquisition, and that as a Space Marine Chapter that had been around since the First Founding as a full Loyalist Space Marine Legion, their loyalty to the Imperium and their honor was beyond reproach even if they blatantly defied the Codex Astartes. None of that makes what happened during the Months of Shame okay, but the general consensus between all parties is that it was a tragedy and the Space Wolves were not truly at fault for what happened. I mean the alternative is declaring every Space Wolf a heretic, performing Exterminatus on Fenris, and wiping out the entire line of Leman Russ as there are no Successor Chapters for the Space Wolves, and doing so all because they were protecting civilians and soldiers who had fought against Chaos alongside the Space Wolves and killed a relatively small number of Inquisitorial personnel and a few Space Marines in the act of defending said civilians and soldiers. If Bjorn hadn't told the Wolves to quit while they were ahead, the Inquisition might have just been forced to back off, because even they recognized that going after the Space Wolves over this probably wasn't worth it.
Not only that, but retroactively calling the entire line of Russ heretics is likely to have some pretty major effects on many other Imperial Organizations. The Leman Russ tank is the mainline tank for most Imperial Factions, and it's very likely that some high ranking dumbass would declare that that shouldn't be used at all anymore if this happens (I can't think of a specific example of this happening in cannon, but would it really be so far fetched?)
@@MegaHI32 Well normal civilians aren't allowed to own or even handle boltguns or bolter rounds. And by decree of the Emperor himself, the Imperium's entire stock of Land Raiders has been set aside exclusively for the Space Marines, because the Emperor made that proclamation as an emergency response to the outbreak of the Horus Heresy and the necessity of supplying the Loyalist Legions with as much wargear as possible, and nobody has thought to try and overturn that decision for 10,000 years because the Emperor Himself made it.
@@Brutalyte616 That's fair. I suppose my confusion came from what I've noticed as a surface-level "fan justification" (for lack of a better term) giving Space Wolves a pass for atrocities that would otherwise be harshly punished if perpetrated by anyone else. The way you explained it via the nuances of the in-universe politics and alliances makes me see if differently, it isn't Space Wolves simply "getting a pass" but rather their significance in a wider context and potential consequences of prosecuting harsher punishments against them would not be worth the cost. They're still pricks, but it makes sense in-universe why they haven't been wiped out by now. I get it.
I gave up on Space Wolves lore when one of them managed to trick a Harlequin, who apparently did not know that Space Marines have a secondary heart. He then proceeds to act faster than a Harlequin and kills them with a combat knife despite having a punctured primary heart. Then I looked up their fight with the Inquisition and yeah this chapter makes the Ultramarines look tame. It's so annoying when GW goes over the top to prop up a Space Marine Chapter that is a loyalist but then the Astral Claws get screwed over because they are written to be a renegade Chapter.
to be fair overconfidence and arrogance is the biggest killer in combat, and as much as i hate to say it the eldari's biggest problem is that they see all other races as little better than well organized animals. it just so happens that well organized animals can still kill you, unfortunately,
Harlequin can have a respectable kda ratio with custodes but I'm sure being slightly arrogant lets a space marine kill them. Absolutely how that works lol.
You might like the Mesari/Vaulters from Endless Space/ which are EXACTLY like space vikings. They trade with other races, they explore the furthest reaches of the galaxy, they commit boarding actions with plasma shields and proton axes, and they were driven off of their homeworld by the endless cold.
They do actually have the Varangian guard. A Navis Nobilitae family (the three-eyed mutants who navigate ships through the Warp) on Terra get to have a few squads of Space Wolves at a time protecting them from rivals and assassins. In return, every Space Wolf vessel is guided for free by one of these nobles. It isn't as cool as maybe having a Xenos noble or leader guarded by a Wolf or two, but it's damn close.
I mean, the Varangian guard worked for people of an entirely different culture, religion and nation, whilst the Navis Nobilite and Space Wolves both serve the Imperium, the Space Wolf honour guard are more like a modern secret service.
It’s rather amazing that the Inquisition didn’t just straight up stamped “perma-heretic” on the Space Wolves for outright killing the Grey Knights’s leader and the heads of Inquistion.
15:23 Yes there is. The Wolfblade are elite bodyguards to the navigators of House Belisarius. The navigators get 24 space marines and in return the Space Wolves get 24 of the best navigators. Ragnar was once a member of the Wolfblade.
@@NWLR-tv it's a tradition kept up with the same house however, the varangians did the same with the Byzantines - but Space Wolves can't realistically go wondering off to join another leader to fight for them instead so they have to do it through tradition and a deal that stretches back thousands of years.
@@pancreasnowork9939 that's fair, that would be pretty sick - easily done with any of the lost company's to! I could definitely see a shattered company thought to be lost fighting under the eldar, sounds like a conversion opportunity!
And once again though. What’re they called? Why did it have to be “wolf blade”? They could’ve picked so many other cool, non wolf things. Also, while it’s cool, it’s such a small footnote that so many other chapters do. There are tons of important imperial figures with bodyguards from various chapters.
real talk: that's all the 40k community is. It's all either people getting pissy over a faction they don't like or getting pissy that their favorite faction isn't getting all the attention
It would be kind of interesting if in the lore the space wolves actually do eventually get there crap kicked in and are nearly wiped out. Like they square up with some orcish horde or drukhari or something and just get decimated. Like going from 1000 to like 400 troops. And due to this the wolves realize that they might’ve been stupid to pick a fight with everything in the universe and try to focus in on a new philosophy that is actually more like Vikings where they recruit more worlds to there side and eventually prefer more elite tactics like using terminators as shield walls. I feel like this helps against the Mary Sue problem and might give them more humility
i still want it to just be the god ulric from fantasy. would explain the obbsession with wolves when you have a literal god of wolves influencing your culture
You are more right than you realize. Both Gaz and Girlyman have a rule that stops them from immediately dying in one phase on the tabletop. They are both faction leaders, and are arguably on par with each other. Ragnar beheading Gaz really is exactly like a named chaos lord, who isn't even a subfaction leader, just named, nearly killing the Blue Boi.
@@dr.squares8938 it's egregious because of how important Ghazz is, he is the main ork guy, imagine a named space marine killing Angron or any demon primarch and also everyone complains about avatars of Khaine dying so easily to random space marine shmuck so not a good point to bring that up. this also a Ghazz problem since he is the main ork guy but doesn't fight anyone that is important like a demon primarch or even Guiliman, he is just doing some stuff here and there and people complain about that.
@@dr.squares8938 1. that doesnt make it better 2. if the strongest member of a faction cant even beat someone who isnt even the leader of a subfaction then why should that faction be seen as an actual threat
Remember when Logan Grimnar defeated Imotekh the stormlord also known as probably one of the if not the best strategist in the warhammer universe in a strategic battle because he charged into the necron troops? You know the guy who is in charge of the biggest necron dynasty, the phaeron where its impossible to predict what hes exactly doing while he has an answer for basically any situation? Fun times.
@@cc-bk3tx This. The funny thing is the Ultramarines really were the Mary Sue faction while Matt Ward was responsible for all the lore writing. Once he left, GW stopped sucking off the Ultramarines so much...only to start sucking off the Space Wolves.
@@cc-bk3tx Oh I'm with you on that. The Ultramarines still get way too much hate while other Mary Sues like the the Space Wolves skate by without any criticism at all. It's especially annoying because I think GW has actually done a good job sort of "rehabilitating" the Ultramarines and turned them into a genuinely interesting faction.
@@Commodore22345 Fully agree meanwhile space wolves have a the opposite effect where they had a interesting faction turned into a complete merry sue faction that is completely uninteresting
Also thousand sons: oops I cast too many spells and now I'm a chaos spawn, my butt is a mouth and I eat through my asshole and shit out of my mouth. Who could have seen this coming, also I'm being bullied by a smelly hobo with gingivitis who doesn't have a warp presence and turns my spells off. Help daddy Magnus :(
Modern Wolves are probably the greatest victims of flanderization in 40k. Nowadays it's all wolfwolfwolfwolf with a thin veneer of viking covering it. But back in earlier editions, like 5e, the chapter was way more focused on the totemic nature of their planet in general, not just the wolves. They honored bear totems, elk totems, bird totems, etc. Canis Wolfborn was the most wolfwolfwold marine at the time in the chapter and stuck out like a weirdo and had lore reasons (however tenuous) for existing. Now he's just barely standing out from all the background noise of all the wolfshit. Like, i really enjoyed the chapter back in the day, but GW has spent the last decade and some change reducing them to the most bare features while also doubling and then tripling down on the OC Donut Steal nature of the chapter and everything about it. I think one of the biggest reasons why they've gotten so ridiculous is because they're only a single chapter of an entire geneseed lineage. Literally every other legion was able to create dozens or hundreds of chapters during the Second and subsequent Foundings, and from a narrative standpoint GW was able to spread all their stuff around to a bunch of successors, chapter equipment and meta stuff together. The Wolves didn't do that, and the one time they tried to make a successor chapter (before Cawl ex Machina fixed the problem somehow) and gave it half their stuff like a messy divorce, it failed so hard so quickly that the Wolves are actively hunting down the survivors to this day. All the things that could possibly happen to a Wolf legion descendant had to happen to a single, slightly larger than average chapter (first founding no less) instead of being able to happen across a dozen or more, so it all was concentrated and amplified into something easy to hate
My WIP Space Wolves successors fell to Slaanesh and tripled down on the wolf theme, solely so that I can have a lore excuse to have furries fight my hazmat marines.
So there is a theory that I enjoy, which basically states that their stuffs isn't actually all named wolf, but instead it has a real name in Fenrisian, which the wolves call it, and then the name that everyone else calls it, which starts with Wolf
Now im just immagining two guardsmen chatting and the fenrisian getting more and more pissed at the shitty tfanslations. It would have to be 50+ different words translated to "wolf"
If you want a Space Wolf story that’s heavily inspired from the Varangian Guard you should read Wolfblade by William King. The whole story revolves around Ragnar and some other space wolfs acting as bodyguards on Terra to a very politically powerful House and all the shenanigans that come with that
As flawed as the Space Wolves are, I believe it's important to note that the majority of the complaints during the Months of Shame comes down to the fact that the Wolves are a first founding chapter, the quintessential sons of Russ. Prior to their confrontation, they showed nothing but upmost loyalty for 10,000 years thus targeting them would be illogical, even by Inquisitorial standards.
Except the inquisition has fucked with first founding legions before. Just ask the dark angels. The inquisition works because no one can question them, which is why they strike down so hard on those who do. See celestial lions as an example. If people stopped fearing the inquisition and standing up to it, it would cease to work as an organization.
@@alphanoodle1877 did we ever get any information how that weirdo even gained so much power? Pretty sure it wasnt a stupid reason like "ohhhh chaos!", i dont think we even got anything tbh.
The Space Wolves are too few to actually be in the number of battles they have been in, and considering that their geneseed leads to a lot mutations makes it very difficult to get new space marines they should wisely pick their battles rather than chasing after every single scarp they can possibly get into.
I feel like they should also focus more on long distance engagements then close quarters combat with the only ones getting close being the ones who tuned into a "werewolf"
The Wolves highest number in modern 40k was 10.000. Space Wolf Companies are "grreat companies" because their are much bigger than just 100 Space Marines. However most Wolfslords are traveling with only around 100-200 Space Wolves at the time, while the rest of the great company protect other parts of the realm, assit other Imperial Forces or whatever.
You know, there was a time when I couldn't imagine a Space Marine chapter more insufferable than the Ultramarines... Then I was introduced to the Space Wolves.
@@connorbestbarlow1043Yes, the Smurfs are totally innocent when it comes to screwing over another Legion and sending them on their route to Chaos. *cough* Word Bearers
@@leandrocastello309and the wolves fucked prospero on what they had every reason to believe was an order from the emperor (and hell even without Horus, Russ would have had to barge in and capture Magus since the emperor actually ordered that), so really not that different
Also with the Varengi Guard, something like that happened a bit in the Heresy. In the Unremembered Empire, there was a bunch of space wolves looking over Guilliman, a very Roman Primarch.
Orks are my first and favorite faction, I started collecting them for 10+ years and having Ghaz getting beat by a space wolf that wasn't a primarch level threat made me angry.
The thing about months of shame bridge battle is that, frankly, I could see it going that way in tabletop and rpgs alike. I've seen terminator *SQUADS* die to gretchin and fresh-faced dark heresy parties dashing through heavy fire unscathed, so getting initiative and fucking off via teleport is absolutely on-point with how the game can go.
Oddly enough the Black Templars are closer to the historical Vikings and Norse cultures they leave enclaves on planets that visit and occasionally protect important individuals like inquisitors additionally since they’re a fleet based chapter they have a stronger naval tradition than the Space Wolves. Imagine if the Thousand Sons were successful and destroyed Fenris and the Wolves became the only first founding chapter to become fleet based at least their rivals the Dark Angels still have the Rock.
Honestly, everything you just said is how I feel. Bjorn is the only good Space Wolf, all others are boring, dull, or just crappy Mary Sues. And the stuff about how the Space Wolves are just cosplaying and had so much potential for being like true Vikings was fantastic. An Eldar Farseer or Tau Ethereal with their own contingent of Space Wolf Varangian Guard would be so amazing to see in the lore.
That just wouldn't happen unless the Space Wolves get excommunicated or something from the Imperium. It's highly against the rules to join forces with Xenos.
@@KarpetBurn Well... It's been done several times already. Credit where credit's due... It was usually out of sheer necessity. A good old "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" kind of situation.
@@RoulicisThe Yeah I'm not a lore expert but I've never seen the Imperium side with a Xeno faction for reasons like expansion and partnership, so the Space Wolves unifying together with the Tau and Aeldari or something is definitely not happening on account of how closed minded and barbaric the Space Wolves are.
God...The idea of the Space Wolves roaming the galaxy bringing both goods and Fuck Yous to Xenos and imperial alike sounds so great it'll never happen. It could even make the Spirit of the planet thing work as they could ALSO be a sort of missionary force, spreading their ideals which would empower Fenris.
Fenrisan territory could be spread thought the galaxy, from a system following their command down to individusl cities or even a few powerfull individuals.
Honestly, I'd be fine with the World Soul concept if we saw more examples of the concept on other worlds, Necromunda for example, or just any hive world with sufficient history, any group with sufficient spirituality and a world that followed it, like the Salamanders and the Promethean Cult, or the Mechnicus, and yes, millions of versions of the Emperor, possibly even show them fighting together and against each other. If you want to alter the rules of the universe so some group can get an edge either figure out a way to have it only work for them, or don't make them the only example.
To be fair, the Mechanicus do actually serve the and worship Dragon of Mars (this is a joke... sort of) and are entirely influenced by its powers and messages, even though they just sort of pretend they mean the Emperor when they say "Omnissiah", going so far as to commune with AI even though they consider AI to be heretical - because machine spirits are f*cking AI.
hey i’ve noticed a minor lore error in this video, it’s something that many people get wrong around 4:48 you state that magnus did „everything wrong“ when in fact he really did nothing wrong :)
Space wolves being more friendly with some xenos could definitely make them a lot more interesting! It could fit in well with them being more of a "good guys chapter", and also hammer down the point of why the Inquisition are skeptical of them. Would be great to see someone make a cool custom SW chapter revolving around it!
If any of the Ragnar books are to be believed, as they seem to be the go-to space wolf novels, Space Wolves are in fact willing to talk to Eldar and hear them out. Will they listen? Depends on context, but to their credit an Eldar wraith construct told Ragnar "Hey don't go in this temple there's a great unclean one in there" and Ragnar more or less said "You're probably right but I'm with an inquisitor right now so I don't really have a choice", a sentiment his captain more or less mirrored. The Space Wolves literally treated the Eldar emissary with more respect than they would a grey-knight, lol.
Space Wolves from the name sounds like a 13 years old first Space Marine Chapter, it was honestly a dice roll on if the Space Wolves would’ve been Viking, Samurai, or WW2 Germany based. Edit: You made me hate the Space Wolves more than Bretonnians, where instead of being pathetic, they just get their IceCream without no repercussions.
@@aprinnyonbreak1290 made from fresh Wolf Milk that comes from the Wolf Cow that requires a Wolf Bucket and to use the Wolf Cow Wolf Farmer who was trained in the art of Wolf Cow Wolf Milking.
Your idea of them trading with other factions borne of a temporary alliance is why people are mad at the Votann. They needed weapons and supplies and to knuckle up against the Necrons, Tyrannids, and Orks, so they traded with the Tau. They're cordial at best with the fish dudes and are otherwise entirely independent. They're also my second favorite group of people in 40k because they're the Dwarves in space. If the wolves were even 1/10th as in-depth as them I'd be cool with it. Also if the Wolves can go into full scale, actual war against the Inquisition and get away with it, I want a refund on about half of the planets that got Exterminatus'd for daring to cough in a way that the Inquisitors didn't like.
The t'au aren't fish people they're space cows from a mostly desert planet. In one Of the Xenology books they're described as sharing biological features with bovines. Don't forget they have hooves intead of feet.
For the Tau it was the Humans within their Empire and the other client races that made the Greater Good Warp Entity so the Tau not having a strong presence in the warp isn't really applicable in that case.
Your last point is so true! I don't know much about the space wolves and I'm fairly new to 40k lore but I know about our vikings irl. And they just don't fit the imperium of man. They'd be the guys raiding the imperium. A bit more like an ork-tau crossover. But then again, their peaceful side doesn't fit the whole universe all that much, since the Tau are the only ones, as far as I know, doing anything with other species except killing them.
I like the wolf helms because they had to write lore to make it where the helmets let the Space Wolves smell stuff while remaining sealed through some complex chamber system or something like that. Also, I hope a Dark Angels video comes out at some point cause they're my favorite faction and I wanna see what stuff you like about them.
“Brothers shall fight | and fell each other, And sisters’ sons | shall kinship stain; Hard is it on earth, | with mighty whoredom; Axe-time, sword-time, | shields are sundered, Wind-time, wolf-time, | ere the world falls; Nor ever shall men | each other spare.” it basically a poem of ragnarok
@@tompotter8703 They should have just called it Ragnarok then. 40k has never had any qualms about straight up ripping off other IPs and historical cultures in the past.
4:47 He didn't try hard enough. Magnus met all of Lemans demands without even knowing those were Leman's demands. Because Leman never spoke to Magnus but a Daemon of Tzeentch. That isn't Lemans fault per say, that one he was just ill informed on.
I always thought a Space wolves successor based on scandinavian history/culture that's NOT vikings could be interesting. Like 18th century Sweden or something
I remember a homebrew Chapter based off Celtic/Old Irish folklore, with an emphasis on druid stuff and Ulster Cycle type characters. Cool as fuck light-green and brown color scheme.
They do have something like those guards. In the Ragnar books we learn that they provide bodyguards to a navigator house in exchanged for their services.
As a space wolf player I mostly agree. My headcannon is that the months of shame are heavily exaggerated because you know funny sagas. As for the rune priests I personally think it would be cooler if it wasn't warp based and was either a dark age thing or something like the Bhagaba from endless space.
I actually always assumed that because of whatever device they used in the Terraforming of Fenris it made Fenris a sort of partially living entity, where it's not that they draw their powers from Fenris, but rather a version of Fenris that is a Warp Entity, kinda similar to the Eldar Gods being Old One Weapons theory
The idea of a Space Wolf protecting other races leaders for the good of the imperium or more based on trade and exploring uncharted space is amazing. That could made more believable why the spirit of Fenris exists. Because space wolves love to spread their stories and sagas so by traveling so much and trading with other species they could literaly made the spirit of fenris more powerful. Its a really cool idea, a bit Heretical but Guliman and Belasarius are here and the space wolfs would probaly say " Eat a dick" if anyone found a problem with it.
When I was first introduced to the Warhammer way back in 2008-2010, at the time I thought the Space Wolves were some of the coolest Space Marines. However X many years latter when I started looking at them objectively and GW started doubling-tripling down on the WolfyWolfWolf I stopped caring about them and haven't looked back.
The subject of actual space Vikings is part of why 40k can be annoying as a setting. there are so many interesting stories to be told about interacting with other people and species but 40k insists that no one can interact with eachother outside the smallest ceasefires when the nids attack. Hell at this point it makes literally no sense for eldar and ultramar to permanently team up now that robot girly man is yvrains best boy and there are only so many times you can use “they don’t trust each other” when chaos has literally ripped the galaxy in half
Well the imperium was unaffected bar a few hundred planets that got instantly replaced anyway and as soon as guilliman arrived he establisbed a connection done, problem solved. They keep soft locking themselves
I'm a Space Wolves player, and I love the fact that you're hating the Wolves so much - it's good content. Yet, you didn't comment about the "furry" thing that all the other haters like to focus on. Respect to that. Also, I do agree they uses the word "wolf" way too much for naming stuff in their army. It's just not very inventive.
I'm so happy to see you cover the warp stuff It brings the thousand sons and the eldar down how ridiculous the wolfs mechanic is I'm all for belief makes x real thanks to the warp, its a core mechanic, but you have to relate it the ocean of other beliefs that don't reflect that idea. If the space wolves had gone full viking like you would like, and have colonised say one thousandth of the Imperial territory, then we'd be in business for a well fleshed out power system with its own pseudo gods etc.
@@Uthandol Oh whats that? Well Bjorn will say "fuck off dustboy" and defend Fenris again, while Thousand Shlongs have their worlds fucked, they lost not only Prospero.
@@kharngotrekson1726 Last I checked Prospero is being rebuilt. So not only do they have Prospero, but the Planet of Sorcs as well. Wolf diddlers cant do a thing without a Mc Guffin and several legions of custodes and Sisters to hold their hand. Magnus ( still alive unlike lemon party russel ) responds with " Eat a psychic cock, dog fucker."
They have fortress outposts on other worlds, and they helm an entire sector battlefleet within segmentum solar that's headquartered over Fenris itself. They aren't empire builders like the Ultramarines, they're the Imperium's very literal space marines, leading its navies during the most important space battles such as over Cadia and Armageddon
I am so stuck on the Wolves. Aesthetically I really like them, and individually I like a few of their characters (Lukas the Trickster is a good example), and I unironically want Russ to come back as some Odin-like wisened old man. But then you have how disgustingly they've been written and that screws them over. My main thought is really just... I try to not judge other factions for being OP mary sues in the books focused on them because well... every damn army has that issue (except CW eldar).
I really don't know where the "wolves are OP" sentiment comes from, because I can't remember the last time they were allowed to just win. Prospero maybe, lol. Sure Ragnar is a powerful champion, but almost every story I've read about the SW that comes from the last two decades involves them getting creamed by forces beyond their influence. Fenris got exteriminatus'd, like a third of the chapter got killed by the inquisition and grey-knights, and the inquisition fed two whole WAAAAGH's ammunition and fuel and set them out into the Fenris zone of influence. By the time G-man shows up with primaris, Logan Grimnar is sitting on his throne and says "we're spread too thin. Setback after setback. Give it a century and the chapter will be extinct". Then Ragnar dies getting a mutual kill that didn't do anything, their ultimate relic weapon gets taken by chaos, Fenris gets wasted AGAIN by chaos, and I'm left wondering where exactly the idea that they deserve worse is coming from. I mean seriously, it feels like the only reason people have to hate the wolves is because when they show up briefly in other chapter's stories they're depicted as boisterous and dislikable.
Space Wolf mercenaries accompanying a xenos faction would be rad as hell. I hope part of the setting’s evolution is a fractured Imperium. The setting being humans fighting everyone else even if the only reason is “they talk different” is really stagnating the writing. Give me some fall of Rome in space. Make Tau relevant because the Eastern Imperium really needed something better than lasguns or the Western Imperium openly working with some craftworlds because everyone wants to murder Chaos. That’s what made WHFB compelling. Like, yeah, the Empire still burned witches but their first reaction to anything wasn’t “genocide the non-humans”. 40k started as Fantasy in space and would be better if it took more from the Old World. I will give my soul to Nagash to die on that hill forever.
By the way, if the Wolves set up actual colonies, it would make their lore soooo much richer! That would explain how they get enough supplies and recruits to maintain their huge chapter, it would put them on even footing with the Ultramarines, hell it would even explain their “own warp thing”! But no, the GW is too shallow to think nanometer beyond superficial aesthetics level.
The space wolves do go out and build fortresses on other worlds for future use during their "great hunts", which are basically viking raids against the orks and chaos. These forts are maintained and the wolves come back to defend those worlds if the worlds ask for aid. As to Fenris, it's complicated, but the Emperor all but confirms that Fenris is a unique phenomenon in the galaxy and that he specifically wanted Leman Russ to be there to harness it's unique power. There are some implications that Fenris itself is a minor warp god, whom the Emperor "stole" from chaos, but that part is heavy speculation with only a few lines from Horus and the Emperor to support it.
The celestial lions file a complaint against the inquisition for needlessly executing a planet and they get all their top ranks assasinated with them returning with just barely 50 marines out of the whole chapter after Armageddon and the stupid wolves get an “oh you *sitcom ending music*” after openly making war? Why are the ultramarines the hated ones again?
The difference is, the Celestial Lions are a relatively low standing successor chapter. The Space Wolves are one of the OG Legions. You try wiping them out, you succeed in pissing off 90% of the Space Marines who see this as the blatant overreach of the Inquisition that it is.
This is why I really dislike the discussion around space wolves: Most people involved don't know the lore even a little bit, and as much as I love Pancreasnowork, his open and self-admitted lack of research shows here. The Space Wolves did not "declare war" on the inquisition, in fact they did not fire a single shot at the inquisition for almost the entire months of shame because they knew that if they did they'd be exterminated. They did kill some grey-knights during one alteraction, but most of the months of shame were space wolves kiting around Segmentum Solar using their ships as shields to protect the civilian refugee ships from Armageddon, dying in droves to do so. When the inquisition got fed up and went to exterminatus Fenris anyways (which they successfully did, fenris got full wiped which NOBODY ACKNOWLEDGES), that was when the space wolves finally fought back, for all of one space battle before Bjorn the fell-handed ended the conflict, and if you have to question how or why he could do that, Bjorn personally knew the Emperor, and as such is considered less of a space wolf and more of a imperial icon of awe and worship. The story is fine if you read it from start to finish, but nobody ever does, and because SW stories actually have some layers and nuance, they don't make sense if you just lay out the basics. Also to address the comparison to the Celestial Lions, the Space Wolves aren't a regular chapter. Fenris is the naval hub of an entire battlefleet and at that one of the best in the imperium, present for Cadia and Armageddon. The Space Wolves chapter fluctuates between the size of 6 codex compliant chapters and 13, aka averaging 6,000-8,000 marines, as permitted-sorta by Guillemin after the Heresy in accordance to Leman's final request. The inquistion can't just silently eradicate the space wolves, and it isn't just because of clout, they are the second largest chapter in the imperium second only to the Black Templars, and are easily the most important chapter to the Imperium's overall defense because Space Wolves aren't just space marines, they're an entire sector navy (as befitting the viking theme).
I'm one of those types who more likes the visuals and CONCEPT of Space Wolves moreso than their actual lore - which is also how I feel about the Dark Angels, to be honest.
I like to imagine the lore between Space Wolves and Grey Knights is decided by essentially two guys getting into heated arguments over whos Mary Sue chapter is biggerer and betterer.
If the lore was consistent then the Inquisition would have declared the Wolves Excommunicate Traitoris. There would be a civil war, like the Badab War, between the Space Wolves and some of their more suicidal successors vs a MUCH larger Imperial force. The Wolves would have most likely been humbled and sent on a penative crusade at a minimum, broken as a chapter and remade under Inquisition supervision, or at the most extreme end totally annihilated (though I really doubt they would for a founding legion).
If they even tried that, The Inquisition would be looking down the bolter barrels if nearly every Chapter in the Imperium. The Space Marines don't really like them to begin with and murdering and shaming a First Founding Chapter in it's entirety is all the reason they need to cull them.
Alas, games workshop couldn't bear to do such a lore-consistent punishment for one of their special space marine factions that aren't like the other girls
Well now that whole trading/Varangian Guard just makes me want to create a Space Wolf Successor Chapter that was formed following a Rogue Trader. They could even have been formed by Watch Pack Bludbroder (if they lived I can't remember) to have a Roman theme, maybe they even took up some Ultramarine management.
Regarding the spirits of Fenris. That 100% makes sense. How do you think gods started in the universe? They were Egregores for the beliefs of their people. The Chaos Gods are just massive accumulations of certain energies. Khorne is violence, Slaanesh is passion, Tzeentch is subterfuge, and Nurgle is disease. Very base things that gained sentience. Warhammer was influenced by Chaos Magick. A real-world occult practice. These are basic principles of how Chaos Magick sees the spiritual realm. It's perfectly in line with their world building.
The Inquistion fighting the Wolves could have been a way to tie into the Viking theme, maybe make it so they've abandoned the codex and have too many brothers and that's how they're able to fight back so well. The Wolves are branded heritics so they turn outward and explore, making contact with xenos and trading, becoming axuliaries for other empires, an maybe this expansion and intermingling creates a warp presence that creates runes wherever they explore, letting the rune preists spread their peagan god and increase it's power. It'd be a really good reason for the inquistion to exterminatus a few planets, to cleanse them of this encroaching warp entity. Fanfic over, lol.
Well good news for you: the space wolves already have a codex-exemption from G-man thanks to Leman Russ's final request before departing forever, and on top of that, Fenris got exteriminatus'd because they were branded as heretics. They were just able to undo a bit of the damage through some penitent stuff. On top of that they do on occasion speak to the eldar, not as allies, but they can be cordial. Almost everything I'm reading people wish existed in the wolves already does exist, but lore channels don't actually read the lore and just go off of reddit and fifthhand stories.
The varangian guard thing. I find it funny how often i see references to Space Wolves being body guards or having an attached unit seconded navigator clans or rogue traders or weirdo high ranking mechanicus. Seen it pretty often in white dwarf and other semi official stuff and a lot in the projects of the better painters. Particularly people who do the heavily moded blanchitsu stuff. Also the lack of explorator space wolves fleets and rogue traders is something That makes me so sad not being a thing I am going to make it canon in my head.
Just to add on to the whole Space wolves aren't based on vikings not only do they not represent them in their entirety they dont even represent them on the field of battle. The vikings were terrifying not because they were a bunch of naked beserkers. No, what made them fucking terrifying is that they were the equivalent of the Navy seals. Master Navigators, sailing boats capable of going down all waterways. They would appear in the predawn hours heavily armed and armored, masters of the most modern fighting techniques, they would raid pillage and burn and then dissapear. The vikings conquered all of Scandinavia, Most of England, Controlled half of Ireland, Carved a Kindom out of France and would rule a land known as the Kievan Rus which would threaten the Byzantines. These were not raging lunatics. They were some of the greatest soldiers of their time which is exactly why the Byzantines would pay any price to have a legion of them. The actual space wolves if they wanted to do proper homage to history should be the most effecient Marine force in the game. Masters of quick strikes, deep infiltration missions, ship to ship boarding actions as well as being capable of large scale invasions second only to the Ultramarines. Then on top of that they should have a few people here and their prone to Beserking. Oh, and if you wanted to get extra cool they should be the only unit to field female space marines, as the vikings were known to be egalitarian and there were records of women vikings.
Uh.... from my own research into it, they weren't navy seals, highly trained in modern (or modern at the time) combat. They were parts of the population that could afford to have a bit of armor and some weapons (chain shirt, shield, helmet, long knife, and spear isn't heavily armed and armored) and could take some time away from home to go a-viking. They hit poorly defended, but resource rich locations like monasteries. They settled isolated and out of the way locations. They were not centralized. There wasn't a 'Viking nation' that everyone who went a-viking answered to. Multiple kings/rulers in that culture, and they had their own conflicts and alliances within. The advantages that they had was mostly because of their ships. Their ship design allowed them to use them to sail along rivers that most of Europe didn't think was feasible while also being able to sail across deeper ocean waters, giving the culture a distinct advantage when it came to trade and where they could hit with their raids. They weren't the only culture/group that raided their neighbors at the time, they were just one of the only ones that could avoid the well defended parts.
The space wolves command a sector battlefleet, one of the largest and most decorated in the Imperium, within segment solar, and were among the commanders of the most important naval battles in the imperium's history, such as every battle for Cadia, and most of the battles over Armageddon. Fenris is a naval hub, and the Fang is the largest fortress in the galaxy save Holy Terra's imperial palace itself.
Dammit. Now I want actual Viking space wolves who use their stupid wolf aesthetic to cover up the fact that their legion secretly has a vast trade network including with multiple Xenos races, and they play the role of Varangian Guards with the ones they believe will be most beneficial to humanity’s long term survival. That trading network is why they have such a weirdly large and powerful navy, and the real reason the inquisition didn’t virus bomb Fenris. They realized during the months of shame that the wolves are actually way more powerful than they let on, so they pulled back and started digging, only to realize the wolves have a “merchant” fleet that dwarfs even some sector fleets, and as such if push came to shove, the wolves couldn’t be bullied like the celestial lions. Additionally, the wolves have *way* more space marines than they let on, since while every wolf claims to be Fenrisian, they’ve been setting up SW chapters in the farthest reaches of the galaxy, exploring the frontier and helping colonize new worlds, which are used to train/recruit aspirants. They could be part of the reason why the imperium is still “constantly expanding and annexing new worlds” after nearly 10 thousand years.
I hear what you're saying about the Wolves and the Inquisition, but consider this; The Inquisition are a bunch of nerds that should never stop getting clowned on.
1 day and 88k views so far. You don't throw out mass amount of boring content and actually put in time to your video and make them funny. Thank you for that pancreasnoworks and you deserve all the popularity you are receiving
Darn, I was going to ask for a space wolves video at some point but I should have known it would be like this. The wolves are the first faction I got into in the hobby and I will always love them. It is a shame how GW is doing them lately.
The space wolves primarch Leman Russ made horrible decisions. He murdered a loyalist legion, burned their world, killed their innocent people, and turned the embittered remainder to Chaos. He abandoned the defence of Terra to kill Horus. He had a chance to kill him but hesitated. Then after totally failing he disappears on a 10,000 year fetch quest. The space wolves chapter also make horrible decisions. Refusing primaris, humiliating guilliman, all their novels etc. They are the worst. The best thing they have done is flipping the bird to the inquisition.
Just give them actual specialization instead of "beating people at their own game" so it doesn't feel so mary sue. Beat magnus twice by outpsyching him and then out demoning him? Out trick and outspeed a harlequin? match blow per blow against the inquisition, a faction that can requisition much support as they want? They are dangerously close to outraiding the dark eldar, outshooting the Tau, and outnumbering the tyranids at this rate.
The Wolves having their version of the Varangian Guard could lead to one of my favorite bits of old lore returning: the Paradhel/Half-Eldar. Imagine the ferrocity and strength of a marine with an Eldar's psychic might.
Bit late to the party but, the Space Wolves DO have a version of the Varangian Guard...sort of. Its very specific in its use. The Wolves have a Navigator house allied to them as part of an ancient pact of friendship, and the terms are the house provides navigators specifically to the wolves alone and in return the wolves give them a certain amount of marines to serve primarily as bodyguards named the Wolfblade. Because of course. Mind you they often get used to attack rival houses and 'relinquish' them of wealth but oh well. Ragnar Blackmane was part of this guard for a time and lived on Terra where they are based during one of his books.
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I'm coming hard from the end of the video as well as pissing also I would like it if 40k took itself seriously sometimes and they had actual trade and politics instead of Xenos bad and suck in every way like would you guys actually prefer 40k if it was just humanity?
About half of this was a good take, the other half was extremely pedantic. No elaboration, just my opinion.
BOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!
the Wolfblades are a poor man's Varangian Guard. They are bodyguards for navigator house Beilisarius on terra since before the Horus Heresy. Even tho they weren't seen or mentioned in the custodian books. Tho I don't hate the wolfs I agree with most of this.
shoulda realized merely mentioning the ending gag makes it an ending gag.
Remember how during the battle of Prospero the thousand sons kept easily killing the wolves by sniping them because they didn’t wear helmets
REALISM IS HERESY
Pepperidge farm remembers. But pepperidge farm just isn't going to keep it pepperidge farm's self free of charge. Maybe you go down to your local store and buy a box of these milano cookies, maybe this whole thing goes away.
@@Voltboy1449 *HERESY IS HERESY THIS IS NOT*
the TS also killed Custodes left and right (except for CV) in that book - pretty retarded. On the other hand the SWs butchered some GKs, a GKGM and an Inquisitor without much trouble. Fucking bullshit.
To be fair, they did the same to the Sisters of Silence.
To add onto the Months of Shame point. I'd like to bring up the Celestial Lions.
They didn't slight the Inquisition nearly as much as the Wolves and the Lions still got pretty much obliterated via 'ork snipers"
Which is hilarious, considering it was written before GW brought out Killteam Ork Snipers.
Orks snipers do exist but from what I have heard they are no way as near the level as fucking Vindicare assassins in lore or in tabletop.
Not only that, but after they were nearly destroyed that time, they sent an assassin ACROSS the warp rift just to kill the Lions' chapter master... They will go to any lengths for literally any reason
@@buivantuanlam5316 Their main trade in Killteam is that they can shoot further than 6" so that might put things into perspective for you.
@@YatzeeWillWearAGreenHat I don't play TT so is it considered extremely far ? I need to wrap my heaf around it.
I actually think it’d be pretty cool if the wolves used actual viking raiding tactics. Rolling up and striking where they’re least expected and strangling enemy trade routes like an angry Homer Simpson.
Red Corsairs say Hi.
That would require GW and the general public to know what Vikings were actually like instead of learning history purely through Sabaton songs
So the Raven Guard? Lmao real viking were fucking scary, imagine being miles inland and suddenly a horde just appears from the river lmao
@@guccifer764 I mean, if you're going that "realism" route, then the same thing applies to pretty much every pre-modern warrior culture. Samurai and knights were every bit as bad as vikings were. All of these groups had no resemblance to the noble, honorable portrayal that they got in later literature. A real historical knight or samurai were more like the "Crips and Bloods", or Al Capone, than the literary characters created to make them look good. Actual peasants who had to live under these sword-swinging gangsters absolutely hated them and rebelled against them pretty much every chance they got.
Imagine the Space Wolves pulling some kind of stunt where they land their space-ships and proceed to do the Vinland longship carry.
"Bad Magnus! Bad! You can't use psykers! The Edict of Nikaea says you can't!"
"Oh, our guys aren't psykers. They're just channeling the spirits of Fenris. It's different."
"What's that Magnus? You can sense that an entire Khornite Daemon is possessing my Chapter Master's primary weapon?"
"Uhh, no it's not... maybe your brain is fried from all your warp experiments, the Axe of Morkai just naturally exudes an aura of bloodlust. That's totally normal."
@@KarpetBurnI hate of hypocresy of wolf don't explosion in his faces.
Me: "Then Fenris must be corrupted by Chaos!"
I love how one of the thousand sons( I think hairyman) took the time to psychically eviscerate a space wolves' librarian and show him that he was 100% using warp juice only to smite the everloving fuck out of him. like lol your whole life is a lie, also I'm better at your job than you and I don't even care about you relaying this information to your dudes
@@jinpachibobochan3532nUH hUh inquisitor!
It’s the sPiRit oF FENRiS!
I love how you somehow made this about elves
Natural talent
He's as sneaky and deadly as the Scorpion. B)
@@Archon3960 You mean elf right?
@@diegocardenas6494 Yes. The Eldar Striking Scorpion.
@@diegocardenas6494 Eldar totem animal spirit.
Pancreas is in a room with four things, a gun with one bullet, a space wolf, a Khorne demon and some poor peasant who committed the sin of being born in bretonia. Who does he shoot?
the space wolf twice juse cause he can.
Bretonnian.
He lines them up for a collateral and kills all of them
himself
trick question, he picks the bretonian up by the ankles and proceeds to beat the demon to death
Mentioning Yarrick and Armageddon reminds me of how comedically bad GW are with scale, which also ties into that Fenris spirit thing. Second war of Armageddon was a massive, planet spanning war on a major hive world. Several hives fell with massive casualties, sometimes near total. After all of it, the casualties were an immense… “hundreds of thousands dead and wounded”. It’s just comical, especially since the imperium is so big that they likely have over 1 quadrillion people.
That is honestly quite common in sci fi writing and some do it even worse.
Did you know that in star wars there were a total of 6 millions clones made during the clone wars?
Biggest wars in centuries, that spans through most of the galaxy and one side has less troops than germany during ww2.
Even one planet with decent hive cities would be quadrillions, there are more humans than can be expressed with normal numbers
@@Vakqksb37 it would not be quadrillions on a planet. The most populated planet in the galaxy is Terra, which is still only at “hundreds of billions”.
@@mach1275 it doesn’t seem like he was referring to one planet when he said one quadrillion
@@richardschaffer3080 the comment is gone now but he specifically said something like “a well populated hive world would have 1 quadrillion”
This man is working his way to the top of the Inquisition hit list
Actually, after The Months of Shame, pretty sure the Inquisition probably approves of this video
I think the Inquisition are looking for any reason possible to excommunicate the space wolves
Lol humans and their fear of those power mongering assholes XD
"... to the top of the Inquisition hit list"
Face it, the HERETIC!!! known as Luetin is even worse.
If anything they’ll thank me
My issues with the Space Wolves are how contradictory their lore is.
Every factions has their strengths and weaknesses narratively speaking. Dark Angels are so secretive that they *knowingly* shoot themselves in the foot. Ultramarines are overly orthodox. Iron Hands are assholes who actively try to remove their humanity, etc. The Space Wolves read like someone's OC, where everything that should be a hinderance just isn't. They get drunk and act like a bunch of rowdy frat boys, but are still just as disciplined and elite as any other chapter, because its just an act to make it look like they're undisciplined or some bullshit. They ignore the codex astartes, but never catch flak for it. They hate the use of psykers, and persecuted the Thousand Sons over it, but are fine using their own Rune Priests, because "nuh uh, our stuff is different".
Space Wolves are the kid who demanded to use the best controller at your house because "IM THE GUEST YOU HAVE TO" but then when you're at their house it's the "NUH UH ITS MY HOUSE I GET THE BEST CONTROLLER"
There’s also the fact that they’re said to be a more rebellious and free-spirited legion, but aside from that one time they killed an inquisitor (which they never received any punishment for, btw) I’ve never seen them do anything any other space marine hasn’t done.
They even got semi-called out on this in the books when Angron calls Leman Russ and his legion nothing more than the Emperor’s obedient attack dogs.
Space Wolves are the coolest chapter, and no amount of salt infused cope will change that
@@DestroyDEI OK furrie.
@@maddraugr4667stay mad, kid :')
I have a personal theory that Fenris was a former Eldari world. As the word 'World Spirit' appears when talking about Exodites and it's pretty much a planet sized infinity circuit.
That and those gems the wolves wear for no reason, maybe the world spirit of Fenris is them drawing on the souls of the world's previous inhabitants.
Maybe the gems have connections to that infinity circuit or maybe soul trapped souls for extra battery?
Yeah exactly my thinking, I thought this guy was meant to be an eldar fan and then he goes on a tangent about how world spirits aren't a thing
But there would be a hole in that theory. The other craftworlds who have fought the space wolves would notice and if escaped would rat out on the space wolves misuse on their cousins. Biel tan would never tolerate a human living on a maiden world, let alone letting them use the souls of the exodites. Even then, gw doesn't tend to let more than one person let alone a faction to have common sense. It is a theory, but I am not sure if it's the theory. Perhaps i am missing something.
@@hex_2384 I agree that would be a hole. I just find it strange that the Space Wolves and Eldar share two specific motifs,
The word 'World Spirit' and wearing a single gem on the chest of their combat armour.
@@hex_2384 I mean, primaris go against almost all the themes of 40k and are still allowed to exist, fenris being a dead expedite world would actually be super interesting and a cool way to give them more relevance
@@LoRdInTeRwEbS yeah but the primaris where kinda necessary they beefed up every enemy so hard the space marines needed a reinforcement I mean come on tyranids gazkul necrons the orks basically got a demikrok size monstrosity with brain damage and two insanely difficult to fight zenos where introduced not to mention the fact that chaos was finally starting to be an actual threat the primaris are there so the setting can make at least a little sense and answer why the imperium isn’t a goner as for the wolves eh honestly could be a minor warp entity those do exist but we literally know jack shit and gw writers don’t have any creativity beyond hur dur grimdark or hur dur war
Angron: You’ve lived your entire life for battle. Are you really going to die over some mortal?!
Ghazghkull: SOMEWONE IZ.
Angron proceeds to have his head rammed so far up his ass, he can see his tonsils.
Ghaz probably shed one orky tear over the death of his best opponent
A breakaway group of Space wolves working for/living amongst the Eldar as Varangians would actually make me like them. That kind of interspecies mercenary work would be awesome to see, especially seeing the Eldar begrudging tolerate these particularly useful Mon'Keigh.
my space wolf warlord i named Harald Hadrada. by far the best. so i second this. the varangian guard r amazing
Don't the Space Wolves have a tendency to join up with Rogue Traders?
@@baylorlopez4495 how very GW of you I love it awesome name
And seducing all the Eldar women so the Eldar men tattle on them to the inquisition 🤣🤣
Fun fact they do have an equivalent of the varangian guard.
The Wolfblade (of course they have wolf in the name) is an order of 20 space wolves that are sent to be bodyguards of the Belisarius, a navigator house that has a close relationship with the space wolves.
It's from Ragnar's books (the 4').
I always thought that the Wolf Priests just thought they were using the spirt of Fenris to cast spells, but it really was just the Warp the entire time, not a separate source of energy.
I think that's exactly what they do, they use the warp just like other chapters librarians, but they're special space vikings so they get all different terminology
They do
Malacador said it
Magnus said it
Emperor said it
Jagahtai said it
Litetally 3 of the most qualified people to make that diagnosis said it.
Leman is an absolute tool bag
@@BillboBirsay It should be called the Wolf Warp.
The fact is 40k is an extremely pliable setting you can do basically whatever you want to it that's its main selling point
it is the warp but Fenris itself is kinda weird with the warp. For starters, some monsters on the planet are severely mutated and only exist deep underground or in the oceans and they are not natural creatures at all. one example is a "Nightganger" which is some kind of humanoid troll that can breathe underwater and regenerate.
Yeah the Wolves aren’t space Vikings, they are space savages. That’s it, their whole deal is being savages, their culture is not even a shadow of Viking culture
I wish you had mentioned before saying how he telephoned onto the ship with Grimnar. How when Bjorn was awakened and met with a inquisitorial delegation, that when the envoys realized who he was and that he had walked with the emperor they fell to their knees and and were awestruck.
There's having a theme and then there's having an obsession. Space Wolves are certainly the latter. Like seriously you can still keep the wolf theme and not have wolf in everything, there are plenty of other wolf-adjacent nouns and adjectives you can use to mix it up, or even more nordic words you could use.
Edit: Also yeah seeing more parallels to actual Viking history in the Space Viking faction would be something I'd be so in for.
I think the idea is the wolves are supposed to be more like warriors in Valhalla, drinking, fighting and hanging out with Odin (Logan) as they are often recruited at the brink of death after proving themselves worthy to a spectating Wolf Priest. They are then taken by flying gunships (Valkyries) to then become Sky warriors. So them not being actual vikings makes sense in the context of them being reborn into Odin's personal army after dying to their old life. Not supposed to do much trading and adventuring in the afterlife.
The wolf thing is definitely mega cringe though. 30k wolves were so much cooler and better written, especially the books with Russ in them.
There's a very common bit of fan theory that basically says the Space Wolves call everything wolf because of poor translation. The language on Fenris probably has a ton of unique names for it's stuff, or just a bunch of unique words to describe wolves (like how some eskimo languages have a million words for 'snow') but everything just gets interpreted as wolf.
@@milliondollarmistake That doesn't really change anything though or make it less eye-roll worthy, cause all we get is, "wolf, wolf, wolf" for the millionth time, regardless of any in-lore reason (even if it is just a fan theory).
Same universe where ultramarines hold a section of the galaxy called Ultramar. Or the angry primarch is called Angron. I’m just saying, yeah gw isn’t very inspired sometimes.
@@Ynwell_theslaaneshi Doesn't make the space wolves' naming convention better or any less worthy of criticism. Those both deserved to get made fun of as much as the space wolves and any other of GW's more eye-roll-worthy names. I criticize the Space Wolves specifically because this is a Space Wolves video I'm commenting on and not an Ultramarines or Angron video.
Thanks for the shout-out to Crowe, my favorite Grey Knight, he’s also smart because he doesn’t try to tap into the power of the sword. He just uses it like a regular sword and probably blue-balls the daemon within.
He’s also why I named one of my Lepers after him in Darkest Dungeon. Unfortunately he isn’t as pure as Crowe and ended decapitating his own Occultist under the influence of the Crimson Curse.
To be fair the Occultist probably deserves it after critical healing him for 0 health and then chasing bleed.
@@pancreasnowork9939 Any occultist that does it at least once should have that coming to them
@@ghosthippie8465 Come on, man, using the power of occult, eldritch magic to stitch flesh back together is a tough craft to master. Just being able to critically heal nothing is a feat in and of itself.
A good Grey Knight in a sea of lads tainted by Ward
As I recall, the reason the Space Wolves were more or less exonerated for what happened during the Months of Shame was because the Inquisitor who was picking a fight with them over the refugees of the 1st Armageddon War drastically overstepped his bounds. The Inquisition still unanimously agreed that the refugees needed to be dealt with, but they also agreed that declaring Exterminatus on a world that the Space Wolves may or may not have dropped off some of the refugees on was going a bit too far. Plus, the Wolves HAD been acting in self-defense and hadn't technically done anything wrong by taking in the refugees. Bjorn recognized that things weren't going to keep working in the Wolves' favor though, and he managed to get Logan to quit while he was ahead.
How does this make it okay to kill Grey Knights and Inquisitors? They're Grey Knights and Inquisitors. I don't understand the excuse.
@@Turd_Rocket Because a bunch of other Inquisitors sided with the Space Wolves and said that they were in the right to act in self-defense towards a rogue Inquisitor in defense of their charges, and the Grey Knights also admitted that they fucked up and that the Space Wolves weren't wrong in their actions because the Grey Knights themselves found fault with the orders they had been given. It also doesn't hurt that Space Marines technically only answer to the Emperor himself and by law are allowed to essentially ignore all other organizations, including the Inquisition, and that as a Space Marine Chapter that had been around since the First Founding as a full Loyalist Space Marine Legion, their loyalty to the Imperium and their honor was beyond reproach even if they blatantly defied the Codex Astartes.
None of that makes what happened during the Months of Shame okay, but the general consensus between all parties is that it was a tragedy and the Space Wolves were not truly at fault for what happened.
I mean the alternative is declaring every Space Wolf a heretic, performing Exterminatus on Fenris, and wiping out the entire line of Leman Russ as there are no Successor Chapters for the Space Wolves, and doing so all because they were protecting civilians and soldiers who had fought against Chaos alongside the Space Wolves and killed a relatively small number of Inquisitorial personnel and a few Space Marines in the act of defending said civilians and soldiers.
If Bjorn hadn't told the Wolves to quit while they were ahead, the Inquisition might have just been forced to back off, because even they recognized that going after the Space Wolves over this probably wasn't worth it.
Not only that, but retroactively calling the entire line of Russ heretics is likely to have some pretty major effects on many other Imperial Organizations. The Leman Russ tank is the mainline tank for most Imperial Factions, and it's very likely that some high ranking dumbass would declare that that shouldn't be used at all anymore if this happens (I can't think of a specific example of this happening in cannon, but would it really be so far fetched?)
@@MegaHI32 Well normal civilians aren't allowed to own or even handle boltguns or bolter rounds. And by decree of the Emperor himself, the Imperium's entire stock of Land Raiders has been set aside exclusively for the Space Marines, because the Emperor made that proclamation as an emergency response to the outbreak of the Horus Heresy and the necessity of supplying the Loyalist Legions with as much wargear as possible, and nobody has thought to try and overturn that decision for 10,000 years because the Emperor Himself made it.
@@Brutalyte616 That's fair. I suppose my confusion came from what I've noticed as a surface-level "fan justification" (for lack of a better term) giving Space Wolves a pass for atrocities that would otherwise be harshly punished if perpetrated by anyone else. The way you explained it via the nuances of the in-universe politics and alliances makes me see if differently, it isn't Space Wolves simply "getting a pass" but rather their significance in a wider context and potential consequences of prosecuting harsher punishments against them would not be worth the cost. They're still pricks, but it makes sense in-universe why they haven't been wiped out by now. I get it.
I gave up on Space Wolves lore when one of them managed to trick a Harlequin, who apparently did not know that Space Marines have a secondary heart. He then proceeds to act faster than a Harlequin and kills them with a combat knife despite having a punctured primary heart. Then I looked up their fight with the Inquisition and yeah this chapter makes the Ultramarines look tame.
It's so annoying when GW goes over the top to prop up a Space Marine Chapter that is a loyalist but then the Astral Claws get screwed over because they are written to be a renegade Chapter.
to be fair overconfidence and arrogance is the biggest killer in combat, and as much as i hate to say it the eldari's biggest problem is that they see all other races as little better than well organized animals. it just so happens that well organized animals can still kill you, unfortunately,
Harlequin can have a respectable kda ratio with custodes but I'm sure being slightly arrogant lets a space marine kill them. Absolutely how that works lol.
Astral Failures more like~
I didn’t know about the wolf helmets until now.
Like I didn’t have enough Space Marine-related bile to choke on…
You might like the Mesari/Vaulters from Endless Space/ which are EXACTLY like space vikings.
They trade with other races, they explore the furthest reaches of the galaxy, they commit boarding actions with plasma shields and proton axes, and they were driven off of their homeworld by the endless cold.
Dude as a type 1 I LOVE your little add on "my blood sugar flopped because I decided to climb the stairs one too many times" I feel that in my bones
My brother in Christ, my insulin pump screams at me through the night when I sleep too hard.
@@UrbanCohort I feel that in my soul! Sleeping on your side? Better hope it's the side your pump isn't on or I shall sing you the song of my people
@@zaneriva5903 there are times I want to fling my minimed into a brick wall, but I don't want to damage the wall.
They do actually have the Varangian guard. A Navis Nobilitae family (the three-eyed mutants who navigate ships through the Warp) on Terra get to have a few squads of Space Wolves at a time protecting them from rivals and assassins. In return, every Space Wolf vessel is guided for free by one of these nobles. It isn't as cool as maybe having a Xenos noble or leader guarded by a Wolf or two, but it's damn close.
This should be pinned 😂😂😂
I mean, the Varangian guard worked for people of an entirely different culture, religion and nation, whilst the Navis Nobilite and Space Wolves both serve the Imperium, the Space Wolf honour guard are more like a modern secret service.
It’s rather amazing that the Inquisition didn’t just straight up stamped “perma-heretic” on the Space Wolves for outright killing the Grey Knights’s leader and the heads of Inquistion.
Dissappointed you didn't mentioned that time Space Wolfes cross-dressed as Orks then raced them.
They fukin' wot mate?
15:23 Yes there is. The Wolfblade are elite bodyguards to the navigators of House Belisarius. The navigators get 24 space marines and in return the Space Wolves get 24 of the best navigators. Ragnar was once a member of the Wolfblade.
So they give some of there best warrior over to protect the GREATEST ASSET ANY IMPERIAL FACTION CAN HAVE.
bro thats common sense not a buisness deal
@@NWLR-tv it's a tradition kept up with the same house however, the varangians did the same with the Byzantines - but Space Wolves can't realistically go wondering off to join another leader to fight for them instead so they have to do it through tradition and a deal that stretches back thousands of years.
The reason I don’t count them is because that’s still within the Imperium. I want straight up them to be helping another faction.
@@pancreasnowork9939 that's fair, that would be pretty sick - easily done with any of the lost company's to! I could definitely see a shattered company thought to be lost fighting under the eldar, sounds like a conversion opportunity!
And once again though. What’re they called? Why did it have to be “wolf blade”? They could’ve picked so many other cool, non wolf things.
Also, while it’s cool, it’s such a small footnote that so many other chapters do. There are tons of important imperial figures with bodyguards from various chapters.
I loved it when the space wolves said it was wolfing time and wolfed all over the wolfiest wolf
its dead dude. Move on
@@FrantisekPicifuk you're mother
@@FrantisekPicifuk It's dead when GW aknowledges it.
@@FrantisekPicifuk We're done when I SAY we're done.
All I got out of that was wolf wolf wolf wolf wolf wolf wolf wolf wolf wolf and wolf.
Your best videos are the ones that are entirely bias and salt
real talk: that's all the 40k community is. It's all either people getting pissy over a faction they don't like or getting pissy that their favorite faction isn't getting all the attention
It would be kind of interesting if in the lore the space wolves actually do eventually get there crap kicked in and are nearly wiped out. Like they square up with some orcish horde or drukhari or something and just get decimated. Like going from 1000 to like 400 troops. And due to this the wolves realize that they might’ve been stupid to pick a fight with everything in the universe and try to focus in on a new philosophy that is actually more like Vikings where they recruit more worlds to there side and eventually prefer more elite tactics like using terminators as shield walls. I feel like this helps against the Mary Sue problem and might give them more humility
The canon explanation of the spirit of Fenris is that it's literally a Tzeentch demon
I was looking for this. Literally just Tzeentch messing with the Space Wolves because he thinks its funny.
@@stratigangames508 Exactly
"Lmao khorne, look. I told them that if they yip like dogs when painting the runes it makes them stronger!"
It it's stupid but works, it's not stupid. @@kingalphawerewolf
i still want it to just be the god ulric from fantasy. would explain the obbsession with wolves when you have a literal god of wolves influencing your culture
ragnar beheading gaz is like a regular chaos lord nearly killing guiliman
You are more right than you realize. Both Gaz and Girlyman have a rule that stops them from immediately dying in one phase on the tabletop. They are both faction leaders, and are arguably on par with each other. Ragnar beheading Gaz really is exactly like a named chaos lord, who isn't even a subfaction leader, just named, nearly killing the Blue Boi.
Or like games workshop respecting fan content creators. RIP TTS.
Ghaz didn't die tho? So it's like every named character banishing demons or avatar of Khaine coz they are immortal
@@dr.squares8938 it's egregious because of how important Ghazz is, he is the main ork guy, imagine a named space marine killing Angron or any demon primarch and also everyone complains about avatars of Khaine dying so easily to random space marine shmuck so not a good point to bring that up.
this also a Ghazz problem since he is the main ork guy but doesn't fight anyone that is important like a demon primarch or even Guiliman, he is just doing some stuff here and there and people complain about that.
@@dr.squares8938 1. that doesnt make it better
2. if the strongest member of a faction cant even beat someone who isnt even the leader of a subfaction then why should that faction be seen as an actual threat
Remember when Logan Grimnar defeated Imotekh the stormlord also known as probably one of the if not the best strategist in the warhammer universe in a strategic battle because he charged into the necron troops?
You know the guy who is in charge of the biggest necron dynasty, the phaeron where its impossible to predict what hes exactly doing while he has an answer for basically any situation?
Fun times.
Something something Ultramarines are the marry sue faction ofc and not the wolves
@@cc-bk3tx This. The funny thing is the Ultramarines really were the Mary Sue faction while Matt Ward was responsible for all the lore writing. Once he left, GW stopped sucking off the Ultramarines so much...only to start sucking off the Space Wolves.
@@Commodore22345 I'm just tired of the bitching with the ultramaines when the same people won't say a thing about the wolves
@@cc-bk3tx Oh I'm with you on that. The Ultramarines still get way too much hate while other Mary Sues like the the Space Wolves skate by without any criticism at all. It's especially annoying because I think GW has actually done a good job sort of "rehabilitating" the Ultramarines and turned them into a genuinely interesting faction.
@@Commodore22345 Fully agree meanwhile space wolves have a the opposite effect where they had a interesting faction turned into a complete merry sue faction that is completely uninteresting
Space wolves fan: No were noble warriors who can be monsters if needed
Thousand sons enjoyer: ha ha warp fire go burr
Also thousand sons: oops I cast too many spells and now I'm a chaos spawn, my butt is a mouth and I eat through my asshole and shit out of my mouth. Who could have seen this coming, also I'm being bullied by a smelly hobo with gingivitis who doesn't have a warp presence and turns my spells off. Help daddy Magnus :(
Blanks are what the inferno bolters are for.
Modern Wolves are probably the greatest victims of flanderization in 40k. Nowadays it's all wolfwolfwolfwolf with a thin veneer of viking covering it. But back in earlier editions, like 5e, the chapter was way more focused on the totemic nature of their planet in general, not just the wolves. They honored bear totems, elk totems, bird totems, etc. Canis Wolfborn was the most wolfwolfwold marine at the time in the chapter and stuck out like a weirdo and had lore reasons (however tenuous) for existing. Now he's just barely standing out from all the background noise of all the wolfshit.
Like, i really enjoyed the chapter back in the day, but GW has spent the last decade and some change reducing them to the most bare features while also doubling and then tripling down on the OC Donut Steal nature of the chapter and everything about it.
I think one of the biggest reasons why they've gotten so ridiculous is because they're only a single chapter of an entire geneseed lineage. Literally every other legion was able to create dozens or hundreds of chapters during the Second and subsequent Foundings, and from a narrative standpoint GW was able to spread all their stuff around to a bunch of successors, chapter equipment and meta stuff together. The Wolves didn't do that, and the one time they tried to make a successor chapter (before Cawl ex Machina fixed the problem somehow) and gave it half their stuff like a messy divorce, it failed so hard so quickly that the Wolves are actively hunting down the survivors to this day.
All the things that could possibly happen to a Wolf legion descendant had to happen to a single, slightly larger than average chapter (first founding no less) instead of being able to happen across a dozen or more, so it all was concentrated and amplified into something easy to hate
Tldr
@@Saf_Ibn_Sayyad_Bacon Man we've failed as a species if your attention span is too short to read that.
My WIP Space Wolves successors fell to Slaanesh and tripled down on the wolf theme, solely so that I can have a lore excuse to have furries fight my hazmat marines.
So there is a theory that I enjoy, which basically states that their stuffs isn't actually all named wolf, but instead it has a real name in Fenrisian, which the wolves call it, and then the name that everyone else calls it, which starts with Wolf
Now im just immagining two guardsmen chatting and the fenrisian getting more and more pissed at the shitty tfanslations. It would have to be 50+ different words translated to "wolf"
Pretty sure this is actually canon.
If you want a Space Wolf story that’s heavily inspired from the Varangian Guard you should read Wolfblade by William King. The whole story revolves around Ragnar and some other space wolfs acting as bodyguards on Terra to a very politically powerful House and all the shenanigans that come with that
As flawed as the Space Wolves are, I believe it's important to note that the majority of the complaints during the Months of Shame comes down to the fact that the Wolves are a first founding chapter, the quintessential sons of Russ. Prior to their confrontation, they showed nothing but upmost loyalty for 10,000 years thus targeting them would be illogical, even by Inquisitorial standards.
Exactly, plus most of the inquisitors didn't want to fight the space wolves it was just one virgin
Except the inquisition has fucked with first founding legions before. Just ask the dark angels. The inquisition works because no one can question them, which is why they strike down so hard on those who do. See celestial lions as an example. If people stopped fearing the inquisition and standing up to it, it would cease to work as an organization.
exactly plus the possibility LEMAN RUSS showing up to kick your ass throught space and time is always there.
@@alphanoodle1877 did we ever get any information how that weirdo even gained so much power? Pretty sure it wasnt a stupid reason like "ohhhh chaos!", i dont think we even got anything tbh.
@@ratatouilledrinksclorax9897 no clue how it happened honestly. My guess is just *CHAOS BAD RREE*.
The Space Wolves are too few to actually be in the number of battles they have been in, and considering that their geneseed leads to a lot mutations makes it very difficult to get new space marines they should wisely pick their battles rather than chasing after every single scarp they can possibly get into.
We don't even know how many Wolves there are or have been at any given time.
I feel like they should also focus more on long distance engagements then close quarters combat with the only ones getting close being the ones who tuned into a "werewolf"
@@tyrantsmiseryThe space wolves are probably around the size of the BTs if the amount of naval power they have is anything to go by
Primaris fixed most of the issues because... of course it did.
Cawl is such waste of narrative space....
The Wolves highest number in modern 40k was 10.000. Space Wolf Companies are "grreat companies" because their are much bigger than just 100 Space Marines. However most Wolfslords are traveling with only around 100-200 Space Wolves at the time, while the rest of the great company protect other parts of the realm, assit other Imperial Forces or whatever.
The whole “different interpretations of the God Emperor” thing actually sounds like a really interesting idea for an AU
You know, there was a time when I couldn't imagine a Space Marine chapter more insufferable than the Ultramarines...
Then I was introduced to the Space Wolves.
At least the blueberries didn’t go out of their way to fuck over the thousand sons
@@connorbestbarlow1043Yes, the Smurfs are totally innocent when it comes to screwing over another Legion and sending them on their route to Chaos.
*cough* Word Bearers
@@ManuR-l4m that was Big E's personal order. One does not refuse Big E on his face.
For me it was the Wolves and the Black Templars, both are equally insufferable on the level of Ultramarines.
@@leandrocastello309and the wolves fucked prospero on what they had every reason to believe was an order from the emperor (and hell even without Horus, Russ would have had to barge in and capture Magus since the emperor actually ordered that), so really not that different
Also with the Varengi Guard, something like that happened a bit in the Heresy. In the Unremembered Empire, there was a bunch of space wolves looking over Guilliman, a very Roman Primarch.
Orks are my first and favorite faction, I started collecting them for 10+ years and having Ghaz getting beat by a space wolf that wasn't a primarch level threat made me angry.
For sure!!!
At least have him somehow get into a fight with Tyberos the Red Wake or Asterion Moloc or something. Those guys make sense.
I would be 100% more okay with that than how the did him in.@@TheRedMan77
But... but... but... WOOOOOOOOLF!
@@TheRedMan77 Tyberos vs Ghaz sounds like the most amazing thing ever.
The thing about months of shame bridge battle is that, frankly, I could see it going that way in tabletop and rpgs alike. I've seen terminator *SQUADS* die to gretchin and fresh-faced dark heresy parties dashing through heavy fire unscathed, so getting initiative and fucking off via teleport is absolutely on-point with how the game can go.
Oddly enough the Black Templars are closer to the historical Vikings and Norse cultures they leave enclaves on planets that visit and occasionally protect important individuals like inquisitors additionally since they’re a fleet based chapter they have a stronger naval tradition than the Space Wolves.
Imagine if the Thousand Sons were successful and destroyed Fenris and the Wolves became the only first founding chapter to become fleet based at least their rivals the Dark Angels still have the Rock.
The best explanation of Ragnar Blackmane I've heard is that he's Caito Sicarius but with anger management issues
True.
Honestly, everything you just said is how I feel. Bjorn is the only good Space Wolf, all others are boring, dull, or just crappy Mary Sues.
And the stuff about how the Space Wolves are just cosplaying and had so much potential for being like true Vikings was fantastic. An Eldar Farseer or Tau Ethereal with their own contingent of Space Wolf Varangian Guard would be so amazing to see in the lore.
That and real vikings were actually CIVILISED, unlike this bunch of wolf-lover enthusiasts
That just wouldn't happen unless the Space Wolves get excommunicated or something from the Imperium. It's highly against the rules to join forces with Xenos.
@@KarpetBurn Well... It's been done several times already.
Credit where credit's due... It was usually out of sheer necessity. A good old "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" kind of situation.
Don't know what your issue is.
The Imperium was literally built by a mary sue lol
Nothing less than mary sue can defend it!!
@@RoulicisThe Yeah I'm not a lore expert but I've never seen the Imperium side with a Xeno faction for reasons like expansion and partnership, so the Space Wolves unifying together with the Tau and Aeldari or something is definitely not happening on account of how closed minded and barbaric the Space Wolves are.
God...The idea of the Space Wolves roaming the galaxy bringing both goods and Fuck Yous to Xenos and imperial alike sounds so great it'll never happen.
It could even make the Spirit of the planet thing work as they could ALSO be a sort of missionary force, spreading their ideals which would empower Fenris.
and could make the months of shame more beliavable, like they actually had reiforcements from other planets to help them
Fenrisan territory could be spread thought the galaxy, from a system following their command down to individusl cities or even a few powerfull individuals.
Honestly, I'd be fine with the World Soul concept if we saw more examples of the concept on other worlds, Necromunda for example, or just any hive world with sufficient history, any group with sufficient spirituality and a world that followed it, like the Salamanders and the Promethean Cult, or the Mechnicus, and yes, millions of versions of the Emperor, possibly even show them fighting together and against each other. If you want to alter the rules of the universe so some group can get an edge either figure out a way to have it only work for them, or don't make them the only example.
To be fair, the Mechanicus do actually serve the and worship Dragon of Mars (this is a joke... sort of) and are entirely influenced by its powers and messages, even though they just sort of pretend they mean the Emperor when they say "Omnissiah", going so far as to commune with AI even though they consider AI to be heretical - because machine spirits are f*cking AI.
hey i’ve noticed a minor lore error in this video, it’s something that many people get wrong
around 4:48 you state that magnus did „everything wrong“ when in fact he really did nothing wrong :)
Space wolves being more friendly with some xenos could definitely make them a lot more interesting! It could fit in well with them being more of a "good guys chapter", and also hammer down the point of why the Inquisition are skeptical of them. Would be great to see someone make a cool custom SW chapter revolving around it!
If any of the Ragnar books are to be believed, as they seem to be the go-to space wolf novels, Space Wolves are in fact willing to talk to Eldar and hear them out. Will they listen? Depends on context, but to their credit an Eldar wraith construct told Ragnar "Hey don't go in this temple there's a great unclean one in there" and Ragnar more or less said "You're probably right but I'm with an inquisitor right now so I don't really have a choice", a sentiment his captain more or less mirrored. The Space Wolves literally treated the Eldar emissary with more respect than they would a grey-knight, lol.
"And I would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for you darn kids and that dog."
-the Inquisition
Space Wolves from the name sounds like a 13 years old first Space Marine Chapter, it was honestly a dice roll on if the Space Wolves would’ve been Viking, Samurai, or WW2 Germany based.
Edit: You made me hate the Space Wolves more than Bretonnians, where instead of being pathetic, they just get their IceCream without no repercussions.
It's Wolf Cream.
Not ice cream, Wolf Cream
@@aprinnyonbreak1290 made from fresh Wolf Milk that comes from the Wolf Cow that requires a Wolf Bucket and to use the Wolf Cow Wolf Farmer who was trained in the art of Wolf Cow Wolf Milking.
Your idea of them trading with other factions borne of a temporary alliance is why people are mad at the Votann. They needed weapons and supplies and to knuckle up against the Necrons, Tyrannids, and Orks, so they traded with the Tau. They're cordial at best with the fish dudes and are otherwise entirely independent. They're also my second favorite group of people in 40k because they're the Dwarves in space.
If the wolves were even 1/10th as in-depth as them I'd be cool with it.
Also if the Wolves can go into full scale, actual war against the Inquisition and get away with it, I want a refund on about half of the planets that got Exterminatus'd for daring to cough in a way that the Inquisitors didn't like.
The t'au aren't fish people they're space cows from a mostly desert planet. In one Of the Xenology books they're described as sharing biological features with bovines. Don't forget they have hooves intead of feet.
@@davidfrancisco3502 I call them fish people because of the way they look and because I'm racist against anything that isn't Human in 40k.
whose the 1st
@@CRMSN_RDR AdMech
@@UncleSarge From the moment I understood the weakness of flesh, it disgusted me...
For the Tau it was the Humans within their Empire and the other client races that made the Greater Good Warp Entity so the Tau not having a strong presence in the warp isn't really applicable in that case.
Your last point is so true! I don't know much about the space wolves and I'm fairly new to 40k lore but I know about our vikings irl. And they just don't fit the imperium of man. They'd be the guys raiding the imperium. A bit more like an ork-tau crossover. But then again, their peaceful side doesn't fit the whole universe all that much, since the Tau are the only ones, as far as I know, doing anything with other species except killing them.
I like the wolf helms because they had to write lore to make it where the helmets let the Space Wolves smell stuff while remaining sealed through some complex chamber system or something like that. Also, I hope a Dark Angels video comes out at some point cause they're my favorite faction and I wanna see what stuff you like about them.
The one chapter i despise more than the wolves and iron hands.
The term "The Wolf Time" will always make me laugh.
They literally say “it’s wolfin’ time” and actually no joke wolf all over them
“Brothers shall fight | and fell each other,
And sisters’ sons | shall kinship stain;
Hard is it on earth, | with mighty whoredom;
Axe-time, sword-time, | shields are sundered,
Wind-time, wolf-time, | ere the world falls;
Nor ever shall men | each other spare.”
it basically a poem of ragnarok
@@creed8712 wolf
It’s really more of a reference to Ragnarök, but it does sound a little silly out of context.
@@tompotter8703 They should have just called it Ragnarok then. 40k has never had any qualms about straight up ripping off other IPs and historical cultures in the past.
15:25 the closest thing we got to this is the Wolves protecting Guilliman's mom during Heresy
The most sacred of missions in ALL of 40k: protecting the G-man's mommy.
I'm not joking.
@@dac314 maybe not the most sacred one but the coolest one
Actually space wolves also had detachments in all legions to protect primarchs and keep an eye on them
4:47 He didn't try hard enough. Magnus met all of Lemans demands without even knowing those were Leman's demands. Because Leman never spoke to Magnus but a Daemon of Tzeentch. That isn't Lemans fault per say, that one he was just ill informed on.
I always thought a Space wolves successor based on scandinavian history/culture that's NOT vikings could be interesting. Like 18th century Sweden or something
I remember a homebrew Chapter based off Celtic/Old Irish folklore, with an emphasis on druid stuff and Ulster Cycle type characters. Cool as fuck light-green and brown color scheme.
They do have something like those guards. In the Ragnar books we learn that they provide bodyguards to a navigator house in exchanged for their services.
As a space wolf player I mostly agree. My headcannon is that the months of shame are heavily exaggerated because you know funny sagas. As for the rune priests I personally think it would be cooler if it wasn't warp based and was either a dark age thing or something like the Bhagaba from endless space.
I actually always assumed that because of whatever device they used in the Terraforming of Fenris it made Fenris a sort of partially living entity, where it's not that they draw their powers from Fenris, but rather a version of Fenris that is a Warp Entity, kinda similar to the Eldar Gods being Old One Weapons theory
The idea of a Space Wolf protecting other races leaders for the good of the imperium or more based on trade and exploring uncharted space is amazing. That could made more believable why the spirit of Fenris exists. Because space wolves love to spread their stories and sagas so by traveling so much and trading with other species they could literaly made the spirit of fenris more powerful. Its a really cool idea, a bit Heretical but Guliman and Belasarius are here and the space wolfs would probaly say " Eat a dick" if anyone found a problem with it.
When I was first introduced to the Warhammer way back in 2008-2010, at the time I thought the Space Wolves were some of the coolest Space Marines.
However X many years latter when I started looking at them objectively and GW started doubling-tripling down on the WolfyWolfWolf I stopped caring about them and haven't looked back.
For those not in the know: the Space Wolves of 30k are actually *much, MUCH,* worse.
Half the stuff mentioned in this video happened in 30K.
Actually they were better. They still had flaws but they were cooler.
@@LordCrate-du8zmhow so? It seems to me that in 40k they slightly grew up.
@@KingInBlack69 They "slightly grew up" into furries.
My biggest complaint is that fenris's culture isn't even a viking or norse themed planet. Its Eskimo or some shit like wtf?
No it's definitely viking. Low tech Vikings, but still vikings
@@alphanoodle1877 when I read the wiki a couple months back it depicted them as Eskimo with a heavy dependents on the native whale fauna.
I just ran out of audio matetial for painting and then our favourite pancreas defective brings out a new vid.
The subject of actual space Vikings is part of why 40k can be annoying as a setting. there are so many interesting stories to be told about interacting with other people and species but 40k insists that no one can interact with eachother outside the smallest ceasefires when the nids attack. Hell at this point it makes literally no sense for eldar and ultramar to permanently team up now that robot girly man is yvrains best boy and there are only so many times you can use “they don’t trust each other” when chaos has literally ripped the galaxy in half
Well the imperium was unaffected bar a few hundred planets that got instantly replaced anyway and as soon as guilliman arrived he establisbed a connection done, problem solved. They keep soft locking themselves
@@michelecastellotti9172 fair enough lol I've never heard someone shortsell the Cicatrix Maledictum quite so hard
I'm a Space Wolves player, and I love the fact that you're hating the Wolves so much - it's good content. Yet, you didn't comment about the "furry" thing that all the other haters like to focus on. Respect to that.
Also, I do agree they uses the word "wolf" way too much for naming stuff in their army. It's just not very inventive.
I'm so happy to see you cover the warp stuff
It brings the thousand sons and the eldar down how ridiculous the wolfs mechanic is
I'm all for belief makes x real thanks to the warp, its a core mechanic, but you have to relate it the ocean of other beliefs that don't reflect that idea. If the space wolves had gone full viking like you would like, and have colonised say one thousandth of the Imperial territory, then we'd be in business for a well fleshed out power system with its own pseudo gods etc.
This man has a point.. the Space Wolves should definitely have more worlds under their remit than just Fenris.
They cant even hold Fenris from the Tsons without some marty stu mc guffin. Let alone multiple worlds.
@@Uthandol Oh whats that? Well Bjorn will say "fuck off dustboy" and defend Fenris again, while Thousand Shlongs have their worlds fucked, they lost not only Prospero.
@@kharngotrekson1726 Last I checked Prospero is being rebuilt. So not only do they have Prospero, but the Planet of Sorcs as well. Wolf diddlers cant do a thing without a Mc Guffin and several legions of custodes and Sisters to hold their hand.
Magnus ( still alive unlike lemon party russel ) responds with " Eat a psychic cock, dog fucker."
They have fortress outposts on other worlds, and they helm an entire sector battlefleet within segmentum solar that's headquartered over Fenris itself. They aren't empire builders like the Ultramarines, they're the Imperium's very literal space marines, leading its navies during the most important space battles such as over Cadia and Armageddon
6:37 well there isn't A cadia left
I am so stuck on the Wolves. Aesthetically I really like them, and individually I like a few of their characters (Lukas the Trickster is a good example), and I unironically want Russ to come back as some Odin-like wisened old man.
But then you have how disgustingly they've been written and that screws them over. My main thought is really just... I try to not judge other factions for being OP mary sues in the books focused on them because well... every damn army has that issue (except CW eldar).
I really don't know where the "wolves are OP" sentiment comes from, because I can't remember the last time they were allowed to just win. Prospero maybe, lol. Sure Ragnar is a powerful champion, but almost every story I've read about the SW that comes from the last two decades involves them getting creamed by forces beyond their influence. Fenris got exteriminatus'd, like a third of the chapter got killed by the inquisition and grey-knights, and the inquisition fed two whole WAAAAGH's ammunition and fuel and set them out into the Fenris zone of influence. By the time G-man shows up with primaris, Logan Grimnar is sitting on his throne and says "we're spread too thin. Setback after setback. Give it a century and the chapter will be extinct". Then Ragnar dies getting a mutual kill that didn't do anything, their ultimate relic weapon gets taken by chaos, Fenris gets wasted AGAIN by chaos, and I'm left wondering where exactly the idea that they deserve worse is coming from. I mean seriously, it feels like the only reason people have to hate the wolves is because when they show up briefly in other chapter's stories they're depicted as boisterous and dislikable.
Space Wolf mercenaries accompanying a xenos faction would be rad as hell.
I hope part of the setting’s evolution is a fractured Imperium. The setting being humans fighting everyone else even if the only reason is “they talk different” is really stagnating the writing. Give me some fall of Rome in space. Make Tau relevant because the Eastern Imperium really needed something better than lasguns or the Western Imperium openly working with some craftworlds because everyone wants to murder Chaos.
That’s what made WHFB compelling. Like, yeah, the Empire still burned witches but their first reaction to anything wasn’t “genocide the non-humans”. 40k started as Fantasy in space and would be better if it took more from the Old World. I will give my soul to Nagash to die on that hill forever.
By the way, if the Wolves set up actual colonies, it would make their lore soooo much richer! That would explain how they get enough supplies and recruits to maintain their huge chapter, it would put them on even footing with the Ultramarines, hell it would even explain their “own warp thing”! But no, the GW is too shallow to think nanometer beyond superficial aesthetics level.
The space wolves do go out and build fortresses on other worlds for future use during their "great hunts", which are basically viking raids against the orks and chaos. These forts are maintained and the wolves come back to defend those worlds if the worlds ask for aid. As to Fenris, it's complicated, but the Emperor all but confirms that Fenris is a unique phenomenon in the galaxy and that he specifically wanted Leman Russ to be there to harness it's unique power. There are some implications that Fenris itself is a minor warp god, whom the Emperor "stole" from chaos, but that part is heavy speculation with only a few lines from Horus and the Emperor to support it.
The celestial lions file a complaint against the inquisition for needlessly executing a planet and they get all their top ranks assasinated with them returning with just barely 50 marines out of the whole chapter after Armageddon and the stupid wolves get an “oh you *sitcom ending music*” after openly making war? Why are the ultramarines the hated ones again?
The difference is, the Celestial Lions are a relatively low standing successor chapter. The Space Wolves are one of the OG Legions. You try wiping them out, you succeed in pissing off 90% of the Space Marines who see this as the blatant overreach of the Inquisition that it is.
The thing is the reason the Inquisition hates the Celestial lions so much is because they're black
(Racist inquisition is probably canon)
This is why I really dislike the discussion around space wolves: Most people involved don't know the lore even a little bit, and as much as I love Pancreasnowork, his open and self-admitted lack of research shows here. The Space Wolves did not "declare war" on the inquisition, in fact they did not fire a single shot at the inquisition for almost the entire months of shame because they knew that if they did they'd be exterminated. They did kill some grey-knights during one alteraction, but most of the months of shame were space wolves kiting around Segmentum Solar using their ships as shields to protect the civilian refugee ships from Armageddon, dying in droves to do so. When the inquisition got fed up and went to exterminatus Fenris anyways (which they successfully did, fenris got full wiped which NOBODY ACKNOWLEDGES), that was when the space wolves finally fought back, for all of one space battle before Bjorn the fell-handed ended the conflict, and if you have to question how or why he could do that, Bjorn personally knew the Emperor, and as such is considered less of a space wolf and more of a imperial icon of awe and worship.
The story is fine if you read it from start to finish, but nobody ever does, and because SW stories actually have some layers and nuance, they don't make sense if you just lay out the basics.
Also to address the comparison to the Celestial Lions, the Space Wolves aren't a regular chapter. Fenris is the naval hub of an entire battlefleet and at that one of the best in the imperium, present for Cadia and Armageddon. The Space Wolves chapter fluctuates between the size of 6 codex compliant chapters and 13, aka averaging 6,000-8,000 marines, as permitted-sorta by Guillemin after the Heresy in accordance to Leman's final request. The inquistion can't just silently eradicate the space wolves, and it isn't just because of clout, they are the second largest chapter in the imperium second only to the Black Templars, and are easily the most important chapter to the Imperium's overall defense because Space Wolves aren't just space marines, they're an entire sector navy (as befitting the viking theme).
My favorite part of Space Wolf lore is when he said "IT'S WOLFIN' TIME" and wolfed all over those guys.
Ha ha, excellent, you're the 9864379753th person to make this joke, using the _exact same words_ as the rest! Good work, many laughs indeed
@@orbitalbutt6757 Get wolfed, son.
You joke, but the space wolves are so bad that I can imagine them actually unironically saying something like this
This sounds like a thing a furry would say...maybe OP is...hm
@@orbitalbutt6757relax bud.
I'm one of those types who more likes the visuals and CONCEPT of Space Wolves moreso than their actual lore - which is also how I feel about the Dark Angels, to be honest.
yeah, i mean i love my space knights, but there is a bunch of stupid shit in their lore *cough* *cough*.. the fallen,, *cough* cough*
YEEEEEEEEEEAGGGHHHHHHH FUCK THE DARK ANGELS
@@felipequaresma4215 _Asmodai...!_
All I want is chivalrous space knights like the Dark Angels and GK but the lore is just…bad
As a former space wolf player, I adore the idea of a Varganian Guard for an Eldar ally. Give us some Space Wolf and Xeno Lore and we need Xeno lore.
I like to imagine the lore between Space Wolves and Grey Knights is decided by essentially two guys getting into heated arguments over whos Mary Sue chapter is biggerer and betterer.
As a SW fan and player... I get it, I totally get it.
If the lore was consistent then the Inquisition would have declared the Wolves Excommunicate Traitoris. There would be a civil war, like the Badab War, between the Space Wolves and some of their more suicidal successors vs a MUCH larger Imperial force. The Wolves would have most likely been humbled and sent on a penative crusade at a minimum, broken as a chapter and remade under Inquisition supervision, or at the most extreme end totally annihilated (though I really doubt they would for a founding legion).
If they even tried that, The Inquisition would be looking down the bolter barrels if nearly every Chapter in the Imperium. The Space Marines don't really like them to begin with and murdering and shaming a First Founding Chapter in it's entirety is all the reason they need to cull them.
Alas, games workshop couldn't bear to do such a lore-consistent punishment for one of their special space marine factions that aren't like the other girls
Well now that whole trading/Varangian Guard just makes me want to create a Space Wolf Successor Chapter that was formed following a Rogue Trader. They could even have been formed by Watch Pack Bludbroder (if they lived I can't remember) to have a Roman theme, maybe they even took up some Ultramarine management.
fuck it, im stealing that.
Regarding the spirits of Fenris. That 100% makes sense. How do you think gods started in the universe? They were Egregores for the beliefs of their people. The Chaos Gods are just massive accumulations of certain energies. Khorne is violence, Slaanesh is passion, Tzeentch is subterfuge, and Nurgle is disease. Very base things that gained sentience.
Warhammer was influenced by Chaos Magick. A real-world occult practice. These are basic principles of how Chaos Magick sees the spiritual realm. It's perfectly in line with their world building.
The Inquistion fighting the Wolves could have been a way to tie into the Viking theme, maybe make it so they've abandoned the codex and have too many brothers and that's how they're able to fight back so well. The Wolves are branded heritics so they turn outward and explore, making contact with xenos and trading, becoming axuliaries for other empires, an maybe this expansion and intermingling creates a warp presence that creates runes wherever they explore, letting the rune preists spread their peagan god and increase it's power.
It'd be a really good reason for the inquistion to exterminatus a few planets, to cleanse them of this encroaching warp entity.
Fanfic over, lol.
No... don't wanna be mean. But no.
Don't give the inquestion a excuse
They have too many as is
They never followed the codex. Each company of the SW is apparently bigger than a codex compliant chapter and can function on its own
Well good news for you: the space wolves already have a codex-exemption from G-man thanks to Leman Russ's final request before departing forever, and on top of that, Fenris got exteriminatus'd because they were branded as heretics. They were just able to undo a bit of the damage through some penitent stuff. On top of that they do on occasion speak to the eldar, not as allies, but they can be cordial. Almost everything I'm reading people wish existed in the wolves already does exist, but lore channels don't actually read the lore and just go off of reddit and fifthhand stories.
The varangian guard thing.
I find it funny how often i see references to Space Wolves being body guards or having an attached unit seconded navigator clans or rogue traders or weirdo high ranking mechanicus. Seen it pretty often in white dwarf and other semi official stuff and a lot in the projects of the better painters. Particularly people who do the heavily moded blanchitsu stuff.
Also the lack of explorator space wolves fleets and rogue traders is something That makes me so sad not being a thing I am going to make it canon in my head.
Shit, Fulgrim held onto a daemon sword for like 17 minutes and he got corrupted. But not Grimnar, cause wooooooooolves
the worst part is that Grimnar is just a fucking chapter master and yet he gets to have a Cursed Khorn Axe with zero issues because bad writing
Just to add on to the whole Space wolves aren't based on vikings not only do they not represent them in their entirety they dont even represent them on the field of battle. The vikings were terrifying not because they were a bunch of naked beserkers. No, what made them fucking terrifying is that they were the equivalent of the Navy seals. Master Navigators, sailing boats capable of going down all waterways. They would appear in the predawn hours heavily armed and armored, masters of the most modern fighting techniques, they would raid pillage and burn and then dissapear. The vikings conquered all of Scandinavia, Most of England, Controlled half of Ireland, Carved a Kindom out of France and would rule a land known as the Kievan Rus which would threaten the Byzantines. These were not raging lunatics. They were some of the greatest soldiers of their time which is exactly why the Byzantines would pay any price to have a legion of them. The actual space wolves if they wanted to do proper homage to history should be the most effecient Marine force in the game. Masters of quick strikes, deep infiltration missions, ship to ship boarding actions as well as being capable of large scale invasions second only to the Ultramarines. Then on top of that they should have a few people here and their prone to Beserking. Oh, and if you wanted to get extra cool they should be the only unit to field female space marines, as the vikings were known to be egalitarian and there were records of women vikings.
Uh.... from my own research into it, they weren't navy seals, highly trained in modern (or modern at the time) combat. They were parts of the population that could afford to have a bit of armor and some weapons (chain shirt, shield, helmet, long knife, and spear isn't heavily armed and armored) and could take some time away from home to go a-viking.
They hit poorly defended, but resource rich locations like monasteries. They settled isolated and out of the way locations. They were not centralized. There wasn't a 'Viking nation' that everyone who went a-viking answered to. Multiple kings/rulers in that culture, and they had their own conflicts and alliances within.
The advantages that they had was mostly because of their ships. Their ship design allowed them to use them to sail along rivers that most of Europe didn't think was feasible while also being able to sail across deeper ocean waters, giving the culture a distinct advantage when it came to trade and where they could hit with their raids. They weren't the only culture/group that raided their neighbors at the time, they were just one of the only ones that could avoid the well defended parts.
The space wolves command a sector battlefleet, one of the largest and most decorated in the Imperium, within segment solar, and were among the commanders of the most important naval battles in the imperium's history, such as every battle for Cadia, and most of the battles over Armageddon. Fenris is a naval hub, and the Fang is the largest fortress in the galaxy save Holy Terra's imperial palace itself.
Dammit. Now I want actual Viking space wolves who use their stupid wolf aesthetic to cover up the fact that their legion secretly has a vast trade network including with multiple Xenos races, and they play the role of Varangian Guards with the ones they believe will be most beneficial to humanity’s long term survival. That trading network is why they have such a weirdly large and powerful navy, and the real reason the inquisition didn’t virus bomb Fenris.
They realized during the months of shame that the wolves are actually way more powerful than they let on, so they pulled back and started digging, only to realize the wolves have a “merchant” fleet that dwarfs even some sector fleets, and as such if push came to shove, the wolves couldn’t be bullied like the celestial lions.
Additionally, the wolves have *way* more space marines than they let on, since while every wolf claims to be Fenrisian, they’ve been setting up SW chapters in the farthest reaches of the galaxy, exploring the frontier and helping colonize new worlds, which are used to train/recruit aspirants. They could be part of the reason why the imperium is still “constantly expanding and annexing new worlds” after nearly 10 thousand years.
I hear what you're saying about the Wolves and the Inquisition, but consider this;
The Inquisition are a bunch of nerds that should never stop getting clowned on.
1 day and 88k views so far. You don't throw out mass amount of boring content and actually put in time to your video and make them funny. Thank you for that pancreasnoworks and you deserve all the popularity you are receiving
Darn, I was going to ask for a space wolves video at some point but I should have known it would be like this. The wolves are the first faction I got into in the hobby and I will always love them. It is a shame how GW is doing them lately.
The space wolves primarch Leman Russ made horrible decisions. He murdered a loyalist legion, burned their world, killed their innocent people, and turned the embittered remainder to Chaos. He abandoned the defence of Terra to kill Horus. He had a chance to kill him but hesitated. Then after totally failing he disappears on a 10,000 year fetch quest. The space wolves chapter also make horrible decisions. Refusing primaris, humiliating guilliman, all their novels etc. They are the worst. The best thing they have done is flipping the bird to the inquisition.
What did they do to Guilliman?
I have a feeling that if they made the space wolves an only fleet based chapter would make them cooler
Just give them actual specialization instead of "beating people at their own game" so it doesn't feel so mary sue.
Beat magnus twice by outpsyching him and then out demoning him?
Out trick and outspeed a harlequin?
match blow per blow against the inquisition, a faction that can requisition much support as they want?
They are dangerously close to outraiding the dark eldar, outshooting the Tau, and outnumbering the tyranids at this rate.
The Wolves having their version of the Varangian Guard could lead to one of my favorite bits of old lore returning: the Paradhel/Half-Eldar. Imagine the ferrocity and strength of a marine with an Eldar's psychic might.
I feel like that Varangian guard idea would work really well with LOV and would actually be really cool
We all know if GW made a 40K version of the Varangian Guard out of a Space Wolves contingent they'd immediately ruin it somehow
Bit late to the party but, the Space Wolves DO have a version of the Varangian Guard...sort of. Its very specific in its use. The Wolves have a Navigator house allied to them as part of an ancient pact of friendship, and the terms are the house provides navigators specifically to the wolves alone and in return the wolves give them a certain amount of marines to serve primarily as bodyguards named the Wolfblade. Because of course. Mind you they often get used to attack rival houses and 'relinquish' them of wealth but oh well. Ragnar Blackmane was part of this guard for a time and lived on Terra where they are based during one of his books.
Tragically Pancreas saw this and commented "yeah but they aren't guarding the eldar so it doesn't count'. A pity.
I do want to point out the Wolf Blade are a group of Space Wolves that protect a single special navigator house.