40K: The Imperial Orphans
When it comes to the Imperium, there are your Space Marines, your Imperial Guard, your Ad Mech and Knight…and a handful of other factions that no one knows what to do with. What’s GW going to do with the little guys of the Imperium?
Not all Imperial Factions get the Primaris Treatment – some are relegated to the isle of misfit toys or worse…they get the Squat treatment. But today, we’re going to take a look at the Orphans of the Imperium and ask what will Games Workshop do for the little guys?
Who Are The Orphans?
When we are talking about these Imperial Orphans, who exactly are we talking about? You might recall the Imperial Agents from the Index: Imperium 2. This lists includes:
- Aeronautica Imperialis
- Adeputs Ministorum
- Adeptus Astra Telepathica
- Sisters of Silence
- Officio Assassinorum
- The Inquisition
You could also lump Militarum Auxilla (aka Ogryns and Ratlings in here, but they are in the Astra Militarum) and possibly the Adepta Sororitas (but they are getting a plastic revamp in 2019). Whatever you want to include, these factions were certainly a part of the game and still are – individually they are too small or too niche to make a faction of their own which is why we are considering them as the Imperial Orphans.
Games Workshop has taken these minor factions and done things with them in the past so let’s take a look back to see if we can find a way forward.
The 3rd Edition Codexes
The Daemonhunters and Witch Hunters were two codexes that were release in 3rd Edition and were two parts of “The Inquisition” codexes. The third arm of the Inquisition aka Ordo Hereticus never got an official book. Still, GW built out these codexes and made full army lists out of them. The Daemonhunter codex was the forefather of the the Grey Knights codex we have now. The Witch Hunters codex was basically how you could play a Sisters of Battle Army.
Games Workshop took these two factions and basically created a new army (Daemonhunters) and combined factions to create another (Witch Hunters). They’ve done it before and could do this option again. And let’s not forget Codex: Assassins. Sure it was a 24-page mini-dex, but it was a codex none-the-less. This is one faction that could easily be included in some type of Inquisition mega-combo book.
Adeptus Custodes
Codex: Custodes On A Jetbike is another prime example of how Games Workshop could go with these smaller factions. GW took a relatively minor part of the Imperium and created an entirely new army around it. The Adeptus Custodes were basically the Emperor’s Bodyguards for YEARS in the Lore and didn’t even have models. Now they have a range of models, a full codex, and have made their presence felt on the tabletop. What is preventing GW from doing the exact same thing for any of the other Orphan Factions above?
Bring On The Sisters…of Silence
Of all the Imperial Orphans we listed above, the one that seems like the most obvious choice is the sisters of Silence. Not only do they have the basic plastic model done (ie, a template to build off), they are probably the most army-like over-all. The Custodes got a full codex and were basically one half of the Talons of the Emperor – what happened to the Sisters of Silence?
We know the Sisters of Battle are getting a plastic revamp and that probably means a new book to go along with it. So does that mean GW just going to roll the Sisters of Silence in that book or are we going to see them get the Custodes treatment? The Imperium is a BIG place and 40k has lots of room for army expansions. But this half of the Talons seems like a great launching point.
What Would You Do?
Let’s put the power in your hands on this one. Put on your Game Design Hat and let us know how you’d handle the Imperial Orphans. Would you roll them all into a Mega-Codex? Would you go the opposite route and pick one faction to explore – if so which faction and how? The Imperial Orphans need YOU!
Toss out your thoughts in the comments below – How would you handle the Imperial Orphans?
