Warhammer 40K: 5 (In)Famous Space Hulks
Drifting through the Imperium, infested with Genestealers, Renegades and even worse, it’s time to check out 5 infamous Space Hulks.
It seems like only yesterday that GW kicked off 40K 10th Edition with the classic Genestealer/Terminator matchcup that is half the fun of Space Hulks.
There are tons of these behemoths that have been spotted and tracked, floating around the Imperium. Today, we’re going to check out a few other Famous Space Hulks and look at what makes them so special.
Famous Space Hulks
Sin of Damnation
I’m starting with the mother of all Space Hulks – The Sin of Damnation. This is the Space Hulk that inspired the setting for the board game(s) and also had a follow-up game released in 1993 on PC. That’s what the image above is from. And let me tell you as someone who played the game it was pretty difficult! It would have helped if I had read the manual…but noooo. Lesson learned.
Anyhow here’s the history of this classic Space Hulk:
“The Sin of Damnation is a space hulk that was assaulted by the terminators of the Blood Angels‘ First Company, led by Captain Michaelus Raphael in 589.M41.
Six hundred years before the arrival of the Sin of Damnation, the Blood Angels’ entire Chapter was decimated during a failed assault on another space hulk in the Secoris system, leaving only fifty Marines in the whole Chapter. Six centuries later, another space hulk, the Sin of Damnation, was spotted by Rogue Trader Borrak Vorra near the Blood Angels’ fortress monastery on Baal. Spurred on by their shame from the disaster in Secoris, the Blood Angels dispatched their First Company, under the command of Captain Raphael. The Space Marine force, consisting of over eighty Veterans in Terminator Armour, managed to not only cleanse the hulk of thousands of genestealers, but also recovered an ancient Blood Angels’ artifact in the process.
The Sin of Damnation appeared in the 1993 Space Hulk game, although it was assaulted by Dark Angels instead of Blood Angels. The hulk also consisted of a genestealer cult, as a Patriarch is present.”
Aside from the video and board game nostalgia, this Hulk has been fought over by at least 2 different chapters of Space Marines. The genestealers did not give it up easy and it’s still a great setting for a claustrophobic encounter.
Perdition’s Flame
This Space Hulk also has a special place in my heart. Why? Well, this is the Space Hulk that Inquisitor Kryptman (pictured) used to start the Octarius War. Here’s the rundown:
“The Perdition’s Flame is a Space Hulk that was used to lure Hive Fleet Leviathan into attacking the Ork Empire of Octarius.
Inquisitor Kryptman planted a captured brood of Genestealers on board the Perdition’s Flame, which emerged from the Warp in the path of Leviathan, and then destroyed the moon of Gheist in order to divert the hulk’s trajectory directly towards the Octarius system. The Genestealers’ psychic signal soon drew a tendril of Leviathan towards them, starting a vicious war that would engulf the whole Octarius Sector.”
Now, depending on which version you’re reading and which side of history you’re on Kryptman’s plan may or may not have backfired. What everyone does agree on is that it launched a pretty fantastic war between the Tyranids and the Orks – all thanks to a little Space Hulk dubbed Perdition’s Flame.
Judgment of Carrion
Seeing as how we are on a video game kick, I figured we’d take a look at the Judgement of Carrion – a Space Hulk from Dawn of War II.
“The Judgment of Carrion is a space hulk periodically appearing in Subsector Aurelia, near the recruiting worlds of the Blood Ravens Chapter. The Ravens’ Chapter Master, Azariah Kyras, spent a long time aboard the hulk after being sucked into the Warp along with the planet Aurelia, and is heavily suspected of having become tainted by Chaos during this period.
The Judgment of Carrion is known to be infested with Tyranids.”
The simple fact is that without this Space Hulk getting sucked into the warp, along with a planet, we probably wouldn’t have the same story line for the Chaos Rising expansion to Dawn of War II. It’s got all the stuff you need — Tyranids and Chaos taint! Plus it involves those the Blood Ravens. “Who’s your Primarch again?” Uh-huh…
Alveus Alpha Alpha Sextus
There would be no Second War of Armageddon if it had not been for Space Hulk Alveus Alpha Alpha Sextus. Without the second war, you wouldn’t have Commisar Yarrick or Mephiston!
“The Alveus Alpha Alpha Sextus is the Space Hulk that carried Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka to Armageddon, sparking the Second War for Armageddon.
The vessel appeared in orbit around Ghazghkull’s planet of Urk while its sun was dying. As the self-proclaimed prophet of Gork and Mork, Ghazghkull convinced the other Orks that the hulk’s appearance was providential, just in time to carry them away from their doomed world and towards a glorious new Waaagh!
Ghazghkull loaded his Orks onto the hulk and drifted off towards Armageddon. He released it after landing on Armageddon, vowing he would not need it to escape, as he planned to conquer the planet entirely.”
It’s amazing how all these things just fall into place…thanks to one lost Space Hulk!
Prison of Lost Souls
The tale of this Space Hulk actually comes from the Deathwing Short Story. Dark Angel’s Captain Ezekiel (not the Librarian, a different guy) leads a mission on to this Space Hulk. It’s kind of a creepy atmosphere and when they find the corpses of a few Space Wolves it gets even weirder.
“The Prison of Lost Souls was a Space Hulk that was first spotted by Space Marines of the Dark Angels chapter during a patrol flight of the Battle Barge Angelus Morte and subsequently boarded. Among those entering the hulk were Sergeant Conrad and Bloody Moon. Aboard the Prison of Lost Souls they happened upon the corpses of a few Space Wolves, felled by bolter fire, one of which was reanimated by Chaos and heralded their perdition. This augury referred to the presence of Chaos Space Marines aboard the Prison of Lost Souls, whom the Dark Angels Terminators fought and defeated in spite of the prophecy.”
Why is this one important? Well, it sets Cloud Runner (aka Captain Ezekiel) on a path that eventually leads to the Dark Angel’s repainting their armor into the now classic Bone White that everyone is familiar with. Pretty cool, huh?!
~So anyone else thinks it’s time for revamp & release of Space Hulk?
