Thanks to the influence of the Imperial cult, millions of people are well aware of the name of Emperor Warhammer 40,000. He is sung in songs and is the protagonist of numerous legends. This God-Emperor is familiar to all of Humanity, and for the past ten thousand years, he has not uttered a single word and has never moved. So who is he really?
From an early history: a threat to humanity
There is no information about the exact origin of the Emperor either in the Warhammer 40,000 game, either in books or in guides (this topic is a constant debate of fans of the setting). According to the old version, which was not mentioned by later editions, humanity has been aware of warp for a very long time. Communication with this dimension fell to the share of gifted individuals who were able not only to establish contact with the warp, but also use its powers to achieve their own goals. We are talking about various healers, powerful fortune tellers, shamans and other spiritual leaders among the people of that time.
The more people received knowledge, the more their desire for power and pleasures grew. So humanity began its path to decay. Preserving entire systems with extensive warp storms has led the worlds to become easy prey for xenos. They began to be subjected to frequent attacks by the enemy and receive even greater damage from the inside from the ongoing interfaith and civil wars. By the way, precisely for these reasons, religion will be banned by the Emperor.
Representatives of spiritual leaders began to notice the weakness of their psychic gifts, and also could no longer go through reincarnation with the same ease as before. They convened the Great Council, the idea of which was to unite forces against common evil. During the council, the spiritual leaders decided to sacrifice their lives in order to reincarnate as god and gain unimaginable power.
The birth of the emperor
A whole year has passed since the moment the Great Council took place and the lives of a huge number of spiritual leaders were given. Finally, a child appeared in the world - the very Immortal God-Emperor of the Warhammer universe, for whom sacrifices were made. About what his real name was, nothing is known. The "Warhammer" canon has information about the approximate dates and place of birth of the future Emperor: the 8th millennium BC, Central Anatolia.
Years passed. The child grew, and with it grew his wisdom, strength and experience. Over time, the Emperor learned about the spiritual decay and inappropriate behavior of people, after which he decided to put an end to this destructive period. At the same time, he always tried to stay away from where he could direct and manage the most ambitious and significant changes in human history. With the advent of a new era, he was given new names. At one time, the Emperor preferred to act in the guise of a man and guided people on the right path, being a great historical figure. In other segments of history, it was more convenient for him to continue his work on behalf of the "invisibility".
Imperial Chronicles: First references
For the first time in the Warhammer universe, 40,000 spoke of the Emperor after the unification of St. Terra (Era of Struggle, about the 29th millennium). Then on the side of the Emperor were genetically modified soldiers - the first prototypes of the well-known Space Marines. With their help, the long-awaited unification of all the inhabitants of the Earth was achieved and the path to further prospects on distant stars was opened. Thanks to the activities of the Adeptus Mechanicus on Mars, the Emperor was able to create an army of unimaginable power, which was supposed to go to the distant galactic outskirts to expand the Warhammer 40,000 Imperium.
At the same time, the Emperor took advantage of his own genetic samples, which laid the foundation for superhuman primarchs. It was their patterns that subsequently went on to create the Space Marine Legions.
More about Primarchs
The emperor always soberly assessed all the power of Chaos and the danger that he could pose. That is why the responsibility of creating the most powerful weapons and equipment fell on the shoulders of the best scientists of the Earth. In the same period, the Emperor was visited by the idea of creating another “weapon” - the Primarchs. In fact, they were genetically modeled superhuman people who were similar to the gods themselves.
According to the plans of the Emperor, the Primarchs were assigned the role of a new superhuman race, not subject to the influence of Chaos. They were created with the aim of becoming a brilliant example of a human ideal and a rebellious spirit, as well as to demonstrate the possibility of passing unspoiled energy flows of Chaos through their own bodies.
Unfortunately, Chaos found out about the Primarchs, and then scattered them throughout the galactic space.
Great Crusade Period
As time passed, the God Emperor Warhammer 40,000 developed a plan that could save all of humanity. According to this plan, the unification of scattered planets, scattered throughout the galactic space and sunk into isolation at the end of the Era of Fight, should occur in the world.
During the first years that laid the foundation for the Great Crusade, units consisting of genetically modified soldiers boldly threw themselves into any battle. Especially for this event, twenty legions of the Space Marines were created, among the later heirs of which are the Knights of the Gray Knights, the Scythe of the Emperor Warhammer 40,000 and other orders of the second and third bases. After the re-opening of the worlds (and their subsequent inclusion in the ranks of the Imperium), the events of the Campaign led the Emperor to the lost Primarchs.
On Ullanor, the Campaign awaited victory. The emperor arrived back to Earth to go down to the underground laboratories - there he was waiting for all the unfinished secret projects. His faithful “sons,” Primarchs, were forced to continue the procession of the Great Crusade. The best of them - the Primarch named Horus - accepted the honorary title of Warrior from the Emperor.
Even before returning to the planet Terra, the Emperor decided not to share his future plans with the "sons." By this deliberate action, he aroused the first misunderstanding among the Primarchs, after which the story came to one of the most famous events in the game Warhammer 40,000.
About the Heresy of Horus
The Crusade period was completed by the Heresy of Horus - it was then that the best of the Primarchs, the Warrior, decided to rebel against the Emperor himself. For this purpose, Horus managed to transfer many allies to his side, among which were the Space Marine Legions and regiments belonging to the Imperial Guard. Together, they swore allegiance to Chaos, resulting in a galactic civil war.
Even during the siege of the planet Terra by Horus, the Emperor hoped that his best “son” could change his mind and fix the situation. With this faith in his heart, he went to meet Horus. Despite the fact that he had to fight against the "son", the Emperor Warhammer 40,000 still did not want to use full force - this was the reason for his defeat. Horus inflicted many terrible wounds on him and severely mutilated his body.
At the end of the battle, the Custodian appeared in the wheelhouse, who immediately fell victim to the anger and rage of Horus. This act of cruelty returned the Emperor a sober mind - he realized that after all the killings and destruction his beloved son no longer has a way back. The only way to stop Chaos is to destroy it on your own.
Having made this difficult decision, the Emperor threw a powerful psychic spear at his "son". At the time of the defeat, Chaos decided to leave the mind of a dying puppet, and Horus gained access to his mind. However, it was too late to retreat, and the Emperor no longer wanted to risk returning the gods of Chaos - he rejected feelings of compassion and put an end to the Warmaster.
History of our time
Rogal Dorn found the body of the barely living Emperor. He had to do everything exactly as the Emperor himself ordered - he used a special technical device to connect the body of the dying person to him and support his spirit. This device turned out to be the Golden Throne.
From that moment on, the body of the Emperor became part of the Golden Throne; he does not live, but he does not die. Initially, the device was supposed to be used as a central node for the Web and its colonization, while it also knows how to support vital functions. The throne has the support of one of the most powerful psychic warp beacons, known as the Astronomicon, and functions as a psychic beacon to attract navigators and astropaths. With it, the device is capable of generating signals for light travel. The main signal of the God-Emperor Warhammer 40,000 is called the Ray of Hope and the Golden Way, but its main power is provided by a chorus of 10 thousand human psykers. Their vitality usually expires in a few months, so there is a need to look for permanent sources of replacement. In the capital of the Imperium, new psykers are usually delivered by the Black Inquisition Ships.
The Gold Throne of Emperor Warhammer 40,000 is located in the Sanctum Imperialis, which is guarded by the Custodian Guard.
About the religious aspect
Warhammer 40,000 novels called The Horus Heresy describe the atheistic period of the early Imperium. The Emperor personally prohibited any manifestations of religious worship of his own person and convinced humanity of the correctness of Imperial Truth about the superiority of science and logic.
Many could not share such an opinion. According to the Emperor, the world never knew the gods, but he himself was well aware of the Gods of Chaos; thanks to him, people began to search for knowledge, but his Primarchs for a long time remained in ignorance. The opinion is quite popular that, through the denial of the idea of the gods, the Emperor tried to strike at Chaos and weaken his grip in reality.
Today, the God Emperor of Mankind is worshiped and worshiped by most of the inhabitants of the Imperium. This idea was imposed by the church of Ecclesiarchy, and acts of disobedience and the manifestation of heresy were punishable by death. People accepted the belief that only the Emperor of Mankind can direct them on the right path. And only he is able to protect everyone from the horrors of Imaterium.
The rules of the Inquisitor, in the opening text, describe the ambiguous reactions and feelings that accompanied the rise of Emperor Warhammer 40,000 to the summit of the Golden Throne. Everyone was well aware that after connecting, the God-Emperor risked losing his ability to move along with his subordinates, but at the same time, the stream of psychic forces should have returned to him. This event caused a lot of objections and concerns from the ruling cells of that period. They were afraid not only of the Emperor’s sudden return, but also of his possible changes that might have been caused by the union with the Golden Throne.
About the Children of the Emperor and the Star Baby
The "Kingdom of Chaos" stores information that during his earthly existence the Emperor left many children behind him. All of them were awarded eternal life and the Star Child mark. The children of the Emperor grew up as Masters, who were supposed to fight the forces of Chaos and become plenipotentiaries of the Imperium, fighting for justice.
Another interesting aspect described in the “Kingdom” concerns the soul of the Emperor, whose half-dead body prevents her from reincarnating. Each year, while living in Warp, the Emperor’s soul loses part of its identity, known as the Star Child. It is believed that for its rebirth it is necessary to destroy the Golden Throne, and then a new Emperor will appear who can provide humanity with control and protection.
About the Emperor and Kabbalah
Kabbalah is the advice that the ancient xenoras formed and which is known for its straightforward (and reasonably justified) opinion regarding the Emperor. The members of the council believed that the Emperor God, being a biological being, fell at the hands of the Warrior and that he had not been among the living for a long time. His outstanding psionic abilities were the result of genetic modification, the Golden Throne is an ordinary astro beacon, which is supported by psykers, and the cult around the Emperor of Humanity appeared during false manipulations by Rogal Dorn and the support of the Administratum.
According to Kabbalah, a new god could appear through a stream of human feelings, who was not yet destined to awaken. They are afraid of this moment, because they believe that the cruelty and intransigence that people experienced as a result of their encounter with the terrible Cosmos affected his character. The altered nature of the awakened god should direct him along the path of the Primeval Extermination of all life forms, except for representatives of humanity. Kabbalah believe that destruction will not stop there - all the gods of Warp will suffer from destruction, and the Eldar will become mortal and lose the strength that they draw from Imaterium. That is how the awakening of the Emperor seems to the council.