Old Ones (Warhammer 40,000)
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The Old Ones are a mythical and mysterious race or possibly a group of distinct species in the table-top wargame Warhammer 40,000. They played a pivotal role in the history of many races, including the Eldar, Jokaero, Humans, Orks and Necrons.
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[edit] History
The Old Ones of Warhammer 40,000 history are possibly an ancient race of nearly immortal, coldblooded creatures, who were probably the first race in the galaxy to have evolved sentience (though it should be noted that the C'tan predate the Old Ones, but the C'tan didn't partake in the affairs of the Galaxy until the Necrontyr gave them physical bodies just before the War in Heaven). A supposedly benevolent and gentle race, they appear to have wished to nurture the younger races and protect them from the C'tan. It is possible that the Old Ones are the same Old Ones that the Lizardmen worship in warhammer fantasy, as in the Lizardmen army book it states that the old ones came from the galaxy and found the fantasy world, then proceeding to terraform it and create races to live on it. They were inherently patient as a race, and before attempting to make the step out into the galaxy they made an extensive study of astronomy, which led them to discover the Immaterium. At the time, the Immaterium was unaffected by the psychic emissions of other races, and so it was a calm and steady realm. The Old Ones were able to exploit the Immaterium, allowing them to travel across the galaxy at a whim.
On their travels, the Old Ones seeded many worlds with life, and encouraged the development of indigenous life on many more. Earth is believed to have been seeded in this way, the Old Ones bringing primitive life to the world. Other sources state that the human race and other species on Earth (Terra) evolved without the intervention of the Old Ones.
It should be noted that the Old Ones in the 40K universe may be connected to the Old Ones in the H.P. Lovecraft mythos. From The Encyclopedia Cthulhiana "Old Ones. Term often applied to the Great Old Ones or the Elder Things...the Antarctic aliens known as the Elder Things,...". Which created life on Earth (Terra) in the H.P. Lovecraft mythos.
[edit] Encountering The Necrontyr
One of the few races the Old Ones encountered that were already sentient was the Necrontyr. Where the Old Ones were long lived, with an average lifespan of many millennia, and had access to technology that allowed them to travel from world to world instantaneously, the Necrontyr were short lived, and were bound to one world. The Necrontyr grew increasingly jealous of the Old Ones, and set about going to war with them. The Old Ones easily out maneuvered these early strikes by making use of the webway and the Necrontyr were defeated.
However, the Necrontyr then discovered a C'tan living within their home star. In a short time the Necrontyr managed to create the technology to allow the C'tan to manifest physically, and began to view the C'tan as gods. With the help of the C'tan, the Necrontyr were able to turn the tide of their war against the Old Ones.
In the wars that followed, the Old Ones created and modified many new races to help them. The C'tan had no ability to comprehend the Immaterium, and thus the Old Ones came to the conclusion that they would create a series of races attuned to the Immaterium, in order to use the vast repository of energy present there against the C'tan. Of these races, a few survive today, such as the Eldar, Jokaero, Hrud, the Krork (who, it is speculated, became Orks) and to a certain extent Humans (although Humans were not created for this purpose and may have had the psyker gene seeded into the gene-pool.)
[edit] The Enslavers
The new psychically attuned races had a devastating effect upon the Immaterium: their emotional emissions bled into it, twisting the once peaceful dimension into a violent realm, fuelled by the strongest emotions, giving the Immaterium a new name, the Warp. The vast majority of the beings that dwelled in the Immaterium became malicious and dangerous.
One such race, called the Enslavers, managed to discover a way to force entry into the material realm, and began to enslave huge numbers of sentient beings. This new invasion dealt a fatal blow to the Old Ones (all of whom were killed or fled) and forced the C'tan and their minions into hibernation, as the C'tan (who feed on the sentience of other beings) had their food supplies stolen from them. It is hinted in recent publications that some of the Old Ones did indeed survive the War In Heaven.
[edit] Slann
In the fictional universe of Warhammer 40,000, the Slann were a reptilian or amphibian species who were servants of the Old Ones (although some sources state that they in fact are the Old Ones) not unlike the Lizardmen of Warhammer Fantasy. The Slann are reputed to have created some of the major races in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, the most notable of which are the Orks (who refer to them as the Brainboyz) and Eldar (who are the only race that keeps records from the age) who were created with their psychic abilities to take part in the war between the Necron and the Old Ones in which they were all but wiped out by the C'tan and the Enslaver plague. The Human race was a race for which basic evolution was allowed to continue without the guidance of the Old Ones.
There were five generations of Slann spawned by the Old Ones. The Slann of the first generation have all died off, many likely killed in the war between the Old Ones and the Necron. N.B. this is very similar to the story of the Slann in warhammer fantasy.
[edit] Gods
There is a theory that the Ork Gods, Gork and Mork, were two of the last Old Ones. Gork being the Ork God of strength and Mork being more cunning than his opponent, this also leads to the idea that the Eldar Gods Kaela Mensha Khaine and the Laughing God are the same beings as Gork and Mork. Kaela Mensha Khaine is a god of strength as is Gork and the Laughing god was more of a trickster than Khaine, much like Mork. Being the Old Ones they would have created races such as the Eldar and Orks. These two figures are believed to be the last two Old Ones to have survived.
[edit] References
- Chambers, Andy; Priestley, Rick, and Haines, Pete (2004). Warhammer 40,000, 4th edition, Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-84154-468-X.
- Chambers, Andy; Haines, Pete; McNeil, Graham; Kelly, Phill and Hoare, Andy (2002). Warhammer 40,000 Codex: Necrons. Nottingham: Games Workshop. ISBN 1-84154-190-7.
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