The Subsector Project

  Let’s talk about a few changes to the subsector map, and a little bit about timelines.

  This feels a little bit like I’m writing patch notes for a video game. Blizzard plz fix. Anyways, top of mind right now:

• Nabrik’s World is now Nabrik’s Edge.

Whenever I’m not actively posting worldbuilding, I’m writing narratives, working on a wide variety of concepts which might turn into future posts. As such, I spend a lot of time fleshing out the worlds of the subsector to provide the background which makes sense for the narratives.

Again, the important things are themes, with the world being mutable to thematic coherence, but another common structure is a character study. Thematic application is harmonious with strong characterization, but if you’re writing a character-focused story, don’t be afraid to conform the world to what makes better character conflict.

What does changing the name of this world have to do with characters?

A character study I’m working on cares more about the name of the world because of what it represents. A “World” name in my mind, implies a blank slate. It’s a generic name, like calling someone “Jeff Person”. There are a few dueling meanings I’d like to imply in the name which may be more or less relevant.

I’ve been imagining Nabrik’s Edge as a demi-feudal world, but where the populace lives in environment spheres, like the prototypical idea of a moon base. Think mining-based fiefdoms on a planet with a dangerous, unbreathable atmosphere, where a punctured dome spells death as certainly as any lasgun.

Why then, would this world be chosen for an imperial colony?

Well, it’s not about the Imperium’s decision, it’s about the political class gaining an edge over other worlds in the subsector. Nabrik’s Edge is a testament to the internal strife of the subsector government, thus it is always on a knife’s edge of destruction due to being cut off from supplies, losing transportation for its exports, that sort of thing.

In another sense, the composition of the world is pushing its population to the edge as well. I picture frequent rebellions and crackdowns resulting in a pretty rough living situation to say the least.

• Ederon is losing its Watch Fortress.

In hindsight, it was a little foolish for me to assume it would fit here. The Deathwatch doesn’t really have a reason to be there. Xenos will be around, but I find the interaction of xeno races with the average imperial citizen, guardsman, inquisitor, more interesting than their interactions with the Deathwatch.

Instead, I’d like it to play host to the Adeptus Astartes chapter for the region.

Space Marine haters log off. We’ll get around to discussing them more in the future after their introduction narrative. I’ll probably give them their own article and such. For now, we’ll just say that they exist, and will be on the edge of the subsector.

I’m not going to change much from the original description of Ederon for now- caustic seas, arsenal world, sounds good to me.

• Bemu is joined by Peclene in a zone known as The Silent Rapine.

I’m picturing this as a rough area in the warp. Prior to the cicatrix maledictum, perhaps one of the rougher areas in the subsector. This is both a pro (because it’s harder for foes to encroach upon these worlds) and a con (because it’s harder to get help) for the worlds of the region. Perhaps it will be connected to Pedrot’s Revenge.

I felt I was missing a bit of a “frontier” for smaller, sparser worlds. Many of those I’ve written about feel too “safe” and built up to tell some of the kinds of stories I’m looking to tell. Having this area available to tell stories will help!

Peclene is the second of the small group of colonies in the Rapine, scratching out a meager existence from the gravel of those planets. I picture it as an arid locale, with a series of mesas and canyons reminiscent of the American southwest. Or Mars. Somewhere in the middle.

The colonists here are desperate, seemingly abandoned by the Imperium due to their poor strategic positioning. Desperation breeds heresy, collaboration with xenos, the kinda things the inquisition hates!

  Okay, let’s talk about Time.

Basically the first thing I started thinking about was the timeline of the subsector. Time in 40k is bad and confusing and terrible. It really is just like, “write whatever you want, whenever you want, and if it doesn’t fit, blame it on “The Warp”.

That does make things a little easier in one sense, and I will be stealing that excuse for when I eventually bork up my timeline, but it also makes it kind of annoying to have consistency when I’m wanting to build a subsector’s history.

I’m going to try and peg my interesting events against 999.M41, you know, when everything else interesting happens (i.e. the Era Indomitus, Devastation of Baal, that kinda thing). I want a lot of interesting characters around to live to that point, so I’ll be angling for that.

Normal folks can live for like, a hundred years max, but juvenant treatments have been shown to bump that up. Depending on who you are, you can get another couple hundred years, or potentially infinity(?). It’s really inconsistent, but what else is new about 40k lore, the “rule of cool” is more important than internal consistency for the world. I respect that a lot.

Of course, space marines break that and throw it in the trash, they can live as long as they want, but usually don’t. Similarly, xenos, chaos, and “warpy shit” can have a big impact. So worst case scenario, I throw all your favorite characters (or, you know, characters who will be your favorite eventually) into a warp storm and call it a day.

For now, I’m writing a lot of inquisition and astra militarum stories, so expect to see a lot of 700-900.M41. That will change when we get a little more space marine and xenos characters, and we’ll be able to open up the setting.

Additionally, as the point is to fill out the history, I’ll naturally be pushing backwards as well as forward. Historical mortals are certainly in the cards!

Anyways, more to come from worldbuilding, more narratives soon. Keep on keeping on!