His Return To The Imperium And The Future Role Of The Custodes | The M3 Podcast with

[@SandmanofTerra]

Thanks to @QuipsterNerd for joining me on the channel! You can check out both his channel and his Instagram for more awesome Warhammer 40K content! instagram.com/quipsternerd/ If you want more info on the King in Yellow, check out this video here! kzbin.info/www/bejne/aaSae6mOa86Jp6s

[@harvestblades]

Is the podcast YT only as I am having trouble finding it on my podcast apps.

[@ArantyrDarkhand]

Just a addendum. Corax and the Sister that put him on the throne, those 2 see the emperor for what he is. Just a regular looking human, hes not big, Nor use that golden armor etc. He probably use his gear with telecnetic. OR he can shift his form for his WARP form per say like Corvus do. ABout be in the throne i think this was the future he wanted to avoid but could not. And when he notice he cant avoid it, its when Malcador says about things goin to fast etc.

[@matthewhicks6089]

Harlequins literally guarded the black library for tens of millennia, but I'm too believe quip that they wouldn't be able to win the blood games?

[@tr48092]

Is the title of the King in Yellow a reference to the eponymous book by American writer Robert W. Chambers?

[@SandmanofTerra]

Definitely!@@tr48092

[@syvarris467]

The “Eyes of the Emperor” always strikes me as hilarious. Like there’s an office building where the “new guy” is an 8-foot tall demigod that’s just like, “Hi, I’m Greg, I am normal doer of job at place.”

[@SandmanofTerra]

Pretty much 😂

[@cazperzero]

the eight foot giant will probably kill you if you blow his "cover." Do you blow his cover?

[@NicholasVernem-GroovyNickyLee]

​@@cazperzero"YOU DO NOT SEE AMON TAURAMACCHIS AUMANRA PYTHAGORAS WILHEIM!"

[@madmen2288]

Augmented human and mutant are a dime a dozen.

[@alexmartin3143]

Undercover Emperor…

[@kccustodes2618]

I believe the King in Yellow is Valdor and the reason for his army is to enter the webway and take, occupy, and then hold the abandoned city of Calastar (the sight of the war in the webway). Holding this city means if the Emperor were to leave the golden throne, demons would not enter Terra because to get to Terra they have to pass through Calastar. Even the composition of the army supports this in my mind. If you were to imagine the perfect army to hold the webway it would be what Valdor has amassed. Just my 2 cents.

[@Bladelols27]

Blanks and blood angels, perfect!

[@Reliken]

I get blanks, but not Blood Angels. Why are they uniquely suited to help hold the Impossible City?

[@Bladelols27]

@@Reliken because Valdor has a soft spot for sanguinius. Hence the modified red thirst blood angels with wings.

[@kccustodes2618]

@@Reliken After the war in the webway, Dorn chastises Valdor, saying that to fight that battle how they did was foolish. The Custodes took many casualties at Calastar and were not really a factor for the defense of the Eternity Gate. Dorn pointed it out, saying they should have fought with Astartes too, but for some reason Astartes were kept out of that battle. Had they been included the burden on the Custodes would not have been so great. Dorn seemed to believe that Astartes backing up the Custodes would have made a difference. I think maybe Valdor has been able to rethink things, get over his prejudices, and work with Astrartes. And if he did work with Astartes, maybe the red thirst is something he specifically wanted or even the visual of "angels" suits his need. I am 100% in my thinking that whatever Valdor is doing it is for the Emperor.

[@kccustodes2618]

@@joshuacrime I am probably way wrong with my theory, just because it seems almost too obvious. But I honestly believe Valdor is loyal still and whatever he is up to is for the Emperor. What got me to this conclusion was that some craftworld eldar are after him. Why would they care what he does unless he is messing about in their webway? The fact that traitor legions all hunt him feels odd, way to coordinated, and out of place for traitor legions. Abaddon has never mentioned Valdor of KiY asaif.

[@LovelyCenturibear]

I miss Kitten...

[@criosfelix8744]

F Kitten

[@karlarden6260]

God we all miss Kitten

[@christianvillanueva1133]

The fallen shall always be remembered as the Emperor's finest.

[@mistadangerzone8362]

@LovelyCenturibear we all do man, we all do…

[@AzrealMaximus]

CAPTAIN GENERAL! Lock Warden exclamation on Mars

[@morganholsomback4851]

I remember a null looking at the emperor while he was alive as she marched past him… and she saw a normal looking bored man on a throne.

[@SandmanofTerra]

Amazing book, master of mankind

[@RichardStrong86]

Even nulls aren't powerful to neutralise the Emperor's powers.

[@Pragabond]

@@RichardStrong86Right? She might have just gotten a bit closer to the real Emperor but not seen the real man fully.

[@vanshsarao296]

She probably just saw what the emperor wanted her to see, even blanks have limits.

[@T57Custodian]

Oo Maybe the big e has been hiding his true form all these years. And has been perfectly fine this whole time.

[@sarahd632]

Being a person who was EXTREMELY discociated from any feelings for my whole life, that is the perfect kind of people to become zealots and phenomenal philosophers. When people have feelings, they experience things in ways where they know WHY they are the way they are. They know what they like, they know what they don't like, they know how to empathize with others who also have feelings. When you can't relate to those experiences, when I couldn't feel feelings, I observed my surroundings and came to my own conclusions on why people interacted the way they did, I studied religion to try to figure out why people felt like they deserved to live, I was full of curiosity because nothing was logical around me and I thought there had to be a reason why. Instead of being able to relate to people, I was collecting data on what it meant to be alive and going over why people seemed to believe they deserved it more than any other living thing. Hell, why they felt like it was special to be alive was not something I could understand at all. It's not like we can chose it or have control over existing. We're all cause and effect. A chain of decisions that are not, inherently, special. There is no richness of purpose that forms organically and fills you up from your core. Many people like me either find a leader, god, or philosophy to tell them what their purpose is. They will follow those things to the letter to as evidence to themselves that they are accomplishing purpose. They will excel in chasing whatever they can to fill the void that the absence of emotional connection leaves. They become junkies for the feeling of purpose and can violently lash out at anything that causes them to question it. When I was younger I always felt like an alien. I've done work on myself and found ways to connect, but it's still off. I only, truly, feel comfortable around other people like me and see "normal" people as "others" in some small pocket of my brain that still feel alien around every living thing. I feel like When you started talking about how the Custodies and Primarchs detachment from feelings in the Vaults of Terra section of this video, it really clicked with me why some of them are the way they are if they don't have access to certain feelings. Or why the Emporor is the way he is a bit.

[@karituominen5112]

I'm pretty much the same way and have thought about the same things. Though I don't have that kind of a need to fill that void. I try to fill it more with an understanding of the world around me, even if it only work so or so.

[@drarsen33]

He is collecting his army to patch up break in webway that Magnus created. Blanks are perfect counter to demons assailing it. This also would explain why eldar are after him, he must have been stealing eldar secrets to figure out how you patch up webway. Why is he looking for Emperors true name? My guess would be to get his shattered mind together. We have seen that big E is scattered after 10.000 years of throne sitting. Valdor could try using his true name summon all of him and to mend it together again.

[@SandmanofTerra]

It's a good theory!

[@decimusdecius7858]

Eldar are able to repair webway? I thought they lost that technology and know onyl to maintain it, so thats what makes it extremely valuable to them, every part of webway lost is a tragedy for them.

[@drarsen33]

@@decimusdecius7858 I think that they can repair it. But just like in case of breach on Terra any damage will get demons swarming it and that part is what causes that part of webway to be lost, not their inability to shut the breach. Might be wrong but if Emperor knew how to do it, they probably also know.

[@templar628]

That could also be what he needs in the black library which most eldar don't have access to and wouldn't know how to close a breach or he knows how but the eldar might have maps and things for battle plans he would need to hold the city, or maybe he's looking for a way to cut the tie with the web way from the gate so no matter what happens they can't come in the gate.

[@BDL3035]

I’m guessing the the Big E’s name isn’t something so simple as “John Smith” or whatever, but rather an intricate amalgamation of most, if not all, of His names over the course of 30,000 years

[@Technoanima]

Within the first 6 min, I already realized that the Emperor literally made his own friends.

[@willogsdon7092]

the city of dust/ imperial palace map in the end and the death holds the answer as to why the king in yellow needs an army. if the golden throne fails terra gets sucked into the warp, right? and the city of dust is a place in the warp inextricably linked to the palace itself. when bequin goes to pandemonium at the end of Penitent, we see the vast defenses and military resources continuously battling the forces of chaos to keep them away from the area surrounding the city. if the emperor is keeping the throne alive not the other way around, then the only way to free the emperor without damning him and terra itself is to ensure that both he and the palace remain safe in the warp when the emperor is separated from the throne

[@kccustodes2618]

I am sort of on the same thought process, but I was thought the battling going on right now is Chaos just trying to hinder him. My idea was that Valdor is going to take, occupy, and then hold the city of Calastar (where the war in webway happened). My understanding is that holding Calastar means deamons cannot access Terra and that Calastar being an abandoned Eldar city is for sure anchored in the webway and cannot just be sucked into the warp unless Abaddon and his new weapon do something to break the webway.

[@masstv9052]

Why would terra get sucked into the warp? I thought the emperor on the golden throne was just keeping the webway he created, sealed because chaos was attacking from the webway portal because of something Magnus did..... (And the throne was also powering the astronomicon). So I thought it would just release chaos onto terra thru the webway if the emperor left the throne...... not that terra would get sucked into the warp?

[@gideonhorwitz9434]

@@masstv9052in the end and the death series it’s Malkador onserved that Terra itself is being absorbed into the warp half in realty half in the immaterium due to the siege time itself is being distorted.

[@andy7666]

Psychic blank throat spider implanted warrior clones in a pocket Universe.. Makes sense to me!

[@pmmlordraven]

​@@masstv9052the Talisman of Seven Hammers Vulkan built would actually destroy Terra and Mars so that demons couldn't spill out and take them over themselves. A sort of dead man's switch. That needs to be deactivated in order for big E to leave.

[@tjoverton7581]

I read a good theory he’s going to invade nurgles garden to break out isha so she can heal the emperor The book makes it appear that he’s invading the Eye of terror

[@DominusNox106]

Great talk. Much fun. I'm going crazy for book 3 of Bequin. It's got to be the Captain General.

[@custodesvaldor]

Elizabeth? I'm very new to lore, like a couple of months. I've read the Eisenhorn Trilogy. Which book are you referring to?

[@robtype0]

​@@custodesvaldorPariah and Penitent, the first two books in the Bequin trilogy.

[@lostguy2025]

I'm 55 yrs old and I "get" you guys. I can listen to your "speculative reasoning" or "fantastical imagining" all day long. My poison from back in the day was the Forgotten Realms and Rifts Earth. (I was also a devotee to the original Warhammer where the 4 deities of chaos were first iterated). I SHALL become a member as soon as I get out of the hospital. Thankyou guys!

[@brooklynkeith2877]

I would love for this to be the next major storyline evolved

[@SandmanofTerra]

Me too man!

[@lincolnosiris3665]

You should not forget: Valdor had a special relationship to at least three Primarchs: Dorn, Russ and Alpharius. The Palace of Thaumeizin looks like something, that has Dorn written all over it. I guess, they might even bring back multiple characters in the last Bequin novel. My money is on Dorn and Valdor.

[@mitrion301]

This! Is an idea I never really thought about but now I want, I want my man Dorn

[@lincolnosiris3665]

@@mitrion301 You know...Rog the Builder. Bringing the war to your door step...I am looking at you Papa Nurgle.

[@kccustodes2618]

Great connection to Dorn, I can see that and it makes sense. Even BIGGER with connection to Alpharius, I mean who would be the most valuable asset to Valdor in this 10k long clandestine plan he is on.

[@BM-wf9uf]

It's hard to say what will happen with Dorn. I'm not even convinced GW will bring him back tbh. I suspect that at the end of 10th Edition we will see Russ return. Probably more likely to have something to do with Valdor given his bond with Russ was second only to the Emperor.

[@lincolnosiris3665]

@@BM-wf9uf True

[@amanofnoreputation2164]

I like the idea that the custodes have vibrant personalities in spite of the dilligence and severity of their roles because, as mentioned in the video, _the Emperor doesn't want to feel alone._ So if you think about that, you realize that at some point he would want to spend the same vast resoruces he deveotes to all his tailor made custodes to develop a super-human immortal demigod genetically engineered *to talk sass at him.* If all the custodes never talked back to him, he'd just feel like they had no autonomy and weren't really there.

[@adamdoughty813]

Really enjoyed this. Fantastic company while painting

[@Lumen_Obscurum]

The whole thing about the Dark King prophecy I wonder if it isn't Valdor himself. He is the Dark King to the Emperor's Light King, he is what the Emperor needs him to be. Nobody else can be trusted to be ruthless enough, to be focused enough, to be Enough. I've said before that the Dark King approaching mentioned during the Siege of Terra doesn't mean Horus, and likely NEVER meant Horus. Horus was just a pawn of Chaos, he was a part of the Emperor's plan to achieve Apotheosis. He just failed because he hadn't counted on Horus retaining a tiny shred of himself, a Son who loved his Father and was horrified at what he had done. Back to my point, given the way time works in the Warp all the "Dark King is approaching" means is one step on the plan has been completed, which is followed immediately from that perspective by the second which could happen millions of years from now. I have previously commented about my theory it could have always meant Abaddon because the death of Horus was key to Abaddon deciding to never swear to any of the Gods after seeing Horus swear to all of them and have his power abandon him in the last moment. It makes perfect sense that it could also be Valdor, him realising that he is the only one that can free the Emperor from the Throne by building SOMETHING in the Warp to siphon energy directly to the Throne and free the Emperor to actually fix it. Or to be released to run the Galaxy properly.

[@Reliken]

I still think the Dark King is the fifth God of Chaos the Emperor will birth when he finally dies

[@michaelfranzgarcia7769]

Samus Daemon Prince of the Ruinstorm

[@the_astrokhan]

To be honest, Valdor owes no alleigance to the imperium in it's current form. As a matter of fact, no custodian does. So long as the master of mankind is safe, that's all they care about. All they do is to keep him safe. Or further his agenda. Knowing that the custodes keep him safe, he probably stepped down as captain general and did the second part of their duties, he went out to further the emperor's agenda and does not give a damn for the imperium. The culmination of Penitent clearly shows the sophistication of the operation, the resources he commands are what we would call state level resources. Either he managed to create a shadow state over the millennia or he's still connected to the custodes and they provide him with what he needs. A little like the war in the webway. No one knew about it, but it required immense resources that were in fact, used.

[@thehermitman822]

I love the idea that Henry Cavill has Emperor level foresight that he put toward his favorite hobby. 😂

[@talscorner3696]

I think there's also, in addition to the Emperor being the ruthless soul he is, another point behind why Custodes don't have a whole host of human emotions. Imagine a Custos who actively enjoys fighting and, when put in front of the choice, at least *considers* fighting more than not, because he likes it. Now, imagine a Custos who likes fighting that bit too much. That means inviting a whole bunch of Chaos-related stuff that, at that high and fine of a level, could be ruinous, even at the faintest amounts.

[@kelvintorres6142]

I remember the Emperor commenting on “Sagittarius Malache” when in a memory slaying the last techno barbarian warlord saying something along the lines of “Sagittarius, ever the barbarian”

[@piotrd.4850]

Valdore is basically Primarch and given his close connection to original Big E's idea - I'd expect some groundbreaking movements. Also, I wonder how many Custodes still remember him and are left after 10 millenia and war in WebWay. On the other hand, we might see confrontation between Captains Generals.

[@Bladelols27]

No custodians are said to still be alive from the hours heresy era, as for Trajann meeting Valdor - there would not be a an issue due to the genetic programming, in the SoT books you get a deeper dive into how their minds meld and it would be a split second for Valdor to give Trajann his "credentials".

[@ShimrraJamaane]

His name is known among all of the current era Ten Thousand. If you mean how many remember him first hand, having been alive during the Heresy, then there are a few of the Ten Thousand and at least one Astartes, Bjornn the Fell-Handed, entombed in a Space Wolves' Venerable Dreadnaught who fought alongside big E.

[@Hadrexus]

@@ShimrraJamaane another Astartes would be Fabius Bile too

[@ShimrraJamaane]

@@Hadrexus I was referring to loyalists, not chaos filth :P. There are a lot of traitor marines who do know of Valdor, yes.

[@xxpostitxx4843]

If Valdor came back, the captian general would immediately step down. There won’t be infighting among custodes.

[@amanofnoreputation2164]

The idea with the Eyes of The Emperor is that astartes train new recruits by assigning them to the tenth company, which is the scout company, so custodes have a similar thing in reverse with elderly custodes running reconnaissance instead of the young.

[@ashholenyc1312]

i really enjoy this format. glad i found a new warhammer lore channel super cool

[@SandmanofTerra]

Glad you enjoy it!

[@PopeJrod]

In my reading of the Bequin novels I developed the idea that Valdor is still trying to do the best thing for the Emperor. He has realized that the Emperor is a perpetual and the speaking his name in enuncia will free him from his current deathless state and allow him to reincarnate. Just my thoughts.

[@SandmanofTerra]

I like it!

[@nol6409]

If Henry Caville is cast as Alpharius, he can play everyone

[@godwishyoutube]

Great content. There are a lot of Warhammer channels very good and famous ones but yours is something else. Thank you.

[@haratoo636]

Another Gem from the Sandman himself!!!

[@fixedG]

My favorite little headcannon story for Constantin Valdor is that he was one of the two lost Primarchs. The Warp scattered the Primarchs, obviously, and everyone we know was lost through space. But the Warp does funny stuff with time too, so why not one lost back through time to pre-unification Terra? What better reason could the Emperor have for moving entire armies to claim Valdor than he sensed something incredibly special about him that he didn't understand? Valdor, being this incredible man the Emperor didn't quite understand the genesis of, could have inspired the creation of the Custodes themselves as he tried to recreate what was so special about Valdor. And after they turned out great but not the generals of the Imperium he needed, inspired the Primarchs themselves. And when he suddenly realized the paradox implied and required, he hid Valdor's true nature from everyone, and waited for his Primarchs to be lost and scattered.

[@dahn57]

Can't be, some of the Primarchs knew the two lost Primarchs, and they knew Valdor as well. They would not have mourned their lost brothers and been sworn to silence and being prevented speaking their names if it were merely Valdor.

[@fixedG]

@@dahn57 If the Emperor and/or Malcador was able to hide the memory of ever going to Molech from Horus, what makes you so confident they couldn't convince them they met and briefly knew a brother they're not supposed to talk about and have no official record of.

[@dahn57]

@@fixedG Nothing, but it seems unlikely. Considering everything known about the Custodies, they are really nothing like either Space Marines or Primarchs

[@Ksennie]

Maybe Valdor is actually working to assemble what he needs to seal or stabilize the big disaster of the hole in the Imperial Webway that Magnus- like sealing up the breach would be *THE THING* to get the Emperor out of the Golden throne. Be it regeneration or re-incarnation, the absence of the Emperor on that chair leads to the fall of Terra. It's also something that we know would require massive, massive resources in terms of fighting just to enter it - and the resources to seal that breach were beyond even the Emperor at the time, and probably needs long forgotten, lost -or kept as well defended secrets- Old Ones tech, and an understanding of it to do. Which really seems like they justify and require all the steps Valdor needed to do as the King in Yellow.

[@andrew3203]

About the winged Blood Angels, I would point out that this has happened before. Brother Arkio was infected and changed by a corrupted Inquisitor and grew wings. Not only that, but then he was dressed in golden armor, given the Spear of Tiesto and considered Sanguinius reborn. (it was a Chaos plot, but using something intrinsic to Blood Angels) Thus, there is a gene expression in their own gene code that can allow them to grow wings, just like Sanguinius himself had. Extra lore, the Space Wolves have a similar thing, where their Canis Helix genes become dominant and they transform into Wulfen (the 13th Company), who are not only faster and stronger than a regular Space Wolf, but almost immune to the Warp too. This gene modification is something that the Emperor himself programmed into every Primarch and their Space Legions, and sometimes we see such mutations appear as bone claws, red eyes, and probably many more things, mostly hidden under armor, or purged by the Inquisition along with the entire Chapter. Not to mention the 2 Primarchs and Space Legions that were erased.

[@RSBurgener]

The Emperor has power that is unimaginable. However, even despite this, he has a level of presumption that is often offensive to people. He may indeed know what's best for you, better than you do, but it's still a dick move to say so. I find that very interesting!

[@AzrealMaximus]

He speaks to Ra, asking if he could hear him, during the battle in the Emperor's webway project.

[@GameSetPatch]

I suspect Valdor is looking to free the Emperor from his current predicament. How exactly depends on what GW wants the new normal to be in 40k. If the Emperor no longer had to stand in the gap between the demons pouring in fron the Webway, he could focus his will upon the Astronomicon and his manifestations within the Warp. To accomplish this, Valdor would need to use the City of Dust as a barrier for the gaping hole in the Imperial Webway. If Valdor managed to pull this off, his military forces and his "good demons" could potentially free the Custodians from their efforts as well, allowing them to more directly serve the Emperor in the Galaxy beyond the Demon infested basements of the Imperial Palace. I also suspect that harnessing Enuncia would allow Valdor to force the Emperor's apotheosis into actual godhood, without the consequence of needing to consume the souls of most of the human species (like Slaanesh and the Eldar). If GW intends to bring more Chaos Gods to the forefront, and have the Daemon Primarchs attack the Imperium directly, this powerup for the Emperor would give GW and Black Library ample room to let all sorts of horrors loose upon the setting, while retaining the all important stalemate required to keep the eternal war game churning.

[@Jeremy_2147]

When you spoke about custodes occasionally getting wrecked, I thought you were talking about The First Heretic where Argel Tal throws his sword through the Custodes’ faceplate.

[@tyrantrex734]

To be fair, that Custodes did kill like 3 or 4 of the nearest Space Marines before anyone could blink. He was also distracted by his duty to either arrest or kill Lorgar. He was also caught off guard when he found out that his teleporter had been blocked. That Custodes probably could have ripped through all of those Space Marines, including Argel Tal, IF that had been his main focus.

[@thenson1Halo]

Funny thing, the moment I heard that Henry Cavill was going to be in live action warhammer the first thing I said was that I hope he will be Constantin Valdor. Everyone else was telling me they want him to be Roboute, but not me. Custodes all the way and Constantin is the best. That's how highly I prize an actor that actually cares about his character and the setting that they are in being respectful to the source.

[@Pragabond]

I don't think I've ever seen anyone suggest he play Roboute I've only seen people talk about a custodes and occasionally Big E but I think that's 50% meme for real.

[@martinstuvland8620]

Quipster: "We make friends through-" Sandman: "Warhammer" ......well.....he's not wrong 🤷‍♂😂

[@SwordBrother26]

Something I want revealed is what happened to Diocletian. Even in the latest HH books he gets mentioned and has some lines. I doubt he dies, because he penned a book "later in his career" which to me implies he wrote it after the heresy, and the Custodes still read in it modern 40k, so perhaps he pulls a Valdor and dips

[@amanofnoreputation2164]

[Valdor talks about how there's stuff he can't feel.] No that's just Valdor. Valdor's weird. Or at least weird in ways the other custodes are not.

[@tacituskilgore4840]

Can you list all the books you referenced and also all the individual titles of books in 40k either stand alone or series that are essential to read or worth reading. 40k is my favorite fictional universe but I honestly have little knowledge compared to you and most fans and I yearn to become insanely knowledgeable and well versed in the lore. Thank you, and keep making content, I enjoy your work tremendously

[@SandmanofTerra]

Thanks so much! Yeah I will put something together

[@jakehinton732]

A must read: Horus rising, false gods, galaxy in flames, flight of the Eisenstein,( horus omnibus) Guants ghosts, Gregor Eisenhorn series, echos of eternity, Master of mankind. These are where I started and they gave me a really good grasp of the basics of the universe. A fun read was the infinite and the divine if you find a sticky fingered Egyptian robot mummy Pharoah that's 65 million years old and has a knack for "preserving history", it's a great read also!

[@iamlegend6837]

I always thought of it like of the emperopr is a man made god then the custodies are his man made Angels.

[@paulburgess7559]

Custodes near the Golden Throne dont age because its a Necron stasis field

[@NineSeptims]

Well in the books they say the throne is older than the eldar who only found it but never made it.

[@aylard]

​@@NineSeptimstranzyn said that he is sure its their tech

[@NineSeptims]

The lore likes to contradict so i'm not sure but in the end and the death recent book it states its older than the eldar.@@aylard

[@aylard]

Necrons are older than aeldari, since them and orks were created as a response. Also, emperor really liked to use necron tech or similar, like ctan under mars

[@stevensmith8261]

If Josh Brolin can pull off playing 2 different characters in the same "universe", I'm sure Cavill could do the same.

[@SandmanofTerra]

Good point!

[@nomedeuusuario]

I love how the ones taht survive with the emperor when he boards horus are just like ''yep we are just swords in the hands of this 7 armed shining god being''

[@karituominen5112]

If he's after the tree of life, he would need loads of resources, as it's apparently still in Nurgul's garden.

[@percymacdonald6657]

Sandman, you're my favourite 40k lore channel I've discovered this year. Love your stuff keep it up!

[@SandmanofTerra]

Thanks, will do!

[@mattstakeontheancients7594]

Valdor does seem like the closest thing to a primarch w/o the warp sorcery which makes him cooler to me. He’s basically as powerful as a human can be without warp shenanigans.

[@SandmanofTerra]

Pretty much!

[@ImBarryScottCSS]

The Emperor is in full Somebody I Used to Know vibes for the rest of the perpetuals.

[@tjm11015]

One of the closest comparisons to the Emperor and his ambitions and goals has to be Leto the second from Dune, The God Emperor. No one understood his plan, they only seen the horror of it, and nobody could ever relate or understand his troubles and what he sacrificed, but his goal was to insure the future of mankind, through terrible purpose.

[@TheRemembrancer]

Good job chaps

[@Jason-gq8fo]

Ey what good timing, just as I’m starting Custodes

[@rosssettles7025]

Theory- the Emporer lost so much of his humanity and supressed his true name so much he forgot it. Now he need his most trusted confidant thats left (free of imperial and chaos corruption) to find his true name so when he dies his soul can be pulled directly away from the chaos gods back to a new body...

[@lwazibengu130]

24:10 i think parts of the custodes humanity were removed because those emotions and feelings are what makes humans vulnerable to chaos. So for Custodes to be fully effective and trustworthy, they need to cut out any possible avenue of corruption

[@SandmanofTerra]

Makes sense!

[@snowbroovevo]

18:00 i can see a painting of Guilliman getting stabbed with power sword like the Julius Caesar's assassination

[@TheSmaaaak]

Imagine if the emperor had the voice of Mike Tyson…

[@karituominen5112]

"Did you just snicker?" "No sir, I did not", trying to hold it together.

[@craig3507]

Or david beckham 😂

[@lincolnosiris3665]

The King in Yellow is actually....*tada* Alpharius. Hydra Dominatus.😜

[@piotrd.4850]

Part about Eyes of Emperor that does make sense is different. Custodes for whatever reason both are and were locked in 10k number. That on one hand, makes it paramount to have all of them at peak of abilities and maintain, through continued work, ability to make more. But those who served represent still formidable combat prowess ( certainly still above Space Marines including bit overblown Asterion Morloc ) but deprived of their wargear, they can still apply violence, and have many other talents that might keep Imperium afloat.

[@kili20394]

I hate how you didn't mention, basically at all, the spear the Emperor gave to Valdor in the Siege of Terra series. A spear that gives its wielder specific knowledge of anything it stabs. Valdor has been gaining ever-increasing forbidden knowledge and Malcador and the Emperor KNEW it was a risk giving Valdor the spear. And Valdor didn't even want the spear because gaining knowledge he shouldn't have would do *something* that he wouldn't necessarily want to happen. You briefly touched on it when he stabbed the spear into the Vengeful Spirit. You glossed over the fact that when Abaddon grabbed the blade of the spear, Valdor gained knowledge of the future and that Abaddon would become The Despoiler and what he *might* do in the future. Other than that, great video. Though I think you should have mentioned the spear the Emperor essentially MADE Valdor use.

[@jeffk862]

Personally I think the Emperor gave Valdor the Apollonian Spear on purpose. Not just "to humble him" which is what alot of people say which is a terrible reason. I think he gave it to him because he knew it would transform him. I mean Valdor is up there with Malcador as far as trusted associates of the Emperor are concerned. The Emperor knew the Spear would improve Valdor. There is no one better to trust with a Spear that can reveal horrible forbidden knowledge to, than the most powerful Custodes

[@kili20394]

@@jeffk862 it's been stated that since Valdor was the FIRST custodian, he had more of the Emperor's hand in his creation and thus was given the ability, willingly or otherwise through the spear, to question the Emperor's will and execute them as he sees fit. He's still loyal, I think, but he 100% was, and is, at least one of the Emperor's ace cards against Chaos.

[@Anthyrion]

As far, as i understand it from the last Siege of Terra Books: The psychich might of the Emperor is so big, that he literally can project an image of himself into his surroundings. His Primarch Sons expected to see him as this 10 foot tall golden armoured Warriror King. The Emperor knew, that he must project this picture of himself to his sons. Otherwise, they wouldn't had followed him. And when he sat on the Golden Throne, he had projected a completly diffrent picture of him into the surroundings of the throne servants and his sons. There he was seen as the wise and noble king, who's sitting on a Throne. I think, not even Malcador as his oldest friend knows his true form

[@HB2K-h8m]

Be great to interview Chris Wraight on the Custodes (you mention his pivotal series). He's responsible for so much of their lore (which is mostly out of print 😢), and I really enjoy how he depicts them.

[@SandmanofTerra]

Definitely! I'll have to see if I can

[@Aethelwolf]

The Emperor is so old he remembers when dirt was created.

[@ryanfurey5465]

I really like your work. Great theory knowledge and understanding of the lore keep it up! I love listening.

[@RaynmanPlays]

The fact that Henry Cavill plays Custodes is so fitting and so awesome. Also would be my army of choice if not for GW killing TTS (I refuse to give them any money until it comes back).

[@joseg.6187]

This was great! More please!

[@wiaf8937]

8:50 i second that motion, I was unaware of the conditional not aging of the custodes. hmn, so its not truely altruistic by bred :D

[@lasertaser7081]

Big E is God in warp, Valdor will summone him when times is up

[@MatthewYandura]

Custodes are the Emperor’s equivalent of strategic reserves.

[@surtrpicks]

Did enjoy, thx much.

[@TheViperZed]

Thinking that Dan Abbnet isn't a bad enough writer to not pull off "LoL, it wasn't Valdor after all" requires copium by the truckload to be sustained XD.

[@piotrd.4850]

43:45 - actually, I think that Warhammer should start with The Last Church with Cavil and Sir Michael Caine ( though it would needed to be done few years back ) as Uriah, then Ordo Sinister with Christian Bale as Hydragyrum. And only then jump to continued stories.

[@orcvsivstitia7608]

Valdor dipped some blood angels into the warp. All Space Marines are technically warp tainted.

[@doubledeputyd4242]

Best character in 40k

[@Deisan]

So, one reason why Valdor could be doing what hes doing, and by that i mean building an army, could be that in order to 'fix' the golden throne, they have to turn it off. The army is there to battle the waves upon waves of daemons trying to get in to the throne room via the failed webway project. I mean, the dude has personally seen whats inside it.

[@livingghost7975]

I like to think valdor made his sons significantly more similar to their primarch would make sense since how much of a monster sang was . If anything he might in a twiste$ way think it’s similar to the emperor elevating the custodes

[@Nemusplanta]

it woud be fun theory that each primarch is a reflection of those perpetuals that turned hes back to the emperor

[@hansstrudel9614]

Imagine this is some crazy fake out and it turns out this is actually Dorn

[@f0rdgamer]

The Emperor almost always speaks through the Custodes, he imparts his thoughts into the custodes and they speak as his representative. I’ve never seen him speak aloud, he either speaks through a proxy or projects his thoughts into the others’ minds so that they hear it in their own cultural context. The Custodes are literally his sentient puppets. built to be the ultimate conduit of E’s telepathic potential. Relatedly, and supporting this hypothesis, Big E is shown to have direct access to the knowledge and brilliance of the people around him, and he shares his knowledge with them as well, answering their unspoken questions and guiding their inquiry passively. This is fundamentally manipulative, and unsettling to the point Dr Astartes even believes her own ideas are coming from him, which drives her into a depression. He burns out the people around him, uses them utterly, and the impression is always as if it is by instinct.

[@Timebandit1]

Really enjoy your chats!

[@user-H0000]

Your voice is amazing

[@zzzzzzzzzzzzzz1984]

Yer daddy is so old, when he sits on his throne he can't get up.

[@thrango2379]

I do wonder what the return of Valdor, should he be the King in Yellow, would mean for Russ. There definitely seem to be some connections between them and maybe whatever Valdor is up to would intentionally or unintentionally cause the "Wolftime."

[@ghostbearr1]

Everything in 40K magnified, in the real world a lonely person my have an imaginary friend. Though in 40K, the Emperor creates 10,000 real friends.

[@jeffk862]

Very late to the party, but my guess as far as the Blood Angels are concerned... Comus the Blood Angel talks about being chained up for an unknown but long amount of time. I think Valdor found a certain Blood Angel (since they are all clones) that when you let them exist in the Red Thirst for a long time, that they mutate into whatever Comus Nocturnus has become. Edit: Also it turns the Red Thirst being a defect on its head. It becomes a powerful mutation/transformation that can only occur after long periods in the Red Thirst. It ties in with the Black Rage and how Mephiston suffered through it so long because he was trapped, that he eventually overcame and controlled it and got a huge power boost. It turns the Red Thirst from an inherent flaw thats tortured the Blood Angels psyche for 10K years, to a strength. It also makes their story tragic in a different way, for all of their existence theyve thought they were broken, only to find out that it was an intended feature all along.

[@cthulawha]

The only question to ask about what Valdir is capable of is what is the Emperor capable of...Vig E would ruthlessly kidnap and mutate anyone or anything to achieve his aims

[@thepyrokitten]

18:34 This is a favorite thing of the Warhammer 30k setting. i.e. Vulkan is noted as being the physically strongest primarch but definitely not the best fighter. Lorgar is noted for being one of the worst fighters but is probably first when it comes to zeal or willpower. I don't love how that's a shorthand they use to develop the personalities of primarchs but here we are. As far as the rules of writing goes, it's usually a case of "telling me" instead of "showing me". Not a fault of the authors as they only have so much space to convey things, but still a little disappointing.

[@zouavebro]

in the new book Iron Kingdom one of the custodes talks about Big E and what he was like when he was arround.

[@justinbruck9602]

Chances of seeing a space marine very low, unless you live on Armageddon, then you will see a lot of space marines, and Orks, maybe even some demons, and probably an Inquisitor. I would like to add that the Emperor's True Name, ends in "dor."

[@SChen-ei8gx]

It appears that the Custodians have a fraction of the Emperor's souls. They are less like friends and more like an extension of the Emperor, again - they are still tools of the Emperor.

[@robertoflores4876]

Never understood the Custodes love. "What if Space Marines but less humanity?"

[@SandmanofTerra]

I do get what you mean. It can be off putting. Also they're put on such a pedestal it's hard not to laugh when they mess up

[@nathan10074194]

How about this theory!! Wat if the custodians are the thousands of shamans that are within the emperor and the emperor has been over the millennia been putting there souls one by one in artificial body’s…..like the custodians and that’s why there connection is so strong between them…

[@andrewbaer2820]

Most of the custodes were killed in the webway war so I’d imagine that a vast majority of the current force are post heresy initiates. Also don’t forget the scene in outcast dead where a world eater punches his fist through the armor chest plate and muscles of a custodian and rips his spine out

[@peterga3658]

this is one of my favorite video

[@jasonusborne8629]

Apparently, The Emperor of Mankind has kept his true name hidden for so long, he has forgotten it. Valdor will remind him and Leman Rus will bring the Emperor something helpful. Leman and Constantine should show up at relatively the same time as they are bound by the Two Metaphysical Blades.

[@TheBriarWolf]

Where are the lady custodes?!? 😂 maybe Valdor is one😮

[@jcbgamez]

There are none brother

[@mycommentpwnz]

My (wishful thinking) theory/fan-fiction on what is to come: In a moment of bleak desperation, Valdor decides to genetically enhance and empower himself, and the entirety of his armies, with an even more powerful and dangerous augmentation. For, in his eons of study as the "Yellow King," he now believes he has identified the genetic anomalies which endow the Blood Angels with their immense power during their "Black Rage," and he has also discovered the genetic mutation which, on occasion, permanently causes individual Blood Angels to undergo psychotic-breaks (during their aforementioned rage.) In other-words, with the knowledge Valdor has acquired over the years, he believes his armies can continuously possess the heightened strength and power of the Blood Angels, during their rage, with none of the drawbacks. There is risk, of course, some might even call it "heresy," but he will not fail his Emperor with idle hands. He gave the order: "They shall all be reborn." He and his armies were then genetically altered, and incredibly, they were vastly improved in regards to their raw physical potential. His plan was working beautifully. At first... But, what Valdor didn't know was that by denying, or "turning off," certain genetic switches, this was slowly & inadvertently turning others on. And, in just a few short years, Constantin Valdor would be known by a new name, and this is the name he would keep forever: Constantin Von Carstein. :D

[@lordslive4948]

Valdor and Cawl are the missing 2 primarchs

[@SGTSkylor]

Valdor sure, but cawl wasn't super noteworthy when he was a regular admech guy. Smarter than most of his peers, more raw brainpower, but thats basically it. I havent read all of the HH books but he seemed very lucky to be in the right places at the right times and not die horrifically.

[@PJOZeus]

Odd how Custodes are supposed to be the best of everything, despite intentionally lacking say certain emotions, even though say the arts would overlap with those emotions And it's not just the Custodes, there was some line about the Astartes being like that too, conversing with some Guardsman - "Fear isn't trained out, it is bred out" etc, and the Guardsman responding that they aren't brave, bravery is overcoming fear, and they can't overcome it because they don't have it to overcome Also, if all of the perpetuals grow disillusioned of the Emperor perhaps Valdor did too - and his army is just his own personal force, rather than detracting from the Imperium adding to 'humanities' forces even if not under their command - Can't secede warp borne entities honourably following Valdor and a display of dominance, to some pitiful human ecclesiarc

[@Just_Pele]

A Custodian would body any regular harlequin, no question, perhaps even 3 or 4. A Solitaire? Now that would be a fight, but I would give the Solitaire the advantage, unless the Custodian is particularly skilled and experienced and also armed specifically for such an engagement.

[@johncolvin2754]

I would like the king in yellow to be amon, as he was left on the other side of the gate to the webway to keep murder at bay, I think it was amon anyway, but whoever that was

[@lewishorsman2219]

I wonder if there is a way to use daemons as a sacrifice to ascend the emperor in a way that saves 99% of humanity. It would be so cool if the Custodes/eyes of the emperor are going around binding powerful daemons ready to be blasted with holy fire to ascend their anathema. It would massively weaken the chaos gods as well. Pretty much making the emperor the default chaos god