How can that which they do not possess be challenged?
How can that which they do not possess be challenged?
However the process of robo-insemination is far too complex for the human mind!
A knee high fence, my one weakness
I've actually never read a book where a 'Dark Mechanicus' member actually calls themselves by that name. Rather, it is always a loyalist Mechanicus member who denotes them as such. This topic is actually addressed in Chapter Three of "Angel Exterminatus" when the following conversation takes place between some Iron Warriors:
Pioneer crews passed them on their way uphill, followed by cadres of black-robed tech-priests and their walking, crawling and floating palanquins. Outlandish beyond any sane requirements of function, they were abhorrent monstrous things, bulbous, many-limbed and empowered by uncounted forms of locomotions.
"Vultures picking upon a corpse," said Falk with distaste.
"The Pneumachina?" asked Forrix.
"Is that what they're calling themselves now?"
"So I hear," said Forrix, watching as a heavy, segmented construction engine moved uphill on tracked cog-wheels with a rippling peristaltic motion....Hooded adepts wearing smoke-belching backpacks that reeked of embalming fluids and curdled lubricants lashed the slaves with barbed flails, reciting nonsense numbers and atonal braying vocalisations.
So, to answer your question and apparent mania over this -- it's been solved! Or at least that is what this particular branch of the schismatic Adeptus Mechanicus called itself. It's quite possible that this is a separate sect of the newly broken off schismatics, but unless someone has other, better sources for names, then this seems to be it.
http://www.lounge.belloflostsouls.net/showthread.php?52423-The-Blood-Pact-Chaos-Homebrew-Supplement&p=472214&viewfull=1#post472214
Ahem.So, to answer your question and apparent mania over this -- it's been solved!
As I said in the very first post, I have been reading/suffering through 'Mechanicum', which is entirely about the Martian Civil War, where Kelbor-Hal, the Fabricator-General allies with Horus and seizes the planet for Chaos.
And in this novel, it explicitly states that Kelbor-Hal's faction names themselves the Dark Mechanicus. The name comes from the improbably-named Traitor Mechanicum Adept Urtzi Malevolus. That's worse than a 'Star Wars' name!
Ahem.
Anyway, at no stage are they called the Pneumachina, which is a shame, because that's a great name that makes sense. No, they name themselves The Dark Mechanicus'. It explicitly states that they do this stupid, stupid thing. In the novel. That I just read. So if another books says different, that doesn't make the other book right; what it means is that the writers/editors didn't talk beforehand, and that's okay with me, because f**k canon, just tell good stories.
Any road, it's good to know this 'Dark Mechanicum' nonsense is a case of [url=http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/DependingOnTheWriter]Depending On The Writer.[/url]
So that's something at least.
And it's hardly a mania. I just f**king hate bad speculative fiction. By which I mean
On an un/related topic, I reached the end of 'Mechanicum' today. Does anyone know: are there any Black Library books that don't feature epic battles? The fate of worlds in the balance? Because everyone deserves a second chance, but if they're all full of that, I don't think I'll bother again.
Last edited by YorkNecromancer; 06-29-2015 at 09:17 AM.
AUT TACE AUT LOQUERE MELIORA SILENTIO
I'm pretty sure the Dark Eldar don't actually call themselves that at all. They might refer to themselves as Commorite, but generally they wouldn't use any kind of descriptive. That said, the Dark Eldar, unlike the point you first made, are well aware that they're evil and they love it. They see themselves as having the right to do what they want and inflict untold suffering on whomever they want to. They know what they're doing is horrible and that just encourages them, but they still don't call themselves 'Dark Eldar', though I expect they often use the term 'Dark Kin' when interacting with other Eldar factions just to mess with them.
As for the Dark Mechanicum, I suppose it's possibly like the chaos marines. They're well aware that they're turning to dark powers to accomplish their goals. They see themselves as being in the right yes, but that doesn't mean they're ignorant of daemons being generally a bad thing. He could have been acknowledging that they were utilising powers that the Mechanicum would have considered dark for the sake of furthering their interests.
It is a silly name though, they could have used a better word. Mechanicum Maleficarum would have been amusing. Mechanic witches. It would be an appropriate acknowledgement of the lengths they're going to, and what they know they'll be branded as by their previous peers. I have no idea if that actually works in terms of Latin, I'm flailing in the pool of Latin like a total mug here, but 40k has never exactly used it correctly.
On that note, they would be using different words. They aren't speaking English, 'dark' could just be the closest English equivalent. It gets the point across.
I've just finished The Outcast Dead, it is set on Terra and is about an Astropath with PTSD. It gives an interesting insight into the culture of the Astropaths and Terra both pre and post Unity. The unusual thing about it for a BL novel is the main protagonist is ruled by fear but this isn't something he is punished for. I prefer world building to bolter porn so I do get where you are coming from; the enormous battles can often become weightless, suffering from the same problem CGI heavy action films often do. Because there are no real limits on scale anything is possible so consequently nothing feels real and you cease to care.
It is what it is though, just (mostly) well executed genre fiction. The amount these guys churn out you need to look past the occasional hand mysteriously growing back and enjoy it for what it is.
On the main topic....I've always seen the naming as being Imperium centric.
It's doubtful the Dark Eldar call themselves such, ditto the Traitor Legions probably don't even consider themselves to be Traitors.
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