So, apparently, Laurie Goulding, one of the Black Library writers, just went out and said that the Blood Ravens aren't loyalist Thousand Sons, and that it the whole concept is just "reading too much into things." This actually really bothered me, as the concept of loyalist Thousand Sons is what made me really like the Magpies in the first place, and I was strongly considering putting it into the backstory of a Blood Ravens army I'd like to make. I always liked the idea that some of Magnus's sons were still the intellectual heroes they were before the Horus Heresy, and that it tied in well with him being one of the more sympathetic/reluctant traitor Primarchs. Going by what he said on a forum, ABD seemed to prefer that the whole thing just be up to fan interpretation/speculation (as is typical in 40k), but then Goulding flat out said it wasn't true. To be honest, I might just ignore it and continue down the path I was going in my head for my army. Any thoughts on this? Does anyone else prefer them being Thousand Sons? Does anybody else even care about the Blood Ravens?
Having only loosely paid attention to the story lines in the DoW games how would this make any sense? None of them particularly stood out to me as super psyker SM's...
Because Goulding is an idiot that is why.The rumours had little to do with DoW (or its expansions) but with Bl books such as ATS etc etc .
Exactly. What bothered me most about it is that the whole thing reeks of "I think this plotline is dumb, so I'm reconing it away. If you liked it, you're dumb too." And it wasn't even the "10 year old game" that really fanned the theory's flames, it was the Horus Heresy books that came out in the past couple of years that all but stated that Arvida is to the Blood Ravens as Sigismund is to the Black Templars.
Yup. There are so, so many things that not only make the Blood Ravens being loyalist 1k Sons possible, but practically confirmed before that little post. I really just wish they would have left it up to individual interpretation, as an author injecting his preferences into 40k has a history of derp (ALL HAIL SPIRITUAL LIEGE CALGAR).
Also helped that the Blood Ravens had some pretty nice circumstantial evidence fluffing towards it. It's something I like about the various potential 'loyalist traitors' that kick around the galaxy. There's enough threads to lead you to the conclusion, but noone's forcing you to come to that conclusion to enjoy it. Also, as a general rule for Black Library, always take any story that comes from it with a grain of salt, as Imperial and xenos propaganda and the Inquisition's meddling are not limited to just the moments of fluff. Even the true story of the Hero of the Imperium was no doubt edited or romanticized to some degrees.
He's a regular poster on The First Expedition forum, and he's been saying the Blood Ravens weren't Loyalist Thousand Sons for years, and the trilogy by C.S. Goto was no longer Canon. Even before A Thousand Sons was published. When people on there read about the "Lost Sons" and "Ravens Of Blood" in A Thousand Sons, they used it to justify the link between BR and TS. Mr. Goulding shot that down pretty quick saying it was either a reference to something else or Mr. McNeill indulging in some trolling (can't remember which). Which as he was working for BL at this time lent what he was saying a good deal of credence. Kind of interesting as he was the one who fixed Kaldor Draigo carving a name onto one of Mortarion's internal organs with the audio "Mortarion's Heart", as well as the Necron and Blood Angel Brofist thing with "The Word Of The Silent King" short story. As for there being a link between between TS and BR, there is no direct link. And that is GW's line. But there are Loyalist Thousand Sons. At least one was picking up recruits during the Heresy to become Grey Knights.
