Battle for the Abyss (The Horus Heresy)

Product Information

Their grand plan with the Furious Abyss is to attack a planet but they keep taking pit stops and engaging in unnecessary skirmishes throughout the story. The Furious Abyss arrives in the Macragge system and positions itself to destroy Formaska, Macragge's second moon, the debris from which will shield it as it approaches the planet to deliver a lethal virus bomb.

Battle for the Abyss - Ben Counter - Google Books Battle for the Abyss - Ben Counter - Google Books

Ambushed at the docks, the loyalist assault team divides into two groups, Brynngar and his Blood Claws fighting off the ambushers while Antiges, Skraal and the World Eaters fight their way towards the ship. A group of heroes who know there is no glory for them come together to strike a blow against the traitors.

Just to be clear, I don’t mean to imply that Battle for the Abyss is without its problems – far from it.

BAT TLE FOR THE ABY SS - Black Library

He is kind of the foil to Cestus in that he’s so plainly his opposite, but the two barely meet and neither are interesting characters in the first place. The sort of standout here is the World Eater, Skraal, who spends most of his time trapped on the Word Bearer’s ship, the Furious Abyss, doing what World Eaters do best, killing folk. Leading the cast of Loyalist protagonists is Cestus, Fleet Commander and Captain of the 7th Company of the Ultramarines. The opulence, the conceit, the blind perception, the intoxication of energy, in addition to the partnerships with devils– it is all revealed proper right here. The World Easters are frequently focused upon as full blown berserkers who are more bloodthirsty than Klingons on a ‘roid rage.The model of an Ultramarine in appearance, Cestus was decked out in ornate gold-edged Power armour and equipped with a Bolter, Power sword and Gladius. That way the part that Wsoric plays in the climactic finale could have had rather more impact and excitement. This is also where the conflict between Brynngar and Mhotep hits its peak and the motivations behind it are clear.

Battle for the Abyss | Warhammer 40k Wiki | Fandom

I do not thoughts intensive hand-to-hand battle scenes, nevertheless in some instances it could get recurring.Personally I think the Heresy is better for having a few books exploring stories that take place away from the main narrative – not just this one, but books like Nemesis and The Damnation of Pythos too.

Skraal - Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum Skraal - Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum

In his books there are never any noble or actually good characters, many of them are only slightly better than the villains. Unless they can intercept the fleet, and destroy the mighty battleship that has been sent to reinforce it, the Ultramarines may suffer a blow from which they will never recover. But they don’t need to be an exact match, and I still enjoyed Counter’s particular take on them – for example the Ultramarines’ distaste at their World Eater cousins’ methods, Mhotep’s calm deflection of the Space Wolves’ antipathy, and so on. Cestus faced one final disappointment generated by his chosen course of action when he was challenged for command of the venture by the leader of the Space Wolf contingent of his force, Brynngar Sturmdreng.Flights of fighters launched from the Boundless are destroyed when psykers aboard the Abyss cause their crews to turn on each other. While not amazing, for a book as long-winded and uninteresting as Battle for the Abyss, this section is a noticeable high point. Unlike the Horus trilogy, Fulgrim, or any other book in the series we see nothing of the actual legion itself or even any sign of their primarch.