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Space Marines, Chaos Space Marines and Primarchs
-Space marine chapters are generally very similar. They all have fierce dedication to their primarchs and to be honest they work very well with each other most of the time.
-Space marines are ridiculously dedicated to the emperor and therefor should all be fearless on the tabletop all the time, and the fact that they can even fall back is insulting.

Tyranids
Don't care

The Emperor
-very powerful but not all powerful, keeps humanity alive and safe from the warp for the most part, supremely badass

The Tau Empire and the Farsight Enclaves
Soviet space japs

Necrons and C'tan
massive amounts of don't care

The Imperium
lots of red tape, lots of zealots, often times overly brutal but is still necessary for the survival of humanity.

Orks
-hilarious
-not really a huge threat because they can simply be eradicated with fire

Eldar
-wimpy space elves

Dark eldar
-the most slowed thing GW ever came up with aside from squats

I think you may have confused what do you think is canon with what's your personal opinion of all the races of the setting.

Here's how I view the canon of 40k.

The codices and whatever material is published there in the rulebook are canon. Anything that doesn't conflict with current fluff I consider to be canon. This would include all of the novels that don't conflict with established canon. I know this brings up an issue, since every novel has some kind of contradiction, but its not really avoidable. Things will always contradict, but what seems to be the most consistent with current codices I consider to be canon fluff.

I do agree that some things shouldn't exist because they break the rules of 40k (Like Drago), but 40k changes with the years. It can't stay the same or it gets boring.

The Tau are actually horus's pet fish.

Saw it loved it. That's my cannon now.

DODcrazy wrote:Space Marines, Chaos Space Marines and Primarchs
Dark eldar
-the most slowed thing GW ever came up with aside from squats

This seems like a (silly) opinon over your personal interpratation of the canon, possibly due to a (n irrational?) hate of a race, possibly cos you can't figure out how to beat em?

DE came about because fans wanted it, and these days Dark Eldar are basically True Eldar, far closer to the ancient decadent devients that the race used to be. Plus are fun as hell

Ovion wrote:

DODcrazy wrote:Space Marines, Chaos Space Marines and Primarchs
Dark eldar
-the most slowed thing GW ever came up with aside from squats

This seems like a (silly) opinon over your personal interpratation of the canon, possibly due to a (n irrational?) hate of a race, possibly cos you can't figure out how to beat em?

DE came about because fans wanted it, and these days Dark Eldar are basically True Eldar, far closer to the ancient decadent devients that the race used to be. Plus are fun as hell

Lol no, I just think their fluff is slowed. I'm a fan of hardcore, disciplined, and valiant space marines. Not silly little bdsm emo elves.

I fell over this well surfing the internet.

http://warhammer40kfanon.wikia.com/wiki/Warhammer_40,000_Wiki

I don't have an issue with you willingly ignoring part of the background so you can enjoy it better. As a fan of the Highlander franchise, I know exactly what you are talking about, and fully support it. It is far more preferable than complaining endlessly on the internet. Kudos on being an adult rather than a petulant child!

My only problem is with the term "personal canon." It's like saying "household city ordinance" or "optional imperative." It can't exist.

If you choose to ignore certain aspects of the background in order to enjoy it better, than by all means go for it! There are plenty of things in the source material that are contradictory, or just plain dumb.

My personal cannon is circa 2nd edition background when I learned the game. Any new revisions are met with my fingers in my ears going - NYA NYA NYA, I can't hear you!

+1 to this ^.

My personal view of canon is that it stopped in 2nd ed.

The later versions of the game just changed the rules and models.

Space Marines:
-I like to think that marines are a bit toned down in power from the fiction.
-Ultramarines are a respected and well thought of chapter but "everyone wants to be an ultramarine" is not true.
-Space Wolves are a little less awesome and a little more Prospero Burns.
-Alpha Legion have split into two factions, one working for the Imperium as they see it, the other actually serving the Chaos Gods.
-Grey Knights are only ever deployed in a full scale demonic incursion. Elsewise Deathwatch may be used.
-Ignore the latest Blood Angels codex.
Chaos:
-Daemonic incursions are rarer than they are presented in the Daemon codex but they do happen none-the-less.
-There is more variation in form and function to Daemon Engines than just Soul Grinders.
-The positive aspects of the Chaos gods are present, forming a more balanced set of beings which are still overall pretty bad.
Imperium:
- The Emperor is physically dead, but his soul is prevented from entering the warp by the golden throne. The Astronomican is akin to his howl of anguish. His presence on the throne holds back the Daemons from the gap into the webway.
-Sisters of Battle do not get their power from "faith". In fact, ignore all the stuff about faith in the book. They're just a fanatical and well trained and equiped force. There are no "saints" with superpowers, merely historical figures whoose accomplishments have been exaggerated.

Orks:
-The anzion theory is incorrect. Ork tech works because it works, not because of space magic.
-Orks will often enslave human worlds but leave much of the infastructure intact, with the populace still producing goods as they would have for the Imperium. In some cases, they merely collect a tithe.

Tyranids:
-No swarmlords or other "character beasts" however some individual (non-repeatable) nids do gain a slight difference to the norm due to experience, such as Old One Eye. Unique nid types also occur.
-The nid threat is less than it is made out to be in the nid codex, however it is still one of the biggest threats to all non-nid life that exists.

Necrons:
-Necrons are still in the early phases of waking, not much is known about them. Their numbers are undefined and their motives murky. (I think necrons worked best as a mystery) They seem to be linked to the ancient beings known as the C'taan, but how is not clear.

Dark Eldar:
-Honestly, I don't care too much.

Tau:
-Tau are actually pretty good as a society. This is mostly because they have yet to encounter the true horror of the universe.
-The ethereals however are sinister control freaks. They believe that the Greater Good is the best way to meet their objectives but will change tack if needs be.
-Farsight has seen through the facade of the greater good and gone rogue.

I have allot of personal fluff for my army background but heres the over arching stuff:

THE MOST IMPORTANT: The fluff, models and rules do not cross over. The rules and the models are designed to make a reasonably balanced table top game, not to be accurate to the fluff (this includes all the stuff about how uber marines are and their size ect)

- The Emprah is dying, soon the golden throne will fail. What happens after this is unclear but there will possibly be huge tumult in the inquisition ovr differing views. I would like to think that he will be "reborn" but it is just as likely chaos will consume the galaxy without his protection.

- The Imperium is in its final years as a unified empire, soon the "time of ending" will begin (likely with the emperors death) and all the primarchs will return.

- The Tau will likely become even stronger as a race and farsight will play his part.

- Some Old Ones still live hidden in the galaxy...

- The Old Ones made and protected the Tau (with the warp storm and ethereals).

- Malal Exists.

- Squats are part of the Tau empire.

- The Terminus Decree is an order to kill the emperor.

- Abbadon actually won at Cadia in the 13th black crusade (the sale of IG models means this cant be allowed to have "officially" happened).

- The 'nids and 'crons are very numerous in number ('crons in the Trillions, nids beyond counting).

- The 'nids were created by another advanced race in another galaxy to be a weapon and cold be lured by a strong physic signal (the astrinomican, Starcraft anybody?) but got out of control and destroyed their former creator.

- The 'nids have eaten many galaxies before this one.

- Orks use captured worlds to produce ammunition and food for them but care little for them other than that, they just need something to fight.

- Humans were also created by the old ones.

- In the very end it will only be 'nids and chaos (though necrons and orks will be around a looooooong time) fighting it out over a completely warp ridden galaxy.