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Does anyone recall this little tidbit from the WH40K timeline per 5th edition?

Takes place around M34: an event known as the Howling

Black Templar Space Marines end the Catelexis Heresy by executing the Cacodominus, an alien cyborg whose formidable psychic presence allowed it to control the population of thirteen hundred planetary systems. The Cacodominus' death scream echoes and amplifies through the Warp, burning out the minds of a billion astropaths and distorting the signal of the Astronomican. Millions upon millions of ships are lost in the resulting upheavel and entire sub-sectors slide into barbarism without the dictates of the Adeptus Terra to guide them.

Powerful alien pysker,- mind controls 1300 planetary systems - death burns out the minds of billions of astropaths and distorts the Astronomicon signal.

Given that we've seen the deaths of Primarchs, Farseers, Greater Demons, Avatars of a God, etc. etc. without that kind...reaction - it does make me wonder if Cacodominus wins the door prize for 2nd most powerful psyker right behind the Emperor.

Could be wrong of course - anyone else have an example of an alien psyker with a similar...footprint you might say?

Depends on how you define alien.

I mean Slaanesh has the biggest effect on realspace for example, and s/he's certainly alien to any normal human...

Melissia wrote:Depends on how you define alien.

I mean Slaanesh has the biggest effect on realspace for example, and s/he's certainly alien to any normal human...

Touche.

Let's remove Gods from the list shall we. ;-)

I don't know if you can really discuss this to any great extent, I mean it's essentially a throwaway line in the rulebook with no additional info given. Plus given the sheer scale of the 40k galaxy and how much of it is unexplored, for all we know there could be an entire civilization of Cacodominuses... Cacodomini? Whatever, you get my point, I'm sure next edition there will be a similar blurb about a similarly ridiculously powered alien that was found in what could be an awesome story but will never actually be told.

In terms of raw capability, it was probably the most powerful psyker encountered in terms of ability to exert its will. There are many types of psychic abilities mind you. I doubt the Emperor could directly control 1 star system nevermind 1,300.

Yet at the same time I doubt the Cacodominus could stand against Chaos in the Warp the way the Emperor does.

Once you approach Beta-level Psykers though they become obscenely powerful. An Alpha+ Psyker in Eisenhorn basically lays waste to a city easily.

Whilst I'm afraid I can't say I've seen/read of any other psykers having such raw demonstrable power I think its great that little snippets like this are in the lore. As mentioned, it gives the galaxy a real sense of scale, the fact that such a huge event got such scant attention and did relatively little in the long term to unbalance the overall imperium it really is quite staggering.

Reanimator wrote:Whilst I'm afraid I can't say I've seen/read of any other psykers having such raw demonstrable power I think its great that little snippets like this are in the lore. As mentioned, it gives the galaxy a real sense of scale, the fact that such a huge event got such scant attention and did relatively little in the long term to unbalance the overall imperium it really is quite staggering.

I have to agree - although at the time i'm sure the folks dealing with the situation must have thought of the Cacodominus affair equal to that of a Black Crusade (or heck, worse than. Failbbadon was never nearly as successful as our Alien Cyborg Psyker).

I also like the fact that this was an "out of left field" situation. Cacodominus (at least from what we've read) wasn't associated with any of the major factions as they stand now.


Edit - Althoug now i have to wonder about M34... Cacodominus shows up along the same time as Nova Terra Interregnum.

Must have been an exciting time.

I take this was written by Matt Ward

b1soul wrote:I take this was written by Matt Ward

Hmm. I do have to wonder about that. After all given the situation with Draigo...


Looks like we've hit the end of "alien psykers"

Oh for crying out loud. Regardless of who wrote it, it's still a fun part of fluff demonstrating how futile everything in this universe is.

Haters gonna hate.

One has to wonder how the Black Templars actualy managed to execute a being of such awesome power.

With Righteous Zeal!

KingDeath wrote:One has to wonder how the Black Templars actualy managed to execute a being of such awesome power.

Would make a very interesting novel no?

Frankly, such an event seems right up there with slaying a Primarch.