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Hey Dakka

I have a question:

Does anyone know where I can find more information on how, exactly, psykers are sacrificed?

This is all research for a piece of fiction I am writing, and I need to know how (i.e. by what means) they are sacrificed, who performs the deed, where exactly it is performed etc. I know the Golden Throne is supposed to require the sacrfice of 1000 psykers daily for it to function (i.e. to keep the Emperor alive and the Astronomicon functioning), but how is it done? Are they all chucked into chamber where they are gassed/electrocuted/squished by a big crusher? Are they lined up, forced to kneel, and a thousand hooded servants of the Mechanicum simultanously slit their throats? Or something else?

I'm sure there's more information out there. I just need to find it.

Cheers!

I've always thought they were stuck into tubes and their life-force drained out - like batteries. I'll have a think and see if I can remember where I got that idea from...

beast_gts wrote:
I've always thought they were stuck into tubes and their life-force drained out - like batteries. I'll have a think and see if I can remember where I got that idea from...

Awesome! I like the sound of that

Cheers mate.

If you have read Mechanicum it has a scene with the Akashic Reader, it has a different function to the Golden Throne but seems to work on the same principle.

beast_gts wrote:
I've always thought they were stuck into tubes and their life-force drained out - like batteries. I'll have a think and see if I can remember where I got that idea from...

Ahhh, to die with dignity for The Imperium!

If I was a psyker in 40k, I'd be piling the pounds on. I ATE ALL THE PIES.

 Pilau Rice wrote:
If you have read Mechanicum it has a scene with the Akashic Reader, it has a different function to the Golden Throne but seems to work on the same principle.

Cheers Pilau. I haven't read Mechanicum in a while, but I do recall the Akashic Reader. I'll dig it out and have a re-read of that bit.


@ Monders - I'm sure the Adepts already thought of that, and have tubes in XXXL to accomodate all but the most Jabba-like psykers who were under the deluded impression they could eat their way out of serving the Imperium

Then I'd be rendered down to so much grease in order to lube the inner machinery...

What a wonderful thought...

Those Adepts don't miss a thing!

 chilledmonkeybrains wrote:

 Pilau Rice wrote:
If you have read Mechanicum it has a scene with the Akashic Reader, it has a different function to the Golden Throne but seems to work on the same principle.

Cheers Pilau. I haven't read Mechanicum in a while, but I do recall the Akashic Reader. I'll dig it out and have a re-read of that bit.


@ Monders - I'm sure the Adepts already thought of that, and have tubes in XXXL to accomodate all but the most Jabba-like psykers who were under the deluded impression they could eat their way out of serving the Imperium

In Mechanicum, the Psykers are all put into the walls of the place and then drained empty in some way.

@ Noobbomb - Thanks. It's the "drained empty in some way" bit I am interested in. How are they drained? What technology is used? Do they shrivel up when drained? Etc

Basically, I would like to find somewhere that describes the entire process in detail. Failing that, I want to get as many 'canonical' sources as possible and then describe the entire process myself.

I recall the psykers in Mechanicum being attached to some sort of devices in the wall (and they were still conscious, by the way!). I think that they were screaming when they were drained, and they all ended up fried, as burnt out carcasses.

 Pilau Rice wrote:
If you have read Mechanicum it has a scene with the Akashic Reader, it has a different function to the Golden Throne but seems to work on the same principle.

I got the distinct impression that whilst the silver throne was an Akashic Reader (that overloaded when the Emperors light bathed its chamber with awesome power and fried the occupant) the Golden Throne is an Akashic Writer that allows the occupant to create things via warp energy (for example wards that were created in the human part of the webway).

As for sucking the psychic energy from the sacrifices... it'd definitely have to be some form of pipework to the skull. Although if you knew how to remove a beings psychic power you would have quite a dangerous weapon against psykers everywhere.

Cheers for all the comments and opinions thus far, guys - appreciate the help!

I could really do with some more references or links to reliable sources... Although psychic energy being sucked through a psyker's skull does sound like the most likely process!

Links to further reading, please

 Pilau Rice wrote:
If you have read Mechanicum it has a scene with the Akashic Reader, it has a different function to the Golden Throne but seems to work on the same principle.

Stole the words out of my mouth. That is exactly how I picture the throne functioning, just on a larger more industrial scale.

What about the scene from TS were Magnus is trying to break through the palaces barriers and used a choir to do it so he could speak directly to the Big E, or the time he wanted to speak to Horus when he was on Davin. I would imagine the throne would draw out the thousand or so pyhic force in much the same way, except it's an automatic function, and on a timer.

 KorPhaeron77 wrote:

 Pilau Rice wrote:
If you have read Mechanicum it has a scene with the Akashic Reader, it has a different function to the Golden Throne but seems to work on the same principle.

Stole the words out of my mouth. That is exactly how I picture the throne functioning, just on a larger more industrial scale.

On a larger more industrial scale... Hmm, that's got me thinking more about the appearance of the Golden Throne, which is kinda important seeing as I want to write about it! So, in addition to written sources, does anyone have any links to imagery depicting the Golden Throne?

I'm sure Blanche must have scribbled something somewhere...

 chilledmonkeybrains wrote:

 KorPhaeron77 wrote:

 Pilau Rice wrote:
If you have read Mechanicum it has a scene with the Akashic Reader, it has a different function to the Golden Throne but seems to work on the same principle.

Stole the words out of my mouth. That is exactly how I picture the throne functioning, just on a larger more industrial scale.

On a larger more industrial scale... Hmm, that's got me thinking more about the appearance of the Golden Throne, which is kinda important seeing as I want to write about it! So, in addition to written sources, does anyone have any links to imagery depicting the Golden Throne?

I'm sure Blanche must have scribbled something somewhere...

Lexicanum - Golden Throne

There you go fella.

I believe they are ensconced in the walls of a hollowed out mountain what our time is known as the Himalayas. Tens of thousands. Imagine lining the entire interior surface of a mountain with bodies. A thousand die every day but it takes weeks or months to drain one. They slowly fade away and crumble into powder and scorched bones, like the Siggilite. The peak of the mountain is an oculos projecting the beam into deep space. Mechanics guys shuffle along gantries doing maintenance and removing husks. Inquisition people install the new victims.

Yeah I dont think the emperor actually consumes them but uses the psykers as a power source while he acts as the guide for the astronomicon

 Silverthorne wrote:
I believe they are ensconced in the walls of a hollowed out mountain what our time is known as the Himalayas. Tens of thousands. Imagine lining the entire interior surface of a mountain with bodies. A thousand die every day but it takes weeks or months to drain one. They slowly fade away and crumble into powder and scorched bones, like the Siggilite. The peak of the mountain is an oculos projecting the beam into deep space. Mechanics guys shuffle along gantries doing maintenance and removing husks. Inquisition people install the new victims.

That's the Astronomican... that is not where the Imperial Palace, and the Golden Throne, is located.

A plug into the backs of skulls? A great big room where they are all used as batteries? Machines moving along the rows of 'batteries' doing matinance? They're just waiting for 'the one' to arrive to fight back against the machines...

Here's a pretty good image of the golden throne.



I think the golden throne is one of those pieces that's deliberately left vague so different people can imagine what they want.

Also a little perspective, thats just the top of the throne.

The entire throne is basically a giant pyramid with the Emperor at the apex and some very steep steps leading down.

 Grey Templar wrote:
Also a little perspective, thats just the top of the throne.

The entire throne is basically a giant pyramid with the Emperor at the apex and some very steep steps leading down.

It's just because of that I prefer the Blanche version. Gives you a good sense of scale.

Also, according to that picture, the Emperor appears to have had two left arms, unless the arm laying on the right-side rest there is from some other poor bastard.

... and also six fingers on one hand, but eh, it's art.

Nah, you can see the thumb is on the correct side of the right arm.

I'm only seeing 5 fingers on the left hand. Can't see on the right.

I'll grant you the thumb...

but if you look at the halo in his hand, there are 2 fingers visible, one of which is not connected to the knuckle depicted to the left (viewer's POV), and then two more knuckles continuing on to the left there.

A psyker has the honour of being taken to feed the Emperor...

Don't they get like all scooped up by a giant shovel and thrown in the largest furnace in the galaxy? Just kidding.

In the 3rd edition rule book there was a picture that showed a dozen psychers entombed in the walls having their power drained. It was very Ironmaiden-ish.