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So, although the vast majority of the story takes place in the Milky Way, what scraps of fluff do we have about the 40k Universe outside our home Galaxy?

All I know is;
The Old One survivors (if they existed) are theorised to have fled the Galaxy
The Tyranids are almost certainly Intergalactic
Szarekh, The Necron Slient King abandoned the Galaxy, but returned to help his people combat the Tyranid threat
The C'tan, The Outsider, is said to trapped in a Dyson Sphere below the Galactic plane, or wandering somewhere in the Intergalactic void
The Space Marine Chapter, The Carcharodons, have their home fleet based in the void above the Galactic plane

Any more fluff? Do any of the characters talk about other Galaxies in the fluff, or is it largely ignored? Do any factions have the tech to travel between Galaxies? Has anyone tried? Are the Chaos gods universal, or does each Galaxy have their own? Or is Chaos just a local phenomena?

You hit most of the big ones. Only one I can really think of outside of those is that probes sent beyond the galactic boundaries have transmitted signals back to us that are distinctly Orkish; meaning the Orks have spread beyond our galaxy. As for the Chaos Gods, I'm pretty sure the implication is that the Warp is an alternate dimension, and therefore not bound to any particular part of realspace. So it doesn't really make sense for each galaxy to have its own Warp. That, and I'm pretty sure there's fluff in Warhammer Fantasy that explicitly references the fall of the Eldar; not to mention the crossover of Daemons like Skarbrand and Fateweaver existing in both.

The Old World of Warhammer Fantasy *might* be a world trapped in a Warp Storm (there are several) somewhere in the Milky Way, possibly kept as a "game preserve" by the Old Ones (or someone else).

The concept of other galaxies is really only an object of interest to certain factions of the Adeptus Mechanicus. The rest of the galaxy is either not really cognizant of it (most humans, the Tau, most of the Necrons, who are essentially mindless) or doesn't care much about it because it's such an esoteric concept and impossible to reach (everyone else).

Only one I can really think of outside of those is that probes sent beyond the galactic boundaries have transmitted signals back to us that are distinctly Orkish; meaning the Orks have spread beyond our galaxy.

Never heard about this but interesting! Where did you read that?

Only one I can really think of outside of those is that probes sent beyond the galactic boundaries have transmitted signals back to us that are distinctly Orkish; meaning the Orks have spread beyond our galaxy.

This was the exact quote I believe

Millennia ago, a probe was sent out from Terra. Its mission was to reach the utmost limits of the universe. The Techpriests who built it hoped that one day it would arrive back to its place of origin having circumnavigated the universe, or in other words, skirted the edge of reality. This probe is still sending back signals after fourteen thousand years adrift. The signals are faint and the probe is not yet on its way back, if it ever will come back. To the utter despair of the Imperial Techpriests who constantly monitor the incoming signals, many are identified as Orkish. The depressing conclusion for mankind can only be this: that wherever they go, the Orks will always be with them.

But to me it dosent openly state the probe has left our galaxy, only that that was its mission. Im not sure its a fact Orks are extra galactic either in nature or by travel. Yet.

if I recall correctly, there was a mention in one of the early Horus Heresy books (first trilogy), where a tech priest is discussing the acquiring of STC data, that travel to other galaxies was possible. Sort of implying that at the very least the mechanicum believed that golden age humanity could achieve such things.

My memory isn't that great tho.

Orks can't travel outside the Galaxy LOL. Their ships are junks put together.

If only you knew...

DorianGray wrote:
Orks can't travel outside the Galaxy LOL. Their ships are junks put together.

And yet the have the tellyporta, which is made of junk. The Orks are probably outside the galaxy. judging by the rate they spread through the current galaxy

It's interesting to think that Golden Age Humans possibly spread to other Galaxies, and that Orks did too, like the plague they are.

It makes the old joke about Tyranids coming to our Galaxy because they're fleeing something worse quite amusing. What if they're fleeing other Humans? What if Golden Age Humans colonised the nearest Galaxy, and drove the Tyranids out?

The argument could be, then why haven't those humans returned? Well, they may not know of the current situation (intergalactic travel does not equal intergalactic communication) or may have our Galaxy essentally quarantined and abandoned due to its Chaotic taint. Or they may have just turned into apathetic Eldar types, who couldn't care less about anything other than themselves.

Hierophant wrote:
It's interesting to think that Golden Age Humans possibly spread to other Galaxies, and that Orks did too, like the plague they are.

It makes the old joke about Tyranids coming to our Galaxy because they're fleeing something worse quite amusing. What if they're fleeing other Humans? What if Golden Age Humans colonised the nearest Galaxy, and drove the Tyranids out?

The argument could be, then why haven't those humans returned? Well, they may not know of the current situation (intergalactic travel does not equal intergalactic communication) or may have our Galaxy essentally quarantined and abandoned due to its Chaotic taint. Or they may have just turned into apathetic Eldar types, who couldn't care less about anything other than themselves.

That might be the best fan theory I've ever read