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I have been reading black library books for just over 5 years now and I came to a sudden realization last night. There has been very little use of sex in the 40k universe. I am namely looking at chaos forces and the corruption of people. 40k is a grim dark future where there is only war, and authors haven't been shy to construct deeply disturbing situations from slaughter, to torture, to desecration of bodies. Some examples can be from uriel ventris, where a guy had all of his bones removed in order to create maximum pain. Another from the fall into chaos of the emperors children legion. I believe a remembrancer went around killing people in order to use their bodily fluids for paint. However it stops there, at least in my experience.

I am curious to know if there is a reason why GW hasn't gone into gross sex acts. I am sure slaanesh would love to get involved in necrophilia, rape and other grim dark things that fit the 40k universe. Is it perhaps GW just doesn't want to touch these hot topics or is there something else going on?

This is Warhammer, not 50 shades of Grimdark. Leave the sex crap to fanfiction.

I don't really see why you'd go into sex acts in 40k. Seems like a pointless thing to add to the lore.

Seriously? :|

"When da boyz WAAAGH each otha very much dey release spoorz dat spread all over da place. Then da stOrk rides in real fast like in his red painted wagon throwin yoofs, grots, squigs, and snotlings out da back. Dats were da boyz come from ya git."

Er... Torturing and murdering people is not exactly what I'd call sex.

We might be more at home with nudity in Europe than the USA but descriptions of depraved sex acts aren't really kosher here either. GW wants to sell stuff, not be put on some soccer mom black list of things the kids are never getting.

The violence on the other hand is so over the top or matter-of-factly described that it doesn't seem to offend anyone who ever watched an action movie.

Indeed, violence is more acceptable than sex in entertainment. Being as how everything in 40k is ultimately about a wargame, sex has never been considered essential to flesh out.

rapaxvita wrote:
I have been reading black library books for just over 5 years now and I came to a sudden realization last night. There has been very little use of sex in the 40k universe. I am namely looking at chaos forces and the corruption of people. 40k is a grim dark future where there is only war, and authors haven't been shy to construct deeply disturbing situations from slaughter, to torture, to desecration of bodies. Some examples can be from uriel ventris, where a guy had all of his bones removed in order to create maximum pain. Another from the fall into chaos of the emperors children legion. I believe a remembrancer went around killing people in order to use their bodily fluids for paint. However it stops there, at least in my experience.

I am curious to know if there is a reason why GW hasn't gone into gross sex acts. I am sure slaanesh would love to get involved in necrophilia, rape and other grim dark things that fit the 40k universe. Is it perhaps GW just doesn't want to touch these hot topics or is there something else going on?

Would graphic depictions of sexual violence be useful plot devices where Chaos, Slaanesh and maybe DE are concerned?

Unlikely. It doesn't really benefit any of them much. When it does adding graphic amounts of details does little to improve it.

Nope.
We can do better than this.