Alpharius wrote:
Is that a good 'oh boy' or a bad 'oh boy'?

 Alpharius wrote:
Is that a good 'oh boy' or a bad 'oh boy'?

 BrookM wrote:
Out of curiosity, do any of you people have recently released books with smudges of black ink on your pages?

 warboss wrote:

 BrookM wrote:
Out of curiosity, do any of you people have recently released books with smudges of black ink on your pages?

Only from tears when I think about the greedy release schedule BL has switched to...

Thursday 10th of April, 2014

NEW TAU SERIES COMING SOON - AN INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR

Hey readers,

Today’s new @BL brings you news from the Tau Empire: a new series of novels based on one of the empire’s most notorious commanders.

Author Phil Kelly has just begun work on a new series for Black Library, based on the origins of the renegade Tau Commander Farsight.

Farsight is one of the most iconic figures in Tau History. Seen as a hero by many, but also as a traitor by the etherial heirachy of the Tau Empire, Farsight is a divisive individual for the Tau Empire. Though some love and some hate him, none can deny he is a superfluous commander, with a long history of brilliant victories against the enemies of the Tau Empire.

Phil Kelly is no stranger to the Tau Empire. Phil was one of four authors who contributed to the recent Damocles book, and his story focused heavily on another progeny of the fabled Puretide – Commander Shadowsun.

Phil was also responsible for much of the background in the recent Farsight Enclaves supplement for Codex: Tau Empire.

We caught up with Phil to find out what we should expect from this new series.


Eddie: What made you want to write a Farsight series for Black Library?

Phil - Ever since I helped out on the first Tau codex back in 2000 (which seemed a very futuristic year at the time), I have loved the notion that this bright new empire had unseen depths. The story of Farsight in particular seemed like a great way to not only show the Tau empire at its finest, but also the strange truths that led to the commander’s rebellion. His hero-turned-villain journey has more than one perspective to it. He is a genuine hero, but despite his genius for war he has his own flaws and obsessions, which lead to a story full of conflict. Plus, battlesuits are cool.

You also wrote much of the background for the Farsight supplement for Codex: Tau Empire. How will you approach the same story differently now that it’s a full fiction series?

Codex supplements are by their very nature an overview. When I was writing that supplement I thought ‘there’s so much more to tell here’ and I wanted a chance to really delve into those stories. For one thing, I’m really enjoying developing the characters from Farsight’s story into fully fledged personalities. The Farsight supplement covers a lot of wars, personalities and conflicts – though the events of the series will use them as a basis, they will also most definitely cover new ground.


Were there any aspects of Farsight’s story you were particularly looking forward to covering in more detail?

I’m looking forward to writing about the races of the 41st Millennium from a different perspective – though they might seem as familiar as old friends to us, they can be seen anew through the Tau’s eyes. The Orks make for great bad guys, a real contrast to the Tau, though in many ways the greenskins are the least of the tau empire’s emergent troubles. The idea of heroism, intelligence and technology being matched against decrepit empires and ancient evils is very exciting for me.

Commander Farsight is accompanied by seven loyal bodyguards. Will we see much of them in the books?

Absolutely. Though they do not all crop up at once – and some meet truly terrible fates – there are a few that fight by Farsight’s side right from the start, and develop alongside him. I like the idea that they grow and evolve from simple beginnings to a group of the finest warriors in the empire (with their own specialities and abilities to boot).

My favourite warrior of the Eight is Commander Brightsword (because he has a sword made of fusion that can cut tanks in half!), who’s yours?

I’m really enjoying writing Ob’lotai, a Tau Broadside specialist who is as solid as a rock and – though at first he does not care much for drones – ends up becoming an artificial intelligence of ever-escalating power. A true ghost in the machine!

Thanks Phil.

You can look forward to Phil’s Farsight series appearing soon.

In the meantime, why not catch up on Phil’s other Tau Fiction in Damocles?


Thanks for reading,

- Eddie, Kor,La

Sigismund, First Captain of the Imperial Fists features in this Horus Heresy audio drama

Sigismund, First Captain of the Imperial Fists, is swordsman whose skill with a blade is renowned throughout the Imperium. Once a peerless duellist and champion of Rogal Dorn, he has of late earned his primarch’s ire and seeks to atone. With treacherous Word Bearers abandoned by their brethren upon a comet-shrine within the Solar System itself, Sigismund calls his warriors to arms – such heretics cannot be allowed to remain upon the doorstep of holy Terra, while the Heresy rages across the galaxy...

 BrookM wrote:
I'd rather not think about that, or the thought that a shedload will have to be edited now that the Imperial Guard has been rebranded.

YARRICK IMPERIAL CREED – AN INTERVIEW WITH THE AUTHOR

Hey Readers,
In today’s New@BL we catch up with one of the rising stars of Black Library, author David Annandale, to find out about his new novel Imperial Creed.

David is has been writing for Black Library for a while now, and his works include a Space Marine Battles novel on the deadly Black Dragons as well as numerous short stories including Evil Eye, The Dark Hollows of Memory and The Judges, in their Hunger. Last February saw the release of Yarrick: Chains of Golgotha, a story that in which the noble Commissar Yarrick is held captive by his arch-nemesis in an Ork gulag. David’s new book also focuses on Yarrick, but rather than portraying the hero of Hades Hive, this novel joins a young commissar at the beginning of what will prove to be a very eventful career.

Eddie – Hi David. Tell us about your new novel Yarrick: Imperial Creed.

David - Imperial Creed is the story of Yarrick’s first mission as a commissar. He is, of course, far from being a novice on the battlefield, but his new rank comes with a steep learning curve. The good news is that he has an excellent mentor in the person of Lord Commissar Simeon Rasp. The bad news, as Rasp points out, is that their mission with their deployment is on the planet Mistral, whose politics are such that the moment when you think you know what’s going on is the moment you are most fatally wrong. So this is the new commissar’s baptism of fire. He’s a long way from being the legend he will become, but the strength of character that will make him one is there, and he’s going to need it. The soldiers fighting alongside him will need his strength too, because what is at work on Mistral is even darker than Rasp suspects.

This adventure is also where seeds are planted for other events that will shape Yarrick’s life and shake the galaxy. Allies and enemies whose destinies will intersect in important ways with Yarrick’s step onto the stage, including one whom readers might recognize from The Death of Antagonis. The forces unleashed in the story convulse Mistral, but their consequences will extend all the way to Armageddon.



How does the character of Yarrick in Imperial Creed differ from the way he appears in your other book, Chains of Golgotha?

The Yarrick in Chains of Golgotha is a living legend, which is both a burden and source of great power. That Yarrick can command vast armies. This Yarrick is still learning what he must do, and what he must become, in order to serve the Imperium and the Emperor. The Yarrick of Imperial Creed still has both his arms and both his eyes, so there are many scars, physical and otherwise, that he has yet to acquire.



What was it that made you want to write about Yarrick in particular?

The first time I read the Imperium’s timeline in a 40K rulebook, I was struck by the entry about Ghazghkull Thraka releasing the captured Yarrick, and wondered what the story behind that was, never imagining that I would one day get to write it. So he has long been a character who has fascinated me. I love the mixture of the bigger-than-life and the very human that he represents. He becomes a figure who commands the respect of the Adeptus Astartes, but he is not genhanced. He doesn’t have superhuman powers. There is only that extraordinary will to see him through the most extraordinary challenges.

Also, though we know a lot about his career beginning with the Second War of Armageddon, the same is not true of his deeds as commissar before that. There is so much to explore, and so many tales to tell. Imperial Creed is just the start of a huge saga, and I hope readers will enjoy the ride.



You have your first full Horus Heresy novel on the way later this year. Could you give us a little teaser of what we can expect from that?

The Damnation of Pythos is a tale about the Shattered Legions. It picks up right after the end of my audio short Veritas Ferrum. In fact, I wrote that while in the early stages of the novel, as I wondered how this group of Iron Hands, Salamanders and Raven Guard made it from Isstvan V to the Pandorax system. So this is where they are now, brutalised by the massacre and hungry for revenge. Pythos is a death world, its native life monstrous. But there is something else here too, which could be the means for the Iron Hands’ vengeance. Or it could spell their doom.

Are you working on anything for Black Library at the moment?

I’ll be gearing up shortly for the next Yarrick book, which will be a new adventure, though will also continue the arc begun in Imperial Creed. I’m also working on several Yarrick short stories. Additionally, I’ve been doing some work with the Grey Knights, which I shall just tease about here. And I’m just beginning a project about another named character. But his name is one I can’t reveal just yet…

Thanks David, sounds like we’re keeping you busy.

You can pre-order Yarrick: Imperial Creed today, as both an eBook and hardback edition. While you’re at it, why not catch up on some of David’s other books:

Looky Likey wrote:
Really looking forward to Gods of Mars, thought it wouldn't be out until the New Year so pleased its out before Year End.