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I was reading on the Warhammer 40k Wikia and while reading about hive cities I saw this while it was talking about underhives "entire sub-cultures manage to develop and subsist in this inhospitable realm.". Does anyone know anything about the culture of the underhives, have the played any part in the 40k universe, has anyone significant come from these cultures.

Thanks.

i think that some of the ig regiments have stemmed from them, the only one that comes to mind are the sewer rats, dont quote me though


Automatically Appended Next Post:
i think that some of the ig regiments have stemmed from them, the only one that comes to mind are the sewer rats, dont quote me though

Not in many books I think.

But anything can live in a underhive, mutants, chaos, gangs, gone rougue pdf, guard or arbrates.

In a ragnar boom they go to a hive area, not fully underhive but it has a distinct culture, shaped by the former factory.

Other underhives, armageddon you may get ork problems, terra, archeo tech hunters etc

 BlockMaster wrote:
I was reading on the Warhammer 40k Wikia and while reading about hive cities I saw this while it was talking about underhives "entire sub-cultures manage to develop and subsist in this inhospitable realm.". Does anyone know anything about the culture of the underhives, have the played any part in the 40k universe, has anyone significant come from these cultures.

Thanks.

I am not wanting to presume you are familiar with the game Necromunda which is soley focused in an underhive? The underhive of Hive Primus in Necromunda is akin to the lawless west with rival gangs coming from up hive (each coming from a "house" which has its own culture and even genetic traits) - as well as the inhabitants of the underhive including mutants/twists (Scavvies), primative natives (Ratskins), crazed Redemptionists (the cult of redemption was born in Necromunda) and various other dangerous types.

Try the Kal Jericho books for some Necromunda Underhive action. And there was another collection of the same place as I recall.

The Rogue trader RPG and the Dark Herecy RPG tutch it from time to time. There are all kinds of insane things going one there.

Necromunda was an entire game set in an underhive. The best way to learn more about hiveworlds is to pick up Necromunda-related books, especially the rulebook. Necromunda is a typical example of Imperial hive worlds.

Necromunda was developed from a previous RPG hybrid game called Confrontation. Between them, they defined the prototypical underhive environment. Not only is Necromunda improbably, but endearingly Old West, it also exist in a rather contrived manor. "Underhive" refers to long abandoned structures and wastelands at the very bottom of an otherwise active hive. There are a series of Necromunda related BL novels. The Guants Ghost NOVEL Necropolus is set in a hive under attack by a Chaos Army.. The varieties of underhives would be limited only by the imagination.

See also: South Central Los Angeles, Detroit, Queens, the Bronx, Leeds, Liverpool...

Watching movies like Total Recall could also be an option

 Gobbla wrote:
The varieties of underhives would be limited only by the imagination.

This, there are so many and they are so varied that almost anything can come out of it.

One thing to pick up on is that the redemptionists originated on Necromunda and the fluff suggested that spread pretty far as an imperial cult.

A major factor in the Necromunda narrative is that the Imperium is NOT a tightly controlled monolith. Despite it's Emperor being an actual god, and obedience to him being the actual religion. Average citizens do not seem to be completely inculcated with obedience to the authorities. Not to the degree of contemporary North Korea, or Iran.

The Imperium seems to be rather lax about the activities of folks at the fringes, or edges of Imperial structure. Of course, this is a reflection of the natural scepticism and disregard for authority of GW authors and customers that live in Democracies. What fun would it be if everyone in the Imperium fell in line, like say, Imperial Japan? More intriguing and fun to have an entire subculture that is near lawless, and actively pursues activities that are anathema to Imperial control. Even more odd, Imperial control is not about personal power or cult of personality. It exists to protect against the very real external and internal threats from xenos aliens and very real daemonic possessions. Mixed in is the highly improbable facit that mankind simply no longer progresses, innovates, or adapts. All of this weighs heavily on the tone and tenor of any underhive. In fact, that other underhives (i.e., uncontrolled, fringe areas) exist is because of these factors.

There is no reason why a another underhive or frontier might not resemble a Redemptionist Caliphate, or Comunes besieged by Skavvy's.

Yeah, nominally there's no reason why a planet that shares a lot of characteristics with modern day earth could not be part of the Imperium; the position of Governor could theoretically be selected democratically, though the Administratum might get a bit huffy about having to update their records every five years instead of fifty, and the Ecclesiarchy encompasses hundreds of denominations; all you have to do is substitute your old God for The Emperor and you're good.
Everything else about today's Earth, including the technology level, is well inside the range found in the "canonical" Imperium.

 Mr_Rose wrote:
Yeah, nominally there's no reason why a planet that shares a lot of characteristics with modern day earth could not be part of the Imperium; the position of Governor could theoretically be selected democratically, though the Administratum might get a bit huffy about having to update their records every five years instead of fifty, and the Ecclesiarchy encompasses hundreds of denominations; all you have to do is substitute your old God for The Emperor and you're good.
Everything else about today's Earth, including the technology level, is well inside the range found in the "canonical" Imperium.

No, Governors are always appointed by the Adeptus Terra, they can not be elected, especially not by a planet's population. That would defeat the whole point of having planetary governors. They are supposed to be impartial rulers aloof from the population, in order to decrease the chances of them putting local interests and politics above those of the Imperium. Planetary governors are mostly just there as overseers of Imperial authority, the day to day ruling is mostly done by local leaders. The position is normally appointed for life and like most titles in the Imperium, it is often hereditary.
A planet that is much like modern-day Earth could very well exist, they might even elect their local leaders, but not their planetary governor.

 Iron_Captain wrote:

 Mr_Rose wrote:
Yeah, nominally there's no reason why a planet that shares a lot of characteristics with modern day earth could not be part of the Imperium; the position of Governor could theoretically be selected democratically, though the Administratum might get a bit huffy about having to update their records every five years instead of fifty, and the Ecclesiarchy encompasses hundreds of denominations; all you have to do is substitute your old God for The Emperor and you're good.
Everything else about today's Earth, including the technology level, is well inside the range found in the "canonical" Imperium.

No, Governors are always appointed by the Adeptus Terra, they can not be elected, especially not by a planet's population. That would defeat the whole point of having planetary governors. They are supposed to be impartial rulers aloof from the population, in order to decrease the chances of them putting local interests and politics above those of the Imperium. Planetary governors are mostly just there as overseers of Imperial authority, the day to day ruling is mostly done by local leaders. The position is normally appointed for life and like most titles in the Imperium, it is often hereditary.
A planet that is much like modern-day Earth could very well exist, they might even elect their local leaders, but not their planetary governor.

If that were true, then there would not be Feudal Worlds ruled by dynastic monarchies... but there are. The Adeptus Terra might grant the title by way of official recognition of the results of said electoral process. After all, the Administratum is going to form the backbone, if not the entirety, of the bureaucracy of the example democracy. They're the ones that tally the votes, vette the candidates, and oversee the election (possibly through the aid of the Adeptus Arbites, the Psykana, the Ecclesiarchy, the Inquisition and other Imperial bodies), all but ensuring that the winner of the election is someone Terra will approve of.

Given the relatively slow and unreliable method of interplanetary and interstellar communication (and travel) in the Imperium, it is exceedingly unlikely that an official actually on Terra stamps the approval documents, at least not while the person whose name is on them is still alive. Most likely, it's a local representative of the Administratum, the Ecclesiarchy, or the Inquisition, vested with the power and authority to proclaim someone the new Planetary Governor. Or Terra simply doesn't care, so long as the tithe is there when they arrive to collect it.

 Psienesis wrote:

 Iron_Captain wrote:

 Mr_Rose wrote:
Yeah, nominally there's no reason why a planet that shares a lot of characteristics with modern day earth could not be part of the Imperium; the position of Governor could theoretically be selected democratically, though the Administratum might get a bit huffy about having to update their records every five years instead of fifty, and the Ecclesiarchy encompasses hundreds of denominations; all you have to do is substitute your old God for The Emperor and you're good.
Everything else about today's Earth, including the technology level, is well inside the range found in the "canonical" Imperium.

No, Governors are always appointed by the Adeptus Terra, they can not be elected, especially not by a planet's population. That would defeat the whole point of having planetary governors. They are supposed to be impartial rulers aloof from the population, in order to decrease the chances of them putting local interests and politics above those of the Imperium. Planetary governors are mostly just there as overseers of Imperial authority, the day to day ruling is mostly done by local leaders. The position is normally appointed for life and like most titles in the Imperium, it is often hereditary.
A planet that is much like modern-day Earth could very well exist, they might even elect their local leaders, but not their planetary governor.

If that were true, then there would not be Feudal Worlds ruled by dynastic monarchies... but there are. The Adeptus Terra might grant the title by way of official recognition of the results of said electoral process. After all, the Administratum is going to form the backbone, if not the entirety, of the bureaucracy of the example democracy. They're the ones that tally the votes, vette the candidates, and oversee the election (possibly through the aid of the Adeptus Arbites, the Psykana, the Ecclesiarchy, the Inquisition and other Imperial bodies), all but ensuring that the winner of the election is someone Terra will approve of.

Given the relatively slow and unreliable method of interplanetary and interstellar communication (and travel) in the Imperium, it is exceedingly unlikely that an official actually on Terra stamps the approval documents, at least not while the person whose name is on them is still alive. Most likely, it's a local representative of the Administratum, the Ecclesiarchy, or the Inquisition, vested with the power and authority to proclaim someone the new Planetary Governor. Or Terra simply doesn't care, so long as the tithe is there when they arrive to collect it.

Examples of modern democracies in the warhammer 40 k world ?

Its either Terra approved noble born governor or local king/emperor/chieftain collecting tithes for the imperium.

The imperium is a monarchy and its a lot easier to install a a terra approved governor (local born or otherwise) then allow the populace to elect their own governor.

Examples of modern democracies in the warhammer 40 k world ?

There's a million worlds in the Imperium, we have descriptions on the cultures and practices of less than 1% of that total number. The picture that is painted for us, however, in the extant lore is that any system of government, and any form of social order, imaginable may be found in the Imperium.

The Imperium is not a monarchy, it is lead by no kings but, instead, an emperor who is also venerated as a god. In practice, however, it is ruled by a confederacy of independent organizations that occasionally work together (sort of) for the common good, providing support and aid to its member worlds in exchange for raw materials, military support, and other resources. It's a massive feudalist system, but it is most certainly not a monarchy.

 Psienesis wrote:

Examples of modern democracies in the warhammer 40 k world ?

There's a million worlds in the Imperium, we have descriptions on the cultures and practices of less than 1% of that total number. The picture that is painted for us, however, in the extant lore is that any system of government, and any form of social order, imaginable may be found in the Imperium.

The Imperium is not a monarchy, it is lead by no kings but, instead, an emperor who is also venerated as a god. In practice, however, it is ruled by a confederacy of independent organizations that occasionally work together (sort of) for the common good, providing support and aid to its member worlds in exchange for raw materials, military support, and other resources. It's a massive feudalist system, but it is most certainly not a monarchy.

In theory the empire is led by a monarch (The Emperor) with the highlords of terra ruling the empire in his name.

As you said the institutions of the imperium are feudal in nature.

Its very unlikely that the imperium would bother with tolerating a democracy when installing a governor and bribing/threatening him to do as he is told is easier and is a better fit for the feudal institutions of the imperium.

That's the whole point; the Imperium, such as it is, doesn't care. It is in fact not capable of caring. As long as the Tithe comes in on time and you venerate the Emperor, individual worlds can do as they please.
You've got to remember that "the Imperium" in terms of a coherent singular government stretches to, maybe, a thousand worlds on a good day. Those being the Administartum over-Sector throne worlds, where millions of Adepts and billions of minor clerks oversee the collection of taxes from everyonee else, and the Sector naval bases.
Every other world is functionally independent, save for paying taxes in exchange for secure trade, guaranteed exchange, and military support in case of invasion. Also, worshipping the Emperor in exchange for not being burned from the sky.

Further complicating matters is the fact that space travel in the Imperium is extremely slow and very dangerous. It would take a Warp-capable ship up to three years (sidereal) to cross from one side of the galaxy to the other, and that is assuming that it actually arrives at its destination and doesn't suffer some calamity while in the Warp. Astropathic communication is even less-reliable, as to get a message from one system to another involves telepathically transmitting dream-imagery from one Astropath to another until finally arriving at the Astropathic Choir attached to the message's intended destination.

Obviously, when playing the telephone game with a message system based on feelings, dreams, and symbolic imagery passed through the miasma of the Warp (where it can be twisted, changed, lost, edited or otherwise altered by the denizens of that place) there is plenty of room for misinterpretation of the received message... and this assumes the message gets there at all.

It is thusly not feasible for Terra to be involved in the investiture of the ruler of every world. Certainly, in the case of Death Worlds, Feral Worlds or similar classifications where the population may be unable to appoint a leader in some way, the Adeptus Terra might appoint someone (though it is more likely that this will be handled by the Sector Governor, as he/she is much closer to the planet in question)... but this is an exception, rather than the rule.

As mentioned above, the Imperium, as a body, does not and can not care how you run your planet or how you choose your leaders, so long as the Tithe is met and the Imperial Creed maintained.