Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

If the setting was flipped around, the various humanoid Xenos factions could all be different human factions.

There was some disaster with the old Human Federation, and they were splintered into several sub-factions:

Instead of Eldar, you have different human city-states who are the last bastions of a great human civilsation, only meddling when they need to survive, while other humans have reverted to piracy. The different city-states have different policies so never quite see eye-to-eye with each other. They have the highest tech level or the remaining human factions.

The humans who were left in a post apocalyptic state band together; instead of Orks, you have a mad max faction of freebooters. They basically scrape together what's around to live, and move planet to planet to gather resources.

Tau were the colonists who escaped some disaster where the other humans went into their space cities, or were left post apocalyptic. They are the most conventional and low tech in the setting.

Necrons were the results of attempted transhumanism and were enemies of the now 'living' humans. All that's left of them is their eternal hate machine.

Meanwhile, the Imperium becomes this vast combine alien invader and the huge monlith, with various Xenos working in their armies. You have genetically engineered alien-overmen, much stronger and tougher than a man, supporting thousands upon thousands of rat-warriors who can send waves weak troops into the meat grinder. Their tech side is run by something like the Borg, who assimilate people into their tech collective, while never innovating themselves.

You could but human only is sort of boring even if they are different flavours of human.
I like more Xenos in any scifi setting.
Unless they're stupid Xenos like big balls of floating gas or puddles of goo.

 Ratius wrote:
You could but human only is sort of boring even if they are different flavours of human.
I like more Xenos in any scifi setting.
Unless they're stupid Xenos like big balls of floating gas or puddles of goo.

If you just flip the humanoid xenos species with the imperial factions, you actually end up with more Xenos in the setting than before.

 Daba wrote:

 Ratius wrote:
You could but human only is sort of boring even if they are different flavours of human.
I like more Xenos in any scifi setting.
Unless they're stupid Xenos like big balls of floating gas or puddles of goo.

If you just flip the humanoid xenos species with the imperial factions, you actually end up with more Xenos in the setting than before.

well y7eah so whats your point?

BrianDavion wrote:

well y7eah so whats your point?

It's to actually show that 40k turns normal sci-fi conventions on its head. Also, how humans in 40k aren't actually that easy to identify with being either post-human guys with inhuman concerns or just skaven to feed into the meat grinder.

My 'reverse 40k' swapping aliens and humans makes it seem like a much more generic setting, even with 3 very different feels of human protagonist, they all basically fit a common protagonist archetype, while the Imperium as aliens seems like a combine or dominion, and the difference between the forces could easily be different alien races.

Interesting idea - what sort of human culture do you suggest for DE, Tyranids and Daemons?

In this flip version I see necrons more akin to BSG Cylons (and a host of other Sci-Fi - Butlerian jihad, Terminator, Matrix et al) - the result of humans creating AI that rebelled rather than actual humans themselves.

DE could easily stay similar to how they are, being the decadent, eviller side to the high tech guys.

Daemons are not Xenos so would stay as is. They would still be dark reflection of all that's bad in the galaxy.

Tyranids actually are more alien but I would consider returning them to the old aesthetic and make them some kind of project of some precursor alien a la alien.

 Daba wrote:

My 'reverse 40k' swapping aliens and humans makes it seem like a much more generic setting, even with 3 very different feels of human protagonist, they all basically fit a common protagonist archetype, while the Imperium as aliens seems like a combine or dominion, and the difference between the forces could easily be different alien races.

I don't know about that. The other races are generally either wiser and more advanced or stronger and more numerous, with humanity managing against both types with a mixture of middling status in all categories and sheer determination. That's pretty generic fantasy stuff.