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so iv been watching alot of youtube videos on 40k lore, what I don't get, do the Word Bearers STILL believe the Emperor of Mankind is a literal god? like do they still somehow worship the emperor of mankind, like say they think the emperor of man is actually confused and doesn't realize that he himself either was/is a god, obviously brings the question in mind that he very well may have lost his god status after being injured

Absolutely not. Do they think he is a force capable of opposing the true gods? Of course. But as the being worthy of worship? Not at all.

Being a literal god and worthy of worship aren't related concepts, especially not for fanatics like the WB.

I can just see it, wordbearers are so mad the emperor wont let them worship him, that they are forever pissed off they join chaos and will do fight him until he lets them worship him!! forever!!


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also if thats not the case, then what "word" are the wordbearers bearing? im so confused

bat702 wrote:
I can just see it, wordbearers are so mad the emperor wont let them worship him, that they are forever pissed off they join chaos and will do fight him until he lets them worship him!! forever!!

A caged and broken god, at their command? I can see the appeal. And the sheer spite that goes into it.

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also if thats not the case, then what "word" are the wordbearers bearing? im so confused

I think its largely metaphorical.
And/or something something ancient divine language of creation/destruction. Usually something like that. Some fluff piece might have dived into this at some point. At least some villain exposition about their 'understanding' of the 'true nature' of the universe and the warp.

Wordbearers are sounding so metal to me right now I almost want a chaos army, LIKE GRR LET ME WORSHIP YOU EMPEROR!!

It's not so much that anymore: the big change in their loyalties was a combination of (1) the Emperor refusing to accept he was a god (despite, as Lorgar points out, basically claiming all the prerogatives of being a god), and (2) discovering that the Emperor was lying and that gods were real - specifically the Chaos Pantheon, and that his so-called Imperial Truth - the very thing he'd chastised them for not following - was so much bull and he'd known that at the time.....

I can see that locarno but in my heart I like to believe the Word Bearers still want to worship the emperor haha

The Word Bearers currently recognize the Emperor as a god due to the influence of belief on the warp, but believe that he is weak and that the Chaos gods are the true gods that deserve to be worshipped.

I like the incredibly bleak outlook the Word Bearers have on it. It's true, Chaos is gonna eat your soul and the gods are real and they hate you. Spread the good news boys!

Well, that was Argel Tal's view.
Others (quite rightly) point out that the pantheon can, if it so chooses, grant you immortality. Yes, most people die or become spawn in the attempt but given that the alternative is death and there are plenty of people living equally horrible lives on imperial world's, what's your point?

 Da Boss wrote:
I like the incredibly bleak outlook the Word Bearers have on it. It's true, Chaos is gonna eat your soul and the gods are real and they hate you. Spread the good news boys!

Lord Sithrak is the best god*. What more can you ask than a god that hates you unconditionally? The Problem of Evil just vanishes a puff of divine fire.


*Sithrak and Oglaf are NSFW. Be warned.

 Da Boss wrote:
I like the incredibly bleak outlook the Word Bearers have on it.

It's basically just ancient Mesopotamian religion with some fantasy trimmings. The gods are all-powerful and mortals are their slaves. Following the gods' will brings good fortune and long life. Disobeying the gods brings divine punishment. But everyone ends up in the same horrible afterlife when they die, the gods are fickle and sadistic and their 'rules' are ultimately unfathomable to mortals and always subject to change without notice. The only sure way of staying on their right side is to worship them with utter, slavish devotion and offer them plenty of sacrifices. Just trying to follow some moral code is a mug's game at best and at worst will be punished by the gods as arrogance (for daring to think you as a mere mortal know how morality works).

Still would be funny to imagine the Emperor of Man appearing as a God before a large Word Bearer army, and then seeing the Word Bearers immediately join him