<![CDATA[Latest posts for the thread "What do you look for in a 40K fic?"]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/69.page JForum - http://www.jforum.net What do you look for in a 40K fic? 40k fanfiction, what do you look for in a story? What catches your interest, keeps you reading?

Conversely, what makes you hit the back-button in disinterest or disgust? ]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096424.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096424.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic? 2) Featured Army/Character: Specific Space Marine chapters, Eisenhorn, etc. If I like the players, then the book gets my interest. ]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096461.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096461.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic? Though I suppose it pretty much amounts to the same thing, heh.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096471.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096471.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
I am sure there is some Primarch on Primarch love going on in those stories...]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096491.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096491.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic? http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096575.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096575.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic? http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096640.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096640.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic? http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096671.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096671.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Kevlar wrote:I'm only in the hobby for the tactical aspect of it. I've always thought the fluff horrible. No matter how much they try to sugar coat it, its lord of the rings in space.


No, not really. LOTR ends in a positive, if bittersweet note, but 40k is perpetually dark. Even the millions of years of peace from the end of the War in Heaven ended in galactic genocide during the Great Fall...not to mention the promise of the Great Crusade ended in the tragedy og the Horus Heresy...or for that matter, the most successful species, the Orks, are going to fight everything to the end of time.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096690.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096690.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic? http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096949.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096949.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Kevlar wrote:I'm only in the hobby for the tactical aspect of it. I've always thought the fluff horrible. No matter how much they try to sugar coat it, its lord of the rings in space.

That's pretty daft statement, given that the setting's most obvious influence is Michael Moorcock, who has spent his career dragging fantasy away from the LOTR GF ghetto.

(By way of example, LOTR ends in triumph - albeit at a cost - for the good guys, the Elric stories culminate in our protagonist killing first his dearest friend, then himself, followed by the destruction of his world.)]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096977.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4096977.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic? 40k story (let's ignore the fanfic part for now ) what do you prefer? Action, plot, character interaction & development, anything else, a bit of everything?

Do you prefer a story that is mostly focused on just one character, or one that's told from multiple characters' points of view?

A lot of description and scene-setting, or less description and more action/dialogue?

I'm mostly just curious to see how much peoples' ideals differ. And to see if there's anything I should focus more/less on with my own writing, hehehe. ]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4098374.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4098374.page GMT Re:What do you look for in a 40K fic?
I also enjoy reading something based on a DIY chapter.

]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4098569.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4098569.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Regarding POV, I don't mind as long as it's established early how it'll go. I don't want it to start switching between views halfway through the story for no good reason if the first half had a single protagonist.

My biggest no-nos are stories with no point whatsoever (á la Battle for the Abyss) and ones where the entire point is just to show off how awesome this one guy/chapter/platoon is by beating up/banishing/other a bunch of people from other stories.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4098645.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4098645.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Tadashi wrote:
Kevlar wrote:I'm only in the hobby for the tactical aspect of it. I've always thought the fluff horrible. No matter how much they try to sugar coat it, its lord of the rings in space.


No, not really. LOTR ends in a positive, if bittersweet note, but 40k is perpetually dark.

This as opposed to reality...consuming a finite amount of resources at an exponentially growing rate and a species with no inherent morality whatsoever.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4100979.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4100979.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
d-usa wrote:I don't dibble in fan fiction, things can get very strange very fast there.

I am sure there is some Primarch on Primarch love going on in those stories...


Yeah...

I set out to create a wiki to hopefully provide some amount of oversight and help prevent stuff like that from happening.

We did have a (now banned) user who wrote about a planet with so called "Necron Hover Cans." He ended up getting banned for writing a horribly inappropriate song in terrible German. We have since deleted all his stuff.

My advice for fanfic:

The biggest thing I would say is to not write in German if you don't understand it. Ever. It doesn't work to grab a dictionary and lookup equivalent words. There was a fanfic wiki where I had to correct "Stahl Wachter die Sturm" to "Stälhler Wächter des Sturm." Basically, it was completely off in terms of spelling, case, and gender.]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4101067.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4101067.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Let's go kill some [Insert enemy name here]!

Oh, no, we are all going to lose!

Never, for the Imperium!

Oh, look, a few billion allioes and a Titan!

Die scumbags!

We win, but at what cost?"

]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4101573.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4101573.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?

And I agree about the no point/showing off kind of stories. Although I did kind of enjoy Battle for the Abyss. ¬_¬ Admittedly, mostly because of Mhotep, but I digress.

How forgiving do you tend to be with differences or inconsistencies with established fluff in fan writing?]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102655.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102655.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Skits wrote:As the title says - when you're browsing through 40k fanfiction, what do you look for in a story? What catches your interest, keeps you reading?

When reading, I am very interested in "feel" when it comes to a story. If it's post apocalyptic, does the story "feel" grim and hopeless? Does it fit the "feel" of the established setting (if there is one)? If it fits the feel, then I can guarantee you I will keep reading.
Case in point: The Walking Dead comic. The art style is perfect. Is black and white and also gives the feel of an old picture. The encounters that the main character(s) face are pyrrhic.

Same with Warhammer 40k fan fiction. This is a nightmare future. Techpriests recite anthems and burn incense in order to press the "on" button on a vehicle. Every day, thousands of psykers die horrible deaths to power the Astronomican. The Imperium's laws are set up solely so that humans even have a chance of surviving.

While having "grittiness" and "dystopia" are two important elements, the third element is "black humor". Rogue Trader had a good deal of black humor, with Dark Angels having the words "have a nice day" inscribed on their bolters and people getting conscripted into the Imperial Guard because they forgot to turn in a library book.

If it's all grimdark, then nothing is grimdark. But the black humor really allows the setting to hit you: the Imperium is an oppressive leech, but that's because it has to be.

Conversely, what makes you hit the back-button in disinterest or disgust?


I will be a minority here, however I get tired of reading stories of "glorious charges of Imperial Space Marines and they still win with almost no casualties".
It's fun every once in a rare while, but it gets stale. One example of a good story gone bad is the Tyranid attack on Macragge. In its first rendition, the Space Marine casualties were heavy. Battle-brothers were cut off from eachother and died alone and in excruciating pain, hopelessly out-numbered.

The newer versions make this all seem heroic. Yes the entire 1st company was destroyed, but where were the effects of that? Barely any. In earlier editions, the Battle for Macragge was super devastating. But now, it just seems like it's an afterthought that the 1st company even died. I guarantee you that in a couple editions (God forbid), that part will probably get cut out because Imperial Space Marines are too good.

TL;DR: if you're gonna write about heroics, chances are I'm not gonna read it. If it feels gritty, cruel, and has elements of black humor, I'm gonna read it if the writing is good.

Also it goes without saying that I'm not gonna read anything about Farseers "getting their groove on" with Assassins if y'know what I mean

Kind Regards,
Vladsimpaler]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102705.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102705.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Vladsimpaler wrote:Also it goes without saying that I'm not gonna read anything about Farseers "getting their groove on" with Assassins if y'know what I mean


Who'd write anything like that? That's just stupid.

Now, where was I?

Marneus looked longingly into Cato's eyes, and they shared a moment so intimate that only two lovers could truly understand its meaning..."]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102725.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102725.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Avatar 720 wrote:
Vladsimpaler wrote:Also it goes without saying that I'm not gonna read anything about Farseers "getting their groove on" with Assassins if y'know what I mean


Who'd write anything like that? That's just stupid.

Now, where was I?

Marneus looked longingly into Cato's eyes, and they shared a moment so intimate that only two lovers could truly understand its meaning..."


Dammit man, that's because I'll have to start scrolling with my left hand! I mean...what...I'll just leave...


Getting out some tissue paper (not serious),
Vladsimpaler ]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102729.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102729.page GMT What do you look for in a 40K fic?
Vladsimpaler wrote:
I will be a minority here, however I get tired of reading stories of "glorious charges of Imperial Space Marines and they still win with almost no casualties".

Heh, I agree. But what about ones where the Space Marines pretty much lose the battle while still having very few actual deaths? Plot armour being plot armour and all that, heh.

And yeah, I do love me some black humour. Sometimes even the occasional interjection of regular humour, as long as it's in-character and fits with what's going on. If everything's all grimdark all the time, it gets rather... flat, I think. Y'need the contrast of highlights to make the dark times actually feel darker.

And totally agree with what I know you mean by the Farseers/Assassins line.

Unless, of course, the Assassin is just using it as a ploy to get close enough to assassinate said Farseer. That could be interesting, at least. Hm. ]]> http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102875.page http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/preList/440107/4102875.page GMT