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Warhammer 40,000/Tropes/A to H: Difference between revisions
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** Aw, c'mon now, it has a special machine spirit to auto-track aircraft too. And let's not forget the amount of lead it can put against ''ground'' targets when there aren't any fliers to kill...
* [[Anti-Magic]]: Pariahs, Blanks and Untouchables [[Power Nullifier|nullifying]] psyker abilities. Which means [[Superpower Lottery|you're immune to all the psychic and sorcerous nastiness out there]], but [[Blessed with Suck|everyone hates you because you have no soul, and the Necrons will do unpleasant things to you if they find you]]. Oh, and some Pariahs will actually harm psykers just by standing close by.
** Hexagrammatic wards and Null-fields.
* [[Apathy Killed the Cat]]: Imperial domestic policy. "Only the awkward question; only the foolish ask twice."
* [[Ape Shall Never Kill Ape]]: Played straight by the Craftworld Eldar and the Tau. ''Thoroughly'' averted by everyone else, who gladly maim, torture, kill, and even ''eat'' members of their own race, and claim no moral superiority from avoiding such acts.
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* [[Artifact of Doom]]: By the truckload in every size and shape imaginable, from simple daemon weapons to entire planets serving as the titular cans in [[Sealed Evil in a Can]].
* [[Artifact Title]]: In the past, ''Warhammer 40,000'' was essentially ''[[Warhammer Fantasy Battle]]'' [[Recycled in Space|IN SPACE!]], with many setting and system elements borrowed directly from the other game; however, as time went on, both the setting and the system moved away from their ''Warhammer'' roots, and the two games are now distinctly different beasts. The game developers have actively defied the "40,000" part of the title becoming an artifact, as they steadfastly refuse to advance the [[Metaplot]] past the end of the 41st millennium (though some Black Library authors, particularly [[Sandy Mitchell]], have included elements from the early 42nd).
* [[Artificial Limbs]]: May be the above [[Arm Cannon]]. Even in the higher echelons of pretty much every Imperial organisation, there is some discrepancy over just what it is possible to replace damaged parts with. Sometimes actual flesh and blood vat grown limbs are referred to, but most of the time it's large, mechanical, piston-driven coolness. That may be disguised as flesh. And still have hidden integrated laspistol. Or something along those lines.
** Iron Legion Chaos Marines love this trope, as do the Loyalist Iron Hands.
* [[Art Major Biology]]: First the genetically-engineered supermen are designed to look cool, then they later explain how it (doesn't) work.
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* [[Earth Is the Centre of The Universe]]: Played literally, and justified. Earth is the site of the psychic beacon known as the Astronomican, necessary for humanity's faster-than-light travel.
** Not to mention that at some point during the Dark Age of Technology, humanity moved the '''entire''' terran solar system to the centre of the galaxy
* [[Earthshattering Kaboom]]:
* [[Earth That Used to Be Better|Earth That Used To Be Much, Much Better]]
* [[Eldritch Abomination]]: ''Crawling'' with them.
* [[Electronic Eyes]]: Rather common. Some of these come with enhancements, from ballistic calculations (with cartload of profiles for weapons and ammunition) to [[Eye Beams|shooting laser beam]] (though this one is quite rare). Tech-priests sometimes don't do it... because they may opt for an optical mechadendrite instead.
* [[Elite Army]]: The [[Super Soldier]] [[Space Marines]].
* [[Elite Mooks]]: Elites choices, of course. Also, Space Marines in general, compared to the rest of the Imperium's armed forces.
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* [[The Face]]: A group of Tau will often have [[Fantastic Caste System|a member of their diplomat caste]] around that can do all the talking when they have to meet with members of another species.
* [[Face Full of Alien Wingwong]]: Genestealers, Psychneuein.
* [[Faceless Goons]]: Most troops are either alien monsters or wear full-face helmets, but most squad leaders and superior officers ''don't'', to make them stand out more. While the idea that men in suits of [[Powered Armour]] the size of ''tanks'' are running around with their heads completely exposed leads to some serious [[Fridge Logic]], [[Word of God]] is generally that the characters ''do'' wear their helmets, but the models representing them don't to make them [[Rule of Cool|more distinctive]].
** It should probably be noted that, in the case of the aforementioned [[Powered Armour]] wearing tank-sized men, being shot in the exposed skull is generally seen as a [[Made of Iron|fairly minor inconvenience]], both in-game and in fluff terms.
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** ''[[Only War]]'' rates Clip/Drop Harness as "Common" for Logistics purpose. It wouldn't be something your quartermaster almost certainly have, if it wasn't ''used'' all the time (not only from hovering transport, but also in urban and mountain warfare).
* [[Faster-Than-Light Travel]]: ''[[Hyperspace Is a Scary Place|through Hell]]''.
** Unless you're the Tau. They just "''skim the surface''" of hell. Humans can do it too, but by the standards of Imperium it's maddeningly slow - and military doesn't want to be late to the party, while for commerce longer trips obviously drop the profit/upkeep rate, though some merchants choose more "shallow" warp drives, since this significantly reduces risks.
* [[Fatal Flaw]]: Everyone.
* [[Fate Worse Than Death]]: "Pray they don't take you alive."
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* [[Genetic Memory]]: Space Marines and Tyranid Lictors have the ability to absorb the memories of the dead by eating their flesh, particularly the brain. In addition, each Space Marine Chapter is based on the genetic templates of one of the [[A God Am I|Primarchs]], and occasionally display traits and memories of that Primarch. Blood Angels, for example have a random chance of triggering the genetic memory of their Primarch's bloody death, which can drive them into an [[Unstoppable Rage]]. Ork Mekboyz and Painboyz have their (respectively) technological and medical talents genetically encoded, and Kroot are said in designers' notes to have gained Ork technology through their ability to absorb the DNA of prey.
** In fact, according to one version of their backstory, the Kroot started out as fairly ordinary birds, aside from their ability to absorb DNA and evolved into intelligent, humanoid lifeforms by scavenging dead Orks.
* [[Genius Bruiser]]: A wide variety, although who, why and to what extent vary wildly depending on the setting. Of particular note, perhaps, is [[The Emperor]] himself - who is/was clever enough to construct his own Webway Gate, design Space Marines, develop Force Weapons (at least, the current Imperial variety) and command the Great Crusade, and was badass enough to personally kick the crap out of pretty much anyone in the setting. His [[Praetorian Guard|Adeptus Custodes]] and Space Marines are a close second - in particular, the Tech Marines, and
** Much of Inquisition, given that investigation is a big part of the job. In case of Scholariate at Arms it's right in the name.
* [[Genre Busting]]: It doesn't matter if the tropes the series uses are from Scifi, Fantasy, Horror, or whatever, as long as they make the setting [[Darker and Edgier]].
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* [[Glowing Eyes of Doom]]: ''Everyone'' seems to have these.
* [[A God I Am Not]]: The Emperor, despite what his worshippers say.
* [[Golem]]: Eldar wraith-constructs. Also, vat-grown Servitors/Cherubim/Gholam.▼
* [[God-Emperor]]: Read through the page and if you can't guess who it is by the end, we'll give you a cookie. We'll even give you a clue, his name begins God- and ends -peror and despite ascending to literal godhood after his reign ended due to the worship of the masses [[Suspiciously Specific Denial|he is so totally not a]] ''[[Dune]]'' rip-off.
** Ironically, the guy tried to make sure that he wouldn't. It didn't work. Far worse than he would [[Alternative Character Interpretation|publically admit]] to liking.
* [[God Is Evil]]: Taken to an extreme.
** Tzeentch: [[Chessmaster]] god of change, mutation, manipulation, sorcery, [[Magnificent Bastard]]s and the long game. Daemons take the form of mutated horrible things which squirt hellfire from every orifice, or big weird vultures; followers are usually mutated-beyond-all-recognition sorcerers, or automatons reduced to dust sealed inside armour. Odds are high that everything going on in the entire ''galaxy'' is part of his [[Xanatos Roulette]]. Reflection of the emotion of ''hope''.
** Nurgle: God of decay, disease, corruption, entropy, maggots and [[Body Horror]]. Daemons take the form of potbellied maggotridden monsters of barely-held-together rotten flesh, mortal followers aren't much better. Apparently has a sense of humour, and is called ''Grandfather Nurgle'' by his followers, who see him as a [[Nightmare Fuel|kind and loving god.]] Born from the emotion of ''despair''.
** Khorne: God of rage, violence, war, [[BFS|oversized weapons]] and the [[Axe Crazy]]. Daemons take the form of spiky muscular freaks covered with blood and brass, usually holding really big axes. Followers are uniformly psychotic axe-waving [[Blood Knight]]s, although this may be something of a [[Flanderisation]] - earlier background material described Khorne as the god of martial prowess, not just blind, screaming bloodlust. Khorne embodies the emotion of ''rage''.
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** Subverted (finally) with Isha, the Eldar Mother Goddess. She's been Nurgle's prisoner for centuries, and he tests his plagues on her, learning something when she cures herself. When Nurgle isn't looking, Isha whispers the cures for these diseases to mortals.
* [[Godzilla Threshold]]: Despite getting [[Flanderization|Flanderized]] to being a solution for any problem, [[Earthshattering Kaboom|exterminatus]] is actually treated this way within the canon.
* [[Goggles Do Something Unusual]]:
** Fairly common enhancements: Photo Sight (night vision and glare/flash suppression), that come in shapes from common goggles or even contact lenses to built into helmets of armor and working gear as needed and close second, Preysense (IR-vision systems, good ones look like normal goggles)...
** Other eyepieces range from trivial like Mono-sight (cable-linked with camera sight on a gun, to aim without sticking your head out) to augmented reality systems like Targeting Monocle (Mono-sight that also is a ballistic calculator automatically taking into account range, wind, etc plus an extra function - either motion predictor, light amplifier, IR or telescopic sight - and looks really posh) or Ocular Catechizer (shape recognition unit that needs to be held on target for a little while, but functionality ranges from identification of vehicles [[Stat-O-Vision|with overlay of helpful notes]] to highlighting the needle in a rustled haystack, to translation of written text, as long as one has access to relevant source data).
▲* [[Golem]]: Eldar wraith-constructs. Also, vat-grown Servitors/Cherubim/Gholam.
* [[Go Mad From the Revelation]]: Roll up! Gaze unprotected into the Warp! Lose your mind!
* [[Gone Horribly Right]]: The book ''Farseer'' ([[Fanon Discontinuity|if you count it]]) has an Eldar character admitting that some of the Eldar, shortly before the fall, were actually deliberately trying to engineer the necessary psychic-resonance to create a new god of pleasure that would allow the Eldar to transcend mortality and live in eternal bliss, leaving behind the concerns of the mortal realm. [[It Got Worse|It did not work out quite as they intended]].
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** Epitomized by the Dark Eldar city of Commorragh, which doesn't even exist in the material world; but is hidden in the "Webway", a sort of interdimensional labyrinth that exists between the Warp and the material world.
** They can be very sociable...to other Eldar. Everyone else, not so much.
* [[High-Class Glass]]: Occasionally, especially the Rogue Traders. It helps that highly decorative monocles tend to also be [[Goggles Do Something Unusual|very functional visors]]. And that a visor plus interface port (implant affordable even for scribes) together give most advantages of a full [[Brain-Computer Interface|Mind Impulse Unit]] anyone but a pilot or Tech-priest would need: want to double-check prices or local ship routes during a negotiation? Don't even have to move a finger.
* [[Highly-Conspicuous Uniform]]: Almost everyone save certain Imperial Guard outfits. Space Marines in particular have the saying "camouflage is the color of cowardice." Then again, being an obvious target is not particularly problematic for a human tank...
** Inspired by the Imperial Guard, Blood Axe Orks typically wear camouflage patterns, rather than the vibrant clan colors favored by other Orks. The problem is that what most Blood Axes consider to be "camouflage" is still brightly-colored and garish by human standards; only the Kommandoes have really figured out how to do it properly.
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