Editing Grimdark (section)

== Grim Tragedy ==
Naturally in a universe such as 40k, the grimdarkness of the setting would mean nothing if not tied into the ironic tragedy of the lore. This includes:

*[[Imperium|A species]] with so much potential, but so afraid of the dauntless perils of Chaos that they will brutally harass and execute entire populations out of mere suspicion, all to stop the spread of ruin while indirectly strengthening those who seek to destroy them (''particularly'' Chaos). They, as a people, have progressed massively in population, technology and power since their species conception, yet they, more than anyone else, have lost one vital element: their humanity.

*[[Leagues of Votann|Their long-lost brothers]] who managed to avoid the [[Men of Iron|calamities]] [[Age of Strife|that]] [[Horus Heresy|befell]] their kindred, and kept with them the power they held at their height. They are led by beings smarter than entire planets, and everything they create is designed to be the best it can be. And yet, they refuse to venture outside of their holds, letting the galaxy move on without them. The artificial gods that they've relied upon to run their entire society are beginning to fail or fall into madness due to their worshippers not knowing how to fix them along with filling their memory with useless memorabilia, and not only are they unable to fix them, if they could, they would only ask "What's in it for ''me?"''

*[[Eldar|A race who]] was once at a zenith of civilization and prosperity, capable of bending the very Gods to their will. But by their own hand reduced themselves to scattered isolated fleets and colonies always on the run; their pompous and arrogant leaders hide behind a dwindling sense of security based in superiority over other races who are far more successful and perhaps destined to be greater than they ever were. [[Dark Eldar|A number among them]], after their unholy and insidious near-demise, continue (with oblivious glee) to empower [[Slaanesh|the very being that brought them to ruin]] in order to save themselves.

*[[Orks|A race of creatures]] who possess the brightest "potential"; with near mastery over the psychic, near-natural physical perfection and almost limitless numbers from their highly successful methods of reproduction... And yet they are genetically restricted by an unquenchable thirst for conflict which drives each to idiocy, leaving them hopeless of advancing beyond simple barbarians.

*[[Necron|An ancient people]] who were so envious of their neighbors' lifespans that they were ready to cripple the entire galaxy just for the sake of petty superiority - a superiority neutered by their unwitting transformation into metaphorical and literal automatons. They are now mindless machines who, bar few, care nothing of their past and seek only one thing: Conquest. And those who still have their personalities are either insane, demented, depressed, brooding, psychotic, or any combination of these in various proportions.

*[[Tau|A newborn race]] who innocently believes that there can be peace and acknowledgement among each other. Unfortunately the sinister methods they employ hoping that it is for [[Greater Good|something better]] is slowly, but steadily driving them into the decadence that plagues the other species. In doing so they become proof, both of the fact that [[Horus|anyone]], [[Emperor|no matter their intentions]], can be corrupted, and also of the kindness that the rest have forsaken for damnation and despair...

*The fact that, despite tens of thousands of years of knowing nothing but war, these peoples are woefully unprepared for what is to come. No matter how many regiments can be raised or Craftworlds restored, what is out there is [[Tyranids|all consuming, diabolical and numberless...]] Unless, they are themselves on the verge of extinction, and as such, desperately trying to cross over the great void between galaxies, which implies fighting against [[Ork|invincibles foes]] and [[Ultramarines|fate dodging cheaters]] unnaturally empowered by the grief of an [[Games Workshop|unspeakable Eldritch Abomination beyond the cosmos]]. The good option is that there are a thousand galaxies worth of the fucking bugs; the bad option is that there are billions upon billions of galaxies worth of the fucking bugs. The worse option is that billions upon billions galaxies worth of what is essentially the perfect organism is running away from something worse.