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Scars #7
Scars: Episode VII
Of all the Legiones Astartes, the White Scars of Jaghatai Khan remain the most enigmatic and elusive. Born of a civilisation that prizes honour, speed and fearsome loyalty, their allegiance has yet remained unclear even as the galaxy is torn apart by Horus’s treachery, and both sides have apparently counted them among their potential allies in the war to come. But when the Alpha Legion launch an unexplained and simultaneous attack against the White Scars and Space Wolves, the Khan must decide once and for all whether he will stand with the Emperor or the Warmaster... or neither.The exciting story continues in the seventh eBook episode of an all-new novel by Chris Wraight.
34 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 18, 2013
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41 people want to read
About the author
Chris Wraight
219 books385 followersChris Wraight is a British author of fantasy and science fiction.
His first novel was published in 2008; since then, he has published books set in the Warhammer Fantasy and Stargate:Atlantis universes, and has upcoming titles in the Warhammer 40K setting.
He is based in the south-west of England.
His first novel was published in 2008; since then, he has published books set in the Warhammer Fantasy and Stargate:Atlantis universes, and has upcoming titles in the Warhammer 40K setting.
He is based in the south-west of England.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 23, 2013
Episode VI saw an end to the White Scars story as previous canon went. While deviating considerably from what we got in Index Astartes and the Collected Visions books, we saw the legion departing the battle between the Space Wolves and Alpha Legion. With both forces left behind along with any expectations of what was to follow, Episode VII now follows the tale taking a new route. Not only returning to the original themes of the book now the Space Wolves are out of the way for the moment, but also expanding upon the knowledge of the legion.
The good news is this is exactly what the serialised novel needed. The bad news is that not all of the new additions to the White Scars are good.
Foremost among these is a bit more of an exploration of who they are and why they have been so forgotten. This has been put down to the way in which the legion operates at least in part, but other previously foreshadowed elements are clearly in play. A section featuring a captain of a traitor legion highlights this extremely well where it almost seems as if a White Scars psyker blocks the last several minutes from his mind. The downside is the way in which the legion’s relation to the Warp is explained is infuriating at best. It makes them look to be exactly what the Heresy needed to stop Horus, Magnus, Fulgrim etc before anything went wrong, but didn’t because of their own isolationist policies. This will likely be expanded upon later, but the way in which it is initially introduced is more frustrating than it is interesting. If it is further expanded upon in later chapters then it will be a boon to the novel, but at the moment it feel more like an aggravating tumour of a retcon.
On the upside is the re-introduction of the lodges within the legion who are beginning to play a more prominent role. Forced into the background for multiple parts, they stay long enough to have a prominent role and suggest an interesting future. Something made especially clear when a remarkably well contained plot point comes full circle within the episode showing how far their influence stretches. As they are shown communicating with an unseen force, it might be working to build upon the legion’s flaws even as Wraight explores their strengths. A definite bonus given Wraight’s unfortunate habit of focusing purely upon flaws, introducing new shortcomings and occasionally exaggerating their failings.
Yes there was an Iron Hands marine in this, and yes you can guess how he was treated.
Well, that’s not being entirely fair. Unlike previous outings the astartes’ belligerence and opposition to others is used as a point to further explore some of the nature of librarians within the legions. As is their affinity for technology, which proves to be an effective counterpoint against Nikea. Unfortunately as Yesugei’s role within this is to once again argue the point of librarians and explore the legion’s use of them, he gains little from what we saw last time. Remaining largely a tool to explore certain details rather than a character, what we get is adequate but not quite enough to make him feel as great as previous examples.
Shiban similarly remains something of a cypher, only having a relatively small amount of his sub-plot progressed since the books beginning and Torghun is somewhat the same. At least in the latter’s case however, there are more characterful signs to utilise with his personal dislike for the legion and its ways. Something which oddly works to make the scene far more interesting given his allies’ use of sorcery.
While the episode definitely has great pacing and benefited with a single legion to focus upon, it feels as if it’s promising more to come. Setting up things once again to be truly progressed now we’re done with the White Scars reacting to the Alpha Legion and civil war. There’s not much actually bad here, it’s just it feels as if it’s just trying to get going again now the Space Wolf stuff is finished.
What really buoys the episode up is easily the Khan himself. Like the other characters he has remained something of an enigma, but we see more flashbacks to previous events: A mass discussion between several primarchs at Ullanor. Nothing featuring them talking about tactics, just reacting to Horus’ ascension and with a more personal conversation than before. It’s a short scene but one well-handled.
Still you know the drill after six of these: It’s good, but wait until you can get the full book. Don’t buy these as episodes, they don’t work well in this format.
The good news is this is exactly what the serialised novel needed. The bad news is that not all of the new additions to the White Scars are good.
Foremost among these is a bit more of an exploration of who they are and why they have been so forgotten. This has been put down to the way in which the legion operates at least in part, but other previously foreshadowed elements are clearly in play. A section featuring a captain of a traitor legion highlights this extremely well where it almost seems as if a White Scars psyker blocks the last several minutes from his mind. The downside is the way in which the legion’s relation to the Warp is explained is infuriating at best. It makes them look to be exactly what the Heresy needed to stop Horus, Magnus, Fulgrim etc before anything went wrong, but didn’t because of their own isolationist policies. This will likely be expanded upon later, but the way in which it is initially introduced is more frustrating than it is interesting. If it is further expanded upon in later chapters then it will be a boon to the novel, but at the moment it feel more like an aggravating tumour of a retcon.
On the upside is the re-introduction of the lodges within the legion who are beginning to play a more prominent role. Forced into the background for multiple parts, they stay long enough to have a prominent role and suggest an interesting future. Something made especially clear when a remarkably well contained plot point comes full circle within the episode showing how far their influence stretches. As they are shown communicating with an unseen force, it might be working to build upon the legion’s flaws even as Wraight explores their strengths. A definite bonus given Wraight’s unfortunate habit of focusing purely upon flaws, introducing new shortcomings and occasionally exaggerating their failings.
Yes there was an Iron Hands marine in this, and yes you can guess how he was treated.
Well, that’s not being entirely fair. Unlike previous outings the astartes’ belligerence and opposition to others is used as a point to further explore some of the nature of librarians within the legions. As is their affinity for technology, which proves to be an effective counterpoint against Nikea. Unfortunately as Yesugei’s role within this is to once again argue the point of librarians and explore the legion’s use of them, he gains little from what we saw last time. Remaining largely a tool to explore certain details rather than a character, what we get is adequate but not quite enough to make him feel as great as previous examples.
Shiban similarly remains something of a cypher, only having a relatively small amount of his sub-plot progressed since the books beginning and Torghun is somewhat the same. At least in the latter’s case however, there are more characterful signs to utilise with his personal dislike for the legion and its ways. Something which oddly works to make the scene far more interesting given his allies’ use of sorcery.
While the episode definitely has great pacing and benefited with a single legion to focus upon, it feels as if it’s promising more to come. Setting up things once again to be truly progressed now we’re done with the White Scars reacting to the Alpha Legion and civil war. There’s not much actually bad here, it’s just it feels as if it’s just trying to get going again now the Space Wolf stuff is finished.
What really buoys the episode up is easily the Khan himself. Like the other characters he has remained something of an enigma, but we see more flashbacks to previous events: A mass discussion between several primarchs at Ullanor. Nothing featuring them talking about tactics, just reacting to Horus’ ascension and with a more personal conversation than before. It’s a short scene but one well-handled.
Still you know the drill after six of these: It’s good, but wait until you can get the full book. Don’t buy these as episodes, they don’t work well in this format.
September 21, 2013
The Review: http://thefoundingfields.com/2013/09/...
“An excellent continuation of events from previous outings, Scars is still marred by the same problems that let down its predecessors.” ~Bane of Kings, The Founding Fields
"Of all the Legiones Astartes, the White Scars of Jaghatai Khan remain the most enigmatic and elusive. Born of a civilisation that prizes honour, speed and fearsome loyalty, their allegiance has yet remained unclear even as the galaxy is torn apart by Horus’s treachery, and both sides have apparently counted them among their potential allies in the war to come. But when the Alpha Legion launch an unexplained and simultaneous attack against the White Scars and Space Wolves, the Khan must decide once and for all whether he will stand with the Emperor or the Warmaster… or neither.
The exciting story continues in the seventh eBook episode of an all-new novel by Chris Wraight."
It’s difficult to write a review for anything that’s beyond the halfway mark in an ongoing series without starting to sound repetitive, and I think that I’m having very much the same problems with Chris Wraight’s Scars. Aside from just retelling the plot, what can I say that hasn’t been said already? But I’m going to give it my best shot anyway.
Basically, this episode delves more into the background and legion of the White Scars than before. We get to understand their nature, yet an element of mystery is still kept hidden throughout the entire book. The curtains aren’t fully revealed on the White Scars yet we do know more about them than we did going into this with Episode 1. Chris Wraight’s Scars has really moved forward plotwise over the course of these seven episodes, as Wraight manages to split the attention once more between the many plot threads that this novel has created seemingly with ease. A particular highlight for me in Episode 7, and probably the whole book thus far is probably the flashback to Ullanor where we get to see multiple Primarchs in the same room, Sanguinius, Mortarion, Fulgrim and the Khan. I loved how Wraight managed to handle the Primarchs themselves with confidence, yet for all that focus before the Heresy, we still don’t really get any character that distinguishes him or her as the Loken or Tarvitz of the book – a rootable, likable and memorable lead character. There are simply just too many threads unfolding here with a packed dramatis personae and whilst this book is pretty clever at what it does and I’m sure will read much better as a collective format than as an individual, and I really don’t think that this book was probably the best to launch a possible trend to serialised books in the future.
Don’t get me wrong though, Scars is a gripping and captivating book, and when collected will probably be one of the better ones from the Horus Heresy series to date. Chris Wraight brings experience and quality writing to the table, and he’s certainly up there with the likes of Dan Abnett and Aaron Dembski-Bowden when it comes to writing quality Horus Heresy fiction. I really hope he can dethrone McNeill from the Top 3 of Black Library’s authors, or at least make it a Top 4 – because from what I’ve seen, Wraight can put out better work than McNeill has managed to produce so far, with the exception of possibly A Thousand Sons or Priests of Mars.
The episode itself still manages to remain unpredictable and entertaining. Whilst previous Horus Heresy novels you would have a certain idea as to what the end result would be, Scars is shrouded in mystery, and the only people who knows its conclusion will be the leading people at Black Library and Chris Wraight himself. Episode 7, although suffering from problems that marred its previous outings, continues its consistent form and we haven’t had a bad episode in terms of quality wise yet. Scars is certainly well worth checking out if you haven’t given it a try already as a serialised book, but if you’ve managed to hold off this long it’s probably better waiting for the collective edition.
VERDICT: 4/5
“An excellent continuation of events from previous outings, Scars is still marred by the same problems that let down its predecessors.” ~Bane of Kings, The Founding Fields
"Of all the Legiones Astartes, the White Scars of Jaghatai Khan remain the most enigmatic and elusive. Born of a civilisation that prizes honour, speed and fearsome loyalty, their allegiance has yet remained unclear even as the galaxy is torn apart by Horus’s treachery, and both sides have apparently counted them among their potential allies in the war to come. But when the Alpha Legion launch an unexplained and simultaneous attack against the White Scars and Space Wolves, the Khan must decide once and for all whether he will stand with the Emperor or the Warmaster… or neither.
The exciting story continues in the seventh eBook episode of an all-new novel by Chris Wraight."
It’s difficult to write a review for anything that’s beyond the halfway mark in an ongoing series without starting to sound repetitive, and I think that I’m having very much the same problems with Chris Wraight’s Scars. Aside from just retelling the plot, what can I say that hasn’t been said already? But I’m going to give it my best shot anyway.
Basically, this episode delves more into the background and legion of the White Scars than before. We get to understand their nature, yet an element of mystery is still kept hidden throughout the entire book. The curtains aren’t fully revealed on the White Scars yet we do know more about them than we did going into this with Episode 1. Chris Wraight’s Scars has really moved forward plotwise over the course of these seven episodes, as Wraight manages to split the attention once more between the many plot threads that this novel has created seemingly with ease. A particular highlight for me in Episode 7, and probably the whole book thus far is probably the flashback to Ullanor where we get to see multiple Primarchs in the same room, Sanguinius, Mortarion, Fulgrim and the Khan. I loved how Wraight managed to handle the Primarchs themselves with confidence, yet for all that focus before the Heresy, we still don’t really get any character that distinguishes him or her as the Loken or Tarvitz of the book – a rootable, likable and memorable lead character. There are simply just too many threads unfolding here with a packed dramatis personae and whilst this book is pretty clever at what it does and I’m sure will read much better as a collective format than as an individual, and I really don’t think that this book was probably the best to launch a possible trend to serialised books in the future.
Don’t get me wrong though, Scars is a gripping and captivating book, and when collected will probably be one of the better ones from the Horus Heresy series to date. Chris Wraight brings experience and quality writing to the table, and he’s certainly up there with the likes of Dan Abnett and Aaron Dembski-Bowden when it comes to writing quality Horus Heresy fiction. I really hope he can dethrone McNeill from the Top 3 of Black Library’s authors, or at least make it a Top 4 – because from what I’ve seen, Wraight can put out better work than McNeill has managed to produce so far, with the exception of possibly A Thousand Sons or Priests of Mars.
The episode itself still manages to remain unpredictable and entertaining. Whilst previous Horus Heresy novels you would have a certain idea as to what the end result would be, Scars is shrouded in mystery, and the only people who knows its conclusion will be the leading people at Black Library and Chris Wraight himself. Episode 7, although suffering from problems that marred its previous outings, continues its consistent form and we haven’t had a bad episode in terms of quality wise yet. Scars is certainly well worth checking out if you haven’t given it a try already as a serialised book, but if you’ve managed to hold off this long it’s probably better waiting for the collective edition.
VERDICT: 4/5
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews