Regia Occulta

Warhammer 40,000

by Dan Abnett

On a world wracked by storms, Inquisitor Eisenhorn investigates a series of bizarre murders. Aided by local officials and using arcane methods of detection, Eisenhorn must decipher the secret of the Regia Occulta and stop the bestial killer before it strikes again.

Read it because
Mysterious deaths, strange storms, a monstrous killer that defies belief... This could only be a case for Inquisitor Eisenhorn!

Genres: Science Fiction, 40k, Short Stories, Fiction, Fantasy, Space Opera, Mystery

22 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 1, 2013

Reviews

[Willow Heath]

This was my first experience with the Warhammer Black Library, and it really delivered!

After playing Space Marine II, I decided to give the 40K books a go, and started by picking up the Eisenhorn Omnibus, which opens with this short story.

As a comic book collector, I was already familiar with Abnett's prowess as a writer, but he excels here at providing so much intriguing and alluring context for the 40K world (Inquisitors, Ordo Malleus, Chaos, The Warp, etc), while also telling an engaging and atmospheric murder mystery!

I am so very impressed!

[Fiona · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think it takes a lot of skill to convey so much atmosphere, story and background with so few words without losing in thrill or entertainment. However, it is a very short story, and I think hard to enjoy as anything but the prelude to the Xenos novel.

[Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great little introduction to the character of Eisenhorn. A bit of mystery, some detective work, a bit of interesting world design, some foreshadowing and some action to finish it off! I am now very much looking forward to getting into more stories of the Inquisition, and seeing more of Eisenhorn's adventures in the full length novels.

As a short story, this worked brilliantly as a flavourful opening to the series.

[Kirsty · Rating 4 out of 5]

good stuff. makes a guy piss himself by using his psyker abilities on him. elite. my first intro into reading about a non space marine human in 40k… jury’s still out on whether I give a fuck about him

[Craig · Rating 4 out of 5]

“I was only just put on my own”

A quick and quite enjoyable little short story in the Warhammer universe. We follow Inquisitor Gregor Eisenhorn who has just been recently been appointed to cover the circuit of a recently deceased Inquisitor. While in his circuit Eisenhorn visits the fief of Ignix. Unfortunately upon his arrival a nasty storm breaks out meaning he is stuck for a while. Before he is able to leave he is contacted by a local official to investigate what is to believed to be a cult killing. Eisenhorn master sleuths his way through the killings only to realize that this is much bigger then a cult or crazy serial killer.

All in all I was quite surprised how much can be covered in such a little amount of pages. This story did an excellent job setting up the universe and was a great introduction for the character Eisenhorn. If you were thinking about getting into 40k and you heard Eisenhorn was a good place to start (just like I heard) I recommend reading this before diving straight into Xenos. It’s short and straight to the point. Nice sample of what you can expect from the universe.

[Cameron Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was told this was a good starting point for getting into Warhammer 40k books. I already have pretty good knowledge of the lore so thought I'd be good. Quite quickly I was met with the use of Latin. Specific machinery, and niche practices. I had to Google a couple terms per page which took me out. But it was somehow a 50s noir murdercase, mixed with scfi orca. It was a lot of fun and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

[Sammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short Eisenhorn story. It's fine as it's own story - though the characterisation of the ork doesn't really fit with the rest of the orks we've seen. I guess we can rationalise it as a particular ork enclave or something.
However it's good in that it opens the idea of the Regia Occulta, explains the concept, and gives us a short murder investigation that again opens up what the Inquisitor can do.

[Autumnal · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one even though I didn’t understand some of the terms! Excited to keep learning about this universe. I really liked the murder investigation and I’m excited to see Eisenhorn’s development through his life.

[David Austin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tight little short story, sets up the character nicely.

[Ben Vogensen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool short story where Eisenhorn comes across remarkably humane, which is a bit of a novelty for a fucking Inquisitor. It was pretty cool to see how weird actual warp travel can be and also some of the simultaneous idolization and dread people can treat Inquistors and Psychers with.

[Jayden Freeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great short story- but it’s very short.

[Oscar Bilker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kort kvällsmys

[Mozart Benedict · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.9⭐

Wish it was longer and Abnett explored more on the Regia Occulta.

The celestial event in the story, Cackle, made it incredibly atmospheric and beautiful though haunting at the same time. Reminded me of the Eye of Aldhani from Andor and Red comet in the horizon from Nine. Perfect for adaptation cause of the beauty it'll convey in the screen.

[Khalid · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first story of the Eisenhorn Omnibus.

My first time reading a Warhammer 40k book. Outside of some lore videos and lore podcasts, this was my first story in the 40k world. And it was only a couple pages but the world is so real. But it was also surprisingly clear in so little pages. I don’t know if that’s because of the tiny bit of the world I already know or if it’s Dan Abnett’s skill. I think it was skill because it almost felt like the exposition was so seamlessly woven into the story.

So far so good. On to Xenos!

[Enrico Ravelli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Forse 30 pagine sono troppo poche per esprimere a pieno la lore e l'atmosfera di Warhammer40K. Forse la mancanza del fuoco incrociato dei requiem e l'assenza di moltitudini che si scannano tendono a sbiadire l'hype di questo universo. Forse le mie aspettative, vedendo Eisenhorn nel titolo erano troppo alte. Ma, Regia Occulta non decolla davvero. Scritto comunque bene da Abnett, che è un serio professionista, rimane solo una lettura sufficiente. Aspettiamo il turno del Ciclo dell'Eresia per vedere punire eretici e garrire al vento le bandiere dell'imperatore. Ad maiora.

[James Zanghi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting little short story that takes part at the beginning of the Eisenhorn Omnibus I have on my Kindle Account. It kind of reads like a noir detective story with a sci-fi twist, which is a pretty interesting take on writing sci-fi in general. I'll keep reading the Eisenhorn Omnibus and see where it takes me. Already I can tell it's a bit more easier and more accessible to read than Ian Watson's 'The Inquisition War Omnibus'.

May the Force be with you!

[Javier Perez · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a great introductory story for showing what the series is about. It nicely sets up Eisenhorn as a character and what his work entails. I especially enjoyed the detective story aspect of the story and the reveal that the bridge the commissioner was so proud of was the cause. I cannot wait to see the ideas, characters, and world building be more thoroughly explored in the longer novels of the series.

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

A guy that's in space does some detective work in space. This one is more action oriented but we see the scope of the setting and some worldbuilding expand a little more. I enjoyed it. I don't read a lot of first person narration but Eisenhorn is an interesting enough protagonist so far that I am looking forward to Xenos.

[Carston]

A lot happens in this book despite being only 22 pages. You got mystery, world building, and action to top it off. Looking forward to reading more about Inquisitor Eisenhorn. Warhammer 40k is one of the few sci-fi universes I actually am invested in. This was my first 40k book, despite being familiar with the lore from the video games. Really excited to dive into more. The Emperor Protects!

[Anatoliy West · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mysterious deaths, investigation, questions, warp, and an insane adversary (ORKS). Truly an action packed story with a solid ending.

Eisenhorn is a psyker, and that’s wickedly insane, especially with some of the things that the investigator does.

Side note: My first encounter with Orks (Warhammer 40k universe), and wow, they’re terrifying.

[Gareth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another interesting story here with Eisenhorn, which I think demonstrates just how easy it is to make things go quite badly wrong for people in the 40k universe, similar in some respects to Blackcloth for a Crown Additional. Good short read though.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Abnett is a competent enough writer I can't give this less than a three, and I must admit I didn't guess the whodunit ahead of time. But this one just wasn't as interesting or atmospheric as Imus, even with how clearly hard he was trying with that electrical storm business.

[Jayme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid prelude to the Eisenhorn series. I love the short story setups Warhammer has. I was particularly impressed how vivid the imagery described here is — sci-fi jargon and all. Excited to keep going!

[Nathan Walkley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Breaking down the detective aspect of the character and showing the cold calculative nature in a cold cold setting. It's atmospheric, really well cemented as a sci fi story and is easy to follow you couldn't ask for much more and Abnett always delivers.

[Manos (hoarding books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first ever Warhammer story.
So much skill from a writer who is called to bring to life a favourite character for a short story.
Easy to understand, doesn't feel complicated or part of a series. More coming about Warhammer for sure.

[Corby H · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never seen this side of the 40k universe. It was quite good.

[Deryk Allan · Rating 5 out of 5]

very enjoyable read.

[Sai Teja · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good shit. Short, but perfectly illustrates the brashness in a younger Eisenhorn.

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5
Short but interesting. Maybe not the best intro to 40k, but also shows the potential for Abnett's primary works, which I will read next, as I did like his prose.

[Wilhelm Sundewall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short but not too bad. Lacking the intressting elements of 40k that I enjoy.