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Shield of Baal #Novella
Deathstorm
The sons of Sanguinius land upon Phodia, commanded by First Captain Karlaen, the Shield of Baal. Their mission is to find and secure the planetary governor, whose blood may hold the key to curing the twin curses of the the Red Thirst and the Black Rage. But the Spawn of Cryptus, a sinister tyranid creature, is also seeking the governor, and Karlaen stands in its way
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The sons of Sanguinius land upon Phodia, commanded by First Captain Karlaen, the Shield of Baal. Their mission is to find and secure the planetary governor, whose blood may hold the key to curing the twin curses of the the Red Thirst and the Black Rage.
145 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2014
4 people are currently reading
86 people want to read
About the author
Joshua Reynolds
313 books339 followersJosh Reynolds’ work has previously appeared in such anthologies as Historical Lovecraft from Innsmouth Free Press and Horror for the Holidays from Miskatonic River Press, and his novel, Knight of the Blazing Sun, is currently available from Black Library. He can be found at: http://joshuamreynolds.wordpress.com
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
September 19, 2023
DNF at 58%
Long did I struggle with this one, and I aspire to exercise myself in writing good reviews because I enjoy the exercise, thinking about what I read really adds to the pleasure of the experience for me. But more than ever I can relate my impressions at most, without much insight.
This story feels as monotone and dragging to me as most of the other "The Great Devourer" stories I have read so far, plus I have to put up with the grim self-pity of the mightiest soldiers humanity has ever seen. All in all it's too focused on battle, is my impression, which becomes repetitive and boring with no human struggle going on. Perhaps I could enjoy this more if they were stating more clearly what their next objective is, why they need to get there and what is preventing them from this specific tactical step, but as it is I lost all orientation of their progress through the story and the enemies are an endless blur with the occasional appearance of the main antagonist in between.
I realize Games Workshop is trying to maintain the Tyranids alieness by maintaining an external viewpoint and keep them as incomprehensible as possible, but in this instance they might have outwitted themselves.
I've heard that a story needs antagonistic forces, and it comes up because when I listen to my impression of the story so far, everything feels too smooth, too compliant.
Okay, pretty much all of the planet is trying to kill the Space Marines, and then they have to put up with their genetic defect trying to overthrow their sanity from within. But that's all there is. The battle brother's don't argue about tactics or the sense of their mission at all, the orders are followed with no trace of a doubt, the nigh inconsequential struggle against The Great Devourer in this sector is bitterly accepted - to name but a few narrative fronts were things are too compliant for my taste. The two big expectations when reading this are seeing if they accomplish their mission and learning who their main antagonist once really was.
But unfortunately the drag so far has tired me too much, and I need to put this out of my reading list to get to more palatable sustenance.
Long did I struggle with this one, and I aspire to exercise myself in writing good reviews because I enjoy the exercise, thinking about what I read really adds to the pleasure of the experience for me. But more than ever I can relate my impressions at most, without much insight.
This story feels as monotone and dragging to me as most of the other "The Great Devourer" stories I have read so far, plus I have to put up with the grim self-pity of the mightiest soldiers humanity has ever seen. All in all it's too focused on battle, is my impression, which becomes repetitive and boring with no human struggle going on. Perhaps I could enjoy this more if they were stating more clearly what their next objective is, why they need to get there and what is preventing them from this specific tactical step, but as it is I lost all orientation of their progress through the story and the enemies are an endless blur with the occasional appearance of the main antagonist in between.
I realize Games Workshop is trying to maintain the Tyranids alieness by maintaining an external viewpoint and keep them as incomprehensible as possible, but in this instance they might have outwitted themselves.
I've heard that a story needs antagonistic forces, and it comes up because when I listen to my impression of the story so far, everything feels too smooth, too compliant.
Okay, pretty much all of the planet is trying to kill the Space Marines, and then they have to put up with their genetic defect trying to overthrow their sanity from within. But that's all there is. The battle brother's don't argue about tactics or the sense of their mission at all, the orders are followed with no trace of a doubt, the nigh inconsequential struggle against The Great Devourer in this sector is bitterly accepted - to name but a few narrative fronts were things are too compliant for my taste. The two big expectations when reading this are seeing if they accomplish their mission and learning who their main antagonist once really was.
But unfortunately the drag so far has tired me too much, and I need to put this out of my reading list to get to more palatable sustenance.
April 30, 2022
If I describe this as one of the best tie-ins for a boxed game that I’ve read, it might feel like I’m damning it with faint praise, but I’m not.
Reynolds’ BL work is always of the highest quality and even when it feels like he’s writing his way through a tick list of the contents of a game the prose is excellent and character development is good. This novella has fantastic and original portrayals of the Death Company and the impact of Genestealer infestation in particular.
Reynolds’ BL work is always of the highest quality and even when it feels like he’s writing his way through a tick list of the contents of a game the prose is excellent and character development is good. This novella has fantastic and original portrayals of the Death Company and the impact of Genestealer infestation in particular.
January 4, 2015
Terminators Space Marines vs hordes of Genestealers in a city-scale mission on a dying planet.. old and new fans of GW's Space Hulk game are really going to enjoy this one.
August 6, 2021
A lovely short story with the Blood Angels terminators on a mission to rescue a planetary governor on a world full of Tyranids.
March 19, 2023
3 stars bumped up to 3.5 because of the amazing portrayal of a crazy dreadnought.
June 23, 2025
3.5 Stars
February 10, 2015
It's a solid read. Josh does a fun turn with the Blood Angels and a strangely compelling tale of some terminators rooting around on a planet already under the thrall (err, into the gut) of the Hivemind.
It's a decent read, and I'm inclined to suggest that if you refrain from demanding immense plots, it's actually very rewarding. A simple enough tale, but nicely told.
It's a decent read, and I'm inclined to suggest that if you refrain from demanding immense plots, it's actually very rewarding. A simple enough tale, but nicely told.
April 6, 2015
First Captain Karlaen goes on a mission whose success may remove the genetic curse plaguing the Blood Angels Chapter as a Tyranid invasion consumes the world he is on. This was a great, fast paced piece of bolter porn. Very enjoyable action reading.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews