The Beast Arises Books

It is the thirty-second millennium and the Imperium is at peace. The Traitor Legions of Chaos are but a distant memory and the many alien races that have long plagued mankind are held in check by the Space Marines. When a mission to exterminate one such xenos breed on the world of Ardamantua draws in more of their forces, the Imperial Fists abandon the walls of Terra for the first time in more than a thousand years. And when another, greater, foe strikes, even the heroic sons of Rogal Dorn may be powerless against it. The Beast Arises… and it is mighty. Read it because It's the start of a brand new (and more epic than the most epic thing you can think of) event series from Black Library. It's a brand new story set in an unexplored era of Imperial history and as well as showing the entire Imperial Fists chapter in action against an ork invasion of staggering scale, it gives us a look at Terra itself, the machinations of the High Lords and the start of the Imperium's slide into the dystopian horror we all know and love. Also, did we mention orks? Lots of orks. Seriously, so many orks.

After centuries of peace, the Imperium is thrown into panic as human worlds everywhere are menaced by orks. In a relentless tide of slaughter, ork attack moons destroy planet after planet with gravity weapons of unstoppable power. On Terra, the High Lords are paralysed by the scale of the threat, and fail to take any effective action. With entire Space Marine Chapters missing, or known to have been wiped out, does anyone have the will and the power to rise to the Imperium’s defence? Read it because It's a snapshot of the battles that rage across the Imperium as the orks attack in force. It also continues the story of the High Lords as they try to hold the Imperium together... as long as it suits their own interests, of course. And it introduces characters who're going to be very important to the future of the series... if they survive the battles to come.

As ork ships lay waste to world after world, heading inexorably towards Terra, Imperial citizens despair. The High Lords become desperate to prove that victory is possible, no matter the cost. A massive Navy fleet is assembled – their mission to make a definitive strike against the orks at Port Sanctus, an area of enemy-held space. But when the Imperial armada arrives, they find themselves outclassed and outmanoeuvred – can human courage and faith possibly prevail against such terrible odds? Read it because It's the first attempt by the Imperium to make a definitive strike against the orks, and it creates a novel full of naval action, coupled with Inquisitorial action as a cadre of agents arrive on Terra to bring the High Lords into line…

Despite the Imperium’s best attempts to forestall the ork plague that is wreaking havoc in human space, an ork attack moon now hangs over Terra. As its malevolent presence gazes down at the Imperial Palace, terrified citizens run riot in the streets. In a last-ditch attempt to destroy the attack moon, a proletarian crusade is launched. Thousands of ships large and small head to the moon carrying billions of citizens, all eager to take the fight to the enemy. It seems the attack has a chance of success as the invasion force lands safely, but the orks have yet to spring their trap... Read it because The Imperium makes an audacious attempt to defend the Throneworld... and interesting things are happening elsewhere as well, as the Iron Warriors find themselves in the path of the orks, and the Imperial Fists' successor Chapters fall back on a plan left behind by Rogal Dorn himself... but just what are they up to and will the High Lords allow it?

The Imperium’s situation has never been more grim – an ork attack moon hangs over Terra, and ork armadas ravage human space. To make matters even worse, eldar strike at the heart of the Imperial Palace, forcing humanity’s defenders to fight on two fronts at once. Though it seems nothing can stop the orks – neither brute force, science, nor faith – an unlikely alliance in the furthest reaches of space uncovers the first clue how to defeat the greenskins. The Adeptus Astartes now face an almost impossible task: taking news of this discovery back to Terra through a galaxy teeming with orks. Read it because Mysteries abound as the eldar make their presence felt in the midst of humanity's war for survival. And fans of the Imperial Fists and Iron Warriors will be thrilled – or appalled – to see rivalries (sort of) put aside as loyalists and traitors work together against their common foe...

Paralysed by the continued ork invasion of Imperial space, the rulers of Terra continue to fight among themselves. Finally losing patience with the High Council, Koorland – the last surviving Imperial Fist – ousts the Lord Commander and seizes control. Elsewhere, the Fists Exemplar are forced by circumstance to fight alongside the Iron Warriors. Where will such an alliance lead – can a Traitor Legion ever be trusted? Read it because It's a turning point, in more ways than one, and introduces not only a potential solution to the ork problem the Imperium's experiencing, but a major new threat that they'll need to deal with as well...

Tearing itself apart from within, the Imperium is still virtually powerless to resist the ork advance. When the Adeptus Mechanicus reveal they have discovered the orks' point of origin, the Adeptus Astartes start to gather their forces for a massive assault on their enemy's home world. But what the Imperial forces need is a figurehead, a hero from legend to lead them - a primarch. Meanwhile, on the planet Caldera, a mighty armoured warrior fights tirelessly against the orks. Is he the saviour the Imperium seeks?

The Imperium has be brought to the edge of extinction by an ork invasion of unprecedented scale and depth. Piecemeal strikes against the invaders prove ineffective - for every ork fleet destroyed, five more appear. The only solution is to find and kill the orks' warlord - the Great Beast. Surely if its leader is killed, the greenskins' empire will fall apart in agony of infighting and confusion. Lord Commander Koorland assembles a mighty army, but when they arrives on the orks home world, the forces of the Imperium discover they have disastrously underestimated the might and ingenuity of their enemy. Read it because A primarch, the last Imperial Fist and the biggest Imperial army since the Heresy walk into the ork homeworld… but it's no joke. This is the big one, and drama is guaranteed.

The attempt to hunt down and kill the orks’ leader has ended in catastrophe. The Imperium is reeling from the loss of so many beloved heroes, and the military forces of mankind have been reduced to tatters. Koorland now knows that brute force is not the answer – but how else can the orks be fought? In a radical move, he creates small, mixed Chapter units of Adeptus Astartes – compact teams that will hit the enemy hard and fast, and with deadly accuracy. With armour painted the black of mourning, the new strike teams become known as the Deathwatch. But will this be enough to tip the balance, or does the Imperium need to discover other new means to defeat the orks? Read it because It chronicles the birth of a beloved Warhammer 40,000 force and shows the Imperium in transition, finally learning from their mistakes in order to move forward to – hopefully – victory.

As the ork menace ravages the galaxy, the Imperium faces its darkest hour. Its fleets are in ruins, its armies devastated – amongst them the noble Imperial Fists – and even a primarch of myth has fallen against the Beast. As brute force fails, Koorland resorts to increasingly desperate tactics against the greenskins. A final hope lies in deploying the controversial Deathwatch and the Sisters of Silence in a deft strike at the heart of the ork empire. As the situation grows more dire, Koorland must live up to the symbol he has become as the last son of Dorn or all of humanity will be doomed. Read it because It's the true turning point of The Beast Arises series, when everything changes. We won't say any more: just read it and see.

The Imperium’s attempts to defeat the ork menace seem doomed to failure; it is only a matter of time before the greenskins triumph, and mankind is wiped from the face of the galaxy. Yet there is some cause for hope – the psychic weakness of the orks has been discovered, and a few Sisters of Silence yet survive. Supported by the full military might and technology of the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Space Marines head to the orks’ home world one final time. This time there will be no retreat, no surrender. They must succeed… or die in the attempt. Read it because It's the penultimate instalment in The Beast Arises series and the stakes couldn't be higher… We'd love to say more, but it might spoil the massive events that have happened so far, and those still to come! Just read it and see for yourself.

Across the length and breadth of the galaxy, humankind celebrates its salvation, and relishes the prospect of a return to peace. But the war against the orks has riven the political bedrock of the Imperium, exposing its rotten core. One man, one powerful man, decides he has the solution, and launches a campaign of destruction so terrible that thousands of years later his actions will still be viewed with horror. Read it because Throughout the series, the political machinations have been as fascinating and compelling as the all-out action – and now it's time for that to take centre stage as assassination and plotting takes over from brutal combat.