On Saturday, the final chapter of the Aranthian Succession saga will be available to pre-order. There’s a whole lot of story to catch up on if you’ve not been following from the beginning, but if Necromunda-fever has caught you in its grasp recently – maybe due to the reveal of one Ozostium Aranthus – and you want to catch up quickly, we’ve got you covered. Leila from the Warhammer Design Studio, who helped bring the Aranthian Succession to a close, has provided us with a whirlwind retelling of the story just ahead of pre-orders. On your marks, get set… read!
Leila: In Spire of Primus, the battle for Necromunda’s throne finally reaches its thrilling conclusion, and it’s been a hell of a ride getting here.
The saga began in Cinderak Burning with Necromunda’s response to the Great Darkness – when, unbeknownst to most, the galaxy was torn asunder by the Warp. A single murder-cyborg used this event as cover to attack Lord Helmawr, the planet’s ruler.
As Lord Helmawr hung between life and death, his poisoned body stuffed into a stasis casket, order within Hive Primus quickly collapsed. Whilst the lower echelons of society were abandoned by the uphivers to defend their homes, Helmawr’s children began a war of their own for possession of the throne. Lady Haera quickly became prime candidate after slaughtering many of her siblings at her own banquet. Yet other, more sinister powers had designs on the throne of Necromunda: the mysterious Lady Credo struck a bargain with the Matriarch Primus of House Escher, pitting the House of Blades against the Helmawrs as she sought to awaken her ancient master. Prolific bounty hunter Kal Jericho also received a generous payment from the rebel lord in order to bring her the dying Lord Helmawr’s casket.
The Vaults of Temenos saw a great pilgrimage take root that wound from the battle-damaged Cinderak City all the way to Hive Temenos. It was led by the enigmatic Prophet of the Redemption, who claimed he sought the ‘Father of All Saints’.
Lady Credo subtly worked to spread his word, ensuring that by the time he reached Temenos, the Prophet had enough sympathisers to enter without problems – along with an army of Redemptionists thousands strong. It was in the hive vaults that Ozostium Aranthus, the Divine Prince and scion of the Iron Lords, was finally re-awoken.
It took Ozostium little time to sway the population with his vast psychic reach. Lady Credo and her Escher, as well as the pilgrimage and their Prophet, returned to Primus to enthrone their master. Lady Haera’s reign was to be short lived – it took everything in her power just to escape the hive with her life, and this would only be the beginning of her journey. Ozostium was determined to extinguish the Helmawr line for good.
Ruins of Jardlan followed her desperate flight across the Ash Wastes and towards Hive Secundus’ infested ruins, where one of her few family members remained.
Most recently, Haera was aided by her brother Tamino in order to retrieve a Sthenian Spyrer suit in The Book of Desolation. This suit has finally given Haera a chance to go toe-to-toe with Ozostium, its archeotech weaponry conceived centuries prior in order to dismantle an ancient enemy of House Helmawr – quite possibly the Aranthians themselves.
Will Haera Helmawr manage to reclaim the throne, or will Ozostium restore Araneus Prime? What will become of the previous Lord Helmawr? The Imperium’s attention is turning to Necromunda – and that is the last thing anyone wants.
In addition to concluding the Aranthian Succession’s ongoing narrative, Spire of Primus contains a plethora of fresh rules. A new delegation for law-abiding gangs, the Palanite Justicars, have arrived. These are the judge, jury, and executioner of an Imperial house, especially where matters of nobility and lineage are concerned. The next stage of the succession campaign pits Imperial-aligned gangs against Aranthian-aligned ones. Ozostium himself graces the battlefield for Aranthian-aligned gangs, whilst Imperial-aligned gangs can set out with Haera or design their own Spyrer leader in a rare Sthenian-pattern rig. All this and more can be discovered when The Aranthian Succession: Spire of Primus is in your hands!
Thanks, Leila! You’ll be able to preorder the new Spire of Primus book alongside Ozostium Aranthus, the Palanite Justicars, new Ironhead Squat Charter and Drill Masters, plus Underhive Hangers-on this Saturday. The Spire of Primus even contains rules for you to attempt the reconquest of Hive Primus, in a campaign that includes rules for taking over Spire Districts as you battle toward the throne.
