This is the Recap page for the Horus Heresy series. As there are many plotlines playing out within the story, the novels here are marked by what storyline they advance:
- H - Horus
- S - Shattered Legions
- V - Vulkan
- U - Ultramar
- F - Fulgrim
- M - Magnus
- L - Lorgar
- D - Dark Angels
- T - Terra
- C - Cabal
- B - Blood Angels
- I - Imperial Fists
- A - Alpha Legion
- W - White Scars
- DG - Death Guard
- WE - World Eaters
- SoT - Plots converge at the Siege of Terra
Horus Rising (Dan Abnett) - H
As the Great Crusade is coming to a close, Horus struggles to fulfill his responsibilities as recently-appointed Warmaster of the Imperium, while Captain Garviel Loken becomes part of Horus's inner circle, the advisory body known as the Mournival. During negotiations with the Interex civilization, the Word Bearers' Chaplain Erebus steals a Chaos-tainted weapon known as the Anathame, marring the negotiations and ultimately leading to their failure.
False Gods (Graham McNeill) - H
Due to Erebus' manipulations, Horus is severely wounded by the Anathame during a campaign on Davin. Further scheming leads to the Mournival taking him to a Davinite temple which Erebus claims can save him. In reality, the temple is actually in service to Chaos. Erebus takes Horus on a Vision Quest that shows him a Bad Future in which he and many of his brothers are forgotten and the Emperor is worshiped as a god. Coupled with feeding Horus' pride, Erebus convinces Horus to turn against his father and begin to plan the Heresy.Galaxy In Flames (Ben Counter) - H
Horus manages to obtain the support of three other Legions: the Emperor's Children, the World Eaters, and the Death Guard. To purge all four legions of their loyalist elements, they deploy nearly every Astartes still loyal to the Throne to the world of Istvaan III before unleashing a Depopulation Bomb on them. When it fails to kill everyone, Primarch Angron changes the plan and lands on the planet to finish the job personally. In the resulting confusion, Horus gets dragged into an attritional campaign he can't afford, and some Loyalist vessels manage to slip out of the system.Flight of the Eisenstein (James Swallow) - T/DG
One of the escaping vessels is the Death Guard frigate Eisenstein, commanded by Battle-Captain Nathaniel Garro. After rescuing a group of civilians escorted by loyalist Luna Wolf Captain Iacton Qruze, they attempt to bring word of Horus' treachery to Terra. However, they encounter heavy daemonic resistance on their way through the Warp, including the rise of the first Plague Marines. In the end, they manage to reach loyalist primarch Rogal Dorn. Though Dorn initially refuses to believe Garro, he is soon presented with incontrovertible evidence that Horus has turned on the Imperium. The VII Legion's fleet breaks into two formations, one of which returns to Terra and the other of which sets off for the Istvaan system. Garro and his fellow loyalists return to Sol, where they are imprisoned on Luna and are eventually forced to battle one of their own, who has become possessed by a Nurglite daemon known as the Lord of Flies.Fulgrim (Graham McNeill) - F/S
A prequel story of sorts, focusing on the Emperor's Children and their primarch, Fulgrim. Over the story's course, he and his legion exterminate an alien race known as the Laer. From them, Fulgrim obtains a mysterious sword known only as the Laeran Blade, which turns out to be another Evil Weapon and ends up corrupting him. He and his Legion slowly fall into the clutches of Slaanesh. In the "present", the Night Lords, Alpha Legion, Salamanders, Iron Warriors, Iron Hands and Raven Guard are sent to the bleak, volcanic world of Istvaan V to deal with the traitors. The Salamanders, Iron Hands, and Raven Guard launch the first assault, but when they attempt to fall back on the Night Lords, Alpha Legion, Word Bearers, and Iron Warriors for support, they find out the hard way that their reinforcements are on Horus' side. Together, the eight traitor legions make short work of the loyalists. The Salamanders' Primarch, Vulkan, goes missing after a nuclear warhead detonates near his position, and the Iron Hands' Primarch, Ferrus Manus, is killed by Fulgrim in a duel. The remaining Loyalists are shattered into small warbands.Descent of Angels (Michael Scanlon) - D
Another prequel story, focusing on the history of the Dark Angels Legion. The story follows a young Calibanite knight, Zahariel el'Zurias, as he joins the Order and meets a mighty warrior known as Lion El'Jonson and his best friend Luther. Jumping forward in time, the story describes the arrival of the Imperium and the formation of Dark Angels from the Order and their first campaign, ending with Luther being sent back to Caliban.Legion (Dan Abnett) - C
Yet another prequel to Istvaan V, this time focused on the Alpha Legion. This book drops the revelation that the XX Legion has not one, but two Primarchs, the identical twins Alpharius and Omegon. During one campaign, Perpetual John Grammaticus, an agent for a secret organization called the Cabal, contacts the two and brings them before the Cabal. The Cabal informs the primarchs that according to their prescience, the Emperor's victory in the Great Crusade would mean the end of humanity in the long run, while the opposite is true if Horus wins. This leads to the Alpha Legion siding with Horus under false pretenses.Battle for the Abyss (Ben Counter) - U/L
Set after Istvaan V, the story concerns the Word Bearers Legion and their Primarch Lorgar. To spearhead his attack on the Five Hundred Worlds of Ultramar, Lorgar plans on using the Furious Abyss, the biggest warship ever built. Learning about this, a group of Ultramarines pursue the ship and ultimately put it out of action, albeit at the cost of their lives.Mechanicum (Graham McNeill) - T
In search of allies against the Imperium, Horus turns to the Priesthood of Mars, a Machine Worship cult that holds control over most of the Imperium's technology. Promising free and unrestrained technological development, the traitors manage to sway part of the Mechanicum to their cause. As civil war erupts on Mars, the Imperial Fists legion is sent to restore order. While ultimately they fail, they manage to secure a huge amount of valuable war materiel and and escape to Terra.Fallen Angels (Mike Lee) - D
The story follows Two Lines, No Waiting. On one end of the galaxy, Lion el'Jonson makes a decision to stay loyal and fights the traitors for priceless archaeotech. He succeeds in securing it and, in a bit of Dramatic Irony, gives it to Perturabo to gain his trust, not knowing that his brother has already turned his coat. On the other end of the galaxy, Zahariel and Luther are embroiled in a scheme to take Caliban away from the Imperium and in the end, Luther betrays the Lion.A Thousand Sons (Graham McNeill) - M
Again a prequel story, this time focusing on the Thousand Sons. After the Edict of Nikaea is passed, forbidding the use of psychic powers, Magnus' legion, whose supernatural abilities are their greatest strength, continue to pursue sorcery in secret. In his search for knowledge, Magnus stumbles upon Horus' Vision Quest and tries to stop him from treachery. Failing that, he attempts to warn his father, but unknown to him, a fragile Warp experiment is taking place in the Imperial Palace. After his sorcery shatters the Emperor's psychic wards and leaves a Negative Space Wedgie in place of said experiment, an outraged Emperor orders Russ to bring Magnus and his legion to Terra to answer for their crime.Nemesis (James Swallow) - T/H
To counter Horus' threat, the Emperor's Number Two, Malcador the Sigillite, assembles a team of Imperial assassins from different schools, intending to send them against the traitorous primarch. However, at the same time, the Word Bearers send a highly-specialized assassin to kill the Emperor. Neither force manages to reach their targets and in the end, they annihilate each other.The First Heretic (Aaron Dembski-Bowden) - L
Guess what - a prequel story! This time it's the Word Bearers who get their Day in the Limelight. After the legion is humiliated and rebuked for their Emperor-worship at Monarchia, their Primarch, Lorgar, is convinced by his trusted aides Kor Phaeron and Erebus to convert to Chaos. After a pilgrimage to the Eye of Terror, leading to part of the Legion - the Gal Vorbak - getting possessed, Lorgar begins undercover preparations for the Heresy. The story ends, yet again, with the Istvaan V massacre.Prospero Burns (Dan Abnett) - M
The story begins with a short prequel focusing on the Vlka Fenryka (Space Wolves) legion and Leman Russ, then jumping forward to the point where they get the order to arrest Magnus. However, Horus tampers with the orders and "capture" turns to "kill". While Magnus wants to surrender to save his legion and home planet of Prospero, his captains convince him otherwise and Chaos manipulations lead to open war between the two legions. Prospero is razed to the ground, Leman Russ breaks Magnus' back and the sorcerer Primarch makes a last-minute deal with Chaos God Tzeentch to teleport his survivors to another planet in the Eye of Terror in exchange for his services.The Outcast Dead (Graham McNeill) - T
Following Istvaan V and Magnus' destructive visit to Terra, an astropath named Kai Zulane is implanted with knowledge of how the Heresy will end, with a healthy service of madness mixed in, making him unable to spit it out. After falling in with the eponymous group of loyalists from traitor legions, he finally manages to reach the Emperor and reveal to him that the Master of Mankind will not survive the Heresy. However, the Emperor claims he already knows that.Deliverance Lost (Gav Thorpe) - S/C
Corvus Corax and his surviving Raven Guard are rescued from Istvaan V. Corax goes to Terra in search of a way to rebuild his Legion. The Emperor gives him knowledge of how to create a full-grown Astartes within months, but Omegon tampers with the project, adding daemon blood which turns the Raptors into horribly deformed mutants, which are nevertheless incorporated into the Guard. At the same time, the Alphas stage an uprising on the Ravens' homeworld Deliverance and try to steal the tech, but are isolated and eliminated, although the Raptors technology is no longer usable. Left with no other options, Corax turns to guerrilla war.Know No Fear (Dan Abnett) - U/L
Still ignorant of the Heresy, the Ultramarines are preparing to accompany the Word Bearers on campaign against Orks. Lorgar shows his true colours in a devastating attack aimed to kill the muster world of Calth and use its death to fuel a Warp storm which will cut Ultramar off from the rest of the Imperium, preventing their involvement in the war. While the Battle of Calth is technically a victory for the Ultramarines, Calth is destroyed, 150,000 Ultramarines and many millions of Imperial soldiers and civilians are killed, and the Ruinstorm is raised, severing them from the rest of the Imperium.Fear To Tread (James Swallow) - B
Also ignorant of Horus's treachery, Primarch Sanguinius of the Blood Angels is sent by the Warmaster with his legion to the remote Signus Cluster. The trap is baited with a promise that xenos in the system may know a way to stop a flaw that is afflicting the IX Legion. Signus Prime turns out to be a Chaos trap designed to turn the Blood Angels traitor by bringing their flaw to the front. Though hundreds of Blood Angels are killed, Sanguinius and his sons are able to avert disaster at the last minute. The Legion sets off for Terra in response to the summons of Rogal Dorn, but they become trapped in the Ruinstorm until their Navigators spy a psychic beacon and follow it to the heart of Ultramar.Angel Exterminatus (Graham McNeill) - F
Fulgrim and Perturabo, together with their legions, enter the Eye of Terror in search of the eponymous ancient technology, while pursued by Eldar and a ragged band of loyalist survivors. It turns out to be Fulgrim's ploy to ascend to a Daemon Prince, nearly killing Perturabo as a result.Betrayer (Aaron Dembski-Bowden) - U/L/WE
The Word Bearers and World Eaters rampage across Ultramar, laying waste to the Five Hundred Worlds. Angron is growing increasingly insane and unstable as a result of his brain implants, which are slowly killing him. As the two traitors square off against Roboute Guilliman on Angron's homeworld of Nuceria, Lorgar decides to save his brother by transforming him into a Daemon Prince. In the end, the so-called Shadow Crusade's main thrust is stopped, but war still rages across Ultramar.Vulkan Lives (Nick Kyme) - V/S/C
In the aftermath of Istvaan V, Vulkan is discovered miraculously alive - unfortunately, it's the traitors who do the discovering, and Vulkan is captured by the Night Lords. Their primarch, Konrad Curze, proceeds to make his life a living hell in an effort to break him. It turns out that Vulkan is another Perpetual and thus will not stay dead. Meanwhile, Vulkan's equerry, Artellus Numeon, attempts to fight his way to freedom and John Grammaticus tries to obtain a potent weapon with power to kill the Emperor. In the end, Vulkan escapes, Numeon is the sole survivor of his force, and Grammaticus obtains the fulgurite, a chunk of the Emperor's psychic essence crystallized into a solid form.Scars - (Chris Wraight) W/DG
Yet again, a legion doesn't know about the civil war, only this time, it's the White Scars. After a successful campaign against Orks, they are met with a horde of contradicting information and pleas for assistance from both sides awaiting them. While a secret conspiracy within the Scars plans to eradicate those in favour of siding with the Imperium, the Khan sets off to Prospero to find out what's happened. After having a spirit talk with a shard of Magnus' soul, fighting Mortarion and quelling a rebellion within his own legion, he decides to side with his father and prepares to embark on campaign against the traitors.Unremembered Empire (Dan Abnett) - U/B/D/V/C
Crisis Crossover! As Ultramar is cut off from the Imperium, Roboute Guilliman, not knowing whether Terra still stands, opts to start his own Imperium Secundus, but hesitates to become the new Emperor. Meanwhile, Vulkan, fresh from his escape, crash-lands on Macragge, Ultramar's capital, but turns out to have been rendered completely insane by Curze's torture. Lion El'Jonson arrives with the bulk of his legion and reunites with Guilliman, but unbeknownst to the Ultramarines, the Lion's ship is carrying Curze, who manages to escape and goes on a rampage through the Fortress of Hera, killing Ultramarines and Dark Angels left and right and nearly taking out both of his brothers. Vulkan breaks out of confinement and attempts to kill him, but John Grammaticus stabs him with the fulgurite, seemingly killing him for good. In the end, Curze escapes and Sanguinius arrives with his fleet. The latter is crowned Regent of Imperium Secundus.Vengeful Spirit (Graham McNeill) - H
Seeking to obtain the power to take on his father, Horus sets out to the world of Molech, where the local rulers are in the process of falling to Slaanesh. Meanwhile, led by long-unseen Captain Loken, now a Knight-Errant, Malcador's elite force of Space Marines is infiltrating the Sons of Horus to enable Leman Russ to attack the Primarch. Horus enters the Warp, gains the power he needs, and then annihilates Molech. The Knights-Errant fail their mission, losing some of their own.The Damnation of Pythos (David Annandale) - S
A group of Istvaan V refugees sets up a base on the small Death World of Pythos. While fending off attacks by its vicious inhabitants, they take in a small group of refugees, but Chaos forces are working to destroy them. As for the rest, let's just say that this novel has a Downer Ending even by Horus Heresy standards.Deathfire (Nick Kyme) - V
Having been captured by Word Bearers, Captain Artellus Numeon of the Salamanders is rescued by the Ultramarines and sent to Macragge, where he's forced to assume command of his fellow survivors and learns of his primarch's death. Unable to accept this, he decides to take the body to the Salamanders' homeworld of Nocturne, which means besting the Ruinstorm. During their travel, the Salamanders face multiple mortal and Chaos threats, but in the end find themselves on the edge of the Sol system. However, Numeon decides to get to Nocturne at all costs. Upon burying Vulkan there, hoping for the Primarch's rebirth, Numeon keeps on visiting his grave and finally sacrifices himself to Mount Deathfire, which finally brings Vulkan back and seemingly sane.Pharos (Guy Haley) - U/B
A group of rogue Night Lords stumbles upon the planet of Sotha, home to the psychic beacon known as the Pharos. Upon realizing that the Pharos is the keystone of the Imperium Secundus, the Night Lords decide to take it - unfortunately for them, it's being defended by the loyalist Iron Warrior Barabas Dantioch and the Imperial Fist Captain Alexis Polux, two of the best defensive tacticians in Ultramar. Meanwhile on Macragge, Curze, having been in hiding for the last two years, decides to have a "chat" with Sanguinius. Thanks to the brothers' precognitive powers, neither wins their duel, but before his escape, Curze manages to drop a hint of the Emperor's survival and take out most of the Sanguinary Guard. On Sotha, the Night Lords manage to capture the Pharos, but are forced to flee when Dantioch deliberately overloads the beacon at the cost of his life. In the cold, lightless expanse between galaxies, the psychic flare caused by the Pharos awakens a vast and terrible intelligence, which will come to plague the Imperium ten thousand years hence: the Tyranid hive fleets.Path of Heaven (Chris Wraight) - T/DG
After four years of gruelling fighting and their enemies closing the net, the White Scars decide that their time is running out - they must either find a way to get back to Terra or die trying. However, there's no safe passage through the Warp, and both the Death Guard and the Emperor's Children are hot on their heels. Luckily, the Scars discover an ancient station that was designed to access the Webway, a network of tunnels in the deepest Warp, and, via a Heroic Sacrifice or ten, manage to activate it and escape in the nick of time, finally arriving home to bolster Terra's defenses. Leman Russ confronts the Khan, still enraged that the V Legion left him out to dry at the Alaxxes Nebula, but relents when the Khan defiantly proclaims that no one will stop him from standing in defense of Terra and the Imperium.Praetorian of Dorn (John French) - I/A -
The Alpha Legion attacks the Sol system in earnest, sowing chaos in preparation for the Warmaster's assault. They trigger riots, anarchy, and civil disturbances across the system, and even manage to infiltrate the Imperial Palace. Rogal Dorn orders the head of his personal guard to assemble a specialized team to hunt down and defeat the Alpha Legion infiltrators, one of whom is revealed to be Alpharius himself. The two sides play cat-and-mouse across the entire system, culminating in the Battle of Pluto. The Fists are able to outguess and outmaneuver the Alpha Legion, and in an unexpected twist, Dorn kills Alpharius in hand-to-hand combat. Omegon's left to pick up the pieces and assume the mantle of his twin, in a bitter jest.Angels of Caliban (Gav Thorpe) - D -
Master of Mankind (Aaron Dembski-Bowden) - T
While the Heresy rages across the galaxy, the Custodes and the Sisters of Silence are fighting a savage and unrelenting war within the Eldar Webway to defend Terra itself from daemonic incursion. Ultimately, they are unsuccessful, forcing the Emperor to seal off the Imperial Webway, leaving him trapped on the Golden Throne.The Crimson King (Graham McNeill) - M -
The Thousand Sons embark on a desperate quest to reassemble the fragmented soul of their primarch, and Magnus is forced to make his decision and side with Horus.Ruinstorm (David Annandale) - U/D/B -
Sanguinius, Guilliman, and the Lion, now aware that the Emperor is still alive, brave the Ruinstorm to return to Terra. They break through the storm and arrive at Davin, the starting point of the Heresy. They decide to bomb the planet to dust, opening a path to Terra. Guilliman and the Lion draw decoy duty to allow Sanguinius to get to Terra to meet his destiny. Konrad has a freakout when things don't seem to be in line with the future he envisioned, and ends the novel jettisoned into space while in a stasis pod, but only after being given a hope spot.Old Earth (Nick Kyme) - V/S/C -
Vulkan finds his way home to Terra, accompanied by an honour guard of Salamanders. Along the way, he encounters a Great Unclean One near Commorragh and wipes it from existence, as well as putting an end to a mockery of Ferrus Manus. This novel also brings Shadrak Meduson's story to an end, after he launches an assault on a Sons of Horus vessel and is captured and executed. Also, Eldrad Ulthran wipes out the Cabal and their human proxies with the help of a semi-loyal Word Bearer.Wolfsbane (Guy Haley) - H -
Leman Russ and the VI Legion ride to confront Horus. First, however, they stop off at Fenris, where Russ undertakes a Vision Quest into the depths of the Warp. After receiving the knowledge he needs, he takes his legion to the Trisolian system, which has just been captured by the Warmaster and his forces. Russ and his Wolves board the Vengeful Spirit, and the two primarchs engage in a duel. Russ is able to wound his brother with the Spear of Russ, a weapon given to him by the Emperor which he has always feared. The Spear severs a fragment of Horus's soul and cleanses it of Chaotic corruption, and Russ attempts to use this opening to talk his brother down. Horus promptly beats him into a coma, and the Wolves retreat in disorder. Meanwhile, in the chaos of the battle, a loyalist Mechanicum adept by the name of Belisarius Cawl takes the opportunity to steal his mentor's knowledge of cloning and escape.
Slaves to Darkness (John French) = H/L/WE/F
The wound Russ gave Horus has festered, weakening the Warmaster enough that he falls into a coma, forcing Maloghurst to step up to leading the Traitors. While Horus' equerry struggles to hold the XVI Legion together, Lorgar attempts to usurp command of the traitor host, realizing that Horus will ultimately lead them to failure. Ultimately, Maloghurst sacrifices his life to restore Horus, who banishes Lorgar to the Eye of Terror, after which Lupercal lays out the final plans for the coming Solar War.
Titandeath (Guy Haley) - H/T/I/B/W
Turning back the clock a few weeks, Horus and Dorn's forces clash at Beta-Garmon, with both sides sending out the majority of their Titans to try and bleed the other dry, with Dorn also hoping to buy time for Guilliman and his reinforcements to reach Terra. Despite intervention by the Blood Angels and White Scars, Beta-Garmon ultimately falls, but while Horus is touring the newly conquered planet, the wound Russ gave him reopens and he collapses in full view of both sides, restoring loyalist morale.
The Buried Dagger (James Swallow) - T/DG
Trapped within the Warp, Mortarion and Calas Typhon go through their own pasts while trying to find a way to escape their predicament and meet the rest of the Traitors in the Solar System. Over the course of their conversation, it becomes apparent that Typhon has betrayed Mortarion, having long since fallen into the sway of Nurgle, and is the one who trapped the Death Guard in the Warp. Indomitable will broken at last, Mortarion surrenders to Nurgle, becoming a Daemon Prince, and finally arrives at his destination. Meanwhile, Malcador leads his Knights Errant to try and unearth a plot hatched by Erebus. When the plot is finally dealt with, Malcador brings the remaining Knights before the Emperor, where they become the founders of the Grey Knights. Loken, however, refuses to join the group, and with the Emperor's approval, joins Garro and Helig Gallor in standing on Terra against Horus. The Horus Heresy has come to an end... but the Siege of Terra is about to begin...
Coming up:
- Nightfall (Aaron Dembski-Bowden) - Continuation of Curze's arc, previously played mostly through short stories and audiodramas.
