  The Warhammer Horror label has been more surprising than many expected in how successfully it has emphasised the capacity for horror stories within Games Workshop's fantasy and science fiction universes. Whereas the previous anthology, Maledictions, took a more scattershot approach, consisting of various, unrelated stories from numerous different settings, mythologies etc, The Wicked and the Damned is a far more concerted and considered effort, incorporating three larger tales, all of which are thematically related and framed beneath an over-arching narrative that is resolved at the anthology's conclusion. Of significance from the beginning is how powerfully the book establishes atmosphere: with three seemingly unrelated characters lurching into sudden consciousness in a place they don't recognise, not knowing how they arrived there or why, they are obliged to recall and recount the circumstances that led them to their plight, each of which becomes one of the three tales that forms the body of the text. From the first instance, the book demonstrates a command of atmospheric and emotive description without falling into the trap of being too ludicrously gothic or overblown (which often characterises fiction set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe). Fans of the game and its mythology may also be surprised at how low-key the science fiction elements are; the book pares away the more conspicuous, science fiction and supernatural subjects (for the most part), focusing instead on the psychologies -and neuroses- of its core characters. Far from being an error, this is an enormous -and deliberate- strength of the book, in that it doesn't assume the reader already knows these universes and is familiar with their subjects, themes etc and thereby doesn't alienate those who have been attracted to it from outside the purview of the gaming culture. It stands first and foremost as a work of horror, that simply happens to be set within the Warhammer 40,000 universe. Even in that, it very rarely makes itself overt, each story taking pains to draw the worlds in which they occur and establish what parameters they operate under without too much oblique reference to the myriad forms of esoterica that constitute the wider universe. The first story in the collection, Josh Reynold's The Beast in the Trenches, is arguably the strongest of all, in that it is a complete work that could exist separately from its relationship to the other two or the over-arching narrative. Likewise, it is a rare example of a story set in this universe that doesn't necessarily have to be: A down and dirty, execrably pungent examination of trench warfare and the psychological effects that such environments have on individuals, the story follows one Commissar Valemar, a man who has nothing in life other than his duty, the service he has been conditioned to fulfil, which he does with increasing zeal and erraticism as the story escalates. Told from the perspectve of Valemar himself, the story presents an uncomfortably intimate take on a the psychopathy that military structures like the Imperium necessarily cultivate in their converts and how little life accounts for next to the insistence of the sacred. Valemar himself is a paranoid, mercilless creature whose murderousness towards his own people is emphasised by a strange phenomena that may or may not be a matter of delusion on his part (Valemar becomes convinced that some force or unseen influence is moving amongst the soldiery it is his business to keep in line, slowly eroding stability and the structure of command. Anyone he suspects of being prey to this influence -marked by the shifting of their eyes from their natural colour to a bright blue- he dispatches often without any wider cause or concern, thus becoming the very destabilising influence it is his sacred duty to keep at bay). On top of the naturally hideous conditions within Astra Militaria trench warfare, there is an increasing suspicion that the entire war they are fighting may in fact be a matter of bureaucratic oversight, a mistake brought about by the sprawling, ungainly systems that dictate their fates. In that, the story not only explores the intimate horror of the individual, but also the wider disturbia of war dictated by politics and enshrined systems. For all of the suffering Valemar and his fellows endure, for all of the sicknes, starvation, the endless bombardments and terrible conditions, they may not be serving any purpose at all, and may in fact have been long abandoned by the administration that mistakenly established the conflict in the first place. The story is an intimate look at a mind breaking down under impossible pressures, whilst everyone and everything around it corrodes in their own peculiar ways. It serves as a parable to the overt bleakness of the setting whilst also managing to sidestep some of the obvious pitfalls of occurring within that universe (for example, the story never once makes the mistake of becoming too overt in its speculative nature. This is a species of trench-horror that could fit into almost any collection that incorporates the subject). Phil Kelley's The Woman in The Walls, by contrast, is redolent of Edgar Allen Poe's The Tell-Tale Heart, in that it explores the innate consequences of ambition and envy so strong that they result in murder, the protagonist a narcissistically ambitious Captain within the Astra Militarium, who engages in the conspiratorial murder of the one she considers to be her greatest competition when it comes to advancement through the ranks. As a result, she finds herself haunted and harassed by escalating phenomena, a creature that manifests primarily as a shadow, but whose influence upon the physical world is brutally tangible. As her ambitions dissolve around her, so too does her sanity, leaving her not in the position of influence she craves but the depths of disgrace. Unlike Valemar in the previous tale, whose brutalities and incipient psychopathy are somewhat ameliorated by the fact of his diseased mind, here we find a far more straight-forward tale of wickedness becoming its own foil, a vengeful haunting that derives from guilt and cruelty, though it is still somewhat difficult not to feel some sympathy for the protagonist, given the circumstances in which she finds herself (murder as a means of ascending the ranks or securing position in this setting is hardly unusual, and is practically encouraged in certain arenas). This story has more of an overtly supernatural edge and influence, in that the spectre which recurs throughout is clearly real; not merely a projection of a diseased mind, not some fevered hallucination, but an actual manifestation of guilt, violence and horror. In this, the story also owes a little more to the established metaphysics of the universe, as the spectre is, ostensibly, a product of The Warp, a factor that only established fans of the mythology will entirely understand. In structure, it is far more overtly gothic than the others, deliberately conforming to a template that, despite its obvious and overt science fiction setting, is highly redolent of that tradition. Fans of gothic horror will recognise the type of story almost immediately, though this familarity is not necessarily a negative. If anything, it demonstrates the variety of forms and traditions that can occur in this setting and how it serves as an arena for myriad types of storytelling. The final tale in the collection is by far the most surreal and overtly Lovecraftian in nature (Lovecraft being a key influence upon the Warhammer 40,000 universe itself): David Annandale's The Faith and The Flesh features an Imperial Missionary who is struggling with his faith, who believes himself to be a fraudulent minister, as, not only does he harbour sincere -and highly heretical- doubts concerning his vocation, he has also fallen in love with a woman he knows he cannot have and has no future with, which leads him to a condition of wanton despair in which he accidentally unleashes a thing of sublime horror, a creature of metaphysical insanity that reflects his sins back at him and exaggerates them beyond count or comprehension. This story features the most overtly supernatural and surreal elements of all, the creature that is unleashed a thing of Cronenbergian, body-horror insanity, the lurid descriptions of its unlikely metamorphoses redolent of the elaborate, anatomical horrors to be found in the pages of Lovecraft, though somewhat more protean, its effects upon living humanity vile and horrific beyond imagining. Like the other protagonists, the missionary finds himself at the mercy of his own demons (or “daemons” in this instance) made manifest, his internal strife made external then rendered as monstrosity or spectre. This is clearly a key theme of the collection, and the Warhammer 40,000 universe is the perfect setting for such explorations: factors such as the aforementioned “Warp” (an alternative reality that exists alongside material creation, in which emotions and thoughts and inspirations and horrors take on physical form and even accrue intelligence) are tailor-made to render internal examinations external, to make dreams and nightmares physical reality. The innate disturbance of that is played with beautifully in this collection, as are the traditional tropes of gothic horror. Unlike the previous collection, Maledictions, this work will likely appeal far beyond the traditional fanbase of the games and their universes, tailored to trespass on other arenas and draw other eyes. Fans of horror in various forms will likely find a lot to gnaw on here, as will those drawn to fiction of a quieter, more intensely psychological quality than most Warhammer 40,000 specimens. There is a great deal here which meditates upon human misery and suffering, that involves itself with psychosis, neurosis and paranoia of various kinds. The tales are generally well-written and hurtle along at breakneck paces, though the book does peak with its opening title. The following stories, whilst fascinating in their own ways, don't necessarily incorporate the same texture and pungency or psychological complexity as The Beast in the Trenches. There's also a tonal similarity between the stories that, whilst it lends the collection consistency, might also prove to be too dour or depressing for some readers. As for the over-arcing narrative, it concludes quite abruptly after the third tale, leaving a sense that perhaps more could have been made of the mystery that has drawn these three profoundly traumatised characters together. For my part, I would sincerely like to read more of Commissar Valemar and his encroaching madness (though the likelihood of that after these stories seems slim), if not more of the hideous conditions within the Astra Militaria and the natural states of neurosis, delusion and psychosis they foster. That said, this is a fantastic introduction to Warhammer Horror, and will hopefully demonstrate to horror readers the breadth and potential of Games Workshop's worlds for exploring the subjects and imagery they enjoy. Whilst such readers will be eminently familiar with the types of story on display, that familiarity in context with the unusual setting lends them degrees of novelty they might not otherwise have. Beyond that, the work is impressive in the depths of human filth it is prepared to rake. Given that this is a derivative of a science fiction universe for a table-top miniatures wargame, it dives deep into the sewer of human sub-consciousness, daring to comment on how war and oppressive theology or rigid hierarchies cultivate the very worst in us and even enshrine it as laudible or sacred. My sincere hope for the collection is that it serves as a two way portal: as an introduction for readers of horror short fiction to the hideous, grim-dark dystopianism of Warhammer 40,000 but also as a means by which fans of the game and its universe might trespass out beyond its bounds into heretofore unexplored territories.  The Wicked and the Damned A Warhammer Horror portmanteau Drawn together by mysterious circumstances, three strangers meet in the mists of a desolate cemetery world. As they relate their stories, the threads of fate are drawn around them, and destiny awaits… READ IT BECAUSE It's a classic horror portmanteau comprising three Warhammer 40,000 novellas, each with its own distinct feel – a ghost story, a monster saga and a psychological horror tale – that all draw together through the terrifying linking story. THE STORY On a misty cemetery world, three strangers are drawn together through mysterious circumstances. Each of them has a tale to tell of a narrow escape from death. Amid the toll of funerary bells and the creep and click of mortuary-servitors, the truth is confessed. But whose story can be trusted? Whose recollection is warped, even unto themselves? For these are strange stories of the uncanny, the irrational and the spine-chillingly frightening, where horrors abound and the dark depths of the human psyche is unearthed. Written by Josh Reynolds, David Annandale and Phil Kelly   Comments are closed.
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