Dyson Sphere : Starmap Coords x=1780, y=1201, possible location of the C'Tan Outsider
Warhammer 40,000, the C'tan (also called "Star Gods"; in fact, C'tan is said to translate as "Star God". The word can be pronounced in various ways - "Ka-tan", "say-tan", "si-tan" or "see-tan") are incredibly powerful, god-like entities which feed on the energy provided by stars and the 'life force' energy of living creatures (souls). They were discovered by the Necrontyr, who subsequently forged bodies for the C'tan out of their unique "living metal", Necrodermis. The C'tan would later play a major role in the epic War in Heaven, and would cause the transformation of the Necrontyr into the race now known as the Necrons.The Last of the C'tan
The known remaining C'tan are:
[edit] The Void Dragon
It is hinted that he rests on Mars. He was badly injured by a battle with a force that contained a Talisman of Vaul. It is also speculated that at least some members of the Adeptus Mechanicus worship him as the embodiment of the Machine God and are working to revive him. Codex: Necrons mentions a 'darker entity' was deified on Mars during the Dark Age of Technology, suggesting the Necrons and the Void Dragon were openly worshipped; however this information would have been covered up since the Adeptus Mechanicus rejoined the Imperium of Man. The Void Dragon is considered the most technologically advanced of the C'tan, its personal Necron armies having an abundance of more advanced Necron constructs, as well as wargear items such as Lightning Fields. It is possible he may have pioneered such Necron advancements as the Great Work, and subsequently the development of Pariahs. In the early history of the Iron Hands chapter, it is hinted that the Primarch Ferrus Manus did battle with the Dragon or a Necron construct, being referred to as the "Great Silver Wyrm" which had liquid metal skin. This story also gives a hint as to how a backwater imperial world gained advanced technologies, and explains how the connection between the cult mechanicus and the Iron Hands was made.
[edit] The Outsider
The Outsider was tricked by the Laughing God into devouring hundreds of its brother C'tan, from which it was driven mad by the countless C'tan essences still swirling inside of it. It is hinted that The Outsider currently resides in a Dyson Sphere which it was trapped in by the Laughing God.
There are records that tell the tale of one of the Great Dances of the Harlequins. The dance features a Yngir (C'tan) who, it quickly becomes apparent, is in fact the Outsider. During the dance the Outsider and some lesser Yngir feast on the Harlequins until they have "killed" all of them. Then the Outsider kills the Laughing God, only to soon discover that in fact its victim was one of its brother C'tan and the Laughing God is still alive. The Outsider attempts to kill the Laughing God again, and the sequence of events repeats many times, until all the other C'tan have been killed. This perhaps suggests that the reason the Outsider was driven insane by consuming its brothers while other C'tan remained sane after the same act is that the Outsider wasn't aware of what it was doing at the time, and later it was haunted by it for this reason. So it is quite possible that the "fragments of its victims" are, in reality, simply a metaphor for a kind of "conscience" which drives the Outsider "insane" with guilt about the things that it has done. The dance continues with the Laughing God finally appearing and the outsider dwindling to a "dark orb." The Harlequins rejoice, but just before the dance ends, the orb begins to fracture, suggesting that at some point the Outsider will return. [1]
[edit] The Nightbringer
The first C'tan awakened by the Necrontyr, spawned from their own sun. It is known as Kaelis Ra in the Eldar language, literally 'destroyer of light'. It was once powerful enough to impress its image as that of the Angel of Death and the sentient species fear of death on the psyche of the younger races, except the Krork; but it was almost destroyed when the Laughing God revealed a weak spot in its defence to Khaine. The battle between Khaine and Nightbringer was titanic, but Khaine proved the victor - however, destroying his foe's living metal body ultimately proved a hollow victory; while the Necrodermis was destroyed, the C'tan itself was unharmed and wreaked a terrible vengeance upon the Eldar in return.
Eventually the Nightbringer went to the planet Pavonis and rested. It had almost starved after the Deceiver disclosed its location to the remaining races of the galaxy, who assembled an armada to destroy its ship, and cut off its food supply during its long sleep. This was somewhat successful - the Nightbringer was greatly weakened, and its dreaded ship was lost in the Warp but not yet destroyed. Space Marines under the command of Captain Uriel Ventris forced the Nightbringer to retreat from Pavonis after its reawakening by procuring the beacon that can recall his ship and threatening to destroy it. Rather than risk the permanent loss of the terrifying ship, the Nightbringer left Pavonis.
[edit] The Deceiver
This entity, named Mephet'ran, the Messenger, by the Necrontyr was the first C'tan to communicate directly with the Necrontyr. Also known as the Jackal God, by the Eldar race, it has journeyed the galaxy since its reawakening, and has been weaving plots and subtle machinations ever since, including the destruction of most of the Eldar weapons known as the Talismans of Vaul (The Blackstone Fortresses), in the Gothic War which it orchestrated. The Deceiver is physically the weakest of the C'tan, but its incredible cunning compensates for this. It is often considered as the equal and opposite of the Chaos God Tzeentch, both favoring highly involved long term planning and cunning, one representing mastery of the warp, one representing mastery of 'normal' space.
The character known as Cypher is known to have battled this Star God while looking for some ancient treasure. He plunged his C'tan Phase Knife into the hide of the creature, but was unable to harm it as the Deceiver absorbed the knife.
Edited by user Wednesday, April 16, 2008 6:36:34 AM(UTC)
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