BATTLEFLEET GOTHIC & IMPERIAL NAVY | WARHAMMER 40,000 Lore / History

[Music] [Music] all eyes turned to a sector of imperial space known as the gothic sector it's critical relevance can never be understated for it was here that mankind discovered what would be known as black stone fortresses gargantuan ancient relics of a war greater than has ever been seen before or since the war in heaven the war that took place far out of the memory of mortal creatures between the old ones and the coton the black stone fortress weapons were meant to aid the now presumed extinct old ones in their cataclysmic war versus the star eating God's humanity rediscovered the Gothic sector during the Emperor of man's great exploratory crusade and upon discovering the black stone fortresses it was decided that the best recourse was of course to convert these huge fortresses into Imperial Navy bases to the humiliation of humanity during the Gothic war also known as the 12th Black Crusade the forces of chaos had managed to capture three of these vast ancient space vessels the Imperial Navy force that is tasked with defending and patrolling the Gothic sector of Imperial space is known as battlefleet gothic the Imperial Navy is one of the many military forces available to humanity in the 41st millennium where the Imperial Guard represent the ground troops the navy represent the vast fleet of starships that patrol and defend Imperial occupied space originally the Imperial fleet did not exist as its own separate body it was part of the Imperial Army and was referred to as the imperialist Armada after humanity bore witness to the devastating period known as the Horus heresy the fleet was separated from the Imperial Army so as to tactically weaken the force to protect humanity from any future rebellions and reduced the possibility of any one military force of humanity wielding too much power similarly to how the Astarte zuv legions were broken into smaller chapters to reduce their individual strength the first vessels to offer service to the aim Parham f man were constructed in orbital foundries around terra itself later as the emperor forged his union with the mechanicus of mars they would enable much greater exploration and the basis for the expeditionary fleets during this time of exploration is when you would also see the origins of the Rogue Traders Scouts that were running ahead of Maine Imperial fleets would attempt to learn and gather intelligence on what the fleet may be heading into and these were known as the Rogue Traders militant as mankind pressed deeper into the galaxy discovering many lost treasures of Technology and derelict vessels that it could attempt to bring into service yet many of these were simply too advanced to be engineered by the mechanicus and other classes of ship were more easily able to be reproduced this enabled humanity to increase the power and scale of its war fleet many Emperor worlds referred to the Imperial Navy as the holy fleet its citizens believing that after centuries of religious dogma an indoctrination the fleet of ships are themselves an extension of the Emperor's will and should be therefore viewed as sacred this though causes its own complications as we'll see later the reasons for this are connected with the way in which ships travel through the galaxy using a navigator they traverse through the excessively dangerous warp space and they themselves are guided by the light of the Emperor through the astronomical the Imperial fleet itself is divided into five fleet zones known as the segments a Majoris the five fleet signs are segmental solar obscurus temp estes Ultima and Pacifica s-- each of these zones will then be further divided into sectors these generally speaking will contain eight million cubic light-years of space and these sectors themselves will then contain various sub sectors the Imperial Navy operating in each segment 'm will be divided between these sectors into battle fleets battle fleets will not only be tasked with military engagements though they will also have a significant role in regional logistics both for transporting scouting and generally patrolling the area with vessels other uses can be for inquisitors for example who will often make demands of the Imperial Navy but you should only for smaller transporting vessels because the inquisitors understand the importance and the role that the large capital vessels play a battle fleet is assigned the essential role of defending the sector from the many threats that humanity faces hopefully being able to destroy them before they make planetfall their fleet destination is usually relevant to the sector they're assigned to hence scores for the scour sector battle fleet Cadia for the kadian sector and of course battlefleet gothic for the gothic sector the gothic sector is within the segment of obscurus and this is the region galactic north of holy terror it is the infamous region home to the eye of terror the rift between real space and the immaterial that of League gothic is of course only a component of the massive bastian fleet which makes up battle fleet obscurus battlefleet gothic represents one of the most continually challenged and regularly engaged battle fleets that the Imperium controls they face the prospect of near continued incursions by the forces of chaos from the eye of Terror and have had to contend with repeated black Crusades that have invaded in order to capture targets and generally so destruction and horror to the material realm the subsequent demands and stress is placed upon the battlefleet gothic ax understandably massive new and very green ships and crew have to be continually brought into service to replace those that been lost in fighting and only those who survive the very harsh initial contacts will gain the experience and hard-earned knowledge to become capable naval leaders for the Imperial fleets because of the threat of significant incursion battle fleets will often keep ghostly shipyards that are devoid of crew but await the call to be pressed into service with often hastily drafted crew to do whatever is necessary to protect humanity from the nightmares that continually is forced to face being assigned to a reserve fleet is not a very favored role though because these reserve ships are only pushed into service in times of desperation and will often have lain inactive for many centuries they often have an unsettling ghostly feel for the crews which board them the crews themselves are usually prone to superstition about what they might discover our face in these vessels the ships themselves then often will suffer further problems being critical mechanical issues or inexperienced crews realizing what is required of them or the fate that awaits them could very easily mutiny panic or fall foul of chaotic influence the resulting chaos that can occur can be even more devastating than actual conflict with enemy forces when required entire battle fleets can be called upon to operate in focused small areas of a sector battle fleet Armageddon is one such example and is comprised of four main battleships 27 cruisers and 36 escort squadrons battle fleets will vary greatly from sector to sector dependent on the requirements for the area the Imperial Navy used three main class of their largest ships the Emperor victory and retribution class of battleships and these are absolutely massive with a huge array of weaponry and powerful voice shields these void shields are usually electronically or gravitic leech arged energy fields and are used to defend the largest vehicles of the Imperium such as starships and the ground-based titan war machines they use warp technology to displace attacks and distort localize space-time around a point of impact these huge vessels often serve as a flagship for a fleet and a Lord Admiral prior to the introduction of void shields there is also a class known as ironclads now these are similarly scaled but they lack void shields as they are clad in Anna mantium plate armor they remain in service but a lesser in defensive capability than that of a void shielded battleship the cruise for these huge vessels can be anything between twenty-five thousand and three million men the scale of the ship is in the region of eight kilometres from proud to stern and because of their scale in importance and also the costing nature to manufacture them they will be heavily defended by many smaller ships in the fleet other designations of ship will include scanning downward grand cruisers which are an older style of vessel cruisers which form the majority of the Imperial Navy fleet these ships are faster and contain a variety of classes depending on their role and can contain crews between 10,000 up to 1 million light cruises vary in size but are basically a scaled-down and obviously more lightweight vessel and the last designation are known as escort ships and they fall into two main sub categories of frigates which are more heavily armed than the counterpart escort vessels known as destroyers all Imperial ships are equipped with a fusion based plasma drive for its normal propulsion systems and these can run anything up to a third of the ship's length most Imperial Navy ships will then also have a form of warp drive to enable them to breach into the immaterial and Traverse through the warp detonation of these warp drives can sometimes create localized war tears or rifts like that that was used to destroy the turret high flight behemoth when the tyrannous launched their first incursion to the ultra Mars system it was only through the use of an imploding ships warp drive that their onslaught was able to be halted the Imperial Navy capital ships that are cruiser class vessels and above will usually contain squadrons of attack craft these are star fighters and star bombers they're launched from Bay's on the ship and the ship can contain up to 2,000 fighter craft as well as bombers and drop ships a fury interceptor is the most common containing a three-man crew and is armed with Liao's cannon and anti Starfighter missiles star hawk bombers are larger and consequently usually slower carrying heavy payloads of plasma bombs and armor-piercing missiles these contain various turret gunning positions as well to defend the ship's Imperial Navy ships contain huge amounts of offensive and defensive systems weapon batteries are the primary system for these ships and entire sides of the hull are filled with gun ports and launching systems these can contain plasma projectors missile systems laser cannons rail guns fusion beams and graviton pulsars suffice to say they pack a pretty heavy punch the heavy cannon along the sides of the ships also known as macro weaponry these huge ranks of large cannon destroy their targets with massive broadside engagements that are reminiscent of 19th century naval battles naval ships will also contain a lance weapons which are extremely powerful energy weapons essentially it's a scale version of the portable weapons used by imperial infantry and these can pierce enemy ships hulls or potentially even cut in half smaller sized vessels lance batteries will often be used in a sustained burst of firepower hoping to overwhelm enemy ships void shields and subsequently inflict massive damage upon them naval vessels will also utilize missiles or torpedoes if you will these contain a high level of destructive power and they vary in size from anything between 60 to 200 metres in length and then up to 300 meters long fired from battleships these contain a highly powerful warhead despite the destructive power they're often only used to force other vessels to change course and to put themselves in a more vulnerable position to enemy fire but this is not to say that they cannot inflict heavy levels of damage because this is the very reason why other ships captains will move in order to avoid a torpedo hit at all costs and this is because the torpedo guided by its own internal machine spirit will not be stopped by a ship's void shield because torpedoes travel significantly slower than most other forms of fire and are able to then penetrate a void shield torpedoes can contain a wide selection of warheads and are designated as plasma melter virus boarding and most terrifyingly vortex torpedoes and if you don't know what a vortex is then check out my recent discussion about vortex grenades [Music] lastly we come to the Nova cannon now these are immensely powerful weapons that can be mounted only on capital ships the cannon itself consists of a gravimetric impeller that accelerates a projectile to a fraction of the speed of light these shells fired by the devastating weapon only will armed after launching for obvious reasons in that it's shells can then detonate with a plasma reaction burning up to the heat of a star they can also have powerfully destructive gravity implosions that would destroy any vessels caught within many thousands of kilometers many naval captain steer away from using Nova cannon because of their difficulty in limitation of only being useful at range instead of opting for more standard armaments but a well controlled Nova cannons strike can be enough to turn a battle if not in terms of a literal damage to the enemy and potentially purely psychologically lastly and perhaps most shockingly when it comes to the Imperial Navy they often will have reinforced armor on their vessels I'm not so shocking about that you might wonder what the reasons for it not just to repel enemy fire is because the ships will often have armored prowess that is the front of the ship itself and these will then be used in required circumstances to actually ram into other ships in an attempt to breach their hull or if the scale of difference between the ships is large enough potentially they might plow straight through the other ship rending them into if a ship's hull is well protected enough they may glance off the outer hull but often then will penetrate at least creating a breach in the ship and potentially bringing the freezing vacuum of space into the unwitting crew as they are subsequently sucked out into the void to be then frozen and boiled alive in the blink of an eye the Imperial Navy will also attempt to make boarding parties if they want to capture an enemy vessel but to do this they'll use ships that are unarmed but able to dock with other ships this will then contain naval security arms minh fitted with vacuum capable suits and short framed auto guns these are essentially 21st century equivalent ballistic weapons of a small calibre the reason being they're not wanting to breach a ship's hull if they have to engage in calm inside a vessel but still deal enough damage to mortal creatures to wound and kill Imperial Navy vessels will carry vast crews as well from lowly voids Minh through two captains and admirals and as with much the Imperium there are also those known as indentured workers basically slave workers these individuals as in other areas have as you might imagine fairly unfortunate tasks to carry out and this could be for example the refueling of a starship as described in my recent worst jobs video or carrying supplies crawling into dangerous mechanical spaces to carry out repairs potentially losing limbs or worse in the process they may be used to guide and rearm weaponry including macro cannon shells these workers are continually replaced as many died to the appalling living conditions malnutrition unpleasant accidents and extreme disciplinary action many of the workers are not necessarily criminals either as you might assume although some will have been gathered from a penal workforce usually they will simply have been abducted from slums where no one will miss them or press-ganged by Imperial Navy recruiters in air quotes battlefleet gothic has faced numerous legendary battles and incursions into its sector but few worse than the 12th and 13th Black Crusades the 12th Crusade was launched in the year of 139 of millennium 41 and would continue until 160 of millennium 41 a period of some 21 years battlefleet gothic was used to dealing with such incursions by the forces of chaos yet this would be only an initial gathering period as around the year of 142 the sector would face catastrophic an extremely powerful warp storms in the Gothic sector as it was cut off from outside aid what storms are often the bane of the Imperium and have led to any number of highly risky and devastating assaults similar warp storms cut off the ultra Mar system as the chaos forces of Nergal sought to delay and inhibit the return of the ultramarines Primark the initial contacts in the gothic Sector they were fragmented and confusing an example of this occurs in 140 of millennium 41 where Imperial patrols would discover drifting Imperial ships mercantile and an emperor class battleship that were just drifting in the void as the patrol teams boarded they discovered the shocking truth the corridors and chambers of the Imperial vessels adrift were filled with the rotting dead not only dead though but diseased foul abominations strewn throughout the ships some of these ruined crew still appearing to be standing at their stations as if they had been consumed by fast-acting plagues that fused them to the spot rending the flesh from their bones with viciously efficient bacteria the ships themselves showed sign of contact with the enemy but more importantly showed signs of having been boarded Inquisitor investigating these discoveries began to piece together the high likelihood that a Kaos warship was operating in the sector and it was obviously aligned to the chaos god Nergal the fleet and the imperial force's acadia were put on high alert but unfortunately things would quickly worsen as reports from navigators came more frequently than ever with the warp was showing significant signs of disturbance and disruption these early reports contributed to disruption on many Imperial worlds as religious fanatics pointed to this as a sign that the emperor was displeased with a citizenry who was preparing punishment to be declared upon them this would cause the formation of hardline extremist religious sects allowing the situation to quickly spiral out of control as religious hysteria would spread across many worlds in the sector fearful citizens terrified of the emperor's displeasure and reprisals would lead to acts of public flying spontaneous immolations and burnings hanging of suspected heretics and neighbors and friends alike turning on each other these religious fanatics would even seek the scouring of friends family and loved ones if they feared that they were refusing to atone for potential sins his hysterical citizens the danger and absurdity of religion within the Imperium and also the effect that cows can have upon humanity with even the slightest of efforts in this case with almost no actual actions cows disruption had caused Imperial citizens to turn on those that they love the most who commit acts of moral brutality many-worlds even began to see people openly now proclaiming that it was chaos who would save humanity as the emperor had now turned from them cults would appear an inquisition was besieged with missions to eradicate the epidemic level of heresy whilst religion in the Empire of man is undoubtedly essential at this stage for the Emperor's survival it also demonstrates why the Emperor was so adamant that it be eradicated from human society and that its return has plagued many worlds and caused endless pain and suffering to citizens it's strange duality also creates burning loyalty and fanaticism which has led to the creation of some of the most powerful and focused forces within the Imperium it's question of is humanity better off with without it's religious systems is certainly one that deserves further heavy discussion returning to the void day before the true chaos incursions had even begun the Imperium in the Gothic sector was already in a state of complete anarchy fear and confusion many planets were close to tearing themselves apart and it was now that the warp storms would worsen significantly and leave battlefleet gothic to rely on only its bitter experience for its survival the fleet is faced with fighting alone against a succession of chaos war fleets led by the chaos war master and former close confidant of Horus Abaddon the Despoiler of the Black Legion formerly the sons of Horus and Luna Wars and yes I relinquish my pronunciation of Abaddon to Abaddon despite having spoken this incorrectly for the past twenty years so be it the chaos assaults will begin attacking an imperial world known as purgatory and it's still a device known as the hand of darkness an ancient alien artifact that was suspected to be related to the old ones and the black stone fortresses when the mechanicus had never discovered its purpose the Eldar were known to have spoken of this device with abject horror it was suspected that therefore the device was either weapon were had some connection to enable a powerful weapon little did the Inquisitor in the sector know that Abaddon had discovered the secrets of the black stone fortresses who was already well aware of how to utilize these ancient planet killing platforms designed by the old ones to fight in the war in heaven on a level of destruction far beyond that which currently played out in the Imperium battlefleet gothic would also have to battle against forces of the Elder and orcs as well as human pirates who all saw this as an opportunity to gain more control over the sector and its resources as well of course is it being a tactically significant sector the losses would be catastrophic for all concerned across vast swathe of planets and void battles Abaddon's goal was not merely to sow destruction and anarchy though his goal was the coveted black stone fortresses and these storms enveloping the sector would last for roughly nine to ten years until 1/5 one of millennium 41 where constant naval void warfare would continue as the gothic battle fleet struggled to contain the forces overwhelming the sector and bleeding the Imperial forces pale despite enduring and valiantly fought efforts by the fleet Abaddon and his chaos minions would managed to wrest control of three of the black stone fortresses these ancient voids Citadel's were far from passive bases of operation and though their true purpose had never been truly understood by the Imperium he would use the fortresses to strip at least one planet of its atmosphere and then also used their power as weapons to destroy the Terran 'test star turning it supernova and obliterating the planets surrounding it Abbadon would escape back into the warp in the position of two of the black stone fortresses but this was not the end of Abaddon's despicable plan the other fortresses throughout the Gothic sector would mysteriously self-destruct and be obliterated into thousands of fragments the reasons and origins of this are still unknown the cost for victory of the Gothic war the 12th Black Crusade had been high for the Imperium but battlefleet gothic has secured a legendary overall success the courage and unshakeable loyalty of the Imperial Navy in the Gothic sector had been demonstrated for all throughout the Imperium to see the High Lords of Terror would Commission a monolith remember the sacrifice and strength of battlefleet gothic as they stood alone against the forces of chaos in a 12th Black Crusade bearing the engraved names of every crewman from the lowest deckhand on merchant ships to the Lord Admiral himself the inquisitors they were far from done with these incursions and sought a burden as they were well aware to the significant danger of his escape in possession of the black stone fortresses now represented to the Imperium the Gothic sector though that somehow managed to survive this devastating war and while things had returned to a level of normality the work of the men and women aboard the Imperial naval vessels of battlefleet gothic was far from over they would continue to battle renegades pirates and Zino's as they sought to further secure and cleanse their sector from these intolerable trespassers many centuries would pass before Abaddon would once again launch another Crusade into the material realm the crusade who would dwarf the impact of the 12th Crusade the battlefleet gothic had so violently defended against the infamous 13th Black Crusade and that is a story for another day [Music] [Music] you

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Keywords: Warhammer 40K, Imperium, Humanity, Mankind, Fall, Space Marines, Heretic, Heresy, The Emperor of Man, Lore, Beginners Guide, History, Guide, 40K, Warhammer 40000, Warp, Immaterium, War, Slaughter, Horror, Nightmare, Tabletop, Inquisition, Best, Battlefleet, Gothic, Armada, Chaos, Blackstone Fortress, Crusade, Imperial Navy, Ships, Void, Battle, Emperor, Eye of Terror, Galaxy

Id: V5wXcYDNU4g

Length: 26min 12sec (1572 seconds)

Published: Fri Jan 25 2019