And thereвЂ™s more to these novels than just unceasing violence: I get a strong sense of absurd, very black humor when I read them. thereвЂ™s something cathartic and freeing about visiting a world (through books, that is) which is so bleak and brutal. What could you possibly find appealing about such a dark, violent place? This Warhammer universe sounds utterly dreadful. Not only will you need a towel for your own injuries, but chances are youвЂ™ll be staunching wounds for everyone around you, too,ДЇord: Personally, IвЂ™d much rather visit Ursa Minor Beta (you remember the ad campaign, вЂњwhen you are tired of Ursa Minor Beta, you are tired of lifeвЂќ).

Be prepared for gaping combat wounds, ritual sacrifices, demonic transformations-all manner of violence.

Rod: When starting your journey into the Warhammer 40K universe, you really need to know what you are getting into. Lots of battles, lots of cool weapons (power armor! chainswords! storm bolters!), and lots of blood. If thereвЂ™s one thing that Warhammer 40K books have in common, itвЂ™s carnage. Ross: Like the intro to each Warhammer book says, вЂњthere is only warвЂќ in the year 40,000. As you can see, I have this lovely towel from Marks & Spencer, but you two seem to have A LOT of towels in dark, rather drab colors. After talking with Ross and doing a little research, he and I decided to dive in and create our own list of places to start reading in Warhammer 40K.ДЇord: As any traveller of the galaxy knows, a towel is the one necessity that cannot be done without. Rod: Yes, вЂњintimidatedвЂќ would describe my own thoughts when faced with the overwhelming number of Warhammer 40K books. When I got older and discovered all the books set in this world, I was a little intimidated and unsure where to start reading. The game was okay, but mostly I was just fascinated by the enormous scale and dystopia of the setting and the cool looking Space Marines in their power armor. Ross: I first discovered Warhammer 40K as a kid through the board game Space Hulk. Ross: This futuristic version of our universe was first depicted in a tabletop wargame created by the British company Games Workshop, but novels and short stories by various authors have been steadily produced over the last 30 years, such that there is now an enormous body of literature all taking place in this same grim, dark future.ДЇord: How did you discover this future reality? Occurred centuries before, so most aspects of life are treated like a religion because there is no longer any real understanding of how things work. The peak of human technological development Rod: Well, itвЂ™s a universe 40,000 (40K) years in the future where humanity has spread throughout the galaxy. There are a couple reasons why they chose books: 1) neither has access to a starship and 2) both are quiet, gentle souls who would last approximately 8.6 seconds in your typical Warhammer 40K setting before suffering some grisly end. He interviewed Rod and Ross, reference staff at Multnomah County Library who have been exploring the Warhammer 40K universe-through books, of course. Not wanting to actually endure the violence inherent in the Warhammer universe, intrepid HitchhikerвЂ™s Guide contributor Ford Prefect has come to Multnomah County Library to find out what itвЂ™s all about and why you need plenty of dark towels when you visit. There are over 350 books set in the Warhammer 40K universe so it only seems appropriate that it be included in that most remarkable of all books, The HitchhikerвЂ™s Guide to the Galaxy. In an infinitely vast universe in which anything imaginable-as well as anything not imaginable-exists, the deathless emperor of humanity watches over his domain. Thus begins every Warhammer 40,000 novel.

How many warhammer books are there