# Rogal Dorn, said to be dead, but is he?



## deathwatch_v (Mar 18, 2010)

Well this comes from me reading something about a year back. I heard that its suspected that Rogal Dorn has continued to stay on Terra and protect the Emperor as head of the custodians. I know this is a bit far fetched and there is some evidence to support him being dead, but only some. 

I mean the Custodians are said to be what space marines are to Imperial Guard but to space marines. If that makes sense, lol, but you could understand in the private guard of the emperer the grestest space marines to be lead by someone amazing...aka maybe Rogal Dorn.

What are your thoughts??


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## Child-of-the-Emperor (Feb 22, 2009)

Apparently according to _Space Marine_ he is dead, although that novel was released in 1993 so its going back a fair time. (although don't quote me on that as I havn't read it)

Also *if I remember correctly* in the Imperial Fists Index Astartes article it says that his remains were recovered, and his skeleton is embodied into a slab of amber. Bar his skeletal hands which are kept in seperate shrines to be used to ingrave the names of Chapter Masters on.

So going by that, yeah hes dead


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## Baron Spikey (Mar 26, 2008)

Baron to the rescue _*cue dramatically poignant music*_

Child is right that the Imperial Fists IA article states that Rogal Dorn was killed and his engraved skeletal hands are kept in stasis as the IF's holiest icon- the bit about the rest of Dorn being encased in a slab of amber I've heard some where before it's not in the IA article


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## ckcrawford (Feb 4, 2009)

I guess the black library could find some way to bring him back to life. Would be a bit whacky but they basically made crazy things happen with the Horus Heresy so Black Library can work magic.

As to the comparrison to Space Marines to imperial guard, and space marines to custodian guard, I don't think the comparrison is the same. When reading Collected Visions, and Thousand Sons, they didn't portray the same combat ability a space marine would have over a hundred imperial guard very easily. Though they are superior to a normal space marine, theres just so many space marines a custodian could take on. 

I also think it would be quite difficult for Dorn to hide amongst the Custodial Guard. If I remember correctly, the Custodies took off their armour after the siege of terra, so they no longer wear it. Im gonna read up on it. So if im wrong ill edit this post


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## Snowy (Jul 11, 2009)

They removed their battle-armour for more ornanate power armour or something like that.

And it would be pretty cool for Rogal Dorn to be a Custodian Guard, but I think we would know if we saw a Custodian with only one hand.

I don't remember hearing anything about his body being preserved in amber, only one or both of his hands being put in statis.


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## WarlordKaptainGrishnak (Dec 23, 2008)

if he was alive without a doubt he'd have a bionic hand the technology is there so you wouldn't notice the missing hand


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## Snowy (Jul 11, 2009)

Oh yeah I forgot about that.


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## Baron Spikey (Mar 26, 2008)

Despite what conversions of cool looking Custodian armies may tell you the Custodes no longer wear any armour and have changed their colours from red to black.
And whilst there is that exaggerated statement that Custodians are to Space Marines what Space Marines are to humans, in reality Custodains are only slightly bigger and stronger and that is noticeably more so in a very few cases.

Most of the 'crazy' stuff that is happening in the Horus Heresy series is not new, it's background thats been around for years.


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## deathwatch_v (Mar 18, 2010)

I didn't no that Custodians took off there Armour after the HH, fair enough. But yeah i always thought that it was convineant that the only part of rogal dorn to be found was his fist... i mean if there was 1 part of Dorn that was the most important to the Imperial Fists it was prolly that part lol.


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## kaled (Jun 24, 2008)

The bit about his body being encased in amber is from _Space Marine_, and as CotE says, his hands are chapter relics. In the absence of any evidence to the contrary, I see no reason to suppose he's still alive.


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## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

unfortunately, as GW clearly states _Space Marine_ no longer represents the Warhammer 40k universe. they made this statement when the released the POD(print on demand) stuff via their website. Due to the massive changes that the Warhammer 40k universe has sustained over the years since its inception one example being the overall look/feel of the Necrontyr, most stuff before 2003 doesn't jive correctly with the current universe. that would include both Chapter Approved 1&2 and also Space Marine, and The Gothic Wars dualogy. So it is quite possible that the encased in amber part of the statement about Rogal Dorn has been dismissed, and possibly be leading the Custodes with a pair or augmetic hands?

CP


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## Child-of-the-Emperor (Feb 22, 2009)

But technically speaking _Space Marine_ still comes under as being 'canon' - having a Warhammer 40,000/Black Library logo on. And seeing as though nothing has been released since to even imply a retcon, I think its the best source we have to go on as to Dorn's current status; dead.


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## kaled (Jun 24, 2008)

Commissar Ploss said:


> unfortunately, as GW clearly states _Space Marine_ no longer represents the Warhammer 40k universe.


Out of curiousity, have you read _Space Marine_? I bought it soon after it was published and when I read it again recently I found that there's actually very little in there that has been contradicted by more recent additions to the canon, and there's a lot that was first written about in there that has been picked up and reused over the years. As far as I can see, the main reason GW don't want to republish the novel is that some of its themes and tone are rather more adult (namely the borderline ****-erotic thoughts of one of the main characters and a fair bit of sadomasochism) and as such it doesn't fit with the very child-friendly feel of the later fluff.


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## Commissar Ploss (Feb 29, 2008)

kaled said:


> Out of curiousity, have you read _Space Marine_? I bought it soon after it was published and when I read it again recently I found that there's actually very little in there that has been contradicted by more recent additions to the canon, and there's a lot that was first written about in there that has been picked up and reused over the years. As far as I can see, the main reason GW don't want to republish the novel is that some of its themes and tone are rather more adult (namely the borderline ****-erotic thoughts of one of the main characters and a fair bit of sadomasochism) and as such it doesn't fit with the very child-friendly feel of the later fluff.


yes i have read Space Marine, and i did come to the same conclusion. However, with the "coarser" themes of earlier books and the fan base of GW becoming primarily younger by the hour, they've strayed towards the friendlier as you have said. But I asked GW/BL for clarification on why they say Space Marine "does not compute" with the current fluff, however, they have never replied. Sad, they replied to all my other questions.

CP


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