Page 6
Million Plus worlds in the Imperium, and their jobs, which is pretty much familiar fluff by now, but is a good lead-in to the psyker shit in this book.There are few laws that apply across every one of the million and more worlds of the Imperium of Man, and those that do are mostly concerned with the duties and responsibilities of its subjects and never with their rights. ASide from veneration of the Emperor and obedience to His duly appointed representatives, each planetary commander must ensure his world renders the proper tithes or else be stripped of his office and replaced by one who can do so. Perhaps the most onerous requirement is that every Imperial commander must conduct regular and painstaking sweeps of his worlds population for those born into psychic powers.
Page 6
The fate of human psykers in the Imperium and the implied 'suitable' candidates.Many of those found to have some latent ability are judged too weak to control it, their minds potential gateways through which the slavering denizens of the warp might burst forth at any moment...
..
Many more are allowed to live only so long as the Black Ship takes to complete its grand circuit of the Emperor's realm and return to Terra. There, following ritual preparation, they take their place amongst the countless thousands of other psykers rendered up to the Emperor to fuel the psychic beacon that is the AStronomican. A scant few, a handful from the multitudes of wailing, filthy creatures..
Page 6
How a Navigator Navigates. We also learn (again) that without them voyagers are unavoidably short (a few years at most, which depending on your source may mean 4 or 5 LY.) Interestingly, this implies that short range, non Navigator warp travle is sufficient for travel betwen nearby stars if nothign else, which reinforces its utility in subsector/sector level travel as a supplement to the more limited Navigator-piloted warp jumps.By looking upon the Warp and reading the ebb and flow of its shifting, unknowable tides, Navigators can guide starships across impossible gulfs of space. Without Navigators, Warp voyages of more than a few light years are impossible and vessels are doomed to become hopelessly lost...
...
Without the capacity to voyage further than the nearest star, the Imperium would be no more than a scattering of worlds, each cowering in isolation...
Page 6
Astrotelepathy and the contents of the message and methods. This isn't absolute, as we know from many other sources that words, and even voices can be sent, it probably depends on the astropath. It may even be a factor of power. The weakest may not be able to do complex sendings, while the more powerful ones can actually send words (or symbols representing words, say like a psychic version of morse code) or even voice....such communications are far from conventional, transmitting not words, but notions, emotions, and impressions. Even the strongest of astrotelepathic signals is little more than ritual and might very well cost the sender and the recipient their very souls. Both attempt to form a communion across gulfs of space haunted by soul-devouring monstrosities...
Page 6
Astropathic message translation. Apparently usage of Astropaths varies from world to world (and probably by importance and hence availability) some worlds probably only have a few (or less, like Moma Parsheen in Inquisitor) and thus do not use them often. Other worlds. like in the Scarus Sector, can use them for anything (up to and including commercial services.) And Inquisitors can use them up like candy.Astropathic messages are hideously difficult to understand and sometimes even the greatest of AStropaths cannot unravel the layer upon layer of obscure allegorical allusion. Yet, aside from delivering messages by interstellar spacecraft, there is no other means by which the scattered worlds of the Imperium can remain in contact. Usually, they simply do not, marshalling their astrotelepathic resources for times of greatest desperation.
Page 7
Navigators and Astropaths facilifate effective 'beyond the borders' exploration.For Rogue Traders, Explorators, and others, exploration beyond those sectors the Imperium controls would be all but impossible. [without Navigators and/or AStropaths]
Page 7
Which may give an indication of ship crews, or the size of a Rogue Trader's expedition.To plunge blindly into the abyss between worlds without the aid of the most skilled Navigators is utter madness, risking a hundred thousand souls being cast adrift on the Warp..
Page 7
]Every Warp-capable vessel numbers amongst its crew a cadre of Astropaths, generally formed into an Astropathic Choir and led by a Choirmaster Telepathica.
Presumably this is the 'important' Imperial ships, the ones they directly control (like warships and such), as we've known some starships that have only one astropath before. WEalth, position and connections, and availability probably are big factors dictating that for anyone who isnt part of the Navy, or the Astartes, or the Rogue TRaders/Inquisitors.
Page 7
Which implies that astropathic messages are fairly commonplace and traverse the galaxy fairly quickly. Its not the first time we've had this sort of symbolism conveyed - again in the Inquisiton War novels, the Andy Hoare Rogue Trader novels, etc. convey similar impressions about astrotelepathy in the Imperium. Indeed, with the soul binding and their astropathic skills the astropaths themselves must feel uncommoonly bound together and unified in purpose, so being cast out from that would be frightening.To travel beyond the haven of the Emperor's Light is, for an Astropath, a dreadful prospect, for the ever present song of so many other, similarily attuned minds is replaced with the limitless void, where the cold, alien thoughts of unknowable xenos species, some aeons dead, resound.
..
..the majority inevitably perish or go mad amongst the aliens tars beyond the Imperium's reach.
Page 7
Implies that others (with or without psychic powers) can steer a ship through the warp, only Navigators are best at it. So its a matter of degree, more than anything, rather than necessity.So exacting is the process of steering a vessel through the Warp for any length of time, especially beyond the relatively well known, if still perilous, routes within Imperial space, that no single individual is equal to the task.
Page 7
Interesting fates. Do they emerge from the warp on top of such catastrophes, do they get pulled out forcibly, or does running into them while in teh warp cause it? Maybe those phenomena themselves interact with the warp.Without the most skilled and experienced of Navigators, a thousand fates might befall a voidship...
...
Some vessels break up upon dense stellar clusters, while others stray too near to a black hole or similar phenomenon.
Page 7
Sanctioned Psykers and some roles. Divination is a big part of the Imperium and how it functions (indeed given its otherwise sluggish and bureacratic nature, divination may be one of the few ways it manages to function as a single entity at all.)"sanctioned psykers" wield their powers in the service of the Imperium, some as diviners of strategy, others as living battlefield weapons.
Page 7
Reference to eht 'evolution' of humanity into a psychic race, much like the Eldar. Much of this comes from earlier fluff and is essentially accurate, although some have suggested the Emperor has a direct hand in manipulating events to this end (EG Faith and Fire) Which he may very well for all we know, it wouldn't be beyond his agenda...ever-greater numbers of humans have been born with the ability to wield psychic powers, and others sitll come into such powers later on in life.
..
Some claim that Humanity is undergoing the birth pangs of a new phase in its evolution, and can look forward to an age when the entire race transcends to an entirely different level of existence.
..
Others still hold that this gradual and ever-increasing evolution is the doing of the Emperor himself, who exists to shepherd the entire species into its new age.
Page 7
Given that depending on your source there are one pskyer born for every hundred thousand or million normal people, this would suggest that one in one hundred (or one thousand) people are mutants. Incidentally thats roughly analogoues to the number of potential Space MArine recruits that exist in the HeresyThose of a notably Puritan persuasion hold that for every pskyer born, a thousand twisted mutants are spawned first..
Page 8
Indication that there is psychic 'white noise' or background chatter that can interere with or fuck up messages. Which may be one reason why some astorpathic messages have limited range.The Astropath who stands attentively by his master's command throne must constnatly strive to block out the alien whispers that assail his consciousness, each a death scream or a siren call of a long dead xenos species.
..
..to the Astropath it [the void] frequently echoes to a vile alien cacophony. Only the most skilled AStropath is able to pierce the atonal din and cast his message back across the trackless void. Only the very strongest of minds and souls can make themselves heard by their compatriots in the Astropathic Choirs of the Imperium hundreds, even thousands of light years distant.
Also strongest astropaths have ranges in the hundreds or thousands of light years (or only choirs do.) By contrast normal AStropaths tend to have a range equal to maybe single or double digit light years usually.
Page 9
ITs rather ironic (And scary) that there is such a thing as 'too fanatical' even for the Ecclessiarchy. Of course this is probably more a matter of orthodoxy and politics rather than liberality - the Imperial Creed tends to encompass the most conflicting of beliefs (which conflict even with its own tenets amongst vairous sects, since the Ecclesiarchy forcuses more on the 'butts on pews' philosophy of religion) and views that stray outside of the somewhat subjective orthodoxy tend to get labeled 'heretical' as a convenient way to get rid of problems. Given that the Ecclesiarchy is probably as dependent upon astropaths and Navigators as the rest of the Imperium, they have to be tolerant...haven for the most intolerant of puritan outcasts..
..
Several such settlements are thought to exist in the depths of the Expanse, places ruled by apostate caridnals and others cast out by the Ecclesiarchy having been judged too extreme to be allowed power.
Page 9
As I've noted previously, the Imperium functions largely by all its disparate elements horse trading amongst themselves, peddling their specific specialities for wealth, power, or whatever the hell they need. In this case, the Astropaths and Navigators peddle their psychic talents to achieve whatever ends they desire. Its less pure feudalism and more self interest/political necessity binding the Imperium together in that sense.The terms under which such psykers [Navigators and Astropaths and others] serve the Rogue Trader dynasties are couched in ancient pacts and subject to laws so complex that an army of Terran scribes is required simply to ensure they adhere to the ten thousand years of precedent and legislation that governs their terms.
Page 9
The exact terms are variable dependent upon the house, and specific navigators may modify them as the situation warrants. Much like any business transaction, the Navigators trade their skills for the wealth and power they need to survive and thrive.The Navigators of the Navis Nobilite serve on Rogue Trader vessels under an incredibly complex contract negotiated at the very highest level...
...
In return for the service of one or more Navigators, the Rogue Trader dynasty grants the Navigator House a portion of whatever profits it comes into throughout the term of the compact.
Page 9
Information is as much a source of power for the Navigators as it is for other organizations like the AdMech. In this case, its knowledge of warp routes and such...the manner in which new Warp routes are charted as the vessel explores the outer darkness. In reality, this is the source of the Navigator Houses' unimaginable wealth - in serving aboard a Rogue Trader vessel, a Navigator is amassing vast amounts of data in regards to new routes, which in turn makes him and his house able to command still greater shares of future endeavours. Over the millenia, each Navigator House has amassed a vast library of astrographic data, but to remain competitive this must ever be expanded upon. New routes must be forged in order to maintain a lead over competing Houses, and so the Navis Nobilite and the Great Rogue Trader dynasties share something of a symbiotic relationship..
Whats more this furthers the 'variable' nature of Warp travle, as each House (and there are bound to be many) will have their own particular sets of routes and nav data through the warp, meaning that even for two vessels of the same class could have drasticallyl different warp speeds as they could have Navigators of different houses (each using different routes.)
Page 9
I'm not sure I quite buy the idea that its purely obligation. AStropaths as noted ar vital for keeping the Imperium together, and the Astra Telepathica has things it needs from the other organizations to survive, so they invariably have to trade on their utility in order to get what they need/want from the rest of the Imperium. That's just how it works. Its quite likely they are given no choice in the matter (as in they can't ever refuse not to be astropaths) but in a sense that's also true of Navigators as well.In the case of Astropaths serving on board Rogue Trader vessels, the arrangement is not one of commercial interest, but of duty. The most ancient of laws requires the Adeptus Astra Telepathica to play it spart in the ongoing expansion of the Imperium.
Even though both Navigators and Astropaths are, in effect, hirelings of the Rogue Trader dynasty, they often gain such high status on board its vessel that they becomre more like partners.
Page 9
A Navigator's role and power within the Warp. Jump distances are much shorter here than in other sources...once a vessel has plunged into the Sea of Souls, it is almost entirely under the control of the Navigator, not its captain. It is even within the power of a Navigator to override a captain's orders, for while it is possible to travel a light year or two without his guidance, onl the most foolhardy or desperate of Rogue Traders would ignore a Navigator's word and enter the warp without his acquiescence.
PAge 9
And of course, it permits the Astra telepathica (and ADministratum) to collect information and knowledgea bout activities within the Imperium, learn secrets, etc. Its actually interesting in that it menas information is also important to them, and it may give them another bargaining chip with the rest of the Adeptus Terra (whether they admit it or not.) Of course the security and sanctity of Astropaths is also vital, so they can't just break those trusts without good reason (or need) either.Even if the message is couched in such terms that the Astropath himself is unable to decipher its meaning, he nonetheless retains memory of it and its intended recipients. It is within the power of an Astropath to undermine or betray any endeavour or transaction his employer enters into..
Page 10
Sanctioned PSykers and their abilities and roles again, including telepathy and divination. The latter two are probably more useful than fighting in battle, which is a rather more direct (and limited) application of their pwoers.So-called Sanctioned Psykers are a relatively common category of psyker and the term covers a broad range of individuals wielding incredibly diverse powers. Some seek out heresy and rebellion by reading the thoughts of others, while some scry the future in an effort to forestall the staggering range of calamities that confront Mankind. Some Sanctioned Psykers wield their powers as weapons in battle, unleashing freasome blasts of arcane power or causing a victim's blood to boil in his veins with a single glance.
Page 10
Given that some sources have indicated it is also rare (but not impossible) for Inquisitors to also be made Rogue Traders, this leads to the incredibly munchkin idea of a psyker-Inquisitor-Rogue Trader... it is possible, though rare, to find powerful Rogue Traders, Inquisitors, and assassins able to wield psychic powers.
We knew of at least one psychic Rogue Trader in Janus Darke from the Farseer novel, but he really wasnt aware of his power either.
Page 10
Warp storms are apparently worse than fucking hypernova and black holes. That's... interesting and hilarious as a comparison.No region of space is immune to the incursion of the Immaterium, even the smallest of Warp storms making black holes, hypernovas, dark nebulas and vacuum instability fronts appear pathetically insignificant. When a star dies, deadly gamma radiaiton scours the nearby worlds, and when a black hole is spawned, entire clusters might disappear down its light-swallowing gullet. When a Warp storm comes into being, however, gods themselves might be birthed, or ocuntless billions consigned to an eternity of anguish as the things that lurk in the Immateirum feast upon their immortal souls.
PAge 10
I'm not sure whether or not the stresses are 'legitimate' forces acting on it, or if this is just the mutational or 'affected by thought and emotion' aspects of the warp magic at work. I mean there is that whole weird gravity varation in Black Crusade for example.. This also puts the warp being worse than a black hole in an interesting context lol.Any vessel attempting to traverse the Maw is likely to sustain horrific damage as it is subjected to tremendous tidal and aetheric streses, unless it is under the control of the most skilled and experienced Navigator available.
Pge 11
Implying that Navigator travel is at least an order of magnitude fater than non-navigator travel, but you can still move.Were it not for the Navigators that guided each Expeditionary Fleet, the Great Crusade would have taken millenia to prosecute, not the scant two centuries it actually took..
Page 11
I wonder where they all went. Some of them must have become Chaos Navigators, and weve seen some in the Night Lords novels. If anyone controls them (and if they let themselves be controlled) it would be a hefty bargaining chip for Chaos.It must be presumed tha ta number of Houses fell to the insidious lies of the Wamraster for it would not have been possible for Horus to deploy his fleets with the speed and cunning he did were this not the case.
Page 11
Again this probably varies depending on wealth and influence and avialability. We've seen novels that have multiple navigators, but we've seeen others where they only have one. Heck some don't even have themEvery starship that plies the Warp routes of the Imperium and beyond has at least one, and most likely an entire cabal of Navigators to guide it safely through the Immaterium. The Navis Nobilite uses the wealth that accures from this critical task to amass still more.
And we learn again that the Navigators have big influence in trade.
Page 11
Not only dealings in trade, but also in finance. They're probably the closest to loan and banking on an intergalactic scale that the Imperium has.The Navigator Houses act as backers and investors in some of the most ambitious undertakings, especially those of the most powerful of Rogue TRader Expeditions.
PAge 11
If they don't 'own' ships, they sure as hell rent them, as we know frm the Space Wolf novels that Belisarius had some ships under its own charter/colours. And we know they also own territory (again Belisarius from the Space Wolf novels) although it may be they don't openly or directly own them (it may be more of an open secret, although this isnt what the Space wolf novels imply either. Then again due to their relations with the Space wolves, they may have some latitude in this.)Unlike Rogue TRaders and Chratist Captains, nor do they operate fleets of starships bearing their livery and, unlike the great merchant combines, they do not maintain their own trading centres or industrial installations. Instead they own part interests in all manner of such endeavours and sometimes the hand of the Navis Nobilite is very well hidden indeed.
Page 12
Source of whatever military forces Navigators have. It also suggests that there are significant numbers of wapr-capable mercenary outfits in the galaxy. Something that I suspect benefits the Navy as well in times of emergency (forced conscription is always so useful.)They do not generally maintain large standinga rmies, although many Navigator Houses employe a cadre of highly trained, well equipped and sometimes gen-hanced household troops utterly loyal to their bloodline. When circumstances dictate, the Navigator Houses draw on their vast wealth to employ the very best mercenary forces avaialble and, with sufficient warning of impending war, field composite armies rivalling an robital defence force in size and resources.
Page 12
The Navigator 'failures' so to speak. Also geneticists, not unlike the Blood Angels and similar Chapters.Thy are genetic rejects and hideous by-blows of the long millenia of intermarriage and genetic manipulation. They are mindless, puking monstrosities...
...
Many are destroyed soon after birth, while others are allowed to live so that the House genitors might study them in the hope of avoiding such mistakes in future generations..
Page 13
Given this as a truth, and thousands of sectors, we can figure there are at least many thousands if not tens of thousands of Navigator houses, if not more.It is not uncommon for various Navigator Houses to concentrate their resources more in one region than any others, and so most sectors ae host to the central holdings of at least one, and possibly several dozen, Navigator Houses.
Many Navigator Houses serve the Warp routes of the Calixis Sector, but three of these dominate over all of the others.
Further mention is made of Xan'Tai who contracts with Battlefleet Calixis, Aleene and Vor'cle, and House Benetek, and Nostramo (an outcast house for it sties to Haarlock.)
PAge 14
Scope of Navigator operations.. at least several dozen Navigators in this one particular venture. As well as an estimate of Rogue traders per 'sector' perhaps.Visscher Navigators serve on the vessels of several dozen Rogue Trader dynasties operating in the Expanse..
Page 15
Gives a hint again at the size of Navigtator faimilesOver several years, his blood-brokers arranged dozens of marriages between the sons and daughters of House Ortellius and those of numerous other Houses, sometimes accepting unexpected dowries and other terms clearly not in their best financial interest. Eventually every available scion of House Ortellius was married off...
..
In a single year, House Ortellius produced a score of offspring, some to sons still in the House, others to daughtrs married off elsewhere.
Page 16
Navigators are crucial in 'greater than sector' level trade, which is to say they have vast control over it. 5th edition notes Scarus and Calixis are separated by some thousands of light years, so thats definitely long distance that would be only possible by Navigator.Cassini has interests in all the major trade routes within the Calixis Sector and was actively seeking a monopoly of Chartist vessels plying the Warp route betwen the Calixis and Scarus sectors.
Page 16
again implied scope of Navigator houses, or at least minor ones. Given the implied number of houses before, we're perhaps talking hundreds of thousands or millions of navigators, which is consistent with the approximat enumber of warp capable ships the Imperium has.Sadly for House Cassini, several dozen of their brightest sons and daughters were operating Chorda vessels at that time and many were slain int he viscious battles that ensued. Most Navigator Houses would be able to absorb such losses, for all are well-versed in the perisl of dynastic succession.
Page 17
Comment on Navigator scope and capabilityAT one time, the Navigators of House Brabazon were counteda mongst the most able in the entire Segmentum, their star charts the most accurate, tehir ability to plot the ebb and flow of the Warp without rival.
Page 18
Comment on colonization of dwarf galaxies in or around the Imperium. Makes you wonder if they've done anything like that. Interesting that a 25,000 distance from the galaxy was considered beyond the ability of a Navigator (given its outside the Astronomican at least.)..A novator by the name of Magulax declared that he would chart a route out of the galaxy towards one of the numerous smaller dwarf galaxies orbiting it and there establish his own stellar empire in the name of the God Emperor of Mankind.
..
Some within the ranks have uncovered evidence that Magulax Mercator sank his stolen welath into a joint venture with an outcast Rogue Trader and between them sought a passage out towards the Canis Major dwarf galaxy said to orbit the galaxy at a distance less than that between Terra nad Kar Duniash. None believe that the rogue Novator could possibly have navigated the empty void between the two regions;
..
Most would denounce the idea that a stellar empire could have been founded a mere 25,000 light years from teh seat of the Emperor'srule..
Amusingly in real life, Canis Major is only some 4900 LY from Earth sooo... a nice reference to 40K earth not being where it should be in real life.
Page 19
Yet another Navigator house and mention of the trade wars described later.House Malaspina has also frequently found itself in conflict with the PAternova, most prominently during its notorious trade war with House Dakkar during the Angevin Crusade.
Page 20
The conventions seem to be what dictate conducts and conflict between Navigator houses, for the stability of the Imperium as a whole. But it only applies to 'properly' constituted sectors.At any other time or place, the matter might have been resolved within the terms of the Navigator Convention...
..
Because the region had yet to be formally constituted as a Sector of the Imperium, neither House considered the Navigator Conventon to apply and the result was all-out, unrestrained war.
Page 21
Navigator politics and their essential love/hate relationships. The Space Wolf novels imply this may have been deliberate to keep them from capitalizing on their monoploy of long-distance warp travel, as if they weren't fighting each other they might be able to grab the Imperium by the balls, so to speak.Though the numerous Houses of the Nobis Nobilite are united under the nominal rule of the Paternova, each is linked by an impossibly complex web of fealty and/or rivalry.
..
Yet, despite the rivalries, the Houses need one another to survive, for without organised and highly formal marraiges between bloodlines, mutation would bring the entire sub-species down in scant generations. Each House employs a veritable army of bonded genitors, blood-brokers, chirurgeons, the sworn duty of which is to ensure the genetic purity of the Houses.
Also the importance of arranged marriages and breeding and genetics to the Navigators.
Page 21
The Trade War. Also mention of assasination, infiltration and sabotage. Sometimes mercenaries in more extreme cases although this may invite the intervention of local defense/police forces.Two or more houses go to war with one another, but the process is actually highly ritualised and subject ot a sprawling canon of ancient law, beginning with a declaration defining the belligerants and the scope of their conflifct. The aim of the declaration is to contain the war so that the business of administering the Imperium is unaffected. Within the terms of the delcaration of a Trade War, the participants may underatke whater attacks they deem appropriate to settle th amtter, so long as those not directly involved are unaffected. In most cases, a Trade War is carried out behind the scenes..
Page 21
even with the rules, collateral damage (or reprisal if you choose the wrong side) is possible in Trade Wars. In such a case the Paternova is the final arbiter of matters and keeps the peace, which apparently one reason he is a High Lord. It probably also has something to do with wanting to keep their sovereignty and independence from the rest of the Imperium (as discussed in Wolfblade.) As Navigators disrupting the fuck out of Imperial order would bring the other factions down on their heads, and I can just bet that some like the Inquisition are waiting for that opportunity.It is perhaps inevitable that other parties will be drawn into the conflict, especially if an attakc is aimed at a Navigator who is serving a vessel owned by a Chartist Captain, Rogue Trader, or similar. When this happens, the Paternova must often intervene to settle things, lest the Imperium be forced to deploy its own military forces to separate the combatants and restore order.
Page 21
Trade Wars gone out of bounds. Orbital bombardment wasting cities, bioweapons depopulating cities..Holdings have been attacked with no regard to collateral damage, entire cities ravaged by orbital bombardment or depopulated by the release of toxic agents long forbidden within the Imperium.
Page 22
Astropathic choirs seem to be a sort of quasi-Darwinian 'testing nad training' ground for Astropaths to gain more seasoning.. those that survive can go on to bigge and better things...a period when he was part of a larger Astropathic Choir and not yet fully able to perform an astrotelepathic sending on his own - certainly not over the vast distances of an uncharted region like the Koronus Expanse. Many Astropaths who survive their tenure in an Astropathic Choir go on to perform a more specialised role. Some ascend in the ranks to become masters at directing the mind voices of their choirs. Others are scattered across the galaxy to serve as the personal Astropaths and adivsors of powerful adepts sucjh as Inquisitors or Praefects, or are seconded to organisations such as the administratum, the Adeptus Arbites, The Imperial Guard, or even the Adeptus Astartes.
Page 22
Mention of defence stations, which are probably orbital facilities to defend key locations, routes, and the like. (or to serve as waypoints for substellar ships hte Navy may operate.)Such [astropathic] choirs are generally found aboard Imperial Navy defence stations guardin ght eouter marches, or perhaps those sitting on the very fringes, in the anarchic grey area between the fronteirs and the lawless places.
Page 22-23
Port Wander is a frontier/defence station like mentioned above, it seemsm, and 'dozens' is a substantial astropathic choir.Like any other Imperial Navy frontier station, Port Wander is served by a substantial Astropathic Choir.
.....the storm known as the Screaming Vortex is said ot emit a shrill dirge that, when it reaches a periodic crescendo, can cause dozens of Port Wander's Astorpaths to fit and convluse, cutting off communication for days.
Page 23
An impromptu astropathic choir, populated by 'broken' ones This tends to suggest that the number used up exceeds the number usd by the Imperium, which might be useful to someone (commercial reasons) if not for that 'feed to the Emperor' bit.The so-called Pit of Voices is a tragic, ramshackle imitation ofa true Astorpathic Choir, one served entirely by outcast or masterless AStropaths. While few are actual renegades, the majority of AStropaths serving the Pit of Voices are broken in some manner. Some have been judged wanting in their abilities, or perhaps unsuitable in some other way, and somehow escaped being shipped to Terra to fuel the AStronomican.
Page 23
psi-sickness.Like many psykers, AStropaths who do not exercise their abilities grow afflicted by a cruel malaise known as 'psi-sickness'..
Page 23-24
AdMech 'way stations' for explorators. Sort of temporary/mobile relay stations. Probably help in navigation too.When the Adpetus Mechanicus travle into the outer void, they often leave behind them a trail of way stations. Staffed almost entirely by mono-tasked servitors overseen under the care of aged Explorators approaching the end of their serivce to the Machine God, tehse way stations act as storage depots, repair facilities, data depositories, and often as Astropathic relays.
..
..when the Choir does receive a message to relay back to the Imperium, it is inevitably formed according to the unique frame of refrence of the adeptus Mechanicus.
Page 24
Some colonies rate astropaths, at least as established as private ventures. Also mention of what constitutes basic resources for a colony.The Koronus Expanse is scattered with the ruins of colonies established as some grand endeavour...
...
Most of these colonies are little more than a few thousand 'volunteers' desperately trying to survive in a hostile enviroment. A smaller number are provided with some basic resources such as a light defence force, sub-stellar fleet assets, and in some cases, a small Astropathic Choir. To acquire such a choir, a Rogue Trader dynasty must be exceptionally rich, influential, or just plain lucky, for the masters of the Adeptus Astra Telepathica are none too keen to risk their valuable Astorpaths in such a way.
Page 24
AStropathic relays described. This is the 'bucket brigade' approach to messages, as opposed to a 'point to point' contact between just two astorpaths. The advantage of this is that hte reliability and ease of sending is better since you have a bunch of astropaths sending it over shorter distances. The drawback is, teh more astropaths in the chain, the slower the message can become (each having to mentally prepare, encode, send a message that has to be intercepted, interpreted, and evaluated, only for the process to begin over again.) Point to point over longer distances is probably faster, but has its own problems (reliability and safety becomes harder, and only powerful astorpaths can probably do it.)The task of an Astropathic Relay is to serve as a conduit through which the astrotelepathic traffic of entire sectors is sent and received across the vast, trackless depths of the void between each sector. The psychic interchange is relentless and constant, and the burn out rate phenomenal. At times of all-out war or other calamity, dozens, even hundreds of astropaths might be sacrificed each day, simply to keep the relay open and communication flowing to and from the affected region. Were the relay to fall silent for even the blink fo an eye, untold thousands of lives might be lost and entire worlds could fall. Needless to say, such relays are vital to the continued existence of the Imperium...
Page 26
Implying they can make hundreds or perhaps thousands of light years in an hour potentially. Realisty is another story.However, by entering the realm of the Immaterium, where time and space cease to exist as meaningful concepts, vessels can potentially travel between distant worlds in the blink of an eye.
Page 26
Implies they make direct contact with their brethren over some distances at least, (astorpathic messages are not instantaneous, at least not in all cases.) Which implies close realtime transmissions.This is the domain of the Astropaths, who stretch their minds deep into the Immaterium to connect with the psychic resonance of their own kind throughout the Imperium to pass information, messages, or warnings in an instant.
Page 26
Astropath training.Decades of training and the torment of the Soul Binding ritual strengthen the will of these psykers..
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Navigator charts. This probably reflects both a security measure and a necessity igven the manner in which Navigators operate.Charts plotting routes through the Immaterium are not at all like conventional charts of real space. They exist as abstract ocncepts, communicated between Navigators by psychic means. The information could be stored in a roll of psychically charged parchment, a staff impregnated with the navigational lore of the family, or a servo-skull fashioned from a revered ancestor. A Navigator can mentally retrieve thsi information by touch, often after reciting a secret mantra, and can instincitvely hone in on the particular lore he is seeking, the knoweldge of the Warp route flooding into his mind. To rpevent rivals accessing the charts, the information is disguised by impenetrable ciphers.
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In other words, Astorpathic travel is very unstandardized and very random, which we kinda knew already.Note that voyage lengths within the Warp do not correspond with the actual distance in realspace between the physical points connected by the Warp route. For example, a star system many light years away might be reached via the Immaterium in a matter of days in real time, but a planet in an adjacent system might take months to reach by Warp travel.
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The ritual/auguries can be re-perfomed every 1-5 days. further, rites of appeasemant may be performed to prepare a ship against adverse warp conditions (taking another 1-5 days) and improve the odds in the event of warp storms. Purification rites of this sort require re-reading the auspices. These things probably can go a long way to slowing down the 'effective' warp speed I often calc, but I suspect along fairly 'stable' and predictable (and well travelled) routes some of these things can be bent for the sake of speed...his Navigator must perform a complex ritual, which includes perusing any existing navigation charts, to determine whether the auguries are favourable for a safe translation into the Warp.
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Navigation involves a certain amount of divination it seems, which may help explain why Navigators sometimes have precog attirbuted to them...a Navigator may first perform a ritual of prognostication to help him predict the turbulent and capricious flow of the Warp. These rituals vary greatly in scope and specifics based on a Navigator's clan, but often take roughly a half-hour to perform. A Navigator does not need to perform such a ritual, but many senior navigators refuse to translate without performing one.
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Luck and belief influenceing warp passage. Indeed much of the described 'travel' process a Navigator undergoes tends ot reflect the inherent subjectivity of the warp as is influenced by thought and emotion and perception of the Navigator.Translation is more or less instantaneous. However, a wise captain shoudl dedicate a few hours beforehand, taking extra precuations to preserve his vessel and crew against hte warp.
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Any wise captain harbours deep-seated superstitions concerning travel into the Warp.
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If a captain does not devote at least one hour to warding off bad luck before translation...
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Navigators share similarities with Titans and similar conveyances that involve a mind/machine interface. I imagine this assists in piloting the ship in general out of warp as well as in.A Navigation station is a highly sophisticated and littel understood console of ancient tech. By plugging himself into this arcane throne via cybernetic implants in his skull or spine, a Navigator can meld his mind with the ship's machine-spirit. Tihs allows him to interface his psychic penetration of the warp with the cogigators on the bridge, so that his mental commands can be translated into signals that the officers on the bridge can recognizse.
Page 30 - Table 2-4 indicates Voyage durations can vary by as much as 1/4 the estimated time to 4x the estimated time depending on degree of success or failure. Which is pretty much how it was in the Core rules.
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Which only reinforeces that 'bad luck/omen' thing and why the rituals and shit are important.. its as much to create the proper mindset aboard ship and with the crew (and thus to impact how their thoughts/emotions influence the warp during passage) as it is any 'ignorance and supersititon' thematic crap...the Navigator must now steer the ship through the Warp. He does this by peering into the Warp using the power of his third eye, scouting ahead into the aether to perceive the dangers lurking to ambush the vessel.
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Their third eye allows them to construct a path through the Immaterium that their consciousness can rationalise. If a Navigator traverses these dangers during this reconnaissance, he 'steers' the ship safely past the threats. If he does not avoid the challenges that he perceives, the Warp may manifest as a physical relaity aboard ship.
It also tends to reflect the 'human minds influencing the warp' aspect and shows exactly why Navigators are important, as well as why the way a Navigator navigates (and how he or she views the Warp) can differ. We can say that in addition to their precognitive and sensory 'first warning' role in Navigating, their knowledge and understanding of the routes, and defense againts its dangers, we could also say that Navigators are important for imposing stability on the warp passage to facilitate the journey, that is, they use their eye and powers to try to impose some sense of order on the Warp (or rather a small part of it) and make the journey a bit easier and predictable.
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Navigator in action and the description of physical dangers as well as psychic ones. Basically mind and matter at risk.As the vessel passes through the Immaterium, the Navigator psychically roves the aether, seeking and (ideally) avoiding each hazard before it ensnares the ship.
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A physical encouter is one which affects the fabric of the vessel itself, such as a warp storm, reef or shoal. The Navigator must use his enhanced senses to locate the perils and instruct the helmsman (via his navigation station) on how to evade the threats. More dangeorus are psychic encoutners, where the Warp attmepts to trick or beguile the Navigators consicousness, or overcome it in order to manifest aboard ship. This is a battle of wills between the Navigator and the Warp itself..
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Navigators seem to work in conjunction with the bridge crew and the ship's machine spirit, rather than alone, although some ships have the Navigators operating solo too. and again a key part of the Navigator's talent is in imposing order upon the chaos against the physical dangers.A Navigator who detects a physical encounter in time can use his navigational skills to help the officers on the bridge to steer clear of the danger. He senses the appraoching danger, rationalising the turbulent force of the Warp as a raging seascape, perhaps, or a desert storm or ice-lashed tundra. His unique ability is to picture the unfathomable force of the Immaterium as something understandable, to bestow order upon his perception of utter chaos.
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Navigators imposing perception on the psychic dangers mentioned before, as well as that whole 'impose will on the warp' aspect of things...the Navigators mind might rationalize the Warp [psychic encounter] as a dark forest of tall trees. He might have to run through the forest, perhaps searching for a way out, while being hunted by a pack of ravenous, mutated wolves. He can either try to flee or stand and fight, or trick his way to safety. The wolves might represent the Daemonic entities of the Warp, attempting to wear down the Navigator's psyche, so they cna breach the physical reality of the ship.
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Whne the Navigator acts in this vision-world, his actions are rationalised representations of the way his psyche is manipulating and evading the Immaterium to make the ship avoid the potential hazard.
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More of the risks and dangers the Navigator faces and guards against.The NAvigator is assailed by whispered temptations...
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He perceives the Warp as a place of beguiling sights, fragrances, tastes and music...
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If the Navigator succumbs, he opens a door for the horrors of the Warp to flood aboard his vessel...
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[/quote]The Navigator must test his fighting skills agianst enemies lusting for his blood. He perceives the Warp as a place of conflict, such as a war-torn city, a gladitorial arrena, or a gargantuan chessboard. He must surivve all opponents who challenge him..
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If he defeats this final foe, the vision dissolves and the vessel avoids the enocunter. If the Navigator 'perishes', the encounter spills partially into reality; the encounter manifests aboard ship.
Yet another risk.
That said, considering that it give the Goliath a year long operational endurance, its a rather impressive feat. 
