Chaotic words - any real power to them?

[Eviscerator]

WH40K has several instances of words having effect more than just auditory, the chief words of which are Chaos-related.
Example:
Daemon World - Arguleon Veq recited spells that could not be written down because if they were, the words would come alive and fly from the page.
Pestilence short story - The utterance of Nurgle (hypothese) caused physical and mental reactions which included nausea, shrieking, vomiting and a 15 deg temperature drop. The parchment where the word was written down began to smoulder. Furthermore reference is made that the word is part of 97 Blasphemies that May Not Be Written Down.
The Guns Of Tanith - Upon hearing Khorne broadcast over the tannoy, general unease and disgust (to put it lightly) is caused among both the kill team and the general populace. A deaf Guardsman also reacts to it although she cannot possibly hear.

Yet how can Commissar Cain mention Khorne and Slaanesh in the course of a briefing and there is no reaction from the room?
Is it possible that a broadcast over general frequencies of a Chaos God's name cause general discord among Imperial troops?
And how do they teach those that are supposed to fight Chaos about what they are about?
Is any physical/mental reaction more psychological than warp-related?

[Peptuck]

It may have less to do with the word itself but the speaker in question. A warp-twisted Chaos soldier screaming Khorne or Nurgle's name as part of a benediction or curse probably has more of an effect than a Commissar casually mentioning the name with no emphasis or intent or force of will behind it.

[Brother-Captain Gaius]

Warhammer 40,000 draws on a lot of traditional Western mythology (not unlike Stargate, for example) and applies its own unique brand of gothic grimitude to it. One of the more recurring themes you'll see throughout the mythological "magic" (be it wizards and scrolls or sirens and hexes or whatever) is name-magic; i.e., the idea that an entity or object's name has power, as does knowledge of that name.

40K extrapolates upon this, and thus you get euphemisms like the Ruinous Powers, as speaking the true names of the Chaos Gods is very much invoking their power. Whether that power actually manifests in some tangible effect varies, but the power is there even if it is only over the minds of the universe's inhabitants. Likewise, you get things like the Grimoire of True Names as listed in Codex: Daemonhunters, a tome chock full of the Ordo Malleus's collected knowledge of the true names of daemons, so that said names can be used to gain power over them.

[Black Admiral]

Also, it can depend on where it's said, as certain areas are more or less viable for Warp-based entities to manifest in. For instance, anyone who starts doing things like speaking the names - true or otherwise - of daemons at the site of a Chaos ritual is simply too stupid to live.

[Eviscerator]

The Colonel who uttered whatever it was most likely had no ill will towards anyone in the sanitarium. Even so what would have caused the drop in temperature? Entity in question turning attention to the area even for a split microsecond?

Would hacking into Imperial Guard frequencies and then broadcasting some Chaotic mumbo-jumbo be enough to turn the troops already on planet and recieving broadcast? Let's say they are fighting on a world almost totally in the final throes of Daemonic Posession. "Bleeding sky, rifts in space, Daemons running amok and all that.

[Serafina]

"Chaotic words" are at least partially dependant on wether the gods (or deamons) are willing to listen to them, which presumable can be influenced by other factors (it get's easier or more difficult to listen to them).

Yes, that makes them pretty unpredictable. But that also makes them more dangerous - way less people would say them if the effects were predictable.

[dworkin]

Because Commissar Cain is a HERO OF THE IMPERIUM! He is protected by the hand of the Emperor, blah, blah.

Cain often has Jurgen standing nearby when he casually drops the names of the ruinous powers. He's also lucky.

[Eleas]

The Colonel who uttered whatever it was most likely had no ill will towards anyone in the sanitarium. Even so what would have caused the drop in temperature? Entity in question turning attention to the area even for a split microsecond?

Presumably. Given that a lot of it is writer's fiat and magic-stuff, it's open to conjecture, but I would probably have written it as implying that invoking such a name also means you're invoking its meaning. Essentially, it would mean you were briefly forming a sort of mental and psychic avatar (in a manner of speaking, almost a voodoo doll) of the creature, which might in addition be sympathetically tied to the malignant entity in question. That sort of shit is dangerous in the 40K universe.

Would hacking into Imperial Guard frequencies and then broadcasting some Chaotic mumbo-jumbo be enough to turn the troops already on planet and recieving broadcast? Let's say they are fighting on a world almost totally in the final throes of Daemonic Posession. "Bleeding sky, rifts in space, Daemons running amok and all that.

Throughout the Gaunt's Ghosts novels, we certainly see numerous examples of Chaos signs, runes, speech and other cultural artefacts having an effect well beyond the merely psychosomatic. So yes; a number of terrified guardsmen being inundated with Chaos-related memes and concepts would almost certainly qualify as a Bad Thing.

[Lord Revan]

also do we know that the most commonly used names for the chaos god are actually their "true" names or simply a "public" name you could use without invoking their power.

[Simon_Jester]

Because Commissar Cain is a HERO OF THE IMPERIUM! He is protected by the hand of the Emperor, blah, blah.

Cain often has Jurgen standing nearby when he casually drops the names of the ruinous powers. He's also lucky.

Plus he has a bit of an advantage in that he lives in a series where the Chaos powers are treated like opposing nationalities that happen to grant some of their worshippers appropriately themed powers. As opposed the being actual gods who are constantly peering over your shoulder and screwing with you and who can only be held at bay by rigorous mental discipline that drives you half crazy in its own right.

[The Yosemite Bear]

I thought this was going to be about the unwords from Ravenor....

which I guess would be the above turned up to 11!

[fgalkin]

Because Commissar Cain is a HERO OF THE IMPERIUM! He is protected by the hand of the Emperor, blah, blah.

Cain often has Jurgen standing nearby when he casually drops the names of the ruinous powers. He's also lucky.

Plus he has a bit of an advantage in that he lives in a series where the Chaos powers are treated like opposing nationalities that happen to grant some of their worshippers appropriately themed powers. As opposed the being actual gods who are constantly peering over your shoulder and screwing with you and who can only be held at bay by rigorous mental discipline that drives you half crazy in its own right.

If that was the case, there would be no series.

Have a very nice day.
-fgalkin

[GrayAnderson]

Macbeth!




Sorry...Blackadder fan. Couldn't resist.