The spiritual earthquake triggered by the "Deities" short film had not yet subsided, but Medici had already quietly opened a new front.
He did not respond on his personal account to the towering public opinion that brought both praise and criticism.
Instead, in a more systematic and more "official" manner, he began to build a solid foundation of text and materials for that dark universe.
A new account named "Warhammer 40k Archives Declassification Hall" quietly registered across major social platforms.
Almost the instant registration was completed, the platform algorithms recognized its strong association with the recent phenomenal work "Battlefield: Warhammer 40k" and its creator Medici, quickly adding the blue badge representing "official verification."
This action itself sent a clear signal: Medici was not just dabbling—he was constructing a complete IP universe in a professional, sustained manner.
For players and enthusiasts whose appetites had long been whetted by game footage and trailers but who only had a superficial understanding of the vast background, this was like rain after a long drought.
Account followers shot up like a rocket.
Streamers like Scorchwind and I Will Carry You reposted and followed immediately, major gaming communities pinned recommendations, and countless Warhammer enthusiasts flooded in like migrating birds, afraid to miss the first-hand "lore sustenance."
The comment section was instantly flooded with messages like "screenshot moment," "first," "Medici hurry up," and "requesting more Chaos materials."
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The account bio was concise and powerful: [Official Warhammer 40k universe lore release channel. Faction archives, unit codex, background stories, worldview analysis.]
The signature was a miniaturized, stylized Imperial Aquila emblem.
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No warm-up, no advance notice.
The moment it reached one million followers, the "Archives Declassification Hall" published its first content.
Not a video, but a long-form illustrated article with clear structure and a plain yet weighty title:
[Issue One: Foundation of the Imperium - Astra Militarum]
The article opened with a highly representative concept image:
Endless soldiers in khaki uniforms, like a muddy steel torrent, following fluttering Imperial banners across an alien battlefield shrouded in gunsmoke with ominous light burning in the sky, launching a death charge toward the vaguely visible, twisted and grotesque silhouettes of xenos or Chaos ahead.
In one corner of the image, a battle-scarred Leman Russ tank spewed cannon fire.
The overall atmosphere was tragic and oppressive, yet revealed a kind of almost foolish tenacity that humanity bursts forth with in desperate situations.
The text portion unfolded in a calm, objective tone, almost like a military archive record:
[Overview]
The Astra Militarum, formerly known as the Imperial Guard, is the most massive and most fundamental conventional military force of the Imperium of Man, coordinated under the Departmento Munitorum.
It is not a unified army, but rather an aggregate of countless independent regiments provided by the millions of worlds under Imperial rule, according to the "Imperial Conscription Law" and "tithe" obligations.
[Recruitment and Conscription]
Astra Militarum soldiers come from diverse sources, forming a microcosm of the Imperium's diversity:
- Planetary Defense Force Promotion: Many Astra Militarum soldiers initially come from local defense forces of various worlds, conscripted due to outstanding performance or their world's manpower demands.
- Volunteers: Out of faith in the Emperor, desire for glory, longing to escape mundane life, or simply to secure better rations for their families, countless men and women voluntarily join the Astra Militarum.
- Forced Conscription: As the most direct manifestation of Imperial rule, most worlds must periodically submit a certain proportion of their eligible population to the Departmento Munitorum as a "military service tithe."
These conscripts often receive only the most basic training before being sent aboard transport ships bound for unknown frontlines.
[Scale and Deployment]
The Astra Militarum's numbers are difficult to calculate precisely, conservatively estimated in the hundreds of billions.
They are deployed in every corner of the Imperium's territory, from suppressing planetary rebellions to resisting xenos invasions to engaging in eternal tug-of-war with Chaos forces.
In almost every major conflict in which the Imperium participates, Astra Militarum soldiers can be seen.
They are the largest and most easily consumed cog in the Imperium's war machine.
[Examples of Famous Regiments]
The Astra Militarum's charm lies in its extreme diversity—regiments formed by different worlds' environments, cultures, and histories have vastly different styles:
- Death Korps of Krieg: Originating from the planet Krieg, utterly destroyed by civil war.
Soldiers receive harsh trench warfare and sacrifice education from childhood, wearing iconic gas masks, silent, strictly disciplined, utterly fearless of death, even harboring a certain morbid longing for it.
They are experts in wars of attrition and positional warfare, with fighting spirit so intense it's suffocating.
- Cadian Shock Troops: From Cadia, the Imperium's most important fortress world.
Renowned for strict discipline, efficient standardized training, and tenacious defensive combat capabilities.
Cadians are the "Shield of the Imperium," facing the frontlines of Chaos invasion year-round.
Even though their homeworld is lost, Cadians scattered across the galaxy remain among the most steadfast and professional Imperial soldiers.
- Armageddon Steel Legion: From the heavily industrialized world of Armageddon.
Skilled in mechanized large-scale coordinated warfare, soldiers often equipped with dust protection gear, relying on Chimera armored personnel carriers and numerous armored vehicles to launch high-speed assaults across open terrain.
Their warfare is the roar of steel, fuel, and engines.
[Status and Significance]
"If death is the Emperor's currency, then the Astra Militarum are the coins most widely circulated and most cheaply spent in the Imperium's treasury."
They are numerous, individual lives insignificant in grand strategy, but it is precisely this countless mortal flesh and blood, courage and sacrifice that constructs the first and broadest wall humanity's Imperium erects against the vast dark universe.
They may not have the superhuman physique of Astartes, nor the arcane technology of the Adeptus Mechanicus, but they possess the tenacity and numbers belonging to mortals.
And in that dark era, the most precious thing—the humble wish to continue on.
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