Does this take place before, after or during Horus Heresy?

[Hathur]

Trying to figure out where in the timeline this game occurs (casual with 40k lore). Is this game taking place before the Horus Heresy, after it or during? I've seen nothing in game yet to give me a point of reference as to date / timeline of lore events.

[Sufferage]

It is 40k so after, before would be 30k.

[Daliena]

Wayyyyyy after. Horus Heresy was technically 30k - as in, it took place somewhere around the early 30,000s.

We're now ten thousand years past the Horus Heresy, though still feeling it's effects since it basically tore humanity down from it's second golden age into the fascist caricature that is the Imperium of Man.

[Norsehorse]

Horus Heresy is 30K, i.e. 10 000 years prior to this game.

[BrowneHawk]

Based on short research, its takes place 500 years before the fall of cadia which would be considered current time line.

[IlluminaZero]

All of 40k technically takes place after the Horus Heresy for reasons

[Hathur]

Ahh gotcha, thanks. So Emperor is in his "coffin" then, no chance we'll be bumping into him in some grand meeting or something :)

[Slaanesh]

Since there is mention of the Cicatrix Maledictum, it's after the near end of 41st millenium, but I doubt it's in the current "modern era" of the tabletop (millenium 42+)... The game taking place in the ''dark side'' of the cicatrix, people would be talking about Lion being back, so it's probably in-between.

At least, so far, I've seen no reference about Lion. Could be right after Cadia fall, or more far away. It's sure is 10k years after Horus tho

Only supposition tho.

[HuffingJenkem]

Originally posted by Dango:

Since there is mention of the Cicatrix Maledictum, it's after the near end of 41st millenium, but I doubt it's in the current "modern era" of the tabletop (millenium 42+)... The game taking place in the ''dark side'' of the cicatrix, people would be talking about Lion being back, so it's probably in-between.

At least, so far, I've seen no reference about Lion. Could be right after Cadia fall, or more far away. It's sure is 10k years after Horus tho

Only supposition tho.

I think it's just as Cadia falls, since the disappearance of the Astronomicon and the storm at the Maw are mentioned as new things.

[Balekai]

In the Beta there were some numbers on save game files that changed periodically as the main Acts progressed. They looked like the Imperial Calendar years (XXX,MXX). If so they suggested it took place around 841.M41 to 848.M41 from tutorial to Act 3 (so the years 41841 to 41848). This is an approximate because there's no clear dates in the Imperium because of many different factors being mostly, technology, meritocracy and lack of communication.

The game is much closer to modern 40K events and timelines, but before the latest crazy Galaxy changing events.

The Fall of Cadia expanding the Eye of Terror and creating the Cicatrix Maledictum (the Great Rift), thus splitting the Imperium in two and cutting off the Emperor's Light for a good time for half the Imperium (which basically all but falls in those areas), happened in 999.M41 (Year 41999).

Again if those save file numbers were in fact the year in-game then we're about 150ish years before the new Imperial Dark Age and about 240ish years from when the Golden Throne will supposedly stop working. Meaning either the End of the Imperium/Galaxy or Warp Entity Emperor comes to save the Day. Terra and the core sectors of the Imperium will probably go kaboom regardless like the Eldar with the Eye of Terror. :D

Last time I checked the latest events in the timeline were around early M.42.

Also there's some hints that the game could actually be happening at the same time as the Fall of Cadia. Cassia when she connects to your ship mentioned that the Emperor's light has been severely dimmed. In addition to outright saying "HIS IS GONE!" to paraphrase during the ritual beforehand. The Koronus Expanse is on the other side of the Eye of Terra from Terra at the fringes of the Galaxy). It's not close to it really, but the way back to the Imperium in game is cut off my a very unusually powerful Warp Storm that would also suggest a Cadia issue.

If so all the sectors below/around the Koronus Expanse are being wiped off the face of the map by hordes of Daemons and Chaos Marines. The Sector east of Calixis Sector (Fenial Sector) went dark two years before the Fall of Cadia due to Daemons.

Note the last two maps on this page:

https://warhammer40k.fandom.com/wiki/Milky_Way_Galaxy

Calixis Sector and the Koronus Expanse are in the NW area... now cut off by the Eye of Terra mostly. Koronus is north of Calixis close to the Halo Stars.