World Championships Preview – Captain Titus battles Nekrosor Ammentar for the Five Hundred Worlds of Ultramar
https://www.warhammer-community.com/en- ... f-ultramarGames Workshop wrote:The Imperium is under siege. Times are so dire that even Ultramar is hard pressed, and with Roboute Guilliman busy overseeing the Indomitus Crusade, the defence of the Five Hundred Worlds falls to its people. While others push out to reclaim its lost borders, one illustrious captain is tasked with securing its critical interior, a task made ever more difficult when a terrifying spectre of the lost Necron empire returns to plague the galaxy.

The next campaign is Marines versus Necrons. The miniatures are stunning. Look at the style and detail of the leaders.
Captain Demetrian Titus, Master of the WatchGames Workshop wrote:That's right –
Captain Titus, no longer the humble Lieutenant he was in
Space Marine 2 [
> ] and the Secret Level animation [
> ]. He's certainly going (back) up in the world and, as Master of the Watch, is tasked with the defence of Macragge and Ultramar's soft interior, which brings him to the story at hand.
Nekrosor AmmentarGames Workshop wrote:Nekrosor Ammentar is thought by many to be the genesis of the Destroyer curse, and by others to be entirely mythological – a parable of guilt and betrayal that hearkens back to the shattering of the C'tan. Strangely, all memories of its origin appear to have been forcibly removed from the collective Necron psyche, though only the Silent King has the authority to make such sweeping modifications, and he's not the most talkative of people...
Ammentar is very real, however, and labours with surprising lucidity on its crusade to eradicate all life from the galaxy. It harbours an extreme affinity for the C'tan known as the Nightbringer, and aims to reunite its scattered shards to one day revive the ancient star god in full. This is widely considered to be a bad idea, especially by the Necrons themselves.
And their armies are no less gorgeous.
The Wardens of Ultramar
Necron BattalionOf course my favorite has to be the same one the article is hyping, C'tan Shard of the Nightbringer:

Games Workshop wrote:Turns out, even a premature reveal [
> ] can't dampen how impossibly cool this miniature is – a Miniature of the Year contender if ever we've seen one. The emergence of this shard of Nightbringer is a real worst-case scenario for the Ultramarines, and Ammentar can't wait to set his spectral nightmares loose on the 500 Worlds.
So which side will you support in the war? I honestly couldn't choose between them. The Marines have a terrific gallery of RPG-style lieutenants, but the Necrons have super-cool monsters which roll every turn they are dead to see if they rise lol.
What's very interesting on the lore front, which in my
Battlemaster Conquest design becomes mechanics, is that I found out that this campaign follows up on
Space Marine 2, and will in turn be followed up by
Space Marine 3. All this is crucial to how my
Battlemaster will work. Everything will have to be played in order, and every success will be rewarded, making further successes more likely.
Some interesting commentary from Steam users:
Did 500 Worlds impact Space Marine 3 development at all?
https://steamcommunity.com/app/2183900/ ... 8794545450THE PILGRIM wrote:SM3 is confirmed. As far as I know that's all we know. I mean, GW already linked the end of SM2 to the Secret Level episode made by an entirely different company. So, it's possible that it throws them for a loop, but unlikely, as GW is intensely involved in their IP to the point that Saber was sometimes forced to make all kinds of changes at the whim of GW.
ioridrac wrote:Who do you think approved SM3?
GW manages its cash cows personally.
It won't let SM3 go do its own thing.
It belongs to GW, and if Saber wants more money
Well they will stick to GW's game plan.
To me it won't be different then Relic's take on the game.
Next game Titus is the guy we go to, we start off as a new Marine.
We go off to kill Necrons, and rise in rank, glory, become named Marine.
Soon we become what Titus was, and maybe even start out own chapter.
Relic had that game plan way before 500 Worlds.
Everything Saber does has to get greenlit.
In preproduction, production or post.
Meetings upon meetings happen to ensure things like brand are upheld.
Ragnar wrote:IMO in SM2 and SM3 the lore/story was predetermined by GW and Saber built the game(s) around it.
SM2 is hardly linked to Necrons lore, and so is 500 Worlds. If you look carefully at the end of the 500 Worlds trailer, the R in Worlds looks like an Egyptian hieroglyph. Necrons have the Egyptian protocol running, so there is a link between SM2, 500 Worlds and SM3.
And just to get it out of the way, Thousand Sons don't look Egyptian, they look like occult sorcerers. In our real-life history the look of the Thousand Sons is how occult sorcerers in ancient times, even before Egypt was a thing, looked like. The Egyptians took the look of the occult because they had an occult belief system, a lot about death and reincarnation, which matches what occult ancient sorcerers thought.
Long Story short: Thousand Sons unequal Egyptian, Necrons equal Egyptians.
All this is very different to how Paizo handles programmer games. In Pathfinder, the programmer games are generally treated contemptuously as alternate realities. Programmers can do whatever they want and Paizo doesn't care because they ignore it. BUT the novels, comics, board games and so on are tightly integrated. So they seem to just dismiss programmers lol. But Games Workshop also seems to have no respect for programmers if the above comments are true and they're micromanaging them.
Don't miss the trailer, it's pretty cool, in a Warhammer sort of way, not a videogamey way. What I mean by this is, if you're looking for action to get hyped as in programmer games, you won't find it. You will only like the videos Games Workshop produces if you want to be immersed into the lore and the atmosphere. It's a major change in how to view trailers, and it took me a while to get there, but I am here now, and going deeper into this mindset with every passing day.
Warhammer 40,000: 500 Worlds Announced | World Championships Warhammer Preview Live! 2025
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hrulR3PhGYGames Workshop wrote:Demetrian Titus: officer, leader, strategist. Once again Captain of the Ultramarines Second Company, Titus faces a new mission with impossible odds – but he's not alone!

Love his look when the camera zooms in. Even in the grimmest of movies you don't see such a scowl.
@lasermanso wrote:"The Primarch demanded the impossible, but he asked Titus and Caedo, so it was actually pretty possible."
@esc9869 wrote:Titus made a lot of money for GW. This won him a deserved promotion.
@haha1996VN wrote:That means he soloed the whole planet, saved Metaurius, and extracted with both of them.
Damn, the emperor protects.
I think this refers to what happened after the end of
Space Marine 2. Could be wrong tho. I am still learning this stuff.
@MrOmoreau wrote:Leandros in his corner: "This proves nothing".
@SkySweeperSyn wrote:I'm glad they're using Titus as sort of their "Master Chief" of 40K now. He's perfect for the role and letting people embody him who play. Seeing him come back after a decade and thinking he was forgotten to seeing this rise is truly a treat for those of us who like him.
Welcome back, Captain!
@gogos1003 wrote:It is 50th millennium. Titus singlehandedly closed eye of terror, saved the emperor, and brought about golden age of humanity. Leandros: The stain of suspicion never completely fades. I will be watching you, Titus.
@lukenichols8219 wrote:"Captain Titus, you have accomplished much...
You have reconquered the 500 worlds of Ultramar,
Destroyed both the entire tyranid and ork races,
Brokered a lasting peace between the Imperium, the Aeldari and the T'au,
Reconfigured every tomb world tk keep the Necrons asleep indefinitely,
Convinced the fallen primarchs to forsake Chaos and rejoin the Imperium,
Destroyed Commoragh,
Reignited and completed the Emperor's Imperial webway project,
Closed the Eye Of Terror,
Murdered Erebus,
Killed Lucius the Eternal permanently,
Wiped out the remaining C'Tan shards,
And rebuilt and reinhabited the destroyed planet of Cadia...
...But know this, Titus..."
That's sarcasm.
@BaconMemes wrote:"... you have won the trust of your brothers, your chapter master, and a video from Games Workshop. But know this, the stain of suspicion never completely fades..."
-Leandros (probably)
@BoltPistol wrote:This is quite literally the BIGGEST middle finger to Leandros.