#exodites

I think the biggest surprise of the Big Summer Preview was the reveal of new Eldar Exodites. These have been rumored for a while, almost to the point of wishlisting, and based on certain sources I'd been anticipating an end-of-show teaser at most.

Eldar are not my jam but I've gotta say, I think the studio really understood the assignment with these sculpts. For at least the last thirty years, the go-to Exodite conversion has been to slap a Shining Spear on the back of a Cold One and call it a Dragon Knight and this is hands down the best execution of the concept to date.

The kit contains options for the three Kill Team specialists, and any can model be built as the 40k datasheet friendly Dragon Knights.

They are around the same height as an Astartes, towering above baselines. They all possess lithe frames, with extra long limbs. Think race of Slendermen, except psychic and they have access to some crazy OP technology. Despite their proportions, they move with perfect grace. All humans have moments when they stumble, stutter, twitch, jerk. Not Eldar. They move with perfection that should only be achieved through unparalleled self-control and training. It would take a normal human implants and prosthetics to achieve this level of grace. Except for Eldar it comes... naturally. That's just how they move, achieving such perfection to them is as easy as breathing.

Combine all that with them looking human and now you see why a lot humans are afraid of Aeldari. They sit perfectly in the realm of Uncanny Valley. They look like us at first glance, but they are so clearly NOT. A human doesn't have limbs so long, a normal non-abhuman isn't as tall and strong as an Astartes (who themselves exude Uncanny Valley and Transhuman Dread effects) and even if there are abhumans like that they don't act like the Eldar do. They don't talk and think like Eldar. They don't move with the surgical precision and perfect grace like Eldar do naturally, from their birth.

THAT is terrifying. And I am talking about simple Eldar. Now apply all that to the fact they have warriors that can outrun a moving vehicle, clearing miles in the matter of seconds, crush necks with only one hand with such ease... No wonder humans are terrified of them.

Trazyn in Rogue Trader got me thinking about the other massive humiliations of Xenos I can recall from the lore. So, in the spirit of that, I prepared a non-exhaustive list:

Asuryani

A miniscule force barely supported by even 1 Chapter of Space Marines completely wrecks Alaitoc's shit, even with multiple Phoenix Lords coming to the Craftworld's aid.

A single company of Ultramarines defeats an entire Craftworld by itself.

The Battle of Orar's Sepulchre where so many Asuryani die the Ultramarines can build fortifications from their corpses.

Jain Zar loses to a Krak Grenade.

Terminators out-speed and out-react Dire Avengers in the prequel to Twisted Runes.

An entire Saim-hann battleforce doesn't notice Raven Guard latching mines on to all their Jetbikes and then they all blow up whilst riding them.

Drukhari

The entire combined might of Commorragh cannot defeat a single Salamander's Chapter capital ship.

The Audio Drama Loss where a single Scout Squad kills like a thousand Wracks and Grotesques with only 1 scout dying in the entire fight.

Lady Malys, a millenia old warrior who's cunning seemingly impressed either Cegorach or a shard of the Deceiver goes out on a mission to catch Lukas and a single pack of Bloodclaws and is INSTANTLY defeated and captured within seconds of heading out.

Harlequins

Probably one of the worst is that Mephiston novel where Harlequins show up to be easily massacred by base Marines without even managing to put up a fight.

Although the Death Jester who lets Captain Artemis blow his head up because he thinks he will listen to reason probably ranks pretty high as well.

Exodites

Their entire existence. I mean Exodites are the one faction in the entire setting who have literally failed at every single thing they have ever done.

Ynnari

I mean they are pretty close to the Exodites in terms of failure.

Definitely gotta mention Iathglas where a glamour of Shalaxi can fight and defeat Yvraine, the Visarch, the Yncarne and Jain Zar simultaneously.

Also, Ahriman is able to effortlessly defeat Yvraine, the Visarch and the Yncarne by himself as well. This is the same Ahriman who, previously, Arjac Rockfist alone has defeated.

Orks

The whole War of the Beast.

Ullanor, the single thing I will always hate most, where the Beast series made it canon that the Emperor beat the Orks so bad that even though most of them weren't ever even on Ullanor he had apparently given the entire species (a species who do not fear death) a species-defining fear and ptsd. Fucking hate this.

Ghazghkull getting decapitated by Ragnar who is not even in the top 5 most deadly non-Primarch combatants of the Imperium (Trajan, Dante, Logan, Calgar, Azrael, Mephiston are all AT LEAST stronger than him).

Armageddon, everything about it (particularly since it is also now Ullanor). The Orks 'main' world where they have lost every single fight they have ever had. Imagine if the Terra was the planet the Imperium had lost every single war they'd ever had there.

Ghazghkull is such a fucking massive pussy that even in the fucking 4th War for Armageddon he literally thinks it is basically a foregone conclusion that if Space Marines arrive he will lose. Fucking hate him.

Tyranids

4 Tyrannic Wars. 4 Outright defeats. Holy fucking shit does GW hate Xenos.

The Swarmlord, the ever losing! Even to random Custodes now!

The faction defined by random adaption whose every adaption loses instantly!

Necron

Legitimately they are doing better than any of the other Xenos.

Trazyn's loss to a random insert character is galling though.

Furthermore, the fact that even the fucking presence of the Silent King can't let this faction win just ONE warzone is infuriating.

T'au

Geeze things have gotten bleak for the T'au. Not Aeldari bleak (yet!)

Fourth Sphere Expansion instantly fails.

Even a small fraction of the Deathguard is so powerful the entire T'au military doesn't stand a chance.

The fifth sphere expansion has yet to win a SINGLE battle. NOT ONE. HOLY FUCKING SHIT. GW HAS NOT WRITTEN A SINGLE FIGHT THE T'AU HAVE WON SINCE THE STARTIDE NEXUS.

Taros was lost! One of the coolest T'au victories, and the only time ever Forge World allowed a non-Imperium faction to win unambiguously, and GW undid it and said the Imperium just won now. Fucking bullshit.

Votann

I don't know enough about them to say.