Kill Lupercal 3

I'm watching the Kill Lupercal animated series on Warhammer+, and this is my review of its final episode.

This review contains major spoilers.

The third and final episode resolves the series and answers all the questions it raised. More importantly, it accurately depicts every player of every wargame.

Story

It's not a spoiler to say that Horus Lupercal is not dead by the end of this episode. To no-one's surprise, the foundation of Warhammer 40,000 lore has not been retconned.

In the second episode, a mystery was presented to us. Princeps Senioris Keeso of the Clavius Dread intercepted a video feed showing Horus touching down on Terra, conveniently nearby. Senioris Keeso herself noted that the warp was manipulating the very reality around the titans, and that nothing could be trusted. But she was adamant that they were duty bound to investigate. Princeps Gemnon of the Aurora Ferrum reluctantly agreed, and the maniple she'd assembled out of the remaining titans pledged their allegiance (not without warning her that this was definitely a trap.)

As the audience, we know Horus cannot die in this altercation, but that doesn't mean we know why this is happening. Is this a trap? Are we stuck in a time loop within a tear in the warp? Are we inside the head of Princeps Gemnon, in the moment of her death? Is Keeso a traitor herself? Why are we even entertaining the idea that this could be Horus at all?

The answer is provided, in that sort of Warhammer+ style of "we forgot the bass drop" confusion. I feel like many reveals in Warhammer+ shows are mentioned in passing, when they feel like they ought to get a double-take. To be perfectly honest, I'm not entirely sure what the reveal is in this episode. I think it was a faked transmission, but all I think I know for sure is that some Imperial Fists also got tricked? I honestly don't know, but it's not important because, in spite of its title, that's not what this series was about.

Only in death does duty end

You know when you're playing a tabletop combat scenario and your favourite character is down to their last remaining wound or health point? Death is imminent, everybody knows it. What you absolutely do NOT do is lay your character down and let it die a peaceful death. That character goes down fighting until the bitter end.

And sometimes that means your character doesn't die at all. Sometimes your character gets away with that 1 wound remaining, and you tally up the victory conditions and you realise that somehow you've won. Or anyway, that's the future you tell yourself is possible, and that's why you keep playing.

That's this series. We didn't kill Lupercal, in the end. But when Princeps Gemnon says, "Find me a target," you know she's going to keep fighting. Whatever it takes, she's going to defend her territory from the traitor legions until somebody makes her stop. As the audience, we can take comfort in knowing that eventually Horus is stopped. As players of tabletop games, we join her in her vigil.

Excellent Warhammer

This episode is excellent Warhammer 30k. It's a simple story with an impossible title and, technically speaking, a predictable outcome. But it understands its audience of gamers and roleplayers. In spite of everything working against it, the series captivates the imagination and then inspires you to go play a game that gives you the same rush of imagined futures, strategies, allegiances, and belligerent persistence.