The physics inside a black hole remain a mystery in the 41st century – even to the Necron, according to a new Warhammer 40,000 novel

The setting of Warhammer 40,000 includes some pretty advanced technology. Blackstone Citadel can destroy an entire solar system. The Eternal Orb contains the power of the entire sun. And — get this — the Speranza is a giant continent-sized ship that can actually maneuver a black hole and launch it. Ouch!

So, yes, the Warhammer 40,000 setting has the power to crush the galaxy. However, the various races in the 41st century still don’t seem to know what happened in A black hole. This is not just the reason why the Human Empire has let one party down. It seems that no one – not even the extremely advanced Necron – can solve this problem.

One of the latest Warhammer 40,000 novels, Archmagos by Guy Hayley, confirms this. The film stars the beloved 10,000-year-old Mechanicus Lord Belisarius Cawl, who travels to a Necron tomb world trapped within the event horizon of a black hole. So Belisarius Call finally talks about black holes in general, and it was this that surprised me while reading this book.

warn! Spoilers for the Warhammer 40,000 novel Archmagos follow:

In the first half of the book, Belisarius Cawl reflects on the vast knowledge gap that exists among races in the Warhammer 40,000 universe when it comes to black holes. In this metaphysical musing, he speculated that humans had no idea how they worked even during the so-called technological Dark Ages (a largely unexplored period when humanity was at the pinnacle of technology). And, most surprisingly, neither did the Necron.

For the uninitiated, the Necron are fearsome mechanical warriors who wiped out the entire race of C'tan long before the Emperor was conceived (if indeed he was conceived). They are destined to be the most technologically advanced of all xenos, and wield weapons far beyond our comprehension. So I was somewhat surprised to learn that the physics inside a black hole are as much a mystery to the Necron as it is to us in the real world.

Here’s what Belisarius Cawl (who he called “the brilliant mind of the Galaxy”) said about black holes:

No one really knows what these things are, not even me. If we fall into it, will we be destroyed, or will we emerge somewhere else? I've never gotten a satisfactory answer from any species. I doubt our ancestors understood them at the height of technology. I… obtained through completely legal means some ancient Necrontyr records, which they believed to be the tombs of their most powerful C'tan. Maybe this is true. why not? If a star could give birth to something with godly powers, why wouldn't an object like this harbor similar secrets?

There's something fundamental about reading this section of the book that makes the often bizarre and unknowable Warhammer 40,000 universe so nuanced. Humans today have no idea what happens inside a black hole. I mean, we have theories, but we're basically stumped. Black holes may lead to a new universe. Some people believe that black holes may lead to white holes. Personally, I love the 4D representation of the magical bookshelf idea that Black Hole brings to the table. The point is we don't know. It's somewhat reassuring to know that even after 40,000 years, we still haven't solved this problem.

Take a look online at my favorite 40k hideouts There was a debate about this. I know – shocking and horrifying! — Warhammer 40,000 fans have something to say about the realism of their beloved sci-fi universe. Some point out that the C'tan – the ones I mentioned earlier – are said to be able to summon black holes. So if the Necron defeated the C'tan and stole their technology, shouldn't they figure out the black hole all about it?

Others point out that the Necron are able to use black holes effortlessly, as described to us in previous Warhammer 40,000 novels. “But…we actually have an entire cryptographic branch of black hole science called voidcasters who can create black holes with just the wave of their hands…use them as cloaks…it's just that the author doesn't know anything about it,” Announcing Mastercio before citing a book. “So we have a whole team that can guide a black hole, but the book just says they can't…blah.”

But Belisarius Cawl isn't saying that races in the 41st century can't use black holes or interact with them in various ways, just that they don't really understand the inner workings of black holes – exactly what's going on. in in.

Which brings me to my next thought: In the Warhammer 40,000 universe, what yes What's happening inside a black hole? Have some fun here, and maybe Warhammer 40,000 Black Hole has something to do with the Warp, an alternate-dimensional hellscape where Chaos gods rage against each other and daemons plot to tear apart reality and end all life as we know it. Maybe if you do venture into the Warhammer 40,000 black hole, you'll end up having some tea in Grandfather Nurgle's garden (probably very bad for you). Or you might find yourself the unintentional star of a Slaanesh sex show. Unbelievable.

As with most things in Warhammer 40,000, not knowing what's going on is part of the fun. Belisarius Cawl's passing lecture on the nature of black holes should be considered as reliable as 90% of lore fans like me fear every day. That is, not very reliable at all. And Games Workshop, as it hopes, may one day decide to disprove everything Cawl says here and show us that someone somewhere in the Warhammer 40,000 universe knows exactly how a black hole works, both inside and out.

Maybe Infinite Trazin has already seen it.

Wesley is IGN News Director. Find him on Twitter: @wyp100. You can contact Wesley at [email protected] or privately at [email protected].