Just wondering if anybody else has picked this up? It's an omnibus version of the Imperial Munitorum Manual and the Imperial Infantryman's Uplifting Primer. Unfortunately, the IIUP is not the 'Damocles Gulf' edition, so it is missing the section on the Tau, and whatever else was added in 2008.

It still makes for an entertaining read and it really feels like part of the 40k Universe, right down to the publication details and the hardcover cloth binding.

I'm a big fan.

I've got the originals, which is good, because the Handbook doesn't have the Tau stuff in it.

Picked it up a few days ago.

Outstanding.

It was shame they didn't include the Tau on the Handbook. It was fun to read the descriptions of Tau by Imperial propaganda in the same way as Orks or Tyranids. Lictor's little sidenote about "How can a man fear such creature!" or Stealers being said to be sluggish and they having puny claws. Master pieces all.

I find it unfortunate that much of what it says doesn't match up with OW too well - and I'm talking about the non-propaganda parts. The 'average' IG trooper does not pack 6 frag grenades and sufficient charge packs for a few thousand shots.

HappyDaze said:

Who says it is not a propaganda part?:D Or at least minor discrepancy which will be solved. In a few thousand years.

So wait, are there 3 versions of this?

I've got the 2003 Imperial Infantryman's Uplifting Primer, and its pretty dope, but there isn't any tau stuff in it (at least I don't think). 

FoolishChaos said:

Yep. There's the 2003 version, then there was the 2008 "Damocles Gulf" edition, which had info about the Tau and stuff in it, and now there's the Handbook, which is a combo of the 2003 version, and the Minutorum Manual.

I've got the original books as well. I think it's cool that there is now an "omnibus" version for all those people who did not have it yet, but I have no idea why they omitted the Tau stuff or the proper procedures for decompression. "They eat your babies" and "make swimming motions with your arms, propelling yourself back aboard the ship" was pure gold.

As with most licensed products (including OW, for what it's worth), bits of it sadly don't add up with GW's own material, but I still recommend it to any fan of the Guard simply for the tone and the grimdark humour. If it uses the same materials and binding as the original Primer and Munitorum Manual, it even feels like something out of the year 1918 … or M41, for that matter. :)

HappyDaze said:

HappyDaze said:

That's what the Munitorum thinks standard kit is. 

Sadly, the Imperium is a bureaucratic nightmare; a decent chunk of supplies are lost to the Warp, sit in massive warehouses, get sent to the wrong place (or are sent too late), or smuggled away before they reach the ttroops. It's honestly a miracle that the average Guardsman has a lasgun and armour at all, frankly.

I do not have the Imperial Infantryman's Handbook, but I do have the Imperial Infantryman's uplifting Primer.  It's an interesting book and makes the game fun.  For some reason, the litanies in the back of the book work for me much to my GM's dismay.  The GM generally tries to roll the dice before I can recite the Litany of Protection.

Own the Original, Damocles edition, Munitorum manual and the Handbook. Yesterday had fun moment as I read crimes and punishments they have codified to munitorum parts its a wonder that they have any men alive or in combat condision.

Most of the time punishment is flogging or some times beating or being shot or all the before mentioned ways.

From the beginning every guardsman in OW could be punished for not having 500 shots worth of ammunition on himself or in his resting area. As I counted that 4 chargepacks contain 240 shots so 260 shots are missing. "Let the flogging commens!"

Plushy said:

Depending on the sources one is looking at. In the Codex fluff, a trooper's personal equipment is uniformly procured by the world a regiment is raised on, and thus is not even intended to conform to any sort of standard (with the aforementioned exception of the lasgun - as well as a general compatibility regarding anything that actually is issued to prevent supply problems later on). The Munitorum is quite aware of this; it's why the regiments are raised in drastically different sizes, with weaker ones (bad training/equipment) being larger than the ones who are afforded all sorts of toys by their homeworld.
The criticism directed at the Primer here is merely the result of the usual Black Library experience of deviating author interpretations … perhaps it may have been advantageous to tailor the book to a specific regiment rather than evoking the impression that it's supposed to apply to all of them?

On the flipside, there are areas where OW conforms more to the Primer than it does to GW material, to the enjoyment of a number of players. The lobbying by members of the community did result in all lasguns and -pistols receiving a charge slider, for example. I was under the impression that it was inspired by people reading the IIUP?

i believe that the adjustable settings were inspired more by the Gaunt's Ghosts series than anything.

Not having had the chance to pick up any of the earlier editions, I'm very glad to at least have them now. Perhaps they will release the 'Damocles Gulf' IIUP at a later stage.

It strikes me that the book should almost never be taken seriously. Chapter 3 in the contents lists 19 sections. At the beginning of the chapter itself, the section outline lists 20 sections, with section 20 being ' Unarmed Combat'. At the end of section 19, there is a blank square with the text:

'KEEP THIS SPACE CLEAR. DO NOT DEFACE

ON PAIN OF DEATH'

They take their manual layouts pretty seriously in 949.M41…

It really makes for entertaining reading. I'd still love to get a hold of the Damocles Gulf edition though…