u/Laredian

Cheeky title aside I would genuinely interested in the answer to that question now that we have so much lore on the heresy, dedicated Primach origin books and all the lot.

More specifically I would be interested whether all the books or the lore swayed peoples opinion towards a specific Primarch that might not align with their chosen faction (granted that person aligns themselves with a particular legion/chapter when playing the tabletop or engaging with the hobby in any other multitude of ways).

For example, say a person is a diehard Space Wolves fan. Is it then the case that said person more often gravitates towards Russ as their favourite Primarch because of faction choice or has the mountain of lore (both well written and not so well received examples) given more context for said person to say: "Well, Russ is great and I love the Space Wolves, but Dorn might actually be my favourite Primarch because of how he was written during the siege specifically"

I know any answer to this would be anecdotal unless we were to do an actuall poll that would be representative. Which, why would you even do that...it's a silly question that some Warhammer nerds might ask themselves. It also might not even be possbile to do properly because the number of people well versed in the lore that could differentiate between the characters might just be too low compared to the entire 40k and 30k fandom to get an actual answer wether the mountain of lore swayed someones opinion on a character or whether someone favours Corax because they simply like Raven Guard.

Also why is the correct answer Sanguinius? Well, it isn't objectively the case obviously, I just included that line in the title because the writers had more leeway to make Sanguinius the bestest, noblest, bravest and prettiest Primarch because his death is an essential cornerstone of the setting. So there are definitely people who can't stand our glorious hawk boy, but I would reckon there are more people with a positive or neutral opinion. Had he not died, more people would dislike him in my opinion, because generally the "bestest at everything" character isn't all that interesting to many readers unless that character dies a tragic death.

Might ruffle some feathers with this take, but as the title suggests I personally do not get the appeal of Konrad Curze in the slightest. Yes he is arguably one of the most dangerous Primarchs, going toe to toe with the Lion and Guilliman at the same time if I remember correctly. But other than his undeniable combat prowess (even compared to other primarchs), he seems kind of pathetic.

Yes, Curze was insane and plagued with his visions. Nostramo was a hell hole which did not further his upbringing into a sane individual, but so was Medusa for Ferrus Manus, so was Baal to some extent for Sanguinius. His ideas of him bringing justice and governing through fear and terror to bring a world to heel seem like a facade when you consider his own book Night Haunter, where he punishes a woman for the crime of attempting suicide by skinning her alive. In that excerpt he even shortly acknowledges to himself that flaying her excites him.

So beneath the surface he is just straight up a sadist who gets a hard on from torturing people and he gets there without any chaos juice riling him up like the Emperors Children murdertorturing their way through the populace of Terra during the siege. Curze just sucks entirely on his own. Yes, one can argue that all Primarchs are genocidal warlords by our real life morality, but at least none of the loyal Primarchs get turned on from skinning innocent women alive.

Another even more telling example is Sevatar first Captain of the Night Lords calling out Curze and telling him that his methods lead to absolutely nothing. Stability trough terror collapsed immediately as soon as he was not around and all the murder and torture he basically argues he "endured so others don't have to" amounted to absolutely nothing. He ultimately stood for nothing, he built nothing...he was just basically a serial killer in the body of a demigod.

>Sevatar almost laughed. ‘Sire, you are no different. The Legion is disorderly and vile because it is cast in your image.

>No.’ Curze drenched the single syllable in regret. ‘No, you don’t understand. I’ve never claimed to be perfect, Sevatar. But I became the sinner, the monster, the Night Haunter, so my people would never have to. And look at the result. Look at the recruits from Nostramo, less than a decade after I departed. Look at the filth they sent me. Look at the disgusting dregs of humanity my own Apothecaries infused with my genetic material and reforged into transhumans. The Eighth is poisoned, Sev. Generations of men who are murderers in my image, yet devoid of my conviction. They are killers and abusers because they want to be, not because someone had to be.

>The end result is the same,’ said Sevatar. ‘Fear is the weapon.

>Fear is supposed to be the means to the end. Look at the bloodshed my Legion has wrought these last years, even before the Crusade was done. Fear became the end itself. It was all they desired. They fed on it. My sons were strong, so they bled the weak for their own amusement. Tell me, captain, where the nobility is in that

>Where is the nobility in any of this?’ Sevatar gestured to the streets of Nostramo Quintus around them. ‘You can claim a savage nobility, father, but this is far more savage than noble

>Curze’s pale lips peeled back from his filed teeth. ‘There was no other way.’

>No?’ Sevatar answered his father’s snarl with a grin. ‘What other ways did you try?’

>‘Sevatar…’

>Answer me, father. What politics of peace did you teach? What scientific and social illumination did you bring to this society? In your quest for a human utopia, what other ways did you try beyond eating the flesh of stray dogs and skinning people alive?’

>‘It. Was. The. Only. Way.’Sevatar laughed again. ‘The only way to do what? The only way to bring a population to heel? How then did the other primarchs manage it? How has world upon world managed it, with resorting to butchering children and broadcasting their screams across the planetary vox-net?

>Their worlds were never as… as serene as mine was.’

>‘And the serenity of yours died the first second your back was turned. So tell me again how you succeeded. Tell me again how this all worked perfectly.’

>Curze was on him in the time it took to blink. The primarch’s hand wrapped his throat, lifting him from the ground, stealing his breath.

>'You overstep your bounds, First Captain.’

Source: Prince of Crows, ADB

So, even Sevatar can see that Curze is full of crap and when called out Curze pouts and lashes out like the pathetic bully he is. Curze wants to make himself out as the martyr, the one who had to endure all the horrible things he had done so others don't have to, which is obviously utter crap. He likes torturing and killing as evidenced by the scene I referenced in Night Haunter where he skins that woman.

So is Curze a tragic figure in the lore? To some extent yes, since he was plagued by his visions, but other primarchs had it difficult as well both in upbringing and other hardships they had to endure. Curze just used it as an excuse to keep on torturing and killing because he liked doing it for the sake of it and even his own sons could see it.

In short, more power to you if you enjoy Konrad Curze, but to me personally he is by far the most pathetic Primarch. He stood for nothing, he built nothing, he was just a cynical serial killer for the sake of it. To make a comparison: one can understandably hate Lorgar...many 40k fans understandably hate, or love to hate, Erebus and Kor Phaeron, but at least those guys stood for something. They had a goal or an ideal in mind however flawed or ultimately evil it might have been.

Also, hot take: if the Night Lords (and Curze) did not have one of the most badass armour designs of all legions, I think they would have far fewer fans. because a few interesting characters and well written books aside, they mostly suck.