Besides the Tyranids and Tau obviously, I was reading the Achilus Assault and it of handedly mentions that the Iron Pit of Samech has established trade with several Xenos races in the Eastern Fringe. I'm having trouble figuring out what races those are. Help?
What Xenos races are in the Eastern Fringe?
If the Tau is there, their client races like the Kroot or the Vespids and the others can't be too far either.
Orks. They appear everywhere.
Eldar. All three types could conceivably appear on the Eastern Fringe. Indeed I would imagine there would be the highest proportion of Exodite worlds on the Eastern Fringe far from the Eye of Terror.
Apparently the Galg are Frog like aliens that have an extreme hatred for the Imperium and act as mercenaries for the Tau Empire. They are therefore likely to be found on the Eastern Fringe and tradiing with the Samech
Hrud I am pretty sure have been mentioned as being on the Eastern Fringe.
The Loxatl are found in the Jericho Reach and will trade with enemies of the Imperium.
And of course you can always just make up some species.
Edited by Visitor QWhen it comes to xenos, there is a tendency to think only in terms of the ones with tabletop armies, but the 40Kverse contains a bunch of minor xenos , most of which can be found in Ultima Segmentum.
I hope that GW puts out a Codex: Mercenaries at some point, and produces miniatures for some of these aliens that have been mentioned in the fluff for years, which can be fielded as units attached to existing armies with the new 'allies' rules. I'd love to have a unit of Tarellian Dog Soldiers...
If the Tau is there, their client races like the Kroot or the Vespids and the others can't be too far either.
Of particular note may be the Demiurg, which have been sighted in Ultima Segmentum - where the Eastern Fringe is located.
GW has a Battlefleet Gothic PDF on their website which offers a bit of background about them. In short, think you could best describe them as distrustful, grumpy Space Dwarf traders, but as they can also be found doing mercenary work for Imperial nobles on frontier worlds, you have a potential story hook for an Ordo Xenos investigation.
The Tau are themselves minor xenos. They get screen time not because they are important in the universe, but because they have a GW army.
About as "important" as the Eldar, as far as the Imperium's situation is concerned. Well, perhaps a little more, if only because of the pressure they put on the IoM's border - and not just militarily. Their expansion rate is quite impressive, and they have displayed little restraint when it comes to making "deals" with the governments of Imperial fringe worlds. Or even major Hives, if what the Necromunda rulebook hints at is true.
If you're only going by numbers relative to the Imperium, the only "real" major xenos race is the Orks. But I think this isn't what OP was asking for.
About as "important" as the Eldar, as far as the Imperium's situation is concerned. Well, perhaps a little more, if only because of the pressure they put on the IoM's border - and not just militarily. Their expansion rate is quite impressive, and they have displayed little restraint when it comes to making "deals" with the governments of Imperial fringe worlds. Or even major Hives, if what the Necromunda rulebook hints at is true.
If you're only going by numbers relative to the Imperium, the only "real" major xenos race is the Orks. But I think this isn't what OP was asking for.
Well in fairness the Eldar do have very effective FTL travel so can and do strike all across the Imperium. In addition a full Eldar Warhost fully committed to battle is a match for any comparable Imperial Force. GW have been a little unclear as to whether this is the case with the Tau.
On the one hand they have held their own against alot of Imperial armies on the other sources such as 'Tarros Campaign' indicate so far the Imperium haven't fully comitted to destroying the Tau. The Damocles Crusade being the only major conflict from the Imperiums point of view and that was cut short by the Tyranids.
True, the Eldar can show up just about anywhere and at any time - they just ... don't. Their reclusiveness, caused by their drive to preserve what little they have left and a set of priorities regardes as higher than meddling with "lesser species", certainly makes them a rare sight throughout the Imperium. And in the Eastern Fringe, where the player wants to stage their campaign, likely rarer than Tau.
Their Dark Eldar brethren are a "little more open" about themselves (
), but even they don't have the numbers to be as known and active as Orks, who are a pretty much a plague throughout the entire galaxy, literally a fungal infection of the stars.
), but even they don't have the numbers to be as known and active as Orks, who are a pretty much a plague throughout the entire galaxy, literally a fungal infection of the stars.
I'm not really sure about the numbers of these two species, but I'd hazard a guess that there are more Tau (and Tau-aligned client species) than Eldar, and that is before we consider that the latter only really interact or even wage war with humans unless they must - be it due to human folly or one of their mysterious prophecies or schemes. Whereas the Tau Empire actively seeks contact to undermine Imperial rule and absorb frontier human worlds into their sphere of influence.
Or at least that's how I've always seen it.