So, during our last gaming session me and one of my players had a little discussion about the above topic, and I'm asking you all for clarification.

His point was that, as long as any given individual is subject to Juvenation therapies, its appearance remains effectly frozen at the age the therapy started. So you will never be able to tell the true age of a person who is currently undergoing Juvenation treatment, only maybe the fact that she might do so due some unnatural smoothness of features (much like real life people who have undergone extensive cosmetic surgery).

I myself always thought, Juvenation treatment slows the natural ageing process to a creep, so that a person who is about 300+ years old might look like some 80 years. This thesis is mainly assisted by the mention of a lot of old-looking inquisitors in the Eisenhorn and Ravenor books (who on earth would willingly choose to look a hundred years old if it's not necessary?).

So, which version is canon, and what happens if a person discontinues Juvenation after using it for some decades? Does he age normally from that point on, or would his real age catch up with him very fast (i.e. most probably leading to his death in a few years)?

Thanks for reading and replying!

I'd go with slowing aging rather than stopping it.

A particular wealthy or obsessed person might however combine the slowing of the aging process with something like facial reconstruction surgery to look younger as well. Not sure what the official canon is but it's a large universe so you can do whatever you want.

I've just finished Eisenhorn and I'm coming down squarely on the 'slowing' side of the issue. Abnet's characters all have little tell tale signs once you get close. In the third book he explicitly describes Alizbeth Bequin as still being as beautiful as when he met her, but having fine lines on her face that indicate she is older when you get up close.

Don't confuse this with the freaks in his book who went in for modification as well as rejuvenat treatments, such as the puritan with the 'equine' skull.

hokay, thanks guys. I'll go for the slowing option too. It seems inappropriate for an imperial inquisitor to engage in vanity surgery, so I can actually make our inquisitor the "wise old man" type (seemingly, at least) without bending the rules too much and incuring the grimdarker's anger.

I just started reading the novel Atlas Infernal; in it, High Inquisitor Czevak is around 400 years old, and quite wizened and frail.

Adeptus-B said:

"it felt like Rejuve, but I swear that frakker was cutting it less and less pure every time I went back..."