Released in May 2023 as a standalone Black Library e-short, Peter Fehervari’s Altar of Maws is the 18th instalment in the Dark Coil, and another example of just how dark and interesting 40k can be in the right hands. Set between A Sanctuary of Wyrms and the novel Fire Caste, this sees a flotilla of T’au barges pulled off course as it journeys along Fi’draah’s winding rivers, and confronted with a ghastly enemy in the midst of an impossible, hidden lake. Jhi’kaara, the ‘broken mirror’, has confronted this sort of darkness before, but for her fellow Fire Warrior Tal’hanzo the monstrousness of what they’ve stumbled across is enough to challenge his beliefs at a fundamental level.
Very much a companion piece to A Sanctuary of Wyrms, this continues to explore the insidious effects that Fi’draah (or Phaedra) has on the T’au, and in particular their ‘faith’ in the logic and rigidity of the Greater Good. It’s interesting to see two different responses to the same dangers – Jhi’kaara will already be familiar to Fehervari fans, and her approach is as expected, but Tal’hanzo offers an alternative perspective, and sets up the intriguing possibility of further T’au stories in the Dark Coil. Fehervari’s take on the T’au Empire has always been deeply considered and wonderfully dark, and on the strength of this there’s no question – it would be fantastic to get more!
Interestingly, despite this being story number 18 it might actually make a good introduction to the strange, compelling horror of the Dark Coil, as it’s a little more straightforward than many of Fehervari’s weirder tales. It’s still sinister, ambiguous and full of typical Fehervari idiosyncrasies, but it feels less interconnected than some of his stories, and a little safer than most, a touch closer to the 40k norm. For experienced Coil Travellers this is perhaps a bit less rich and expansive than some stories, but at the same time there’s still plenty to enjoy, not least in spending more time with Jhi’kaara. Taken on its own merits as a creepy, characterful 40k horror story though, Altar of Maws is unquestionably another triumph from Black Library’s most underappreciated author.
See also: A Traveller’s Guide to Peter Fehervari’s Dark Coil
See also: all Peter Fehervari reviews and interviews on Track of Words
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