Fans Decry Games Workshop Changing Warhammer 40K Lore Again With Eldar Wraithbone Now Manufactured Instead Of Sung

Last year, Games Workshop created an incredible controversy by changing the lore of the Adeptus Custodes to include females. Now, Warhammer 40K has gutted the lore of the Eldar in a less modern political way, changing wraithbone, a material used for constructing weapons to be “grown as much as it is forged.”

Last year, Games Workshop infamously retconned the Adeptus Custodes by adding females in their 10th edition of Codex: Adeptus Custodes. One excerpt reads, “Custodian Calladayce Taorvalia Kesh stood upon the bridge of a Cobra-class destroyer. Named Vigilant Flame, the warship belonged to the mighty Battlefleet Solar. She lingered in the shadows at the back of the bridge, positioned at a spot where she could observe the actions of every crew member be they in the instrumentation pits, at the armament shrines or — in the case of Shipmaster Lethwyck — stood ramrod straight before his command throne.”

Another excerpt makes it clear the that Kesh is indeed a female Custodes given that she wields a guardian spear. It states, “Kesh was warned before anyone else aboard, sensing a sudden empyric energy spike coupled with the surge of overpressure and sharp temperature drop that presaged a teleport strike. Her guardian spear was levelled and armed before the first cry of alarm or howl of a klaxon rang through the bridge.”

Games Workshop confirmed the retcon, and chose to gaslight its own fans and players by claiming that there have always been female Custodes. The company posted on X, “Since the first of the Ten Thousand were created, there have always been female Custodians.”

They have since doubled down on this throughout the year. In a blog post, they removed gendered language, noting that only boys and males could become Custodians. Instead, it states, “Potential Custodians are taken in at a very young age to better survive the rigours of their transformation – no older than late infancy – for the fundamental changes that will be wrought upon their flesh, minds and souls are tantamount to apotheosis. It is considered a great honour for those of Terran noble houses to submit a child.”

A previous codex made it clear Custodians were recruited from infant sons of the noble houses of Terra. It stated, “It is known that all Custodians begin their lives as the infant sons of the noble houses of Terra. It is a mark of incredible prestige to surrender one’s child to this most glorious of callings within the Imperium, and many notable clans amongst the Terran aristocracy have willingly given up almost entire generations of newborn sons to earn it.”

Now, in the 10^th Edition Codex Aeldari, Games Workshop has changed the way wraithbone has always worked historically. It says, “The wraithbone substance from which each craftworld is wrought is a composite material formed from various compounds, ores and minerals; it is as much grown as it is forged.”

Wraithbone was originally a warp-based material sung into existence, but now it’s been muddied to how it comes about with the terminology “grown as it is forged.”

Fans are speculating that this is a lore adjustment to make up for a future error in a forthcoming novel.

Contrast the new lore change to the 2e Eldar Codex, which says:

Eldar technology is based upon psycho-technic engineering, the manipulation of matter using mental energy. The materials they use are mutile psycho-plastics which can be readily formed into solid shapes under psychometric pressure. Such materials have many unusual qualities. In some respects they are more like living tissue than inert substances, growing and reacting with their environment in a similar way to plants.

Simple devices, including weapons like the shuriken catapults for which the Eldar are especially well known, function in the same way as the equivalent human items. Although formed from complex psycho-plastics, the completed device is a machine or component that works in a conventional manner. Of course, Eldar weapons usually store energy and use it far more efficiently than the human equivalent, but this makes little difference to their effectiveness.

The most unusual of these psycho-plastics is called wraithbone. All the Craftworlds are built upon a skeleton of wraithbone whose structure extends throughout the gigantic craft like a set of ribs. Wraithbone is an immensely resilient substance, far stronger than the strongest plasteel and more difficult to damage than adamantium. If it is damaged it will gradually repair itself, although the process can be accelerated under psychometric pressure.

The manipulation of matter using mental energy is key, making it a distinct substance with unique qualities. Changing it to “grown and forged” takes away the uniqueness of wraithbone and turns it into something generic.

Warhammer writer Gav Thorpe also elaborated on how it works in White Dwarf 127:

A spirit stone is a tool which allows Bonesingers to draw raw energy from the warp and shape it into matter. The matter created in this way is called Wraithbone, and it can be psychically teased and manipulated by the bonesinger into almost any form he wishes. Wraithbone is extremely tough and resilient. It forms the backbone of spacecraft and large structures as well as countless smaller items. Nor is Wraithbone only used for utilitarian artifacts like spacecraft, it is also used to create sculptural works of art.

Because Wraithbone is a solidified form of warp energy it has several special properties. It never really loses its physical connection to the warp, so that in a sense part of it remains in the warp at all times. As a result Wraithbone can channel psychic energy much as an electric cable carries current. At the same time it also contains psychic forces and can shield the forces it contains from other psychic energy.

As is made obvious here, “grown as much as forged” is completely inaccurate as a way to describe the substance.

Fans are decrying the change already. Wokehammer Ls posted to X on the topic, saying, “Eldar wraithbone got retconned in the codex apparently lol. Went from something sung into existence to something manufactured.10th Edition has done and will continue to do untold damage to the hobby, as minor of a change it seems on the surface, it's an erosion of 40Ks mystic elements. Reject 10th and stop buying slop.”

Gorgonslayer69 mocked the idea with a meme based on the original Adeptus custodes announcement, saying, “Lore doesn’t matter, chud.”

After the Adeptus Custodes debacle, one would think Games Workshop would take more care with the lore and not go back on established backgrounds to alter for upcoming product. However, the company has learned little in the last year of controversies.

What do you think of Warhammer 40K changing the Eldar wraithbone lore? Leave a comment and let us know.

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