Could You Call Exterminatus On a Living Planet?

ObsidianJones

Elite Member
Legacy
Apr 29, 2020
1,118
1,442
118
Country
United States
For those who are not in the know, Extreminatus is when you basically destroy a planet's ability to sustain life, thereby killing every living thing on the planet.


I'm not going to give you the bad of the scenario. I'm just going to tell you there are at least 5 billion sentient humanoid creatures with a situation that is getting out of control. It is the worst case scenario in your mind, whatever that is.

For fear of it spreading, for a Mercy Kill, to just be done with the whole thing... Could you destroy an entire planet?
 

Chimpzy

Simian Abomination
Legacy
Escapist +
Apr 3, 2020
12,190
8,435
118
Could I? I'm thinking of it right now! Show those heretics!

Real answer tho, no. Just no.
 

Baffle

Elite Member
Oct 22, 2016
3,459
2,746
118
If everyone there is unhappy and I can make it quick, I guess.
 

SupahEwok

Malapropic Homophone
Legacy
Jun 24, 2010
4,028
1,401
118
Country
Texas
The point of 40k is machismo taken to ludicrous, insane degrees, such that wiping out full planets to kill a threat is considered a relatively common thing. In terms of such a setting, of course. Outside of it, of course not. There will be so much sunk cost in terraforming a planet and cultivating a population of billions that destroying it outright will probably never be a cost-effectivr move no matter how dire the threat.

Incidentally, I think Mass Effect has a very similar rule, that planets capable of harboring life are limited in the galaxy and therefore rendering one inhabitable is one of the worst offenses of their civilization.
 

ObsidianJones

Elite Member
Legacy
Apr 29, 2020
1,118
1,442
118
Country
United States
The point of 40k is machismo taken to ludicrous, insane degrees, such that wiping out full planets to kill a threat is considered a relatively common thing. In terms of such a setting, of course. Outside of it, of course not. There will be so much sunk cost in terraforming a planet and cultivating a population of billions that destroying it outright will probably never be a cost-effectivr move no matter how dire the threat.

Incidentally, I think Mass Effect has a very similar rule, that planets capable of harboring life are limited in the galaxy and therefore rendering one inhabitable is one of the worst offenses of their civilization.
I hear you, and I don't even know if I can take a single life.

But as I said before, one of the scenarios that makes me the most freaked out is the Necromorphs and the Markers. That's Endgame Material there. Having a Brother Moon appear because I'm too much of a wimp isn't something I think I can live with.

In fact, destroying a planet isn't something I can live with either. I think I wouldn't survive either decision.
 

Specter Von Baren

Annoying Green Gadfly
Legacy
Aug 25, 2013
5,632
2,849
118
I don't know, send help!
Country
USA
Gender
Cuttlefish
You're giving an incredibly vague set of rules for this. I feel like you should set down more aspects of what this terrible thing is because just telling us to imagine the worst means there's no question because all of us could just imagine "If this planet isn't glassed then the entire universe will implode, killing everything for all time. But if we destroy it then it is guaranteed to not happen." Like... why wouldn't you do that?

You need to be more specific with your scenario before this can really go anywhere.

The point of 40k is machismo taken to ludicrous, insane degrees, such that wiping out full planets to kill a threat is considered a relatively common thing. In terms of such a setting, of course. Outside of it, of course not. There will be so much sunk cost in terraforming a planet and cultivating a population of billions that destroying it outright will probably never be a cost-effectivr move no matter how dire the threat.

Incidentally, I think Mass Effect has a very similar rule, that planets capable of harboring life are limited in the galaxy and therefore rendering one inhabitable is one of the worst offenses of their civilization.
I mean... just reading from the wiki link itself, it says right at the start that destroying an entire planet is only done in the most extreme of circumstances, such that it is rarely done.
 

Worgen

Follower of the Glorious Sun Butt.
Legacy
Apr 1, 2009
14,419
3,396
118
Gender
Whatever, just wash your hands.
Probably, but so could everyone on this thread no matter how much they say they couldn't. Killing an individual infront of you is hard, killing a planet is just a number that is too great for the human mind to really wrap around. Especially if you aren't seeing them and its just a number and you have a higher up telling you to do it. Probably over 98% of humanity would do it. Its even easier if its 40k rules since the empire probably doesn't want to waste planetary productivity unless there is some kinda horrible invasion so you could easily push the button to defend the rest of the empire from whatever horrible shit is going on.
 

09philj

Elite Member
Legacy
Mar 31, 2015
2,154
947
118
If you've got a planet that's already been overrun by a threat that can then spread from the planet to a population beyond it, blowing it up would be an obviously prudent thing to do. More of a moral grey area would be something like the destruction of Vavatch in Iain Banks's novel Consider Phlebas, where his protagonist civilisation mostly evacuates and then annihilates a large neutral ringworld in order to prevent it being taken by their enemies, with some people who refused to leave still on it.
 

Thaluikhain

Elite Member
Legacy
Jan 16, 2010
18,580
3,538
118
Are you asking this hypothetically, or?

I'd go with "yes", because in 40k fluff Exterminatus is used when the planet is totally doomed anyway, and you want to stop it spreading to less doomed planets.

OTOH, if I was sitting there with my finger on the button, I'd probably prefer someone else to push it.
 

Gordon_4

The Big Engine
Legacy
Apr 3, 2020
6,045
5,347
118
Australia
I think it would depend on my mood. For example, the one I’m in right now, you should keep me away from that button because boy is anger and spite a fatal concoction.
 

Bob_McMillan

Elite Member
Aug 28, 2014
5,175
1,851
118
Country
Philippines
If we talking within universe, if it were orks, nah why would you bring out an exterminatus? Orks are probably the most preferable means of apocalypse in the galaxy. If it was Chaos shenanigans or tyranids, maybe I would consider it more.

But yeah, no way I could personally do it. Unless the situation isn't that I'm sitting at my computer lazily eating chips, but that I just spent the last 10 years fighting a losing battle against a parasitic alien race and now said aliens are clawing at the door and I have about 5 seconds to decide whether or not to press the button. I probably wouldn't be thinking straight, just pure adrenaline.

I mean... just reading from the wiki link itself, it says right at the start that destroying an entire planet is only done in the most extreme of circumstances, such that it is rarely done.
Well yes, but the point of 40K is that the galaxy is so huge and insane, "extreme circumstances" are a dime a dozen and "rarely" means a lot less when you're considering a few billion planets over a few thousand years.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Satinavian

Specter Von Baren

Annoying Green Gadfly
Legacy
Aug 25, 2013
5,632
2,849
118
I don't know, send help!
Country
USA
Gender
Cuttlefish
If we talking within universe, if it were orks, nah why would you bring out an exterminatus? Orks are probably the most preferable means of apocalypse in the galaxy. If it was Chaos shenanigans or tyranids, maybe I would consider it more.

But yeah, no way I could personally do it. Unless the situation isn't that I'm sitting at my computer lazily eating chips, but that I just spent the last 10 years fighting a losing battle against a parasitic alien race and now said aliens are clawing at the door and I have about 5 seconds to decide whether or not to press the button. I probably wouldn't be thinking straight, just pure adrenaline.


Well yes, but the point of 40K is that the galaxy is so huge and insane, "extreme circumstances" are a dime a dozen and "rarely" means a lot less when you're considering a few billion planets over a few thousand years.
Fair enough.
 

Secondhand Revenant

Recycle, Reduce, Redead
Legacy
Oct 29, 2014
2,564
139
68
Baator
Country
The Nine Hells
Gender
Male
Sure, worst case scenario like Specter said is such that everything else is threatened most likely the world itself included. So lose that world or lose everything including that world is kind of a no brainer
 

TheMysteriousGX

Elite Member
Legacy
Sep 16, 2014
8,300
6,798
118
Country
United States
If it's a Worst Case Scenario basically anything can be justified.

The threshold for Worst Case Scenario is what's different from person to person.
 

Trunkage

Nascent Orca
Legacy
Jun 21, 2012
8,684
2,879
118
Brisbane
Gender
Cyborg
Ah, Exterminatus. The 40K version of Sodom and Gomorrah

It’s real easy to do this if you just imagine everyone as evil. Even the children. See Genesis for notes on how to do genocides.

Also, apparently giving up your daughters to rape is a WAY better response than letting it happen to your visitors. Lot is abhorrent... and apparently holy enough to be saved
 

happyninja42

Elite Member
Legacy
May 13, 2010
8,577
2,981
118
For those who are not in the know, Extreminatus is when you basically destroy a planet's ability to sustain life, thereby killing every living thing on the planet.


I'm not going to give you the bad of the scenario. I'm just going to tell you there are at least 5 billion sentient humanoid creatures with a situation that is getting out of control. It is the worst case scenario in your mind, whatever that is.

For fear of it spreading, for a Mercy Kill, to just be done with the whole thing... Could you destroy an entire planet?
No, I probably wouldn't do it. I mean I'm assuming in this incredibly bare bones hypothetical that all other avenues of possible resolution have been fully investigated and found lacking, because otherwise, it's just a dick move to say "fuck it, purge it all."

I mean if you stood me in front of the button and said "push this, and 5 billion sentients will die." regardless of the reason, I probably would refuse. It's not like it's my magical finger that can alone, push the button, so I would probably not be able to. Just not sure I could stomach 5 billion deaths on my conscience, regardless of the "bigger picture."