EXCLUSIVE Interview: Richard Fox Discusses Warhammer 40,000 Story "We Were Brothers"

Richard Fox is a veteran military science fiction writer having written a number of series including The Ember War, The Weapon, Terran Armor Corps, and more. He’s also a big Warhammer 40,000 fan having played the tabletop game for years. He recently wrote and published his first Warhammer 40,000 entry, “We Were Brothers.”

Fox spoke with Fandom Pulse about “We Were Brothers,” his own series, as well as the upcoming Warhammer 40,000 live-action production from Amazon MGM Studios.

Fandom Pulse (FP): You’ve got your first Warhammer 40k story published, can you tell me about it?

Richard Fox: The story concerns the renegade Space Marine chapter of the Red Corsairs. Lord Straxis has a loyalist void ship in his clutches and he wants revenge on one man in particular…

The more you know about the Badab War, the faster you’ll be up to speed.

FP: When writing this story what did you draw inspiration from?

Fox: The Red Corsairs are an interesting force in the 41st millennium. They broke away from the Imperium with some legitimate grievances but that’s not how the High Lords of Terra saw it and the bounds of trust and honor were sorely tested amongst the Adeptus Astartes. The now Red Corsairs did some rather…objectionable things during the war and some of their allies ‘betrayed’ them during the conflict. Bad guys can always justify their actions, so I wanted to tell a story of one who wanted revenge for legitimate reasons. According to him.

FP: What was your favorite scene to write?

Fox: The final fight in ships reliquary was fun.

FP: Are there any restrictions the Black Library puts on you, is there a certain style guide you have to follow, how much feedback do they give you regarding previous lore and making sure the story fits within continuity?