, following the journey of the eponymous protagonist, a Staff Sergeant in the Cadian Shock Troops, as he simultaneously battles the vile forces of Chaos and struggles with his own beliefs.It is 974.M41. The great Fortress World of Cadia stands firm against foul xenos incursions, heretical uprisings, and unimaginable horrors spewing from the Eye of Terror. Staff Sergeant Silas Cross, known to all as "Marsh Silas" and Bloody Platoon, the Veteran 1st platoon of the 1st company of the 1333rd Cadian Regiment, find themselves denied leave and placed under the command of Inquisitor Barlocke of the Ordo Hereticus. Working with their inexperienced new commanding officer, Lieutenant Sean Hyram, they are charged with purging the foul heresy which has taken root in a remote coastal region of Cadia and the ruins of a long-abandoned city.
But once the mercurial Inquisitor takes a shine to the young NCO, Silas begins to discover that there's much more to the Imperium of Man beyond his simple soldiering life — that is, if he can keep himself and his men from being killed by heretic cultists, rogue psykers and the dreaded Traitor Legions first.
This series contains examples of:
- Action Girl: Junior Commissar Lilias Carsenden. So action-y, in fact, that she has bigger (metaphorical) balls than every single member of Bloody Platoon, who are all battle-hardened soldiers.
- Armchair Military: Lieutenant Hyram starts off as a bookish weakling who's spent most of his career working in non-combat desk jobs against his own wishes.
- Cartwright Curse: So far, both people who have become romantically interested in Silas — Inquisitor Barlocke and Commissar Carsenden — have wound up dead. Though Zig-Zagged considerably in the former's case, given that they Never Found the Body and he implanted a fragment of his soul in Silas.
- Deliberate Values Dissonance: As a reminder of the setting, in Volume II the 1333rd Regiment is reinforced by New Meat from the Youth Regiments, also known as the "Whiteshields" in reference to the white markings on their armour. They're 14. This is treated as completely normal, and for Cadians, it is.
- Detrimental Determination: Lilias Carsenden is almost completely fearless, as any good Commissar should be. Problem is, this leads to her facing down a Daemon of Nurgle and a Defiler from which the rest of Bloody Platoon immediately retreats to a better position upon seeing. Silas is forced to physically pull her out of danger both times.
- Doomed by Canon: Cadia itself will be destroyed by Abaddon's 13th Black Crusade 26 years after the events of Volume I. The chance of any of the main characters surviving is minimal, though not totally impossible.
- Dr. Jerk: Honeycutt, the platoon medic, has an awful bedside manner but is known to be intelligent and very good at his job.
- Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": Lance Corporal Fifth Class Gladwin, Bloody Platoon's Voxman (radio operator) is referred to almost exclusively as "Drummer Boy". No explanation for the nickname is given.
- I Just Want to Be Badass: Eventually, it's revealed that Hyram had always wanted to serve in the Shock Troops, but his parents kept pulling strings to get him placed in non-combat positions, such as a liaison officer to the Departmento Munitorum. It's unclear if they just wanted to protect their son, or were worried he would be unsuited to frontline combat.
- Incompatible Orientation: The interactions between Silas and Barlocke have heaps of Homoerotic Subtext, and the latter eventually kisses the former on top of a tower in Kasr Sonnen. Silas is mostly confused at this, much to the Inquisitor's disappointment — though given that Silas, like all Cadians, is indoctrinated to believe that having as many children as possible to produce more soldiers is a duty to the Emperor, he may not be aware that gay people exist.
- Interplay of Sex and Violence: Silas and Carsenden share The Big Damn Kiss after a high-speed motorcycle chase with heretics, where the couple gleefully blow up their foes.
- Patriotic Fervor: Silas, and pretty much the entirety of Bloody Platoon are firm believers in the God-Emperor and incredibly proud of their Cadian military tradition. This causes some problems when Barlocke starts teaching Silas his utilitarian values and calling out some of the less savoury aspects of the culture he reveres.
- Sergeant Rock: Staff Sergeant Marsh Silas himself, of course. A tough-as-nails platoon sergeant who purges Emperor knows how many heretics across the series and once killed two Iron Warriors in hand-to-hand combat, while being beloved by every other member of Bloody Platoon. Though given that the main characters are all Cadian, every other sergeant in the series is also a Sergeant Rock in his or her own right.
- Took a Level in Badass: Midway through Volume I, Marsh Silas begins training the bookish Lieutenant Hyram to make him into a proper soldier — it works, and Hyram becomes a capable leader and Genius Bruiser.
- Weapon-Based Characterisation: Instead of a Chainsword or Power Sword, as would be expected, Junior Commissar Carsenden wields a Power Fist. Given that this requires a lot of strength and requires one to be even more up close and personal than a blade, it demonstrates that not only does she lead from the front, she really enjoys doing it.
- Wide-Eyed Idealist: Barlocke is a Radical Inquisitor of the Recongregationist persuasion — he believes very strongly in brightening up the grim dark future of the 41st millennium, purging corruption while encouraging meritocracy and equality. But given that this is 40k we're talking about, there's very little he's going to be able to do by himself, given that the flaws of the Imperium are Inherent in the System and/or Necessarily Evil. Silas, perhaps unfortunately, has inherited some of these beliefs. Amilios used to think the same way, before becoming convinced that the Imperium is beyond help and becoming a servant of Nurgle to help the rot spread faster.
