Valhalla is a frozen Civilised World in the Ultima Segmentum and the home of the Valhallan Ice Warriors, one of the Astra Militarum’s most recognisable regiments. It’s a planet shaped by catastrophe, and that history explains why its soldiers fight the way they do.
What Valhalla is
Valhalla is an Imperial ice world, officially classed as a Civilised World. It sits in the Ultima Segmentum and is best known as the recruiting world for the Valhallan Ice Warriors.
It wasn’t always frozen. Legends say it was first settled as a verdant paradise of forests and fertile plains, a near-perfect colony world. The only surviving accounts of that era are folk tales, not records.
The Doom of Valhalla
A rogue comet struck the planet around ten thousand years ago, an event remembered as the Doom of Valhalla. Defence lasers fired on it but barely dented it, because the comet was almost pure iron. A mile-wide fragment smashed into the northern continent, and the main mass hit the ocean that covered most of the world.
The aftermath was worse than the impact. Boiling seas and a shroud of dust and vapour blocked the sun, and the planet was knocked out of its orbit. Over about ten years it drifted roughly fifteen million miles from its star, spinning eccentrically. By the end, it was a frozen world of glaciers and ice-covered ocean.
Life on the ice
The survivors were pushed toward the equator as glaciers swallowed the land. Eventually there was no land left, so they built cities deep beneath the ice, sitting on the frozen ocean itself.
Food came from what little could still be farmed: nutrient slimes and algae grown in vats warmed by ocean thermals. It was a brutal existence, but it didn’t end human life on Valhalla.
The War of Survival and the Orks
Just as the Valhallans found some stability, Orks arrived. Their damaged fleet crashed out of the Warp onto the ice, and finding little to eat, they turned on the settlers. The Valhallans fought them off in what’s remembered as the War of Survival.
That conflict left a lasting mark. Valhallans, especially those who join the Imperial Guard, hate Orks more than any other xenos race, and they’ve built a reputation for being especially good at killing them.
Society and the Valhallan dialect
Valhallan culture is shaped by generations of cold and hardship. Their Low Gothic dialect reflects that, with a distinct accent and vocabulary compared to standard Imperial speech.
There’s also an older Valhallan dialect that survives in records and traditions, a reminder of the world’s long isolation before it became a major Guard recruiting ground.
Key facts
- Valhalla is an Imperial ice world classified as a Civilised World in the Ultima Segmentum.
- It’s the home world of the Valhallan Ice Warriors regiments of the Imperial Guard.
- A rogue comet, the Doom of Valhalla, turned a former paradise world into a frozen wasteland about ten thousand years ago.
- Survivors built cities beneath the ice and farmed algae and nutrient slimes in vats heated by ocean thermals.
- The War of Survival against invading Orks shaped Valhallan culture and their lasting hatred of Orks.
FAQ
What is Valhalla in Warhammer 40k?
Valhalla is an Imperial ice world in the Ultima Segmentum and the home of the Valhallan Ice Warriors regiments of the Astra Militarum.
Why is Valhalla frozen?
A rogue iron comet struck the planet about ten thousand years ago, blocking the sun and knocking it out of orbit. Over roughly a decade it drifted millions of miles from its star and froze over.
Why do Valhallans hate Orks?
Orks crashed onto Valhalla after the world froze and attacked the survivors during the War of Survival. The Valhallans beat them back, and the grudge has lasted ever since.