The first Warhammer conference is on the way in September; looking to put 40k on the academic roadmap and searching for presenters and topics!
Whether you want to attend, write a paper, or listen in, this is a very interesting idea to bring the grimdark future into the academic world. The actual event will take place at the University of Heidelberg, Germany, in September, but there will also be a hybrid option for all speakers and delegates. They also currently have a call for papers out, meaning you can write in and get your topic on the list!
Get Academic With It: First Warhammer Conference Announced
Here is the latest on the first Warhammer 40k Conference.
If you’re wondering what this is all about, here’s the goal of the event:
Why is the grim darkness of the far future so interesting? Warhammer 40k is a decades-old, multi-billion dollar, multi-platform, post-post-post-apocalyptic science fiction franchise with fans around the globe. And yet it has mostly escaped scholarly attention… so far.
Warhammer Conference aims to change this. Together we aim to put Warhammer 40k on the academic map, and explore the many interesting implications of the 40k universe. We invite entries from all fields, including but not limited to: Philosophy, Games Studies, Literature, Politics, Science & Technology Studies or Theology.
There are plenty of lore, rules, and models to dive into with 40k, and it will be interesting to see people’s ideas of philosophy, literature, and science regarding it. While reading lore, most of us have had thoughts about how it relates to our world (sometimes for good, sometimes bad), and this conference aims to bring those thoughts to life. Who knows, maybe you’ll be able to study 40k ten years down the line as a college course… Probably not, but this is a good start to bring it into the academic world.
Call For Papers
If you want to submit a paper, it must be 300 words, and the closing date for submission is 9 am on 31st July 2024. You don’t have to use any of the topics below, but they are a great starting point to get thinking about what you want to write:
- Tech-theology: on the veneration of the apparatus
- Just war: does fighting against extinction justify any means?
- Super soldiers: space marines as ‘ideal abominations’
- Religion and the imperial cult
- Demons & psychoanalysis: the warp as manifestation of the subconscious?
- Setting vs. Story: narrative development in a static setting
- Bolter-porn: on the joys of hyperbole and excess
- 40k as tragic comedy
- The classical and the futuristic
- Inventing the grimdark: how Games Workshop invented a whole new genre of art
- The real and the imaginary – real world decisions and the fantastical setting
- The business of Games Workshop and the Hobby™
Overall, some pretty interesting topics, but if you’ve been thinking something about the hobby lately, you don’t have to stick to this! If you want to bring your ideas to life or to attend, this is a very cool idea overall for Warhammer 40k.
Click Here to Enter Your Submission!
What do you think about a Warhammer Conference? Will you be making a submission?
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About the Author: Travis Pasch
Travis Pasch
Job Title: Head Writer & Editor
Socials: @paschbass
About Travis Pasch: Travis has been a Warhammer 40k hobbyist since the 1990s, playing the game since Third Edition. Through extensive traveling, he’s seen a lot of the miniatures hobby from across the world, giving him a unique perspective on the latest gaming topics and trends.
Travis’s brother even owns a commission painting studio, where he’s picked up a lot of good advice and techniques for painting Warhammer and tabletop miniatures over the years, as well. Travis joined the Spikey Bits team in 2019 and has been the lead writer since 2020.
Currently, he’s working on converting all his 40k Adeptus Mechanicus models and becoming a true tech enjoyer, complete with both sad and happy robot noises!
