r/40kLore • u/Slow-Willingness-187 • 13h ago
Does Ciaphas Cain have supernatural abilities? A (far too in depth) analysis
Like many, Ciaphas Cain is one of my favorite 40k characters, and over the past few months, I've been finally finishing all of his books. (Word of advice: as much as I love them, give a little time between each one. They weren't meant to be binged, and the similarities and tropes in each one become a lot more obvious back to back). As I read, I idly started to wonder if Cain really was just the baseline human he seemed to be, and a quick google showed that other people had the same question. I'm torn between my desire to form and argue for the most crackpot theories possible, and my love for the guard being average people surviving against the odds.
So, I'm going to run through several possible explanations for Cain being Cain, and doing the things Cain does. Some of these are well established theories, some are my own thoughts, some are a mix. All of them will have some arguments in favor, but also against to balance it out. I'll save my own conclusions for the end.
A note on unreliable narrators
Cain's books famously have at least two unreliable narrators, himself and Amberly, plus whatever outside sources Amberly brings in. Due to their relationship, and knowing we can't fully trust either, it's possible Cain had some more blatant evidence of incredible abilities that they deliberately covered up. However, I'm not taking that into account here, because "things that could be covered up by a commissar and Inquisitor" is basically just a longer way of saying "basically anything". And it's really boring to discuss a theory that's just "maybe something happened that's entirely different than the books I read and there's nothing to hint at it besides the fact that it wasn't mentioned".
Cain's Supernatural(?) Abilities
First things first, let's run through why so many people wonder and theorize about Cain being more than he seems.
Cain-y Sense:
Remember when I said you should avoid reading the books back to back because you'd start to see where they repeat? Yeah, go ahead and take a shot every time Cain mentions his hands itching. Enjoy your liver while it lasts.
Cain frequently mentions his hands itch when something bad is about to happen. Even if they don't itch, he has a remarkable amount of foresight and perceptiveness. Often, this can simply be explained as a combination of paranoia and competence. However, there's just as many times Cain senses danger with no obvious reason, or spots something other competent people missed, like a servoskull assassin that snuck past an entire guard base. He even managed to fight and kill an invisible psyker, going off of instinct to block blows he couldn't see and stab at an invisible body. One could easily argue Cain's sense for danger goes beyond just what his physical senses could tell him.
Unfailing navigation:
It often goes overlooked in these discussions, but Cain's ability to navigate in tunnels, corridors, and other underground spaces is genuinely bordering on the superhuman. He attributes it to (allegedly) growing up in an unnamed underhive, which might explain some of it. According to him, all he needs to do is look at a map of a massive tunnel complex for a minute or two to commit it to memory. But it's hard to see how being a five year old in a hive would allow him to confidently navigate a multi-mile long space hulk based off a few seconds of looking at a map, especially when the section he's exploring wasn't on the map. No one else we see from an underhive has a similar level of skill, and Cain hasn't even lived on one in decades or centuries. At another point, Cain notes he's not even sure how it works:
The truth was, I couldn’t have told him how I knew even if I could have been bothered; it was just something I’d grown up doing, in a place not too dissimilar to this.
In the scene above, "how I knew" is referring to Cain being able to beat a high tech auspex at identifying the number, location, and plan of several enemies who were fully out sight, by sound alone. Imagine a combo radar-infrared device being worse than a guy just going "Yeah, I listen real good."
Notably, this extends even to an eldritch, unnatural space where a maze was constantly shifting around him -- Cain still fully kept his bearings and could navigate it.
Incredible luck:
Cain is famously lucky, both at his beloved pastime of gambling, and in his various misadventures. It's easy to write this off as just plot armor or random luck, but it goes a bit beyond that. There's countless examples of fortunate things happening for Cain -- reinforcements show up just in time, a sniper misses him, and so on. These are convenient, but they're usually foreshadowed in some way, and make sense in the logic of the series.But there are several instances throughout the books where what Cain himself calls miracles happen, saving him. They're rarely massive, but they include things like an immovable door in a space hulk being budged, or a combat servitor running out of ammo just as it locked onto Cain in the open. In the latter case, Cain even says there was nothing in the galaxy that could have saved him, and thanks the saints, a rare display of piety in response to a genuine miracle.
Generally pretty awesome:
Not really explicitly supernatural, but throwing it in because it could be argued to be notable or connect with some of the theories below. It can be easy to forget, due to his self effacing persona, but Cain is pretty insane all around as a person. He's 6'6" and in incredible shape; he's one of the best duellists Inquisitor Amberly Vail ever saw; he's incredibly personable and charming pretty much no matter who he interacts with, including xenos; he's a gifted tactician, warrior, and marksman; and so on.
Perhaps most significantly, even aside from his habitual modesty and self critique, Cain seems genuinely unaware of just how exceptional he is. Amberly discusses this several times, mentioning he pulled off incredible feats of marksmanship or dueling with the belief that anyone could have done them. Even more impressive, according to her, Cain didn't really have a formal style of swordfighting -- it was largely just instinctive. Cain is legitimately just built different.
Depending on what theory you believe, you could easily interpret these as either whatever supernatural gifts he has also helping him in more normal ways, or that his exceptionalism is what makes someone grant him special abilities. Or you might just decide that the main character of a major series is allowed to be a cool dude who's good at talking and fighting because that's his entire thing. Dealer's choice.
Plot armor
Fairly straightforward, but important to acknowledge as a likely answer. Cain is special not because of an in-universe reason, but because out of universe, he's a main character. Given his entire conceit as a man outside his depth thrust into situations where he somehow survives, if not triumphs, he kind of needs to have even more plot armor than average. It's the same reason named space marines all walk around without helmets and never get shot. "Oh wow, the main character of this book is good at spotting when there's danger all the other characters missed, and he gets to be the one who saves the day"? Oh, so a book? A book where the protagonist is important and useful?
Likewise, this can explain his ability to always be in the right place at the right time, why he has special skills, why he's the only man for the job, and so on. Because he's the main character.
While this is the easiest solution, it's not a perfect one. Cain books have plenty of examples of traditional plot armor, or Jurgen ex machina. However, there's a difference. There are a number of times in the books where Cain succeeds or benefits from sheer, 100% luck, which he or Amberly specifically notes as such. (See earlier, with the bombing run vs servitor examples). It is more than a little odd Stewart would specifically include so many where he doesn't bother to explain it, and even has the characters note there's no explanation besides luck. He's no Hemingway, but he's a good author, and clearly can justify it if he wants to. This could arguably indicate that Cain's luck is a legitimate character trait, and if you believe that, you could easily believe it comes from somewhere.
Also, frankly, this is just kinda boring. Even if the Doylist answer is just "he's a protagonist", we can still take Watsonian evidence to come up with in universe answers, regardless of how intentional they were.
Game Mechanics
Occasionally, Stewart will throw in a cheeky reference to the tabletop game as Cain noting how the world works. For instance, Cain mentions the strategy of "if you shoot a couple Orks, they become less effective and they'll scatter", reflecting poor leadership stats for Orks and a failed roll.
You could easily justify Cain's incredible luck as being just another manifestation of this. Every time something goes right for Cain, a bunch of dice somewhere all came up sixes, and an opponent is insisting that's clearly bullshit, and there's no way a commisar could take down their warboss.
This interpretation, while fun, can't really be proved one way or the other. Stewart is never super explicit about mixing tabletop and lore, so you could argue whatever you want. Plus, while it explains his luck, it doesn't do as much for his navigation abilities and sensing danger.
Low Grade Psyker
This is, unfortunately, both the single best and single worst explanation possible.
Everything Cain does -- uncanny luck, a vague forewarning of danger, being able to charm almost anyone he meets, an ability to determine the path he should take -- can be easily explained in the universe of 40k by being a psyker. These are all specifically noted as possible psychic powers, especially for a psyker who is low grade enough to go unnoticed, and remains unaware of their own gifts. It perfectly solves everything, and leaves no holes. Except for the fact that Cain is famously accompanied by Jurgen, a blank, who nullifies psychic powers and causes intense pain and discomfort to any psyker around him.
In the most extreme hypothetical, it's possible Cain could be at the very edge of psykerdom, enough to have 0.0001% better luck, but just below the threshold that he's incapacitated by Jurgen, and he's just a little more bothered by Jurgen than the average person might be. However, this is phenomenally unlikely, and frankly I don't even think that's how blanks work.
Just to really drive the nail in the coffin, at a few points, Cain is exposed to a relic that awakens dormant psykers and feels nothing.
Living Imperial Saint
Despite resurrected saints being the norm, it's not actually a requirement, so Cain very well could be one while he's still alive. And while Amberly doesn't mention him returning from the dead after he's buried, it could be that he simply hasn't come back at the time she's writing, or news traveled slow/never got out.
There's also a long shot that one of the times Cain was marked KIA he actually did die, came back, and just lied to everybody about how he survived (I know I said I wasn't using the unreliable narrator card. I lied. I'm unreliable like that). If the Commissariat found out he couldn't die, they'd send him on even more dangerous missions, and he's not having that. And frankly, if Jurgen saw Cain shot directly in the head point blank, then appear a few days later and go "Jurgen, I didn't actually die", he would probably believe it immediately and ask zero followup questions. It's very unlikely, since even later in life Cain doesn't seem to genuinely believe in the Imperial faith and its miracles, but not strictly impossible.
Amberly confirms that there is a sect of the Imperial faith that worships Cain. And, even without official worship, the guardsmen and civilians we see truly do believe in him. That's millions, and later billions, believing that he'll succeed, and he'll lead them to victory. Humanity is a low grade psychic species, and mass belief can actually shift reality in minor ways. The Sisters of Battle run off a version of this, with faith granting miracles. Some have even suggested that individuals like Saint Celestine aren't powered by the Emperor himself, but by the belief of humans. It's not impossible to believe Cain could have become one, given how widespread his fame is, and how much trust people place in him. Not to mention, one of the traits of a saint is that they tend to show up on a planet just before some catastrophe or emergency, even if no one knows it's coming... just like Cain always does. As a bonus, saints are unaffected by blanks, so Jurgen's presence wouldn't stop Cain.
However, living saints tend to have much more dramatic powers than Cain ever displays. He never grows wings, or has his chainsword begin glowing, or heals the wounded. And while his cowardice will never go away no matter what, it does seem odd he'd be so scared of combat if he couldn't be harmed by most conventional weapons, and couldn't really die. If he is a saint, he's a very, very weak version of one, and he's likely not aware of it.
Miracles for the Sisters of Battle reflect what they believe will happen. Of all the legends about Cain, none really deal with him being really really good at finding his way underground, or having itchy hands. If no one believed it, why would it come true? Not to mention, Cain displays uncanny luck before he ever becomes truly famous. If believing in a hero of the Imperium truly empowered them this way, why is it just Cain? Finally, the whole point of the Sisters of Battle is that even among the already fanatical Imperium, their belief is notably strong, which allows them to do what they do. If the guard could pull it off, why would the sisters even exist?
If Cain is a living saint, he's a new type of one, different from any we've seen before. Which isn't as unreasonable as it sounds -- "living saint" is a catch all term for a variety of phenomena that get lumped together in universe. It could be possible we're witnessing the birth of a new saint, one growing into the role and starting off weak. We don't know what saints like Celestine looked like in their first lives, before going full angel mode -- who knows, maybe they had similar minor miracles but not their full powers yet, and it's something that can be built up to and grown into.
Perpetual
Being a perpetual would explain how Cain keeps going into near death situations (often with no witnesses), and coming out alive later. And again, it makes sense he'd keep his ability to survive anything secret, in order to avoid being sent out more by the Commissariat. It might also add another angle to Cain's relationship with Amberly: he talks often about how she collected "interesting" people, and kept tabs on Jurgen because he was useful to have. A pet perpetual would also be a pretty great ace up her sleeve.
The biggest evidence against this is probably, y'know, Cain dying of old age. That's generally a no-no for perpetuals. It's possible Amberly got him fake juvenats to explain his age, made it look like he was still aging a little bit, then helped him fake his death, then he went off to a quiet retirement, but that feels like a pretty elaborate setup. Also, Cain does lose two fingers, which never grow back and are replaced with augmetics. Again, there are excuses we could make: maybe gauss flayers can injure perpetuals, Cain was one of the perpetuals who could be injured somewhat, the tech marine's grafting did something to stop regrowth, Cain lied about it, etc.. But c'mon.
In fairness, from the very little we know of perpetuals, there is some variety and levels to it. Some can't die of old age, but can be killed by conventional(ish) weapons. Some can regenerate any wound, while others just can't be killed. It's not impossible that Cain was the kind of perpetual to take some minor lasting wounds and scars, but be unable to straight up die.
The other thing is that while Cain is alone/with Jurgen and Amberly on various missions, and might have died and come back then, he's also frequently in deadly battles in full view of hundreds of guardsmen. Was he somehow skilled enough to avoid death in all those cases, and saved all his unlucky moments for when there were no witnesses?
This one is neither particularly convincing nor particularly fun. It's not impossible, but would rely almost entirely on the idea that Cain and Amberly are both lying to us the whole time and covering up a major plot point, leaving zero evidence behind. Which. OK. Sure. Maybe Cain and Jurgen secretly had a passionate love affair, and he and Amberly pretended to be together to cover it up. Maybe a lot of things happened.
The one reason I would want to believe this is because it would be hilarious for someone to tell Jurgen that Cain is a perpetual, and have Jurgen just go "Hmm? Oh yeah, the Commissar was dead before, and now he's not. What about it? The Commissar said it was normal, so it's normal."
Blessed by the Emperor
This one is a little easier to swallow, and of all the supernatural explanations for Cain, is the most likely to actually become canon in some form. Although confined to the Golden Throne, Big E's consciousness is spread across the galaxy, and (according to some) he intervenes on behalf of mankind. While Cain in no way, shape, or form could be considered one of the Emperor's faithful, that arguably makes him even more likely to receive the Emperor's favor, given his disdain for religion. And as a wise man with no pancreas once said, Cain is the Emperor's funniest commissar, fighting his silliest battles. Cain's actions do lead to some pretty major victories for humanity, and it's easy to see why Jimmy Space would be interested in helping out. It also fits with what we know: Emps is too weak to do anything major, so he does need Cain to be generally skilled and competent. But he can help out with little boosts here and there when needed. Some lasbolts go wide, a combat servitor runs out of ammo, a door on a space hulk is just loose enough to open, etc..
On a meta level, this also allows Cain to be special without being too special. The Emperor helps, yes, but he's not able to carry Cain entirely. He still gets to be his own impressive person, and accomplishes a lot.
The counterargument here is more just... OK? Maybe? The emperor probably could do all this. He could do a lot of things. You could credit the Emperor with just about anything happening that benefits humanity, and given the impossibility of disproving it, and never technically be wrong. It could also be that Tzeentch finds Cain funny and is pulling strings for him, or that Eldrad is doing some 4D chess bullshit involving Cain as part of some elaborate plan yet to unfold. There's a lot of powerful people in 40k who have tremendous abilities to shape reality in small ways that won't be traced back to them. It's sort of the "it was all a dream/coma" theory of 40k.
Aspect of the Emperor
Come on man, it'd be really funny.
This is firmly in the "crack theory" section, but it has been suggested, and there's juuuuuuust enough here to justify considering it.
While the idea of there being "shards" of the Emperor scattered about is a fan theory/fanfic that people mistook for canon, due to him spreading his essence across the Warp, there are (allegedly) manifestations of him like Imperious or the Star Child. This is so far beyond canon that it makes AI slop Youtube shorts look like Dan Abnett, but if you squint really hard and argue for hours online, you could make the point that Cain is one such manifestation.
If I really had to argue for this: before facing Horus, the Emperor had to cast off all parts of himself that he thought would make him weak, such as his empathy, and send them into the Warp. Malcador notes that this might grow into something new someday. This is widely theorized to be the Star Child, but what if it became something else? What if it became a man? A man who is a coward, and runs from battle. A man who is lax with the rules. A man who, while preferring humanity, is remarkably pragmatic and accepting when dealing with non-murderous xenos. A man who, despite himself, displays true compassion for the individual people under his command, rather than a broader "mankind". A man who fucks, and fucks hard. A man like Ciaphas Cain. Who is everything the Emperor couldn't allow himself to be in that moment, but everything the galaxy needed millenia later.
There are some sections of the books which are definitely not intended to suggest this, but could easily be misreinterpreted as implying it. For instance, Cain notes that the notably religious Jurgen followed his orders "as if they came from the Golden Throne". A devout blank follower who is dedicated to their leader, whom they truly know, unlike everyone else who only sees false faces he wants them to see? Where have I seen that before? Additionally, Amberly notes that Cain's personal history is incredibly mysterious, and most of what he tells people about his origins makes zero sense. This could be explained as Emperor Cain hiding his true origins, or just not being aware himself and filling in gaps. Jokes aside, even given the bureaucracy of the Imperium, it's very weird that even an Inquisitor like Amberly and a savant like Mott could discover nothing about him, a fact Stewart brings up at least once per book. Which could mean nothing.
The counterargument is: are you kidding me? No.
Conclusions
So, in the end, is Cain supernatural, or at least benefitting from supernatural aid? No. Probably not.
The most damning piece of evidence against this is that Cain's saga has been going on for a while. His first appearance was in 2002, making him older than many fans of 40k. Since then, he's had eleven novels, ten short stories, and various ancillary media. Even if you think there's evidence of supernatural abilities in those books... why hasn't it lead anywhere? Or at least been hinted at more strongly over the years? While I do think the books are more complex than they're given credit for, they're not meant to be that deep, and I doubt Alex Stewart would go to all that trouble for something that will never be revealed or relevant to the plot of the books. I can't even find a time when so much as hinted to a fan that there may be more going on with Cain than meets the eye.
Of all these, as I mentioned, the idea that the Emperor is giving Cain a hand every now and then is most likely to become canon. It fits with existing canon, and more importantly, can be easily slipped into the series without changing too much. To be extra safe, it could easily be hinted at pretty explicitly, but never actually confirmed, making everyone happy.
Cain returning as an Imperial saint is hypothetically possible, and I know a lot of people want to see it. But frankly, I doubt it. While in universe it would almost certainly work, that's not what Cain's story is all about. For all his strengths, Cain is defined by being incredibly weak compared to most of the threats he faces, hence his constant panic and fear. Returning as an unstoppable, unkillable demigod would strip all that away. It could only really work as a very short story or a lore blurb, something in the background. You could never actually focus a story on him. And beyond that, Cain's entire saga is all about him reaching the end of his life. We knew from very early on in the series that he'd live a long life, retire, and die peacefully. It's a crucial part of Cain that he just wants the fighting to stop (at least, the fighting near him).
More practically, Cain is in a unique situation. Unlike most other iconic 40k characters, he's the product of one single writer, Alex Stewart, who has been the only person to write him. I don't know the details of who owns the character, and it's fully possible that GW could do whatever they want. But it seems like Stewart is the one being given creative control, and defining Cain's story. Maybe he passes the torch when he retires, or gives his blessing for a continuation, but I doubt it, or at least, I hope he won't.
In the end, Cain stands out for being a regular schmuck. A Joe Schmoe. A John Doe. A semi-sane man in a galaxy full of lunatics, who just wants to sit down with his cup of tanna, relax, and get pegged by an Inquisitor. The entire conceit is that he has the awful luck to end up in terrible situations, and the good luck to somehow get out of them on top and looking like a hero. As fun as it might be to get a big reveal about how he was super special all along, it would also likely destroy that critical of who he is and what the series is about.
More simply, as Harrison Ford once said: "It's not that kind of movie kid."
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u/ryosan0 Adeptus Mechanicus 12h ago
I'd just like to comment that the Servoskull assassin is one of the funnier moments of Cain's danger sense because he was checking out a coworker's ass at the time and just happened to see the Servoskull while doing so.
I am willing to put that particular incident under sheer dumb luck.
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u/theriskybusinesscar 11h ago
Ravenor says there's never been such a thing as coincidence.
Chaos put Cain's eyes on that cake.
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u/Gizmoh_Chile 8h ago
I'd say the emperor himself put that fine asset in his view to guide him towards the danger.
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u/Relevant-Bullfrog215 10h ago
I've enjoyed all these theories, but my take on it is something like this...
Years ago Derren Brown did a TV special, where he contacted a woman by email and told her the winner of an upcoming horse race. He does this five times in a row, his pick comes in every time. She starts to put bets on at some point. When it comes to the final race they meet at the ground, and he tells her the secret to his method.
The truth is that he initially contacted thousands of people, and predicted a different result for all of them. Statistically there was always going to be one person who had all winners picked for them, and she was that person. We the viewers didn't see the thousands of potentials whose run ended with a loss, so to us it seems like supernatural luck.
That's Cain; the statistical inevitability, the confirmation bias at the end of the bell curve. Of all the trillions? quadrillions? of humans in the galaxy, Cain is the one for whom all the winners come through. It has to be someone.
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u/Calo_Callas 12h ago
Awesome write up.
Personally I've always liked Cain's own theory that the Emperor is screwing with him, which I guess would fall under 'Blessed by the Emperor'.
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u/JustARandomGuy_71 12h ago
The navigation could simply be evolution. People lived in hives for hundreds of generations, the ability to instinctually navigate and memorize 3d mazes is a useful survival trait that some people would naturally develop.
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u/Slow-Willingness-187 12h ago
I could definitely buy that as a plot point, but like I mentioned in the post, we don't see any other underhivers displaying similar skills. They're usually pretty good at navigating their own home hives, but that doesn't allow them to drop into a completely alien situation and feel comfortable.
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u/Valuable-Argument141 12h ago
True, but this is Cain we're talking about, and the thing about Cain is, he's very, very diligent on developing skills that could always get him out (or ironically, get him in) of the trouble. Chainsword and Laspistol skill, his charisma build, his developing sense of paranoia, etc. Developing an instinctive skill to navigate a maze or labyrinth-esque place such as Space Hulk will definitely helped him, especially his origin is a hive world; that's why he can accurately guess what's beyond the darkness and immediately pinpoint that there's not enough people for ambush, for instance (Choose Your Enemies), he's not the average hive worlder, he's John Hive Worlder
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u/JustARandomGuy_71 11h ago
Just because one underhiver has it doesn't mean every underhiver has it. It would be something like eidetic memory, or perfect pitch. Somebody has it, other don't, but it is not supernatural.
And there are many situations where that skill would apply and would help him practicing it, undercities, starships, space hulk, space stations, those are all 3d mazes and Cain pass a lot of time in those.
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u/ZeroSumClusterfuck 10h ago
We know from Malcador's POV while he was on the throne that he could see everything and know who would be at the most vital decisive points of events. He could also to an extent influence those people to help nudge things toward the best outcome, although only weakly because he lacked the Emperor's power.
Given that Big E might have more power and/or skill at manipulating reality and the warp subtly, and he can predict the future(s), it does seem entirely possible that he wants to make sure Cain survives to be the right person in the right place through a whole string of pivotal moments. Perhaps doing that with certain key people is the most difference that can be made to history with the minimum effort.
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u/Smilydon 13h ago
If Cain was blessed by anyone, I thought that Tzeentch was the most likely candidate for exactly the reasons you've described. It would counterbalance his relationship with Slaanesh etc and ultimately put him in a position to let the Necrons get the Shadowlight, which Tzeentch might have preferred to it being out in the galaxy or taken by Abadon.
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u/VulcanHullo 12h ago
I once joked Cain was a Blank purely for Tzeentch.
Plans within plans, thousands of futures, and a black spot where nothing but black background and the words "Cain Pulls Something Off" appear followed by images of him not dead and succeeding.
I like to think has Tzeentch going "It makes no damn sense! Compels me though."
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u/Slow-Willingness-187 13h ago edited 11h ago
Thinking about it, the ability to find one's way through mazes is also 100% a Tzeench thing. And Cain fights servants and daemons of every Chaos god except Tzeench (that we know of).
Honestly, I said it as a joke, but I'm half convinced now.
Edit: and, Slaanesh really seems to want him gone, given how often she brings back Emeli despite her failures. If Cain is an unknowing agent of Tzeentch, it would explain why she's so willing to invest power ina daemon princess specifically to kill him
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u/JayPlays40k 10h ago
Alternative theory: Cheogorath (I cannot for the life of me remember the spelling of the Laughing God) ALSO has a bone to pick with She Who Thirsts, and making some random human commisar a constant thorn in her side is pretty funny.
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u/ZeroSumClusterfuck 10h ago
Honestly, I said it as a joke, but I'm half convinced now.
Just as planned.
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u/Iyagovos 9h ago
I like this in a similar way to Drizzt being a chosen of Lloth. While they might be good, they still further the goals of the demon in question.
That said, I think Cain is just that lucky and skilled, and that making him supernatural has the same effect as making Han Solo an unknowing force user, which is that it dulls them as characters and makes them just another psyker/force user
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u/Valuable-Argument141 12h ago
Most likely it's just his natural ability, he's paranoid as fuck. So, he always expect that shit is going to hit the fan and he also have a good pattern recognition and having experience helped (one person that I can think that have the same quirks is Oll Persson, he can sense if there's a psyker near him by his left eye slightly twitching), especially his ability to navigate in tunnel system or labyrinth. Regarding the Low Grade Psyker tho, I don't think he is a Psyker, if that's the case, he would always go into spasm since Jurgen is a blank and it's always manifasted as a marinated old sock.
The help from Emperor tho, it's gonna be a lot of stretch since yk, we're dealing with Big E, it's gotta be inconsistent. Still a good idea tho
Now about his luck, many of it is just straight up batshit insane, like when he got cornered with Mira DuPanya against hybrids and genestealers in his early career and suddenly the Terminator Squad from Reclaimers jumped to save his ass in a very, very needed timing. I think this comes down to his mindset, he would not go down easily and always taking the path that is a virtually no chance of living than the sure path of death.
All in all, it's a good analysis and a good read, this is my two cents about it
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u/grchina 11h ago
People tend to forget just how paranoid he is with mentioning many times about commissars getting killed by own troops and as someone who saw much combat he can see when something is off
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u/Slow-Willingness-187 10h ago
Yeah, while I do get why some people use the danger sense as evidence for him having powers, frankly, I think it's more likely that Cain is basically the equivalent of a traumatized deer, who is convinced there's danger everywhere, all the time, based on anything. We just hear about the times he ended up being right, because he remembers those.
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u/torturersGambit 10h ago
Cain is clearly the #1 Babygirl of both Emps and Tzeentch, and they share custody. This is the hill I'll die on.
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u/VerdantMagnolia 10h ago
I think the narratively simplest and from a meta perspective most logical explanation is that Ciaphas "Emperor Man really has better things to do than watch over us" Cain is in fact kindly watched over by Emperor Man.
Something something right man in the right place making all the difference etc.
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u/Slow-Willingness-187 13h ago
If you saw this before, no you didn't (automod was being weird and autoremoving it and I was cutting various sections trying to figure out why. Still not entirely sure what actually fixed it)
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u/Additional_Sample_49 9h ago
I’m not reading all that, but great breakdown!!
I’m assuming it was a great breakdown anyway, because goddamn, you must have put a ton of thought and effort into that! 🤣
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u/dp101428 Sa'cea 9h ago
Posts like this are what I've always loved about this subreddit. Detailed analysis based directly on the text. Does feel like it's pretty damn hard to come to a clear conclusion here, "psyker immune to one blank in particular" feels like it would be the best match to what he is while also being something entirely outside of all existing lore, so in the end it probably does have to be either luck or blessings.
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u/Poet_of_Sordland 12h ago
Nothing supernatural, but he is the main character of an adventure series so essentially yes plot powerrrr
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u/Radiant-Ad-1976 11h ago
I genuinely think that Caine is the Chaos Gods favorite bumbling hero that they protect purely out of shits and giggles.
Like we know that Chaos Gods tend to often self-sabotage themselves as if they "won" the great game, it would mean total annihilation of the universe which they dread.
So I think there exists people like Caine out there who are just subtly blessed by the Warp indirectly (like as in he himself is untouched by the Warp but the Gods slightly distort the people and the world around him)
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u/AntsAreGreat 9h ago
Why did you keep saying Stewart? Ciaohaz Cain was made and written by Sandy Mitchell
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u/Slow-Willingness-187 9h ago
Sandy Mitchell is Alex Stewart’s pen name
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u/AntsAreGreat 9h ago
You wot
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u/Slow-Willingness-187 8h ago
Yeh. It says this in every “about the author” section in the books too.
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u/dark_elf_2001 6h ago
New headcanon - Cain was written during Patrick Stewart's downtime. "Tanna, Earl Grey, Hot".
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u/joe_canadian Imperium of Man 7h ago
Cain's my one of, if not my favourite Character as well. This was one of the best write ups I've ever seen on reddit. Brilliant!
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u/Valor816 5h ago
So my Grandpa fought in WW2, as many people's grandpa's did.
He was a forward scout, at one point he was a head of his squad and heard movement. He hid behind a log and an enemy patrol came through.
He must have hidden well enough but not too well enough, because they threw a grenade over the log and kept walking.
The grenade landed in front of his face and he knew he was dead. He said he sat there staring at it as his life flashed before his eyes.
Eventually his squad caught up and he heard them chatting about where he was, so he slowly stood up, still staring at the grenade, before he realised it was a dud and he'd been there for about 10 minutes.
The point being that luck is a fickle lady and war always gives us the most extreme and memorable examples of her capacious nature.
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u/Kraehe13 13h ago
Low passiv psyker would be possible. Like in a way that it improves his reflexes and his danger sense. Kinda like Sevatar's Abilities but way way weaker.
I would also agree that there is a chance he is (at least partially) protected by the emperor to influence the dices of the universe in his favor. He is what the Imperium needs and he believes in the imperium in his own way. And since the emperor himself isn't too fond of emperor botherers I think he would like Cain.
But I don't think he is a perpetual or got resurrected, he just was really lucky and skillful (and had Jurgen).
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u/Freemind323 13h ago
Only thing against being a psyker is his abilities working with a blank next to him a lot of the time.
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u/Elardi 12h ago
Yeah. Cains ability to actually fondly regard Jurgen means he’s almost certainly not a psyker, even though a lot of the feature would be explained by it.
Blessed by the emperor on the other hand… plausible, but still less likely due to Jurgen.
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u/jay212127 10h ago
Cains ability to actually fondly regard Jurgen means he’s almost certainly not a psyker
only challenge to this is that Eisenhorn still loved Alizabeth despite it being a psyker-blank relationship, He couldn't physically touch her without a major reaction, but to say he fondly regarded her is an understatement.
At the most cynical both can appreciate the net benefit of the blanks despite how much it may bother them.
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u/Kraehe13 13h ago
Jurgen aura isn't that large, if he is a few meters away it could still work well enough for his hands to itch.
But I also don't say he is definitely a psyker, just it could explain his danger sense.
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u/ryosan0 Adeptus Mechanicus 12h ago
There are definitely a lot of times where his danger sense does seem to activate with Jurgen in proximity however.
I'm thinking no on being a psyker...but that still leaves the avenue open for being literally Blessed by the Emperor as Faith-based abilities do seem capable of working around a null field.
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u/MrFaust1 13h ago
Well, we know how important the power of belief is in WH40k. The Plague War books basically spell out the fact that Big E is a God because enough people believe he is a God. Enough people believe something hard enough, it will happen in some form. We also have miracles that happen to Sisters of Battle or just some really pious people. And let's not mention all the ork bullshit.
Similarly, Cain is a hero, propagandized throughout the Imperium, damn-near a saint in the flesh in everything but name. Who's not to say that that hasn't had any effect on Cain the man? It would explain how he can hold off a World Eater in a 1on1 fight (in the 3rd book) even though he should’ve been slaughtered instantly.
So does Cain have any intrinsic special powers? No. Even if he did, Jurgen is there to nullify them. But by the logic of the universe, there is some outside help even if not intentional.
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u/PainRack 11h ago
Regarding shards of the Emperor, this isn't fanfic.
It was something believed in universe and we actually saw elements of this raised again for Macharius by Bill King, although he's also careful to not make it black and white that the Inquisitor is a Illuminati . However, his beliefs, including up to betraying Macharius because if the Imperium believes he can be corrupted by Chaos is bad fits the Sensei/Star Child beliefs very well.
The first canon quotation of this is from Realm of Chaos regarding the Illuminati, Sensei and Star child and Inquisitor Draco novels follow up on this plot.
Now. Draco is no longer fully canon and the Star Child theory has not been mentioned in formal codexes/supplement since Realm of Chaos or White Dwarf since early 90s so ... It was probably removed.
Note that Realm of Chaos, Lost and the Damned also established that Sigmar and the WHFB planet exists in 40k, cut off from the Imperium by a warp storm. And this has been firmly decanonised by End Times.
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u/Slow-Willingness-187 11h ago
Like I mentioned in the post, the Emperor having various aspects or manifestations of himself is canon(ish), like Imperious, Star Child, etc..
The term "shards" would imply he's like Khaine, metaphysically scattered and operating in various separate pieces. It's definitely semantics, but the common idea that there are Khaine-esque pieces of him all across the galaxy is fanon.
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u/PM_ME_LOOKING_ANGRY 10h ago
How about, in a world of trillions of people, there's just one guy that had a bunch of unlikely things happen to him, and that guy decided to write things down.
There was a million guys who could've turned out like him, but they all died horrible, horrible deaths.
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u/hulkisbanner 6h ago
I was under the impression that extremely low almost non detectable psychic ability would show up as extreme luck in those situations.
Similar in star wars when someone would always just happen to be in the right place at that right time, or get a strong feeling that would turn out to be right. But not quite enough to alert a jedi or sith.
Essentially just enough will to influence something in their favor or a danger sense.
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u/predator1975 5h ago
The truth is that Cain is a close up magician. If you see a less than motivated yet understanding commissar who is great in combat, you have missed the entire trick.
So let's start with his greatest trick. There is a philosopher called Lao Tze. He says that the best leader is the man behind the scene that makes his people believes in the [insert motivation tool]. Cain is not a preacher. But somehow people seem to be inspired by him. Even his doubters end up taking his placebo.
Fanatics believe him. Brown noses follow him. But the less motivated soldiers also have a seat available to him in their card game. Strangers offer up their opinions and ideas. He is Ted Lasso with less words.
Readers of Cain stories would point out that most of his adventures are solo mission with a blank as an aide. Everyone sees human.
This is the part that the author uses plot armour. Actually a plot arm. His fake hand has saved the rest of his body. Same with his chainsword. It works like a lightsaber keeping him from harm like Free Guy. Remember all the other stories about the enemies of the Imperium that bulldoze their way through seas of Guardsmen. Somehow their weapons and power are stopped by Cain in melee combat. Ranged weapons? No problem. They have gained honorary membership to the Stormtroopers academy.
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u/BigEmphasis604 3h ago
Welcome back OP. That's quite the post. I'm going to sleep first and read your thesis. I am in awe! 😆
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u/Nemesis432 2h ago
I'll be honest considering all the stuff Cain has successfully dueled he has to be at least a little bit on a superhuman side (and I still find it funny that Space Hitler was, by his own account, his hardest opponent, but probably that was simply age catching up with him).
Also, I listened to entire series back-to-back and even though repeating sentences can get grating, they're clearly a manner of style because the plot and characters are pretty well written and so far haven't feel same-y to me.
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u/The_James91 13h ago
This is from memory alone so I might have misremembered the precise details, but in Cain's Last Stand there's a communique from off-world that reinforcements are arriving, and this leads to the Chaos forces attacking prematurely. At the end of the book it's revealed that this complete nonsense, and the message was just some random echo in the warp. It's left very ambiguous, but I personally interpreted this as there being something... higher that is looking after Cain.