Board Thread:Warhammer 40k General Discussion/@comment-69.143.134.163-20150419161351/@comment-94.197.121.120-20180115195850

Im not a total expert on the 40K universe but the missing Primarchs is something that interests me and looked up on. Ive read a few of the books and I remember reading, pre heresy, that where there were 20 Primarchs statues now there were 18 with 2 empty spaces. Possibly considered 'an unheeded warning of times to come' to the character in the novel.

This suggests to me that the II and XI legion either turned traitor or turned on one another.

The legions are know as the 'forgotten and the purged' so the II legion was erased whilst the XI was destroyed, most likely by the space wolves.

I can't quite remember this part but I think on route to Istavan V to confront the traitor legions it was said, I can't remember by whom, that Horus has 4 legions but Manus, again I think, has a total of 14. To which he responded ' if only it was 16. Do not think of it brother, they are lost to us' If the lost Primarchs were dead then what is there to think of? This to me suggests the lost Legions or at least the Primarchs are still alive.

To conclude I have a number of theories but the following is my top.

Since the XI legion was purged then I think they turned traitor, possibly manipulated by Chaos. The II legion saw the corruption and attacked the XI, maybe warning the other Primarchs and the Emperor before hand of his concerns. The two engaged in warfare until the Emperor intervened. Seeing the corruption and influence of Chaos the XI legion was destroyed. The II legion is more complicated. Perhaps its Primarchs warnings went ignored and it wasn't until war between the two legions started that the Emperor and other Primarchs took notice and compelled them to act. The cost in lives of his legion in the tens of thousands the II Primarch felt ignored and abandoned by the Emperor, his prior warnings unheeded. Perhaps the II and XI Primarchs shared a bond as close as Manus and Fulgrim and if the Emperor had acted sooner then he could of saved the XI Primarch instead he did nothing and II Primarch had to break his bond with his brother and attack his legion for the good of the Imperium. Disillusioned the II Primarch went into exile, having nothing further to do with the Emperor or his brothers. After everything Horus did during the heresy the emperor refused to unleash his full power on him and kill him until he realised he was beyond saving. Which is why I doubt he killed the other Primarchs. With the above theory one is probably imprisoned and the other in exile somewhere.