Roboute Guilliman, Primarch of the Ultramarines and Lord Commander of the Imperium, harbors a profound and complex resentment towards his father, the Emperor of Mankind. This animosity stems from several key disagreements with the Imperium's current state and a deep-seated frustration with the Emperor's actions and legacy.
The Core of Guilliman's Displeasure
Guilliman's return to a broken Imperium, millennia after his initial incapacitation, has filled him with immense disappointment and anger. He is fundamentally "mad at his dad, the Emperor," not only for the current state of humanity but also for the perceived failures and misguided paths that led to it.
Distaste for Deification
One of the primary sources of Guilliman's hatred is the Emperor's current status as a god. He finds this whole "God" thing "pretty messed up." Guilliman, a pragmatic and rational leader, views the Imperium's transformation into a fanatical, theocratic empire built on the worship of his father as an abhorrent perversion of the Emperor's original vision for a secular, enlightened humanity. The irony is not lost on him; despite being sustained by advanced technology within the Armor of Fate and often seen as a demigod by those around him, he despises the very concept of divine worship directed at his father, believing it signifies the ultimate failure of the Imperial Truth.
Disgust with the Imperium's Current State
Beyond the theological shift, Guilliman is appalled by the sheer brutality and stagnation of the Imperium. He would prefer the Imperium prioritized the accumulation of skulls a little less. This sentiment encapsulates his horror at:
- Mindless Dogma: The replacement of logic and reason with blind faith and superstition.
- Xenophobia and Intolerance: The eradication of any non-human species or dissenting thought without pragmatic consideration.
- Technological Stagnation: The loss of scientific progress and innovation, replaced by ritual and dogma.
- Endless War: The Imperium's constant state of brutal, unthinking warfare, sacrificing countless lives without clear strategic objectives beyond survival.
Guilliman sees the Imperium as a grotesque distortion of the grand, rational empire he and his brothers fought to build during the Great Crusade.
Personal Frustration and Legacy
Underlying these systemic issues is a deep personal frustration. Guilliman feels abandoned and betrayed by the Emperor's distant and often enigmatic leadership, which ultimately culminated in the Horus Heresy and the Emperor's entombment on the Golden Throne. He blames his father's perceived aloofness, secretive nature, and lack of clear guidance for contributing to the galaxy-spanning catastrophe that led to the Imperium's current dire state. He carries the immense burden of trying to salvage what he sees as a ruined legacy.
