Guilliman knew full well that the cloned primarchs had formed different factions under the influence of their originals.
Clones like Angron, Fulgrim, and Mortarion had closer ties with clone Horus and were more willing to obey his command.
Meanwhile, clone Lion, Leman Russ, Jaghatai Khan, and the others could not stand being around brothers whose originals had betrayed them.
Guilliman therefore decisively split them up, if only to keep them from turning on each other on the battlefield.
Though the Cabal's hive ship was as large as a human hive city—so large that, in the era of the Great Crusade, only the Imperial Fists' Phalanx could have surpassed it in size—
At its core, this was still a ship-seizure operation.
For an operation like this, Guilliman could have handed it to any Chapter Master under his command. At most, it required an Astartes commander on the level of one of the Four Heroes.
Yet now, eighteen primarchs, Guilliman included, were launching a boarding assault together. Not even during the old final battle aboard the Vengeful Spirit had so many gathered in one place.
Letting the primarchs spread out and fight according to their own habits would improve combat efficiency while minimizing the chances of conflict breaking out among them.
"Now that the battle has truly begun, I honestly feel like we're using anti-aircraft guns to kill mosquitoes. It's a waste of manpower."
"From the moment their prized precognitive warning system was crippled by our anti-prophecy interference and they chose to land on this planet, the outcome of this war was already decided."
At Guilliman's side, apart from his Victrix Guard, stood a Grey Knights squad personally led by Garviel Loken.
After countless rounds of rigorous training, these Grey Knights possessed unmatched resistance to Warp corruption. Against psychic sorcery, they were