Warhammer Series

I haven't read really anything about it, but I think that originated from a table top RPG game.

There are actually two separate story settings: Warhammer, which is fantasy, and Warhammer 40,000, often shortened to Warhammer 40k or even just 40k, which is sci-fi mixed with some elements of fantasy. Of the two, I much prefer 40k. The world-building is extensive, original, and pretty interesting when you start to delve into it. Pretty much any of Dan Abnett’s books are excellent reads if you want to get into the setting.

Here’s a quick primer so you won’t be completely lost:

The Imperium of Man stretches across most of the galaxy, but it is beleaguered and in decline. It is built on the ruins of a much older human civilization that first colonized the stars, but subsequently fell. That civilization left behind Standard Template Construct machines that can be found in their old ruins, and which can be used to produce their technology. That is where all of the present Imperium’s advanced machines come from. All technological knowledge was lost with the older civilization, and the inhabitants of the Imperium treat the machines produced by the STCs with reverent, religious awe.

The Imperium is ruled by the God-Emperor of Mankind, who sits on the Golden Throne on Terra (Earth). The most powerful Psyker (psychic) who ever lived, he continually sends forth the Astronomicon, a psychic beacon which guides ships as they pass through the Warp, a separate dimension which allows interstellar travel. He is worshiped as a living god by citizens of the Imperium, but in actuality the Emperor is nothing more than a corpse kept barely alive by the Throne, which is apparently some sort of stasis device, while the Astronomicon is produced by the daily sacrifice of thousands of Psykers who have been discovered all across the Imperium and delivered to Terra for that purpose.

Psykers are feared and killed because their psychic abilities come from the Warp, and living within the Warp are the Chaos Gods, immensely powerful demons who seek the enslavement and destruction of all life. Those who can communicate with the Warp are doomed to eventually be seduced or driven mad by them. Even the Emperor’s most trusted advisor, Horus, was not immune to their power. It was he who, at the behest of the Chaos Gods, rebelled against the Emperor and mortally wounded him thousands of years ago, consigning him to an eternal half-life, while Horus and his fellow fallen warriors now live within the Warp, emerging now and again to wage their eternal war against the forces of Man.

For Man, even in his decline, is not defenseless. The mighty Imperial Guard, an army billions upon billions strong, stands ready to defend the Imperium against any who would assail it. Though the life of an individual Guardsman may be grim and short, the Guard prevails through sheer will and weight of numbers (the Imperial Guard is heavily based on the Soviet Red Army of WWII). And in cases where even the power of the Guard is not enough, the Imperium can deploy the Space Marines, a small cadre of a few thousand of the most powerful and capable warriors humanity has to offer, encased in millennia-old powered battle suits that give each Marine incredible fighting power.

That’s enough background to get you started. If you find anything about the above paragraphs intriguing, I’d suggest giving one of Dan Abnett’s series a try. Gaunt’s Ghosts, as already mentioned, is pretty good. Don’t expect anything that’s going to challenge you intellectually - these are books based on a miniature wargame, after all - but just settle in for a good, exciting read.