By around m42 there are a few characteristics of war in the imperium of man.
>the only important fighters are the PDF and the arbites
The sheer number of PDF forces and arbites officers throughout the empire alone makes them the only forces that matters to the entire security situation of the IOM. The inquisition, sisters, astartes, mechanicus forces, custodes, and more are only used for highly niche purposes. Otherwise, most fights are almost entirely composed of the arbiters and PDF against most aliens and traitors.
>most fights aren’t particularly densely violent
The sheer amount of violence in most conflicts fought in the IOM is explicitly tied to the scale of each conflict being fought. Most battles faced are unamed and consist mainly of firefights between human soldiers against terrorists and mutants using auto guns, lasguns and some light machinery. The fights on each world resemble the battles fought in MENA today. These battles may occasionally have a nuke or a series of air strikes, but most battles will consist entirely of gunfights. Soldiers rely primarily on cheap weapons and equipment. They find themselves dying and coming out of battles that will be forgotten about if they were even remembered.
However, these small battles also comprise most of the deaths faced by war in the IOM due to the sheer number of them present throughout the galaxy. Its not the tyrannic wars or interstellar invasions that fucked up the empire, but the dozens of thousands of planetary and continental scale battles that collectively have pushed much of the galaxy into a near constant state of disrepair.
>space is cold and dark and big
Most PDF and Arbites officers fight in dimly lit or pitch black conditions throughout the imperium. The amount of light that reaches the vast expanses of cold and distant worlds is only barely enough to keep most worlds illuminated enough to be hospital enough for settlements and armed conflict. The danger of warp travel also puts limits on logistics networks throughout the galaxy. Many soldiers may spend years to decades entirely on spacecrafts travelling between worlds and systems before they’ll ever begin their mission. Additionally, the availability of vehicles to transport military equipment throughout each world varies between nonexistent and semi effective. Many soldiers within the empire must march on foot for weeks, or they commute on vehicles resembling modern day trucks and tanks for hours to days to supply troops and prepare for combat.
>combat uniforms (if they’re available) resemble modern day military uniforms
Most PDF militaries within the galaxy don’t have the resources to provide their soldiers with emblemed, ornamented and colourful attire. Most soldiers ultimately wear simple mono colour uniforms that blend well in the environments they fight. Some uniforms have flak armour and protection against munitions, but much of what’s available entirely consists of mass produced slop provided by the mechanicus. Additionally, the same ideas apply for all the vehicles available to these soldiers and policemen.
What a weirdly realistic galaxy.
>>37151You forgot to mention the fact that the sheer amount of violence created by the political problems and the violently high availability of military resources ends up producing the perfect conditions for feudalist societies to form. There’s a reason for why the IoM is described as a feudal theocracy. Most ‘normal’ people on these planets are going straight for the nearest hive city or mega city that’ll offer the most amount of protection against aliens, heretics, revolutionaries, insurgents, fascists, zealots, and more. Even if socialist states form, they ultimately become Stalinist or outright fully feudal in nature, because each planet is legitimately too dangerous to permit enough freedom of movement for people to live away from their oppressors. Don’t forget, people in the feudal Africa and Europe didn’t just become serfs for the sake of it, they became serfs to protect themselves against other lords, barbarians, and militias.
>>37153You're misunderstanding feudalism. It wasn't a voluntary contract from the peseants, it was imposed top down under threat of violence since the very beginning when late Roman coloniae were made serfs against their will. The Imperium isn't feudalist and this is a very common mistake 40k fans make when describing it. Feudalism was / is a particular stage in history and only exists in semifeudal colonies nowadays which isn't the same as historic feudalism. If it was feudal it wouldn't have industry because that threatens feudal power which is in their land. The Imperium isn't feudal, it is entirely fascist since its foundations. Or maybe a better term is 'barbarism' as in socialism or barbarism, where capitalism has led to a more evil system. Hive cities aren't based on feudalism they are based on 19th century industrial capitalism. Lots of crypto reactionary 40k fans don't want to accept it because it means they have to face the fact that they think the Ecclesiarchy, Inquisition and Astartes are cool when all three are completely fascist.
Anyway I don't care if this is true but in my head cannon everyone lives lives high quality by todays standards (but they are getting exploited even worse since they still have to work 4 hour days despite unspeakable automation in their work) because otherwise I struggle to suspend my disbelief. Also 'Stalinism' is like as far away from feudalism as you can get, Stalin completely erradicated feudalism. Don't put them in the same sentence.