I'm still so fucking salty over this. I could ignore a lot of other issues with the game if it weren't for the fact that going from "yeah you're about to die if you don't hurry..." is immediately followed by go do these lil shoot him save her whatevers.
Like, its such a closed loop of motivation?

Broadly? I'd argue that SDII especially is more an operational game than anything. If you planned right that you'd have armor in this fight and they wouldn't even if you're dogwater at the game you're going to have a much easier time of it. WARNO its not as severe since there's more of everything.

no thank you so much though like, her gulag book was really good but fuck me she had a snide comment about its fashionable to say the nazis were the bad guys or something entirely out of left field and it made me extremely nervous reading the rest of the book.

It's a fun concept! Heck It's a thing in my own little worldbuilding-a major research company has more mercs than nerds on payroll since their whole deal is showing up after scientist faces have been eaten, cleaning up, then selling out to the Big Players.

One hive does, and it is notable for that fact. (they're building some big scary beacon which I bet games workshop will do nothing with but you can have it be the dramatic thing in your own games.)

Hive Fleet Tiamet is a cool name too though ngl.

*like, inquisitors don't have to come from terra but by god I'd swear I read that the higher up ones tend to have at least visited??

officers tend to be from the regiments, or at least planetary aristocracy who then join said regiments. Hell even the logi types of the Munitorum tends to be from hub worlds as I'm to understand it. (and then ships seem to be really insular aside from the slave labor brought on)