The phrase comes from Warhammer 40,000, Games Workshop's grimdark sci-fi universe where humanity worships the God-Emperor of Mankind as a living god. Imperial soldiers, guardsmen and zealots invoke him in battle, treating a prayer as both comfort and weapon when facing aliens, heretics and daemons. As Warhammer video games and fan edits spread online, short desperate prayers like this were clipped for memes, contrasting the setting's extreme religious fanaticism and endless war with everyday defeats, bad luck and unwinnable situations in other games.