Who Warhammer 40,000 hears thinks directly of Space Marines in most cases. And sure: the pumped-up superhumans are the poster boys of the franchise. In the world itself, however, they are almost regarded as a myth – and rarely bring good news for humans.
Presumably, most of you have a wrong image of Space Marines. Although these super soldiers with too many organs are almost omnipresent in books, games, and other media, they are considered a rarity in Warhammer 40,000 itself.
The Imperium consists of several trillion humans and is absurdly large, that it alone needs several whole planets for administration. In such an immense apparatus, Space Marines are not even a footnote in terms of size.
An order is normally not allowed to host more than 1,000 Space Marines (and additionally Scouts, i.e. “trainees”) and even the Black Templars, who disregard the rules, are a vanishingly small fraction of the Imperium compared to the amount of humans.
Why am I telling you this? Very simple: to show you how badly things must really be going when a Space Marine appears on a battlefield. Because when the Imperium sends its so valuable and rare warriors, the kettle must be boiling.
“Space Marines are certainly at least Plan D”
On Reddit, there was a discussion about exactly this topic – under a meme, of course, as is often the case with Warhammer. Premise: you see as a normal human how a bug dissects an 8-foot tall super soldier.
Already in the first comment, a user points out that it is generally a “VERY bad sign” to see a Space Marine because they are only deployed in cases of utmost necessity. Before that, a series of means are exhausted, as another comment explains:
A would be the planetary defense forces.
B would then be your regular guard units.
C would be the specialist units of the guard or whatever the local forces can send.
Space Marines are certainly at least Plan D
Thick-Protection-458 on Reddit
If you are wondering: specialists refer to people like the killers of the Officio Assassinorum, one of the most dangerous organizations of the Imperium. Just their appearance means that something has gone horribly wrong. With Astartes, the situation is even a level worse.
Where a Space Marine appears, the battle is as good as lost – at least for you
Simply put: Space Marines are sent into battle where normal humans cannot make a difference – not even humans who are cybernetically and genetically altered and under heavy combat drugs.
In two cases, by the way, you can be sure that you will not come out alive:
- Where the famous Deathwatch appears, a mortal can do nothing. With a lot of luck, you might be able to escape, but your safety is not the priority of the Space Marines.
- If you even have the “luck” to catch a glimpse of the secret order of the Grey Knights, you can just say goodbye to life. Since no one must know of their existence, “normal” humans are simply killed if they ever catch sight of a Grey Knight.
An example of the deployment of Space Marines is an attack by devouring Tyranids on a world that plays a major role for the Imperium – done seldom, to repel the enemy and only to buy enough time to salvage the most important resources.
In the extreme case, the Imperium still has a world-destroying Exterminatus at its disposal, which is really only used in absolute emergencies. Because afterwards, nothing can be salvaged.
Despite everything, Space Marines are considered “His Angels”
So why is the sight of a Space Marine still something that every soldier of the Imperium dreams of? Basically, it is indoctrination. The Emperor is regarded as a god, the Space Marines are his (almost) literal grandchildren. Yes, grandchildren. The Primarchs are basically the sons of the Emperor, and the Space Marines are in turn the sons of their Primarchs.
This makes the Astartes something like demigods, not only due to their superhuman abilities but also in a theological sense, assuming the Emperor is indeed a god, which even one of his sons is now considering. If someone were to appear whom you would unequivocally recognize as an angel, the fascination would likely still remain unbroken.
In addition, soldiers of the Imperium fight and die for humanity – if necessary, by the commissar, who ensures the proper “morale”. Thoughts of defeat are therefore not entertained, at least not officially. And if you do survive, you can afterwards tell that you saw a real Astartes.
However, not all Space Marine sightings are automatically a death sentence. The order of the Salamanders, for example, always tries to avoid civilian casualties and to protect humans, if necessary at the cost of their own lives. Ultramarines are also known for valuing human life, albeit more from a logistical perspective and through adherence to rules rather than out of charity.
This doesn’t mean that humans themselves cannot withstand a threat. Even forces of chaos or the warlike Orks can be managed by the Astra Militarum, if necessary with a sheer mass of soldiers.
For this reason, the weapons of the Imperium are designed to be as easy to use as possible while still being robust. Although they are mass-produced, they are the ideal choice for soldiers whose life expectancy is shorter than until the next meal: laser weapons are considered extremely poor in Warhammer 40,000, yet all their huge advantages are overlooked
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