Space Marines are perhaps the most well-known part of the Warhammer 40,000 universe: pumped-up guys with superhuman strength and big guns. But what if a girl wants to join in? This question is answered in a book.
Space Marines are male. This is the common knowledge among fans. Nevertheless, many keep asking: Are there actually women among the Space Marines? There are official Warhammer stories that go through exactly such questions. On Reddit, a user posted a short excerpt from “The Last Days of Ector” by Guy Haley.
There, the Order of the Crimson Castellans wants to recruit new members from an underhive, that is, from the depths of a Macropole world. Usually, such a process involves undergoing various tests, which can vary depending on the order.
Among the candidates is a girl, Marny. And although she passes all the tests, she cannot become a Space Marine – but for a good reason.
Bulky, loyal, male – this is how most fans imagine Space Marines, and the portrayal aligns with this:
“The process would destroy her”
When selecting the recruits, the order priest Gorth explains what matters when you want to become a Space Marine: loyalty, teamwork, and combat prowess. All of this has been proven by Marny and her friends.
Gorth explains in his speech: “I have been watching you. You are steadfast and have the makings of a good warrior. But we are the sons of the sons of the Emperor. There are no women among us.”
And although Marny – as her friend Kal notes – has passed every test better than her peers, she is rejected with the reason: “The process that makes us what we are would destroy her, were we cruel enough to start it. That is the way of things. She must serve the Emperor in other ways, if at all.”
Fairness, Gorth continues, is not a criterion for selection. Utility, on the other hand, is.
Whether the explanation is actually entirely correct cannot be said for sure; at least, that is the view of the Crimson Castellans. One fact is, however, that the creation of a Space Marine literally eradicates the original human.
How does one actually become a Space Marine?
Strictly speaking, Space Marines are no longer men, but genderless. They have neither the ability for natural reproduction, nor do they possess any kind of sexual drive – except maybe if they succumb to the Chaos God Slaanesh.
Nevertheless, Space Marines are portrayed with traditionally masculine traits and all known recruits were once men. The process of becoming a Space Marine removes the concept of gender very rigorously.
The super-soldiers are simply no longer human. In a procedure of up to 20 steps, depending on the order, various bred organs are implanted into the recruit, including:
- a second heart and two additional lungs
- Glands and organs that harden the skeleton and stimulate muscle growth
- Implants that make blood more efficient and allow wounds to heal faster
In addition, there are further modifications that make the Space Marine immune to most poisons, allow him to be awake and sleep at the same time, or even give him the ability to learn from what he eats – however that works.
The entire creation process is described step by step in the English Lexicanum.
For the procedure, the young men must be between 10 and 14 years old, otherwise, they either would not survive or would be too old for the changes. And even then, success is not guaranteed.
Super-Nuns instead of Übermenschen
Spoiler Alert: Here you find out the ending of the novel “The Last Days of Ector”
Marny knew that the chances of becoming a Space Marine were basically zero. However, she had hoped to at least be accepted among the order servants, or “Serfs,” through her performance. Order servants are the people who could not become Space Marines for various reasons but still help the order in other ways. They are an elite among humans.
However, she later gets another chance to prove herself and hunts a Lictor along with Kal and the Crimson Castellan Yoth during a Tyranid invasion – one of the most dangerous Tyranids there are. The team manages to evacuate the attacked planet.
The order priest then promises Marny to send her to the Adepta Sororitas, the warrior-priestesses of the Imperium with almost divine powers, who are comparable in strength to Space Marines.
In the comments on Reddit, some fans criticize that this is a lame way out for the author – however, it fits perfectly into the world of Warhammer 40,000. Something like that would have happened exactly like this. And even if Marny had failed, she could still easily become a commissar or Tempestus Scion – some of the best fighters of the Imperium.
Space Marines remain one of the most popular factions among Warhammer fans. In recent decades, however, the world has grown enormously, and many species have evolved significantly, while others have been newly discovered. One of them even convinces hardcore Astartes enthusiasts: “I switch sides” – Xenos excite Space Marine fans in Warhammer 40,000, because their guns can pierce even the thickest armor
