Space Marines

Cockmongler and Happy Negro, the typical Ultramarines .

The Space Marines (canonically officially named the Adeptus Astartes) account for over 21.4% of playable armies in the Warhammer 40k universe, and as of April, 2010, recieve about 50% of new releases. They are genetically engineered supersoldiers clad in powered armor, and are generally regarded as the toughest warriors to ever serve the Emperor. The average Space Marine is around eight feet tall, has bones that can repel present-day small arms fire, can breathe toxic fumes with little to no damage to respiratory system, and lives for hundreds of years. They are vastly more powerful in their offical descriptions than they actually are in the Warhammer 40,000 games.

Space Marines make up the paladin proportion of the game, due to their power religious leanings and undying faith and loyalty to the Emperor.

The Space Marines themselves were created by the Emperor using genetic information from the Primarchs, who were also created by the Emperor but subsequently kidnapped by the ruinous powers of Chaos when they were young children. They apparently were scattered across the galaxy in an odd warp storm. All but two of the original twenty Primarchs were later recovered and re-united with the Space Marine legions their genetic material had founded.

Space Marines are generally regarded as something of an "unfair advantage", mainly because every young 40k player has a strong liking for them, and almost every unit in the listings has at least a 3+ armor save, making them rather hard to kill. The Ultramarines in particular are an extremely popular choice of Space Marine chapter, and their blue design coupled with the small size of the miniatures often leads to them being referred to as "SMurfs". Thanks to Indrick Boreale, the Space Marines in general are frequently called "Spess Mehreens", or variations to that effect.

An artists drawing of a Space Marine in powered armor with extravagant amounts of jewelery.

The Space Marines of today look very different from the glory days of Rogue Trader, where they earned the nickname beakie for their respected and loved helmets.

Also, contrary to popular belief, Chaos Spess Mehreens are better then their non-heretical counterparts.. Better at failing (I'm looking at you, Abaddon) and making memes (SIINDRI and TEH METAL BOXES) that is...

Original "unclean" Text

The Space Marines (canonically officially named the Adeptus Astartes) account for over 21.4% of playable armies in the Warhammer 40k universe, and as of April, 2010, receive about 50% of new releases. They are genetically engineered supersoldiers clad in powered armor, and are generally regarded as the toughest bastards to ever serve the Emprah. The average Space Marine is around eight feet tall, has bones that can repel present-day small arms fire, can breathe poisonous gas with no significant problems, is capable of spitting acid, and lives for hundreds of years. They are vastly more powerful in their fluff than they actually are in the Warhammer 40k games.

Spess Murheens make up the paladin population in the 40k universe.

The Space Marines themselves were created by the Emperor using genetic information from the Primarchs, who were also created by the Emperor but subsequently kidnapped by the ruinous powers of Chaos when they were little boys.(which means that the chaos gods were pedophiles at the time) And they apparently were scattered across the galaxy in a weird warp storm. All but two of the original twenty Primarchs were later recovered and re-united with the Space Marine legions their genetic material had founded.

Space Marines are generally regarded as something of a "noob army", mainly because every twelve-year-old 40k player has a raging hard-on for them, and almost every unit in the listings has at least a 3+ armor save, making them rather hard to kill. The Ultramarines in particular are an extremely popular choice of Space Marine chapter, and their blue design coupled with the small size of the miniatures often leads to them being referred to as "SMurfs". Thanks to Indrick Boreale, the Space Marines in general are frequently called "SPESS MEHREENS", or variations to that effect.

Marneus Calgar, trying and failing miserably to be a pimp.

Anyone who doesn't play Space Marines is either a Tyranid, a faggot, or more than twelve years old. Probably all three, since no one cares about armies other than the aforementioned ones, and 'nids are totally fabulous.

The Space Marines of today look very different from the glory days of Rogue Trader, where they earned the nickname beakie for their fuckawesome helmets. (Which some of them still have, mind you, apparently it all comes down to preference!) GRIMDARK fluff was less prevalent, and Mahreens were psychotic killing machines, not monks for TEH EMPRAH.

/tg/ Space Marine Chapters

One of /tg/'s favorite pastimes is creating new and exciting chapters of the Adeptus Astartes based on silly concepts. /tg/'s homebrew chapters include: