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There are loads of different ways the Space Marines recruit new Astartes.

The Blood Ravens have the Blood Trials, where aspirants in their young teens compete over a number of days until one or two are left alive. (Blood Raven Trilogy)

The Dark Angels recruit from feral worlds where they are viewed as men from the Stars. They oversee similar trials of youths, but none are asked to die for their tribe. They choose the ones that are hardiest and quickest of mind (Angels of Darkness)

The Space Wolves recruit exclusively from Fenris. There the warring tribes provide plenty of recruits, as the Choosers of the Slain (Wolf Priests) go over battlefields and "resurrect" those warriors they feel fought well enough to benefit the Space Wolves.

The Blood Angels recruit from Baal and its surrounding systems. The actual manner of the indoctrination is unknown, but it is known that most of the population is fully aware of the outside Imperium.

The Black Templars, having no homeworld of their own, recruit from worlds their crusades pass, in a neverending drive to replace the losses their massive campaigns extol on their numbers.

The Salamanders recruit from Nocturne, using the resilience of the people there as a forge to create master Space Marines.

The Ultramarines have the luxury of being able to recruit not only from their homeworld, but from an entire Segmentum. The aspirants are not chosen at first, but apply for induction into the Chapter. They are trained until they drop at the Barracks complexes on Macragge, and those that pass are brought into the Ultramarines Chapter as Scouts.

Corennus wrote:There are loads of different ways the Space Marines recruit new Astartes.

The Blood Ravens have the Blood Trials, where aspirants in their young teens compete over a number of days until one or two are left alive. (Blood Raven Trilogy)

The Dark Angels recruit from feral worlds where they are viewed as men from the Stars. They oversee similar trials of youths, but none are asked to die for their tribe. They choose the ones that are hardiest and quickest of mind (Angels of Darkness)

The Space Wolves recruit exclusively from Fenris. There the warring tribes provide plenty of recruits, as the Choosers of the Slain (Wolf Priests) go over battlefields and "resurrect" those warriors they feel fought well enough to benefit the Space Wolves.

The Blood Angels recruit from Baal and its surrounding systems. The actual manner of the indoctrination is unknown, but it is known that most of the population is fully aware of the outside Imperium.

The Black Templars, having no homeworld of their own, recruit from worlds their crusades pass, in a neverending drive to replace the losses their massive campaigns extol on their numbers.

The Salamanders recruit from Nocturne, using the resilience of the people there as a forge to create master Space Marines.

The Ultramarines have the luxury of being able to recruit not only from their homeworld, but from an entire Segmentum. The aspirants are not chosen at first, but apply for induction into the Chapter. They are trained until they drop at the Barracks complexes on Macragge, and those that pass are brought into the Ultramarines Chapter as Scouts.

The blood ravens trilogy is written by CS Goto, therefore it may not be counted amongst facts.

All chapters are "maintained" to almost always have 1000 members, if a company is wiped out (Rare), which is about 100 marines, those are replaced by having a gargantuan search for aspirants, if the BRs would only recruit a couple at a time, they'd be long gone.

Anyways, about multilasers: One multilaser is considerably bigger than a lascannon.


Oh, and considering the BT's, maybe they've already been genetically modified to some extent, and then made duke it out with a gargantuan lionbeardinosaur thing.

Grey Templar wrote:He may still be alive and well, but he can't compare to a real astartes.

Fallen who were only partly changed are only slightly larger then a normal human(infact you can't tell the difference)


a Adult who is given the select enhancements may be functionable as a Space marine, but isn't as strong or tough.

Still strong and tough enough to outdo regular humans on a regular basis.

Firesolved wrote:

KamikazeCanuck wrote:There does exist something called a hybrid. Its in between an astartes and a normal human. They were very common pre-heresy. Most of the primarch's personal armies were converted into hybrids when they were reunited with their space marine legions.

The Dark Angel's very own Luther is a prime example.

And Cypher too, I believe.

Also, in regard to the "recruitment thread", I believe that the Raven Guard take their recruits from the hardiest miners on Deliverance. Then, they have to wait for a pure gene-seed from Terra (since Corax tainted theirs), which is what takes the Raven Guard so long to replenish its ranks.

KFJ wrote:...if the BRs would only recruit a couple at a time, they'd be long gone.

Not necessarily so. In the Damnation Crusade comics, four aspirants is said to be an unusually large amount at once.

puma713 wrote:

Firesolved wrote:

KamikazeCanuck wrote:There does exist something called a hybrid. Its in between an astartes and a normal human. They were very common pre-heresy. Most of the primarch's personal armies were converted into hybrids when they were reunited with their space marine legions.

The Dark Angel's very own Luther is a prime example.

And Cypher too, I believe.

Also, in regard to the "recruitment thread", I believe that the Raven Guard take their recruits from the hardiest miners on Deliverance. Then, they have to wait for a pure gene-seed from Terra (since Corax tainted theirs), which is what takes the Raven Guard so long to replenish its ranks.

Cypher is just a freakazoid.

I haven't read anything about him receiving any type of implants or anything.

The Cypher is and always will be the Dark Angels dirty little secret.

I'm sorry. If it's written by a Black Library approved author it IS canon and therefore fact.

Just because you don't like an author doesn't mean you can dismiss everything in it.

And the Dark Angels' dirty little secret is they have Luther AND El'Johnson in the Rock.
Oh and also the small fact that El'Johnson didn't exactly rush to the Emperor's side at the Siege of Terra.....

Cypher is a small secret compared to that. And personally I think he's travelling to Terra to reforge the Sword of El'Johnson.
Any similarities to the reforging of Narsil into Anduril are entirely planned.

If all BL is cannon then I want barbed stranglers that can kill a squad of terminators in a single shot, spore mines that can fight in close combat and multilazors for everyone!


I'm sorry but bearing in mind that GW don't employ an editor to even notice the author's mistakes, let alone correct them, to say that all BL material is canon is ridiculous.

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puma713 wrote:Also, in regard to the "recruitment thread", I believe that the Raven Guard take their recruits from the hardiest miners on Deliverance.

That's what my homebrew chapter does - I thought I was being original but I guess I was beaten to it.

Ok I'll say this. DAWN OF WAR was an ok book. Dawn of War: Ascension wasn't too bad.
The last one was yes a little bit crap.

But as far as the Blood Trials go that I accept as Canon.

Corennus wrote:I'm sorry. If it's written by a Black Library approved author it IS canon and therefore fact.

Just because you don't like an author doesn't mean you can dismiss everything in it.

Well, I agree to an extent. For example; as much as we all hate Goto for his atrocities, we don't get to decide if what he 'writes' is canon or not, GW does.

However, GW have stated that canonity doesn't not make something factually true. Every codex, BL book, WD article, anything with a GW logo, is canon. And also possibly a legend, propaganda, misinformation, or so heavily biased that it barely resembles the truth. That's why you end up with elements of 40k that blatantly contradict one another, such as Damnation Crusade's adult inductees - it's canon, but that doesn't make it true. The same can be said for all the fluff stating that inductees have to be children.

Pick whichever canon interpretation fits your campaign/army idea. That's really the only point of 40ks fluff at the end of the day - a starting point to base cool armies/campaigns off of.

Here's a quote from White Dwarf 302 on the matter;

The back story presents questions, enigmas, problems, and conflicts. Gamers explore and solve these issues by playing games and developing armies. In short, the background provides the beginning, but the players provide the end.
What is Cypher up to? Well, he's up to whatever you need him to be up to for your games and campaigns. What does the cult mechanicus have to do with the dragon? Whatever you want that relationship to be.
The background should be like Schrodinger's Cat-Nothing is defined until the players look into the box by playing games and determining the outcome for themselves. Backgrounds should be full of possibilities to be exploited and expanded by players, not answers that limit the potential of the game and its setting.

Exactly. That's why they left the 2nd and 11th Legions blank so gamers could make their own interpretations of them (cough Emperor's Knights cough).

Cheese Elemental wrote:Well, I know that the Black Templars (according to Damnation Crusade) take young men from feral worlds and put them in arenas.

In a DA's book they do something very similar to this

"Descent of Angels" by any chance?

All 1000 chapters have different recruitment methods! The point is you must undergo the process at 14 ideally. 15 is pushing it.
After that you can only be a hybrid.
I'm not sure the Imperium even has that technology anymore. They certainly don't mention it much anymore.

They probobly can. The SW's just show up at battles and take away worriors.

On the planet the Red Scorpions recruit from, on the first night of their lives infants are placed on a stone altar and left until dawn. If they die they are too weak to join the tribe. If they survive they are strong enough to be raised. Occasionally a male child will vanish and it is said they are pure enough to be taken as a tribute to the gods, and some glimpse the messengers and warriors of the gods, huge man shaped constructions of incredible strength.

What actually happens is their is a marine, can't recall if it is an apothecary, a chaplain or another specialist, who selects the healthiest and genetically compatible and takes them back to the monastery where they are raised and trained, then the best youths are inducted; the rest become serfs or servitors.

Source is one of the Imperial Armour books... um, whichever one was the one with the tyrannids I think.

That's cool. I always wanted to know more about the Red scorpions because they are a Forge World Chapter and Forge World makes cool stuff.

Isn't it strange though that Space Marines always need to use a feral world as their recruiting ground. They can't trust using an advanced imperial culture.

Still, better than being a recruit for the Grey Knights.

Hauled off your birthworld by a Black Ship cause of your psyker ability. Locked in a cage for months on end for a journey to Terra where you may end up being food for the Golden Throne.
When you reach Terra you find yourself hauled away and seperated from the others around you and drugged.
You wake up to find yourself in another cell where huge giants interrogate you and flay your mind and open body open.

Only after months of torture and interrogation do you learn you've been accepted to become one of the most secret parts of the Imperium. A Grey Knight.

But the Space Marines don't always use feral worlds as recruiting ground. They also use Hive Worlds, where gang wars and killing make for already weapon-familiar kids, who know their way around a pistol or a rifle

But what i'm saying is Space Marines take the dregs of society, or those who know nothing of Imperial culture.

They don't take boys born into rich houses, or from paradise worlds.

Most of the chapters have traditional recruiting areas and planets. Usually feral worlds or places connected to where the chapters primarch came from. The most promising of each generation usually end up doing a set of tasks to test their mental and physical endurance. Some chapters do also host fights to the death. It depends on the chapter really. Or some times individuals that stand out in their achievements get approached by marines if they are impressed enough.

@Corennus: Yes, that's true. I was just saying that they don't only use feral worlds as recruiting ground. Apart from that, you're totally right.

@Lexx: Right as well. Although, as to the matter of individuals that stand out in their achievements, i'm curious if individuals past the age where their bodies would accept implants would be included into a Chapter. There were cases (quite common even) during the Heresy where these people would be taken in the Legions and given all the training and stuff an Astartes would take, minus the implants (Luther of the DA for instance). I'm wondering if this still happens now

Corennus wrote:But what i'm saying is Space Marines take the dregs of society, or those who know nothing of Imperial culture.

They don't take boys born into rich houses, or from paradise worlds.

Ultramarines do. Its a big deal in Ultramar if you can point to your family tree and say "look, my Uncle's a Space Marine!"

Generally because marines are purely combat oriented, and the 'dregs' are those that have proven skilled and ruthless enough to survive. The weak have already been culled. The death rate of recruits is high enough, they don't need to increase that by picking from those that have grown up privileged and may think that being turned into a killing machine and flung into the worst battles for the next few centuries isn't as much fun as getting waited on hand and foot and in a position of personal power.

aka_tizz wrote:@Corennus: Yes, that's true. I was just saying that they don't only use feral worlds as recruiting ground. Apart from that, you're totally right.

@Lexx: Right as well. Although, as to the matter of individuals that stand out in their achievements, i'm curious if individuals past the age where their bodies would accept implants would be included into a Chapter. There were cases (quite common even) during the Heresy where these people would be taken in the Legions and given all the training and stuff an Astartes would take, minus the implants (Luther of the DA for instance). I'm wondering if this still happens now

I think that practice is pretty rare if not dead now in the chapters ( I take that from not having read of it at all in any space marine books based in recent imperial history. Stop me if Im wrong. ). It was a time when the Legions were a new phenomenon. Luthor was afforded that as a right of honor due to his services to the Imperium and his Legion. For current space marine chapters the allowance of such a thing seems prevented due to how organized chapters recruitment is. Maybe possible in some of the more unorthodox chapters? Maybe they dont take combat roles if the practice does happen. Like being afforded the privilege of living at the chapter monastery fortress/something like that. I do wonder what the codex astartes would have to say on the matter.