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I know it gets taken from the marine and is then used to grow the various organs required for new marines.

How many sets of organs can be grown from a single progenoid gland (that is, how much gene-seed is in each gland)? It must be two or more sets (19 organs each) as one would not be enough to provide enough material to replace chapter losses.

If gene-seed is only taken out after it is matured, how long does this take?

Do older marines still have gene-seed as there are two progenoid glands, are both removed upon maturity or is one left in the marine? That is what the fluff implies, why leave one behind?

It is possible that a marine can grow a new progenoid gland after one has been removed?

The Administratum keeps banks of gene-seed for testing and for using to create new chapters so there must be enough surplus gene-seed produced by a chapter to do this and still have enough to provide new recruits with.

Well.... when a man and a woman REALLY like each other....

The man has to get a second job to pay for all her "needs", yeah I know, but what about astartes?

cadbren wrote:How many sets of organs can be grown from a single progenoid gland (that is, how much gene-seed is in each gland)? It must be two or more sets (19 organs each) as one would not be enough to provide enough material to replace chapter losses.

AFAIK The organs are grown separately from the geneseed, the geneseed just acts as the genetic catalyst that allows the organs to function with the recipients body.

cadbren wrote:If gene-seed is only taken out after it is matured, how long does this take?

It takes 5 years for the gland in the neck to mature, and 10 for the gland in the chest.

cadbren wrote:Do older marines still have gene-seed as there are two progenoid glands, are both removed upon maturity or is one left in the marine? That is what the fluff implies, why leave one behind?

The glands are only removed upon the death of the marine. Without the geneseed the other organs cannot properly function within the marines body.

cadbren wrote:It is possible that a marine can grow a new progenoid gland after one has been removed?

No. hence why the glands are so important and why Apothecaries go through hell and high water to retrieve them from downed battle-brothers.

cadbren wrote:The Administratum keeps banks of gene-seed for testing and for using to create new chapters so there must be enough surplus gene-seed produced by a chapter to do this and still have enough to provide new recruits with.

here is an excerpt from the 40k wiki "In the event of a Chapter suffering disastrous losses of its gene-seed, it may become necessary for the Apothecaries of the Chapter to use test-slaves to breed enough new gene-seed to bring the Chapter rapidly back up to full strength. These test-slaves are always human males, usually the condemned Imperial criminals that would otherwise be turned into Servitors. They are kept inside an artificial environment within the Chapter's fortress-monastery alive and partly conscious, but unable to leave their transparent Plasteel gestation chamber for the full 5-10 year maturation process. Needless to say, this solution is far from ideal, and is regarded as a last option to keep a Chapter alive. This method is also used by the Adeptus Mechanicus to create the large amount of gene-seed necessary for the Founding of a new Chapter since no existing Chapter could spare 1,000 copies of its gene-seed. However, as each Chapter is required to tithe 5% of its gene-seed away to Mars to be checked for purity, it is possible that the Imperium could build up a collection of gene-seed, and Found new Chapters that way en masse."

@Brother Heinrich: The gene-seed is not necessary for the organs to work. After the implantation process the gene-seed's only purpose is to collect genetic material from the other organs that can then be used to grow new ones.

The general consensus is that while the first one is removed when it reaches maturity, the other is kept in the marine until death. The reason for this is that the placement of the organ makes it dangerous to remove.

Interesting note, Blood Angels do not grow the organs separately. The gene-seed is implanted alone, they drink some of Sanguinius' blood, and the rest of the organs grow inside their bodies. Also, Mephiston's fluff indicates that his gene-seed "reawakened" when he overcame the Black Rage, further changing his body. That is the fluff explanation for his ridiculous abilities.

Yep. The set in the chest is removed once it matures. The one in the neck stays until death.

Each Marine = 2 future Marines.

I remember in the Legion of the Damned Novel....

its basically this,


Each Marine yields 2 Progenoid glands.

Each Gland provides the material to grow 2 sets of Marine implants(artificially grown in the Churiguary) including 2 new progenoids each for the new Marines.


A marine aspirant is implanted with his 2 progenoids and his organ set. One takes 5 years to mature, the other takes 10.

Sources differ, but it seems possable to remove the Progenoids upon maturity without harming the Marine. Immature progenoids can also be harvested upon death, presumably they are grown out artificially if this happens. Obviously progenoids are often left in the marine beyond maturity from the prelevance of Geneseed being removed from marines whose progenoids would have matured long ago.

The Progenoids may serve a function besides the meare continuation of the chapter. I suspect they may allow the Marine to heal his wounds quicker(and they are stated to be the main driving force behind the genetic alteration of the entire process, and also make sure the organs graft properly) by being some sort of Stem-cell repository that allows for better healing. This may explain why they are left in beyond maturation. One may be harvested and the other left till death.

Tiger9gamer wrote:I remember in the Legion of the Damned Novel....

Spoiler:

That the Excoriators (cant remember if name is correct) took out their gene seed before a massive invasion of Khorn followers attacked a planet they where defending. Does that mean they can just take it out whenever?

Take out what whenever, the seed from the marines? or the seed from their vaults?

Seed from the marines.

They can take it out of their bodies whenever its mature(or death occurs), or at least it appears to be that way.

Tiger9gamer wrote:Seed from the marines.

They have massive vaults filled with the stuff, it's not every geneseed from fallen marines becomes a new marine immediately, they stock pile the seed incase they need more marines or companies are wiped out. That and they always have to send back that tithe back to mars right?

It's not like they went around to every marine and gathered it, more like, they opened the vaults and transported them away

That too, marines do stockpile geneseed in the event the chapter suffers catastrophic casualities and/or is unable to retrieve the geneseed of their fallen brothers for some reason.

gregor_xenos wrote:Well.... when a man and a woman REALLY like each other....

Fixed it.

Grey Templar wrote:its basically this,


Each Marine yields 2 Progenoid glands.

Each Gland provides the material to grow 2 sets of Marine implants(artificially grown in the Churiguary) including 2 new progenoids each for the new Marines.


A marine aspirant is implanted with his 2 progenoids and his organ set. One takes 5 years to mature, the other takes 10.

Incorrect, each mature progeniod gland is used to develop a single set of organs needed to create a marine (this includes the 2 immature progenoid glands) due to this a single marine can create two successors

BluntmanDC wrote:

Grey Templar wrote:its basically this,


Each Marine yields 2 Progenoid glands.

Each Gland provides the material to grow 2 sets of Marine implants(artificially grown in the Churiguary) including 2 new progenoids each for the new Marines.


A marine aspirant is implanted with his 2 progenoids and his organ set. One takes 5 years to mature, the other takes 10.

Incorrect, each mature progeniod gland is used to develop a single set of organs needed to create a marine (this includes the 2 immature progenoid glands) due to this a single marine can create two successors

Isn't that what he said?

Yes, but the way he said it was confusing and awkward.

blazinpsycho&typhooni wrote:

BluntmanDC wrote:

Grey Templar wrote:its basically this,


Each Marine yields 2 Progenoid glands.

Each Gland provides the material to grow 2 sets of Marine implants(artificially grown in the Churiguary) including 2 new progenoids each for the new Marines.


A marine aspirant is implanted with his 2 progenoids and his organ set. One takes 5 years to mature, the other takes 10.

Incorrect, each mature progeniod gland is used to develop a single set of organs needed to create a marine (this includes the 2 immature progenoid glands) due to this a single marine can create two successors

Isn't that what he said?

No he said "each gland provides the material to grow 2 sets of marine implants" which is incorrect. One mature gland is used to make 1 set of organs.