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They sign up on here: http://travel.saga.co.uk

They then book a cruise around the eye of terror / Caribbean

Dante is like 1100 years old and still kicking ass. Most marines die in combat.

I always figured that marines were functionally "immortal until killed" and most of them just bite it before reaching that age.

There is no retirement for the Angels of Death.

I read somewhere that Dante is slowing down and knows it so 1000 years as a SM seem to be the logical limit. I would fancy a guess that they would have enough glories should old age take them to be interred inside a Dreadnaught, but that's just me guessing since I have yet to hear a history about an ancient Astartes being taken by age alone.

 j31c3n wrote:
Dante is like 1100 years old and still kicking ass.

No, he's been chapter master for 1100 years.

Which means he's well over a thousand years cause it takes time to become chapter master.

 Grey Templar wrote:

 j31c3n wrote:
Dante is like 1100 years old and still kicking ass.

No, he's been chapter master for 1100 years.

Which means he's well over a thousand years cause it takes time to become chapter master.

Yes and no. Some Chapter Masters rise to that rank rather quickly. Look at people like Belial, they rose to their current standing pretty fast through bravery or feats.

To be Chapter Master is something very special; it is to have authority over your chapter that is supreme. Not even an Inquisitor has greater command over your Space Marines than you do. When promoting a Marine to Chapter Master, you must be utterly certain that he is reliable and proven, and no matter how great a prodigy you are, such trust must still be earned with time.

 Ashiraya wrote:
To be Chapter Master is something very special; it is to have authority over your chapter that is supreme. Not even an Inquisitor has greater command over your Space Marines than you do. When promoting a Marine to Chapter Master, you must be utterly certain that he is reliable and proven, and no matter how great a prodigy you are, such trust must still be earned with time.

Dante is a special case though. After a particularly grueling battle he was literally the only captain left standing for the Blood Angels, and was therefore the only option for the next chapter master. He was a captain at the time so he may still have been a few centuries old already, but we just don't know.

 Orblivion wrote:

 Ashiraya wrote:
To be Chapter Master is something very special; it is to have authority over your chapter that is supreme. Not even an Inquisitor has greater command over your Space Marines than you do. When promoting a Marine to Chapter Master, you must be utterly certain that he is reliable and proven, and no matter how great a prodigy you are, such trust must still be earned with time.

Dante is a special case though. After a particularly grueling battle he was literally the only captain left standing for the Blood Angels, and was therefore the only option for the next chapter master. He was a captain at the time so he may still have been a few centuries old already, but we just don't know.

It is true that when only one Captain is left, he is the only option.

It's also exceedingly rare as you say. Nothing to add here.

Captain is already a pretty trusted rank, 100 marines, valuable equipment, tactical control of one company.
Also in quite a few books ground chomand of operations.

 Ashiraya wrote:

 Orblivion wrote:

 Ashiraya wrote:
To be Chapter Master is something very special; it is to have authority over your chapter that is supreme. Not even an Inquisitor has greater command over your Space Marines than you do. When promoting a Marine to Chapter Master, you must be utterly certain that he is reliable and proven, and no matter how great a prodigy you are, such trust must still be earned with time.

Dante is a special case though. After a particularly grueling battle he was literally the only captain left standing for the Blood Angels, and was therefore the only option for the next chapter master. He was a captain at the time so he may still have been a few centuries old already, but we just don't know.

It is true that when only one Captain is left, he is the only option.

It's also exceedingly rare as you say. Nothing to add here.

Not really, there's plenty of cases where Captains or higher ups die and the one below is promoted.

Besides, look at history. There's cases there of people advancing through the ranks faster than expected

Its the way Space Marines advance in ranks. Actually gets a bit chilly thinking how many of them really being ambitious. And we all know what ambition is...

 Beaviz81 wrote:
I read somewhere

[citation needed]

 j31c3n wrote:

 Beaviz81 wrote:
I read somewhere

[citation needed]

It's here: "Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier. Only one thing prevents Dante succumbing to ennui. Recorded in the Scrolls of Sanguinius are the Primarchs visions of a great battle to overshadow all others, where one golden warrior will stand between his Emperor and the darkness. For many generations of the Blood Angels, these prophecies have been read as Sanguinius's foreknowledge of his own fate, yet through some instinct, perhaps a lingering trace of his Primarch's fabled far-seeing eye, Dante believes otherwise. One day, perhaps one day soon, the defence of the Emperor will rest in Dante's hands, and he aims to fulfill this final duty." Pg 53 in BA 5 edition.

That has nothing to do with him slowing down, it means he is growing weary of the neverending struggle.

"Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier..."

Can be mentally, but can be physical as well. I actually favors both there

 Beaviz81 wrote:
"Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier..."

Can be mentally, but can be physical as well. I actually favors both there

Wat

Do you even read, like at all? That's clearly not meant to be literal, it's referring to him growing mentally burdened by his job. There's nothing in that sentence to imply an actual literal definition either.

 Wyzilla wrote:

 Beaviz81 wrote:
"Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier..."

Can be mentally, but can be physical as well. I actually favors both there

Wat

Do you even read, like at all? That's clearly not meant to be literal, it's referring to him growing mentally burdened by his job. There's nothing in that sentence to imply an actual literal definition either.

You are suddenly my boss or something and can dictate how I read words? And that seems to be your POV. I say nay, you cannot dictate how I think and feel.

 Beaviz81 wrote:

 Wyzilla wrote:

 Beaviz81 wrote:
"Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier..."

Can be mentally, but can be physical as well. I actually favors both there

Wat

Do you even read, like at all? That's clearly not meant to be literal, it's referring to him growing mentally burdened by his job. There's nothing in that sentence to imply an actual literal definition either.

You are suddenly my boss or something and can dictate how I read words? And that seems to be your POV. I say nay, you cannot dictate how I think and feel.

And there's this literary device known as metaphor. You might have heard of it.

 Wyzilla wrote:

 Beaviz81 wrote:

 Wyzilla wrote:

 Beaviz81 wrote:
"Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier..."

Can be mentally, but can be physical as well. I actually favors both there

Wat

Do you even read, like at all? That's clearly not meant to be literal, it's referring to him growing mentally burdened by his job. There's nothing in that sentence to imply an actual literal definition either.

You are suddenly my boss or something and can dictate how I read words? And that seems to be your POV. I say nay, you cannot dictate how I think and feel.

And there's this literary device known as metaphor. You might have heard of it.

I didn't spot it there, so I'd rather stick by my guns thank you very much.

Try coming up with up with something else then, something that can support your claim instead of railing off that I don't read stuff in your way.

Computron wrote:

 Reality-Torrent wrote:
They do retire actually. In the book The Emperor's Gift they clearly state that when a Grey Knight retires he may tend to the graves of dead Grey Knights and prepare the burials.

What a pile of dren. Who wrote that?

Aaron Dembski-Bowden, which surprised me. Grey Knight fluff (and Sister of Battle) rape is usually the domain of a certain other.

 Beaviz81 wrote:
Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier...

 Wyzilla wrote:
*Snip*

That's a quote from Lexicanum. Where is that said in the fluff?

Though, I very much doubt that's a metaphor.

It's referenced 5th edition BA Codex, someone please check that quote.

 ChazSexington wrote:

 Beaviz81 wrote:
Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier...

 Wyzilla wrote:
*Snip*

That's a quote from Lexicanum. Where is that said in the fluff?

Though, I very much doubt that's a metaphor.

It's referenced 5th edition BA Codex, someone please check that quote.

Page 53. Already mentioned as I tend to take the whole passage in for better or worse, but too many people are into just stripping the lines to the bare minimum and make a rather fanatic argument from there which instantly make me believe they are hiding something, and with people I don't trust I want the whole back-story and me reading it before I have checked it out or someone I know that is at least competent when it comes to fluff . In general I'm against people telling people how to think, but then again there were people here that even thought it would be a bright idea to build anything under Perturbo

 ChazSexington wrote:
Aaron Dembski-Bowden, which surprised me. Grey Knight fluff (and Sister of Battle) rape is usually the domain of a certain other.

Having your main source of information massively change halfway through writing it doesn't exactly help.

 Ashiraya wrote:

 Orblivion wrote:

 Ashiraya wrote:
To be Chapter Master is something very special; it is to have authority over your chapter that is supreme. Not even an Inquisitor has greater command over your Space Marines than you do. When promoting a Marine to Chapter Master, you must be utterly certain that he is reliable and proven, and no matter how great a prodigy you are, such trust must still be earned with time.

Dante is a special case though. After a particularly grueling battle he was literally the only captain left standing for the Blood Angels, and was therefore the only option for the next chapter master. He was a captain at the time so he may still have been a few centuries old already, but we just don't know.

It is true that when only one Captain is left, he is the only option.

It's also exceedingly rare as you say. Nothing to add here.

He was also 8th company captain at the time. Not exactly the most prestigious of positions.

BTW, ADB also wrote the Dante: Warlords of Dark Millennium short where this information comes from.

 Beaviz81 wrote:

 ChazSexington wrote:

 Beaviz81 wrote:
Yet for all of his success, or perhaps because of it, Dante has grown weary of his burdens. He has lived far longer than he should, and the burden of centuries grows even weightier...

 Wyzilla wrote:
*Snip*

That's a quote from Lexicanum. Where is that said in the fluff?

Though, I very much doubt that's a metaphor.

It's referenced 5th edition BA Codex, someone please check that quote.

Page 53. Already mentioned as I tend to take the whole passage in for better or worse, but too many people are into just stripping the lines to the bare minimum and make a rather fanatic argument from there which instantly make me believe they are hiding something, and with people I don't trust I want the whole back-story and me reading it before I have checked it out or someone I know that is at least competent when it comes to fluff . In general I'm against people telling people how to think, but then again there were people here that even thought it would be a bright idea to build anything under Perturbo

Is that the exact quote? That wouldn't be very good of Lexicanum in that case. It could be they mean he's survived way longer than he should, rather than he's just exceeded the normal SM lifespan, or that the author done goofed. I mean, Fabulous, Kharn, Abaddon etc. are all 10,000 years (give or take), and yes, I know the time flows slower/faster in the Warp, but they still spend large amounts of time outside the Warp.

jareddm wrote:

Having your main source of information massively change halfway through writing it doesn't exactly help..

What happened?

 ChazSexington wrote:

jareddm wrote:

Having your main source of information massively change halfway through writing it doesn't exactly help..

What happened?

The 5th ed Grey Knights codex came out. Not even joking.

jareddm wrote:

 ChazSexington wrote:

jareddm wrote:

Having your main source of information massively change halfway through writing it doesn't exactly help..

What happened?

The 5th ed Grey Knights codex came out. Not even joking.

yup he says it in the author's forward. it necessitated some re-writing.

There is no fluff that establishes "old man space marines" and it would be ridiculous for Big E to incorporate something as banal as old age into the genetic design for the Primarchs. Especially considering most of them are "said to be" still alive. That says to me that the Astartes know they are functionally immortal.

 j31c3n wrote:
There is no fluff that establishes "old man space marines" and it would be ridiculous for Big E to incorporate something as banal as old age into the genetic design for the Primarchs. Especially considering most of them are "said to be" still alive. That says to me that the Astartes know they are functionally immortal.

Cept ol' man Telion with his balding head and grey hair.
Makes you wonder about the Primarchs though, one of the HH books talks about the happy hills retirement home for Primarch folk. Are we really supposed to believe that the Emperor thought it feasible that his sons would go from leading galaxy conquering armies and running their own petty empires for a spot of gardening and afternoon tea? While still physically in their prime! I prefer to think the writers are just having a laugh, though drugs may not be out of the question.

almost all space marines are bald and/or have old man hair, that means nothing

the emperor likely planned to exterminate the marines once they were no longer useful, just like the thunder warriors

Warhammer 40,000, 7e Rulebook wrote:Although long-lived, the Primarchs were not immortal

Animus wrote:

Warhammer 40,000, 7e Rulebook wrote:Although long-lived, the Primarchs were not immortal

does not specify definition of immortal

perhaps it meant "literally unkillable"