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Given the state of admech. The fact its becoming so rare and hard to manufacture. Salvaging suits and making do with whatever they can get. Maybe the ad mech might look back?

Mk3 was stop gap for same roll, not ideal but better the normal.
It would not take much effort for ad mech to reinforce thr frontal plating of a existing mark and in effect make a new generation of mk3 armour.
Also given all this gear not STC patterns. Minor improvement and innovation is allowed. Ie mk8.

So what might end up with a up armoured mk7 to better adapt it to void and urban combat.
Reinforced armour, same issue taxing servos likely but it could be a way of less well off chapters in armour terms getting boarding gear.

I got the feeling that the mk3 just wasnt all that useful. It might have been slightly better for certain conditions, but those conditions were enough to justify it's construction, storage and maintenance.

 Exergy wrote:
I got the feeling that the mk3 just wasnt all that useful. It might have been slightly better for certain conditions, but those conditions were enough to justify it's construction, storage and maintenance.

The Mk3 was good for Boarding and dense, narrow environments. It's kind of meh in all other scenerios or that's just what FFG wants you to believe.

I don't think there is much evidance that the Admech has trouble producing MK7 power armor in sufficant numbers to meet demand.

BrianDavion wrote:
I don't think there is much evidance that the Admech has trouble producing MK7 power armor in sufficant numbers to meet demand.

What I meant was mk6,7 even a small amount of 8 and 4 can be produced.
Terminator is getting harder, rarer and short of thr first founding, well eqiped ones with high ranking friends. Its not that easy to get.

A full first company worth is downright rare.
Lesser newer chapters could be lucky to have 10-20 suits.

What I am saying is at some point new mk3 based on a modern pattern to fill that capability gap. Ie boarding and urban combat.
Sure not the best answer but better than standard power armour. Maybe the atop gap will have to return given the crisis that seems to be gathering on impirims borders.

What if centurion armour is the contemporary solution to the mk 3 problem?

Edit: then again, I don't see such huge suits being great for corridors barely wide enough or a power armoured marine.

Plus it makes terminator armour look agile.

Its sure got protection by the ton.
But its not the most mobile of armour for boarding a space hulk where you may find areas are broken up or such.

Great firepower though. I wish termies had there firepower!

 Tactical_Spam wrote:

 Exergy wrote:
I got the feeling that the mk3 just wasnt all that useful. It might have been slightly better for certain conditions, but those conditions were enough to justify it's construction, storage and maintenance.

The Mk3 was good for Boarding and dense, narrow environments. It's kind of meh in all other scenerios or that's just what FFG wants you to believe.

Don't blame FFG it is normal GW lore and the extra plating made the power pack work overtime, making it hot in the site.
Also MK2 maintenance was difficult, so they stopped producing that also stopped MK3

The MK3 was designed for corridor and cityfights where Marines, numbering in the 100,000s, were able to charge headfirst at a gunline because they had the numbers. All the things either TDA do better or Marines no longer do.


I do recall reading that while all PA is pretty much the same, the later Mks do provide better protection. For example, the MK7 doesn't have the exposed cabling and overheating of the MK2/3/5 for example, and the MK8 has heavier limb protection and the collar. I would say, from a fluff perspective, that the MK8 already fills the roll a MK7 "Iron" equivilent would, an uparmoured version of the previous Mark, but doesn't have any of the drawbacks except for the non-compatible helmet design. If a squad was specifically being designated to go into a situation where a MK3 equivilent would be more useful, such as a boarding action, chances are those Marines would be Veterans and so either not require the slightly hardier armour (having the intelligence and skill to shoot/chop the enemy before it became an issue) or just wear Terminator plate. IIRC, Terminators are the preferred option in all such situations, barring of course, where the Marines wouldn't be threatened at all (such as a rogue Navy ship where the heaviest guns they'll face are Autoguns and shotguns)

 Jehan-reznor wrote:

Don't blame FFG it is normal GW lore and the extra plating made the power pack work overtime, making it hot in the site.

That was Mk5, Mk3 was just cumbersome and unwealdy with uneven protection.

Wasn't the Mk3 used for close quarters and corridor fights with little cover such as inside starships or during their conception (they-who-shall-not-be-named) tunnels with increased armor on the front for increased survivability.

Yeah thr race we shall not name where first makers or designers.

But they got retconned.

They've never been retconned, they may or may not have been eaten (Andy Hoare said in an FB group last year that GW has never *seriously* said that, it's only ever been convention banter) but never actually been removed entirely from the setting.

 Gashrog wrote:

 Jehan-reznor wrote:

Don't blame FFG it is normal GW lore and the extra plating made the power pack work overtime, making it hot in the site.

That was Mk5, Mk3 was just cumbersome and unwealdy with uneven protection.

It has more frontal protection than the Mark II Armour, but the weight of the rear armour was lessened to compensate

It was designed for situations where extra armour in front was more crucial than rear. So if you were to shoot mk3 armour from rear you had better chance to kill the target.

Not superior armour but variant for specific need. Like boarding actions. When you have walls protecting you from sides and enemy cannot get behind you easily rear armour is of secondary concern.

I dont think it states anywhere that the admech are having problems making the armor.

 Gashrog wrote:

 Jehan-reznor wrote:

Don't blame FFG it is normal GW lore and the extra plating made the power pack work overtime, making it hot in the site.

That was Mk5, Mk3 was just cumbersome and unwealdy with uneven protection.

To clarify I was referring to the overheating aspect not the frontal plating:
"A distinguishing feature of the Mark 5 armour were the heavily studded armour plates. This was an attempt to reinforce the Mark 4 pattern plates when inferior materials were used due to lack of proper supplies. An extra skin plate was fitted around the armour using molecular bonding studs. The extra weight was considerable, especially if a further chest plate had been added, leading to increased pressure for energy on the power pack. As a result the wearer either had to turn up the power output an suffer intolerable heat build-up, or leave the power supply as it was and accept reduced power levels." ~ WD129/RT Compilation/Index Astartes: Apocrypha

I'm aware of no canon source for Mk2/3 overheating. Mk3 shifted the armour's mass from the rear to the front to minimize any overall the weight increase rather than being all-encompassing like Mk5.

Said article also stated "No Space Marine forces were ever equipped solely with this mark although many modern Chapters still use Mark 3 for boarding actions and tunnel fighting." which I've always taken to mean it's still being produced, otherwise 'modern' chapters would have no access to it.

 Gashrog wrote:
They've never been retconned, they may or may not have been eaten (Andy Hoare said in an FB group last year that GW has never *seriously* said that, it's only ever been convention banter) but never actually been removed entirely from the setting.

Confirmed not removed from the setting. They have been mentioned in the BRB fluff section for the previous 2 editions...