Space Marines were always considered the Special Forces of the Imperium, the scalpel of the imperial war machine, the point of the imperial spear. This was undertaken almost single-handedly by the Primarch of the Ultramarines Legion, Roboute Guilliman, who with his characteristic speed and efficiency codified the structure of the Imperial Guard, the Imperial Navy, and the Space Marines. You can help Lexicanum by fixing it. Each Space Marine cult is unique and autonomous, ministered by an inner priesthood of warriors known as Chaplains. Each Legion was divided into several autonomous Chapters, which remain the primary unit of the Space Marines to the current day. Like clay I shall mould them and in the furnace of war forge them. When its members and vehicles fight, they do so alongside those of the company. The third Reserve Company has 10 10-man Assault Squads. Every Space Marine belongs to the Chapter's cult, and accordingly, every Marine of a Chapter is a spiritual brother as well as a brother-at-arms. The potential recruit is first subjected to testing, including tissue compatibility tests and psychological screening. The Adeptus Terra has never decreed it necessary to enforce the Codex absolutely. The Legions took part in the Great Crusade, during which the lost Primarchs were rediscovered and given command of their respective Legion. In the closing days of the 41st Millennium the Imperium was able to field a new generation of Space Marine thanks to the efforts of Roboute Guilliman and Belisarius Cawl. Others were an eclectic mix based on the varied requirements of different campaigns and the will of their Primarch Horus. are held by the company command, which is not an independent fighting unit. [14b], In addition to their standard ranks, Space Marine Chapters also maintain a variety of specialist roles.[14a]. There are roughly a thousand Chapters, each led by a Space Marine with the rank of Chapter Master. The configuration of squad types within a company varied as widely as its strength. The Adeptus Astartes (commonly known as Space Marines, and colloquially as Angels of Death) are one of the most elite and feared fighting forces in the Imperium of Man. There are far too few Space Marines to form the Imperium's main military forces; instead they operate as highly mobile strike forces. The distinctive Power Armour is worn by all Marines in battle. In addition to these three squad types, veterans can be formed into Veteran or Terminator Squads, while the initiate Marines are formed into Scout squads. The original Astartes gene-seed was unstable and caused its subjects to degrade rapidly, but once it was stabilized by samples provided by newly rediscovered Primarchs, long-term stability was achieved.[13]. Through selection, training, and conditioning, Marines are physically, mentally, and spiritually superior to any other Imperial soldier. Think Force Recon, or Green Berets, or SAR, or SEALs. The Space Marine Legions (also known as the Legiones Astartes) were the original unit formations of the Space Marines created during the First Founding by the Emperor of Mankind on Terra in the late 30th Millennium. A Company is one of the standard organisational units within a Space Marine Chapter, normally comprised of 100 Astartes led by an officer with the rank of Captain. Whole gangs of hive scum are sometimes hunted down and captured for recruitment. The United States Marine Corps is organized within the Department of the Navy, which is led by the Secretary of the Navy. Successive foundings over the millennia have created new Chapters. Terminator squads are drawn from the best and most experienced warriors of the entire Chapter. The first 2 Reserve Companies contain 10 10-man Tactical Squads. [17], Recruits are chosen from the best warriors among humanity. The squad types are equipped and trained to fulfill a specific battlefield role, each of the three types designed to complement each other on the battlefield to make a far more effective whole. They will have tactics, strategies and machines such that no foe can best them in battle. The veterans wear the uniquely powerful Terminator Armour. The size of each Legion was fluid, with the numbers of combat-ready Astartes dependent on the number of new recruits, the inevitable battle-losses, the availability of potential recruits, and the administrative skills of the Primarch and his officers. These titles are used by many Chapters, notably the Ultramarines[1b]. This article purports to rely on sources which are not cited in the body of the text.For help on citation see the citation guidelines. There are around a thousand Chapters, each comprising a thousand Space Marines. Unlike the Astra Militarum Space Marines don't use the camouflaged uniform because Adeptus Astartes doctrine does not follow the tactics of concealment in battles. Each company usually includes officers (Captains, Chaplains, Apothecaries, and standard bearers), as well as Dreadnoughts, Rhinos, Attack Bikes, Land Speeders, and Land Raiders. A precise, pre-set formation was never truly achieved or maintained. The first High Lords of Terra established the structure by which the Adeptus Terra operated, and described the feudal responsibilities and duties of the planetary lords. During the Great Crusade in the late 30th Millennium, the Space Marines were originally organised into 20 Legions each of which was further divided into companies. Most often, the practical reality of their disposition would vary still more as terminology used within different Legions for equivalent ranks and specialisations bore the mark of the Legion's character rather than the desires of the Imperium's central administrators for a common nomenclature. ... and obliterate their command structure. The Codex Astartes decreed that Space Marines would be created and trained over a controlled period of time. [17], In the same time Chapter's vehicles may be painted in different colors until the large bands of areas painted in the Chapter colors. Many Chapters are organised largely according to the Codex, but are further shaped by their homeworld and the personality of their Primarch. https://warhammer40k.fandom.com/wiki/Company_(Space_Marine)?oldid=291682. One of the most important accomplishments was the reorganisation of the Imperium's fighting forces. Those that do pass are termed "neophytes", and the process continues with the surgery, indoctrination, conditioning, and training that will make them Marines. Of all the Codex Chapters, the most famous is the Ultramarines, the Chapter of Roboute Guilliman himself. They are my Space Marines and they shall know no fear.--The Emperor of Mankind. This page was last edited on 18 September 2020, at 07:38. The Legions were massive armies, and the size of each could vary tremendously. The practices of Space Marine cults, rumored to be barbaric and bloody, serve to make Space Marines all the more feared by the mass of humanity. Horus seems to have preferred to avoid this extra layer of fixed organisation, which eroded over time in the XVI Legion and was largely academic by the time of their transition to become the Sons of Horus. These warrior cults emphasise honour, comradeship, and strength. At the outset of the Great Crusade, circa 798.M30, many of these early Legions were organised along the so-called "Terran Pattern" of organisation as formulated by the Imperial Officio Militaris.