The inevitable Primaris Dante

[Captain Antargo]

With a Primaris update I would would also like a plastic model of Dante, and a Primaris Death Company,

this is very doubtful but a Primaris Terminator squad or something like it!

[Captain Antargo]

Just realised, if Dante was going to get Primaris armor it would have to fit his size because primaris are larger than the original, so this doesn't make any sense!?

[Panzer]

Just realised, if Dante was going to get Primaris armor it would have to fit his size because primaris are larger than the original, so this doesn't make any sense!?

When we talk about Primaris Dante we are of course talking about Dante going through the same procedure as Calgar, turning him into a full fledged Primaris himself.

[Ishagu]

I imagine he'll still have a cool, custom suit but not the same armour he used to have.

 

Could be a significant, more bulky re-design. Special Inceptor-like plate with big wings.

[dice4thedicegod]

I hope he doesn’t get gravid.

 

I quite like the look of inceptors , but the bulk seems wrong for Dante. Hopefully they can do an artificier type based off a reiver-ish look or something (something streamlined).

[Ishagu]

I think as he gets older a more armored, heavy look could suit him.

[dice4thedicegod]

Perhaps the axe mortalis could have a nice curve at the top, enabling dual use as a walking stick (when it isn’t being waved at tyrannids , yelling “get off my lawn!”)

[Brother Tyler]

So we all know by now Dante is getting the primaris treatment!

This isn't quite a true statement. Many players might assume that, following GW's progression of Marneus Calgar, that other established characters will follow. Many players, meanwhile, would prefer that at least some of the established legacy Adeptus Astartes characters don't undergo the transformation into Primaris, or attempt the transformation and fail (die). I'm in that camp.

 

Now I'm not saying that I specifically want Dante to remain legacy or die, simply that we don't "know" that Dante will get the Primaris treatment.

 

However, I think that Dante in particular has an out and we'll see a Primaris "Dante" at some point in the future. The Horus Heresy Book Eight: Malevolence provided a new bit of lore that I could see influencing the later Chapters (including the Blood Angels Chapter):

 

The Immortal Ninth

Time and again the pride of the IX^th Legion was to fall on the field of battle, yet the records of their valour make common mention of the same handful of warriors and champions. Some remembrancers and historians have taken this to indicate a long history of redoubtable heroes, even going so far as to compile these records into a number of epic stanzas, forming the separate entries into a single legend. Yet, the true reason for the longevity of certain names within the order of battle for the IX^th Legion is far less heroic.

 

Since its foundation, the IX^th Legion had operated in the most extreme battlefield conditions and necessity had forced upon them a number of practises that might otherwise be seen as monstrous. One among them, fostered by the nature of their design and the conditions under which they fought, was the consumption of fallen captains by their followers in order to preserve their hard-won skills and experience. As a mark of honour as well as practicality, it also became accepted that recruits took the names of those whose skills they absorbed, and lieutenants would assume the names of their captains. Such was the resemblance of each member of the IX^th to their flawless brothers that most outsiders failed to notice this subtle brand of immortality. The most famous example of which being the figure thought to have served as the IX^th Legion's first and only master, other than Sanguinius himself. Known to history as Ishidur Ossuros, this warrior is commonly held to have commanded the IX^th from Unity to the discovery of Ball in late M30, yet a closer examination of the records shows that name died numerous times, only to be replaced by another.

 

Over time and battles past count, this practise became an honoured tradition of the Legion, a visceral ritual that bound the survivors together despite their often disparate origins. Yet as much as it bound those of the IX^th Legion to each other, it forced them away from their brethren among the Imperial Army and other Legions. In the years before Sanguinius' return, no few of the other Primarchs expressed a distaste for the practises of the IX^th Legion, though they could not dispute their success on the battlefield. Such was the legacy of mistrust and barbarism that the IX^th carried with them, one pressed upon them by the brutal necessity of their calling.

Now I'm not suggesting that the above practice of the IX^thLegion explains the longevity of present day Dante (that would be a very interesting discussion, though ). There are 20+ years of official lore describing the exceptional longevity of the successors of the Blood Angels Legion, and in particular Dante. My suggestion is merely that this new lore allows for an interesting potential twist - we might see a Primaris Dante, and that individual might be the same Dante that we've known since the 2nd edition Codex: Angels of Death, or it might be a successor that has assumed his predecessor's identity after the latter died (might have died in battle, might have died of natural causes (not likely), might have died in attempting to transform into a Primaris).

 

While I'm skeptical of any claim that we'll inevitably see character X become a Primaris (we've seen similar discussions crop up in pretty much all of the Adeptus Astartes forums), this new lore from the Horus Heresy books significantly increases the likelihood that we'll see a Primaris "Dante" (in my opinion).

 

I've always been a fan of the muscle armour and deathmasks as the defining visual cue of the Blood Angels (even though not everyone has either). And while I'm not personally a fan of the wings on jump packs, they have also become a staple of the Blood Angels' appearance. I don't really care what you call Primaris "Dante's" armour, but I think that the ensemble should incorporate all three of these elements.

 

And this is a case where I think that the Marneus Calgar example will be followed, with Primaris "Dante" being accompanied by two (?) Primaris Sanguinary Guard.

[dice4thedicegod]

That would be an interesting twist... is the “new Dante” really the same guy. Hopefully we’d be kept guessing.

[Panzer]

I love that bit of fluff but I hope it won't get used for Dante tbh. ^^

 

And yeah I hope he won't get Gravis armour. He was almost the more agile Jump Pack character and not a flying Terminator (eg not bulky and slow).

[Indefragable]

To me, actually being the same dude who's 1500 years old is what makes Dante so interesting. Almost like the Knight at the end of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: he would love for some youngster to prove better than him so he can pass the torch and go join his (1.5 millenia's worth) of dead friends that have gone before him. ...but no one has and so his prowess and longevity are a bit of a curse as much as a blessing.

 

...and that's kind of his re-awakening at the end of Devastation of Baal....he tries to go out in one last glorious charge yet in his hallucination/vision, Sanguinius tells him that staying alive is the harder path to follow and that's why Dante must ever on.

 

...why Dante is probably my favorite character in the whole setting.

[Blindhamster]

 

So we all know by now Dante is getting the primaris treatment!

This isn't quite a true statement. Many players might assume that, following GW's progression of Marneus Calgar, that other established characters will follow. Many players, meanwhile, would prefer that at least some of the established legacy Adeptus Astartes characters don't undergo the transformation into Primaris, or attempt the transformation and fail (die). I'm in that camp.

 

Now I'm not saying that I specifically want Dante to remain legacy or die, simply that we don't "know" that Dante will get the Primaris treatment.

 

However, I think that Dante in particular has an out and we'll see a Primaris "Dante" at some point in the future. The Horus Heresy Book Eight: Malevolence provided a new bit of lore that I could see influencing the later Chapters (including the Blood Angels Chapter):

 

The Immortal Ninth

Time and again the pride of the IX^th Legion was to fall on the field of battle, yet the records of their valour make common mention of the same handful of warriors and champions. Some remembrancers and historians have taken this to indicate a long history of redoubtable heroes, even going so far as to compile these records into a number of epic stanzas, forming the separate entries into a single legend. Yet, the true reason for the longevity of certain names within the order of battle for the IX^th Legion is far less heroic.

 

Since its foundation, the IX^th Legion had operated in the most extreme battlefield conditions and necessity had forced upon them a number of practises that might otherwise be seen as monstrous. One among them, fostered by the nature of their design and the conditions under which they fought, was the consumption of fallen captains by their followers in order to preserve their hard-won skills and experience. As a mark of honour as well as practicality, it also became accepted that recruits took the names of those whose skills they absorbed, and lieutenants would assume the names of their captains. Such was the resemblance of each member of the IX^th to their flawless brothers that most outsiders failed to notice this subtle brand of immortality. The most famous example of which being the figure thought to have served as the IX^th Legion's first and only master, other than Sanguinius himself. Known to history as Ishidur Ossuros, this warrior is commonly held to have commanded the IX^th from Unity to the discovery of Ball in late M30, yet a closer examination of the records shows that name died numerous times, only to be replaced by another.

 

Over time and battles past count, this practise became an honoured tradition of the Legion, a visceral ritual that bound the survivors together despite their often disparate origins. Yet as much as it bound those of the IX^th Legion to each other, it forced them away from their brethren among the Imperial Army and other Legions. In the years before Sanguinius' return, no few of the other Primarchs expressed a distaste for the practises of the IX^th Legion, though they could not dispute their success on the battlefield. Such was the legacy of mistrust and barbarism that the IX^th carried with them, one pressed upon them by the brutal necessity of their calling.

Now I'm not suggesting that the above practice of the IX^thLegion explains the longevity of present day Dante (that would be a very interesting discussion, though ). There are 20+ years of official lore describing the exceptional longevity of the successors of the Blood Angels Legion, and in particular Dante. My suggestion is merely that this new lore allows for an interesting potential twist - we might see a Primaris Dante, and that individual might be the same Dante that we've known since the 2nd edition Codex: Angels of Death, or it might be a successor that has assumed his predecessor's identity after the latter died (might have died in battle, might have died of natural causes (not likely), might have died in attempting to transform into a Primaris).

 

While I'm skeptical of any claim that we'll inevitably see character X become a Primaris (we've seen similar discussions crop up in pretty much all of the Adeptus Astartes forums), this new lore from the Horus Heresy books significantly increases the likelihood that we'll see a Primaris "Dante" (in my opinion).

 

I've always been a fan of the muscle armour and deathmasks as the defining visual cue of the Blood Angels (even though not everyone has either). And while I'm not personally a fan of the wings on jump packs, they have also become a staple of the Blood Angels' appearance. I don't really care what you call Primaris "Dante's" armour, but I think that the ensemble should incorporate all three of these elements.

 

And this is a case where I think that the Marneus Calgar example will be followed, with Primaris "Dante" being accompanied by two (?) Primaris Sanguinary Guard.

 

 

Yeah.. no.

 

Whilst it's an interesting bit of fluff, We have Dante's actual story in novelised form. It's not the reason for his longevity, not unless we also assume the recent novels never happened.

 

That lore is also pre sanguinius, and one of the core things that happens after Sanguinius rejoins his legion, is he effectively stamps out the barbaric tendencies and restructures and remoulds the legion.

 

That being said we do know that in 40k era the blood angels (no idea about successors) take "angel names" when they become astartes, It could be that those angel names get passed down when the geneseed used was from a particularly noteworthy prior body. But it's still a different concept to the old pre angel legion.

 

I also don't think main GW team read or generally care too much about the forgeworld teams stuff, and I'm pretty sure the same is true in the other direction. So I doubt there will be any obvious ties.

 

 

 

All the above being said. In a way Dante continued the tradition in a different way, he worse Sanguinius' death mask. He carries the burden of expectation that being in the presense of a primarch had, Something Guilliman specifically acknowledges at the end of DoB. Which, if anything suggests to me that a new Dante model could go the other direction and not have the mask.

I totally agree that it would make sense for whatever unique BA primaris character they do to encorporate the "important" BA design queues. So, muscle armor, possibly death masks and possibly wings.

Edited June 3, 2019 by Blindhamster

[Dont-Be-Haten]

 

 

 

So we all know by now Dante is getting the primaris treatment!

This isn't quite a true statement. Many players might assume that, following GW's progression of Marneus Calgar, that other established characters will follow. Many players, meanwhile, would prefer that at least some of the established legacy Adeptus Astartes characters don't undergo the transformation into Primaris, or attempt the transformation and fail (die). I'm in that camp.

 

Now I'm not saying that I specifically want Dante to remain legacy or die, simply that we don't "know" that Dante will get the Primaris treatment.

 

However, I think that Dante in particular has an out and we'll see a Primaris "Dante" at some point in the future. The Horus Heresy Book Eight: Malevolence provided a new bit of lore that I could see influencing the later Chapters (including the Blood Angels Chapter):

The Immortal Ninth

Time and again the pride of the IX^th Legion was to fall on the field of battle, yet the records of their valour make common mention of the same handful of warriors and champions. Some remembrancers and historians have taken this to indicate a long history of redoubtable heroes, even going so far as to compile these records into a number of epic stanzas, forming the separate entries into a single legend. Yet, the true reason for the longevity of certain names within the order of battle for the IX^th Legion is far less heroic.

 

Since its foundation, the IX^th Legion had operated in the most extreme battlefield conditions and necessity had forced upon them a number of practises that might otherwise be seen as monstrous. One among them, fostered by the nature of their design and the conditions under which they fought, was the consumption of fallen captains by their followers in order to preserve their hard-won skills and experience. As a mark of honour as well as practicality, it also became accepted that recruits took the names of those whose skills they absorbed, and lieutenants would assume the names of their captains. Such was the resemblance of each member of the IX^th to their flawless brothers that most outsiders failed to notice this subtle brand of immortality. The most famous example of which being the figure thought to have served as the IX^th Legion's first and only master, other than Sanguinius himself. Known to history as Ishidur Ossuros, this warrior is commonly held to have commanded the IX^th from Unity to the discovery of Ball in late M30, yet a closer examination of the records shows that name died numerous times, only to be replaced by another.

 

Over time and battles past count, this practise became an honoured tradition of the Legion, a visceral ritual that bound the survivors together despite their often disparate origins. Yet as much as it bound those of the IX^th Legion to each other, it forced them away from their brethren among the Imperial Army and other Legions. In the years before Sanguinius' return, no few of the other Primarchs expressed a distaste for the practises of the IX^th Legion, though they could not dispute their success on the battlefield. Such was the legacy of mistrust and barbarism that the IX^th carried with them, one pressed upon them by the brutal necessity of their calling.

Now I'm not suggesting that the above practice of the IX^thLegion explains the longevity of present day Dante (that would be a very interesting discussion, though ). There are 20+ years of official lore describing the exceptional longevity of the successors of the Blood Angels Legion, and in particular Dante. My suggestion is merely that this new lore allows for an interesting potential twist - we might see a Primaris Dante, and that individual might be the same Dante that we've known since the 2nd edition Codex: Angels of Death, or it might be a successor that has assumed his predecessor's identity after the latter died (might have died in battle, might have died of natural causes (not likely), might have died in attempting to transform into a Primaris).

 

While I'm skeptical of any claim that we'll inevitably see character X become a Primaris (we've seen similar discussions crop up in pretty much all of the Adeptus Astartes forums), this new lore from the Horus Heresy books significantly increases the likelihood that we'll see a Primaris "Dante" (in my opinion).

 

I've always been a fan of the muscle armour and deathmasks as the defining visual cue of the Blood Angels (even though not everyone has either). And while I'm not personally a fan of the wings on jump packs, they have also become a staple of the Blood Angels' appearance. I don't really care what you call Primaris "Dante's" armour, but I think that the ensemble should incorporate all three of these elements.

 

And this is a case where I think that the Marneus Calgar example will be followed, with Primaris "Dante" being accompanied by two (?) Primaris Sanguinary Guard.

Yeah.. no.

 

Whilst it's an interesting bit of fluff, We have Dante's actual story in novelised form. It's not the reason for his longevity, not unless we also assume the recent novels never happened.

 

That lore is also pre sanguinius, and one of the core things that happens after Sanguinius rejoins his legion, is he effectively stamps out the barbaric tendencies and restructures and remoulds the legion.

 

That being said we do know that in 40k era the blood angels (no idea about successors) take "angel names" when they become astartes, It could be that those angel names get passed down when the geneseed used was from a particularly noteworthy prior body. But it's still a different concept to the old pre angel legion.

 

I also don't think main GW team read or generally care too much about the forgeworld teams stuff, and I'm pretty sure the same is true in the other direction. So I doubt there will be any obvious ties.

 

 

 

All the above being said. In a way Dante continued the tradition in a different way, he worse Sanguinius' death mask. He carries the burden of expectation that being in the presense of a primarch had, Something Guilliman specifically acknowledges at the end of DoB. Which, if anything suggests to me that a new Dante model could go the other direction and not have the mask.

I totally agree that it would make sense for whatever unique BA primaris character they do to encorporate the "important" BA design queues. So, muscle armor, possibly death masks and possibly wings.

@BH, do you think we may see primaris Dante in Guy's next interaction of Dante? Only time will tell but I do know I want the Limited edition release of it!

[Arkhanist]

From a fluff perspective, I'd rather keep an ancient Dante, vulnerable in his aging astartes body and a constant struggle to keep things together in the face of overwhelming odds in the Dark Imperium, mostly cut off from support, holding the line through 10 centuries learned of guile and sheer force of will. Rejuvenating him to stronger and fitter and tougher and sticking him in gravis with ski boots would be losing much of what makes Dante Dante.

 

From a modelling perspective, god I just want a new Dante that doesn't look like a midget from 2nd edition. And maybe a primarised version might actually be more than just a beatstick in the rules and would be worth taking to lead my army.  So kinda torn.

 

Maybe a primarised Mephiston (or since he's already huge, just make a primaris-sized model to reflect that) and a new non-primaris Dante. I'd love to see what a modern take on him with his current equipment would look like - they managed to redo Abaddon without drastically changing who he was and knocked it out the park, imagine Dante getting the same treatment but with grace and movement and aggresson instead of hulking menace. And they could go totally nuts on the Sanguinor, ala Celestine.

[Blindhamster]

From a fluff perspective, I'd rather keep an ancient Dante, vulnerable in his aging astartes body and a constant struggle to keep things together in the face of overwhelming odds in the Dark Imperium, mostly cut off from support, holding the line through 10 centuries learned of guile and sheer force of will. Rejuvenating him to stronger and fitter and tougher and sticking him in gravis with ski boots would be losing much of what makes Dante Dante.

 

From a modelling perspective, god I just want a new Dante that doesn't look like a midget from 2nd edition. And maybe a primarised version might actually be more than just a beatstick in the rules and would be worth taking to lead my army. So kinda torn.

 

Maybe a primarised Mephiston (or since he's already huge, just make a primaris-sized model to reflect that) and a new non-primaris Dante. I'd love to see what a modern take on him with his current equipment would look like - they managed to redo Abaddon without drastically changing who he was and knocked it out the park, imagine Dante getting the same treatment but with grace and movement and aggresson instead of hulking menace. And they could go totally nuts on the Sanguinor, ala Celestine.

Post devastation of Baal he (Dante) did a certain thing that changed him anyway, the weight of his age is meant to have been lifted and if I remember right his face doesn't look old anymore.

 

I don't know if he will go primaris or not, I imagine at least one BA will though.

[The Unseen]

New novel has Dante being semi-revitilized anyway after he partakes of blood for fhe first time in apparantly centuries?

And one of my favorite shorts, Dante fights a chaos chronomancer.

Silly chaos sorcerer *steals* a huge chunk of Dante's time, only for Dante to laugh it off, and take off his mask, to reveal a still pristine face.

And he makes the comment along the lines of what are a few centuries to one who has already lived millenia?

Sanguinius' Blood is a hell of an anti aging treatment, if it doesn't drive you mad first.

 

It's never been about how Dante is old in body, but is old in spirit, because he's just lived so damn long, and seen far far too many of his brothers die.

At this point Dante has seen the Angels nearly wiped out TWICE. Once on the space hulk that got him promoted in the first place and now at the devastation of Baal.

 

I think it would be a decent story of Dante getting physically enhanced, only for him to realize it means he's going to live EVEN LONGER, and the load on his soul isn't any less with a few extra organs.

 

Though please dear merciful God-Emperor don't give him the ski boots.

I want an updated model, not a joke.

[Spyros]

Dante has actually lived and experienced a lot more hundreds of years than Guilliman, and that why at the end of the Devastation RG tells Dante that he doesn't have to kneel before him and treats him almost like an equal.

[Blindhamster]

And one of my favorite shorts, Dante fights a chaos chronomancer.

Silly chaos sorcerer *steals* a huge chunk of Dante's time, only for Dante to laugh it off, and take off his mask, to reveal a still pristine face.

And he makes the comment along the lines of what are a few centuries to one who has already lived millenia?

 

 

I've not read this one! And I thought i'd read all the BA stuff, can you get a name as I must read it!

 

Cheers!

 

 

As far as model goes, thinking on it longer. If we get a primaris Dante, I'd like to see him have a more ornate version of the armour that the primaris chaplain has, design wise it's pretty damn similar, with the sculpted leg armour, all primaris armour now has the pectoral muscles sculpted on them, and the gauntlets are a similar design. Give him a suit like that, say its an artificer suit, so he still has a 2+ save. Jump pack could be a totally new design, or possibly borrow queues from other winged jump pack models maybe. I really do think we could see him lose the death mask though, Guilliman told him not to wear it anymore as it wasn't needed. So it may go into the reliquiry instead. I'd be pretty happy to have a badass bare headed Dante model (I've always done my versions with bare heads for that reason :P )

[pandion40]

I want Dante to go Primaris, but I don’t want any of the bulkyness or ski’s of the Primaris. I want a sleek look aiming for movement and aggression as said above, I want the death mask and muscle armour but I’m unsure about wings, I like the concept but they have a tendency to look ungainly.

 

A suggestion I’ve heard about mostly on YouTube is to make Dante a dreadnought, I really really dislike this suggestion, the foundation of Dante’s character is he’s just about the oldest living loyalist Space Marine, stick him in a dreadnought and that foundation is gone, he’s just another dreadnought, his age becomes nothing special and I believe he’ll inevitably become a supporting character.

 

Upgrading Mephiston could be interesting, who knows what exactly he is right now and how will his body react to extra organs?

[Indefragable]

I think we can all say that if there's one thing that draws us all to the Blood Angels, it's the duality. Angels and demons. Heaven and hell. The noble protectors of humanity who descend on fiery wings to save the innocent peasants......yet may not be able to stop themselves from ripping open said peasant's throats in a dark alley to quench the undying thirst.

 

I like Mephiston as the scary one, whom even the freakin' angels of death refer to as "Lord of Death." The one that is aloof and painful to his own kind and is super powerful, so powerful in fact that many suspect a deeper darker truth to him. But perhaps he is in fact so "good" that he overcame that darkness through sheer force of will....which makes him all the scarier.

 

While the Sanguinor is the golden one, who comes unbidden in the time of greatest need and inspires all around to even greater acts of heroism. Yet, for all we know, may in fact be a warp entity...aka an actual [good guy] daemon for all we know.

 

And Dante....Dante is that middle ground. He is both the light and the dark, the night and day, the past and future. He is the one that can ride both currents and turn It on when It needs to be ON, yet can also go hungry and thirsty for longer than any other when needed.

[Ishagu]

I think Dante should be without a helmet. Have him become a Primaris in some ornate suit, but he no longer has to hide his aged features.

 

Let his wisdom and experience be displayed for all to see.

[dice4thedicegod]

via Imgflip Meme Generator

[Panzer]

To be honest, whether Dante is now most of the time wearing a helmet or not would not make much of a difference in battle. In battle even if he follows Guillimans advice he'd still be wearing a helmet because it's the friggin smart thing to do (and someone who was wearing a helmet for like 1500 years now won't suddenly become someone who follows the no helmet custom). So if anything I'd want to have both options in his box.

[Arkangilos]

I think we can all say that if there's one thing that draws us all to the Blood Angels, it's the duality. Angels and demons. Heaven and hell. The noble protectors of humanity who descend on fiery wings to save the innocent peasants......yet may not be able to stop themselves from ripping open said peasant's throats in a dark alley to quench the undying thirst.

 

I like Mephiston as the scary one, whom even the freakin' angels of death refer to as "Lord of Death." The one that is aloof and painful to his own kind and is super powerful, so powerful in fact that many suspect a deeper darker truth to him. But perhaps he is in fact so "good" that he overcame that darkness through sheer force of will....which makes him all the scarier.

 

While the Sanguinor is the golden one, who comes unbidden in the time of greatest need and inspires all around to even greater acts of heroism. Yet, for all we know, may in fact be a warp entity...aka an actual [good guy] daemon for all we know.

 

And Dante....Dante is that middle ground. He is both the light and the dark, the night and day, the past and future. He is the one that can ride both currents and turn It on when It needs to be ON, yet can also go hungry and thirsty for longer than any other when needed.

I’ve never had the “demons” feeling from them. They’ve always been angels through and through. Heck, even the Angel of Death is still an Angel and not a daemon. The duality isn’t so much about heaven and hell as it is that sometimes Angels have jobs that make us uncomfortable but they are obedient. Mephiston, the Lord of Death, isn’t a “demon”, he is an Angel that after three nights in the grave rose again in a more perfect body. Lol. It’s like a twisty parody.

 

Basically the duality is more a reminder that sometimes Angels that being hope being despair (like when the angel of the Lord killed the first born).

[dice4thedicegod]

I think mephiston is a special case... the source of his resurrection/newfound power is deliberately kept vague (and by giving his new name a Mephistopheles ring to it).

 

The rest of them are pretty solidly angelic vampires (team Edward as it were- if twilight references are still a thing in the 41st millennium)