Primarch helmets?

[Brother-Captain Gilead]

Inspired by StrangerOrders suggestion that ForgeWorld should just do an official set of helmets for all primarchs and release them, I would like to open a speculation / wishcasting thread on what type of helmets each of the primarchs would wear.

 

I am going to ignore the Lion, since he already has a knightly helmet.

 

Fulgrim I could see having gone all in on the fact that he can wear the aquila. I would imagine that his helmet would look somewhat similar to the standard MK IV helmet, but with an aquila on the forehead or visible somewhere else. I could also see that helmet being more of a faceplate / mask than a helmet, with the backside being open to allow for his glorious and perfect hair to be free to fling itself about. Actually now that I think about it, his helmet might have just been a bent aquila as a samurai-style menpo with the body of the eagle covering his mouth, the wings would be bent back to cover his cheeks and ears and his eyes would be peeking above the heads of the eagle.

 

Perturabo would just be wearing a bucket with a bunch of cables linking it to his armor. He already considered windows a weakness, he would not have eyeholes or anything that would be a clearly visible weakpoint. He would use the surface on the inside of the bucket for info screens and datafeeds and what not to increase his ability to process information. Also, maybe just maybe this bucket would distract him from feeling the Eye of Terror judging him (spoiler alert: it would not).

 

Jaghatai Khan I could see going in one of two directions. On one hand it would be easy for him to basically have a mongol helmet, fur trim and all, but I could also see him having a really kitted out MK IV or MK III helmet with damascene stylings on the faceplate, and an opening on the top for his hair to be in a top knot so that he could feel the wind in his hair.

 

Leman Russ it would be a helmet where there is space for his beard. I don't think he would go for the classic fictional viking look with the horns. Unless of course there was this glorious beast he killed that had horns and then he would use those horns as an icebreaker to enable him to tell everyone his favorite story about how he hunted that beast down. I would lean more into the actual viking helmets, so a MKIII helmet with runic text on it and either missing the eyes and the faceplate both or just the faceplate so Lemans eyes would be peeking out from those holes.

 

Rogal Dorns helmet would just be a MK III helmet with Imperial Fist stylings. It would fit perfectly with his armor, and it might contain a singular ocular enhancement on one eye that he could use to further enhance his eyesight. It would be perfect for him and he would be perfect for it.

 

The easy answer with Konrad Curze would be a Batman mask, but to be a bit more serious, whatever he would wear he would want it to inspire fear. Maybe his helmet could have been modified to look like what we associate with a raptor helmet in the 40k? A grimacing demon mask that would amplify and modify his screams to sound even more terrifying while also looking absolutely horrifying would sound like it would be up his alley.

 

Sanguinius I don't really know if I can ever see wearing a helmet, even in a wishcasting / speculation thread. Maybe he could have a more ornate halo around the back of his head, kept in place by a band around his temple?

 

Ferrus Manus would have something similar to an upgraded and giant-sized techmarine helmet, just like his armor is a more complex upgraded techmarine armor. It would have all sorts of plugs and lenses and antennas and it would look absolutely correct on him, while also looking sort of boring because it is just a techmarine helmet with extra doodads.

 

Angron I would love to see in a gladiator mask that covers his face completely, but has a net-like system of a lot of tiny holes that enables him to see out of it, while protecting and covering his face. It might also just be a mask, so that we could still see his Butcher's nails sticking out of his brain. Either way the face covering part must be one that he can take off at the beginning of the match to salute everyone before putting it back down when the match starts going.

 

Roboute would have a MKIII helmet that would either resemble a Leonidas' style helmet from 300 or the helmet Maximus wore in Gladiator (Russel Crowe's character). His mouth would be visible in either of these as would be his eyes, I don't really see him donning a full face-covering helmet because he would be cognizant of the need to move directly from the battlefield to giving an address to his army / the conquered populace.

 

Mortarion would have an MKIII helmet that has the faceplate resembling a combination of a skull and of an US army gas mask from WW2 with the pipe leading back into his armor to get in those sweet Barbarus' fumes. So basically the Death Korps of Krieg gas mask I suppose.

 

Magnus would have a mask resembling a pharaoh's death mask. In as much as anything with Magnus actually would actually be physical and not just something that he feels like making people see when they look at him at a given moment, it would have jewelry and precious metals on it and it would look really classy.

 

Horus would have a MKIII or MKIV helmet that would peer from inside the mouth of a wolf while his legion was the Luna Wolves, which would have been replaced by a MKIV helmet with an eye insignia on the forehead by the time he was warmaster and the legion was named the Sons of Horus.

 

Lorgar would go for a simple headband rather than a helmet. It would have inscriptions both on the outside and on the inside in colchisian script and it would be tight enough that those inscriptions would leave their mark on his head as indentations in his skin when he lifts it off. I could totally see him having several headbands with different inscriptions with different meanings kind of like those "Bible verse for the day" calendars that exist allowing him to shift what reads on his forehead when the band is on and when it is off to match what he wants to tell people on each day.

 

Vulkan would have a scaly helmet, probably with a salamander skull either as an actual skull or as a stylized version, and then the face of the helmet would be inside the skull. And that helmet would probably be on fire, either on the outside or the fire would come from the inside and leak so that the outside is also kind of on fire.

 

Corvus would have a classic MKVI beakie helmet. Much like his armor, it would not really be that ostentatious, just a large beakie helmet.

 

Alpharius and Omegon already have helmets. Or do they? Yes they do and that is the end of that.

 

That's my opening salvo, what did I get right, what did I get wrong, what would you do differently? Let's not take this too seriously and just have fun with how the different primarchs and their personalities and character traits could be visualized in their choice of helmets.

[BadgersinHills]

The Khan in the books had a dragon helm, similar to that of Qin Xa. 

[Kastor Krieg]

Sanguinius is easy, check the Eternity Gate fanart. Dorn would wear a Templar faceshield variant, like the one below.

 

Edited April 8, 2020 by Reclusiarch Krieg

[RazorDaemon]

That is great artwork, but that wouldn't be Sanguinius, he has always only been shown in the golden armor. It seems lore-fitting for Sanguinius to wear something like the Sanguinary Guard, like this fanart by L J Koh on Artstation

 

As far as Dorn goes, I agree it would be something sorta knightly, but as medieval like Lion. As much as I like the Templars, Dorn wouldn't bear the Maltese Cross, it is stated to be Sigismund's personal Heraldry. Even though the Templar Brethren were Dorn's personal guard, he allowed them to bear his First Captain's heraldry in addition to the Chapters, because you know, Pre-Heresy Primarchs did what they felt like.
It would make sense to have a laurel and/or smaller, golden wings, or maybe even wings on the face like the Honour Guard.
http://www.frontlinegaming.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/UM-honorguard.jpg

Edited April 8, 2020 by RazorDaemon

[Captain Semper]

Excellent ideas!  I'll play along!

 

Here's some of my ideas:

 

Lorgar would go for a simple headband rather than a helmet. It would have inscriptions both on the outside and on the inside in colchisian script and it would be tight enough that those inscriptions would leave their mark on his head as indentations in his skin when he lifts it off. I could totally see him having several headbands with different inscriptions with different meanings kind of like those "Bible verse for the day" calendars that exist allowing him to shift what reads on his forehead when the band is on and when it is off to match what he wants to tell people on each day.

 Man, Lorgar needs a full-on helmet given what monumental failure his face-sculpt is! Actually, he's one of my favourite Primarchs in the lore and probably the one I like the least in terms of the model. I agree on the simplicity concept for the helmet, he'd not go for an ornate, over the top style for sure and he can wear the headband on the outside but please, please cover that face...
 

Fulgrim I could see having gone all in on the fact that he can wear the aquila. I would imagine that his helmet would look somewhat similar to the standard MK IV helmet, but with an aquila on the forehead or visible somewhere else. I could also see that helmet being more of a faceplate / mask than a helmet, with the backside being open to allow for his glorious and perfect hair to be free to fling itself about. Actually now that I think about it, his helmet might have just been a bent aquila as a samurai-style menpo with the body of the eagle covering his mouth, the wings would be bent back to cover his cheeks and ears and his eyes would be peeking above the heads of the eagle.

For Fulgrim (I'm OK with the face but a lot of people aren't) I'd go for an exaggerated avian-style helmet, a sort of a heavily upgraded version of this. A full bent Aquila might make an indirect visual reference to Ultramarines (see here). And, much like Eidolon, he might have some sonic amplifiers (he does shout a bit in his bare face model) and a huge plume to substitute his flowing hair.

 

Leman Russ it would be a helmet where there is space for his beard. I don't think he would go for the classic fictional viking look with the horns. Unless of course there was this glorious beast he killed that had horns and then he would use those horns as an icebreaker to enable him to tell everyone his favorite story about how he hunted that beast down. I would lean more into the actual viking helmets, so a MKIII helmet with runic text on it and either missing the eyes and the faceplate both or just the faceplate so Lemans eyes would be peeking out from those holes.

Well, I just don't want a wolf-head helmet (also what beard?) I agree Viking horns would also be tacky but the Viking theme has other designs too such as:

Hidden Content

 

That's it for now, I will probably revert with more ideas. Great topic this one! :)

[Gorgoff]

I just want to meantion since Russ doesn't have a beard he doesn't need a helmet with room for it either. He is not a dwarf;) Edited April 8, 2020 by Gorgoff

[Marshal Rohr]

Dorn’s helmet was pictured in the Lost and the Damned. It just looks like a Mark 3.

 

https://www.instagram.com/p/B9BX7LyHbLR/?igshid=1q3pzpxyj4lo

Edited April 8, 2020 by Marshal Rohr

[Marshal Vespasian]

I really like this conversion of dorn with a helmet

https://www.goonhammer.com/if_dorn_1/

[Karhedron]

Both Horus and Perturabo are noted as wearing TDA so I imagine they would have Terminator-esque helmets.

 

I am sure Vulkan had a dragon-styled helmet in one of the stories (probably "Mercy of the Dragon").

 

The other thing to remember is that Primarchs probably aren't limited to designs based on the normal marks of Astartes armour. They are not the size of normal astartes meaning that each suit (and helmet) was probably a custom piece. This would likely be even more true with those Primarchs from the more artistic or technologically based legions.

Edited April 8, 2020 by Karhedron

[Brother-Captain Gilead]

Thank you for all of the interesting answers. I should have probably added a disclaimer that I know there are some mentions in the books and in the artwork of different types of helmets for the different primarchs, but I made the decision to just let my imagination run wild with all of them based just on their models.

 

Both Horus and Perturabo are noted as wearing TDA so I imagine they would have Terminator-esque helmets.

I am sure Vulkan had a dragon-styled helmet in one of the stories (probably "Mercy of the Dragon").

The other thing to remember is that Primarchs probably aren't limited to designs based on the normal marks of Astartes armour. They are not the size of normal astartes meaning that each suit (and helmet) was probably a custom piece. This would likely be even more true with those Primarchs from the more artistic or technologically based legions.

 

This is true, but still if you look at the primarch models we have gotten there are elements resembling the traditional marks of terminator and power armor that we are familiar with and I would assume that even if the primarchs would obviously get their helmets custom made, there would still be some familiar elements because of that.

[Raktra]

"Wolf Helm of Russ."

[Slips]

Isn't this supposed to be Vulkans Helmet?

 

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/55/f7/66/55f7667a8d7ae268e9f9d111432d5ef9.jpg

Edited April 8, 2020 by Slips

[bluntblade]

AD-B described Lorgar's helmet as a tricorn design.

 

Kurze's is mentioned as being skullish, in keeping with the Kyroptera and the general Legion aesthetic.

 

Josh Reynold gave Fulgrim a golden one which I'm certain has wings.

 

As for Jaghatai:

A stylised Qo Dragon.

Edited April 8, 2020 by bluntblade

[bluntblade]

One of the FW sculptors did one for Horus which was derived from the SoH praetor helmets. See if I can find it.

 

Edited April 8, 2020 by bluntblade

[Brother Pheidias]

I've seen people use the helmets from some of the Contemptors to good effect, including the EC Contemptor on Fullgrim and Vulkan, and the Death Guard/Wordl Eater Contemptor on Perturabo, though I suspect it'd go well with Ferrus Manus and Horus as well. I'd love to see the old DG Mk. IV. head on Mortarion.

[bluntblade]

I always thought Mortarion's helmet would just clip onto his rebreather

[rendingon1+]

I hope people do realize it would be impossible to make helmets for some of the primarchs because of how their minis are designed. Lorgar, Vulkan or curze have too much going on round their heads to fit a helm. Of course it can be done at the price of serious head shrinkage but it will show.

[Brother Pheidias]

helmeted Vulkan and another

Edited April 9, 2020 by Brother Pheidias

[Raktra]

https://www.pinterest.co.uk/pin/255720085079294706/

 

Took seven seconds to find that.

[rendingon1+]

Lorgar looks really stupid :-P

[Captain Semper]

Maybe, but it proves it can be done. In fact Lorgar’s helmet seems to me a bit large for the scale, so I guess there is plenty of room to fit a well designed helmet. 

[bluntblade]

Someone adapted a dread-head for Fulgrim and it's lovely:

 

And a couple of appropriately unlovely ones for Perturabo:

 

Edited April 10, 2020 by bluntblade

[Brother-Captain Gilead]

That Fulgrim looks great, but my intent with this thread wasn't to look for things that people have done or even what a suitable helmet would be to fit that model, but rather to let imagination run free and imagine what are the types of things the different primarchs that make up this colorful band of sort of brothers would appreciate in a helmet (as in, would Perturabo stick to his guns about windows being a structural weakness and thus unnecessary as I think he would or would he be ok with wearing a helmet with lenses?).

 

That being said, I love the different interpretations that you guys have found / have known about, they have all been really interesting ways for people to answer this question.

Edited April 10, 2020 by Brother-Captain Gilead

[bluntblade]

I see. I kinda want Angron's helmet to be like a Roman gladiator's, even if I feel it'd be logically iffy:

Maybe with a stylised Sarum faceplate.

[RazorDaemon]

That Fulgrim looks great, but my intent with this thread wasn't to look for things that people have done or even what a suitable helmet would be to fit that model, but rather to let imagination run free and imagine what are the types of things the different primarchs that make up this colorful band of sort of brothers would appreciate in a helmet (as in, would Perturabo stick to his guns about windows being a structural weakness and thus unnecessary as I think he would or would he be ok with wearing a helmet with lenses?).

 

That being said, I love the different interpretations that you guys have found / have known about, they have all been really interesting ways for people to answer this question.

Absolutely, I don't think anyone here is saying "you have to do it this way", but definitely giving what they think would be the best interpretation in their minds. I like looking at the 30k and Honour Guard styles and then going from there, as the Honour Guard often takes aspects from the Primarch.

 

But of course it can be a 100% unique thing, some Primarchs you can recognize the armor with extra fanciness like Dorn or Horus, others are like each piece was hand crafted and purposefully different from any Astartes, like Lorgar, Magnus, Sanguinius or Angron.

Edited April 11, 2020 by RazorDaemon