Codex: Space Marines | Multi-Part Intercessor & Vanguard Vet Teaser | Legends Culling

[CastellanDeMolay]

7 hours ago, Evil Eye said:

You know what bothers me about them the most is that if they'd been an occasional element included on some models but not all of them they'd be a lot less egregious. One of the nice things about classic Marine kits is the subtle variety between parts even with the same armour mark (Mk. 7 helmets for instance have quite a bit of variety with the pipes surrounding the vox-grille). If there were various different designs of knees, some with the flanges, some without and some with different additions altogether it'd be fine. As is it's another example of the annoying copypaste nature of Primaris Marines where there's very little variety between the actual designs of the models, such that a squad feels like the same model in a few different poses. Similar story with the backpacks, gorgets and helmets. Hopefully the new kit will fix that somewhat, though IF I buy a box they'll be getting knee surgery. And gorgetectomies. And classic bolters, backpacks and helmets.

I get the impression that someone at GW really thought they could kill two birds with one stone by making an amalgam of the "greatest hits" of all the previous marks of armour, combining the best elements of each to make something so aesthetically pleasing and iconic looking that they wouldn't need to render anything else in CAD and could save time and money by re-using the same armour for [almost] every space marine model from 2017 until basically the end of time. (and perhaps that Phobos and Gravis would make up for the lack of variety) 

[Magos Takatus]

40 minutes ago, Marshal Reinhard said:

Oh please, that's clearly the Waeve Saerpent.

Yes, how foolish of me, Frater. Oh well, back to the pain glove for me!

[Crimson Longinus]

6 hours ago, Captain Idaho said:

 

Um...

 

   

 

Flanged knees are decidedly NOT knightly. In fact, no successful military in all the world had flanged knees. 

 

I'm not even sure an unsuccessful military had flanged knees.

 

 

 

 

They evoke the armour strips on the upper edge of the knee, I think all the armours you posted have them. Yes, the marine ones are more raised from the leg, but they are a clear callback to this. Bladeguard have the side armour on their knees too, completing the look. 

 

It is hella weird to me how the same people who tend to complain the primaris looking too tacticool and not knightly enough are also dislike the elements that make them look more knightly, like the knee flanges and raised gorgets. It is almost like the reasons for disliking were just invented post hoc!

 

 

[Robbienw]

MkX knee pads don’t look

anything like that.  They have a single large rim that sticks out and is really pronounced.

 

It looks silly and out of place.  
 

I expect they did it either to give MKX armour a distinct kneepad like the other marks of armour, or because it is beneficial in some way to the way the leg parts of the kits are engineered and molded.

[Mogger351]

17 minutes ago, Robbienw said:

MkX knee pads don’t look

anything like that.  They have a single large rim that sticks out and is really pronounced.

 

It looks silly and out of place.  
 

I expect they did it either to give MKX armour a distinct kneepad like the other marks of armour, or because it is beneficial in some way to the way the leg parts of the kits are engineered and molded.

I mean it's a subjective opinion. I think they look cool, for example. It doesn't have to make sense or have a real world equivalent on a scifi toy figure to be reductive.

 

It's getting dangerously close back to being "old stuff is good/bad compared to new stuff is good/bad" which is tedious and brings mod heat.

[Crimson Longinus]

9 hours ago, Evil Eye said:

You know what bothers me about them the most is that if they'd been an occasional element included on some models but not all of them they'd be a lot less egregious. One of the nice things about classic Marine kits is the subtle variety between parts even with the same armour mark (Mk. 7 helmets for instance have quite a bit of variety with the pipes surrounding the vox-grille). If there were various different designs of knees, some with the flanges, some without and some with different additions altogether it'd be fine. As is it's another example of the annoying copypaste nature of Primaris Marines where there's very little variety between the actual designs of the models, such that a squad feels like the same model in a few different poses. Similar story with the backpacks, gorgets and helmets. Hopefully the new kit will fix that somewhat, though IF I buy a box they'll be getting knee surgery. And gorgetectomies. And classic bolters, backpacks and helmets.

 

I totally agree that knee flanges and gorgets are elements not every model needs to have. I have trimmed them off from some of mine. And as I love beakie helmets I need to lower the gorget on some models, as the beak is awkward on the high gorget. BTW, if people want primaris with low gorgets and no knee rims, then Blood Claws kit is an excellent source of those. I don't play Wolves, but I've used them to add variety to my squads. If you give them classic helmets, I think they look very similar to the old style marines. 

 

 

I think it is a bit shame that GW didn't include any armours with these features in the updated intercessor kit, but then again, kitbashing is easy.

 

[Robbienw]

41 minutes ago, Mogger351 said:

I mean it's a subjective opinion. I think they look cool, for example. It doesn't have to make sense or have a real world equivalent on a scifi toy figure to be reductive.

 

It's getting dangerously close back to being "old stuff is good/bad compared to new stuff is good/bad" which is tedious and brings mod heat.

Me saying they look silly and bad is subjective, obviously that goes without saying.

 

Me saying they are not like the historic armour example given is correct, MKX rims aren’t like that.

 

This isn’t new stuff bad/old stuff good.  I just don’t like MKX.  MKX isn’t new anyway, it’s been out over 9 years.

[MoriyaSchism]

9 hours ago, NothingHere said:

With every passing day, i dislike Primaris more and more. 

 

i started the hobby in 8th, and i found to like a lot of things like Aggressors and Inceptors, the new design stuff didn't bother me. Now? The knee design kind of annoys me, i do agree that it shouldn't have been on every model, i really dislike their power packs, the jumppacks aren't the worst but i still dislike the winglets, they feel too small, the gorget is fine? Another case where i do agree it should have stuck to being a variation. It was already a thing with Errant armor. 

 

I am just at the point where i would rather see an Old World 40k (no Horus Heresy isn't old world 40k, Heresy is 10,000 years in the past, rules wise it kind of used to be? It is a different time period more than a universe after a reset) In keeping with Heresy with updated classics. It won't help the constant disonnance that stuff like the new Landspeeder causes with it being just a different design, even if i love how faithful it is to the original without just being the original 100%. It would feel better not to see what i think, is a much better and more interesting design philosphy be shunted for the sake of greed or whatever the point of Primaris was. 

What I hate the most are the weapons and the bad design language of those weapons spreading through the range. The worst are the missile launchers that look like revolver cylinders. So far they have shown up on Space Marines, Votann, Imperial Guard and Mechanicus. The heavy stubbers everywhere, the lack of a proper missile launcher anywhere (nerf cannons, weird cylinders and stapled on boxes filled with rockets and grenades without any launching tube), the stupid spinny thing on the bolter rifles, the abominably huge plasma pistols and the "onslaught gatling cannon". Space Marines and Guard got a complete visual reboot in terms of their technology while everyone else got to stay the same, but others are starting to show signs notably some of the Chaos units like Noise Marines and their new sonic weapons. Things are also getting simplified and less detailed, compared the new Tarantula and Vyper weapons. Those don't have the specific ammo boxes and energy packs you'd usually see. Less detailed, more streamlined and easier to make. I don't like it at all. For Old World 40K they'd have to bring back the old Guard vehicles too like the original Sentinel, because the current one looks like some Cawl abomination without viewports on all sides and with a Primaris style plasma weapon and cylinder missile launcher.

My point in general is that I'm noticing that things are starting to lose their silhouettes and readability on some weapons is going to suffer. The new Vyper example is quite clear as the different guns on it all have the same rear end.

[Captain Idaho]

4 hours ago, Crimson Longinus said:

It is hella weird to me how the same people who tend to complain the primaris looking too tacticool and not knightly enough are also dislike the elements that make them look more knightly, like the knee flanges and raised gorgets. It is almost like the reasons for disliking were just invented post hoc!

 

I've never even used the word "tacticool" and this is the first time I even posted it.

 

Regardless, the flanges on the knees don't even look knightly. They look clumsy.

 

Which is my whole point...

 

(Your work looks amazing by the way and complete erodes the clumsy look of GW knee flanges)

 

Blimey guys. Allow me to further explain.

 

I was talking in general principles and not specific. Yes there are flanges on armour, what I meant if I was to be more specific is they're not as pronounced. 

 

But it's much easier to type "I don't like the knee flanges" than say "I don't like the pronounced and exaggerated extension on the knee flanges Games Workshop has gone with the design" but sure, I'll copy and paste from now on 

 

[Matcap86]

5 hours ago, Crimson Longinus said:

It is hella weird to me how the same people who tend to complain the primaris looking too tacticool and not knightly enough are also dislike the elements that make them look more knightly, like the knee flanges and raised gorgets. It is almost like the reasons for disliking were just invented post hoc!

 

 

 

Meh people are allowed to have their opinions and reasoning without having them dismissed out of hand by calling them post hoc invented.

 

You think the flanges evoke that look. For me it really doesn't: in all the examples there they follow the flow of the upper leg/knee, on the marines they stick out at weird angles at times.  I think they look more like Muay Thai/kickboxing shin guards:

 

Edited Sunday at 02:29 PM by Matcap86

[phandaal]

4 hours ago, Crimson Longinus said:

BTW, if people want primaris with low gorgets and no knee rims, then Blood Claws kit is an excellent source of those. I don't play Wolves, but I've used them to add variety to my squads. If you give them classic helmets, I think they look very similar to the old style marines. 

 

 

GW really did an exceptional job with the Blood Claws kit. I was hoping to see a lot more of that in new MkX kits (still am).

 

And yes, too many pics out there of people sticking beaky helms on MkX chests and somehow not noticing that all of them are constantly looking up. Like dude, trim the gorget!

[Xenith]

43 minutes ago, Matcap86 said:

 I think they look more like Muay Thai/kickboxing shin guards:

 

They look like Mk6 greaves to me!

[Mazer Rackham]

1 hour ago, phandaal said:

Like dude, trim the gorget!

 

Spoiler so as not OT too much. I trust this is agreeable?

 

I also hacked off his poleyn flanges. There's just so much flash on my new Mk VII's, no?

 

Spoiler

 

[phandaal]

3 minutes ago, Mazer Rackham said:

 

Spoiler so as not OT too much. I trust this is agreeable?

 

I also hacked off his poleyn flanges. There's just so much flash on my new Mk VII's, no?

 

  Hide contents

 

 

Yes, sir! You may have the vaunted Phandaal Seal of Approval. 

 

(Looks awesome!)

 

[Zebukkuk]

On 8/25/2026 at 11:06 AM, FarFromSam said:

Checked.   I thought the floating tanks had the fly key word... what's the point of floating tanks with jet engines?   Other than to look like  children's saturday cartoon slop that

is?

 

Sorry to get off topic, but they never had the Fly keyword. They are not skimmers in the same sense as Eldar or Tau vehicles.

 

The background is clear on this. Cawl’s Primaris grav tanks don’t actually fly. Their sheer weight causes the anti-grav propulsion to crush the ground beneath them. They do move through air but only at a short distance above the ground.

 

Anyway, I won’t be surprised to see new Space Marine tracked vehicles. Anti-gravity does not make sense for heavy ordnance such as whatever ends up replacing the Whirlwind. There is also a potential background justification, where anti-gravity plates become difficult to produce, and the Astartes are forced to fall back on older technology.

 

Regarding the Vindicator, it makes a lot more sense in Epic scale. Space Marines don’t have much access to heavy siege weaponry like the Astra Militarum does. When it’s required the Vindicator fills that niche role, maybe not as well as a Bombard or Medusa, but good enough to get the job done.

 

My only reservations about the new Space Marine codex is that it effectively negates the Leagues from having much of an identity. Space Marines are taking their unique T5 basic infantry and apparently also their +1 to hit while on an objective, or attacking a target on an objective. And then Leagues players may have to wait until nearly the end of 11th edition to stop being shadows of Astartes.

[Karhedron]

13 minutes ago, Zebukkuk said:

Sorry to get off topic, but they never had the Fly keyword. They are not skimmers in the same sense as Eldar or Tau vehicles.

 

Repulsors and Impulsor did have the FLY keyword in 8th edition. It was quite powerful as it meant that they could Fall Back from combat and still shoot without impediment.

 

[Xenith]

+1 to that, it was one of the first major changes of the new edition, first taking fly away from grab tanks, and then taking fall back and shoot away from FLY.

[The Lost Son]

Are we getting a small reveal with the Q&A on Friday or is it just what it says on the tin? Be nice to know what's happening with the supplement chapters though. 

[Antarius]

13 hours ago, Zebukkuk said:

 

Regarding the Vindicator, it makes a lot more sense in Epic scale. Space Marines don’t have much access to heavy siege weaponry like the Astra Militarum does. When it’s required the Vindicator fills that niche role, maybe not as well as a Bombard or Medusa, but good enough to get the job done.

This is true, but also depends on what is meant by “siege weaponry” (something which is often somewhat unclear both in the lore and when we, the hobbyists, talk about it). The Vindicator is clearly not built for a protracted siege and bombardment role, but for smashing through defensive positions (and enemies) at close range.

[jaxom]

2 hours ago, Antarius said:

This is true, but also depends on what is meant by “siege weaponry” (something which is often somewhat unclear both in the lore and when we, the hobbyists, talk about it). The Vindicator is clearly not built for a protracted siege and bombardment role, but for smashing through defensive positions (and enemies) at close range.

Plus there used to be more narrative missions regarding sieges, with fortifications etc, that engaged with having siege-type vehicles.