“In the grim dark future of the 41^st millennium there is only war.” ^[1]

Warhammer 40,000 (also known as Warhammer 40k), at its core, is a tabletop war strategy game. It has thousands of miniature models of each possible unit in an army, with hundreds of armies to choose from. Players collect their miniatures to build and paint, and eventually bring them to the table to play against other Warhammer fans.

However, if you ask a Warhammer fan what the game is about, you will get a much different answer. As my friend Matthew would say, “the Warhammer 40k universe is a very dark, dystopian far future in which intolerance for each living creature is at an all-time high.” Bloody battles between aliens and humans create an intricate world of lore that sucks in the most unsuspecting science fiction fan.

One of the core factions of Warhammer 40k is the Space Marines. With hundreds of different sub factions within the army itself, choosing which Astartes chapter to bring to the table. The following pages hold a brief overview and compilation of information for four popular Astartes factions:

Blood Angels

Imperial Fists

Salamanders

Ultramarines