Ultra Marines

"Courage and Honour."

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In the Warhammer 40,000 game, the Ultramarines are considered to be one of the greatest of all the Space Marine Chapters in the Imperium of Man, almost single handedly holding the Imperium together after the Horus Heresy. Highly disciplined and courageous warriors, the Ultramarines have remained true to the teachings of their Primarch for ten thousand years.

"Ultramarines" is a nod to both their standing among Space Marine chapters, as well as the overall colour scheme of the army; which also lends its name to one of the main paint colours sold by Games Workshop. They are loosely themed upon Ancient Rome, as exemplified in their names and their strict adherence to the Codex Astartes.

 

History

 

Roboute Guilliman

The Primarch of the Ultramarines Legion, Roboute Guilliman, appeared without explanation on the planet Macragge, a rocky, inhospitable world in what would become known as the Eastern Fringe of the Imperium.

Guilliman’s arrival was a time of great omen for the people of Macragge. Konor, one of the two Battle Kings, received a vision of a mighty warrior fighting away the darkness. After leading an expedition to the site portrayed in the vision, Konor found a golden-haired child.

Naming the child Roboute, Konor adopted him, and was amazed at the speed at which the child learned. Roboute was put through the compulsory military training academies, where he became a master of warfare at such speed; two years later he was considered the finest warrior on Macragge. Joining the military, he led a campaign to pacify the previously-unconquered Illyrium, the northern region of the planet. Within two months, he had both pacified and befriended the savage tribesmen.

Returning from his successful campaign, he found his home city in a state of anarchy. Leading his troops to the Senate house, he organised details to bring the city back under control. Entering the building, and defeating a hundred soldiers in the pay of the rival Battle King, Gallan, he found his adoptive father assassinated.

With the assistance of the troops loyal to both him and his adoptive father, Roboute brought the city under control, captured and executed the leaders of the rebellion, and assumed the role of Battle King. As Macragge and the surrounding systems flourished, the attention of the Emperor was attracted.

It was said that Roboute instantly recognized his true father, swearing loyalty to the Imperium and receiving command of the Ultramarines Legion in return.

 

The Great Crusade

Roboute Guilliman quickly assimilated the knowledge required for him to lead a Space Marine Legion, and took command. His talents lay in the art of war, and he led his soldiers to victory after victory, liberating countless worlds from oppression by alien races and Chaos loyalists, fighting in a way that caused minimal collateral damage, and winning over the hearts and minds of the people.

Back on Macragge, the Ultramarines who had remained behind began construction of the Fortress of Hera, and the training and genetic modification of new recruits. They were so effective, the Ultramarines Legion quickly became the largest of the twenty Space Marine Legions fighting in the Crusade. He was also one of the few primarchs to totally accept Horus's elevation to Warmaster, and Horus usually sought his counsel.

 

The Tyrannic Wars

Some of the most notable events in the ten thousand year history of the Ultramarines are classified as the Tyrannic Wars, the Chapter's efforts against the extragalactic invasion of The Great Devourer. During the latter half of the 41st millennium, the incursions of the Tyranid Hive Fleets began to draw the attention of the Imperium.

Directly in the invasion path of the Hive Fleet codenamed Behemoth, the Chapter Master of the Ultramarines, Marneus Calgar, ordered the deployment of the entire Chapter's forces in an effort to stall Behemoth's progress. Facing defeat on all fronts, Calgar ordered the forces under his command to retreat for Macragge, to mass for one last stand.

Despite horrendous losses from the orbital and polar defence grids protecting the Ultramarines' homeworld, many Tyranid organisms were able to reach the surface of the planet. Intense fighting spread across the planet, worst in the region of the northern polar defence installations, and while Calgar and the Ultramarines fleet were able to destroy the Tyranid ship-organisms, horrific casualties were suffered on the planet's surface. The entire elite First Company were wiped out to a man while defending the defence grids, and it took over two hundred years for the Ultramarines to rebuild the Company.

Since this time, the Ultramarines have become instrumental in the wars against other Hive Fleets. In response to the threat, and counter to the Codex Astartes, many of the veterans of the battle at Macragge have been formed into elite, specially trained anti-Tyranid squads. These Tyrannic War Veterans make up half of the reformed First Company, and are often seconded to the Deathwatch because of their experience and training.

 

Organization

The Ultramarines Chapter follows the teachings of their Primarch and the Codex Astartes with a religious dedication. They follow the organizational format laid out during the Second Founding with strict devotion, only deviating from their Primarch's teachings when the situation leaves them no other choice (like the creation of the Tyrannic War Veterans).

 

Tyrannic War Veterans

During the first incursion of the Tyranid hive-fleets, the Ultramarines were constantly fighting the extragalactic menace. The invasion of Hive Fleet Behemoth was halted at Macragge, in a series of battles that completely wiped out the elite First Company.

Veterans of Tyranid conflicts are often grouped into elite units of Tyrannic War Veterans, also known as Tyranid Hunters. These units specially trained to effectively fight the extragalactic menace. They are deployed in the Reserve Companies, to allow maximum flexibility of use, and are only ever used against Tyranid invasion. Currently, half of the Ultramarines First Company are composed of Tyrannic War Veterans.

 

Ultramarines Honour Guard

The Honour Guard are comprised of Ultramarines who guard the Chapter Banner. To become an Honour Guard, one must display courage that goes above and beyond the normal call in a given situation. Those that do are rewarded with a decorative, but practical, suit of power armor, with its most notable feature being the wings of the Imperium Eagle across the face of the helmet, and an Axe of Ultramar, a powerful weapon forged by the Techmarines in the Chapter's forge and constructed with rare ores excavated beneath the world of Prandium. Among those in the Honour Guard are two special individuals, the Ancient (an Honour Guard designated to carry the scarred Banner of Macragge into battle and wears stronger Artificer armor) and the Champion (an Honour Guard who carries the Honour Blades, a matching set of broadsword and poniard that only he may carry, and also wear stronger Artificer armor).

Marneus Calgar is usually accompanied by a squad of Honour Guard into battle. Other Chapter commanders can be accompanied by a squad, as well. Sometimes, individual Honour Guard members can join a normal Command squad, Tactical squad, or Devastator squad by replacing one marine from the squad.

 

Combat Doctrine

The Ultramarines adhere rigidly to the tenets laid down in the Codex Astartes. For ten thousand years they have fought in the manner described in its holy pages. Other Chapters may freely interpret the words of Guilliman but, to the Ultramarines, such deviation is unthinkable. The Codex Astartes is a work of divine wisdom, sanctified by the Emperor himself, and the Ultramarines see no reason to deviate from its wisdom. The life-long lessons of discipline and self-reliance that are taught to the people of Ultramar from birth give them the strength of character to hold true to teachings over ten thousand years old.

For any given tactical situation, the Codex has hundreds of pages devoted to how it may be met and overcome. Each warrior of the Chapter is required to memorise whole sections of the Codex so that within a Company there exists an entire record of the Codex’s tenets. The wisdom of thousands of Imperial warriors have contributed to the Codex, and details on everything from unit markings to launching a full-scale planetary assault are contained within its pages. The codex also holds the basis for imperial cities, giving blueprints for certain buildings and road systems, and also issuing a bog standard outline for defenses; the codex also gives guidelines for keeping imperial populations in line, prescribing social structures and PDF (planetary defence force) recruitment techniques. Within the book is also the command structure for the armies of the imperial guard. Because of the codex, armies can colonize entire systems and get to the stage of thriving cities with lightning fast precision and speed.

 

Appearance

The Ultramarines typically paint their power armour and vehicles a medium (Ultramarine) blue, and their symbol is an inverted white Omega. The Ultramarines also utilise black-and-yellow chevrons, usually on weapons such as power fists. They also incorporate the double-headed Imperial Eagle (especially seen in command and elite squads) in their armoury. They also have a gold (shining gold) trim on their imperial eagle. Their shoulder armor trim color varies depending on the company the marine belongs to, with the First Company being White, Second; Gold, etc.

 

Notable Members

 

Background and Character

The backstory of the Ultramarines Legion takes many elements from the ancient Greek (particularly Spartan) and Roman societies, namely in terms of military organisation. They are portrayed as the pre-eminent, stereotypical Space Marines army, as they do not require any additional rules supplements beyond the Codex. This portrayal has resulted in many players believing that the Ultramarines had no real 'character', an opinion recent changes have attempted to rectify, for example by introducing the concepts of "Honour Guards" and "Tyranid Hunters".

As the Ultramarines are one of the armies included with the boxed set of the game, there is a high proportion of new players amongst those fielding Ultramarine armies. This has led to the Ultramarines being looked down upon by some more experienced players, and being given the nickname of "Smurfs" (due to their colour scheme) by others.

The Ultramarines dominion over Ultramar gives these Astartes unparalleled contact with Imperial citizenry. Many sources (such as the Warriors of Ultramar series) suggest that this administrative role, and Ultramarine recruits coming from all across Ultramar, has led to an unusual level of affinity for the common Citizenry. The Ultramarines see regarding themselves as protectors as the innocent, and not simply the Imperium's best warriors. This indicates the Ultramarines are the noblest of marine Chapters, fighting for not merely honour and martial pride, but to protect their own