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Female Space Marines? Let’s be civil.

Let’s start this conversation right up here at the front with the clear caveat that we all (I hope) are rational adults who can behave in a civil society. I know that’s a steep ask in some realms of fandom, but I also know that it’s a perfectly fine ask in the much larger realms of fandom. So, we’re going to talk about whether or not there can be female Space Marines, and we’re going to be mature about it.

This discussion has been around since the very beginnings of Rogue Trader, White Dwarf, and the fundamentals of Warhammer 40k lore, so it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise to anyone. Female Space Marines are a subject of controversy, and, if we’re laying all our cards on the table, I don’t think they should be.

So let’s look at the standard arguments for why female Space Marines are a problem, a little of the history, and some possible solutions.

Female Space Marines: What Are The Arguments Against It?

Reason #1. Regular Old Sexism

Let’s get this out of the way tight up front: female Space Marines are often seen as a problem because of the sexism that is intrinsic in some parts of wargaming.

But let’s get into the more nuanced reasons for why Space Marines can’t be female.

Reason #2. It Changes the Lore

There is indeed lore, published in the very early days of Warhammer 40k which reads thusly: “These considerations mean that only a small proportion of people can become Space Marines. They must be male because zygotes are keyed to male hormones and tissue types…”

So, yes, the lore, or at least the lore from an article in White Dwarf from 30 years ago say that Space Marines must be male. So on the scoreboard of “Must Be Male” vs “Can Be Female”,
“Must Be Male” gets a checkmark in it’s tally sheet. But it’s worth noting that this isn’t stated very often. That comes not from a Codex or a Rulebook or anything thereunto, but it comes from White Dwarf #98, and we all know that A LOT of things get said in White Dwarf that are… questionable.

That said, in the defense of this argument, we know that all of the Space Marines that we have seen in pictures and books for the last thirty years (well, almost all) have been identified as male–or, at least–identify as male. They look male. They call each other “Brother” and they’re referred to as “Sons.”

Female Space Marine Models

There’s a tricky thing here because if you look way back into the annals of Space Marine history, you’re going to find women in power armor. Biggest still, there’s the issue of the Little Sisters of Purification Chapter of the Space Marines.

Here are two such women

Let’s be fair. The women in power armor were not officially Space Marines (though they looked like it) and were officially called “Adventurers”. And the Little Sisters of Purification weren’t officially licensed Games Workshop IP, but were 3rd-party fan content.

So The Introduction of Female Space Marines Would Change The Lore. But… So What?

Let’s look at the most convincing reason:

Reason #3. Female Space Marines Just Weren’t Selling

This is the most likely reason that we don’t have female Space Marines, because it IS the reason, because it was explicitly stated by the Head of Games Workshop’s Intellectual Property, Alan Merrett, on the Oldhammer Facebook Group. The screenshots are posted below, but here are the important bits:

Alan Merrett: “The reason there aren’t female Space Marines has nothing to do with lore, or background or character of Marines. It’s to do with simple logistics of making miniatures and selling miniatures. Early Citadel ranges had female versions of most character types – in fact when we produced the C range the intention was that upwards of 25% of all the models would be female. But when we started selling the first fully formed C code, which was C01 Fighters, retailers kept complaining to us that customers weren’t buying the female models and could we please not include any in their restocks. So we took the female models out of circulation.”

So it comes down to what was selling. That’s it. That’s the reason, straight from the horse’s mouth.

Which raises the question: are the target demographics for Warhammer 40k in 2022 the same as the target demographics for Warhammer 40k in 1987? Basically, if they thought they could sell a lot of something, have you ever known Games Workshop to not want to make a buck?

Changing the Lore

Games Workshop has ways around dealing with new lore that contradicts old lore and it’s what we in the writing world like to called Handwavium. You wave your hand and say “These are not the droids you’re looking for” and the lore gets changed and everything is fine. This is not a big deal. This is a normal thing.

Take, for example, any time that something new is introduced to Warhammer 40k. There are some pretty groundbreaking changes like Primaris (which we’ll get to–oh yes, we’ll get to it) but there are plenty of other things that just happen when Games Workshop releases new models. They say “these are the new models, and they’ve been like this for millennia, and we just haven’t mentioned them before.” This happens with virtually every single change within the Imperium because, remember, technology is stagnant in the Imperium, so when they release a new vehicle or a new suit of armor they have to have an explanation for where it came from, and that answer is Handwavium: “These models have always existed. Centurions and Paragon Warsuits and Hammerfall Bunkers have all existed forever. We just haven’t gotten around to talking about them.”

Belisaurius Cawl and the Primaris Marines

Here’s the biggest retcon in the history of Warhammer 40k lore. Space Marines were perfect, borne from the gene-seed of their progenitor Primarch, and then Guilliman came back and Belisarius Cawl told him that he had created thousands upon thousands of SUPERIOR Space Marines, who were still based on the gene-seed but who had three extra organs and were bigger, stronger and tougher.

If Belisarius Cawl could do that, what’s to stop him from saying that he has made some female Space Marines? NOTHING. There is NOTHING stopping Games Workshop from saying that and it being 100% canon.

Let’s Talk About Space Marine Gender

I mentioned above that Space Marines “identified” as male, and I used that word with a purpose. Space Marines call each other Brothers and Sons, but Space Marines are also almost free from standard human emotion. They don’t have romantic relationships in the way that regular humans do–if they have them at all. They don’t love at all, except for familial love.

And we know that when a young boy is chosen to be a Space Marine he goes through such incredible changes to his body that he is essentially unrecognizable to his former friends. Not only is he almost two feet taller than his friends and twice as wide, but his face has also changed. This is due to being implanted with organ after organ and going through rigorous testing and training and psychological, well, torture. A Space Marine, after he is a Space Marine, does not appear to be what he once was.

So the question is: what would a female Space Marine look like? Well, they wouldn’t look like Sisters of Battle, because they’re now much taller and broader and tougher and stronger. Would they have an hourglass figure? Doubtful, given what we’ve seen of female body builders or female mixed martial artists.

No, a female Space Marine would look, for all intents and purposes, like a male Space Marine, which is not to say that the transition to Space Marine causes a female to become male, but that the transition from skinny boy on a deathworld to magnificent specimen of perfection is probably very very similar to the transition from skinny girl on a deathworld into a magnificent specimen of perfection.

And no, female Space Marines will not need boob armor.

Is There A Market for Female Space Marines?

So now we’ve come down to it. If Games Workshop chose not to produce female Space Marines because they weren’t selling, then is the marketplace ready NOW for the introduction of female Space Marines?

My answer: I honestly don’t know. There certainly seems to be a lot of talk around the subject, which there wasn’t in 1987. More women than ever are getting into Warhammer 40k (which isn’t necessarily a bellringer, as many women choose not to play the obvious female models–the Sisters of Battle–and many men very willingly play the Sisters of Battle.)

But the point is this: Games Workshop COULD introduce female Space Marines if they wanted to and there would be no good reason to stop them. Not lore, not sales, and certainly sexism shouldn’t be considered a worthwhile reason. Personally I’m in favor of it.

What do you think? Should Games Workshop reintroduce female Space Marines? Why or why not?

Also, while you’re at it take a look at this art exhibit that recently gave artists the challenge of creating female Space Marines. It might change your mind when you see the things they came up with.

For more discussion, in much more depth, watch this excellent video by Arbitor Ian