Im still new to Warhammer 40k and I know the process of becoming a space marine with the implants and such but I was never told anything involving chapters. Do space marines choose their chapters or are they given them? If so, How are they given their chapter?
No. Chapters have specific recruiting worlds, some of the most dangerous planets in the galaxy, and they select children to turn into new recuits. A Chapter does not share recruiting worlds with anyone.
As said above, all depends on the planet you are born on. And thats IF you are lucky enough (or unlucky enough) to be born on a SM recruiting world. They recruit in different ways though, some are pretty similar to each other while others have very unique ways of getting new recruits.
The only chapter which does allow some choice for who joins and serves in its ranks is the Deathwatch, and even then that's an assembly of established chapters. Some chapters do also allow some choice when it comes to their recruits however. Rather than just putting them in death-pits or whatnot, some are given the choice between making a perilous journey to the chapter keep or Fortress Monastery or living out their lives as a normal human. That said, most cultures do establish becoming an astartes as a great honour.
Space Marines...41st Millenium paedophiles? Scouring the galaxy for children to groom into a society filled with men. All headed up by a man seen as god. No wonder Dark Angels wear cloaks and hoods.
In hours heresy times it happened that recruits will be put in another legion then intended Like in the white scar book where a terra recruit who was supposed to join the luna wolves was send to the white scars But I don't know how often such things happened Oh and the recruit still had no choice So basicly no they can't choose Even if they are a surviver of a destroyed chapter they will be asigned to anot her chapter But they can't choose it themself Only way to get a free will is becoming a renegade
Wow, I just thought of something. How awkward it'd be to go through the whole genetic fuckery Space marines go through, have the gene seed implanted, and then realizing it wasn't for the chapter you wanted. Gee, just try to explain that to the Chapter master. "You know I was really hoping on becoming a Lamenter. Whoops"
GW actually released a book that goes over some of the specifics that Space Marine recruits go through (I believe it was the Index Astartes). But basically it works like this: Most chapters either have a recruiting world or they get recruits from a series of worlds (perhaps because they lost their original world). The Dark Angels (for example) lost Caliban, their original home planet, and now recruit from a number of worlds; one of which is populated by what were originally something akin to a Native American tribe, which explains the feathers and some of the characters' names as well as the white armor of the Deathwing (a tradition of the tribe). The Dark Angels, and other Space Marine chapters, understand that losing a recruiting world is the surest way for the Chapter to die, so there's basically no extent that a Space Marine won't go to save their planet(s). A recruit is typically very young when they are selected by the Chapter, but the technique that goes into making a Space Marine can be performed on a full adult. Recruits are usually chosen through a strenuous ritual or challenge, and it's considered a great honor for the family to have one of their children accepted. With the exception of the Blood Angels, creating a Space Marine takes decades of training, gene therapy, surgery and other things to turn them into super humans. The first fighting a marine will do would be as part of a scout division, and they earn their way into a Battle Company as a full marine. From there a Marine's career will be many hundreds of years long, ideally. Some of the oldest serving Marines are around a thousand years old. I don't believe Marines die of old age. Some Dreadnoughts are even older, with Bjorn the Fell-Handed (Space Wolves) being old enough to remember their primarch, which would make him a cool ten-thousand years old. If you can afford their ridiculous pricing, Games Workshop's lore books (of which they currently have dozens on offer) are typically really interesting and well made and full of great artwork.
