Space Marines and The Imperium (generally speaking) are different things, but Space Marines are part of the Imperium. I'm new to the Warhammer 40k universe, I played only Dawn of War and it's expantions. And I spent a lot of time on the wh40k wiki, reading lore. (I still have a lot to read) The Space Marines are a baddass faction, but, with all the genocide in their history, the indoctrination, the corruption, the xenos hatred ( well this at least justified with all the war-like races in the galaxy ), the blind faith, I can't get along with them. They are better than Tau, Eldars and Chaos (for me). What am I missing? (it's only a game, so please don't get mad at me for my ignorance )
They do what needs to be done, there are some questionable chapters out there but there is also some really good ones. Salamanders will do anything for their civilian population and treat them well. My personal favourite is Dark Angels and they can be quite harsh but they are loyal and strong. They take the fight to the Chaos and hunt down their betrayers.
The most common explanation lies in the table top game itself, it's because Space Marines is what you always have on GW tables and are the race people get introduced to when they start playing the game. (Not to mention store staff are forced by their supervisors and superiors to sell Space Marines and Ultramarines like a used car salesman). They are the easiest models to clean, glue together and paint; the easiest army to learn to play and remember their stats. And are for the most part the most inexpensive army to field. 20 Space Marine models = about 60 models for most other armies. Price wise, they are the cheapest option. By around 2005 the popularity of them extended past the TT fans to "general fans" thanks to them being the poster child of the video game tie ins to the franchise. The reason the video games didn't take off in the 90s like they did in the 2000s was because in the 90s they were obscure and completely dwarfed by the popularity of simulation games and doom clones on PC. They are popular because of two reasons, the first already stated. The second because it was trendy to like space marines, then you wanted to know more about them in the lore. Then you got hooked on the lore associated with them and then you liked them for more than just the original reasons for liking them. I at one point too liked Space Marines; then I matured and moved onto things which appeal more to me, rather than appeal to everyone else. Orks appeal to me for a dozen reasons which I won't go into, because it would be "tl;dr" for most.
I dont think its fair to say "The second because it was trendy to like space marines" There are some genuine fans out there who like them because of the lore. But I also agree most people like them because they are the poster boy
They are probably popular because they are the most versatile force in both melee and ranged you have to choose from unlike Eldar and Tau, Necrons, Tyranids, and etc they all rely on specialists more.
Tbh, Space Marines looked very silly to me the first time I saw them. "Big, bald men in bigger armour and weird shoulderplates" was my first reaction. I was much more pleased by the aesthetics of DE and CWE. Also to some extent I didn't like the look on their vehicles. Imperial Guard is still pretty impressive sight if it is a well-painted army on Tabletop, and they have some cool artwork. I still don't like their vehicles much either with the exception of some of their flyers. As to why they are popular, what Psyctooth said. All those shoulderplates and smooth vehicles, easy to paint and glue.
Because if you don't, you are a heretic. More seriously, I'm somehow attracted by the Imperium faction mostly because it reflects our own pre-third millennium history and biggest mistakes (in worse!), showing how mere humans (i.e. guardsmen) desperatly struggle for survival, even in the worst kind of situations. However, I like just a few of the Adeptus Astartes chapters, which includes (1) those which IMO have a smart organization/tactics and don't show off with bright colored armors (e.g. Raven Guard), (2) the complete assholes (e.g. Marines Malevolent) and (3) the bully boys which nonetheless have a promising background (e.g. Minotaurs, the 'Lords of Terra's war dogs'). But else I can't stand most of them for being nothing more than brainless overgrown humans on steroids with a boring background (I will not mention any names to avoid butthurt reactions from the room though). Anyway, eldar are still a more interesting race for me.
Some very nice argumantion I share. So I will just add one point : They are human. The Imperium (that is IG and Space Marine) is popular because it is easier to identify yourself to a human than to an orks or an Eldar. And who don't like trooper in power armour dropping from the sky? (yes, the Space Marine are just a rename of the Starship Trooper of the same book). PS : Anvael why post third millenium? The IG are basically the WWII Russian army, so should be "pre" 3rd millenium? Best regards, Skanvak Drakken de la Maison des Drakkens
While I agree with your reasoning about why people identify easily with the Imperium, I have to dispute your comment about the Imperial Gurad. They are based on a lot of different real-life armies, not only the WWII Soviet one. For example, the Steel Legion of Armageddon are obviously early-WWII Wehrmacht, the Death Corps of Krieg are WWI-era armies, the Mordian Iron Guard are prussians, the Catachan Jungle Fighters are vietnam-era solders, etc. In fact, only the Valhallan Ice Warriors fit the soviet mold due to their wintry planet, disregard for casualities and mass human wave tactics. It is a common mistake in the fandom to conflate the IG into a homogenous Red Army-parody.
My bad, I was actually meaning "pre" and not "post" Thank you for pointing it out. About the Mordian Iron Guard => http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iron_Guard Those guys were in some ways even worse than the SS!
