Warhammer 40,000is bringing back one of Chaos’s more unique troopers, the loud and cacophonous Noise Marines. While Space Marines are the Imperium of Man’s greatest defenders, they are also some of humanity’s biggest scourges. Ten thousand years before the “modern day” ofWarhammer 40K, half of the Space Marines turned traitor and gave themselves to Chaos. Although these Chaos Space Marines were ultimately defeated in the civil war known as the Horus Heresy, many survived and continue to terrorize the Imperium to this day.
The mutating powers of Chaos changed many of these Space Marines, turning many of them into literal superhuman monsters. However, others adopted more unusual weaponry to match their specific pursuits. One of the more unusual Chaos Space Marines are the Noise Marines, who are uniquely dedicated to pleasure and pain through the use of overwhelming sonic noise. While Noise Marines are incredibly unique and popular,they haven’t received a new miniature since 2018and haven’t had a line refresh since 1999; that’s seemingly about to change.
The Noise Marines Are One Of Warhammer 40K’s Most Unique Units
Noise Marines Use Instrument-Like Weapons To Kill Their Foes
Games Workshop has recently hinted, on theWarhammer Communitysite, at the return of Noise Marines in 2025. While Space Marines and their Chaos-tainted counterparts use a variety of weaponry, the Noise Marines are unique in that they wield a variety of sonic weapons. These sonic weapons are not only designed to disorient and injure their enemies,they also are meant to simultaneously stimulate the Noise Marines themselves. That’s because the Noise Marines are dedicated to the pursuit of excessive stimulation, a result of their dedication to theWarhammer 40KChaos GodSlaanesh.
While some sonic weapons resemble guns with skulls on their ends, other sonic weapons resemble large musical instruments. Some sonic weapons resemble electric guitars or basses, while others look like large pipe organs. To help amplify the noise,many Noise Marines wear speakers on their back,boosting their power. Noise Marines also wear bright and disorienting armor, often with bizarre patterns, which help make them stand out and distract foes on the battlefield. They also have supernaturally keen hearing, allowing them to better stimulate themselves with noise.
The Noise Marines' History Explained
Noise Marines Have A Dark History
The first Noise Marines came from the Emperor’s Children, a group of Chaos Space Marines led by the Primarch Fulgrim. Before the outset of the Horus Heresy, a group of the Emperor’s Children visited a temple dedicated to Slaanesh, accompanied by a human musician named Bequa Kynska. The temple corrupted Kynska and led her to create a terrible symphony named the Maraviglia. To help with the symphony,Kynska created several instruments that doubled as weapons.Unsurprisingly, the debut performance of the Maraviglia caused the warp to directly touch the audience, causing a variety of mutations and pushing the audience into a feast of murder and hedonism.
A more complete history of the Noise Marines plays out in the novelFulgrimby Graham McNeill, which shows Fulgrim’s fall in the lead up to the Horus Heresy.
Members of the Emperor’s Children took up the sonic weapons and used them against Loyalist Space Marines during the Horus Heresy.Some organized into a unit called the Kakophoni, where they continued to experiment with sonic weapons in the pursuit of creating more noise to use against both their enemies and on themselves. Now, Noise Marines seek out the din of battle, where they unleash their unique weapons. Even more terrifying is that the Noise Marine’s unique weapons can also cause their targets to be touched by the Warp itself, opening them up to madness or mutations.
Why The Noise Marines Are Coming Back Now
Noise Marines Are In Desperate Need Of A Miniature Update
So why are the Noise Marines making a comeback in 2025?In recent years, Games Workshop has refreshed its line of Chaos Space Marines,with an average of one chapter per edition. The Thousand Sons were updated with seventh edition, Plague Marines were updated with eighth edition, and the World Eaters were redone with ninth edition. It might just be time for the Emperor’s Children (who are representatives of the Chaos God Slaanesh) to get their long-awaited update. After all, it’s been nearly 25 years since Noise Marines received a full set of miniatures.
Additionally, Chaos Space Marines are a popular choice of villains forWarhammer 40Kvideo games, as evidenced by the appearance of theThousand Sons inWarhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2.Several other Traitor Legions appear in the multiplayer modes ofSpace Marine 2, but none represent Slaanesh. Similar to how the Dark Angels appeared in theSeason Pass forSpace Marine 2, it wouldn’t be surprising if Noise Marines were added as a future update.
With the Emperor’s Children making a comeback,it’s likely that Games Workshop is preparing to release a Fulgrim miniature too.In recent years, the various Primarchs, both Loyalist and Traitorous, have been making a comeback withinWarhammer 40K’s lore. Mortarion, Magnus, and Angron have all returned to the present day ofWarhammer 40K. While Fulgrim survived the Horus Heresy and became a four-armed serpent Daemon, he vanished thousands of years ago. Since the Emperor’s Children are returning, it stands to reason that Fulgrim is also returning inWarhammer 40K.
