Games Workshop has revealed a brand new model for Marneus Calgar, chapter master of the Ultramarines and Lord of Macragge. Calgar is now equipped in a modernised version of the exquisite Terminator armor he wore between the fourth and seventh editions of Warhammer 40k – and is joined by new models for his Victrix Honor Guard, and even the meme infamous Cato Sicarius.
Before Games Workshop started bringing the Warhammer 40k Primarchs back to life, Marneus Calgar was one of the most famous and powerful special characters in all of Warhammer 40k. He’s also one of the oldest: if we count the ‘Imperial Commander’ model from Rogue Trader, which wasn’t sold as Marneus Calgar but did perfectly match his art, then this is the fifth version of the Lord of Macragge.
The new iteration is a conspicuous call back to the third version of Calgar that was released shortly after the Space Marines’ fourth edition 40k codex, around 2004-2005. He’s wearing the massive ‘Armor of Antilochus’, a special Terminator suit blinged out with gold trim, and wielding the punchtastic Gauntlets of Ultramar.
Games Workshop also revealed a retro-tastic bodyguard for Calgar, with new minis for the Victrix Honor Guard. The most recent Victrix models were equipped with big shields and swords, but the new figures hearken back to the older Honor Guard models that came packed in with the original Terminator Calgar.
Unlike those older minis, the new Victrix Honor Guard will be sold separately, as a three model multi-part kit. They can be built wielding master-crafted bolt carbines and power axes, and there are options to build one model as a Chapter Ancient carrying the Banner of Macragge, and another as a dual sword-wielding Chapter Champion.
The head of the Victrix Honor Guard, Cato Sicarius, gets a new mini as well. Meme-infamous as a man never afraid to announce his own presence, Sicarius was formerly the captain of the Ultramarines second company, until he and his whole command got lost in the warp. He survived, made his way back to Macragge, and now heads up the Chapter Master’s bodyguard.
This is the latest in a series of minor expansions to various Space Marine Chapters this year, following on from new and updated character minis for the Ravenguard, Iron Hands, Salamanders, Imperial Fists, and White Scars. GW has released free dataslates for those figures, but hasn’t revealed when Calgar and his party posse might get new rules.
What do you think of the new Calgar? Do you have a version of this long-lived special character? Which other retro designs do you want to see modernised into new minis – or do you think GW should stop riffing so heavily on nostalgia? Come and share your thoughts in the official Wargamer Discord community!