According to long-established convention, there are 1,000 Space Marine chapters in the Imperium – but the Warhammer 40k fandom likes some of them a lot more than others. The ‘big 12’ – the loyalist First Founding chapters, Deathwatch, Grey Knights, and Black Templars – are always at the front of the pack. But now, thanks to Reddit data cruncher ChromedDragon, we know how all the others rank.
We first encountered ChromedDragon’s chapter rankings back in March 2024. He’d used a variety of sources to try and gauge which chapters had the most active communities within the broader Warhammer 40k fandom. He was the first to admit that there were limits to his data, which primarily reflect an informal survey and the size of the dedicated subreddits for each chapter.
But until some anthropologists start studying this topic, ChromedDragon is producing the only research there is. You can find his full rankings, and ask him questions about his method, in the r/warhammer subreddit. Here’s the top 10 most popular minor chapters, and how their rank has changed since 2024:
| Chapter | Rank change |
| Raptors | +5 |
| Blood Ravens | – |
| Carcharadons | +1 |
| Crimson Fists | -3 |
| Lamenters | – |
| Flesh Tearers | -3 |
| Minotaurs | – |
| Dark Krakens | +16 |
| Legion of the Damned | -1 |
| Scythes of the Emperor | +6 |
The Raptors leaping five spots in a year is quite the achievement (though big jumps are in keeping for a Ravenguard successor chapter). I’m not totally surprised: they’re a great home for Phobos Space Marines, and YouTuber Pete the Wargamer has been making some utterly excellent Raptors conversions, like those in the video below:
The explosion in popularity for the Dark Krakens does surprise me, because they’re a Salamanders successor chapter I’ve really not heard much about. Maybe it’s that nice black and royal purple color scheme? It only takes a few great miniature painters to put their spin on a Warhammer 40k faction to really amp up its popularity.
Which is your favorite minor Space Marine chapter? If you’ve got photos to share, either of your own army or an Instagram painter you love, we’d love to see them in the Wargamer Discord community. And if I’ve missed a really obvious reason why the Dark Krakens have blown up in popularity, do come and let me know.