First off, bad way of putting it I know, but, thats my "for lack of a better word" moment.

Now, I want to roleplay my kill team between missions, in the fortresses and on the ships, but, do the marines wear their armor EVERYWHERE? I'd like to imagine that the brothers have other peices of clothing, more than just their armor. I remember reading somewhere that brothers have a "arming" chamber in their quarters, basically a storage closet for their armor and weapons. (I could be wrong, mind you) Now I understand that these articles of clothing would generally relfect the culture of their chapter, such as a DA dressed in a Gregorian Monk's style robe or an Ultrmarine wearing a Toga like peice. I understand if they are in the fortress or if the are running training exercises, but I figure they would relieve themselves of it in order to reduce the upkeep needed to keep them running. Now I dont know what canon has to say, but, can any body enlighten me?

If fluff doesn't say any thing, I say let's get some community fluff going then!

-J

Robes are - I believe - the order of the day. After all, this reflects the somewhat monastic nature of the Astartes. And obviously some kind of gym-wear for training. Loin-cloths and olive oil or a shellsuit and Nikes, depending on the desired levels of homoerotisism.

Siranui said:

Thanks for the coffee through the nose

But yes, there are a handful of threads on this very topic across the board in various places. Most people have their KTs wear robes, tunics, etc. while outside of a mission and outside of immediate danger. The KT in my group wear clothing styles inspired by the chapter they're a member of, using the ancient history their backgrounds are linked to as inspiration.

Marines do not need to remove their armour for very long periods, if at all; so it's possible for a kill-team member to remain fully armoured at all times if he so chooses.

If a Marine wishes to wear something less martial, though, most of the fiction indicates that they wear either the preferred garb of their homeworld or chapter home, or very simple tunics or robes. Ultramarines and their successors often wear Roman-style tunics and loose pants, Space Wolves wear furs and leather, Dark Angels often wear monastic robes, and Black Templars (presumably) wear very simple, coarse, monastic garb. A lot of times the Chapter demeanour and pre-existing background will provide you with enough info to determine what a marine wears when he removes his wargear.

And non-Combat clothing kinda answers the question of, "What happens to the rest of the wolf the Space Wolf Brother DOES NOT adorne his armor with." Makes sense now.....THOSE THINGS ARE HUGE!

-J

That brings up a question in my mind, what would the Blood Angels wear?

-J

Black trenchcoats?

They wear similar garb to what the Ultramarines wear, as per the Blood Angels novels.

I dimly recall a page of fluff from one of the Codex: Space Marines books (3rd edition, I think?) that outlined a marine's daily schedule when he wasn't out fighting in the name of the Emperor. As I recall it included 4 hours of sleep and two 1 hour "leisure time" breaks, which the fluff-wise Codex suggested be spent contemplating the glory of the Emeror or something like that. The rest of the day was divided between prayer and training exercises.

This was the regimen suggested by the Codex Astartes anyway, so orthodox chapters like the Ultramarines can be expected to follow it pretty closely, while more deviant chapters might have a different approach in places.

Based on that, as far as clothing goes, the average marine probably only needs his armor, a suitable robe for the praying parts (if not general attire) and, as Siranui suggests, something for training sessions that don't involve full combat gear. If your marines ever find themselves wearing something akin to a T-shirt, you might want to make a point of describing how the black carapace connectors on the chest create bulges and snags to add some flavour.

Jkilla41 said:

40K Roleplay is generally not a roleplay focussed system, by which I mean they do not very much detail culture details, everyday life stuff.

I would assume that there is such a thing as Erioch robes. I would also think that no Space Wolf would be caught dead in one of those. Codex adherent, authority-respecting chapter marines otoh would put those probably on. I think in the DW civilian clothing probably would differ from Watch Fortresss to Watch Fortress.

Alex

Jkilla41 said:

Opera cloaks with red linings.

Siranui said:

Whatever, just no shirts. They can't sparkle properly with shirts on.

ultramarines - pink fluffy slippers

space wolves - Very fluffy slippers

Dark angels - matching his and hers bath robes

Blood angels - body oil and thong

Storm wardens - rain coat

Steve-O said:

That was IMHO one of the dumbest things GW ever did, it turned the Space Marines from noble knights into mindless killing machines, exactly the sort of rot people point to when they say DW cannot be a ROLEplaying game, and must merely be a tactical simulator. The Ultramarines also run the battlebarges, have administrative duties, and the Ultras even run a mini-empire! They simply need more time in the day to do all that. one "Hour of Prayer" aint gonna cut it.

Steve-O said:

You are much too generous. In fact it was 15 minutes leisure time. And even that is shunned by some chapter because they think too much time to let the mind wander unoccupied is too dangerous a diversion.

Umbranus said:

Deathwatch marines enjoy more freedoms. I don't have the exact quote from the rulebook at hand though.

Alex

Fenrisnorth said:

Not everyone likes it (obviously), but Marines are not average people with a normal personality. Hypno-indoctrination, the immense psychological stress of the creation process, their often very aggressive homeworld culture and last but not least the fact that they live solely to be thrown into battle again and again, at times fighting days without sleep, do leave their scars on the mind. And in my opinion, this kind of personality flaw is essential for "balancing" their superhuman appearance and combat efficiency, for an accurate depiction of their "larger than life" style, and of course for avoiding the dreaded Mary-Sue cliché.

You can still roleplay a Marine, it just becomes more difficult. For comparison, see the huge difference in the novels, with a lot of authors "humanizing" their Astartes because they believe that they will only be interesting as characters when they are pressed into the "noble knight" mold. Know Thine Enemy from Gav Thorpe is one of the few stories that gets it right. There are some good sources to draw inspiration from, and in fact I think it's easier to roleplay than to write stories about them. Just focus on the aspect of Brotherhood and keep in mind that you're supposed to be a stern, no-nonsense representation of the Emperor's wrath. Will such characters be as diverse and many-faceted as normal humans? No. Similar to how Sororitas won't be as diverse and many-faceted as Guardsmen. This is the price you pay. Part of the background and the style, and the attraction of careers which are not as limited.

As a sidenote, I actually think it was 30 minutes, not 1 hour - and that a lot of Chapters are not even allowing that because they think it is sloth and a waste of time. Not that this would apply in a Deathwatch campaign, mind you. This is just the rules for their Fortress-Monastery, when they're not busy fighting a war.

Regarding the clothing (and this is just how i do it, not a fact or something), in the players "Welcome to DW" package they will find a loincloth and a robe. This promotes order and unity for "off dutie" players. If a player chose to bring clothes from their home chapter and use them he will probly be regarded as arogant. This might affect the cohesion score.

ak-73 said:

This much is true, and should be elaborated upon; the life of a "Typical" Space Marine is not necessarily indicative of the life a Deathwatch Marine will lead; those selected for the Deathwatch are different, and not necessarily in the "look how awesome I am in a fight" sense, much as Acolytes in Dark Heresy are different from the common masses of people from amongst whom they were recruited. A typical Space Marine may think of nothing but duty, honour and righteous genocide. A Marine selected for the Deathwatch has a broader mind, a greater capacity to doubt and contemplate, and is not so strongly bound by dogma and tradition as the brethren he left behind.

It's the same thing I've played up with Acolytes in Dark Heresy games, and to a lesser extent the characters in a Rogue Trader game (though it's less necessary there, as the PCs are obviously a cut above the mass of humanity) - player characters are not normal people, and most of that abnormality is in their mindset. Most people in the Imperium don't question, don't doubt their place and their duty, and don't concern themselves with much beyond their own business. Acolytes and Deathwatch Space Marines alike are those that don't fit that broad mass of unthinking society, the ones who might otherwise be ostrascised for thinking outside the box, for doubting their betters and the status quo and so forth... instead, the Inquisition and the Deathwatch have a need for those who deviate from the norm, for individuals able to make their own decisions and come to their own conclusions.

An 'average' Space Marine might well be unplayable from a roleplay perspective... but those chosen to serve the Deathwatch are by no means average.

N0-1_H3r3 said:

I would expand upon this a bit more. The Death watch have always struck me as the 'SAS' (or 'Delta Force' for our Friends over the pond) of the space marines. The original special forces SAS man were rebels and trouble makers in the north African army led by Field Marshal Montgomery during WWII. They were all exceptionally motivated and highly intelligent but were the ones who were caught getting extra rations or carousing with the locals with out a pass. many were anti establishmentbut and bucked orders, also many were not conscripted but volunteered. They were not just your normal commandoes like the Paras or Royal Marines(Rangers or Seals) who are super aggressive and focused but still follow ordergenerally. The Special forces operate on a much different basis and everything i read about the way the Deathwatch are set up screams the way SAS are trained and organised. Delta too. ( they based their entire setup on the SAS but with bucket loads more cash )

So back on topic they will quite possibly be a bit more of a range in 'off duty garb' or 'civvies' than dress like their historical chapter mich suggest. dont be stupid but one i have in mind it a pretty cool tunic and robe like Haile Selassie's picky on wiki. filled out a bit with a 350lb marine. Further,wthile they will accept discipline the Marine may also have been almost exiled, as their home chapter may view them as not conforming to the home chapter ideals. hence why the original chapters signed up to it, make them someone elses problem

Huros said:

Of course people's perception of the setting, including the "level of grimdarkness" of the Marines, may vary.

Lynata said:

QFT