Picking a Space Marine Combat Patrol Without Locking Ourselves In
Generic Space Marines, or a chapter with character?
A question came up in our chat recently that is probably familiar to a lot of people getting into Warhammer 40,000: if the box says Combat Patrol: Space Marines, does that mean Ultramarines?
Short answer: no. That box is basically a more generic loyalist Space Marine starting point, so it works well for people who don’t want to commit to a specific chapter right away.
And honestly, we get the appeal. Sometimes you just want to build and paint cool power-armoured super-soldiers first, and worry about chapter colours and lore later.
The catch: future-proof, but not necessarily the most exciting patrol
Our take from the conversation was pretty simple: the generic Space Marines Combat Patrol is fine, and maybe even future-proof in the sense that it doesn’t force a chapter identity on you from day one.
But at the same time, it may be a bit less varied as a Combat Patrol than some of the more themed options.
The contents mentioned were:
- 5 Terminators
- 5 Infernus Marines
- Terminator Captain
- Terminator Librarian
That’s not bad at all. In fact, it’s actually a pretty cool little core if you like Terminator armour. Five Terminators is a strong selling point by itself. We can absolutely see someone picking it up just because the models are nice.
So if the goal is: “we want solid Space Marine models and we’ll decide the chapter later”, this box makes sense.
If the goal is: “we want an army with a strong identity right now”, then it might be better to start with a chapter or faction that already has a clear theme.
If we already know what vibe we want, themed patrols are tempting
That was really the key advice in the chat: it’s probably better to buy the Combat Patrol for the force we already feel excited about.
And right now there are some very distinct options around.
Space Wolves
The new or newly arriving Space Wolves patrol got mentioned as a very attractive option. The pitch basically sells itself:
- loyalist Space Marines
- a strong Viking / wolf / rune priest aesthetic
- very new miniatures
If someone already knows they want their Marines to feel savage, mythic, and full of character, Space Wolves sound like a much more flavorful starting point than a generic box.
Dark Angels
Dark Angels also came up as one of the recent releases worth looking at.
One of the coolest things about them is that they are among the few factions that can field their Primarch, Lion El’Jonson. That’s a huge draw if we like armies with major lore characters at the center.
There is just something special about starting an army that has a very defined identity from the beginning.
Ultramarines
If someone does want the classic poster-boy chapter, then yes, Ultramarines are still very much on the table.
And of course they also have their Primarch: Roboute Guilliman.
So while the generic Space Marines box is not specifically Ultramarines, it can absolutely become Ultramarines later if that’s where the project ends up going.
Emperor’s Children
The conversation also drifted toward the other side of the galaxy, because recently Emperor’s Children were mentioned as a fresh and exciting option too.
That means going away from loyalist Marines and into Chaos Space Marines, specifically the Traitor Legion devoted to Slaanesh.
That is obviously a very different hobby direction, but also a reminder that if we are choosing a first box, it helps to think not only about rules, but about the fantasy we want on the table.
Do we want noble heroes in ceramite? Do we want knightly secrecy? Do we want Viking-flavoured wolf warriors? Or do we want decadent, corrupted traitor marines?
That answer matters more than whether one starter box is a little more efficient than another.
Big characters matter more than we sometimes admit
One fun thing from the chat was how quickly the discussion moved toward Primarchs and centerpiece models.
- Dark Angels have Lion El’Jonson
- Ultramarines have Roboute Guilliman
- Michał has Mortarion
And honestly, that says a lot about how people really pick armies.
Yes, we talk about list-building, flexibility, model count, and value in the box. But very often the real deciding factor is: “does this army have something that makes us go wow?”
A chapter or legion with a strong visual hook, a favourite character, or a unique vibe will usually keep us motivated much longer than the most neutral, sensible purchase.
Our takeaway
If we were giving the same advice in one paragraph, it would be this:
- Combat Patrol: Space Marines is a generic loyalist Marine box, not an Ultramarines-only one
- it looks like a decent long-term starting point if we don’t want to commit yet
- the models themselves are solid, especially the 5 Terminators
- but if we already know what chapter or faction excites us, it’s probably better to buy into that directly
In other words: the generic box is safe, but the themed box is often more fun.
And for army-building, fun usually wins.
What would we pick right now: generic Space Marines, Space Wolves, Dark Angels, Ultramarines, or even Emperor’s Children? That’s exactly the kind of hobby crossroads we love.
If this turns into an actual army project, we’ll definitely want to come back and show where it landed.