Astartes Project by Syama Pedersen - Original Version - Full Edit - All Parts 

Update: On 3/27/24 Syama posted on his LinkedIn asking for vfx help with a homebrew project accompanied by a short teaser for it: www.linkedin.com/posts/syama-pedersen-339b8761_looking-for-some-vfx-help-for-a-little-homebrew-activity-7178565260147138560-CsAT Disclaimer: Some viewers have reported mild siezures triggered by sounds in this video. Edit: The original creator has been hired on by GW to continue the project and contribute to others. As such the originals are no longer available on RU-vid, the project is now on Warhammer Community. Links have been updated. I'm not sure how this news will affect the future of the project, but I find myself feeling pessimistic. I hope I am wrong. Either way, this video will remain up as long as I am allowed to and I have added a mega link for this edit, sans the first intro text, at the bottom of this comment and the description. Edit2: GW in their infinite wisdom has decided the world needs yet another streaming platform, so any future projects will now only be available on Warhammer+. Needless to say, this is a disappointing turn of events. Putting the content exclusively on their own, much less popular, website was bad enough. This video itself has garnered nearly 300,000 additional views since that move. That's free publicity they would deny their artists in order to greedily sell exclusivity. To then put the content behind yet another barrier, this one now monetary and a recurring subscription, and expect anyone to sign up for it is foolish greed and I don't see many people doing it. If they do it will be in support of the artist, but I fear as always in the end they will be the ones to get the short end of the stick. Edit3: www.belloflostsouls.net/2021/07/games-workshop-clamping-down-on-fan-animations.html Tl;Dr: Games Workshop bought up most of the the creators of the most popular fanmade animation projects, put their future work behind a subscription paywall, and has now made a policy making fanmade animation projects IP infringement. Notably, this only applies to animations. 40000 IQ. Edit4: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-SxS2kRFni_o.html Anyone interested in helping GW in the battle against heretical intellectual property thieves? Then I have just the job for you. Parts 1 - 5 of the Astartes Project by Syama Pedersen, edited into one video for convenience. I played no part in the making of this film. All credit goes to the creator: Astartes Channel ru-vid.com/show-UCFMtdiQILuTZr22sKUeAOOAfeatured Astartes Animation on Warhammer Community www.warhammer-community.com/warhammer-animation-astartes/ www.patreon.com/astartesfilm www.paypal.me/astartesfilm instagram.com/astartesfilm/ Download link for this edit: mega.nz/file/z951AIwb#1ap2FzWfrGbjjNA7tNAuctc8LfVI0Uag8Ll-skTLTpk

Me, who knows nothing about warhammer 40k: wow this is fucking awesome

Imagine putting your heart and soul into working on the Ultramarines movie only to be completely out done by one kiwi madlad.

Honestly, the fight scene at 4:00 is incredible. No Wasted Actions, no "toying" with them, just two equally powerful and intelligent enemies taking a fight to the death seriously.

At first I thought "Damn why did he puke, isn't he made of tougher stuff?" but then I realised my man probably just teleported about 10,000 light years and survived in the immaterium without a gellar feild for about 60 seconds, he's lucky to have his organs all in the right place.

When your fan film is so well made and so damn badass that the official company decides to make it canon.

the best defense against the astartes is having a ship with really narrow hallways and low ceilings

Theres several things in this video that subtley shows off enhanced Astartes physiology and gear: 1:20 Right from the very beginning, Astartes genhanced bodies allows them withstand an incredibly aggressive boarding ram that would likely shatter a normal humans body. 1:37 The helmet has full spectrum visualization and can also auto lock on potential targets. However Space marines can basically see in the dark, they probably dont even need the helmet to find their targets. In addition, they process information incredibly quickly even after the shock of the previous boarding action. All the targets are marked and divided up between the squadmates in an instant. 1:45 Space Marines drill endlessly with their weapons. That coupled with their auto-range finders and armor assisted targeting, they rarely miss. Plus their incredibly fast reactions means they can pop off a shot seemingly the second a target presents itself. Notice the guy in the back rounded a corner and instantly got popped. 2:32 Once again we see basically no wasted shots. The enemy is in cover and in the dark and yet each shot is a perfect headshot. 2:34 The rocket launcher guy managed to get a shot off but the marine probably saw him well in advance even from what looks like quite a distance away. He can quickly calculate the trajectory of the rocket and only needs to sidestep a little bit to evade. No need to dive into cover as he is THAT confident that the rocket will not hit. Keep in mind that rocket would actually do some damage if it managed to hit. 2:47 The sniper guy managed to pull off a prepared ambush with a heavy weapon. The first marine just keeps moving, he likely has over a century of battlefield experience and he knows his squadmate pulling up the rear will take care of it, if he stalls the advance then his whole squad will be vulnerable. The second marine in the column reacted instantly and angled his pauldron to take the shot. And finally the last marine takes care of the guy. 3:06 Space marines have incredible hearing too. This marine probably heard the guy try to sneak up on him even in the middle of a hectic firefight. In the freeze frame you can see the marine tilt his head right before the guy shows up from the shadows. 3:35 Marines have near total recall and muscle memory, this marine fired a couple shots earlier, threw a blind grenade, recalled the gun position and muscle memory to fire through his own smoke. Blind grenades btw also has chaff to blind EM detection, which you can see from all the sparks in the smoke, so his own helmet would not be able to pierce the smoke. 4:07 Marines do have internal encrypted channels for communication, as well as their own hand signals (battle-sign) for non-electronic communications, but they have so much experience working as a squad that almost no communication is necessary. Just a simple glance to indicate readiness and a head nod to signal go. 4:30 These two marines are hit with a psyker pressure wave. A normal human would probably be crushed but they come back later not worse for wear. 4:57 Astartes are both fortified mentally and physically. This marine is engaging in a battle of both mental and physical with the psyker and slowly pushing through. 5:17 The marine is recovering MID-air with his primary weapon loss and instantly switched to a double handed knife grip, putting his whole weight behind the strike. He also likely surmised from earlier that this is the best possible chance to overcome the psyker kine shield, with overwhelming physical force concentrated on a single point. Once again demonstrating quick thinking and experience, constantly switching strategies. ----Finally getting near the end. 8:05 That sphere probably tried to mentally corrupt the astartes in some way. But the psycho-indoctrination that all marines go through likely prevents most mind control attempts. The tau tried to indoctrinate a marine once and it ended terribly, for the tau. 10:03 This subtley shows the military discipline that all marines, really any professional military has. The captain gave an order to recall that was probably unexpected, but the subordinate didnt even question it and instantly leaps into action. 10:28 Space marines know no fear. They see a threat and react to eliminate it. A psyker in the middle of a demonic possession would be a terrifying experience for almost any human in this setting. And of course the sargeant puts a few more rounds in for good measure. 11:11 Just pure decisive crisis management. The marine overloads his plasma pistol in an attempt to free his squad knowing itll likely cost him his arm. 12:03 Space marine blood clots almost immediatly, which is what i think those dark things in the coughed up blood. Also the black mesh in the back of the guys neck is probably the black carapace, which is a subdermal organ that allows the marine to directly integrate his entire nervous system into his armor. 12:07 This marine has one gold service stud and two silver ones. So roughly two centuries of service. In a Codex chapter, he would probably be a standard line infantry tactical squad marine. But this is a homebrew chapter and hes part of an impulsor squad.

I would happily pay $30 just to watch 3 hours of this

3 years later and this one man still hold the title of best animation ever.

The scary part about fighting these big boys is that even though the "enemy" did everything right - Identify the breach position very quickly and set up a crossfire kill zone right there (just look at how big the ship is in the intro, yet they were there to meet them with over a dozen men at different angles/levels), fortify surrounding corridors with heavy weaponry, ambush tactics with anti-materiel rifles and suicide bombers, long range mega gatling cannon, willing to sacrifice their own troops ... and it STILL felt like a walk in the park for the Astrates.

Its saddening that Astartes is the best content on Warhammer+, they actually got everything right when it comes to Spacemarines. 1. They hardly or never talk 2. They don't die by just one shot 3.They are fast, tactically superior warriors 4.They are a brute unstoppable force ...saddening, because it needed an outside developer to show GW how it s done

Funfact, his fananimation became so popular that besides hiring Syama Pedersen. GW also made his Space Marine Chapter Canon.

Grabbing this for historical archiving.

4:22 When the Emperor says he's signing autographs.

I've watched this a few times over the years, and I've NEVER EVER noticed that at 12:20, you can see the other Astartes being teleported in, first on the right, then left, then right again. I don't however see the 5th one. Really amazing details that I had never noticed for 4+ years.

5:27 might be my favorite moment in the video…no dialogue, no head nod…just a silent look, from one brother in arms to another, that conveys everything by saying nothing…a look that speaks “I’ve got your back, because I know you have mine.”

I still cannot believe this was fan made by a single person. It is absolutely insane. Not a SINGLE frame was done without care for the quality of production but also care for the lore of WH.

The best thing about Astartes is that the creator made Space Marine's enemies competent. It's just that the tactics and abilities of the Space Marines are superior in every way.

I don't know much about warhammer, but I really appreciate how the action happens in real time, no repetition, no dramatic pauses. It's not something you see all that often in animation, and it offers a unique kind of... viscerality. We're shown what two overpowered factions seriously trying to end each other looks like, and neither of them is going to slow down for us. But despite going so fast, the video is still full of details for you to find if you just go back and look. It's not using the fast pace to hide a lack of effort.

After accidentally hearing about this I tried to watch the original on YT, which is gone. Then I found it on warhammer-community, which didn't play sound for me. GW really did a hell of a job of keeping people from seeing this. Thanks a lot for keeping this up!

Oh my... In the autocannon sniper scene i've never even noticed the sniper actually has A SPOTTER on his side... That's why the space marine fires twice... I swear there's a new detail every time i watch this masterpiece again

I just want to point out that this guy, by leaps and bounds, is a better director than most people in Hollywood. The action is clear, easy to follow, exciting, and has none of the stupid action tropes found in modern movies; no stupid shaky cam, no super quick cuts, no dumbass melodramatic slo-mos, none of that crap. It just goes to show that sometimes an inspired amateur knows a hell of a lot more than the professionals crapping out their big-budget bombs and calling it art.

There's something about the way they walk at 1:52. They walk with such authority and presence. Never gets old.

The visuals, the sounds, the atmosphere. Fast, tactical, unstoppable. That's who Astartes is. Dark, brutal, mysterious. That's what Warhammer 40k is.

Big companies: "How is it possible to make a movie with millions of dollars and thousands of workers!?" Fans: "Are you serious...?"

One thing I’ll always appreciate about this is that it actually managed to make the bird beak helmet look cool for once.

I don't know anything about Warhammer, I don't know what's going on here, but this is goddamn AMAZING! I would absolutely pay to see a full feature length film of this!

Syama Pedersen asked for help on a homebrew animation in a LinkedIn post two days ago (March 27, 2024). It looks like he's currently working with a studio called Digital Bones. There's a teaser video released with the post and as per his usual specs, it's amazing. Legends never die.

I see a lot of people praising the animation. But can we talk about the sound effect tho? It's very on point. The muffled explosion in space (I know you got no sound in space, it's only for the sake of the animation). The sound of bullet hitting the armor, the sound of barrier and psychic activating, footstep's, heck he even knew to make conversation muffled so it build up the tense. All and all, this guy not only a genius in animation but also in sound effect.

How ironic that in GW's zeal to protect their IP, they've done more damage to it themselves than any youtuber ever could.

The effects in this are just insane. The way the smoke dissipates around the shot at 3:35! This was extremely well done.

that was completely insane. why isn’t there 4 more hours of this? the artwork and motion are astonishing.

The way the animator has made eery movement of the astartes be so deliberate and confident is impeccable.

This guy got me into Warhammer 40k. GW's actions towards their fans got me out of it.

The Space Marine in the white cape absolutely knows how baller he looks.

@ 2:45, the attention to detail is just amazing. The cadence of the firing and the fact that he one-shots both the sniper and the spotter preshadows how easily they are going to be brute-forced.

Man. Sucks to think this might be the last great fan animation after the new announcements. Jesus.

The marine at the end has 200+ years of service. Imagine surviving 200 years in 40k Universe.

Their resistance to the sphere’s psyker waves starting around 8:00 is so sick

i come back ever so often to watch this masterpiece....watching it again today...🙂

If Henry Cavill can make his show even 75% as awesome as this, I'm a happy man

The only movie about Astartes that truly conveys how elite these troops really are. While Space Marines often look cartoonish in other videos, even in official Games Workshop clips, here you really get the feeling you are up against humanity's most advanced warriors. The silent professionalism in which they move. Every shot a hit. Armour impenetrable by ordinary weapons. Superhuman speed and reflexes. Also their incredible willpower in the fight with the psychers. Simply outstanding!

I think the crowning achievement for the "attention to detail" aspect of this animation is the consideration for the interaction between air pressure and particle effects. When the Astartes first exit their boarding craft, their firing clears the smoke of their arrival Dust gets disturbed then cleared away by the blowback from that huge repeating rifle Plasma pistol punching a hole through the smoke grenade cloud not particle physics, but the veteran's cape also gets pushed around during the Inquisitor's "exorcism" It just blows my mind. I've probably watched this a hundred times and I always find something new during each viewing

What I love about the story being told here, as mentioned by someone else on the original video, is just how _powerless_ regular people are against an astartes. From ambushes to a chokepoint wuth a heavy gun, willingly sacrificing their own men in hopes of bringing down even just one of them and it means _nothing_ Your weapons don't matter, your tactics don't matter, YOU don't matter when you are up against them. Such excellent story telling in an otherwise already awesome work of art!

Funny thing I just noticed - Syama did not delete the project off his artstation page. Instead, he's linked each episode to timestamped parts of this very video.

Not only did GW take down the originals and put them on its own site, they even modified it for the worse. Green filter, changed sounds and they even deleted the absolutely kickass after credit scene. I dont know why was it so hard to respect the dudes vision when it was already perfect. He went up and beyond for everyone. Nonetheless thank you for letting me rewatch the original!

The brutal efficiency and single-minded determination really made this stand out for me, nothing flashy or unnecessary, just soldiers with a mission 🤯🤯🤯

I still love how methodically these guys work. it's just another day for these marines.

I would pay 1 dollar for every minute for a 7 hour movie of this masterpiece. The Emperor protects.

Ngl, this actually made me get into WH 40k lore just to understand it. That's how good this was.

10:26 best moment in this masterpiece

I never even heard of Warhammer 40k before this video. Now I watch 40k lore videos everyday.

It's really cool that GW are basically telling anyone who is passionate enough to make an animation to fuck off. Pretty disappointing when a company punishes its fanbase for loving the IP.

12:23 It took me watching this 50 times to notice those flashes and then to realize that he is on one of the pillars and his brothers are also teleporting onto those pillars. I thought he just got dropped into some desolate warp valley all alone

The film that introduced me to 40k

You know, there's a special kind of love that only a true fan can give to this kind of art, something just a bit different than anything the company itself can give it

We need a 40k movie just like this. Depicitng how powerful the Astartes are.

I've never see anyone else mention this. You can actually see the other space marines warping in at the end on the pillars in the distance. Wild, never noticed despite countless watches

I've watched this so many times and I am still baffeled how one person that is invested in the lore can make something so fcking beautiful.

The amount of detail and care put into every moment of this is truly astounding. I especially love the sound effects.

9:57 Anyone else hear the psyker say "recall them immediately"? The amount of detail in this continues to blow me away. Every time I come back to it something else makes me marvel.

I really like that the Space Marines NEVER talk in this. It makes them seem even more badass. Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of a Chapter Master or someone like that giving a pre-battle speech about glory and The EMPEROR and getting them all hyped - but then once they're on the mission, they're just so synced up and all know their roles so well that they don't have to say anything. They just kill shit.

I really hope that the new 40,000k series is like this. I like it without dialogue, it gives it that original Conan the barbarian feel. You know, the only one that matters. If the showrunners have watched this and some other fanfiction, we may have a great show.

Just the sheer cold calculated way the Space Marines work in this short film. Damn everytime i watch it, it impresses me.

true talent is rare.. and this guy? puts studios to shame.

I have no clue what’s going on but I’m enjoying every second of it.

every once in a while i come back to watch this masterpiece

The cinematography here is absolutely phenomenal

4:09 The inclusion of a two-stage trigger on the bolters is probably my favorite detail in the entire series. Syama knows his firearms.

Well, boys, this is the only thing we have left of original Astartes now. May GW not ruin his vision, but at least we still have this to remind us what was. Edit: so the answer is now clear. GW did force him into their fold in order to push their paid streaming service. GW shoots themselves in the foot (with a bolter) once again.

it still blows my mind how good this is. ive watched it probably 50 times spanning many months and it has never gotten boring or old. mind blowingly amazing.

The amount of details he puts into this for every single frame never ceases to surprise me. Its been a few years and countless re-watches and im still spotting new details that i never realized were even there

10:42 If you look closely, a great subtle touch is how the Space Marine pulls back when that creature's face appears, makes them still feel human at how unnerved seeing something like that so close so suddenly can get you.

The fact that GW had the fucking audacity to alter the SOUND DESIGN, one of the best things about the Astartes series, does not bode well.

Ugh this animation is so good, everything about it, the weight and speed of the astartes is so good and the sound design is amazing

This is some of the most brilliant work I've ever seen.

Bruh, the Inquisitor straight looked at the commander as he over heard the daemons talking about possessing him. He knew what was coming and warned the space marine thus saving the entire ship with that simple gesture. What a boss, took his fate with absolute loyalty.

Amazing how a fan project can make the Ultramarines movie look like a bad joke.

The monsters we made that protect us from the monsters. The Emperor Protects.

Rest in Peace unnamed Psycher. You did your duty to the end. The Emperor's mercy dealt by his angels released you from the grip of evil.

The almost not noticeable detail at the end is the Astartes response time. He just got his arm blown off, got flung around in the void and then teleported to some unknown place. It takes him just a few seconds to start looking at his surroundings. It is the equivalent of being kicked in the stomach, thrown down a flight of stairs into a dark room and being told you have 6 seconds to identify your surroundings.

I love how they made the marines actually fast. Normally when you have something as big as a marine they are lumbering and slow. Wonderfull job

That immediate walk off as soon as they kill the psykers is so g-damn warhammer it makes me shiver every time

this video is the beginning of my Warhammer journey.

Best and most believable adaptation of the Adeptus Astartes as written in the books. Too many depictions get them wrong as slow, lumbering tanks: I laughed with outright joy seeing them run the 100 yard dash in just a couple seconds in full armor. Absolutely awesome video for 40k fans!

One thing I like is that the perspective is resolutely outside the armour. You can tell in some instances (the coordinated attack on the Chaos sorcerers, the scene with the Inquisition psyker) that communication *happens*, but it remains contained within the armour. To outsiders, the Astartes look like they operate by telepathy or some sort of gestalt intelligence, and it makes them that much scarier. Yes, I realise that was most likely driven by a lack of voice talent, but that only makes it *more* impressive. The creator took a real lack and turned it into a strength of the end product.

I'll never stop rewatching this

This deserves to be an animated or a movie bc I LOVE THE ANIMATION OMG JUST LOOK HOW CREATIVE THIS LOOKS

4:55 The scene where the Astartes pushes through Psyker powers, fueled by pure strength and hatred and rage, shit is so intense. This is such an incredibly well made animation. It's phenomenal.

Don't mind me, just here to download the original Astartes before GW nukes the video.

This short film was my first real step into Warhammer and I’m thankful for it.

This so good, I watch it each time it loops in my feed and it’s always amazing!

Syama Pedersen, the creator of this animation, is a one man triple A animation studio. This is incredibly well animated and directed.

I think one of the reason why other 40k animation don't hit as hard as this is their lack of dialogue. It maintains the mysticism and uniqueness

Anyone wondering, the music at the end (12:00) is "Pilotpriest - Future is gone" I searched for ages to find it and I doubt I'm the only one.

My friend Alfred showed me this bit a week ago and I was new to Warhammer 40k or anything in general. Lets just say after watching this, its been a non stop ride for me and this franchise. Truly one of the greatest I've come across. Its like everything I love in one big ol thing. 😢

10:29 When GW sees decent fan made content

-"You would destroy us with 5 astartes?" -"We would destroy you with 1 astartes."

2:05 always cracks me up. Like they’re already all running towards the marines to stop them, yet the one guy just angrily feels the need to zap one of the people despite doing their job.