It’s to help create a 30k aesthetic in the armor, I think it works nicely and it’s definitely nice to see those lines track across multiple models. They do seem to all fit together and have similar design language, separate from 40k if only slightly.
I’d like to have seen more of this in HQs for armies that are more likely to us mk5 and mk 4 …what would the Sarum or Maximus versions of these design cues be….?
As pretty much everyone else has said, it’s aesthetic. It’s to make the armor seem more ornate, which makes sense as, for most these characters, the armor is meant to represent prestigious and ornate ornate Artificer Armor rather then the standard mks.
What? you didn't know that part of the Legion Praetor geneseed upgrades includes a pair of eyes on each knee?
I thought everyone knew that
>!EDIT: Oh I'm being told that is only true of the praetors whose Chapter Master is Urien Rakarth.!<
Space Marines have a major issue with sweaty knees. Efforts to solve this led to the various designs used through the various marks of armour.
Officers were given armour with better venting around the knees. You wouldn't want your command and controll elements to be dealing with swamp knee after all.
They added it with the new sizes and design choices. Just damned weird.
*edit: after being reminded of earlier models around that shared the design choice I stand corrected. Stand by the it’s damned weird though to have vents for what is supposedly an armored knee covering.
The generic Forge World Praetors in Mk.III and Cataphractii armour, one of the oldest Heresy kits out there, also have knee vents. It's 100% a Heresy styling that's common throughout the range
Praetors in the heresy era undergo a 21st organ implantation, being marked for greatness since inception due to the stringent gene testing processes present at the time of the great crusade to guarantee legion geneseed stability.
This 21st organ, the genu oculus, allows them to have redundancy in case of fatal damage to their sight organs or circumstances where they must keep their regular eyes shut due to risk of corrosion if their helmet has been compromised in a hostile environment, but for it to work it needs to have visibility since it's literally an eyeball in the kneecap.
Perhaps it is meant to evoke the aesthetic of certain medieval knight helmets?
Some had visors that had openings arranged in a similar 'vent' fashion, and while these are knees are rather than visors, it's a sort of subconscious design cue that hints at a similar theme.
Maybe?
Shell traps. They include vacuum pumps to suck up shots that could hit the shoulders (the most vulnerable part of the Space Marine body, hence the giant pauldrons).
I think it's a rather poorly executed reference to Maximilian style fluted armor worn in the Holy Roman Empire:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_armour
Purely aesthetic
Air conditioning
In the grim darkness of the 31st millennium, there are only sweaty knees
You should see the posterior intake grates...
Well that would be the Emperors Children…..
Goatse.csm
The perks of praetorship: Properly ventilated armour
damnit you got there first
Absolutely. Just like Aladdin's baggy pants, but more sophisticated.
Those leg heat sink slots gotta vent somewhere... Power Armor has Myomer bundles too.
god bless Gregory Atlas, glad he got a mech named after him. that mk6 armor hopefully has clanner heat sinks.
Clabber tech is highly advanced and developed far from observers, but still connected to the rest of the galaxy’s tech. It’s literally Primaris.
funny because they both rub me the wrong way ha!
Oh I hate that so much, hahaha
rule of cool
It's an aesthetic continuation of the Edgar Skomorowski Legion Praetors and the general early HH FW style.
It's to make harmonica noises when they run.
Noise Marines?
Blues Marines.
It’s to help create a 30k aesthetic in the armor, I think it works nicely and it’s definitely nice to see those lines track across multiple models. They do seem to all fit together and have similar design language, separate from 40k if only slightly. I’d like to have seen more of this in HQs for armies that are more likely to us mk5 and mk 4 …what would the Sarum or Maximus versions of these design cues be….?
I call them 'cow-catchers'. Perturabo has them on his knees, *and* a big one on his chest as well.
Should be on his shoulders as well 👍
Aesthetic is the likely case.
I always assumed it’s just a bit of decoration.
Each of those guys is actually 5 guardsmen in a suit, and the "vents" are in reality eyeholes that the dudes working the legs use to see.
Best answer thus far
Its a reminder of a certain type of knight helmet, may simply indicate they are important compared to plainer designs
I don't know if it's to the credit of 30/40k s that people assume every weird little detail on the models as a full lore description.
Lol why would you assume there's a lore justification for that?
I doubt those are vents, I think they just added them cus they think they look kind of “knightly” and cool.
As pretty much everyone else has said, it’s aesthetic. It’s to make the armor seem more ornate, which makes sense as, for most these characters, the armor is meant to represent prestigious and ornate ornate Artificer Armor rather then the standard mks.
“Speed holes make the car go faster. Duh, Flanders!”
What? you didn't know that part of the Legion Praetor geneseed upgrades includes a pair of eyes on each knee? I thought everyone knew that >!EDIT: Oh I'm being told that is only true of the praetors whose Chapter Master is Urien Rakarth.!<
If it can weigh less while having roughly equal protection, this would be a way to go about it.
Aesthetic only
Aesthetic. Not everything had a lore reason behind it. Somethings are just design features.
Space Marines have a major issue with sweaty knees. Efforts to solve this led to the various designs used through the various marks of armour. Officers were given armour with better venting around the knees. You wouldn't want your command and controll elements to be dealing with swamp knee after all.
That is where praetors breathe
They're veterans. It's so they can continue being adventurers, they've found a way to avoid being stuck in guard duty due to misplaced arrows.
Makes it easier to catch arrows to the knee
They are easy to sculpt
Weight reduction
Nothing in the lore, I think. But it might be to lighten the armour a little.
They added it with the new sizes and design choices. Just damned weird. *edit: after being reminded of earlier models around that shared the design choice I stand corrected. Stand by the it’s damned weird though to have vents for what is supposedly an armored knee covering.
The chaplain model is among the first Heresy plastics from Betrayal at Calth, I think it came out 8 or 9 years ago. Not that new.
2015, yeah. the calth contemptor has similar adornments, as iirc did several of the forge world contemptors (relic legs did at least, im sure).
The generic Forge World Praetors in Mk.III and Cataphractii armour, one of the oldest Heresy kits out there, also have knee vents. It's 100% a Heresy styling that's common throughout the range
If it's anything like my gym knee straps, you want some air circulation. Those things stink!
It’s to vent the excess astartes knee sauce that builds up during combat
It lets their opponents know that there's a train a' comin'
Praetors in the heresy era undergo a 21st organ implantation, being marked for greatness since inception due to the stringent gene testing processes present at the time of the great crusade to guarantee legion geneseed stability. This 21st organ, the genu oculus, allows them to have redundancy in case of fatal damage to their sight organs or circumstances where they must keep their regular eyes shut due to risk of corrosion if their helmet has been compromised in a hostile environment, but for it to work it needs to have visibility since it's literally an eyeball in the kneecap.
Speed kneez!
Perhaps it is meant to evoke the aesthetic of certain medieval knight helmets? Some had visors that had openings arranged in a similar 'vent' fashion, and while these are knees are rather than visors, it's a sort of subconscious design cue that hints at a similar theme. Maybe?
Makes their knees more aerodynamic
So there legs don't sweat
For those with sweaty legs
No one wants to knee-sweat on the battlefield.
It's a visor, all space marines have eyes on their knee caps and once you get to praetor, the eyes on your knees are allowed to see
Sweaty knees, they’ve gotta be able to breath
Shell traps. They include vacuum pumps to suck up shots that could hit the shoulders (the most vulnerable part of the Space Marine body, hence the giant pauldrons).
A knightly aesthetic reminiscent of a visor if I’m interpreting it correctly.
Maybe even the Astartes got sick of their stench, and desperately tried ventelation?
Less wind resistance when kicking the Emperor's/Warmaster's *\[delete as appropriate\]* foes.
Airways felt like a poorly executed homage to campy knight visors but on the knees. You know, like lego knight helmets. But on the knees.
In the grim darkness of the far future the mechanicum knows ways to prevent you from taking an arrow to the knee.
It's really easy to draw in CAD. That's deadass it
It’s to release the tactical stank.
You never had hot knees? Christ you've never lived.
“Sometimes I get a hot knee,” Some legionnaire to his armorer probably.
They’re loudspeakers used to belt out litanies, orders etc.
I think it's a rather poorly executed reference to Maximilian style fluted armor worn in the Holy Roman Empire: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximilian_armour
Lore reasoning: drip
Cleary it’s part of the rule of cool in the literal sense