The Noise Marines are Chaos Space Marines who traded ordinary warfare for overwhelming sound. They serve Slaanesh, the Chaos God of excess, and turn noise itself into a weapon that shreds bodies and minds alike.
What the Noise Marines are
They’re dedicated Slaaneshi foot soldiers, most often found in the Emperor’s Children Traitor Legion, though other Slaanesh-devoted warbands like the Flawless Host field them too. Their whole identity is sonic weaponry: blasters, screams, and instrument-shaped guns that confuse, demoralise, and kill.
Slaanesh also rewires them physically. They get heightened senses and superhuman hearing, which means the louder the battle, the more alive they feel. After ten thousand years of war, only the sound of death and destruction really stirs them.
Where they came from
The first Noise Marines go back to just before the Horus Heresy. After the Cleansing of Laeran, corruption seeped into the 28th Expedition Fleet, and remembrancer Bequa Kynska composed a symphony called the Maraviglia. Its debut drove the audience into an orgy of sex and violence, possessed part of the orchestra, and showed that instruments could be murderous weapons.
Not long after, at the Battle of Isstvan V, Emperor’s Children marines took those weapons to war as the first Noise Marines. During the Heresy they developed the psycho-sonic Kakophoni. Today that name usually refers specifically to the Emperor’s Children’s Noise Marines, as opposed to those in other warbands.
Weapons and appearance
Noise Marines carry sonic blasters, blastmasters, and other psycho-sonic weapons. Some look like guns with skulls on the end, while others resemble electric guitars, basses, or pipe organs. Back-mounted speakers amplify the din.
Their armour is bright and disorienting, often painted in bizarre patterns that help them stand out and distract enemies. It’s more than intimidation, it’s part of the sensory assault.
- Sonic blaster: the standard noise weapon, a rapid-fire sonic gun
- Blastmaster: a heavier sonic weapon with multiple firing modes
- Doom siren: a shrieking close-range sonic attack
- Back speakers: amplify sound and make the Marine a walking concert of pain
Why they matter
The Noise Marines are one of Chaos’s strangest and most recognisable units. They show what devotion to Slaanesh actually looks like on the tabletop and in lore: more than pleasure, but sensation pushed until nothing normal can satisfy it.
They also sit at a crossroads in 40k history. They’re tied to the Emperor’s Children, one of the original Traitor Legions, and to the Horus Heresy’s earliest corruption. For fans, they’re a fan-favourite unit that had gone years without new models, which is why recent hints of a return have got so much attention.
Key facts
- Noise Marines are Slaaneshi Chaos Space Marines who fight with sonic weaponry.
- They’re most common in the Emperor’s Children Traitor Legion.
- Their origins trace to the Maraviglia symphony and the Battle of Isstvan V.
- Slaanesh grants them heightened senses and superhuman hearing.
- Their weapons include sonic blasters, blastmasters, and instrument-shaped guns.
- They last received new miniatures in 2018, with a line refresh hinted for 2025.
FAQ
Who do the Noise Marines worship?
Slaanesh, the Chaos God of excess and sensation. Their sonic weapons are designed to stimulate the user as much as harm the enemy.
Which Legion are the Noise Marines from?
They’re most associated with the Emperor’s Children, the Traitor Legion once led by Primarch Fulgrim. Other Slaanesh-devoted warbands field them too.
What’s a Kakophoni?
Originally the psycho-sonic weapons of the Heresy-era Noise Marines. These days it usually means the Noise Marines of the Emperor’s Children specifically.