40 CARROTWhat are the best units in the new Space Marines codex?
Every datasheet in the 11th edition Codex: Space Marines, graded S to F for competitive play. Each grade comes with the reason the unit earns or loses its slot, and the chapter or build that gets the most out of it.
TL;DR
Six units are S tier: Roboute Guilliman, Marneus Calgar, Aethon Shaan, Iron Father Feirros, Eradicators with melta rifles and the Impulsor that carries them. The A tier holds the best unit at each job, from Incursors and Scouts to Assault Terminators and the Repulsor. Basic Intercessors, plain Lieutenants, the Judiciar, Captain Titus, the Rhino and the Drop Pod are F tier.
How does this Space Marines tier list grade units?
Every datasheet printed in the codex gets one of five grades for competitive matched play, read in the book's launch week before points changes or a season of event results. A named character is graded for the chapter that can field it: an Ultramarines hero only matters to an Ultramarines list.
| Grade | What it means |
|---|---|
| S | Take it. Almost any list that is allowed to include it wants it. |
| A | The strongest choice for its job. Not every list has that job, which is the only thing keeping it out of S. |
| B | Good with a plan. Strong inside the right detachment, chapter or combination, ordinary outside it. |
| C | Inefficient. Playable for a narrow reason, but another unit usually does the same job better for the points. |
| F | Leave it on the shelf. There is no current reason to field it. |
There is no D tier. Below inefficient, a unit has no reason to be on the table at all.
Space Marines compete with themselves more than any other army does. Six chapters' heroes share one book, so a list can only use the heroes of its own chapter, and every generic unit is competing with a dozen others for the same slot. That is why so much of the book sits in B and C: the good units are very good, and they crowd out the rest.
Where does every Space Marines datasheet rank?
The whole codex on one board. The sections below give the reason for every placement.
- Roboute Guilliman
- Marneus Calgar
- Aethon Shaan
- Iron Father Feirros
- Eradicator Squad (melta rifles)
- Impulsor
- Wardens of Ultramar
- Tor Garadon
- Vulkan He'stan
- Caanok Var
- Chaplain on Bike
- Librarian in Phobos Armour
- Ancient in Terminator Armour
- Company Heroes
- Incursor Squad
- Scout Squad
- Outrider Squad
- Terminator Assault Squad
- Repulsor
- Land Raider Redeemer
- Storm Speeder Thunderstrike
- Cato Sicarius
- Victrix Honour Guard
- Kaius Konorius
- Darnath Lysander
- Kayvaan Shrike
- Adrax Agatone
- Kor'sarro Khan
- Suboden Khan
- Captain in Gravis Armour
- Captain on Bike
- Lieutenant with Combi-weapon
- Chaplain in Terminator Armour
- Bladeguard Ancient
- Apothecary Biologis
- Heavy Intercessor Squad
- Infernus Squad
- Infiltrator Squad
- Bladeguard Veteran Squad
- Reiver Squad
- Eliminator Squad
- Eradicator Squad (heavy bolters)
- Aggressor Squad
- Inceptor Squad
- Invader ATV
- Repulsor Executioner
- Land Raider
- Brutalis Dreadnought
- Land Speeder
- Gladiator Valiant
- Firestrike Servo-turrets (disputed)
- Chief Librarian Tigurius
- Captain
- Captain with Jump Pack
- Captain in Phobos Armour
- Captain in Terminator Armour
- Chaplain
- Chaplain with Jump Pack
- Librarian
- Librarian in Terminator Armour
- Ancient
- Techmarine
- Apothecary
- Assault Intercessor Squad
- Assault Intercessors with Jump Packs
- Hellblaster Squad
- Desolation Squad
- Sternguard Veteran Squad
- Vanguard Veteran Squad with Jump Packs
- Terminator Squad
- Land Raider Crusader
- Redemptor Dreadnought
- Ballistus Dreadnought
- Invictor Tactical Warsuit
- Storm Speeder Hailstrike
- Storm Speeder Hammerstrike
- Gladiator Lancer
- Gladiator Reaper
- Captain Titus
- Lieutenant
- Lieutenant in Phobos Armour
- Judiciar
- Intercessor Squad
- Rhino
- Drop Pod
85 datasheets: 6 in S, 15 in A, 30 in B, 27 in C and 7 in F. Unit names follow the codex; the heavy bolter and melta rifle Eradicators are graded separately because they play very differently.
Which Space Marines units are S tier?
Four characters and one gun-and-transport pairing. The characters are chapter-locked, so most lists get one or two of them; the Eradicators and the Impulsor go in any chapter.
| Unit | Chapter | Why it is S tier |
|---|---|---|
| Roboute Guilliman | Ultramarines | The one army-wide buff in a book short on them. He makes every unit around him more reliable in every phase, gives you control over doctrines no other model offers, and is both very hard to kill and very hard-hitting. His cost sits right where building around him still pays off. |
| Marneus Calgar | Ultramarines | Most of what Guilliman does for roughly half the price: doctrine control and a strong fight phase, and he makes the unit he leads tougher and able to arrive from reserves. He is a fragile character for his cost, so give him a unit that soaks precision attacks. Taking both Ultramarines leaders is reasonable. |
| Aethon Shaan | Raven Guard | A lone operative who screens the backfield, holds a home objective and beats up skirmish units that come close. In the Raven Guard reserves detachment, as your warlord, he takes the cost out of the stratagem that army leans on most. Cheap stratagems are rare for Space Marines, and he is worth extra Command points every battle round. |
| Iron Father Feirros | Iron Hands | The reason to play Iron Hands, and cheap for what he does. A tough lone operative with a good gun and good fists who repairs a vehicle and makes its shooting far more reliable, even into cover. Point him at a big tank stacked with buffs and it hits nearly every shot, and in the Iron Hands detachment he improves the units around him too. |
| Eradicator Squad (melta rifles) | Any | The book's answer to its oldest weakness: the toughest vehicles and monsters. Accurate, strong enough to wound what the rest of the army cannot, and cheap for three models. Expect a points rise; until then they go in every list that can fit them. |
| Impulsor | Any | The best transport in the codex. It costs about what a Rhino does but is tougher, carries far more guns, lets its whole squad shoot from inside and has room for Gravis models. Its S grade leans on carrying melta Eradicators, which shoot from inside and climb out when it dies, but a fast transport that lets its passengers shoot will stay useful after that changes. |
Which units are A tier, the best at their job?
Each of these is the first pick for a slot most lists fill: a support piece, a skirmisher, a melee hammer or a heavy gun. Several of them only miss S because a chapter rule or another unit can cover the same job.
| Unit | Chapter | Why it is A tier |
|---|---|---|
| Wardens of Ultramar | Ultramarines | The best support unit in the book: a tough block of extra bodies that can redeploy, keeps objectives after it moves off them and makes the unit it joins far better. Calgar leading Wardens and Bladeguard Veterans is the standout build. |
| Tor Garadon | Imperial Fists | The best support character for a shooting army. He takes cover away from a target he picks, and he is far tougher than the Phobos Librarian who does a similar job, with a strong anti-vehicle gun and fist of his own. He is the reason to choose Imperial Fists today. |
| Vulkan He'stan | Salamanders | The best character to take an objective with a small squad. He makes the army's melta and flame weapons stronger against a target he picks and becomes very hard to shift from the objective he chooses. Pair him with Company Heroes. |
| Caanok Var | Iron Hands | A Terminator captain with better rules than the generic one. He gets his unit forward before the game and makes it hit harder against whatever it targets, and he is awkward to pick off with precision. Leading ten Terminators out of reserves is the trick. |
| Chaplain on Bike | Any | The best leader for Outriders, and cheaper than the bike Captain. He makes the squad hit harder on the charge and turns its bolt weapons into a real threat to damaged vehicles. |
| Librarian in Phobos Armour | Any | The cheapest, lowest-commitment way to take cover away from a target, because he does not have to shoot it and can stay hidden while he does. He also screens and arrives where he is needed. Chapters with their own cover answers need him less. |
| Ancient in Terminator Armour | Any | The only support character that joins Terminators, so it is how a Terminator unit led by an epic hero still gets an enhancement and a defensive boost against strong attacks. Worth it on ten models; a five-model unit can skip it. |
| Company Heroes | Any | The best skirmish unit in the book: four tough multi-wound models that hit hard, carry upgraded bolt weapons and keep objectives after they leave. They clear an enemy five-model unit most turns. The cost is a slow unit that few detachments buff. |
| Incursor Squad | Any | The best skirmish line unit. Fast, gets forward before the game, does actions, and marks a target that the rest of the army then shoots more accurately, without having to shoot it itself. It also carries a mine for extra damage. Armies that already re-roll everything need it less. |
| Scout Squad | Any | The cheapest unit in the codex, and that is the point. Five bodies to screen your deployment zone, sit on a home objective or infiltrate to keep enemy scouts back, for less than anything else that can do it. |
| Outrider Squad | Any | The best fast skirmish unit. Tougher than before and cheaper than Jump Pack Assault Intercessors, with more objective control, more wounds and better guns, and their rules make an attached character hit harder. |
| Terminator Assault Squad | Any | The best melee unit in the codex, and one you take for its own sake rather than to carry a character. Hammers and shields make it tough and deadly, and it carries characters, enhancements and stratagems well. A rather than S only because it is a big investment. |
| Repulsor | Any | The best battle tank: very tough, with a volume of fire that adds up fast. A screening unit near it can get inside when an enemy charges, which spoils melee armies' plans. It fits more lists than the Executioner. |
| Land Raider Redeemer | Any | No other tank in the book does its job. A fast, tough flamer carrier that wipes out large infantry units and gives the best overwatch in the codex. It needs the right targets, so it will not be in every list, but nothing competes for its slot. |
| Storm Speeder Thunderstrike | Any | The best speeder and a strong anti-vehicle piece for a fair price. Its heavy shots are good into vehicles and monsters, and it makes the rest of the army better at hurting what it hits. It wants a detachment that adds accuracy before it shines. |
Which Space Marines units are good but need a plan?
B is the largest tier. Every unit here earns a slot in the right list, and the second column says which list that is. Outside it, pick from A instead.
| Unit | Chapter | Take it when |
|---|---|---|
| Cato Sicarius | Ultramarines | You run Victrix Honour Guard. He lets them react to the enemy's moves and charges, which Space Marines otherwise only get from a few detachments. Pricey, and Victrix are the only unit he can lead. |
| Victrix Honour Guard | Ultramarines | You want a small, hard-hitting squad and have a leader for it. They still hit very hard, but they are expensive per model and no longer tough enough to shrug off damage. |
| Kaius Konorius | Ultramarines | You are not taking the Wardens of Ultramar. He hits very hard and makes the leader beside him much harder to kill, but the Wardens do more for the same unit, and precision attacks can pick him off. |
| Darnath Lysander | Imperial Fists | You build around a ten-model Terminator unit. He makes it tougher and hits hard himself, but he does nothing for the rest of the army and costs close to five more Terminators. |
| Kayvaan Shrike | Raven Guard | You want a second fast lone character in a Raven Guard reserves list. Fine rules without a clear job; he works best alone rather than leading a unit. |
| Adrax Agatone | Salamanders | You want a melee unit built on Company Heroes or Bladeguard. He hits like a hammer and helps his unit wound, but he does nothing for anyone else. |
| Kor'sarro Khan | White Scars | You play White Scars. A Chaplain-style melee buff with a better weapon, extra accuracy against characters and a bird that can kill a Marine. Good, but not the reason a list wins. |
| Suboden Khan | White Scars | You run Outriders in the White Scars bike detachment, where he lets them strike and pull back in the same turn. Outside it, the Chaplain on Bike is the better bike leader. |
| Captain in Gravis Armour | Any | You want a tough solo objective holder carrying an enhancement. He adds little to a Gravis unit, but with a defensive enhancement he is very hard to move. |
| Captain on Bike | Any | Your local field is full of big infantry units. He gives Outriders extra attacks into large units, but he costs much more than the Chaplain on Bike. |
| Lieutenant with Combi-weapon | Any | You play a gunline. A tough lone operative with a reactive move and a once-a-game trick that makes enemies on one terrain feature easier to spot. |
| Chaplain in Terminator Armour | Any | You want a second Terminator leader. Far cheaper than Lysander, he makes them hit harder on the charge and protects them from the attacks that ignore armour, the right buffs for a unit you take for its own sake. |
| Bladeguard Ancient | Any | You run Bladeguard Veterans without a better support character. He keeps objectives and adds attacks while they hold one; a lower price would make him the default. |
| Apothecary Biologis | Any | You need the cheapest way to put an enhancement on a Gravis unit. Bottom of B: he adds no damage himself. |
| Heavy Intercessor Squad | Any | The mission rewards holding a point. Very hard to shift while standing on an objective, and the best use of that price band in the book. |
| Infernus Squad | Any | You play Salamanders, or you expect large infantry units. Flamers that scale with the target's size and also take its cover away. |
| Infiltrator Squad | Any | You need a unit that infiltrates to keep enemy scouts away. About the price of Intercessors, but faster, and it helps the army spot targets. |
| Bladeguard Veteran Squad | Any | You have the character that makes them work, such as Adrax Agatone, Kor'sarro Khan or Marneus Calgar. Knocking on A, but Assault Terminators do a similar job better. |
| Reiver Squad | Any | You play a melee-only list. Cheaper than Incursors and better in a fight, but they do not mark targets for the army; the morale pressure is a bonus, not a plan. |
| Eliminator Squad | Any | Your detachment keeps them hidden after they shoot. Three long-range anti-tank shots from a fragile unit; outside that build, leave them home. |
| Eradicator Squad (heavy bolters) | Any | You have a strong buff for them. Skirmish damage that punches above its size, but neither fast nor tough for the price. |
| Aggressor Squad | Any | You want a cheap Gravis unit with overwatch and some punch. The flamer version is the pick. |
| Inceptor Squad | Any | You can add one more buff, such as re-rolls, cover removal or a wound bonus. Self-sufficient and accurate from deep strike, but priced like a big tank. |
| Invader ATV | Any | You play a fast reconnaissance or vehicle-heavy list. A cheap, fast melta platform sitting on the line between B and C. |
| Repulsor Executioner | Any | You stack every buff on one tank, for example with Iron Father Feirros. It trades the Repulsor's transport space for one extra gun and accuracy, at a much higher price. |
| Land Raider | Any | Your detachment adds re-rolls for vehicles. Then its heavy guns become efficient. |
| Brutalis Dreadnought | Any | You play the Dreadnought detachment. The best and fastest Dreadnought by a distance, but its price only pays off with buffs that only Dreadnoughts get. |
| Land Speeder | Any | Your detachment already buffs speeders. Cheap, light and only as good as the help it gets. |
| Gladiator Valiant | Any | You run a vehicle detachment. The only Gladiator with enough shots to profit from tank re-rolls, and its melta gets stronger up close. |
| Firestrike Servo-turrets | Any | Disputed. Either a reserve gun battery that fires a lot of accurate shots and overwatches well, or too slow to matter; credible grades run from B to F. Test them before you build six. |
Which Space Marines units should you leave on the shelf?
C units are playable for a narrow reason; F units have none right now. Most of them are not bad models, they are crowded out by a better unit doing the same job, and a points change can move them.
C tier: inefficient
| Unit | Chapter | Why it sits out |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Librarian Tigurius | Ultramarines | Good rules that only help his own unit, and that other models already provide. Too expensive next to Guilliman and Calgar. |
| Captain | Any | His doctrine trick only covers his own unit, and epic heroes take the slots he wants to fill. |
| Captain with Jump Pack | Any | No jump pack melee unit in this codex is worth leading. |
| Captain in Phobos Armour | Any | Strong fall-back rules, but he only leads weak units and carries a knife. |
| Captain in Terminator Armour | Any | His charge re-roll is something a stratagem already does. |
| Chaplain | Any | A cheap melee buff with no infantry melee unit in the book that needs him. |
| Chaplain with Jump Pack | Any | The same problem: no jump unit worth leading. |
| Librarian | Any | Useful buffs, but only one at a time, and using them can leave him Battle-shocked. |
| Librarian in Terminator Armour | Any | Strength boosts that hit some good breakpoints, but the Terminator Chaplain is the safer leader. |
| Ancient | Any | Cheap objective help with no unit he needs to join. |
| Techmarine | Any | His repair-and-accuracy role matters too rarely. In Iron Hands, the detachment's Techmarine-only enhancements lift him to B or better. |
| Apothecary | Any | Heals too little to matter, since a unit your opponent commits to usually dies. Saved from F by keeping tough Company Heroes topped up. |
| Assault Intercessor Squad | Any | Better than Intercessors, barely. The character you attach gets more from them than they get from it. |
| Assault Intercessors with Jump Packs | Any | Fast but toothless in combat; Outriders do the job for less. |
| Hellblaster Squad | Any | The best plain infantry shooting unit, in an army that does not need what it does. |
| Desolation Squad | Any | Too expensive for anti-tank shots that are not strong enough; the Thunderstrike does it better. |
| Sternguard Veteran Squad | Any | A jack of all trades in an army that wants specialists; Hellblasters out-shoot them. |
| Vanguard Veteran Squad with Jump Packs | Any | Expensive and fragile, and they do not hit hard enough without help they rarely get. |
| Terminator Squad | Any | Pays for guns it does not need; Assault Terminators keep the toughness and the punch. |
| Land Raider Crusader | Any | Trades everything good about the Land Raider for anti-infantry guns you can find elsewhere. |
| Redemptor Dreadnought | Any | Needs an enhancement to be good, and a Repulsor costs little more. |
| Ballistus Dreadnought | Any | Few shots and no re-rolls; only playable in the Dreadnought detachment. |
| Invictor Tactical Warsuit | Any | Cheap and fast, but neither tough nor deadly enough. Only worth a look in a Phobos detachment. |
| Storm Speeder Hailstrike | Any | An expensive way to take cover away; cheaper units do it. |
| Storm Speeder Hammerstrike | Any | Less damage than the Thunderstrike for about the same cost. |
| Gladiator Lancer | Any | The Thunderstrike brings twice the shots for less. |
| Gladiator Reaper | Any | A Repulsor costs a little more and is far tougher. |
F tier: no current reason to field it
| Unit | Chapter | Why it stays home |
|---|---|---|
| Captain Titus | Ultramarines | Priced like the best Ultramarines characters while doing far less. The Wardens he comes with are the reason to buy the box. |
| Lieutenant | Any | His main rule only works beside a Captain you are not taking, never with an epic hero. |
| Lieutenant in Phobos Armour | Any | The same rule with worse weapons. |
| Judiciar | Any | His one rule rarely matters, and the support slot has better uses. |
| Intercessor Squad | Any | Tougher, and it can shoot after an action, but it no longer keeps objectives after it leaves them, which was the reason to take it. Last of six five-model squads at a similar price. |
| Rhino | Any | No Space Marine unit wants to shoot out of it, and the Impulsor costs about the same. |
| Drop Pod | Any | It cannot move and there is nothing worth delivering in it. A display piece. |
What is the best unit for each Space Marine chapter?
Six chapters have heroes in the codex, and each has a different reason to exist. The generic core underneath is shared: melta Eradicators in an Impulsor, Incursors and Scouts on the skirmish line, Company Heroes on objectives, Assault Terminators for melee and a Repulsor or Thunderstrike for heavy fire.
| Chapter | Take first | Also worth it |
|---|---|---|
| Ultramarines | Roboute Guilliman and Marneus Calgar (S) | Wardens of Ultramar (A). Kaius Konorius and Cato Sicarius are B; Captain Titus is F. |
| Imperial Fists | Tor Garadon (A) | Darnath Lysander (B) for a ten-model Terminator build. |
| Raven Guard | Aethon Shaan (S) | Kayvaan Shrike (B). Eliminators and Inceptors gain the most from the reserves detachment. |
| Salamanders | Vulkan He'stan (A) | Adrax Agatone (B), and the Infernus Squad plays above its grade here. |
| Iron Hands | Iron Father Feirros (S) | Caanok Var (A), a buffed Repulsor Executioner, and the Techmarine climbs to B or better. |
| White Scars | Kor'sarro Khan (B) | Suboden Khan (B) in the bike detachment. The Chaplain on Bike with Outriders is still the best bike core. |
Grades describe the datasheet on its own. A chapter's detachment can lift a unit a tier: Iron Hands make a Repulsor Executioner far more accurate, and Guilliman makes almost anything near him better.
Set your Space Marines up on an official layout and measure what reaches turn one. The table, unit placement and terrain are free with an account.
How do you test a Space Marines list before an event?
A tier list tells you what to take; the table tells you whether it works. Import your army file, deploy on the layout you expect to play and measure the moves and threat ranges that decide the first two turns. A list built from S and A units can still fail if its pieces cannot reach each other.
What this page does and does not cover
This page does
- ✓Grade every datasheet printed in the 11th edition Codex: Space Marines for competitive matched play, as read in launch week, 20 October 2026.
- ✓Give the reason for each grade in our own words, and the chapter, detachment or partner unit it depends on.
- ✓Flag the one unit whose grade is genuinely disputed.
This page does not
- ✕Reproduce datasheets, stat lines, weapon profiles, ability text or points. Your codex and the official app hold those.
- ✕Use tournament results. Grades will move as points change and event data comes in.
- ✕Grade units from the Blood Angels, Dark Angels, Space Wolves, Black Templars or Deathwatch books.
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Straight answers
What is the best unit in the new Space Marines codex?
Eradicators with melta rifles. They are the codex's most efficient answer to the toughest vehicles and monsters, they are cheap for three models, and they get better riding in an Impulsor that lets them shoot from inside. Among the characters, Roboute Guilliman, Marneus Calgar, Aethon Shaan and Iron Father Feirros share the S tier.
Is Roboute Guilliman worth taking in the new codex?
Yes. He is the one army-wide buff in a codex that has few of them: he makes every unit around him more reliable in every phase, and he gives you control over doctrines that no other model offers. He costs enough that you build the list around him, and an Ultramarines list should take him.
Are Intercessors still good in the new Space Marines codex?
No. They got tougher and can now shoot after doing an action, but they no longer keep an objective after they leave it, and that was the reason lists took them. Scouts are the cheaper home-objective screen and Incursors are the better skirmish unit.
Which named character should each Space Marine chapter take?
Ultramarines take Roboute Guilliman, Marneus Calgar or both, plus the Wardens of Ultramar. Raven Guard take Aethon Shaan, Iron Hands take Iron Father Feirros and Caanok Var, Imperial Fists take Tor Garadon and Salamanders take Vulkan He'stan. White Scars have no character above B tier, so their best bike leader is the Chaplain on Bike that every chapter can take.
Can I test a Space Marines list for free in 40 Carrot?
Yes. A free account includes the full-size Virtual Tabletop with unit placement, terrain, measurement and dice, and you can import a .json, .ros or .rosz army file. The built-in unit lookup provides unit names, base sizes, and current official points. Stat lines, weapon profiles, and abilities come only from profiles you entered or imported. Army-list text import is part of Full Access.