After years of silence that had many wondering if the project had been shelved, Games Workshop has confirmed that the long-awaited Astartes 2 animation will arrive this December on Warhammer TV.
The announcement came via the Warhammer Community site, accompanied by two new promotional images that offer only glimpses of what fans can expect. A Deathwatch Terminator squad takes center stage in the footage shown so far, protecting an unnamed human soldier. The squad itself represents five different Space Marine chapters: the Retributors, Mortifactors, Scythes of The Emperor, Sons of Medusa, and Angels Vermilion.
The original Astartes became a phenomenon after superfan Syama Pedersen created it independently. The short was so acclaimed that Games Workshop brought Pedersen on to develop the official sequel. It stands as perhaps the finest Warhammer 40,000 animation ever produced, official or otherwise, with only Amazon's Space Marine 2 animation from the Secret Level anthology series coming close in terms of raw quality. The first series proved so influential that it shaped how Saber Interactive portrayed Space Marines in their successful Space Marine 2 video game.
The path to this December release has been rocky. Games Workshop revealed a teaser trailer in January of last year with a vague 2026 release window, leaving fans to wonder if the project would ever materialize. Many had grown skeptical after hearing nothing concrete for an extended period.
That teaser proved to be a curveball. Games Workshop later clarified that the footage shown did not come from Astartes 2 itself. Instead, it represented a compilation of shots depicting the former lives of characters who will appear in the final animation. The teaser showcased an ambitious range of action: melee combat, gunfire, vehicle battles, and spaceship engagements across multiple environments. It featured numerous Space Marine chapters fighting alongside each other and against various xenos enemies including Tyranids, Orks, and Tau.
Games Workshop hinted that the teaser's final moments contained a subtle clue about the animation's ultimate direction, inviting fans to speculate and piece together the narrative themselves.
Several details about Astartes 2 remain unclear. The company has not yet revealed whether the series will be divided into traditional episodes, how many installments will exist, or how long each segment will run. Those specifics may emerge closer to launch.
Author Emily Chen: "After years of radio silence, Games Workshop finally delivering on Astartes 2 feels like a genuine win for the studio and its most devoted fans."
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