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The Astartes videos that have come out over the past 12 months or so have been amazing, especially the last one. However, there is a lot going on in the very short amount of time, so it can be a little tricky to piece things together.

In Part 4, the Space Marines face off against two Psykers, and in this video, some of the sounds don't really... match up. Specifically, when the bolter rounds explode, and the footfall of the sprinting Marines. Surely these should be far louder. Especially when you compare the roar of the Bolter fire, compared to the party-popper-esque snap of each bolter round that pops in the psychic shield.

And when the second Marine charges, it's already too late before the Psyker realises he's there. Surely, with the massive size and weight of a Marine in full Power Armour would really be a lot louder; loud enough to alert the Psyker to his approach much sooner.

My theory is that these two Psykers are brining out all the stops, increasing their powers in whatever ways they can in order to do their best to stop the Marines. Reducing the area of effect of their abilities, in order to increase the power of them; or shutting down their other senses in order to increase their concentration.

This would explain why, if "hearing" these sounds from the Psyker's perspectives, exploding rounds sound like party poppers and a Marine in full sprint sounds like a 4 year old trying to be sneaky.

Is this the case?

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  • I don't think there is any canon that senses are hindered when using psyker abilities. However, depending on what you read I think there is some conflict as to just how power armour operates. I have read some material that says they are silent, some that they have an audible hum, and some that make it sound like you are standing next to heavy machinery. I can not come up with anything to differentiate them from one another except that the armours are all old and some better maintained than others. Regarding the movements it is the same when you read the fluff.
    – Odin1806
    Jul 14, 2019 at 18:31
  • I would have to say that some Astartes are more light footed than others despite the bulk of the armours they wear. It is possible the warriors in the video were swift enough to keep their movements silent when it mattered. The last not I will mention is that the Warp is engaged around those psykers and it is possible that noise (and other senses) are dampened when a psyker has tapped into that alternate dimension. There is also the chance that they are hearing daemons in their minds as they operate dulling their senses at the same time... but all of this is educated guesses by yours truly...
    – Odin1806
    Jul 14, 2019 at 18:35
  • also, how the astartes run is one of the few things that are inaccurate in the otherwise fantastic series. an astartes would not sprint as humans do like the video but more they propel themselves forward with leaps and bounds. pushing themselves off with their massively powerful legs in a series of leaps. this is also far faster than running.
    – TerranGaming
    Jul 17, 2019 at 14:56

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In the 40,000 Universe, there are many ways that these situations are possible.

In this particular series, the Chapter is one of the creator's own making. Not much is known about their organisation or command in particular, but there are a few hints as to their operational capacity. This means that, aside from the fact that they are Space Marines, they are not restricted in their resources.

Stealth Tech is available in many forms, such as the Tacticus Power Armour

Another variant of the Mk.X is the Mk.X Reiver or Phobos pattern. The suit’s lighter-weight ceramite and streamlined design allow for greater mobility, and its servo-motors are engineered to be completely silent. The design however sacrifices protection for stealth and speed.

Or devices that can be used to generate sound diffusion such as stummers

Stummers: The reverse of a Screamer, stummers generate sound waves to cancel out ambient sounds and noises made by moving personnel in a small area. A character carrying an active stummer gains a +30 bonus to Silent Move Tests. A Stummer typically has enough power for 20 minutes to continuous use before needing to be recharged (taking about one hour)

On the other hand, I was partially correct in that Psykers don't actually use their normal senses such as sight and hearing; instead they use their psychic powers to create an "awareness bubble", and use their ability called "witchsight".

Every psyker of every species possesses the ability known within the Imperium of Man as the "Witch-Sight" or "witchsight." Because psykers draw on the power of the Immaterium for their abilities, they can see the corona of psychic energy that surrounds every living being in realspace. For sentient beings, this means being able to glimpse the nature of any psychically unshielded person's psyche -- their psychic "aura" in ancient Terran terms. Every psyker's mind interprets or experiences this information differently based on the nature of their own cultural and mental constructs. However, the one constant experienced by all is that people whose psyches are riven by the darker emotions and motivations appear in Witch-Sight as degraded monsters, while those of the opposite persuasion appear as pure or even angelic beings.

And there are tools that counteract this, such as Psy-Jammers

A Psy-Jammer is a somewhat esoteric example of techno-arcana. These devices can at least partially disrupt psychic energy and offers some degree of protection against the dark arts of the psyker and the witch. Expensive and rare, their use is largely restricted to the agents of the Inquisition, the Adeptus Mechanicus itself and those among the Imperium's elites whose paranoia often matches their vast wealth.

All in all, in this particular series, there is evidence that this Marine Chapter possibly do work with the Inquisition, and are specialist groups that are often prepared and equipped for these specialist missions; so the representation of these particular series of events is well within the realms of possibility, in the 40k Universe.

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