Did Space Marine 2’s campaign give us a sneak peak at future enemies?

The Space Marine 2 campaign takes players through various iconic Warhammer 40,000 locales, from Imperium temples to Adeptus Mechanicus facilities to treacherous jungles. However, one site may offer some hints as to where the game can go next.

Spoilers follow for Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2

We already know Space Marine 2 will continue to receive content through 2025, so could it be that future Operations and updates introduce the Necrons?

The Necrons are an ancient robotic civilization that quite literally conquered its own gods. The fearsome and advanced mechanical faction used to be organic but gave up their flesh and souls in the name of power. Millions of years ago, the Necrons began a long hibernation on their Tomb Worlds, waiting for the perfect moment to reemerge and take command of the galaxy. Unfortunately, there’s a chance our actions in-game may lead to some of these god-slayers waking up.

Why would the Necrons wake up?

During the climax of Space Marine 2, it’s exposed that your Adeptus Mechanicus ally, Leuze, was being manipulated by a Thousand Sons sorcerer to continue something called the Aurora project. As it turns out, Aurora is an Adeptus Mechanicus archeological site that unearthed a Necron Tomb World beneath the burial world of Demerium.

Leuze believes Aurora has the power to repel the forces of Chaos and close The Great Rift, but when activated, it appears as though the Thousand Sons are empowered. The Chaos Space Marines hail a Greater Daemon and start summoning their forces en masse. The thing is, Leuze’s interpretation may not be so far from the truth.

While Space Marine 2 doesn’t specify how Aurora works, Necrons have a history with a substance called Blackstone and structures called Blackstone Pylons. Blackstone itself has the ability to nullify or amplify the Warp, and the Pylons are Necron Blackstone constructs that typically repel the Warp on a planet or region in space. It seems pretty likely that Leuze was tricked into deactivating or inverting the polarity of a Blackstone Pylon or similar device, allowing the Thousand Sons a chance for victory.

Of course, to correct this, we head back through the Tomb World, activating several sites that shoot a powering beam to a large central… pylon. With each activation, the relic we interact with changes from a Chaos-aligned color, like purple or orange, to the Necrons’ signature hue of green. Maybe the Necron tech was asleep before or malfunctioning somehow; who knows? Now, however, it seems clear that we’ve reactivated it.

This background storytelling seems like the perfect setup for a Necron Dynasty to wake up and terrorize Demerium. Time will tell how Space Marine 2 is built upon, but at first sight of silver and green, start preparing for Necrons.