Incredible Battle Photos from Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 – Set on AVARAX
Hello, fellow gaming photography enthusiasts! Today, I’m sharing a very special collection of photos capturing combat and battles on Avarax—one of the first planets we visit during our initial missions. I had to replay the second mission, as the photo mode is currently only available within the campaign (it’s a real shame it isn’t accessible across all game modes!). Regardless, it gave me the chance to return to Avarax, explore the planet once more, and snap some combat shots that, quite frankly, turned out spectacular.
I’ve also included a short video showcasing an all-out battle against a Xenos swarm. Avarax is one of the first worlds we must liberate from the Xenos invasion; in this instance, our objective is to rescue an Archimagus who was conducting data-collection research on the planet—and who refuses to leave until the necessary data has been secured.
For this reason, Lieutenant Titus and his squad, alongside Squad Talasa, have deployed to Avarax to extract the Archimagus—and the research data—safely. As you’ll see, it’s no easy task. While this article doesn’t cover the entire mission, it does highlight the massive battle that unfolds. Furthermore, this is one of the missions where specific, formidable Xenos—such as the Lictor—begin to appear. Beyond the familiar swarms, we must contend with these "mini-bosses," which make the path to completing the mission an even steeper, more arduous challenge.
I also decided to include a few images of the launch barge at the station, as I believe it features some truly interesting design elements. All in all, I think the photo mode in Warhammer offers a pretty good level of immersion—at least within the mission mode. It’s a real shame that photo mode wasn’t integrated into the PvE missions; there are so many incredible settings and battles in that mode, and it’s a pity we can’t capture them this way. That said, it’s understandable—since it’s an online mode, being in photo mode might disrupt the experience for other players, so that’s definitely a point worth considering. I should try it in a private session to see if it’s accessible when no other players are around, though I’m not holding my breath.
Without a doubt, Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 still has a long life ahead of it, and it will be exciting to see what else the developers have in store. I’m hoping for more opportunities and ways to make broader use of this photo mode.
There’s a particularly interesting section—the records of horrors, monsters, and so on—that I’d like to explore for a future post. I believe the viewing mode allows us to access these models without any UI, which could be a great way to showcase them—almost like tabletop miniatures! But I’ll save that for next time.
I hope you enjoyed the article, the photos, and the videos.