Warhammer Female Custodes Controversy / Femstodes

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Overview

Warhammer Female Custodes Controversy, also known as the Warhammer 40K Femstodes Debate, refers to Games Workshop, the creators of the Warhammer 40,000 franchise, confirming in the 10th Edition Codex that there are female members of the Adeptus Custodes faction, which was previously presumed to be an all-male cadre of warriors within the lore and setting. The revelation was then confirmed on the official Twitter / X account for Warhammer Official (@warhammer) in mid-April 2024 and led to outrage among the fandom, as some users voiced that they found it pandering, woke and offensive, while others expressed that they didn't think it was a big deal. Many who were fans of the concept also made fan art of female Custodes or memes mocking those angered by it.

Background

On April 13th, 2024, Games Workshop announced preorders for merchandise related to the Orks and Adeptus Custodes, including codexes for the 10th Edition.^[1] In the book that accompanied the new codexes for the Custodes, the book introduced female Custodes, the first time in the history of the series that a female Custodian has been mentioned (seen below).

On April 14th, Games Workshop^[2] responded to a user on the Warhammer Official (@warhammer) Twitter account asking why they made female Custodes by writing, "Since the first of the Ten Thousand were created, there have always been female Custodians," gaining over 3.2 million views, 2,800 retweets and 9,800 likes in one day (shown below).

Developments

The announcement led to outrage and debate in the Warhammer fandom, as some users found it a slap in the face to previously established Warhammer lore while others didn't think it was problematic. The announcement recalled the "Female Space Marines" debate, which was a significant moment in the fandom years prior.^[3] The Space Marine faction has always been male in Warhammer lore, and in the 2020s, this led to some calls to Games Workshop to diversify the gender of the faction, as well as debate within the fandom on whether it should happen.

The confirmation of female Custodes resurfaced similar arguments, as some fans were upset that Warhammer appeared to be retconning previously established lore.

For example, on April 14th, 2024, a Twitter user^[4] described the announcement as "completely [botch] the lore surrounding gene editing for super soldiers just to shoehorn in the existence of female custodians," gaining over 1,200 retweets and 12,000 likes in one day (shown below, left). Also that day, Twitter user @ThuRockAndMetal^[5] joked that Games Workshop was trying to "gaslight" a fanbase known for its attention to minute details, gaining over 450 retweets and 4,300 likes in one day (shown below, right).

On Reddit, several users made memes voicing that they didn't see the announcement as a big deal. On April 14th, Redditor dazli69 posted a meme in /r/grimdank^[6] blaming the "Culture Wars" for the fervor surrounding the announcement, gaining over 2,600 points in one day (shown below, left). On the 15th in the same subreddit,^[7] Redditor GreyPlasticTransGirl posted an Expanding Brain meme in which "Why would I get mad on the internet over wardollies" as the biggest brain, gaining over 620 points in a matter of hours (shown below, right).

Numerous YouTubers within the fandom also uploaded reactions and commentary to Femstodes in mid-April 2024, some reacting negatively or positively while others merely commented on the announcement or discussed the lore.

For example, YouTuber Auspex Tactics uploaded a video titled "Games Workshop Writes FEMALE CUSTODES, Dark Angels Errata, Battleforces Selling Out + More" on April 14th, 2024, receiving over 82,000 views in one day (seen below, left). On April 15th, YouTuber Majorkill uploaded a video titled "Female Custodes are now 100% Canon | What does this mean for Warhammer 40k?" discussing the lore update, receiving over 62,000 views in six hours (seen below, right).

Various publications also covered the lore change and reaction among fans as the news spread, such as Bell of Lost Souls,^[8] which published an article titled "Warhammer 40K: Female Adeptus Custodes Confirmed" on April 14th.

Some users also began posting artwork of female Custodes, like DeviantArt^[9] user Eliphusz, who posted artwork titled "Female Custodes Headpats" on April 14th, 2024, receiving over 2,600 views, 130 favorites and 40 comments in one day (shown below).

On April 16th, Warhammer 40,000 lore YouTuber Luetin09 uploaded a video titled "40K – NO ONE NOTICED THIS FOR 10,000 YEARS? | Warhammer 40,000 Lore/Discussion." In it, Luetin discussed the problems some fans had with the way Games Workshop introduced females to the Adeptus Custodes, as well as how it fits into the universe's lore. The video received over 175,000 views, 11,000 likes and 6,700 comments in 22 hours (seen below).

4chan Games Workshop Leak

On April 15th, 2024, an anonymous 4chan^[10] user claiming to have insider information into the decision by Games Workshop to introduce female members of the Adeptus Custodes made a post to the /tg/ board and said it was related to the upcoming Warhammer 40,000 TV series being made with Henry Cavill.

In their post (shown below), they alleged it was to push a female Custodes character in the show without breaking the lore because "Amazon execs wanted a woman in power armor and wouldn’t settle for SoB [Sisters of Battle]." The anon also claimed that discussions of inserting the female Custodes character into Eisenhorn's story, which the show is reportedly going to center on, resulted in Cavill threatening to walk away from the project.

While unconfirmed, the rumor spread online in the following days as it garnered discourse amid the ongoing controversy, as well as being covered in various articles.^[11]