Eric Nagy may just have taken the crown as the best - or at least, the nerdiest - dad ever. This tiny Space Marine is his eight year old daughter, who "was all in" on the idea of cosplaying as Lieutenant Titus from Warhammer 40k: Space Marine 2 as soon as she saw the helmet.
The galaxy's cutest little superhuman killing machine made her debut on stage at the Oklahoma City GalaxyCon this May, where her costume took first place in the novice division of the show's Cosplay Craftsmanship award. As anyone who has to keep a small child in shoes that fit will know, Nagy has shown a real commitment to both Warhammer 40k and his daughter here - he acknowledges that "kids grow like weeds and anything I fabricate for her might not fit in a few weeks or months".
Nagy estimates it took "approximately 150 hours" to make the downsized Space Marine armor. The suit is a "combination of 3D printed pieces from the creator Galactic Armory, my own modelled 3D prints for some of the articulation points and joints on the armor, as well as fabricated elements constructed in EVA foam". He also used "vector graphics software and laser cutting to recreate some of the armor pauldron decorations".
There are some specific challenges facing anyone who wants to turn a design from a Warhammer 40k game into something that a (tiny) human can wear. "You have this problem that character artists don't necessarily have to figure out: that is, how in the hell do you make these clothes or armor pieces actually work on a person who needs to be able to move freely, and be reasonably comfortable?"
"I can't tell you how many hours I thought up various solutions to attach pauldrons securely, but also give the shoulder joint almost full range of movement so [my daughter] could actually swing a chainsword, or raise both arms above her head", he adds. His daughter took full advantage of his hard work, throwing out "her own salutes and demo moves when on stage at GalaxyCon".
The costume received "lots of support and congratulations from the other cosplayers at the con", and Nagy and his daughter are planning to "try again with a new project in the journeymen or grandmaster divisions" next year. Nagy thinks they will be "making a few more stops to local game shops just to get some more mileage out of this armor before she grows out of it".
But, similar to how Space Marine chapters will never remove a suit of functioning power armor from service, this cosplay is going to be passed on to a new wearer. Nagy envisions it becoming a "family armor set": his niece, "who is currently three", is "next up to assume the role, if she wants to, when she gets old enough".
If you've seen an even cuter bit of Warhammer 40k cosplay - a dog wearing an Astra Militarum helmet, a bunny with a scale appropriate chainsword - come and join us in the Wargamer Discord community and share some pictures of it. You will be welcomed as a hero.
The Warhammer 40k factions have inspired lots of great cosplay from many talented creators, though it's rarely this cute. Check out this article about an incredible Emperor's Children cosplay by the Warsinger, or this follow-up about the Chaotic warband he and his friends created together next.