Russian soldiers given church-blessed Warhammer-inspired seals to ‘keep them safe’

The words of Psalm 90 featured on amulets gave hope to soldiers ‘in their darkest hour’

Russian soldiers are being given “purity seals” blessed by Orthodox priests and inspired by the futuristic combat game Warhammer 40k to protect them on the battlefield in Ukraine.
In the tabletop model game, which is popular in Russia and Ukraine, the seals are prayers on paper stuck to the armour worn by “space marines” with red or black wax.
Ratnik Tactical, the Russian military equipment maker, said on Telegram: “The best warriors of humanity applied scrolls with prayers and promises to their armour before the battle.
“We really liked this image, and we decided that Russian soldiers are rightfully the best warriors of humanity, and can also wear such scrolls into battle. Thousands of seals have already gone to the front, and gave hope to soldiers in the darkest hour.”
The seals, with the words of Psalm 90, are similar in style to Warhammer 40k and cost about £9. The psalm is about the brevity of life.
It replaces the space marine skull with a Christian symbol and is available in normal and “sooty versions”.
The phenomenon was spotted and researched by ChrisO_wiki, a military history author and blogger on the Ukraine war.
He said on X: “The seals have been blessed by priests at the Main Cathedral of the Russian Armed Forces in Kubinka near Moscow.”
“Again, this reflects Warhammer 40k lore, which has Space Marine Chaplains blessing purity seals ‘with chanted litanies in honour of the Primarch and the Emperor.”
He added that it reflected the huge popularity of the game in Russia and Ukraine and purity seals have been worn by soldiers on both sides as far back as February last year.
Warhammer 40k is set in a dystopian future where war is everywhere. Humans are part of a galaxy-wide empire in service to a corpse emperor and wage genocidal conflicts.
James Cleverly, the former Home Secretary, is a fan and his Sisters of Battle models – gun-wielding warrior nuns – can be spotted in the background of some of his interviews at home.
In Ukraine, one drone unit calls itself the Khorne Group after the Warhammer God of Blood.
Some soldiers have dressed up as characters from the game, according to images on social media.
The drone group leader sits in his Warhammer gaming chair. In comments underneath the video of their attacks, commenters made numerous references to Warhammer 40k, including the grisly motto “blood for the blood god”.
Warhammer imagery is used in pictures shared online featuring Putin as an axe-wielding armoured solder or space marine style warriors in armour painted the colours of the Ukrainian flag.
The Ukrainians also have their own purity seals. Images shared online showed them being stuck on military vehicles.
Other soldiers sport real-life versions of the game’s battle badges and gruesome skull symbols.
The Economist reported that Vadym Sukharevsky, the head of Ukraine’s drone forces, has a large collection of Warhammer models, which he “glues together in spare evenings”.
The Russian seals have been criticised by some for fusing Orthodox theology with pagan fantasy.
Alexander Soldatov, the religious journalist, said: “Amulets are not typical for the Orthodox tradition at all, they have always been perceived as an element of paganism, magic, in this case, combat magic.
“But in war, all means are good, and the Russian Orthodox Church no longer shies away from using any mechanisms, including purely occult ones.”