Established chapter or created?

[AgentP]

So I have a bunch of marines, and more on the delivery truck making their way here.  I've had a couple chapters in my life, Blood Angels and Salamanders specifically.  Always toyed with making my own chapter, but never did.  I'm on the fence yet again.  On the one hand, an established chapter has a certain look and feel which is immediately recognizable, and that is cool.  An established chapter can also have its own ITC category, i.e. Blood Angels.  On the other hand, a custom chapter leaves room for rules freedom, and you can do something in a unified force.  For example, if I did a custom chapter I could make a Ad Mech aligned force to compliment my mechanicus army.

 

Curious what people's thought are.  Should I go established, or custom?

[fluger]

I like the idea of playing an established chapter that isn't well represented.  Look at Lexicanum for all the minor Chapters that get very little play but have color schemes and histories you can play around with.  

[pretre]

Either way! Go custom or go with a little known ad-mech aligned chapter.

[Guest]

For example, if I did a custom chapter I could make a Ad Mech aligned force to compliment my mechanicus army.

So is the idea to create a chapter for the unfluffy value of having strong rules in your admech army? Or is it just one of creativity and fluff? I suppose it could be both, but I've noticed custom chapters lean towards one or the other.

 

Ironhands, in example, would be perfectly fluff allies for Admech. The Consecrators (DA) would also be fluffy allies. Even Salamanders would be pretty fluffy.

 

Personally, my plan is to convert my tech priest dominus from a techmarine, then have the breachers as tracked attack bikes. Mine will just be more DA....

[pretre]

So is the idea to create a chapter for the unfluffy value of having strong rules in your admech army? Or is it just one of creativity and fluff? I suppose it could be both, but I've noticed custom chapters lean towards one or the other.

Why does it matter which one? Can you still have fluffy and strong rules?

[Guest]

Why does it matter which one? Can you still have fluffy and strong rules?

Was just curious. And, as mentioned, you could have both, but I've noticed they tend to lean one way or another.

[dalmer]

Go custom... your paint scheme, your fluff, your imagination.

 

Or if you like a certain ruleset just say they're a subsequent founding and paint 'em how you want.

[Bosco]

Red Scorpions!

They're official, little known (so most won't sneer at an admech alliance), and have unique models/support, assuming you can afford Forgeworld.

 

 

 

Failing that, custom chapter or pick one from the big poster of Marine chapters.  In many cases you can just choose based on color scheme you like if they aren't well documented.

[AgentP]

The Iron Hands would, of course, be a natural ally for mechanicus.  But I always struggle to make all black models visually appealing.

[Guest Mr. Bigglesworth]

I prefer custom so I don't have to worry about rules, but I also like story driven. I made mine with tau tech so I could say they are chaos too as they would be renegades

 

I'm resisting my paint scheme after this ofcc and going to make a full blown chapter.

[wildcat]

I have created my own chapter, iron heads, a later founding from the iron hands. I use bionic legs and the vanguard helmet from the skitarii line. The front torsos are the same as the marine from the vehicle kits. They are red for Mars. My own fluff is they are created as ad mech marine force. Engineered for those deployments that need a more surgical approach. Vehicles are black and red (flyers), or gun bolt silver and red.

[Guest]

The Iron Hands would, of course, be a natural ally for mechanicus.  But I always struggle to make all black models visually appealing.

Is that really the only reason you dislike them? The Brazen Claws, Sons of Medusa and Red Talons are IH successors with dramatically different paint schemes. The Steel Confessors and Iron Lords are also successors, but have pretty similar paint themes.

[indytims]

I don't really care for any of the 'favorite' Marine Chapters, so if I was going to do a Marine Chapter, I'd go with something original, with my own paint-scheme, etc.

 

Just depends on what is most important to you - recognition for being one of the 'standards', or recognition for have the cajones to be yourself! :)

[Guest]

Just depends on what is most important to you - recognition for being one of the 'standards', or recognition for have the cajones to be yourself! :)

Though if you are good at painting, being the best painted of a particular known chapter has some recognition to it too.

 

Chappy's Black Templar in example, is probably the reason we don't have any other BT players locally.....

[pretre]

 

Chappy's Black Templar in example, is probably the reason we don't have any other BT players locally.....

What?

[PourSpelur]

Go with Sons of Orpheus! Strong Ad-Mech ties, not many people play them and white Marines look great.

I'll second the "look though Lexicanum" idea. Pick a color scheme or fluff that you like and start representing an unloved Chapter.

[BrainFireBob]

My own Marines are the Filii Calthum. Ultramarine-style trims but two shades darker on a Crimson Fists blue. Made of Marines who were on Macragge but were from Calth; unable to reach Calth they mix ashes from its surface into their armor. Symbol is a red starburst; noted for their disregard of tactical rules in favor of aggressive actions when facing Chaos forces, to the point they attack other Imperial forces for the right of fighting in the vanguard. Fleet-based, normally operating in the region of the Maelstrom, their sudden abandonment of their normal patrol routes has left entire sectors vulnerable to Blackheart as the entire Chapter tears towards Cadia.

 

Means I'm stupidly aggressive and play against Chaos a lot, and can't stand white primer.

 

I also have Dark Angels, Iron Warriors, and Night Lords. Make yourself happy.

[WestRider]

I'm sort of torn by that myself. I've got Dark Angels, Space Wolves, and then a custom chapter. This means I basically need three of anything I want to be able to use in all of them. If I had just gone with a custom that I could Counts As pretty much anything, this would be a vastly cheaper hobby for me. But on the other hand, the DA and SW both have very distinctive, very cool looks, and I love putting them on the table as themselves.

[Guest]

I'm sort of torn by that myself. I've got Dark Angels, Space Wolves, and then a custom chapter. This means I basically need three of anything I want to be able to use in all of them. If I had just gone with a custom that I could Counts As pretty much anything, this would be a vastly cheaper hobby for me. But on the other hand, the DA and SW both have very distinctive, very cool looks, and I love putting them on the table as themselves.

I'm looking into fielding some "SW that saw reason" in with my DA...

[Sugarlessllama]

I decided to make my own chapter myself. Since I am a narrative player, I thought I would get a kick out of writing my own lore. And it turns out, I have. 

 

Although if I had to do it over again, what I might try and do, is mix the two. I would take a paint scheme that I really like (Flesh Tearers, Doom Legion, or Imperial Fists) and change one thing (IF, but with white shoulder pads) and then use that as the spring board for my own chapter. That way you still have the draw of an "established" chapter, but still the fun of creating your own lore and feel. 

 

But either way, I would start with the lore first. See if there is a current chapter that really draws you in that you can't wait to tell a story about on the table top. If you can't, but there are strong themes you like and do something all your own.

 

Again, drawing something from myself, I would go about writing up my own Blood Angel chapter and build the army using Dark Angels models. I love the look and lore of the Dark Angels, but favor the idea of them behaving more like crusading beserkers in the hunt for The Fallen, rather than dark and brooding hunters. So while they would be Blood Angels rules wise, they would be a Dark Angels successor. 

 

Things like that can also be possible with a limited entry codex chapter, but not as easy. By going DIY you ensure that that other people won't try and correct you on your lore. 

[WestRider]

 

 

Although if I had to do it over again, what I might try and do, is mix the two. I would take a paint scheme that I really like (Flesh Tearers, Doom Legion, or Imperial Fists) and change one thing (IF, but with white shoulder pads) and then use that as the spring board for my own chapter. That way you still have the draw of an "established" chapter, but still the fun of creating your own lore and feel.

I did something similar with my DIY Chapter. Basically took the Fleshtearers scheme and changed the Chapter Symbol and some other little details.

[pretre]

I use my SW for whatever I want! Cause reasons.

[pretre]

Course WYSIWYG is problematic for some models and that means re-modeling sometimes.

[WestRider]

Honestly, a lot of the time, I do the same, especially when I'm just playing at someone's place. When the previous SM Dex came out, I had several Games that were pretty much "OK, the Dark Angels are Raven Guard, and the SW are Imperial Fists. Cool? Cool."

 

I'm actually planning on using a bunch of my DA as Codex Marines at Game Night on Thursday because I've only got a couple of Squads of Crimson Thunder painted up. I've never done that at a Tournament yet, tho.

[InfestedKerrigan]

Do a custom force that compliments your AdMech.  Even if it is a borrowed scheme.  As Captain Sol O'mon once said, "For there is no Armor Scheme that is New under the Sun."