When I left the hobby 10+ years ago, a large number of friends and peers here on the B&C were just beginning to explore DIY chapters vs painting traditional space marine chapters. So when I returned to the forum I immediately spent time scanning the Forge to see what people were working on and if anything immediately inspired me. I ended up test painting an old 4th edition mini as a Crimson Fist when I stumbled upon an old post by @SCCwho had a number of Brazen Claws he had painted. I had remembered his army from when before I left and was immediately enamored with the quarters scheme that included red as well as the darker blue I was already testing for the Crimson Fists.

I pivoted and was able to use a test mini (gifted by my local GW) and really liked what I saw (Model is still WIP and mostly used for testing, hence it being unfinished):

Despite the warnings of many I found the quarters scheme to be an enjoyable challenge (though not too challenging) to paint and I also spent time diving into the lore. The Brazen Claws are a second-founding chapter, but there really isn't a lot of content out there on them. For a long time they were rumored to be lost to chaos, but that fluff gap was corrected during my absence from the hobby. This was exactly the flexibility I was looking for as I wasn't quite ready to re-launch my own DIY chapter dreams just yet. Since they are an Iron Hands successor there is flexibility in model adaptations there as well.

To start I've purchased one intercessors squad, and I'll be working on that over the coming weeks. I'll be sharing my progress, my challenges and my learnings and as I move through that squad I'll ultimately decide if I want to keep going with the Brazen Claws or move onto another chapter.

I hope you enjoy reading and following and I am really looking forward to your dialogue and feedback!