Capt Nivek Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 After reading the Dornian Heresy PDF I decided that i want to do a small force with a few mates. However I soon realised that I have little to no information about how to assemble such an army! I'm just after the simple things. For instance I know a post Horus Heresy chapter has 10 companies, and the companies have 10 squads of 10 men. But how is a Grand company etc made up? Does it vary massively between the different legions? I really want to do a good job doing this army but I don't fancy having to go back and re-do just because i missed a huge/fundamental part! Please help! Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/ Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Denaro Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 I might be mistaken but I always thought the 10x10 coy/squad was post Heresy ie. codex astartes. Grand companies I think can vary greatly in size. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/#findComment-2414753 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt Nivek Posted May 27, 2010 Author Share Posted May 27, 2010 yer, i realised my typo and edited, sorry! i've been informed by a mate that the company set up was pretty similar (2 devastator, 2 assault, 6 tacical and company command) but 20 man squads instead... the amount of companies varied... Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/#findComment-2414767 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legatus Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 The organisation probably varied from Legion to Legion, but for some it was not too different from the current "Codex" organisation. The Ultramarines were probably organised like they are now, and it is mentioned in a few sources that the formation of a "Chapter" had allready been known, and was not an entirely new concept. So basically we can assume that the Ultramarines Legion consisted of several 1000 man Chapters, each in turn divided into ten companies. A few Horus Heresy novels also mention "Chapters". The Dark Angels were said to be organised into Chapters in their shprt story in "Tales of Heresy". Some of the other Legions, especially those that were focused on efficient performance like the Emperor's Children or the Luna Wolves, were probably organised very similar to that. The organisation was geared towards adaptability and tactical flexibility. Others, such as the Imperial Fists, had very strict organisation, where all formations were designed the same. The Space Wolves and the Alpha Legion were more lose and "arbitrary" in their organisation. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/#findComment-2414805 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vash113 Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 Well Legatus somewhat covers this but in short, all Pre-Heresy Legions were different. Some had Grand Companies, others had Companies, others had Great Companies and still others had Chapters and there was little to no consistency in the way squads were formed and ordered. The World Eaters for instance formed their assault marines into Assault Companies, while the Space Wolves Great Companies are pretty much no different now than they were back then... just smaller. The Ultramarines probably had the Codex established organization even prior to its implementation. The Dark Angels were split into Chapters but there's little indication to how each Chapter was made up. The Death Guard, Luna Wolves, Emperor's Children and others were all split into Companies, but some references seem to imply that those "Companies" were actually 1000 man organizations, not the 100 men groups we think of now. There was no standard and each Legion varied immensely in its tactical and organizational tenets. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/#findComment-2414838 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legatus Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 The Dark Angels were split into Chapters but there's little indication to how each Chapter was made up. I think the story in "Tales of Heresy" describes that the Chapter Master had three Captains with him on his battle barge. And since battle barges usually carry the equivalent of three contemporary companies, it seems that the Dark Angels chapters were divided into 100 man companies as well. How those companies were organised is not touched upon, IIRC. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/#findComment-2414881 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt Nivek Posted May 27, 2010 Author Share Posted May 27, 2010 jeez.... so what you gents are saying is (almost) anything goes! lol! well without a doubt i have a lot of food for thought for now ;) just hoping they decide to bring out a horus heresy book soon for night lords and iron warriors, as i haven't decided which one i want to do Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/#findComment-2414941 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vodunius Posted May 27, 2010 Share Posted May 27, 2010 GW has actually listed two 'standard' pre-Heresy organisations in the past.. and then completely ignored them: The first was in WD126, according to that each Legion/Chapter (the terms were interchangeable until 2nd editions Chaos Codex) consisted of up to 20 Regiments. Each Regiment consisted of 3 Battalions each of 3 Companies each of 3 Detachments - each battalion then had another 3 detachments at the Battalion level whilst there was another 6 independent detachments at the Regimental level. (Interestingly the Ultramarines company markings were apparently designed with this formation in mind and thats why the 10th company has no colour: because there was no 10th company.) Detachments were 2-3 vehicles or 20 infantry (40 for tactical) and there was absolutely no dictates on what went where, if memory serves the example Regiment was 760 or so marines. The Horus Heresy artbooks then stated that the standard Astartes structure was 100 man companies led by a Captain grouped into Battalions of 5 led by a Lieutenant-Commander, with 2 Battalions forming a Regiment/Great Company/Wing/Chapter - depending on the legion - led by a Commander. Although no info was given on what specific equipment the marines might have. Link to comment https://bolterandchainsword.com/topic/202627-legion-astartes/#findComment-2414957 Share on other sites More sharing options...
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