Mantis Warriors - Badab War WIP

[Vorganov]

Speaking about Mantis Warriors, anything what is known about tham is very limited. We knew about them either form CS Goto novel and short story, or from Badab War crisis. Also lets say that old GW color plates have never reach quality of Ron Voldstads iluustrations done for Dragon, Squadron Signal or Concord...  So more than "resource" it seems like "afternoon in kindergarden painting session".

 

So if we are using sources like Lexicanum or Wiki, we can found, that Mantis Warriors are best also acting as insurgents or against insurgents in wars what we should currently known under abbrev "LIC". Low Intensity Conflict. Even in the area of the such special setting as 40K they are "Black Ops". So the elite forces -Veteran (Sniper) Squads - within the already non-quite-general-warfare-attitude Space Marine are using camouflage appropriate for the battlefield they serves in. I will be surprised if they will not. 

 

Understand that papa smurfs blue boys will use their blue armor, just because that simple tactical grasp like using Camouflage eluded Roboutte during battles of Horus Heresy. Or he feels it inferior. Alpharius is sending its greeting. I always wandered how Ravenguard with those very contrast color scheme should prepare ambush... To be Space Marine is hufe advantage... Normal 40K SM battles looks either as mix of Greek or Roman falangas, with Napoleon Wars era Regimental shooting to death and mixed finaly with trenchwar of WWI. So If anybody things 40K is MILITARY SCI-FI. Its not ;-D Its Bolter and Sorcery.... Sorry for this off topic.

 

So we know that they are Wardens of Endymion Cluster, where is several star systems, including planets of at least three habitable planets Tranquility system, and in Iblis system. As anyone will agree, this is game and the way it is written you can actually use what ever fluff you find out appropriate and even the creator of the fluff is not consistent. Therefore I am using my Sternguard Veterans in camouflage scheme appropriate to one of the planets. As you said and I totaly agree, sands on Iblis might be more orange. I dont know what colour are the souks of Tranquility II, but also Tranquility III is death world, probably with dense jungles. Therefore this tiger camouflage will cover requirements of two different battlefields - in both of them stripes will disrupt shape of the object and main color will not be fist-in-the-eye.

 

Also we new that their background is mixed (well 1d4chan is not very serious source, but...) and that author of the latest fluff does not have big imaginations about names and desriptions: Khoisan - south african ethnicum or language, Shaidan - means Devil in the arabic, Praying Mantis and Mantis Religiosa is exactly the same, but two different units are known under this name, Mantis is the clan from Legend of the Five Ring and in CS Goto books MW have a strong Japanese feeling, in difference to mongol White Scars.   

 

WH40K WIkia says:

The Mantis Warriors have formed a specialized fighting unit within the Chapter, named the "Praying Mantidae," a cadre of warriors tasked with tracking down the Renegade Astral Claws (now called the Red Corsairs) that led the Mantis Warriors astray. These elite units are given additional training compared to "normal" Astartes. They are recognisable by the snake-like tattoos covering their body, extending high up on their necks. Mantis Warriors Battle-Brothers who are Veterans of the Tranquility Campaign that ended the Badab War are formed into Sniper Squads known as "Tranquility Sniper Squads". These Space Marines are known widely across the Imperium for their use of the Sniper Rifle and their yellow and black tiger-striped armour which was originally used as camouflage in Tranquility II's desert environments, but is now a mark of distinction.

 

I choose more orange version, to be usable in desert, and jungle envirnment as well.

 

Finnaly anybody should have Mantis Warriors look how he likes.