Liber Challenge: 45th Imperial Regiment

[Grand Master Belial]

Might as well start the Liber off with quick start to my submission.

 

45th IMPERIAL REGIMENT

 

ORIGINS:

During the various Imperial Crusades, many regiments are depleted to the point of being combat ineffective. In most cases, the survivors are rolled into another regiment; but there are times when the regiments on the entire planet are nearly destroyed. The units are just folded into a generalized “Imperial” regiment. Their entire complement is composed of the survivors of a devastated units. 

 

The 45th had its origins after the Macharian Crusade. With the death of Solar Macharius, the gains the Imperium made began to fall apart. In an effort to maintain control, the Imperium sent out a stabilization force. It failed, but in its wake the 45th Imperial Regiment was created from the veterans of that campaign.

 

HOME WORLD:

The 45th is not eligible to be granted a planet like other regiments, but after the regiment has survived three times the length required for other regiments and in no small part due to the leadership of General Leo Macharius. The planet Gerron III has become a training planet and a central point for the delivery of mar material from the Munitorium for those regiments that had been folded into the 45th. 

 

PRESENT ACTIVITES:

The 45th is currently stationed at the rear of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade. The current Warlord has taken a dim view of the roll-up regiment and while the regiment has become bloated with the constant in-flux of veterans, it has not seen any significant conflict. 

 

ROLL OF HONOR:

TBD

 

REGIMENT ORGANIZATION:

As the size of the Regiment grew, it has taken to grouping the veterans of similar skills into the various companies, some of which are nearly the size of a normal regiment. 

 

RED COMPANY - JUNGLE FIGHTERS

Red Company became the new home of several Catachan survivors. Their distinct red bandanas and their refusal to part with them made them a natural choice of the Company. As such, the Company is where all the specialists of Jungle Warfare gather and share skills. Along with their choice of the color red, the Company is notorious for eliminating any commissars assigned to them. 

 

GOLD COMPANY - DESERT FIGHTERS

Gold Company is home of the desert worlders. It is also the company that has a cavalry component within the ranks.

 

GREEN COMPANY - STANDARD FIGHTERS

The largest company and nearly a regiment in its own right. Most of the fighters are from temperate worlds 

 

BLUE COMPANY - WATER FIGHTERS

The smallest company in the regiment. Blue company prefers to fight on the water and are ill equipped to fight on land. Something that led directly to their regiments being decimated in past battles. 

 

WHITE COMPANY - ARCTIC FIGHTERS

Like Red Company, White Company was set up with Valhallan veterans and has taken on many of their unusual habits, including turning refrigeration units to max in their designated living quarters. In another unusual turn, the specialists of the squads prefer not to use hot weapons like the flamer or plasma gun. 

 

GRAY COMPANY - SKY FIGHTERS

Gray Company is the airborne element of the 45th. Every veteran of the company has performed at least fifteen grav-chute combat drops and they are fearless at height. Due to the special nature of the 45th, Gray Company has its own Valkyrie and Vendetta 

 

BLACK COMPANY - NIGHT FIGHTERS

Black Company is the fighters who specialize in fighting in the dark. While some squads of the company cannot stand being in the sunshine, the rest are more than capable of fighting during the day 

 

ATTACHED SUPPORT UNITS:

Echo Company 1st/863rd Tempestus Scions

The 45th acquired Echo company when the 45th’s Gray Company assisted the Scions during a planetfall. While Gray Company provided a diversion for the Scions to perform a precision strike the Scions came under fierce resistance. The quick reaction and redeployment of Gray Company impressed the Scions and by their codes of honor, they were obligated to return the favor and have been on attachment to the 45th Regiment. While the obligations to the 45th have been satisfied in the past, they have continued to assist the regiment’s Gray Company on other missions as elite specialists.

 

477th Armored Detachment

The 477th Armored  Detachment keeps all of the mechanized vehicles used by the 45th. Including the Chimeras and a reclaimed Stormlord that acts as the Regimental HQ for the 45th when they are deployed. 

 

RECRUITMENT: 

TBD

 

REGIMENTAL COLORS:

 

BATTLE STANDARDS:

XLV

 

BATTLE HONORS, RELICS, DECORATIONS AND AWARDS:

TBD

 

COMBAT DOCTRINE:

TBD

 

BATTLE CRY: 

TBD

 

LOCAL RITUALS:

TBD

 

BELIEFS:

TBD

 

CHAMPIONS OF THE REGIMENT:

FOUNDER - Leo Macharius

[TDF]

Interesting. How are you going to explore the cultural/inter-service rivalry between the different companies?

[Grand Master Belial]

I kind of have the companies somewhat isolated from each other. Only the company with the right skills goes into battle, leaving the rest in the rear. I am kind of interested in exploring a little bit the culture clash within the same fighting style. I keep thinking Vostroyans are arctic fighters because of the hats, so imagine some of their Firstborn meeting up with a group of Valhallans. Both have very proud traditions and unless the veterans are still suffering from PTSD, there will be sparks within the ranks.

 

In the past I did have Red and Green Companies with a rivalry on who could get to the next rally point faster. Green Company would mechanize up while Red company would disappear into the terrain and walk out the other side. 

 

When I look at how I painted up my older minis, Blue Company was actually the Mordians because they were dressed in their parade best and I called them the Cadet/Junior Officer company and I had the classic beret storm troopers as Black Company. With the changes in the Codices, I have a little corrective painting to do and a modified history of the 45th.

[Grand Master Belial]

I had to re-write a few things to include Ash Waste fighters and I added a few more things.

 

45th IMPERIAL REGIMENT

 

ORIGINS:

During the various Imperial Crusades, many regiments are depleted to the point of being combat ineffective. In most cases, the survivors are rolled into another regiment; but there are times when the regiments on the entire planet are nearly destroyed. The units are just folded into a generalized “Imperial” regiment. Their entire complement is composed of the survivors of a devastated units. 

 

The 45th had its origins after the Macharian Crusade. With the death of Solar Macharius, the gains the Imperium made began to fall apart. In an effort to maintain control, the Imperium sent out a stabilization force. It failed, but in its wake the 45th Imperial Regiment was created from the veterans of that campaign.

 

HOME WORLD:

The 45th is not eligible to be granted a planet like other regiments, but after the regiment has survived three times the length required for other regiments and in no small part due to the leadership of General Leo Macharius. The planet Gerron III has become a training planet and a central point for the delivery of mar material from the Munitorium for those regiments that had been folded into the 45th. 

 

PRESENT ACTIVITES:

The 45th is currently stationed at the rear of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade. The current Warlord has taken a dim view of the roll-up regiment and while the regiment has become bloated with the constant in-flux of veterans, it has not seen any significant conflict. 

 

ROLL OF HONOR:

TBD

 

REGIMENT ORGANIZATION:

As the size of the Regiment grew, it has taken to grouping the veterans of similar skills into the various companies, some of which are nearly the size of a normal regiment. 

 

RED COMPANY - JUNGLE FIGHTERS

Red Company became the new home of several Catachan survivors. Their distinct red bandanas and their refusal to part with them made them a natural choice of the Company. As such, the Company is where all the specialists of Jungle Warfare gather and share skills. Along with their choice of the color red, the Company is notorious for eliminating any commissars assigned to them. 

 

GOLD COMPANY - DESERT FIGHTERS

Gold Company is home of the desert worlders. It is also the company that has a cavalry component within the ranks.

 

GREEN COMPANY - STANDARD FIGHTERS

The largest company and nearly a regiment in its own right. Most of the fighters are from temperate worlds and the company is the most flexible one in the 45th. 

 

BLUE COMPANY - WATER FIGHTERS

The smallest company in the regiment. Blue company prefers to fight on the water and are ill equipped to fight on land. Something that led directly to their regiments being decimated in past battles. For a time it housed what would later become Sky Company as both operated in blue environments. The swimming element was unable to keep up with the rigors of flight operations and the company was unofficially split along their specializations. The remaining ‘aqua’ Blue company soldiers became an ever more isolated group with an elitist attitude. While there are few operations requiring underwater training, the swimmers of Blue Company are typically first in the water and will dive the deepest and for longer than any other soldier of the 45th.

 

'SKY' COMPANY - SKY FIGHTERS

Originally a part of Blue Company, Sky Company is the airborne element of the 45th. Every veteran of the company has performed at least fifteen grav-chute combat drops and they are fearless at height. Due to the special nature of the 45th, Sky Company is the only company to have assigned vehicles in the form of the Valkyrie and Vendetta Gunships.

 

WHITE COMPANY - ARCTIC FIGHTERS

Like Red Company, White Company was set up with Valhallan veterans and has taken on many of their unusual habits, including turning refrigeration units to max in their designated living quarters. In another unusual turn, the specialists of the squads prefer not to use hot weapons like the flamer or plasma gun. 

 

GRAY COMPANY - ASH WASTES FIGHTERS

The second largest company after Green Company. Gray Company gets its veterans from all the worlds so heavily polluted by the Manufactoriums that it is not safe to step outside without a rebreather and chem-suit. While Gray Company inspires thoughts of those heroes from Armageddon. There has never been a member of the Steel Legion within its ranks. The only person of note is a Commissar that had served with the Death Corps of Kreig and now serves as Gray Company's Senior Commissar. 

 

BLACK COMPANY - NIGHT FIGHTERS

Black Company is the fighters who specialize in fighting in the dark. While some squads of the company cannot stand being in the sunshine, the rest are more than capable of fighting during the day. Black Company also acts as the Scouts for the Regiment. With some of the veterans having served alongside the Tanith First and their impressive battle record, Black Company makes it a point of pride to try and emulate the Tanith Scouts to the best of their ability. While this has caused a schism within the ranks and added to the 45th's overall negative impression to the Warlord. Black Company is continually itching to prove their worth and to test their mettle in battle.

 

ATTACHED SUPPORT UNITS:

Echo Company 1st/863rd Tempestus Scions

The 45th acquired Echo company when the 45th’s Sky Company assisted the Scions during a planetfall. While Sky Company provided a diversion for the Scions to perform a precision strike the Scions came under fierce resistance. The quick reaction and redeployment of Sky Company impressed the Scions and by their codes of honor, they were obligated to return the favor and have been on attachment to the 45th Regiment. While the obligations to the 45th have been satisfied in the past, they have continued to assist the regiment’s Sky Company on other missions as elite specialists.

 

477th Armored Detachment

The 477th Armored Detachment keeps all of the mechanized vehicles used by the 45th. Including the Chimeras and a reclaimed Stormlord that acts as the Regimental HQ for the 45th when they are deployed. 

 

When the 477th was first attached, there was a level of animosity from the Officers of the Armored group. With the 45th officially being titled a ‘light’ infantry regiment, they were not entitled to keep Chimera Transports. However with the influx of Heavy and Mechanized Regiments, their vehicles became the responsibility of the 477th. Many of the drivers were offended to be on ‘chauffeur’ duty and drive troops in a lighter armed vehicle to battle. 

 

This changed on Carrandas Prime when the 45th went off mission to reclaim an abandoned Stormlord thought to have been trapped in a chemical bog on the planet. The 45th established a perimeter and held off attacks for six days while the 477th used every vehicle at their disposal to tow the vehicle free and an airlift of fuel by Sky Company saw the machine return to life. Now with a Super-Heavy tank on their roster, the 477th has warmed to the relationship and has benefited from the acquisition of tanks and vehicles rolled into the 45th. The detachment has actually grown in size to be larger than their armored regiment and the two units interact so that there are enough able soldiers capable of operating any of the equipment assigned to the 477th.  This is particularly true with any sentinel walkers. The walkers may be assigned to the 477th but they are all operated by a pilot of the 45th.

 

RECRUITMENT: 

The 45th Imperial Regiment was not raised on a planet. It was the direct result of the near annihilation of several regiments and the merging of the remaining troops and material. With so few survivors of any one regiment, the remnants did not have sufficient numbers to maintain a traditional regiment and so the planetary references were dropped for the Imperial banner. Since the Munitorium does not have the Imperial Regiments on their records, they are supplied by the materials meant to be delivered to the now destroyed regiment. For the 45th, this makes for a logistical nightmare as the in-flux of materials are typically incompatible with the other shipments destined to the regiment.

 

The Regiment only gets recruits from the reassignment of veterans whose regiments are combat ineffective and not fit for reinforcement. Once the dead regiment is folded into the 45th, the survivors are classified by their skills and assigned a company. 

 

REGIMENTAL COLORS:

The standard uniform colors for the 45th are forest green fatigues with headgear matching the company they are assigned. Many of the veterans have taken to carrying over some element of their past uniform onto the newer one and in the middle of conflict it is not uncommon for newly assigned soldiers to continue to fight in their tattered old wargear until a replacement can be requisitioned from the Munitorium. With the level of individualization of such a large ad-hoc group, the Regiment is typically seen as an eyesore to the top brass when the Regiment is on the parade grounds. If for this reason alone, the regiment rarely performs large scale parade formations and parade uniforms are discarded for standard fighting fatigues. 

 

BATTLE STANDARDS:

The 45th has a very simple standard. A White banner with a golden aqua with a lightning bolt in each talon. Above the heads of the aquifer is a scroll with “XLV.” The standard is repeated at the company level with a colored banding around the edge of the standard in their appropriate color. 

 

BATTLE HONORS, RELICS, DECORATIONS AND AWARDS:

TBD

 

COMBAT DOCTRINE:

TBD

 

BATTLE CRY: 

TBD

 

LOCAL RITUALS:

TBD

 

BELIEFS:

TBD

 

CHAMPIONS OF THE REGIMENT:

FOUNDER - COL Leo Macharius

Leo Macharius is rumored to be an illegitimate child of Lord Solar Macharius. Whether it is true or not is lost amongst the untold trillions of sheets of parchment that the Administratum handles daily or lost to the fires of war. Bearing the name of the famous warlord brought a certain stigma that followed Leo his entire life and guaranteed him a life of war amongst the Militarium. Leo was the Sergeant Major of the 93rd Dragoons when it was set upon by a larger Chaos force. Seven regiments were laid waste on that day with Macharius being the highest ranking amongst the survivors. 

 

With word of reinforcements en route in the form the Angels of Vengeance and the Questing Brothers, Macharius organized the remaining forces into an ad-hoc formation and prepared to sell themselves by providing a diversion and allowing the Space Marines to land. The Space Marines seeing the diversion instead changed their drop point and landed in the midst of the fighting. With the marines on the surface, the chaos forces faltered and were in turn destroyed to a man by the companies of marines from the two chapters. 

 

Exhausted from battle, Macharius leaned against the ruins of a building when a Space Marine and some high brass official from the Militarium approached him. He did his best to come to attention when the Astartes gave him a signal to rest. The General that followed the marine huffing and puffing saw the tattered remains of the seven regiments. Barely three companies remained and even those where not at full strength. 

 

The General gave Macharius a field promotion to Captain under the intense scrutiny of the Astartes and gave him orders to assemble his forces for redeployment. In the scramble of reorganizing ‘his’ forces, it became apparent that the General had no inclination of preserving the lives of the survivors. With grim determination, Macharius sought to humiliate the General by proving that his ad-hoc force would be ready and capable of surviving their next battle. By breaking his group into specializations, each team of specialist were able to support the other teams and saw the small rag-tag bunch defeat the leader of their next foe. A lieutenant of the warlord that had destroyed their original regiments and was killed by the marines.

[Grand Master Belial]

I think I have this essentially finished.
 

45th IMPERIAL REGIMENT

 
ORIGINS:
During the various Imperial Crusades, many regiments are depleted to the point of being combat ineffective. In most cases, the survivors are rolled into another regiment; but there are times when the regiments on the entire planet are nearly destroyed. The units are just folded into a generalized “Imperial” regiment. Their entire complement is composed of the survivors of a devastated units. 
 
The 45th had its origins after the Macharian Crusade. With the death of Solar Macharius, the gains the Imperium made began to fall apart. In an effort to maintain control, the Imperium sent out a stabilization force. It failed, but in its wake the 45th Imperial Regiment was created from the veterans of that campaign.
 
HOME WORLD:
The 45th is not eligible to be granted a planet like other regiments, but after the regiment has survived three times the length required for other regiments and in no small part due to the leadership of General Leo Macharius. The planet Gerron III has become a training planet and a central point for the delivery of mar material from the Munitorium for those regiments that had been folded into the 45th. 
 
PRESENT ACTIVITES:
The 45th is currently stationed at the rear of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade. The current Warlord has taken a dim view of the roll-up regiment and while the regiment has become bloated with the constant in-flux of veterans, it has not seen any significant conflict. 
 
ROLL OF HONOR:
ARJAX VII - THE FIRST BATTLE
Arjax VII is a near desolate world with no significant value other than its location. It is a planet with numerous star ports to allow cargo ships to transfer cargos between themselves as they move across the Imperium. When a cargo container filled with Chaos raiders landed, the raiders quickly to possession of the port and all of the cargo housed there. Transports passed the development on to their next destinations and seven worlds sent a regiment to reclaim the port. The seven regiments were able to surround the port and had begun to crush the raiders when the regiments were trapped by another hidden force that had been waiting the entire time. Only the appearance of two chapters of Astartes and the ad-hoc force of survivors of the original seven regiments were able to turn the tide against Chaos.
 
OUSTING OF GOVERNOR DOOLACHEN
The 45th was in the process of reorganizing after the battle on a nearby system. The planet provided a respite for the weary warriors and allowed the officers to attempt to merge the new soldiers from a dead regiment to be brought into some form of uniformity. The drain on planetary resources on top of the high tithes demanded by the Administratum had Governor Doolachen fuming at the thought that they had to pay for something that had happened on a nearby system. Declaring that his tithe had been fulfilled, he refused any more aid to any of the forces on the planet. It was not long before an order was sent down to apprehend the governor. Expecting a response, the governor had fortified himself in a protected position. The 45th was asked to provide a diversion and draw out any troops loyal to the governor while a company of Tempestus Scions attacked the fortress directly. The 45th never encountered any resistance but when the Scions attempted to grav-chute into the palace, they encountered stiff resistance and several renegade marines. Sky Company overheard the vox-chatter and redeployed to assist the Scions and provide an airlift to the stranded warriors. With the assistance of the 45th, the governor was captured and the renegades killed. 

 

CARRANDAS PRIME - LIFTING THE STORMLORD
The desert planet of Carrandas Prime had seen numerous attacks in the past from the orks. A casualty of a prior battle was the Stormlord tank ‘Screamin’ Sandy’ that had become mired in a patch of quicksand. The previous crew had managed to secure the vehicle so that the tank was inaccessible to the orks. Knowing the tank’s location, the 45th sent Gold and Gray Companies with their tank support to the abandoned vessel. When MAJ Silva stormed into GEN Macharius’s command post demanding to know what happened to his missing tanks, the colonel took him up in a Valkyrie to the Stormlord. The 45th maintained a perimeter while the tank crews worked furiously to free the tank and get it back to full operation. Knowing what was at stake and with Macharius’s permission, Silva took the rest of his detachment to support the beleaguered troops and assist the crews in pulling out the massive tank. After six days of hard pressed fighting, the Stormlord roared to life and immediately began to punish the orks. Silva laughed out load as the tank rolled through the ork forces and ended up flanking the Imperial front and crushing the orks in a deadly crossfire. With Sky Company providing supply runs, the tank was relentless in its pursuit of the Ork Warlord though it had already crushed him under its tracks long before.
 
REGIMENT ORGANIZATION:
As the size of the Regiment grew, it has taken to grouping the veterans of similar skills into the various companies, some of which are nearly the size of a normal regiment. 
 
RED COMPANY - JUNGLE FIGHTERS
Red Company became the new home of several Catachan survivors. Their distinct red bandanas and their refusal to part with them made them a natural choice of the Company. As such, the Company is where all the specialists of Jungle Warfare gather and share skills. Along with their choice of the color red, the Company is notorious for eliminating any commissars assigned to them. 
 
GOLD COMPANY - DESERT FIGHTERS
Gold Company is home of the desert worlders. It is also the company that has a cavalry component within the ranks.
 
GREEN COMPANY - STANDARD FIGHTERS
The largest company and nearly a regiment in its own right. Most of the fighters are from temperate worlds and the company is the most flexible one in the 45th. 
 
BLUE COMPANY - WATER FIGHTERS
The smallest company in the regiment. Blue company prefers to fight on the water and are ill equipped to fight on land. Something that led directly to their regiments being decimated in past battles. For a time it housed what would later become Sky Company as both operated in blue environments. The swimming element was unable to keep up with the rigors of flight operations and the company was unofficially split along their specializations. The remaining ‘aqua’ Blue company soldiers became an ever more isolated group with an elitist attitude. While there are few operations requiring underwater training, the swimmers of Blue Company are typically first in the water and will dive the deepest and for longer than any other soldier of the 45th.
 
'SKY' COMPANY - SKY FIGHTERS
Originally a part of Blue Company, Sky Company is the airborne element of the 45th. Every veteran of the company has performed at least fifteen grav-chute combat drops and they are fearless at height. Due to the special nature of the 45th, Sky Company is the only company to have assigned vehicles in the form of the Valkyrie and Vendetta Gunships.
 
WHITE COMPANY - ARCTIC FIGHTERS
Like Red Company, White Company was set up with Valhallan veterans and has taken on many of their unusual habits, including turning refrigeration units to max in their designated living quarters. In another unusual turn, the specialists of the squads prefer not to use hot weapons like the flamer or plasma gun. 
 
GRAY COMPANY - ASH WASTES FIGHTERS
The second largest company after Green Company. Gray Company gets its veterans from all the worlds so heavily polluted by the Manufactoriums that it is not safe to step outside without a rebreather and chem-suit. While Gray Company inspires thoughts of those heroes from Armageddon. There has never been a member of the Steel Legion within its ranks. The only person of note is a Commissar that had served with the Death Corps of Kreig and now serves as Gray Company's Senior Commissar. 
 
BLACK COMPANY - NIGHT FIGHTERS
Black Company is the fighters who specialize in fighting in the dark. While some squads of the company cannot stand being in the sunshine, the rest are more than capable of fighting during the day. Black Company also acts as the Scouts for the Regiment. With some of the veterans having served alongside the Tanith First and their impressive battle record, Black Company makes it a point of pride to try and emulate the Tanith Scouts to the best of their ability. While this has caused a schism within the ranks and added to the 45th's overall negative impression to the Warlord. Black Company is continually itching to prove their worth and to test their mettle in battle.
 
ATTACHED SUPPORT UNITS:
ECHO COMPANY 1st/863rd TEMPESTUS SCIONS
The 45th acquired Echo company when the 45th’s Sky Company assisted the Scions during a planetfall. While Sky Company provided a diversion for the Scions to perform a precision strike the Scions came under fierce resistance. The quick reaction and redeployment of Sky Company impressed the Scions and by their codes of honor, they were obligated to return the favor and have been on attachment to the 45th Regiment. While the obligations to the 45th have been satisfied in the past, they have continued to assist the regiment’s Sky Company on other missions as elite specialists.
 
477th ARMORED DETACHMENT
The 477th Armored Detachment keeps all of the mechanized vehicles used by the 45th. Including the Chimeras and a reclaimed Stormlord that acts as the Regimental HQ for the 45th when they are deployed. 
 
When the 477th was first attached, there was a level of animosity from the Officers of the Armored group. With the 45th officially being titled a ‘light’ infantry regiment, they were not entitled to keep Chimera Transports. However with the influx of Heavy and Mechanized Regiments, their vehicles became the responsibility of the 477th. Many of the drivers were offended to be on ‘chauffeur’ duty and drive troops in a lighter armed vehicle to battle. 
 
This changed on Carrandas Prime when the 45th went off mission to reclaim an abandoned Stormlord thought to have been trapped in liquified soil on the planet. The 45th’s Gold and Gray Companies  established a perimeter and held off attacks for six days while the 477th used every vehicle at their disposal to tow the vehicle free and an airlift of fuel by Sky Company saw the machine return to life. Now with a Super-Heavy tank on their roster, the 477th has warmed to the relationship and has benefited from the acquisition of tanks and vehicles rolled into the 45th. The detachment has actually grown in size to be larger than their armored regiment and the two units interact so that there are enough able soldiers capable of operating any of the equipment assigned to the 477th.  This is particularly true with any sentinel walkers. The walkers may be assigned to the 477th but they are all operated by a pilot of the 45th.
 
RECRUITMENT: 
The 45th Imperial Regiment was not raised on a planet. It was the direct result of the near annihilation of several regiments and the merging of the remaining troops and material. With so few survivors of any one regiment, the remnants did not have sufficient numbers to maintain a traditional regiment and so the planetary references were dropped for the Imperial banner. Since the Munitorium does not have the Imperial Regiments on their records, they are supplied by the materials meant to be delivered to the now destroyed regiment. For the 45th, this makes for a logistical nightmare as the in-flux of materials are typically incompatible with the other shipments destined to the regiment.
 
The Regiment only gets recruits from the reassignment of veterans whose regiments are combat ineffective and not fit for reinforcement. Once the dead regiment is folded into the 45th, the survivors are classified by their skills and assigned a company. 
 
REGIMENTAL COLORS:
The standard uniform colors for the 45th are forest green fatigues with headgear matching the company they are assigned. Many of the veterans have taken to carrying over some element of their past uniform onto the newer one and in the middle of conflict it is not uncommon for newly assigned soldiers to continue to fight in their tattered old wargear until a replacement can be requisitioned from the Munitorium. With the level of individualization of such a large ad-hoc group, the Regiment is typically seen as an eyesore to the top brass when the Regiment is on the parade grounds. If for this reason alone, the regiment rarely performs large scale parade formations and parade uniforms are discarded for standard fighting fatigues. 
 
BATTLE STANDARDS:
The 45th has a very simple standard. A White banner with a golden aqua with a lightning bolt in each talon. Above the heads of the aquifer is a scroll with “XLV.” The standard is repeated at the company level with a colored banding around the edge of the standard in their appropriate color. 
 
BATTLE HONORS, RELICS, DECORATIONS AND AWARDS:
The regiment as a whole has been awarded a number of medals and honors. But to officers of the 45th, the only medals that matters is those given to individual soldiers. It is rare to see any two warriors of the 45th with similar campaign medals and most of the regiment have numerous medals for their wounds and their valor.
 
COMBAT DOCTRINE:
The 45th Imperial Regiment is officially a light infantry unit based upon the initial seven regiments that came to form the Ad-Hoc regiment. In the years since, it has gathered elements of nearly every kind of regiment available but per the parchment-pushers in the Administratum they remain a light infantry regiment. LRD GEN Macharius has worked around it by requesting certain detachments in an effort to allow the unit to retain its heavy, airborne, and mechanized elements. This was accomplished with a detachment from the 477th Armored Division
 
BATTLE CRY: 
With the various battlecries from all the regiments that have been rolled into the 45th, there is no one battle cry for the entire regiment. Even at the company level there are different battle cries.  
 
CHAMPIONS OF THE REGIMENT:
FOUNDER - LORD GENERAL LEO MACHARIUS
Leo Macharius is rumored to be an illegitimate child of Lord Solar Macharius. Whether it is true or not is lost amongst the untold trillions of sheets of parchment that the Administratum handles daily or lost to the fires of war. Bearing the name of the famous warlord brought a certain stigma that followed Leo his entire life and guaranteed him a life of war amongst the Militarium. Leo was the Sergeant Major of the 93rd Dragoons when it was set upon by a larger Chaos force. Seven regiments were laid waste on that day with Macharius being the highest ranking amongst the survivors. 
 
With word of reinforcements en route in the form the Angels of Vengeance and the Questing Brothers, Macharius organized the remaining forces into an ad-hoc formation and prepared to sell themselves by providing a diversion and allowing the Space Marines to land. The Space Marines seeing the diversion instead changed their drop point and landed in the midst of the fighting. With the marines on the surface, the chaos forces faltered and were in turn destroyed to a man by the companies of marines from the two chapters. 
 
Exhausted from battle, Macharius leaned against the ruins of a building when a Space Marine and some high brass official from the Militarium approached him. He did his best to come to attention when the Astartes gave him a signal to rest. The General that followed the marine huffing and puffing saw the tattered remains of the seven regiments. Barely three companies remained and even those where not at full strength. 
 
The General gave Macharius a field promotion to Captain under the intense scrutiny of the Astartes and gave him orders to assemble his forces for redeployment. In the scramble of reorganizing ‘his’ forces, it became apparent that the General had no inclination of preserving the lives of the survivors. With grim determination, Macharius sought to humiliate the General by proving that his ad-hoc force would be ready and capable of surviving their next battle. By breaking his group into specializations, each team of specialist were able to support the other teams and saw the small rag-tag bunch defeat the leader of their next foe. A lieutenant of the warlord that had destroyed their original regiments and was killed by the marines. 
 
COLONEL CIRLUS SILVA - COMMANDER OF THE 477th
Cirlus Silva had been around tanks since he was a mere boy. He followed his father to every battlefield and oversaw the loading, unloading and maintenance of the tanks of the 477th Armored Division. When he was old enough to join the ranks of the fighting men, he was already a veteran driver and his tanks never suffered a malfunction due to missed maintenance. He was familiar with every vehicle based on the Leman Russ and Chimera chassis. This level of expertise would be the reason for him being detached to the 45th. Circus was bitter for a long while as he saw his immaculately maintained Chimeras toting around the rag-tag soldiers of the 45th. The influx of tanks and transports from the fields of battle were seen as insults as nearly every vehicle needed to be taken apart, cleaned, repaired, resanctified and repainted before he would even consider fielding them again. His meticulous nature rubbed off on all of the tank crews under his command and when they attempted to surprise him with a storm lord super-heavy tank, Cirlus Silva began to appreciate the efforts of the 45th and the unusual partnership of which he was a part. With the exception of the aircraft, every vehicle was under his care and the 45th did their best to preserve the vehicles that never failed them in battle. He commanded more vehicles in his detachment than even the Lord Commander of the 477th Armored Division.