Diversity of armor types in squads?

[m0nolith]

How diverse were the armor types in squads?

I understand there were predominant patterns in each legion, ie Death Guard has mostly mkII, Blood Angels mostly MkiV, Imperial FIsts, mkIII ect ect, but even then all had other patterns. 

How would the other patterns be divided up between legions, by individuals, or by squads?

What I mean, would a standard squad have a predominant type , ie mkiV, and then a few members of the squad would have mkIII and mkV?

 

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I'd imagine it would depend on several factors, the most prominent being availability, then personal preference. I seem to recall in Horus Rising a mention that most or all of the XVI were in Mk IV plate because it was the newest and they were the legion of the Warmaster himself.

 

If it was a legion that was far from regular supply lanes, I'd think you'd see a more piecemeal appearance to the armor of the individual and less uniformity across armor marks.

[Cloud Runner]

It could also depend on where the force was.

 

For example, if they were on an extended campaign, they might have to salvage what parts they had available.

 

Or, there's the great 'catch all' that is MkV armour - technically it's not a specific mark just armour that has been cobbled together from available pieces due to supplies being diverted etc.

 

Or, you could have a specific pattern that is unique to your legion/force if you want something that looks a bit different.

 

 

 

The army I'm putting together will have some units with mixed armour to represent battlefield losses, or the re-assignment of individuals to certain squads as befits the skills they have available. The same goes for different bolter types as well, to maybe represent certain marines preferring specific weapons.

 

Hope that helps :)

[RandomMarine]

IMO during the crusade power armour is just gear for the line marines so you ascend to full Astarte's get issued with mk3 fight many campaign's your gear slowly get more battered through cycles of damage and repair to the point its no longer feasible to fix it at which point your get a new suit. So depending on when each suit was issued they would be different marks or variants and with the rate of attrition during the GC new marines would added to existing units fairly regularly.

[Perry]

It ultimately comes down to personal choice about how you want the army to look.

 

Iron warriors for example are better known for their older armour marks, however you just justify making a IW army using just mk IV plate due to a new supply of armour and lack of replacement parts for older Marks.

 

With my Night Lords I've flirted with the idea of mixing some mk II with my primarily calth mk IV squads, but I didn't like how it looked, so I settled on using some spare mk II/ III shoulder pads on a few of the mk IV models to spice the units up abit

[Brother Pheidias]

I prefer a mix personally, even on the same model, with individual replacement-parts, though it can depend on a lot of factors. A full squad in identical armour works best for the more regimented Legions, although where on the timeline they sit is also very important. But anything can be explained away with fluff; field-testing, supply errors, favouritism, expropriation and "liberating" gear from other Legions or stockpiles are all valid excuses :lol:

[Calas Typhon]

I have been under the Impression, upon joining the legion and becoming a full blown Legionary you are decked in a suit best for you to maintain your self in some cases.

 

In the end, I always look at the roles of the Legions in question. A full on assault legion, like the Salamanders, Death Guard, Iron Hands or Iron Warriors, who use mid to close range ranged weaponry or assault places and expect to come under a lot of ranged fire would more than likely choose MKIII for its protection, sealing, weight, and ease of conversion. Whereas a legion like the World Eaters or Space puppies, who favour a close combat would prefer MKIV for its flexibility with not an amazing loss in protection which is perfect for their choice of combat.

 

There are a few things that might affect the armament of squads fluff wise. For example, a garrison world that has not been supplied since the introduction of MKIV, or a Legion far away from the Imperium, such as the Night Lords or Space Wolves if you are counting pre heresy. I believe the Night Lords were operating outside of the Imperium boundaries anyway when Curze buggered off after being chastised by the Emperor. But all in all, it would really be down to the Individual.

 

Somethings that might make sense would be:

+ a line Astartes as RandomMarine has pointed above might have a lot less choice in armour perhaps. They might not be given the best plate or a choice in what they wear until they reach a certain rank, complete a deed or doing something noteworthy. Or, the Armour just gets flattened and you need a new set.

+ a new recruit could have the newest set of plate, or assigned something relating again to the type of combat or mission they will participate in.

+ sergeants and above would have the choice of any mark and in some cases Terminator plate depending on how high up they are.

 

The marks would be down to the individual marine. If you are using this for creating an army, then any mark can be justified really.

[Xenith]

In 40k, armour is an heirloom and passed down, the older the more history and better. It's superstitious armour.

 

In 30k, it's just a piece of equipment. When a legion gets a new shipment of Mk4, it trades it in for the new stuff.

 

IW made extensive use of Mk3 as it worked better for the types of battles they fougt, but the non front line people, the Storr...Bezzakh? Toraminos artillery company, were in Mk4.

 

The marines will use the best armour available to them.

[m0nolith]

I prefer a mix personally, even on the same model, with individual replacement-parts, though it can depend on a lot of factors. A full squad in identical armour works best for the more regimented Legions, although where on the timeline they sit is also very important. But anything can be explained away with fluff; field-testing, supply errors, favouritism, expropriation and "liberating" gear from other Legions or stockpiles are all valid excuses

Im mixing here as well, but not individual suits. All my legion tacticals are made up predominantly of mkIV (some with Blood Angels upgrades and some regular mkiV plastics), but a good amount of mkIII and new mkV.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

but the non front line people, the Storr...Bezzakh? Toraminos artillery company, were in Mk4.

The Stor-Bezashk; elite siege unit of awesomeness that was one of the few decent things about Angel Exterminatus.

Also, great explanation of the superstitious ways of 40k vs the more practical "it's just newer armor" for 30k.

[Caillum]

Yeah, all of these opinions are spot on. Really depends on your theme, Legion, personal preference, etc. :)

 

I have Alpha Legion in Mark IV Maximus armour, but have a bit of Mark VI Corvus armour thrown in there to represent the stolen RG tech.

 

Next project is Cassian Dracos and his faux Shattered Legions force, which will have a myriad of armour types to represent the adaptability they have to embrace.

 

And Angel Exterminatus was awesome! :P

[DuskRaider]

My Death Guard are mainly in Mk. II and Mk. III with some Mk. IV mixed in here and there, and even that usually has Mk. III pauldrons for better protection. There are some Marines scattered about that have completely hodge podged suits, these are the guys on the front lines and more or less cut off from supplies.

 

My Word Bearers are in mainly Mk. IV, but a lot of it is piecemeal and scavenged from various other Mks, even on individuals, as they're survivors of Calth and have taken to harrying actions along shipping lanes and have been mainly cut off from the Legion as a whole. A lot of their armour is also customized with sigils of the 8-Fold Path and corrupted as such, so there's no decipherable Armour Mk. on those.