Knights having Camouflage?

[Lord Lorne Walkier]

No way the Code Chivelric, has a chapter on acceptable camouflage.  I could see a Traitor Knight lower themselves to this.  The paint on a Knight is the first thing repaired after action.  Of course you are free to do what ever.   For a fluff Nazi like me....... Bleh!  They have ion shields an a T 8..... Why the need for trickeration?  Not even a Freeblade would do this.  Knight fall into the Shock and Awe types of units.

[Doghouse]

Personally speaking I would say it would be feasible but may not be very common. Knight Houses have long histories and the Knight titans themselves date back to a time when they were not much more than machines/tools used by the original colonists. It is possible that if the original knights were painted in camo and that those colours could have been adopted over the millenia as the established House colours.

 

You could have incredibly ancient degraded pict captures of the Knights fighitng local alien forces and through the archives those colours have been maintained throughout the millenia. The original patterns could take on new meaning as the society begins to revert to a fuedal system. If you wanted to argue the point you could even tie those colours into the culture of the House. Perhaps the reason they fight in green and brown camo is because it has come to be interpreted as a spiritual connection with the forests of the planet which they see as an embodiment of some ancient deity which Imperial Missionaries have adapted to represent the Emperor. If the forests are a source of wildlife and materials that could be consumed then the concept of a supernatural provider isn't that far of a stretch to a superstitious society.

 

It is a quite common theme of 40k to take the practical and mundane and wrap it in superstion and mystery and within the vastness of the 40k universe it is entirely possible.

[Lord Lorne Walkier]

Personally speaking I would say it would be feasible but may not be very common. Knight Houses have long histories and the Knight titans themselves date back to a time when they were not much more than machines/tools used by the original colonists. It is possible that if the original knights were painted in camo and that those colours could have been adopted over the millenia as the established House colours.

 

You could have incredibly ancient degraded pict captures of the Knights fighitng local alien forces and through the archives those colours have been maintained throughout the millenia. The original patterns could take on new meaning as the society begins to revert to a fuedal system. If you wanted to argue the point you could even tie those colours into the culture of the House. Perhaps the reason they fight in green and brown camo is because it has come to be interpreted as a spiritual connection with the forests of the planet which they see as an embodiment of some ancient deity which Imperial Missionaries have adapted to represent the Emperor. If the forests are a source of wildlife and materials that could be consumed then the concept of a supernatural provider isn't that far of a stretch to a superstitious society.

 

It is a quite common theme of 40k to take the practical and mundane and wrap it in superstion and mystery and within the vastness of the 40k universe it is entirely possible.

I think you would be right, if the Throne machanic did not alter the minds of the Knight pilots.  They are brain washed to the point that the idea of hiding from their foe would not occur.  The Knight piolts are a breed apart.  This true for all of them except Taranis.

[Doghouse]

It's not about hiding though, it would be a case of accepting a camouflage scheme over millenia through martial tradition as a normal colour scheme in the same way that a regular house such as Terryn have come to accept blue as predominantly being their colour scheme.  

[Lord Lorne Walkier]

These are warriors.  The would have constant exposure to regular troops who employ camouflage to hide.  Even if they somehow loose the meaning, other Houses would surely call them out.  So then they fight Honor duels?  

[Sword Brother Adelard]

The passage of time makes a lot of difference to my thinking. My 40k knight house is white, to demonstrate their purity of faith.

 

My 30k Knights, however are camo, I reasoned that the original settlers used camo to hide the knights from their enemies and the native beasts, this continued until the planet was rediscovered in the Great Crusade. The difference, in my mind, is the proximity in time to the age of reason.

[tychobi]

Cammo is a fashion choice more often than a practical one in this day and age. You paint your knights to look awesome. 40k is a big universe filled with folks with silly ideas about all sorts of things, cammo on knights fits fine.

[Sword Brother Adelard]

Not my first effort, but my best so far. A camouflaged Porphyrion:

[tychobi]

Looks great! A contrast pop of color on the gun tips or cockpit "eye" could really bring it to life.

[Sword Brother Adelard]

The guns will get painted when I finish it's partner. I actually chose to keep the glass dull on purpose. I thought a bright lens look would slightly defeat the point!

[ValourousHeart]

I think this camouflage question is missing some key points of understanding.  Does anyone really think that the US Marines are a less honorable fighting family than any of the noble houses that sent knights on the crusades?

 

Part of the reason that armies in antiquity used distinct colors was to make it easy to tell from a distance which units were on which side so artillery would be less likely to fire on friendly troops.  Since warfare moved away from duels at every level gorilla warfare tactics have been adapted.  The only modern example of an army wearing bright colors would be the Swiss Guard, but that is more equivalent to Navy Whites, which are traded for khaki or camo depending on the situation.

 

But I think the real reason that IK households don't tend to use camo schemes is because we are talking about robots the size of buildings walking around.  So drawing more attention to something that is already going to be drawing a lot of attention means that support units are able to more easily slip by unnoticed.

 

At the end of the day, these are your models and you can paint them how ever you want.  But instead of painting them in the traditional jungle camo or even the modern desert camo, I'd place a vote for Blueberry camo.

[Sword Brother Adelard]

Burberry or a striped pattern would be ironically rather effective as a dazzle camo!

[nagashnee]

Does anyone really think that the US Marines are a less honorable fighting family than any of the noble houses that sent knights on the crusades?

 

I cant tell if this is sarcastic, a trap, or just deep level naivete . But real world examples like this are just waiting for a world of hurt on the internet.

[SpiritFox22]

 

Does anyone really think that the US Marines are a less honorable fighting family than any of the noble houses that sent knights on the crusades?

 

I cant tell if this is sarcastic, a trap, or just deep level naivete . But real world examples like this are just waiting for a world of hurt on the internet.

 

I mean it's more a context bit.  War sucks balls, the basic rules are kill the other poor dumb bastard by whatever means possible and hell technically we're a bit "nicer" than wars in the medieval ages.  But if you're talking about not pissing on corpses and beating prisoners, well Nobility back then did that if not worse cause there was minimal repercussions if the other side wasn't a rich guy who was worth more for ransom.

 

Buuuuuuut that's besides the point.  In regards to the actual topic lore wise I couldn't turn up jack, but IMO Knights running camouflage would probably only stick to their top to help avoid enemy air from bombing the :cuss out of them before they reached actual combat.  The rest would still be flashy as there's not much hiding a mech the size of large building moving towards you.

[Sword Brother Adelard]

From an infantry perspective yes, but against Titans it makes more sense. When engine battles take place at an effective range of up to 15km, camo on a Knight begins to make a lot more sense.

[Focslain]

Going to be honest, I'm working on a 'camo cloak' for one of my knights. But it's more of towards the trope of movie monsters stealthing into a scene.

 

Like something the size of a small house should not be able to stealth, but nature finds a way.

[Sword Brother Adelard]

Never forget. "Scout Titans"

[Focslain]

Never forget. "Scout Titans"

 

Think that is more a reference to their speed than the ability to hide.

 

Back on topic, does anyone know of an in-universe material used to hide heat signatures? This includes on small vehicles or troopers. 

 

Need for 'research'.

Edited May 6, 2020 by Focslain

[Sword Brother Adelard]

I don't know if cameleoline has such a property?

 

https://warhammer40k.fandom.com/wiki/Cameleoline

[Focslain]

I don't know if cameleoline has such a property?

 

https://warhammer40k.fandom.com/wiki/Cameleoline

 

Maybe....

 

If I rebuilt the engine exhaust (see Cerastus) for extra cooling, combined with cameleoline tarp... it might work.

 

Damn me being at work, need to hit the forge stat!

[ValourousHeart]

 

Does anyone really think that the US Marines are a less honorable fighting family than any of the noble houses that sent knights on the crusades?

 

I cant tell if this is sarcastic, a trap, or just deep level naivete . But real world examples like this are just waiting for a world of hurt on the internet.

 

It was none of those.  One of the comments made a reference to camo being seen as cowardly and/or dishonorable to the noble knight houses.  I felt that showed a real misunderstanding of the differences between nobility, bravery, and honor.  The clothes you wear in battle have no bearing on any of those traits.

 

That said there are still practical reasons for the uniforms that different armies have worn throughout history.