Tips for color code squad designators?

[kharn_the_betrayer]

I'm a returning player and am making a new Space Marine Army using generic codex and  the one thing is that I wasn't that great of a painter before and I wanted something simple that required no decals no freehand so I was going with the cement grey on the body with a single blood red knee pad on a single knee for squad designation (to change by squad yellow bright red etc).  The problem is that when i went to move the knee over in the painter it looked really good.  

 

Just i'm back to being a beginner painter and am looking for ideas on how to do a simple squad designation by color of one section of the armor or just keep both knee pads matching and keep with my original idea to move the color around?   

 

I figure as i get back to painting and improve my skills  i can add better designations etc.  

[Xenith]

How do you feel about transfers? The sheets have a lot of numbes on then that you could use for squad numbers.

 

Otherwise, try and get your hands on How to Paint Space Marines, it's a gold mine of how to designate squads.

 

You could always use the same as the codex does for company - so company colours on the shoulder pad trim, then squad colours on the knee:

 

Company 2 squad 1 = yellow rims, white knee, etc. 

 

For a custom chapter, you could always copy the Blood Angels scheme and use crosses, skulls, etc as squad designators.  

Edited December 9, 2020 by Xenith

[StraightSilver]

Is this for gaming purposes, to keep units separate, or for painting purposes, to look cool?

 

The only reason I ask is that you can get removable base adapters that change the colour of the base rim so you can track squads in game. These might be easier?

If it's for your painting project though I second the decals idea, or you could mix it up by battlefield role.

Tactical Squads get  coloured kneepads, Assault Squads get different coloured hands, Devastator Squads get different coloured helmets?

[kharn_the_betrayer]

Sorry I meant the transfer sheet not decals and I don’t want to start practicing on my new stuff I may pick up something cheap to practice on as I move forward.

 

It was partly as a weird backwards way for easy on table squad designation and as a way to avoid minimal symbology (transfers) on the minis and just wrap it in a way in fluff so codex. That is a good idea to maybe steal the blood angel ideas.

[Rik Lightstar]

If you want to keep it relatively simple, then I'd consider stripes on the backpack.

 

• They're visible from above, in front and behind the mini
• You can use colours for unit type and quantity of strips for unit number
• You can build it into your Chapter Iconography quite easily
• It will leave the "classic" areas for Chapter Iconography free if you'd like to add to them later

For a most forces you're unlikely to take more than 4 Troops choices and up to 3 of anything else.

 

Work from the middle:

• Single Central Stripe for Squad 1
• 2 Stripes either side of Centre for Squad 2
• Keep the Stripes and spaces the same width throughout and they'll look pretty cohesive

Having thought this through as typing it, I may well add it onto my White Scars as I think it'll actually look really good.

 

Rik

[jaxom]

Are you working with Primaris models? The circular area on the back of the power packs is like a larger version of the kneepad.

[kharn_the_betrayer]

I am solely working with primaris marines And that is a very excellent idea I didn’t think of especially breaking up all the grey in envisioning

[CMDR_Welles]

I paint the rim of the base different colors, usually in shades relatively close to each other but yet distinct. So, if I had three Tactical Squads in my army, I'd use three browns for the base rims. If I had 2 Assault Squads, then I'd use two shades of red or another color that wasnt used for the Tacticals.

 

I would paint base rims of characters and heroes in black as they didn't need differentiation like multiple squads would.

 

Back with my first army, I did kneepads, and it really doesnt work well. You need to be able to see from any direction what models go with what squads easily. Kneepads and Shoulderpads just aren't always visible from all directions.

[Xenith]

Are you working with Primaris models? The circular area on the back of the power packs is like a larger version of the kneepad.

 

That's genious, and something I'm stealing. 

[Anticontrarian]

One surprisingly simple yet effective method is to pick a space (the circle on the Primaris backpack is perfect for this) and apply different patterns for each squad.

 

Just with a 50:50 split of red/black you can have them in:

Left/Right, Right/Left, Top/Bottom, Bottom/Top, and then reversals of each diagonal split.

 

Depending on your confidence with a brush, you can also do quartering, triangular inserts, or a central stripe.

 

I did this with a Deathwing army back in the day, using the little square patch on the top of the Indomitus armour. Quickest and least confusing squad designations I've ever done!