These images were created with Bolter and Chainsword's Space Marine Painter. The main dilemma for me is choosing between the navy blue on the left and the midnight blue on the right. Everything else is the same.
Soft Armor/Face Grill - Fortress Gray
Imperial Eagle/Body pipes - Mithril Silver
Shoulder insets/Kneepad - Skull White
Eyes - Mechrite Red
Obviously, there are a number of different ways to do Company, squad and Chapter markings. If one knows where to look it is possible to find Insignium Astartes and other helpful information online. One thing I like to do (and I think I will do this a lot) is to pretend to put myself in the shoes of the Dark Swords and ask myself, "Is this something I would do if I were a Space Marine?" That way the end product makes sense to me.
I think that the Dark Swords should all look the same. Same colors, uniform markings to give them a cohesive look. So let's break it down:
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Every squad should of course wear the Chapter colors: dark/navy blue, white pauldrons and white right knee pad, and silver aquila. The right pauldron would have the squad designation, probably in black, with the company number inside in white. This is subject to change of course. I do think that the tactical arrow, the assault crossed arrows, the devastator triangle/chevron should be a bit stylized and not so ridiculously plain like it is commonly depicted. The squad number would go on the right kneepad in black.
If one thinks about it, the variations in color, different colors of helmet to denote rank and whatnot evolved out of the needs of this being a tabletop game. One would obviously need to tell who's who on the table top. If this were "for real," then I really hope power armor has some kind of IFF on board, that way Astartes can link up with each other through their vox or battle net or whatever and would render visual identification unnecessary. Having the squad sergeant paint his helmet red is just asking to get him shot, in my opinion.
Going on from the last point, all the specialist staff wear the Chapter colors. Maybe Chaplains can keep their traditional black, but it's pretty close to the dark blue, so it hardly matters to me. And they have their rosarius to keep them safe. Everyone else wears the Chapter colors, no ifs ands or buts. It never made any sense to me that Apothecaries had to have white armor, Techmarines have red armor, etc. If the enemy has not an honest bone in his body but at least half a brain, they should be able to quickly figure out that "white = medic, kill first." Astartes should be smart enough to deny the enemy something as simple as a visual advantage. If you must, the Machina Opus or Prime Helix on their right pauldron, but nothing more.
The 8th Company occupys a special place in the Dark Swords Chapter as some of the elder veterans, men skilled in close quarter fighting. Their nickname is the Thunderbolts, so I think they may have a special badge to denote membership - a skull with crisscrossed lightning bolts behind. I was thinking perhaps that the 9th Company (Siegebreakers) might have an image of a shattered tower or castle in much the same vein as the 8th, but I'm not sure and I will have to think on it for a while.
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Now to the hard part, the Chapter emblem. Now first, I'd just like to get a little rant off my chest, and that is, I find it incredibly strange how all or almost Chapters have incredibly simple symbols as their chapter insignia, simple enough for a small child to draw. Yes, yes, this is a table top game, and gamers should not be expected to jump through hoops to paint or design an incredibly complex Chapter symbol. But it's just one of those little things that can hurt my suspension of disbelief.
Take for example the flag of Russia, or rather the coat of arms of Russia, which may well be my favorite coat of arms ever, at least the one I have seen that I like the most. The double headed eagle, the scepter and orb, the triple crown, all that great stuff. I honestly don't know what any of the symbolism means, but to me it speaks of a long, rich and glorious history. All Astartes symbols should ideally look like that in my opinion.
Now back to the Dark Swords emblem. For inspiration I tried looking at the emblems of various special forces around the world, because I am inspired by elite warrior teams like SEAL team 6, the SAS, etc. To me, modern day special forces are the closest thing we have to real space marines, and I want them to inspire the main aesthetic of the Dark Swords.
I've found that special forces tend to have all kinds of different symbols, so there doesn't seem to be any thread of commonality or trends. I do like the winged Exalibur of the Special Air Service, and I hope I can research them in depth for more inspiration. Obviously, the name is Dark Swords, so there should be a black sword in there. Add in upturned wings and a skull imaled on the blade, because you can't forget your skulls in 40k, and maybe the Chapter motto on a scroll at the bottom.
I'm no good at drawing and I wouldn't know where to start, but in the future I hope I can partner with or commission a skilled artist to help me design the Chapter emblem and any other artwork I may need for the final IA.
- Francis
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