When the Legio was created in M36, the initial core of battle-brothers that formed the new Chapter came from the Imperial Fists, Black Templars, Soul Drinkers, and Firehawks Chapters. This group numbered around 300 battle-brothers led by the normal contingent of officers. Over the next decade or so as the Wars of Apostasy cleansed the Imperium of Goge Vandire's rule, the four Chapters that founded the Legio helped the nascent Chapter in communicating with other Chapters of Adeptus Astartes. In time, a great many other Chapters consented to providing aid to the Legio, most through seconding a battle-brother to the Legio for service. The majority of Chapters that participated in the early years were descendants of Rogal Dorn, mostly due to the persuasion of the Imperial Fists Chapter.

Throughout a battle-brother's service to the Legio, his actions, offices, and honours will be recorded. These records are developed into the personal heraldry of each Legio battle-brother, although only the senior officers bear their personal heraldry upon shields or banners during their life.
When a Legio battle-brother dies, his personal heraldry will be crafted into two shields. Although the two shields are of different sizes and shapes, the honours crafted upon them by the Legio's artificers are identical and follow a complex heraldic scheme that is based upon the dictates of the Codex Astartes. The smaller shield is similar in shape and size to a combat shield. There are several different patterns of combat shield used by the Legio, so a battle-brother's death shield will be based upon the type of combat shield he used in combat or will be of a generic type. The larger shield is elongated in form and will actually serve as the cover for the sarcophagus that will return the battle-brother's remains to his parent Chapter. Both death shields will incorporate the battle-brother's honour shield into the center, though this will be a smaller version of the true honour shield and will be of carved brass.
The smaller death shield will be hung with the battle-brother's true honour shield in the Legio's Hall of Heroes, serving as a memorial to the battle-brother and a record of all the battle-brothers that have served the Legio over the years. The larger death shield will be used upon the battle-brother's sarcophagus and will be returned with the battle-brother's remains to his parent Chapter. The various Chapters of the Adeptus Astartes have different traditions with regard to the treatment of the death shield, though most display the shield within their equivalent of the Hall of Heroes. The return of the battle-brother's remains and the equipment that his Chapter granted to him when he was seconded to the Legio is of utmost importance to the various Chapters, and when the Legio is unable to return the battle-brother's remains for some reason it is customary to return gene-seed from the Adeptus Mechanicus stores on Mars.
Members of the B&C are encouraged to design the honour shield for their Legio B&C character.
In the near future, we'll provide templates that members can use to design their own shields. You'll be able to take the template of your choice and use the image editing software available to you to design your shield, then submit that image with the image of the mini that you're using to represent your character. In addition, the image can be used as your avatar, personal photo, or within your signature if you desire.
Edited by Brother Tyler, 29 April 2017 - 03:39 PM.
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