Slackmaster

I've always referred to Page 15 of Codex Armageddon (which you can find online with some light Google-fu) when deciding how to do up my minis. It suggests a high level of customisation is totally acceptable, and even shows a pauldron with red trim on a black field for an Initiates. Even the BT codex, IIRC, suggests a high level of personalisation is very much acceptable. I've even used shoulder trim colours to tell squads apart. (60 marines on the board can get tricky to tell apart, amirite?)

I see that you're in my general neck of the woods! Those aggressors are looking pretty awesome and mean all in one group.

I'm seriously friggin' impressed with your modelling skills, dude. I tried converting up a Primaris EC, but yours just makes me all kinds of jealous. The sword on the 25th anniversary EC is so much better than the newer Black Sword, IMO, so good call on that. Are you able to give some insight as to your modelling techniques, particularly with the greenstuff? Also, how do you make your shoulder pads with the high rims?

No Rob Zombie's Dragula? Also, Zerstören by Rammstein.

That's some pretty awesome analysis, thanks for doing the hard work! :) I'm curious though with regard to your opinion of Lightning Claws. Did you factor in the additional attack with a second claw? To me it seemed like a reasonable way to get a +1A power weapon with re-roll to wound, and I'm seriously thinking of putting them on Sword Brethren in squads.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't Crusader squads get access to 3 (or even more) non-standard weapons with the option for a free Sword Brother? One variation of the Crusader squad that I'm looking to build is a five man las/plas, but with a sword brother with combi-plasma for another plasma shot. List building aside, I'm stoked for this stratagem, and the chapter tactics. Maybe not as OP as Raven Guard, but very fluffy.

Most of my Initiates have the now-OOP pewter Templar shoulder pads from GW. The right shoulder is the cross and skull, and the left is the cross and laurel/scroll. Unfortunately, these are now hard to find and I have started to run low on these, so I've had to make do. For my squad-leading Sword Brethren, one shoulder is the cross and skull from the BT Upgrade Sprue, and the other the pewter cross and laurel. For my specialists such as my apothecary, I'm leaning towards going with the specialist marking on the right, and the cross and laurel on the left, even if it may or may not be entirely supported fluff-wise. As for those pesky heavy weapons shoulder pads, well, they're not fighty enough to get their own scroll, so I'm thinking I'll pick up those Shapeways Templar crosses for those and what remaining pewter cross and skull pads I have. When I first painted the army, I tried to denote squads by the colour of the shoulder pads, using red/black black/white white/red, etc, but I've since come to the conclusion that I don't much care for the looks, and I think I'll embark on a new crusade to change it and standardise a bit.

*shakes Crozius* Back in my day, that was the case for the Blood Angels and Dark Angels, too! Back before these 'Sanguinary Guard' and 'Nephilim' and 'Darkshroud' units, and back when everyone knew that putting a filthy witch in a sacred Dreadnought was a bad idea, the Blood Angels were 'Codex with a few unique units and fluff', the Dark Angels were 'Codex with a few unique units and fluff', and the Black Templars were pretty much the same - 'Codex with a few unique units and fluff'. Those Chapters got unit variety when they got updated codexes; if we ever got our own, it would be the same. Well, we're doing better than the Salamanders at the moment! [cough]Codex: Armageddon[/cough]

High Marshal Sigismund of the 4th Crusade reporting as ordered sir! All hail the Beneficient Emperor!