Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Does someone beforehand decide the chapters name and color? Or is it after the chapter is made that the chapter master decides?
Thanks!

The mythical beings, one may name them 40k-players, decide this.



In-universe, chapters are either born at second founding from the Legions and one of them keeps the heraldry of the Legion and the others get new names and heraldry, most likely with consent of their Primarch if he's alive then, whilst the next foundings are done with consent of the High Lords and may keep a relation to the Legion/geneseed their made from in colors and name, or get something different as there is only a limited amount of variety possible if you tie them to closely to just 9 Names and color schemes. Usually Names and Heraldry have to be identifiable and therefore lots of creativity needed. So maybe the best names are given by fans, not GW...

I'd guess after second founding, someone keeps track of existing names and colors, like we see with Nobility, and each new founded chapter gets a unused name and colors. The right to name them, would be along the right to found them, but maybe someone has a veto on this by ancient rights too?

A good question. I'd assume one of three things may happen; the 'parent' Chapter/Legion names the successor Chapter upon it's founding, the new Chapter names itself & creates its own colour scheme itself, or someone (parent Chapter or Successor or an external entity) chooses the colours for the new Chapter but the new Chapter earns its name through the way it fights/trains or its philosophy or way it wages war.

It was recently stated in the FW Horus Heresy book that the original SM legions all began with their armor grey, and slowly overtime a combination of battle decorations and the Primarchs personnel tastes saw them take on their original colors. May work something like that.

With the Legion the heraldry and colors of the armor were dictated by the primarchs and as far as I know for the chapters that came after many are based on the founders personal heraldry. Many times SM captains and higher ranking personnel have their own heraldry and colors sort of like the Black Templars colors are based off of Sigismunds.

somewhere deep in the bowels of terra there abides a room...

And within this room are four vast wheels..

two marked with words both arcane and powerful..

and two marked with colors of every hue and contrast..

and upon the founding of a new astartes chapter, they are spun and darts tossed at the hallowed and holy surfaces of these great wheels.

And what the holy darts of the emperor land upon are what the chapter is forever know as, and garbed in the colors of the wheels diviation.

I think the High Lords of Terra are themselves responsible for managing the Astartes foundings.

The legion's were grey at first? So that's why unpainted minis are grey!