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Which?

Proper procedure would be to put some ideas forward first. There's not much we can do for you without some input on your lists, opponents etc.

Tournament wise it's hard to go wrong with White Scars, Biker Troops FTW.

Fluff wise it's apples and oranges. Game wise all have good strategies as long as you play to their strengths, but usually white scar bike armies, drop wolves, death cents or grey knight termy support take the cake.

Ultramarines. I like the fluff and decent on the tabletop.

Next to threads on making IG armies this is probably the most common question in this part of the forum

You want an honest answer? All of them are good at different things, and all of them have their merits to make them worthwhile. They're equally as good as each other. Take a fluffy company, don't forget to include some assault squads or terminators! take dreadnoughts for fire support!!!11

Just kidding, that's a load of trash you'd hear from the mouth of an invertebrate jelly unable to state anything meaningful, or someone honest who hasn't got a clue. 40k's balance isn't within a thousand miles of that and anyone not kidding themselves knows it.

You can dominate your local meta with a well made Ultramarines/Sallies and possibly Imperial Fists or even less likely a Raven Guard list, (this is where the origin of the above fantasy perspective and its many defences will come from) but if you want the best you go for White Scars and/or Iron Hands. Forget about Templars, in terms of non-vanilla Wolves have an interesting niche and can certainly compete at a high level, Grey Knights have a high level list or two, Blood Angels are presently gak though with the next Codex that may change, and Dark Angels are terrible enough that they're at the very best standing next to Blood Angels, at worst behind them, having no half-decent AA, mediocre Greenwing elements, terrible Deathwing elements, and mediocre and overpriced Ravenwing elements designed to work in conjunction with said terrible Deathwing elements.

White Scars if you want bikes.
Iron Hands if you want vehicles.
Imperial Fists if you want bolters and good AT.
Raven Guard if you want assault marines and Scout all around.
Black Templars if you want LRCs, 20-models squads and some challenge oomph.
Salamanders ir you like fire and precision.
Ultramarines for a more balanced army (a little bit of everything).

Imperial Fists

No contest.

Competitive wise? Ultramarines Cent Star w/ Tigurius. Add in Draigo for Gate of Infinity.

If you want to go pure Codex: Space Marines, I'd still say Ultramarines. Tigurius/Grav Cents/Shield + Hammer(or Fist + Melta Bomb) makes a hard to kill unit.

My current 1500 list is a 4 Grav + Missile Cents, Tigurius, Coteaz, Ordo Xenos inquisitor, Fist + Shield Chapter Master. Then three squads of bikes with melta and a thunderfire cannon to round it out.

Of course, if you don't want the latest cheese, play to whatever style you prefer. White Scars are good for a bike or mechanized list, as 3-4 scouting tactical squads means turn 1 you are in your opponent's face. Iron Hands or Ultramarines for anything else.

Why not being IF main with Allied Ultras for Tigurius? Dev Cents are better with IF tactics

 Vector Strike wrote:
Why not being IF main with Allied Ultras for Tigurius? Dev Cents are better with IF tactics

Grav Cents aren't, they don't benefit from Tank Hunter. Then again, Cents don't benefit from Devastator Doctrine either

The Rainbow Warriors. As they are every colour of space marine at once

 SilverMK2 wrote:
The Rainbow Warriors. As they are every colour of space marine at once

Nope, they're blue: http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110708210407/warhammer40k/images/thumb/e/eb/Rainbow_Warriors_Armor.png/332px-Rainbow_Warriors_Armor.png

I say, go with Blood Ravens. Nobody knows their primarch, so you can change chapter tactics with every change of meta. Also, everybody will recognise your army, because DoW.

Or go with any obscure chapter with no known predecessors, for that matter.

 Vector Strike wrote:
White Scars if you want bikes.
Iron Hands if you want vehicles.
Imperial Fists if you want bolters and good AT.
Raven Guard if you want assault marines and Scout all around.
Black Templars if you want LRCs, 20-models squads and some challenge oomph.
Salamanders ir you like fire and precision.
Ultramarines for a more balanced army (a little bit of everything).

Space Wolves if you want melee and beasts

Grey Knights are fluff wise the "best" in that they are trained as both potent psykers and supremely skilled combatants. they are meant to be to be the elite of the elite (Thanks Matt). As far as crunch wise, it depends on what you want it to do. You could also paint them as a unique color scheme as a "successor chapter" and play with a bunch of different CT's and figure out which fits you the best and go from there?

The best chapter is the one you make yourself

 thecapn226 wrote:
The best chapter is the one you make yourself

^ This. Heart of the game right here. I'm just starting my Void Angels. A crusading chapter using ravenguard tactics with dark angel bits painted in blood angels red, but with more black and silver. Tactically, I'm thinking of maybe experimenting with Raptors since they're also a ravenguard successor, but doing your own chapter allows you the freedom to experiment with chapter tactics. Maybe I'll find that I actually really like the IF tactics. Or maybe the new Blood Angel codex will rock, and I'll want to run them that way. While I certainly understand the appeal of painting up an army in one of the official schemes, I just can't bring myself to do it.

For me it's Imperial Fists. Love that fluff! And I've always liked playing SMs in the short range Bolter firing ways.

In all seriousness, I play Sentinels of Terra (3rd Company of the Imperial Fists) for Close Range Bolter Drill, and Bones of Osrak. Also the option of sticking Dev Cents in the Elite slot in Highlander-type games. I also use the Siege Masters Chapter Tactic and play my Dev Cents with TL Las / ML.

All in all, at it's core, Sentinels of Terra are a short-range RANGED COMBAT army. The bolters are pure anti-infantry, and the Dev Cents and Dev squads (Siege Masters again) are pure AT/AA. Mobility is key, so everything has their own dedicated transports, and all of the support components are adaptable to anything. Everything from Drop Pod Dreads, to Lysander/ TH/SS Termies to TFCs are at my disposal.

Is it slick and tricky? Hell no.

Is it harsh, brutal, and completely in your face? oh yes.

And two more things.

1. When I unload my tacticals right on my enemy's doorstep, on more than one occasion I've had them ask me "How the hell is every damn thing in your army twin linked?" (Short Range Bolter Drill rerolls ALL misses with bolter weapons at half range or less). Always makes me giggle.

2. When you start unpacking a fully painted yellow army BAM instant respect! Anyone who has ever painted yellow knows what it takes, and will tip the hat to you regardless of whatever other smack talk is going on.

Competitive wise, black templars don't exist.. Clan raukaan iron hands chapter master "trollface" which i play, along with libby biker and command squad with bikes apothecary gravguns and stormshields, you get a really tough fast shooty and killy unit, white scars all bikers led by khan are most popular in here, with ultramarines gravstar(which my friend plays) falling behind... Sallies have decent drop pod assaults as well as sentinels of terra as the above poster said, and ravenguard is pretty meh IMO(apart from the scouts), though still nowhere as bad as templars
fluffwise, you can field anything

Oh here we go.

As much as I love my Crimson Fists, their chapter tactics are probably the worst. They have the best fluff tho.

The best? Well I think it's a close call between Iron Hands and White Scars. I like how White Scars play, they're a lot more action packed compared to the sit-back-and-shoot brothers. Iron Hand are bloody good at that though, with the IWND on all veichles and FNP on the guys, you got a hard as nails force there.

Well. I think White Scars is the best.
Bikers are tougher than Marines and much faster,
which gives you an edge in competitive games,
in particular, maelstrom missions.