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Hey everyone, so I've been putting together a deathwatch army and in putting stuff together I realized I have a sternguard and normal tac marine sprues unused. I love the new Mk VIII armour the deathwatch veterans have. I do understand though that they are allowed to choose what armour they wear. I am just wondering what people thought as far as some reasons they might defer wearing the deathwatch's armour.

thought I would star this more so as a conversation on this and all deathwatch armoury kind of stuff

Each Mark of armour has its own set of strengths and weaknesses, but most of the time you'll see a Space Marine wearing different pieces from different Marks because the full suit was lost a long time ago.

Errant armour is a slightly different story as it is being made in current 40k times along with MkVII Aquila armour. Its protective capabilities are among the best any Mark of Power Armour has to offer, however most helmets from previous Marks are incompatible with it thanks to the neck guard protecting the cabling and actual neck of the Marine wearing it.

In the White Dwarf, they say that marines get the choice of whether to keep their armor or not. They even use sternguard as an example. BUT!!!
I honestly would personally avoid tactical squads. Because Deathwatch recruit mostly veteran marines. Marines with blingier suits. (From what I understand, the SW sent the Bloodclaw as a way to teach him discipline) But yes, marines do keep their suits if they wish.

Not all veterans have blinged out suits.

Neither previous studio Deathwatch models nor Deathwatch artwork (Fantasy Flight or otherwise) have been exclusively blingy.

 General Annoyance wrote:
Each Mark of armour has its own set of strengths and weaknesses, but most of the time you'll see Space Marine wearing different pieces from different Marks because the full suit was lost a long time ago.

Errant armour is a slightly different story as it is being made in current 40k times along with MkVII Aquila armour. Its protective capabilities are among the best any Mark of Power Armour has to offer, however most helmets from previous Marks are incompatible with it thanks to the neck guard protecting the cabling and actual neck of the Marine wearing it.

Aye rare. But even my things such as MK3 helmets and such about still as honoured relics.

Most times the DW do recruit from veterans, but remember than not all chapters have vets sporting bling. My guess is that some of the chapters tend to have their marines in "normal" suits of PA, without unnecessary ornamentation. Raptors come to my mind, as well as Iron Hands.

Blood Angels or Salamanders bring no plain Armour though,

Crafting/forging is big in there cultures

 jhe90 wrote:
Blood Angels or Salamanders bring no plain Armour though,

Crafting/forging is big in there cultures

And yet not every Blood Angel or Salamander is blinged up.

The Deathwatch Blood Angel on pg.76 of the Deathwatch Core Rulebook isn't at all blingy. Nor is the Blood Angel on the cover of The Emperor Protects.

I am just wondering what people thought as far as some reasons they might defer wearing the deathwatch's armour.

to answer; they do it for Martial pride. In most Chapters certain marks of armor carry special significance( i.e. Mk VI Corvus to the Ravenguard). Also, it's usually the power armor that a Marine was issued once he was promoted from the Scouts, it's a suit he's worn for decades or even centuries of warfare, it's probably a relic of the chapter which has been worn by great warriors for generations possibly dating back to the founding of the Chapter. Would you give it up for a fancy new suit fresh off the conveyor belt from Mars?

Also a consistent theme in the 40K universe is that new tech isn't as good as the old stuff, I'm sure that Astartes are the exception but still something to think about.

Aedgar Perri wrote:

I am just wondering what people thought as far as some reasons they might defer wearing the deathwatch's armour.

to answer; they do it for Martial pride. In most Chapters certain marks of armor carry special significance( i.e. Mk VI Corvus to the Ravenguard). Also, it's usually the power armor that a Marine was issued once he was promoted from the Scouts, it's a suit he's worn for decades or even centuries of warfare, it's probably a relic of the chapter which has been worn by great warriors for generations possibly dating back to the founding of the Chapter. Would you give it up for a fancy new suit fresh off the conveyor belt from Mars?

Also a consistent theme in the 40K universe is that new tech isn't as good as the old stuff, I'm sure that Astartes are the exception but still something to think about.

True, also the original suit they know ever quirk, minor aspect and little things every suit will do differently, such as maybe if you hold your bolter a fraction on a angle the servos handler recoil better.

Things only years of service can teach a marine about there armour.

There are many reasons why Space Marines might keep using their old armor or just parts of it. Some marines are traditionalist who believe in following the ways of their elder brethren and wear the ancient armor they wore ages ago. Others might be superstitious and do not wish to dishonor the machine sprit of their armor or the blessing of the Emperor by abandoning the sacred relic that is their issued power armor. And some Space Marines are min/maxers who will wear bits and pieces of various sets of armor to get the most optimal performance and best protective stats.