Assault Cross Transfers?

[ElectricPaladin]

My Exorcists are losing steam, my Sisters of Battle will be in the mail in the next day or so, and I'm eager to get to my next project: Sisters of Battle and Blood Angels, together again for the first time! However, I've learned a lot about Space Marine iconography, and the blank left shoulders annoy me (the right shoulders are decorated with various elaborate shoulder pads from the Death Company and Sanguinary Guard kits). The red assault marines need black assault squad crosses; the black death company marines need red assault squad crosses. Neither can be found on any GW transfer sheet.

So, the question is, do any of you have enough skill with Adobe to create a sheet of shoulder-pad-sized red and black crosses, the time and willingness to do so, and the generosity to send it to me? I'd appreciate it!

[DWest]

Here's a counter-question for you EP: Can you get transfer paper that will make the red look good over black? It's been my experience that at least the light-colored GW decals look like trash over a black background. If you know of a kind of transfer paper that works well, I need to make up insignia for my Flesh Tearers, I'd be happy to throw some of the Assault insignia on there as well.

[ElectricPaladin]

Here's a counter-question for you EP: Can you get transfer paper that will make the red look good over black? It's been my experience that at least the light-colored GW decals look like trash over a black background. If you know of a kind of transfer paper that works well, I need to make up insignia for my Flesh Tearers, I'd be happy to throw some of the Assault insignia on there as well.

As a matter of fact...

Have you seen the BoLS custom transfer tutorial? I'll see if I can dig up a link tomorrow - I've got to go to bed or my wife will come out here and drag me away, kicking and screaming, and I should be nice to her because she just bought me an attack bike - but the jist of it is: yes.

You can buy transparent decal paper, and it will look like trash on dark colors, but you can also buy white decal paper, and it looks great. I've been putting Exorcists symbols on dark crimson power armor Exorcist shoulders and black terminator Exorcist shoulders all week, and the Exorcist symbol involves a lot of white. The only downside is that you have to go back over with paint to touch up the edges, since anywhere that you don't cut exactly to the edge of the decal will show up as white, rather than let the color of the model shine through.

[ElectricPaladin]

Here (http://www.belloflostsouls.net/2007/07/tutorial-custom-decal-sheets.html) it is.

Long story short, if you use white paper instead of clear paper you can make pale colors look good on a dark background, but you'll need to touch the decal up a little to make it work.

[DWest]

That looks . . . complex, but doable. I will see what I can do for designs, should know in about a day one way or the other.

[DWest]

And . . . success! Once I finally beat Illustrator into submission, was surprisingly easy. Now, how would I go about uploading a .pdf for use?

[Psychosplodge]

Doesn't the chapter symbol go on the left shoulder, and a coloured teardrop denoting the company (or a pair for reserve companies) go on the right for Blood angels?

Squad type is denoted by helmet colour isn't it?

[Wolfshade]

Not exactly
Blood Angels have chapter symbol on the left, and squad marking in terms of type on the right assault/devastator/tactical.
It is strange though as there are depicitions of the right shoulder pad denoting the company rather than troop choice, indeed if this in accurate then there is no depiction of the company on the armour, it could be displayed with the troop type overlaid perhaps as an alternative

Squad markings are on the right knee and are symbols rather than numbers

Indeed the helmet does show company, red=tactical, yellow=assault, blue=devastator, gold=honour guard. Though in this set up, veterans have no specific colour, compared with Ultramarines who denote them differently (white for instance).

[Psychosplodge]

I thought the right shoulder of a BA was the company marking, a coloured blood drop, and a pair for 6-9? unless of course this has changed with the editions and they just use codex markings?

I'd have assumed the gold helmets could work for veterans too as don't you paint all of the honour guard gold?

Lexicanium (http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Blood_Angels#.UNRXoKyNvbw)

[Wolfshade]

They should follow codex standard, the exception being that they use symbols for squad markings rather than numerals.

I know what you mean though it is strange, looking at this picture 3rd/4th ed codex, it is a yellow drop which is 2nd company marking

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_oho3EJFbmA4/TLJ5n64AxrI/AAAAAAAAAI4/pNDoHR_macI/s1600/Blood_Angels.jpg

If you look at this one, from 5th codex the squad type markings are instead shown, indeed the most obvious being the cross used to denote elites:
http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20120518041255/warhammer40k/images/thumb/7/74/Gathering_of_Angels.jpg/251px-Gathering_of_Angels.jpg

I think given that we already have the squad by helmet colour that shoulder markings are a duplications that could better be used for company markings.

As for the colour of honour guard, that is a point of issue.
Originally, there was no honour guard so that wasn't a problem,
Then the honour guard came along and they had them gold
Then in a WD a contributor gave a Gold honour guard.
Now we have the Sanguinary Guard who are gold.

In my mind, the gold helmets should be for the honour guard, as gold should be left for HQs like Dante & Tycho.

[DWest]

Looking through the BA dex, it looks like you're right Psycho, company markings on the right shoulder . . . except where they say screw it and slap a pad pilfered from DC or SG box on there. Gold is the preferred color for helmet in Vet squads, but not on Terminators.

That being said, I prefer the type marking on the right shoulder because a) the blood drop is boring and b) I already made up the decal images :P. Also Blood Drinkers, Flesh Tearers, and Lameters do the squad-type badge on the left.

[Psychosplodge]

I think the fifth edition possibly suffers from being written by somebody either unfamiliar with their background, or the drawing is done by someone who just consulted codex sm?

As you say Wolfie, it is somewhat redundant to have both the helmet and shoulder depicting squad designator, DWest as always do what you want and fluff it(remember the codex advises changing markings to confuse the enemy :D)

[Wolfshade]

I think the thing is there are no hard and fast rules, do what looks best.
I am trying to consider what to do for my 3rd company when I start the project and looking through old WDs and articles and pictures and you can see sometimes they are company symbols, sometimes squad type markings, sometimes it's the chapter symbol as they have been switched!

It is like the whole issue about the black rim round the should pad that was removed (and inverted for Sarges & Squad leaders. To have black knees or not.

[Psychosplodge]

To be, Or not to be,
whether it is nobler in the minds eye to have the company symbol,
or the markings of the squad with a black knee.
Alas poor Yorrick, I knew him Horatio, we fought together across the infernal planes of Armageddon....

[Wolfshade]

Alas poor Yorrick, I knew him Horatio, we thought together across the infernal planes of Armageddon....
I think we finally broke splogy

[Psychosplodge]

bollocks *fought not thought

[olberon]

pm send m8 ;)