Pre-Heresy Legion names?

[gwensdad]

I wonder if the names of some of the 2nd founding chapters might have been original names of the legions. Like is "Storm Lords" was the White Scars original name and it's first chapter master brought the name back in respect for the past and looking towards the future.

[Daemonette666]

It does say in the Lexicanum that the 5th legion were renamed the White Scars after Jaghatai Khan was reunited with the Emperor and the Legion adopted the facial ritual scaring of the Primarch's Tribe.

The Legion could have any name that associated with the fast violent attacking style they currently have, unless they only adopted that fighting style after meeting with their Primarch. Storm Lords or Marauders sound like very good possible names.

[url]http://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/White_Scars[/url]

This is also backed up by the Wikia

[url]http://warhammer40k.wikia.com/wiki/White_Scars[/url]

I have not checked all the Legionsl out, but many entries on both the Lexicanum and wikia should mention that they were renamed after meeting their Primarch.

There are some Legions that the Wikia and Lexicnum does not mention whether the name was changed or not, and whose name sounds very apt for a generic name the Emperor would have given them pre-crusade. I.E. Iron Warriors and Imperial Fists.

[mjasghar]

It is suggested that those legions that use the subdivision of chapters gave them names or the names came fr the nicknames of their chapter masters eg IF have elite formation lead by sigismund called the Templars or blood angel Amit called the Fleshtearer
It does seem weird that while preaching the imperial truth the emperor gave 2 legions the name angel
Btw what's up with wolves 13th company? In tales of heresy they are called the wolfbrothers which was the name of illfated wolves successors and was supposed to be a wulfen company

[BrotherAlpharius]

I agree with the point about retcons not always being as extreme as people make out. In particular I thought that the new Necron fluff was a really interesting way of re-interpreting the previous theories. I started around about the launch of 2nd Edition, before the Necrons were invented. When the Necrons were introduced it involved teaser fluff in White Dwarf with Imperial archeologists excavating necron ruins and finding ancient carvings. I think of it as the 3rd edition codex represented their understanding - they found ancient carvings depicting the C'Tan ruling over the Necrons and in their the nearest equivalent to the robotic necrons would be servitors so when they encountered necron forces with a C'Tan shard they assumed that the Shard was the "real thing" and the robots were just its slaves. The newest codex isn't a retcon but a better understanding of the necron race. Similarly the newly introduced factions like the Triarch Praetorians have always been there, the Imperium just didn't know about them.

On the main topic Rogue Trader mentioned that the 1st Legion (Dark Angels) were personally commanded by the Emperor for a time and that instead of a Chapter Master the most senior Dark Angel was called "Custodian" as he was technically just looking after the position until the Emperor returned to lead them. This might have a bearing on the Legion's original name if they had one. I think actually simply being "The First" would be quite cool.

Imperial Fists does sound like the sort of generic name a Legion might have had pre-Primarch. The Salamanders on the other hand are named after the creatures of Nocturne so that seems like a post-Primarch name.

Did all of the Legions have formal names from the start or did they emerge over time as informal names - my understanding is that the Dusk Raiders were known for their tactics rather than their tactics being based on an assigned name.

My understanding was that Vlka Fenryka was a Fenrisian term that probably translates as something like "Folk of Fenris".

Alpha Legion fluff talks of the XXth Legion being founded shortly before the discovery of Alpharius which suggests that not all of the Legions were founded at the same time but from the ordering that the Primarchs were found the legion numbers are clearly not sequential in that respect.