Both statements are true.
But ... every military organization gives its members nicknames as well ... at least among their fellows. While these might not correlate to call-signs, they do exist ... and they do have meaning, at least among that individual unit. That's all I"m saying ...
Sister Cat said:
But ... every military organization gives its members nicknames as well ... at least among their fellows.
Really? I was called by my rank and last name and so was everyone else.
Edsel62 said:
A minor debate has broken out in our group. One of the character's wants his Devestator Battle-brother to have a nickname ("Havoc") by which his Kill-team comrades call him. However we have a purist faction in our group which states that "Space Marines do not have nicknames." Now I recall in the first of the Horus Heresy novels that at least two of the Astartes characters did have nicknames. Has anyone read any later timeline fluff that mentions whether or not Battle-brothers sometimes use nicknames among themselves?
I think this is an easy to solve issue: (most) Marines are a mixture between modern Special Forces guys and fantasy-genre Paladins. If your interpretation of 40K stresses more the Special Forces aspect, allow for nicknames. Me, I prefer to stress more the Paladin/Soldier-Monk aspect and as such it would be unfitting.
The choice is yours.
Alex
ak-73 said:
Well, from Arthurian Legend I can think of Sir Breunor le Noir also called La Cote Mal Taillée ('The Badly Fitting Coat') after he turned up wearing his fathers old clothes. He had a girlfriend nicknamed Maledisant ("Ill Speaker") because she was always taking the piss out of him (it is later revealed she is doing it to test him, and becomes known as Bienpensant ("Well-Thinker") and they get married.
And we have Sir Breuse sans Pitie (Bruce Without Pity), said to be the most villainous knight around.
And that is before we get in to the Rose Red Knight, or the Black Knight, or the Knight of Two Swords, or the Sparrowhawk Knight etc.
Only if a brother is dumb enough to stick his arm into a giant squig's mouth shall he be known as 'Lefty'
Sister Cat said:
Reeze Calban said:
"Callsigns? Nicknames? This is not the Guard! On my watch you shall be known as BROTHER"
- Watch Captain Strombard
Granted, this is just my humble (somewhat educated) opinion ... but you obviously have
no
idea what it means to be part of a warrior brotherhood. All armies give their members nicknames, and/or callsigns. They are assigned by their peers, and/or superiors, based on their aptitudes/actions. It is a sign of either respect or derision. They are meant to either spur the individual soldier to even better performance, or to shame them into performing better in order to eliminate their given nickname. Either way, they are a prompt ... to improve, or to live up to your image. Both are useful in improving the performance of your battle-brothers. JMHO.
This would be true for OUR military forces, as well as those from the past...
HOWEVER, none of them were genetically engineered, mind conditioned, and cult inducted members of a brotherhood of almost inhuman super warriors.
I see the Astartes acting more like Jedi, rather than Master Chief...except for the Space Wolves. They are more like Duke Nukem...
from witch chapter havoc and the others came from?
Page 35, Deathwatch; Roleplaying a Space Marine (Three Things to Remember):
"Space Marines generally do not use contractions or slang when the speak - they are angelic warrior knights, and their manner of speech often reflects this."
Not that this is a rule per se, but it absolutely answers the question in my campaign as to whether or not battle-brothers use nicknames.
two suggest.....
or the squad became havoc squad.....
or havoc was the sp.marine old mentor and he ask to change name to honour hil old master....
or ,if chapter tradition allow....ragnar became ragnar blackmane for the wolf he kill during the trial....or similar....
or he became nicknamed "the havoc" after a specific episode ...
