Dark Angels Organisation and Markings
A reference to the modern Dark Angels parent chapter: its companies, command roles, armour, badges and permitted heraldic variation. Here, compliant means consistent with the Dark Angels' documented traditions, including their departures from the generic Codex Astartes. It does not mean copying Ultramarines helmet colours or company-coloured shoulder rims.
Reviewed 21 October 2026. References distinguish established conventions, dated examples, author interpretation, and this army's approved variations. Game keywords and current datasheet eligibility are separate from lore membership and painted insignia.
Read the collection
- Ranks and specialist roles — officers, squad leaders, veterans, religious and technical offices.
- Armour and squad markings — wearer-left/right placement, company devices, battlefield roles and squad numbers.
- Deathwing membership and heraldry — Terminators, power-armoured veterans, Crux placement and attachments.
- Ravenwing squadrons and heraldry — mixed cavalry formations, Black Knights, pilots and numbering conflicts.
- Transfers and honours — what a decal identifies, what remains decorative, and campaign badges.
- History and army variations — older schemes, successors, Ely's personal collection, and our approved sergeant shields.
Companies at a glance
Headquarters, support institutions, vehicles and attached specialists should not be counted as though every entry were one of a company's hundred line troops. The chapter disposition combines sources from several editions; use it for structure with its source dates attached.
| Company | Name or function | Working establishment |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Deathwing | Specialist veteran company; includes Terminator and modern power-armoured veteran formations. |
| 2 | Ravenwing | Mounted cavalry, speeders and dedicated aircraft, with its own veteran and command elements. |
| 3 | The Unmerciful | Battle company: six battleline, two close-support, two fire-support squads. |
| 4 | The Feared | Same battle-company role framework. |
| 5 | The Unrelenting | Same battle-company role framework. |
| 6 | The Resolute | Reserve: ten battleline squads. |
| 7 | The Unbowed | Reserve: ten battleline squads. |
| 8 | The Wrathful | Reserve: ten close-support squads. |
| 9 | The Remorseless | Reserve: ten fire-support squads. |
| 10 | The Redeemed | Scout and Vanguard establishment, with neophytes; avoid treating it as a fixed number of identical Scout kits. |
A role establishment specifies duties, not one mandatory list of kits. Reserve troops, specialists and detachments can accompany another company's force without every model acquiring a new permanent company identity. See Space Marine company organization.
Current-edition additions need their scope
The 11th-edition Space Marine codex has changed some details. A firsthand advance-copy review reports a Librarian in the typical battle-company command and moves Infernus to close support. Do not extend the Librarian provision to every reserve or specialist company without its own evidence. The markings page records the edition-sensitive unit list.
How to mark a new unit
- Identify its parent chapter and company, then the armour type and any specialist office.
- Use the formation's chapter or wing badge and the correct shoulder arrangement. Terminator shoulders reverse the usual chapter-badge side.
- Add company and squad identity where that formation uses them.
- Distinguish the officer or squad leader from veteran status and from honours earned.
- Add campaign or personal heraldry without treating an unexplained decorative symbol as a universal rank code.
- Apply only the army variations that are explicitly approved on the history page.
Reconciling our chapter chart
The original supplied chart and full transcription remain preserved as a reference. Its precise vehicle totals, named officers and X quantities do not establish a universal current muster. Its “Strikemaster Chaplains” line combines distinct offices; the sourced reading is two Strikemasters plus a separate Chaplain. The wing pages explain the differences in Deathwing totals and Ravenwing squadron counts.
David Ely series read for this collection
All ten linked articles were examined, including live updates rather than relying on publication dates alone.
| Article | Published | Main use |
|---|---|---|
| Shoulder Pads of the Dark Angels | 3 Mar 2021; updated 3 Oct 2026 | Marking conventions; distinguish recent edits and inconsistencies. |
| Dark Angels Apothecaries | 12 Mar 2021 | Official colour variants versus the author's preference. |
| Why Black Became Green | 30 Apr 2021 | Historical change and unconfirmed production anecdote. |
| Development from Rogue Trader | 4 May 2021 | Publication timeline and older heraldry. |
| Successor Chapters | 27 Jan 2023 | Successors need their own colour and organization key. |
| His Fourth Company | 6 Apr 2023 | Worked personal collection, rather than universal establishment. |
| Deathwing History and Complement | 14 Jun 2023; subsequently updated | Changing membership and company/keyword distinction. |
| Decals and Transfer Sheets | 24 Jan 2024; updated Feb 2024 | Decal identification, honours and decorative freedom. |
| The Ravenwing | 4 Jul 2025 | Cavalry and aircraft questions. |
| Painting Mistakes | 15 Sep 2026 | A checklist to assess alongside examples and source dates. |
Ely is a credited research guide to the publications, not the issuing authority for every convention. Specific conflicts are resolved or left clearly open on the relevant page. Existing painting recipes remain the authority for this army's selected paints and methods.