Command Squad

A Command Squad is made up of Veteran Space Marines who serve as the bodyguard unit for a Chapter's Officers and more important specialists. The Codex Astartes states that the Chapter Master of a Space Marine Chapter should make proper provision for the protection of important heroes on the battlefield, recognising as it does the importance of the Chapter's Officers, Standard Bearers, Apothecaries, Librarians and other specialists. Most Codex-compliant Chapter therefore organise Command Squads to act in the role of bodyguard to these important warriors.

The Command Squads are not a codified part of the Company organisation of the Chapter; rather they are approved yet still ad hoc units. As such they can vary in size and composition but they rarely comprise more than ten Space Marines and normally consist of between five and ten Astartes. In the Battle and Reserve Companies of a Chapter these Marines are always Veterans drawn from the ranks of the Company's Tactical, Assault and Devastator Marine Squads who have not yet been promoted to the elite First Company. The number of Marines in a Command Squad will vary according to the availability of such veterans and to the tactical situations the Chapter encounters.

A Company Standard Bearer, who often is the foca point of a Command Squad, is a hand-picked Veteran Space Marine with many years of combat experience. He will have been chosen by the Company's Captain for this hounourable duty because of his bravery and steadfastness in battle. He is a very capable warrior who can be discounted when assessing the fighting strength of the Company. Note that a Standard Bearer has his own shoulder plate markings as befits his officer status within the Chapter.

The Command Squad is more flexible than most of the other squad types of the Space Marines in that up to two of the Marines may be designated as Special Weapons Troopers or as Heavy Weapon Troopers. This is in part due to the availability of specificlly-trained Marines and in part due to differeing tactical needs. The mix of supreme individual warriors and highly expereinced Veteran Space Marine Battle-Brothers makes Command Squads a particularly powerful fighting force and many a battle has been won by their timely intervention or clever deployment by a Space Marine Force Commander.

The Sergeant of a Command Company may display his back banner. The banner displays the Chapter Badge, the Sergeant's red skull rank badge and is trimmed in the company colour. The Standard Bearer's rank badge is the Imperial Laurel honour, usually combined with a skull.