It is far easier to use a cannon chapter than it is to invent your own chapter when explaining what is what in a game. Everyone has a general idea what chapters do what based on their paint scheme but you still get the occasional ass hat who shows up and asks what you are playing despite the presence of Wolf Tails and yellow shoulder pads on everything.
I painted up a contingent of Excoriators (from the Legion of the Damned) book and I get sick and tired of explaining to everyone what they are. I guess I expected more people to know them from the novel, which was a bad assumption. Stick with cannon chapters so you don’t have to spend time explaining what your dudes are all the time.
That being said, even painting them as specific cannon chapters is not preventing ass-hattery. A famously gifted fuck wit was playing his Iron Hands (who were conspicuously camouflaged in Ultramarine colors) at a tournament the other day much to the chagrin of everyone present. They docked him sportsmanship points but he still took best general with his ‘it will not die’ Landraiders, Dreadnoughts and Bike Riding Chapter Master.
Jaded Gamercast 
WHITE SCARS!!!!!!! BARGHLIZZIBLE!!!!
Also never really liked storm Lords
It is far easier to use a cannon chapter than it is to invent your own chapter when explaining what is what in a game. Everyone has a general idea what chapters do what based on their paint scheme but you still get the occasional ass hat who shows up and asks what you are playing despite the presence of Wolf Tails and yellow shoulder pads on everything.
I painted up a contingent of Excoriators (from the Legion of the Damned) book and I get sick and tired of explaining to everyone what they are. I guess I expected more people to know them from the novel, which was a bad assumption. Stick with cannon chapters so you don’t have to spend time explaining what your dudes are all the time.
That being said, even painting them as specific cannon chapters is not preventing ass-hattery. A famously gifted fuck wit was playing his Iron Hands (who were conspicuously camouflaged in Ultramarine colors) at a tournament the other day much to the chagrin of everyone present. They docked him sportsmanship points but he still took best general with his ‘it will not die’ Landraiders, Dreadnoughts and Bike Riding Chapter Master.