Selected from the most skilled hand-to-hand combatants of the chapter, the Bladesworn are the elite shocktroops that attack with jump-packs or via teleporting into the very centre of the battle to deliver a decisive and vicious blow to the enemy. They are the hammer as opposed to the anvil formed by the second warrior brotherhood of the chapter known as the Hearthguard.
The company champion embodies the pride and fervour of the brotherhood and acts as a focal point for the marines deployed on the battlefield. Despite the status of the Bladesworn as the most able close combat battlebrothers in the chapter, the champion is often not the most elite of that elite and may more likely be chosen for his skills and qualities as a leader of men able to inspire the loyalty of his brethen. No champion of the Bladesworn was ever chosen for displaying the hallmarks of a bloodthirsty psychopath or cold-blooded killer.
Bladesworn Honour Guard with Poweraxe & Boltpistol: chapter legend names the Bladesworn as the first of the warrior brotherhoods of Basilisk to swear fealty to the master of the chapter upon his blade. This gives them their name and grants them the honour of supplying the honour guard assigned to the master of the chapter above and before all others.
Bladesworn Honour Guard with Powersword & Boltpistol: the derivation of the deep blue colouring of the helmet, chestplate, groin, right arm and leg of the power armour worn by the chapter marines derives from the original heraldry of the Bladesworn. As a mark of special favour, the marines of the Bladesworn wear only that colour on their own power armour.
Bladesworn Honour Guard with Chainsword & Boltpistol: most of the brothers selected for membership of the Bladesworn are native to cultures where martial training is central to life and as a result there exists a shortage of members from worlds other than primitive and feudal in development. In practice this has led to the brotherhood becomming more and more entrenched in a philosophy influenced by rigid concepts of honour and obligation sometimes at odds with the duties required of a marine chapter.
Bladesworn Honour Guard with Powermaul & Boltpistol: this is the only one of the minis in the group that needed any kind of modification and even then it was a simple matter of sculpting a groincloth from greenstuff in order to keep the unit constant. As far as I know this is the only non-chaplain marine ever modelled with a mace of any kind.
