Whiteshield
From Lexicanum
Whiteshields are young men and women who take part in actual combat as part of their training. They are not considered true Guardsmen until they have proven themselves in battle. Whiteshields are sometimes known as cadets, probationers or gun babies.
Cadian Whiteshields are members of their world's Youth Armies.
Imperial Guard Regiments are generally posted to combat zones far from their homeworlds, and it is rarely practical to recruit from the homeworlds to replace casualties. Regiments that are left to garrison a world they have conquered instead gain recruits by drafting the sons of the regiment's Guardsmen when they come of age. Children fathered by Guardsmen are usually brought up within the regiment. They perform menial and support duties which would otherwise eat into the regiment's fighting strength.
Promotion from Whiteshield to Guardsman is seen as a changing point in a recruit's life. They are afterwards considered adults and given the right to wear the regimental symbols on their uniform, and often receive ritual scars and tattoos.
