The "Red Devils" of Ii Naomasa (a general under Tokugawa Ieyasu) were noted precisely because he "uniformed" his entire contingent in red lacquered armor - it was most unusual to otherwise see troops in one particular color. The distinguishing "uniform" characteristic by the Sengoku period is the sashimono back banner. Contingents would have a uniform color and a Mon on their sashimono. Large forces, such as the Takeda, could have several contingents each differentiated by differently-colored sashimono (often with the same Mon, which could also sometimes be in different colors - like "facings" on Napoleonic French or British uniforms, to distinguish different regiments). At this time, the two most common colors for armor were black or red lacquered. Ashigaru armor was often issued from stores, but there could be shortages (e.g. some men could be missing the jingasa war hat, or the armored sleeves - first come, first served - or these could be in different colors and styles) and different styles depending upon when and where obtained for the stockpiles (and some armor could be scavenged on the battlefield).