Musings of the Mentalist

New Project

2010-07-21T12:31:00.012+01:00

Well, I mused, and I waffled, and I thought...
And then I thought some more...
Then I stuck my nose in rule books and old and new codices...

Then I though bugger it, MORE MARINES!

I wanted to veer away from the dark colours and bleak looking troops I usually tend to go for. As we know, the bad guys don't always wear black.
Plus I wanted to try out more challenging colour schemes and new troop types and rules for the force.

Thus was born the ANGELS OF ECSTASY renegade chapter.

I popped into the shop (GW) and bought a lord and some marines for the princely sum of £34.50, along with some paint. Then I had to dodge the "why don't you come along to our game nights, why don't you buy a white dwarf, what armies do you have, isn't the chaos codex great, I love apocalypse, I love spearhead" kind of crap that the droids working there spew at me each time I go in. Geesh, if I wanted it, I would buy it. And I don't talk about apocalypse of spearhead AT ALL. They're just gimmicks to sell lots of miniatures and tanks to the unsuspecting public. The thing is, it ain't difficult to think up simple rules to play these type of games WITHOUT GW help. I mean, we're not all 'tards, are we?
Even when I was 12 (that's TWELVE YEARS OLD) I was thinking up these things. It's all just about the money nowadays. GW used to be cool, now they're corporate.

Sigh.

Anyways, back to the project!

Step 1- Construction
Now, I wanted to try and keep to the models supplied, but I also wanted to add my own brand of weirdness to proceedings. So, I got my cutting and trimming stuff together and washed all components in slightly soapy water first once the mould lines were removed. then I got out the glue and went to work. This took shape as we can see from the pics that follow:

This is the rear view of the lord, and it shows off the daemon weapon I kitted him out with. I took the head off the force weapon in the kit and stuck on the power axe head. Thus was born the "Glaive of Eternal Bliss" or big hitty thing as I like to call it. Basically it follows the codex rules for a Slaaneshi Daemon weapon, or "Blissgiver."

Also not the bits I stuck on the base for extra detail.

Same guy, front view. Note also the combi weapon (melta) and face style head I gave him. I also cut some scarring onto the face with a craft knife (remember kids, stay the fook away from sharp stuff wot can stick you!!!).

Along with these things, and to complete the model I went for the simpler looking trophy racks. I was going for simple and striking here, rather than over complex and stoopid. At this point I had a colour scheme in mind, but it was how to get there WITHOUT following the advice of GW cloned goons.

Here's some of the squad after construction. Notice all the marines carry icons on their backpacks. My fault, just thought it looked nice. This pic features the two special weapons and the icon to slaanesh. I also went for the blank shoulder pad to go on the left instead of the right (which is usual practice). This army was going to be a weird sight in every way I could go without resorting to putty and craziness. Remember- simple and striking!

There's the champion and the rest of the squad. I really do like the new CSM squad kit, as it includes plenty of character and the list of weapon upgrades is sweet! I now have several spare bits for possible inclusion in later units I add. Sweet. The I got my pin vice and drilled out the gun barrels for all the bolter weaponry ( I NEVER DO THAT).

With the leader and unit constructed and the glue dried, it was time to step on to the next stage. UNDERCOATING.

Stage 2- Undercoating

First thing was to go for skull white spray. Again a MAJOR step away from the usual black spray. This would make the models lighter and mean I would need to be more precise when applying colours later, so as not to leave any white bits in corners and crevices!

As we can see from the pic above, I put the models on a piece of mdf and used masking tape to hold them still. I have been spraying using this method for EONS now and it ain't let me down yet!

The it was off outside to a WELL VENTILATED AREA (kids take note) to give em a good dusting with the spray.

Here's the Lord. As you can see I gave all the models a single coat of white. Some prefer several coats, but it's just not my way. I try to make my paints go as far as possible so as to save cash and maybe the environment a little too (honestly though, I dunno). A single thin coat goes a long way to ensuring that the colours you apply go on well without obscuring the details.

Here are the models after spraying. The black board is now white (duh!) and the models all got a good coat. I try to space them out as much as possible so that I can move the can all around them as I spray, hopefully this pic shows that. Notice the second mdf board behind the models that I used to protect other stuff from the dreaded over spray. With that all done it was time to get the models indoors and get the paints out!

Stage 3- Base coating

This took actually 2 stages of painting, with very careful brushwork, which is hopefully explained in the pics...

In keeping with my choicest deity of Slaanesh, I went for bright colours, but chaos ones just the same. I opted for a patterned finish with purple and white. There would be no detail work done on shoulder guards trims etc, just two bold colours. I wanted the troops to stand out on the battlefield and be appreciated for the colours, but not to the extent where you would need to look closely at the details. Like I said- SIMPLE and STRIKING.

Here are some of the marines with the base coat applied. Warlock purple one half and fortress grey the other half. Note that even the horns are in the colour scheme, not bone coloured. I knew at this point I had definitely picked the right colour scheme! After this initial stage I went further and base coated flesh and metals.

Here's the lord with the complete base coat applied. Black for the cloth and weapons, bestial brown for the flesh, and shadow grey on the stonework of his base, though this would be brownish later if all went to plan.

Likewise with the marines. Now in the books etc it says that you can game with models in this state, worth bearing in mind I suppose...

I like to paint models in groups of at least 10. This allows time for the first model to dry as you paint the others, so you can knock out loads of models in an afternoon of the same quality of paintwork. I does have the necessity for the painter to have that degree of concentration to not get bored by what he's doing. I find that tunes help, along with regular sips of water/ juice/ coffee/ tea and sometimes lager ( ALL HAIL BEER)- though not best in the morning, that last one!!!

I started this method of painting back when I played fantasy battle (50 orcs in an afternoon- easy).

I also found that this method honed my techniques with the brush, colours and shading. I am self taught when it comes to this kind of thing. To that end I don't take well to being told how to shade up to white by a GW clone half my frikkin age! (Basically I told him to get back in his box and stop giving advice to veterans when he's only a damn rookie- shit...)

Last up- more marines! Black for the weapons, human sized skulls and any cloth work/ pouches etc. The feel of the army was starting to come out now, and I was buzzing from it!

Stage 4- shading and highlights

Almost done. The general shape of the colour scheme was there, I just had to accentuate it now and add that vibe to the weapons etc. Break out the bolt gun metal and the inks!!!

I shaded the purple (liche purple or warlock purple- whichever is darker, I forget) with old style purple ink, the highlighted with liche/warlock purple and finally the lighter shade of purple on the top.

The grey got a dash of watered down armour wash, the highlighted up via grey to skull white. Next time I won't water down the ink, as the shading could have been a bit better on the white.

The blacks that weren't weapons got a good old bolt gun metal followed by armour wash then chainmail shade and highlight. For blades I went up another notch to mithril silver. This made the power sword of the champion really bright.

Then it was on to the reds for eyes and red dot laser sights and hey presto! We were there!!

There's the lord again! I went for purple ink to shade the blade for the daemon weapon. This gives it a "unholy hue" that I really like alot. The weapon stands out to, without overpowering the colour scheme. Nice!!! The flesh on this model (and the others too) was built up from bestial brown with chestnut ink through bronzed flesh, then elf flesh and finally bleached bone. I wanted the models in this army to have really pallid flesh. This seems to suit the Slaaneshi ideals of perfumes, excesses of beauty (though twisted) and pleasure etc.

Here's the first half of the squad. Note the "red dot" sightings on the bolters and the really shiny power weapon. The white an purple really do sit well here. I am so chuffed with the outcome. It really is a gigantic step away from the norm for me.

Second half of the squad, this time with the icon and the special weapons. Hopefully the troops look good here too. I kept the colours simple so that I could paint models quickly and raise an awesome spectacle for the battle field that will contrast well with likely opponents (greys, reds, greens and dark colours- you guys know who you are!!!).

This led to the final stage...

Stage 5- Basing, transfers and sealing.

The bases were covered first in bestial brown, then grey gravel, followed by my usual mix of green flock, tea leaves (from really cheap tea bags) and brown fine gravel. Once dried, this was then sealed in using watered down PVA painted over the whole base. My hope is that this will prevent flock dropping off and going everywhere (it really pisses the wife off when she nags me to hoover all the crap up).

I also applied the chapter badge to all the models. This is simply a Slaanesh symbol on the purple shoulder guard. The results were well impressive, though I had to do some crafty trimming with a model knife to get the symbols to sit properly on the shoulder guards. Once dried, this was also sealed using watery PVA glue. Again my hope here is to prevent the transfer sliding off. It does my head in when that happens...

This is a shot of the champion from the rear. Hopefully this illustrates the colour scheme to its fullest, as well as showing a hint of the badge and the detail on the base from using different flocks and gravels.

Same guy with the icon bearer seen from the front. again it shows how truly striking the simplest of colour schemes can be.

Marines with trusty bolters. The guy at the frontreally does show how cool the Slaaneshi symbol looks. The PVA was still wet when I took this one. Talk about seizing the moment!

These are the two special weapons models in the squad. I went for the flamer to clear out infantry from buildings and cover, and the melta gun for armour and armoured troops. Hopefully this makes the squad a bit versatile in combat, coupled with the benefits of the icon to the god Slaanesh, well nice!

This is the rear view of the Lord, showing the degree of shading I applied to the cloak, as well as highlighting the base detail. The cloak even had a coat of purpler ink applied in the hope it would go a bit "2 tone" the pic doesn't do it justice, and the effect is really very slight. Worth a punt though...

The front view of my lord. I haven't decided what to call him just yet. But it will be something weird and wonderful. Again that striking colour scheme with the symbol of the patron god really makes the model jump out at you.

Well, I hope you liked the case study of how the new army took shape in terms of colour and theme. I am really happy with the bold contrasting colours and that the simplest combination really has proven itself to be very effective.

Now I just have to do it again- for the entire army!!!
Next up for the army will most likely be a rhino and some noise marines or something. I am still musing over various combinations of units and vehicles. The Rhino will be very striking, keeping that two colour scheme, but I need to put a Slaansehi symbol or two on it somewhere, which I have several thoughts on... (heheheh). I am looking to really strech myself there, and if it doesn't work out, then I can simply go back to simple striking colour schemes.

I am also thinking about raptors, but not as we know them, and chosen too. Again kit bashing may feature heavily, and I'll be sure to keep you all posted!

Stick on your thoughts and verdicts below!

By the way, I will be deleting the space marines and imperial guard posts in the next week or so. Make the most of them while you can!!

WHATEVER WILL I DO NEXT???

2010-07-14T14:15:00.002+01:00

I have already said that I think I have gone as far as I can with the guard now, so I am looking to the next project.

Chaos still features, as I think they have the best looking models and the widest scope for conversion, colour and diversity withing each force.

To this end I started musing on the armies I already have.
I have thought about the daemons some more, but I just dont like painting them. The models are ok I suppose, and I can paint them up to look ok. The thing is that they just do not seem to appeal to me. Too much beaming in and out. I am not a fan of too much unpredictability, as it makes for playing games with no clear battle plan which invariable means that the only options available to the general are get close and assault. Fair enoiugh if you can get close, but with the right wargear and character options, an opponent will make goo out of you before you get too close. And I dont like painting the models...

I have just finished building the guard, so I am not keen to repeat it just yet. They are good looking troops and easy enough to paint, but I want something that would be a bit smaller and pack a much more flexible punch.

Which leads us back to the chaos marines. Now, I already have a massive black legion and death guard contingency. Both armies look impressive and have tactical flexibility, a mix of different troops and abilities and an array of shooty kit as well as up close choppy killy stuff.

To that end I am thinking along the lines of a new chaos warband. I want something that moves me, like all my marines do, but in a new way. This means looking to the codex for inspiration. I want to move away from the blacks and reds too, as I have done too much of that in all my work. (black legion, traitor guard, Ulthwe Eldar).

I also want to think about both a theme and flexibility of the troops, coupled with some real clout on the battle field.

This means some serious planning. I want to steer clear ofusing the "usual stuff" too and go for something unique. This has led to thoughts of monstrous kit bashing between loyalist chapters (thats right PLURAL) and chaos marines. I have already seen remarkable results by combining the space wolves with the marines, and I may well go back to that sort of philosophy.
In the codex they mention "SKYRAR'S DARK WOLVES" who use symbology similar to the sons of Russ, but of course, are chaos marines.

I like that idea, but don't want to step in that direction and end up with "CHAOS SPACE WOLVES"

That leads onto the dark angels' history, and "the fallen." I love the marines in robes sort of style, but I want to combine it with the individuality and flexibility of the chaos marines. To field the fallen in the "spirit of the story" as it were, woul dmean fielding lots of small units, with limited equipment. Not very me, that.

The we move onto the black tempars and their "crusader" idealogy. Again, awesome, but the matter of how to combine it with my chaos ideals of flexibility and aggressive punch.
And so on we go to other chapters, leaving the same problm each time. Every chapter has something that appeals to me, but I cna't seem to think of ways to combine it with chaos troops without returning to where I've already been in terms of troops, tactical options etc.

So what's left that I haven't tried yet?
Well, in terms of chaos troops, quite a bit. I haven't included thousand sons or noise marines yet- or raptors. I've not fielded a daemon prince or a lord in terminator armour that wasn't a special character. I haven't used vindicators before, or possessed marines, or even a defiler. That pretty much covers 1 hq, 2 troops, an elites, a fast attack and a couple of heavy support choices.... weeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiirrrrrrrd.

Perhaps this is the new plan then?
But what to do with it?
I have mused on sonic weaponry before, and it still appeals to me.

Perhaps I have some sort of new direction here after all:
Chaos marines mixed with loyalist vanilla marines (kitbash) along with sonic weaponry. Watch this space, I need to think on this some more...

This leaves me a bit stuck in all as to which direction to take the next chaos warband in.

Riding Rough

2010-07-14T13:26:00.006+01:00

I figured it was about time I showed off a bit with the rough riders squad for the traitor guard army.
Hopefully the pictures aren't too fuzzy on the details, as all the models are now undercoated and ready for the paint job.

My initial plan was to include some rough riders in the army just as something a little different for my opponent to worry about, but looking at their capabilities in the codex and rule books I changed my thoughts on them and consider them to be a kick ass fast assault unit. And it means I dont have to field nothing but lasguns and tanks!

By using the parts from the heavy weapons, guard squad and command squad sprues, I was able to create what you see in this post. I'll try and be as descriptive as I can in terms of what I did, but my memory aint what it once was!

Remember this pic from the old post? I figured I should resurrect it here to show what I started out with. They were all constructed and undercoated Empire knights for fantasy battle. I took off the bodies and heads with clippers, and cut off the lance arms carefully, because I needed them to represent my hunting lances. Also removed were laurel wreaths and sigils from the horses' barding.
Some tricky cutting involved here, and I certainly nicked my thumb and fingers a bit.

WARNING TO ALL- BE CAREFUL AS FECK WITH SHARP STUFF.

The next step was a trip to town with some dosh and I bought the command squad, a heavy weapons squad and an infantry squad. One thought...KITBASH!!!

This is a view of the completely constructed squad. All undercoated up and ready for painting. Each model has had the body of a catachan added, along with a head, back pack, laspistol etc. You get the idea anyway. I basically combined the bits from the kits (as it were) and this ios what came out the other side!
I don't do well at planning these things too much, I tend to just break open the kit and go with my feelings and gut instinct. Of course, I knew what I wanted to achieve in general terms and to have a "vision" of the target is always helpful when it comes to going a bit "bashy."
Any ways, on to the individuals...

Here's the sergeant, on a suitably pompous horse and carrying a power weapon. the officer's cap was added, but only after I had removed the imperial (spits) eagle from it. I stuck the backpack onto the horse'sback end, as I figured that horses can have saddle bags, right? The model certainly has an authority about it (even though he is only a lowly sergeant).

Icon bearer carrying Slaaneshi icon. The codex doesn't feature this at all for rough riders, but I did muse over it whilst gazing at the icon in my bits box. It gives the squad identity, and I can use it as an icon if in can be bothered to include daemons and if my opponent agrees. Again the pompous looking nag, with a shovel stuck onto the barding at the rear. Pretty much all of the models have had additions from the guard kits put on, like ammo pouches, grenades, shovels etc.

Special weapon rider, carrying a flamer hooked onto the back of the horse. Again that them of back packs, cag stuck onto the armour features throughot the squad. Coupled with the speed of cavalry, this guy can get up close and gout flame over his foes, ideal for enemies in cover.

Apologies- crap picture! This fella packs a melta gun which comes in handy against heavy stuff and bunkers, and gives the squad a clearer purpose on the battle field. I'll muse on that later.
Again the back pack and gubbinz.

The remaining riders, keeping in with the theme of the squad. The look and feel is of a group of men that are self sufficient from the main force. They carry their own kit from place to place and rely on noone else. The shovels feature too, for digging in when in advance of the main column.

The squad has a "scouting unit" sort of feel because of this, which I really like.

The armoured legs look kinda weird, but for some reason seem to fit well. I decided to keep the armoured arms holding the lances too, because I figured that whilst you're on the charge, holding the lance toward your target with hails of shells coming at you, the armour would help to protect your lance arm and help to ensure you struck the target.

Beware the horsemen of chaos, for they bring only death and the promise of only more suffering that is certain to follow them!

Any ways, that's it for the unit thus far. Hopefully you agree with my thoughts that they look absolutely nuts. Next step is the paint job, which will be in with the rest of the army, featuring blacks and reds. If I can remember I'll put up pics of the painted stuff when its done to show it off a little.

And to think the hoon in games workshop said that it wouldn't look right, and that I had to use chaos marauder horsemen bits. What a fucktard...

Traitor guard update pics - "work in progress"

2010-07-14T12:16:00.006+01:00

WELL, TOLD YOU I HAD BEEN BUSY, DIDN'T I?

Here are the pictures I have been promising for the latest additions to the guard force. I am going to nee to start copying my main man's M.O. and sticking something up each week at this rate!

I haven't included the tanks here, I want to wait until they're painted up. No sign of the rough riders either, because I am showcasing them (so far) in the next post.

Penal legion squad

Quite simply a matter of removing the arms from empire militiamen, rebasing them on larger bases and adding catachan lasgun arms and weapons. Haven't figured out their colour scheme yet, but will most likely aim for black and red so they fit in with the rest of the army.

Missile launcher teams

Mainly just plonked onto bases to join them together as one is supposed to do nowadays. There's the classic metal models there on the far right, with kit bashed models for the rest. Mainly made with spare troopers and spare parts from the heavy weapon squad kit. The heavy weapons teams all need to be sprayed up in black, but the other stuff just needs touching up with the right flesh tones and bolt gun metal now.

Lascannon teams

As per the kit really. I like the idea of kitting out heavy weapon squads to have a purpose, so 3 lascannon have a clear objective in game terms - tanks, bunkers and heavy hard men all marked for destruction!

By applying the right orders from the command squads squads like this can really hamper your opponent's day!

Commissars

Don't they look cool? Made using parts from the Empire militia kits combined with heads, weapons and arms from the imperial guard kit I have managed to come up with a bunch of nasty fellas for the chaos guard with the trademark trench coat and some cheesy weaponry. Note the commissar in the background running and screaming orders. Nice!

Psyker battle squad with "minder"

Made by simply sticking empire militia onto larger bases, with a kit bashed guardsman as their overseer. The will be painted up in drab colours with really pale flesh tones. Bless 'em, they're not well...

Command squad

Finally! I have added the comm link, the heavy flamer and the medic to the squad, as well as a weapon swap for the commanding officer. The standard bearer wears his trophy of the ultramarine shoulder guard.

Just to the left are the advisers, but more on them in a bit.

Speak of the devil! The advisers. From left to right we have the astropath (slash primaris psyker), the master of ordnance, 2 bodyguards and finally the wimpy pilot.

Priests

One pinched from the loyalists to make up the maximum 5. Difficult to kill and handy in assaults.

Stormtroopers
Yes, I know they are beastmen! But I intend to use them as a stormtrooper squad as they add tremendous chaos character to the infantry.

Chaos ogryn

Nuff said...

Well, that's about it for the infantry now. I have decided that the army is big enough, with plenty of scope for mixed and versatile force tactics. I can mix and match squads and officers around to create dozens of original force organisations to create armies that may well suit individual scenarios. Along with the 6 (SIX!!!) tanks available to me as well I can provide a withering hail of deadly firepower to accompany the vast numbers of scoring troops units.

I am now considering the next army project, and am once more leaning towards the chaos marines in my twisted machinations...

I'll muse on that separately... (muahahahahahahahahahahahahahah!)

Problems solved, but progression has been painful...

2010-07-07T12:21:00.002+01:00

Well, just a quick one before I flit off again. AGAIN no pics yet (please be patient they will follow soon)

The traitor force now stands at 3000 points all thrown in (HOLY CRAP!!!)
THIS IS HOW I GOT THERE:

I stole a priest from the loyalists.
I have solved the dilemma with commissars (the pics of the finished articles will help to explain that) for now lets just use the wordS "trench coats" as a clue to tease you with.
I have added a full compliment of advisors to the command squad (again, the pics will help when they're done)
The army now boasts 3 leman russ battle tanks, a hellhound a sentinel and 2 chimeras (raided the loyalists didn't I!)
I managed to kit bash a psyker battle squad and a penal (hehehehe- PENAL) squad too from fantasy battle stuff.
The rough riders are built and tooled up, but the squad isn't complete yet.

Next purchase for me will be a Catachan battle force, and I'll be looking to expand the infantry platoon and start on the second platoon/ veteran squads too. Oh and some black spray paint too... lots of black spray...

I will try and get some pics done, but may need a wide angle lens or something to do it...
Only 2000 points away from the target too!
That will be spent up with the second platoon and some ordnance and tanks, as well as maxing out the squads where I can, such as the psykers, ogryns etc. I also still want to get a tech priest with 5 servitors.

ON THE REVOLUTION!!!!

Then its just a matter of painting it all up and figuring out how the hell I ship it from A to B!

A degree of Clarity

2010-06-28T13:02:00.004+01:00

I figured that, given my last few posts, I needed to clarify how the traitor guard are shaping up. With the rough riders built, and some new guys added to the army,It's only right I let you lot in on what I have and what plans I have for the future of the army.

The idea really is to build up a massive force with all sorts of different troops and vehicles/ weapons. The army at first was quite restrictive, and sat at a mere 1500 points.

1500pts? I hear you cry! That's about right for a game!

However, the 1500 points was restrictive. By having a massive army at my disposal, I can better pick and choose depending upon my opponent and the scenario plus, if I EVER decided to play a stoopid apocalypse game again I could field pretty much a guard regiment!

The army currently sits at just under 1900 points, no mere paltry force either!
The troops I have also carry a variety of special and heavy weaponry, as well as a few junior and senior officers with nice kit.

Here's a quick lowdown:

HQ
Command squad with advisors (namely ordnance guy and pilot guy with a couple of bodyguards)
Priests (coutns as HQ, but does not take up a slot in the organisation chart)
Psyker

Elites
Ogryn
Beastmen (stormtroopers)

Troops
Infantry platoon - command squad, 3 infantry squads with heavy and special weapons, heavy weapons squad, conscripts
Veterans- grenadiers with multiple special weapons, chimera

Fast Attack
Rough Riders

Heavy Support
Leman Russ

As you can see, in terms of manpower the army is vast, but cheap on points ( oh the pitiful value of human life!)

The MASTER PLAN
Well, I have been musing about it for a while now, and the army needs more of everything!
The ultimate plan is to include the following options and squads to "complete" the army:

HQ
Techpriest enginseer
Astropath for command squad and chimera
Commissar Lord (chaos equivalent)

Elites
Psyker battle squad
Complete ogryn squad up to 10 models

Troops
Max out infantry platoon with: 2 infantry squads, 4 heavy weapon squads, 3special weapon squads and 6 chaos equivalent commisars
3 more veteran squads in chimeras
penal legion (chaos equivalent) squad

Fast attack
Max out rough riders
Sentinel squadron
Hellhound squadron

Heavy support
2 more leman russ
3 ordnance battery tanks
hydra flak tank battery
(with this last one, the plan is to have maybe one of eac or something to start with, and build it up later)

Of course, in terms of time and expense, this army will take about a decade and a remortgage to build(!), but I have been thinking about "short cuts" along the way to help save me dosh. Here's a couple of em...

Rob the loyalists!- that's right, steal the tanks and vehicles, plus whatever else I can use from the necromundan guard. Very sad day for them, but the chaos legions require more for the cauldron of war! I do wat to do soething with the tallarn models though, so they may well find themselves chaosed up too- I haven't decided yet. I figure that if I dont use them anyway, I may as well focus everything on one guard army!
Raid the warhammer boxes again- raiding the boxes I may find models suitable for use as chaos commissars,or penal legion troopers, plus that elusive psyker battle squad. I have already had a bit of success there with the rough riders, so I figure anothe raid may prove fruitful!
Minimise on metal models- kit bash the effing hell out if it. I am finding that converting via plastic kits is quite easy and inexpensive if it goes "the way of the pear."
Know when to stop!! This is probably the most critical thing. I got caught out when I was but a young whipper snapper playing warhammer, and collected somewhere in the region of a 15000 point orc and goblin army in the space of 8 weeks! All that beer money gone! If the army looks like it is stretching into the realms of silliness, then I will stop and focus on scenery instead. Remind me of this if I get carried away again later! That said, my orc army is the envy of everyone that sees the 8 boxes its stored in...

On top of all this though, there is still the hanging question about including daemons in the army. I reckon that as long as the other player agrees, I'll simply include from the appropriate codex and chuck them in!

Well, that's it for now. I was gonna throw in pics, but couldn't be arsed. I will chuck in the odd one or two once I have painted some more units up ans showcase the guard as they stand. I may even set them up on a battlefield and let you all gawp at it that way....

Be cool y'all, and check out the last couple of posts to make sure you at least have some vague idea about what I am wittering on about...

Traitor Guard Work- Update

2010-06-22T12:19:00.004+01:00

The Opening Gambit part...

Well, I know I've been musing alot about the traitor guard regiment I am building lately. Last weekend I took a great big stride forward and added to units. I've got pics (the models are unpainted at present) to show too, so you guys can see how they have been made and the simple conversion work that I have done to really make them part of the them!

Elitist

Well, I did actually buy two units. A heavy weapons squad and a regiment of warhammer ogre kingdoms leadbelchers. I obviously planned to used them as ogryn, and being plastic kits, I figured I could convert and kitbash a little to get the reults I wanted.
Using the warhammer kit also sparked off another idea, but I'll get back to that in a minute or two...

This pic shows the finished unit of 4 ogryn, complete with an icon and ripper guns. I am well chuffed with the results here, and can't wait to paint them up!
I did of course make up a complete heavy weapons squad for the infantry company, along with a couple of additional heavy weapons teams for the platoon squads.
I will feature them later, but this is all about the why's and wherefors of the ogryns!

This is the bone 'ead (unit leader) and a close look at his ripper gun. All the rippers were made from autocannons, cut down and pieced back together. As he was the boss, his ripper has a gargoyle head and some spikiness. Note on his back the beer barrel, the pony tail and the large stone mallet, all from the 'belchers kit. This guy also has a spare ammo drum on his belt. Simple, yet well cool!

Unit Icon bearer, carrying the spare Khorne bloodletters' banner. Note the chopped down autocannon for a ripper gun. The plan is simply to use him as an ogryn, and include the rules for icons if the other player agrees and I can be bothered to field daemons.

Another closer look at my version of the ripper gun. DAKKA!!!!

And finally...

WTF?
Well, as the above heading suggests, I thought about what stuff I have stashed away that can be cut up revamped and used for the twisted purposes of 40k as a chaos player with a guard army.
The force currently has no fast attack options. Any fool can field tanks (and I will, rest assured), but the one thing that I notice always seems to be missing from guard armies is horse riding grunts!

A work in progress, I think you will agree there! Imagine if you will catachan bodies and heads, armed with lances and assault weapons. Guns strapped to the barding of the horses. Getting there yet? A sergeant with a cheesey weapon to top them off and we have CHAOS ROUGH RIDERS!!!!

I noticed that the main reason noone has any is because they only seem to be for sale on line and the shops only ever sell the Mongolian looking Attillans, which dont fit in with the feel of Cadian or Catachan armies. Why? Its only plastic kits people! Sort it!

The image in my head is of such awesome looking soliders that I may dispense with fast attack tanks altogether and just buy more imperial cavalry and catachans!
There's a mighty fine image for you: big game, 30 horsemen armed with hunting lances and assault weapons charging the lines! (movement phase takes two hours, just for the guard!)
The hunting lance is a fine piece of instrumentation too, counting as I5 S5 in assault, AND counting as a power weapon. STICKY!
So why don't more guard armies feature them?

And why wouldn't a Commissar ride to war with the men? (oooh! Summary execution on horseback...)

Come to think of it, why not have a preacher on horseback too?

Saliva glands overload at that!!!!!
Steady though, back to the plan...

Finally

I also thought about the commissariat option some more, and I do have ideas forming about their chaos equivalents. It's just finding the right models to use. Perhaps using warhammer chaos warriors or something...
Additional thoughts for expansion besides the downright crazy are mainly about adding more troops units to the infantry platoon, and the possible inclusion of a chaos techpriest with daemonic servitors (heheheheheheh), oh and tanks- LOTS of tanks...(at least 2 or 3 more)

I figure that my time as a chaos space marine player is over, though I will doubtlessly field them from time to time. I have entered a new phase as a guard player. But this will be on my terms as a traitor, so screw the emperor and pass the ammo!

Well that's that! I'm off to find my medication and straightjacket now. Hope you liked the post, comments please! FEED ME YOUR THOUGHTS MORTALS!

Finally!!! Another army showcase!

2010-06-22T11:03:00.010+01:00

YARP!

It's the turn of the Chaos Daemons. Cos the method of putting the pics up is, well HAPHAZARD to say the least, I have thrown them in in no particualr order.

Alot of these models featured in older army showcases ( ie the nurgle Daemons) but they have since decided that the the relative codex is pants and banded together (nuff said on the nerfed out CSM Codex.)

So, in no particular order I give you the hordes of the fickle powers!

MMMMM Daemon Prince of Slaanesh.
SWEEET model, converted more and repainted to match the other Slaaneshi daemons in the army. This guy is actually a HEAVY SUPPORT option. Go figure...

Classic Bloodletters. Rebased from the old Black legion army to fit in with the daemon army. Sweet! One of the 5 troops choices in the army, and assault specialists!

Good ole Plaguebearers. Bit slow, but hard as coffin nails and difficult to get rid of. Even with Bleach...

Army general and centre piece is my great unclean one. Mr Smelly himself, and a close personal friend of the tramp that never EVER removes clothing for any reason at all, including the toilet (sniff sniff...)

In the elites slot I have 2 fiends of slaanesh. Fiendishly tricky to put together, but painte din gaudy colours they really leap out at you. Fast and deadly!

More troops! Daemonettes no less. Fast moving, agile and beguiling, these girlies are not to be underestimated. They are well killy!

New look bloodletters. Nice and red! Their hellblades I painted in brazen brass- favored metal of the blood god.

For firepower in the army I got me some horrors of tzeentch. NIGHTMARE TO BUILD. NIGHTMARE TO PAINT. Games workshop dont do pink, apparently. My tentacle pink had dried up, so when I reached for the trusted model shop, I was let down. Still, like any decent painter type bloke, I mixed my own and raised a stubby middle digit to the workshop in triumph!!! LMAO.

The army is as it is, and it aint likely I'll add more to it. I didn't like painting the models much (apart from the Unclean one) and there aint much scope for conversion here either, which is unusual for chaos.

In game terms they are unpredictable due to the summoning and only half the army turn up etc. which I find infuriating.

Traitor Guard- Musings on the New look list

2010-06-10T10:19:00.003+01:00

New look list?
What?
Yep, that's right, I've been looking at the list and trying to figure out ways to represent specific unit types and models in the army, without losing the "guard factor"
Here's some of my thoughts, plop in some remarks and gimme the lowdown on your take of them...

HQ

Company Commmand squad- as per codex, complete with regimental advisors (after all, chaos fleets will bombard, they will have some sort of warp tainted astropath and traitor regiments would surely have access to some sort of ordnance support)

Lord Commissar- NAH! Replace that with a Chaos Space Marine Character. Maybe a deamon prince or a sorceror.
Failing that, Model to represent some sort of oratory maniac with same rules as the commissariat models.

Primaris Psyker- Yep, as per codex, but obviously all chaosed up and bonkers!

Ministorum Priests - Cult Fanatics, same rules and weapons

Techpriest Enginseer- YEP, as per codex, but all chaosed up!

ELITES

Chaos Ogryns- Heheheheh!

Psyker battle squad - as per codex, but chaosed up

Storm trooper squads - Nope. Replaced by chaos beastmen. Same rules as codex, just beastmen instead. Strength 4 and bizarre warp weapons (same effect as hotshot weapons). Will NOT respond to orders from command units.

TROOPS

Infantry Platoon - as per codex, but instead of commissars, using chaos space marines. Same rules as commissars and same weapon options, just a chaos space marine instead.
It just made sense to me that the guardsmen would do as they were told out of a mix of fear, promise of rewards (that never come) and the sheer size and brutality of a chaos space marine.

Conscripts - replaced with the plague zombies. Same points and stats, only slow and purposeful, fearless and feel no pain rules.

Veterans - as per codex

Penal legion- done away with. It just aint likely that the lost and the damned have a penal system (huhuhuh said penal...), rather more of a bang your dead, sacrifice, slavery sort of system...

FAST ATTACK

Sentinels - yep

Rough riders - yep, only on chaos beasties

Hellhounds- yep

Flyers- NOPE. Too hitech, and not enough techies in the traitor legions to maintain. Flyers captured are stripped for weapons, ammo and intel, as well as the odd sacrificial pilot or 2...

HEAVY SUPPORT

Leman Russ - Standard, demolisher, exterminator, eradicator, punisher. The others are rare variants now and so it would stand that they are well protected by the loyalists and steps are taken to ensure purity of the machine and its crew as part of maintanence rituals.

Ordnance- Basilisk, Griffon. The other types are rare and well preserved by the loyalists, and the legions of chaos would tend to use their own warped and strange equivalents.

Hydra Battery - as per codex

END

Well, that about covers everything I guess- except for the ADDITIONAL EXTRAS!

Additional stuff:
Daemon Squads- summoned into play by standards, which are chaos icons. As per chaos daemons codex troops options. Counts as troops, but doesn't use force organisation slot.
Daemon squads will NOT respond to orders from command units.

Chaos Spawn- Counts as elites, as per codex chaos space marines.

Chaos icons- as per codex in terms of rules for ld tests etc, only can be used as focal point for summoning. ANY SQUAD may be issued with a chaos icon for 5pts. The icons may only be used for summoning and have no bearing on orders or ld test benefits.

Well, that's it!
Tell me what y'all reckon.

To Arms!! A rather short battle report!

2010-06-09T12:51:00.005+01:00

Yup, that's right! I played a battle without having to traverse the county!

AGAIN No pics- Sorry!

Turns out my nephew is inching towards the hobby! He did say he liked the look of LOTR, but I offered him a chance to play 40k with one of my armies and see if he liked it. All GW games use a similar system when it comes to tabletop wargaming, which is why they work so well.
Anyway... YER goes:

Nephew picked Eldar for his army, based upon the generalisation that they are fairly quick with good basic troops, great leaders and some interesting specialist troops and vehicles. He was offered the option of CSM, guard or eldar and each one was generalised to him so his choice was (reasonably) informed.

As I am thinking along guard lines, I though it was a good opportunity to play the necromundan guard army.
I didn't want to overcomplicate his first ever 40k game with special rules for characters and wargear, so we both kept it nice and simple.
I said that 1000 pts was a good base to start from (though it later proved too much in terms of time frame) and so these are the forces we picked:

ELDAR

HQ- Avatar
Elites - 5 Howling Banshees
Troops 1- 8 Dire avengeres with exarch packing a diresword and shuriken pistol
Troops 2 - 15 Guardians (storm squad) with fusion gun and flamer
Fast Attack 1 - 6 Swooping Hawks
Fast Attack 2 - Vyper Jetbike with shuriken cannon
Heavy Support 1 - 3 Dark Reapers with exarch carrying shuriken cannon
Heavy Support 2 - Wraithlord with scatter laser
Heavy support 3 - Fire Prism Grav Tank

Now, for a first timer, and given the general hints and tips I was giving him, this army aint alf bad. He's got himself a cheesey leader with good special effects for the troops, some nasty firepower elements, a large assault squad and some good quality specialist troops. A healthy mix of speed and firepower. Nice!

GUARD

HQ- Company command squad with body guard for the officer
HQ- Ministorum Priest
Troops 1 - Infantry platoon with commisar, heavy weapons sqaud and 2 infantry squads
with heavy weapons and a platoon command squad
Troops 2 - Veteran squad (ratskins) with camo cloaks
Fast Attack - Armoured Sentinel
Heavy Support - Leman Russ Battle Tank

My Loyalist guard army is limited in its options at present, but I knew I had numbers on my side here, along with ole reliable, the leman russ!
After rolling on the various tables in the book, we were to play annihilation scenario, using spearhead deployment rules.

We only got to play 2 turns out of the 4, which was a shame, because as usual things were getting good when it was time to clear up!

The action summed up:

Nephew launched a strong flank attack with his Hawks and vyper, which my company command squad was getting hit hard, but (barely) holding the line. In the centre, things were faring a little better thanks to the infantry platoon and the vehicles pouring fire into the banshees, wraithlord and the avatar (who ran to the flank for cover after suffering 2 wounds from heavy weapons fire!) The banshees were wiped out before they could assault the line, but my leading infantry squad were battered by the wraithlords firepower and the Dark reapers.
On the opposite flank, things were porgressing much slower, with the veterans assisting with the centre's firing before pouring some shots onto the dire avengers.
The fire prism managed to vaporise the sentinel, and the commisar executed the cowardly lieutenant and held the line in a brutal attritional assault with the guardian storm squad.

At the end of the second turn, it was time to clear up. The winner was decided on "kill points" which were allocated per unit and per vehicle. Final score was 1:1, but it was such a shame that the game had to end there.

The assault in the centre was getting interesting as more units joined in from the guard lines, and the opposite flanks were starting to close in for inevitable hand to hand fighting over barricades and ruins.

Looking at it now, I think the eldar would eventually have overrun the guard, mainly due to their speed and better quality assault troops. That said however, the guard army firepower was potent enough to drive the Eldar's main offensive beastie back and give my nephew thoughts of how he could bring him back into play, and the centre was holding really well thanks to the commissar and the priest

Overall:
Great game! My nephew had fun playing, and is now torn between 40k and lotr. He really liked the eldar too, which I think is nice, because almost everyone goes for marines first!

The armies were too big for the time frame we had to play in. 4-500 points would have been quicker and easier, though we would have lost out in terms of tanks and hard stuff. Still, he got to see how lots of different weapons work in play, along with assaults and difficult terrain rules. He didn't make the most of the fleet rule, but then again it was his first game and he did really well.

We talked for a while later about warlocks and their abilities, as well as the benefits of jetbikes etc. And I gave the advice to "start small." The hobby has just got a little more expensive (check the website) and a 12 year old on pocket money needs to be shrewd about his purchases, as do we all now...

As for me, well, guard..... tanks.... stormtroopers.... sentinels.... traitors...chaos...daemons...

WOZON!?!?!?!

2010-06-02T11:32:00.002+01:00

Well, back again!
Still no pics for all you folks gaggin' to see what the twisted mind of a chaos freak has concoct6ed (YET) I'm afraid...

News:
ON the news front, the daemon horde has grown a bit in size, and will probably stay as it is until the rumoured plastic plague bearers and horrors pop up.
It now includes a second unit of bloodletters and 2 fiends of slaanesh. Sweet! I'm in the process of painting them all up now, so watch this space for future pics.
The daemon army is just a sideline really. I'll add bits and bobs every now and then, but doubt it will ever swell to the size of some of my other armies!

I am toying with a chaos space marine army for slaanesh too. I like the sonic weapons and the initiative boosts. I just struggle with he pink...
Again, it'll just be a small army of the bare minimum stuff. 1HQ 2 troops, and 1 each of elites, fast attack and heavy support, with a few tanks chuicked in.

The biggest idea to explode into my skull from the warp lately has been expanding on my traitor guard army. I just love the idea of it. It needs more heavy weapons and vehicles really, as well as a beefy character to add that ouch! factor to the force.
I'm thinking along the lines of using the commissar lord rules to create some sort of heretical overlord/ orator for the army, which is nice...
There's also the topic of regimental advisors.
I plan to accomodate this using suitably converted models, but in game terms they will be as per the guard codex. NICE.
The army also lacks elites options, and yet again I have been considering this a little. My thoughts were to simply use chaos space marines at first, but the latest ideas of chaos ogryns, or even storm trooper equivalents and even a heretic techpriest with servitors have been buzzing about in the brain.
As for tanks and vehicles, more leman russ, ordnance batteries and sentinel squadrons all spring to mind, along with heavy weapons squads and special weapons squads to cause more problems.
Again watch this space (it'll probably be something else entirely next week...)

ON the home front - NEW CAR!
Its red (so naturally it goes faster) and shiny (for now at least) and I likes it a lot!

Note for my buddy bl0ke:
We need to pester the women for their weekender again. I will not allow momentum to be lost! We had our turn, now they must take theirs! (plus there's always the chance of some little games to be had! And beer!)

Adieu amigos!

Changer of the Ways...

2010-04-28T10:33:00.002+01:00

Well, guess what? lol
I only went a reverted to type and stuck with chaos!
This time though I went and got the chaos daemons codex, along with some daemonettes and some pink horrors.
Traditionally, I have hated painting daemons, so this army will be both annoying , challenging and rewarding all at once for me!

Army look
Well, no pics yet guys (you'll need to wait for the showcase) but the army features quite a few models I already had, as well as a few new additions.
The army is currently led by by Great Unclean one ( yes a real life proper Nurgel daemon- finally) and features 1squad of daemons from each of the 4 powers, along with a Slaaneshi Daemon Prince.
It comes to somewhere in the region of 1000pts at the minute, so I don't plan to add much more to bump it up to 1500 points.
The plan is to add to the existing daemon squads, add a couple of fast attck and elites choices and a second HQ choice to complete the force, though that soul grinder model does give me the chills...

Other news
Well, I went into Games Workshop (as we saddos are wont to do) and was approached by the store manager, who asked me what I was playing at the minute etc. Poor bugger. He got BOTH BARRELS from me about how cack the new Chaos Space Marine Codex was. He was taken aback at first, but then kinda tried his best to placate me over my issues with the new edition. I have already ranted, so just look back a couple of posts and you'll see what I am on about. He was shocked when I said that 20 years of collecting, painting converting and gaming were thrown down the tubes by the book, but offered advice on how I could use the new codex slightly differently to my advantage.
I have taken the advice on board, and the Chosen of chaos will return to action and we'll see how they get on.
I did also state that I thought it was utter tripe that there are Chapter specific codexes for Loyalist marines. Why doesn't chaos have that? Surely there legions of traitor marines had their own style of combat and warfare, as well as cultural individuality. I ended up demanding that there should be legion codexes for Iron Warriors, World Eaters, Emperors Children, Death Guard, Night Lords, Alpha Legion and Word Bearers, with Black Legion being the "vanilla codex"
This again started the ole juices spinning away....

Deano's Death Guard Codex.
Yup, that's right! My very own codex for my very own legion.
It wasn't that difficult to come up with ideas and points values for the different sqauds on offer either.
This is what I have so far:
All independant characters MUST have the mark of Nurgle.
Infantry squads may not take any heavy weapons AT ALL. Special weapons only.

HQ
The Only Special Character on offer is TYPHUS
Summoned greater daemons MUST be great unclean ones, as per codex Daemons, though they still dont use up an actual HQ choice from the force selection chart.

Elites
Chosen Plague Marines- 26 pts each. May not take heavy weapons, but are plague marines that can infiltrate.
Plague Marine Terminators - 46 pts each. (vanilla terminators cost double vanilla marines, so this pv is double the cost of a plague marine) Same options as per codex csm, but may not take reaper autocannon. Terminators feel no pain, are fearless and carry blight grenades, along with the +1T for being nurglesque. Icons that are carried are personal icons, costing 10pts.
Possessed- As per codex. Models suitable converted as Nurglesque. Also feel no pain. 30pts each instead of 26 to account for this.
Dreadnought- As per codex, but "slow and purposeful"

Troops
Plague Marines- as per codex
Nurgling bases - as per codex Daemons
Summoned daemons are plague bearers, as per codex Daemons, but they dont use any force chart selection choices. In game terms they still count as troops and can seize and hold objectives.

Fast Attack
Beasts of nurgle - as per codex Daemons
Plague marines in a rhino- up to 2 squads mounted in rhinos may be counted as fast attack choices. In game terms, this would mean that the amry could potentially have up to 8 troops choices.

Heavy Support
Plague marine Havocs - as per plague marines, but up to four marines may exchange weapons for special weapons (assault weapons) instead of 2.
Obliterators- only up to 1 squad
Predator- as per codex but may be fitted with sponsons armed with heavy flamers for +30pts.
(I always like to think of them as more of a kinda "pus sprayer" sorta thing)
All other options as per codex CSM

PLEASE GOD TELL ME ITS FAIR AND LET ME USE IT!!!!

That's it for now though. When I got more to show and or tell, you'll see it here!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand- RELAX!!

2010-04-21T12:35:00.003+01:00

Wow! That last post was bleak!
Let's bring back the positives again:
Weekender- YAY!!
BEER- YAY!!
Great small games- YAY!!
KEBAB-YAY!!
Time well spent with good friends- YAY YAY YAY YAY!!!!!

NEWS FROM THE RECRUITMENT CENTRE...

Well, the Ultramarines force has doubled in size! It now has a scout and and a chaplain! Eventually the plan would be to build a proper battle company as per the old space marine codex back ground info shows.
That means:
HQ- Captain, Chaplain and Apothecary
Troops- 6 tactical squads
Fast attack - 2 assault squads, bikers, land speeders
Heavy support - 2 devastator squads, land raiders
Elites - Dreadnoughts

So sayeth the book!

In game terms I think I can elaborate a little:
HQ1- Captain with command squad, including apothecary- options for terminator armour and maybe some sweet conversion work... in either a Razorback or some sort of Land raider.
HQ2- Chaplain and Reclusiam command squad- again scope for comversion with robed marines in black power armour with Ultramarines chapter markings (that actually made my mouth water lol)
Elites- Venerable and Ironclad dreadnoughts, plus techmarine with servitors in a razor back.
Troops- 6 Tactical squads in rhinos. Again I could always swap out tactical squads for scout squads for different games.
Fast attack- 2, 10 strong assault squads with lots of weapon variations included.
Also worth considering removal of back packs and placement in transports as a tactical option.
third choice is a toss up between 3 land speeders opr a bike squad with an attack bike...
Heavy Support- 2, 10man devastator squads in rhinos and a land raider. But that said, I would still like to throw in different tanks every now and then for flexibility and fun.

What does it mean for the collection? I hear you cry!
Well, it means hours of work, it means loads of dosh and it means years to complete.
My plan to start with is to have:
Chaplain and Command squad in Razorback
Dreadnought
Tactical Squad in Rhino
Scout squad
Assault Squad
Vindicator
Along with anything else to make it up to 1500 points.

I am also at the stage when I am thinking about dropping the whole idea and just getting more chaos stuff, like raptors, daemons (including codex), vindicators and defilers, not to mention more rhinos and bikers. Perhaps combining the chaos daemons and csm codexes would yield more character in my forces...
I do dislike the chaos codex, but perhaps there is an element of distrust and I am not used to it yet, I don't know. Perhaps I need to simply persevere and hang in there.
The prospect of noise marines has been appealing to me of late too, and I like the thousand sons rules for marine killing bolter ammunition...

Or even dropping THAT idea and getting something completely different, a step away from what I am used to, like 'nids, necrons or even Orks.

Sooooooooooooooo torn!!

The weekend's events have really turned the juices of imagination up to full power, and my mind is racing away with ideas faster than I can write them down. That invariably means a lot is being lost in the ether between skull and writing arm.

I may even try and bribe the missus into gaming with me (small patrol games only) just to keep in practise.
The major thing that sticks in my head was rolling 41 dice for assaulting troops in the big finale. It's one of the reasons I play and keep playing. There is just something about rolling a shitload of dice, hearing the clatter as they roll and watching your opponents face as you pick out the misses and hits that makes 40k and warhammer some of the best games on the planet. That and almost every time you play, it's different.

Well, this happy gaming addict is off to ponder at the games workshop site for even more ideas(!) and maybe the plan for Ultramarines will fade and be replaced with more chaos, who knows?

Mixed Musings of the Weekend

2010-04-20T08:07:00.005+01:00

Wow! MonuMENTAL weekend!
Loads of beer and kebab.
Loads of Gaming? Not quite, but it was our first sortie into an unknown place, and I think it worked out ok in the end.

My first game was a bit of a classic tussle as the Necromundan 10th took on elements of the Black Legion.
It was 1500 points per side, and here's a rough idea of what I chose:
HQ
Company command squad, including medic and vox caster with regimental standard. Ialso kitted them out with carapace armour for a little survivability.
Ministorum Preacher with las pistol, chainsword and rosarius.
Elites
Ratling Snipers squad.
Troops
Infantry platoon with las cannon heavy weapon squad, 3 commissars, heavy bolter, autocannon 2 melta guns and a plasma gun. (Platoon command and 2 squads, plus heavy weapon squad). The 2 infantry squads I also stuck in chimeras, just for that element of extra punch from armour.
Fast Attack
Armoured sentinel
Hellhound tank
Heavy Support
Leman Russ
All came in at 1500 points! For guard armies, you always get plenty of troops for your points!

My opponent, a buddy of Nick and Dom's called Kieran, fielded the following (apologies to Kieran if it's spelt wrong!)
HQ
Kharn the Betrayer
Greater Daemon (Bloodthirster Model, but not used as one)
Elites
2 Dreadnoughts
Troops
Chaos Space Marine Squad
Thousands Sons Squad
Heavy Support
Defiler
2 squads of 4 obliterators

From the battles supplement we picked a scenario that used control of objectives to determine the winner, and we had 5 to scrap over!

As an experienced chaos player from the days before yore, I knew that my trusty guard were in for a tough scrap, and that assaults were going to be brief, bloody and bad for my guys!
Deployment was easy for the guard. I positioned my objectives and set up a classic "firing line" with chimeras in the centre and on my left flank the leman russ. The right flank was occupied by both the hellhound and the sentinel. My plan was simple- shot the enemy to pieces before I got cut to shreds in assault, unless I could be assured of victory in an assault, I wouldn't be risking one.
Kieran set up his army with the dreadnoughts in the centre, Kharn and the chaos marines on his right flank and the thousand sons on the right flank. The defiler placed behind the dreadnoughts and the obliterators in reserve to deep strike (gulp).
I had a bad feeling in my guts about this, but I had trust in my troops, and knew that my heavy weapons teams would be busy...

The game flew by in a flurry of turns, and I don't recall too much of the detail (that could be a beer related memory failure...)
I do recall that my leman russ fired its battle cannon relentlessly, accounting for all but one of the chaos space marines and took out Kharn himself! Mind you, slaying the betrayer cost me the tank itself, which was a hard thing to bear for such a remarkable bit of tankmanship...
My snipers also caused some grief for the thousand sons and attracted considerable fire from the chaos units, allowing me to cause more mayhem with my guard squads.
The hellhound tank also served the emperor well, slaying a greater daemon and several thousand sons marines!
I think the units that did the least were probably my guard infantry squads, whose lasguns had little or no use against the armour facing them.
I hopefully used the guard orders rules to good effect too and it was good to see that the guard are now more balanced thanks to the new rules in the codex.
I was nearly undone by the obliterators, who used deep strike to appear directly behind my firing line and began cutting me to shreds in short order. Kudos to Kieran for good use of those guys!
The game finished with evidence of my costly error!
My army was way more intact than kieran's, but I only controlled 1 objective, as did Kieran. I actually left one objective to launch a suicidal counter- attack the obliterators! With one turn left!
So the game finished with 1 objective a piece, 2 contested and one left all alone (nice one Deano, what a dufus!!).
Great game though, which swung in every conceivable direction until the final, and I think fairest conclusion.
Both sides made tactical errors, and a few dodgy judgement calls at critical times by both of us nearly cost us the game!
I was really impressed with the way the guard performed overall though. They were a bit static, true, but the withering hail of lasgun and heavy weapon fire really did take its toll, particularly with effective fire from the vehicles.
I felt that Kieran may have tried to slug it out toe to toe with my guardsmen with firepower. His firepower was effective, but if his troops had advanced as well as fired it may have been a different outcome. Saying that, he only had two scoring units on the board with his marines so his best hopes lay in the attack of the obliterators to contest objectives and his dreadnoughts mowing down guardsmen.
Hopefully we both took a lot from the game in terms of tactical development. Nice one Kieran!

Saturday
Saturday consisted of me going BLEUGH a lot and being jaded and miserable. This was mainly due to the beer the night before, the poor diet (lack of food) and the crud night's sleep I had. I was also hearing all about the special characters from the Blood Angels Codex and the Space Wolf codex, and noticing that the Chaos Codex had nothing even remotely comparable ( more of that later).
The day started off with a good ole game of space hulk against Liam, Dom's li'l bro!
The game was the first scenario, with the simple (!) task of of reaching a room and flaming it. Oh wait, I forgot about the zoggin genestealers!
It wasn't too difficult though. With extensive use of overwatch on the corridors, I cut off possible lines of assault and cut swathes of stealers down with precise storm bolter fire. Sweet!
A win for the marines on the hulk!

Last business for the weekend was the Apocalypse game.
I will admit I got a right monk on when all the special characters started hampering the special abilities of my leaders and my troops capabilities of deep striking. It was really frustrating as I simply couldn't even get involved in the game, and it seemed as though whatever I tried to do in the game, there was a special character with a special rule that either slowed me down, prevented me from doing something or simply wiped the floor with me.
The chaos codex was failing me, BADLY, and the Games workshop staff seemed to be favoring the Blood Angels chapter a little too much for my liking.

I remember commenting halfway through the battle that there was no way I could win the game.
I was told it wasn't the right attitude, and to an extent that's true. However, the game seemed very VERY one sided towards the Blood Angels, and the only person at fault was the Games Workshop Blood Angels ass kissers.

Now, I'll take nothing away from a game where my troops cannot do anything except drop like flies. And I was determined that the only way I would ever make any progress from the game was to hit the special characters with everything I had. So I did, and with help from Liam's Salamanders we began to make progress. But it was too little too late, as the marines of the space wolves and blood angels simply swept my chaos troops aside with yet more special abilities and firepower that I simply could never hope to match.
That's right- MORE special characters, MORE special rules and ALL Blood Angels!

We nearly salvaged a draw in the end, thanks to late arrivals from deep strike troops (by luck) and daemons, but were undone by time more than anything. I still believe though that it was a game that was nigh on impossible to win from the outset, and it was all due to the inconsistency of GW to create forces that square off against one another to give truly exciting, gripping and fulfilling games.

Aftermusings
I'll take very little positives from the last game, but all credit to Dom, I really do mean it. He knew his characters were hard, he knew his codex was meaty, and he played his army to its strengths. Just like I would do, and have done in the past. His plan was coordinated well with Nick's and they took the fight to me. I pretty much gave up on the game early on and should really have just conceded to allow us to play better smaller games until clear up time, instead of enforcing a foul mood on proceedings. Apologies to all for that, I was a gimp and it was out of character. Next time I will concede to allow for small games to be played rather than spoil what should have been the climax to an awesome weekend. BE WARNED!!!

I also tried to make the best of a dire situation, and several of my squads in play managed to give a good account of themselves in the end.
The Space Wolves were also a major thorn in my side with special rules to prevent and hinder deep striking from their psykers, not to mention loads of land raiders!

THE ULTIMATE RANT OF A MAD B****RD
The game left me hating the chaos codex. It's crap. Abaddon no longer has any shooting abilities despite the Talon of Horus (traditionally speaking) being a lightning claw with a twin linked bolter on the back, and his sword being a daemon weapon. Now the whole shebang counts as a daemon weapon. Yes it confers strength and power weapon abilities on him, and gives him bonus attacks, but that's it that's what the sword did in the previous edition. His profile isn't that awesome any more and the only thing he kept from last edition was his 4+ inv save. Utter poop.
There are numerous other problems too. Daemons are now generic for the codex, so in order to have deity specific daemons, you must purchase the daemons codex and add them as allies. PANTS.
You want a small squad with just a heavy weapon? Not possible for troops choices any more. Now you have to have 10 models to achieve that, so gone are the days of small tactical fire support squads of 5.
Fast attack? Only 2 options (you can't count spawn as fast attack, they aren't fast- that's a clue GAMES WORKSHOP) and although I love my bikers ( I do, honest) and think raptors would be cool in my army, there is nothing else to add. What happened to furies?
Heavy support? Finally some good news! Vindicators have been added! And defilers have fleet of foot rule. Obliterators are cheap for the points too.
There the good news ends, especially if you like to play Iron Warriors. No Basilisks. Obliterator weapons have been cut right down.
You can no longer field armies that are power specific, like death guard, without fielding generic tat that doesn't fit. My Death Guard Terminators aren't plague marines any more. They are vanilla chaos terminators with a nurgle icon. PANTS. If you want plague daemons- can't have em without using codex chaos daemons. PANTS.
The old codex allowed for all of this. With fewer pages, better wargear and even advice on how to build deity specific armies.
The new codex has robbed me of £15, wasted all my (MANY) years of carefully selecting and modelling my own "perfect force" with great conversions agonised over and then even let me down in battle. I feel genuinely cheated on every level. Especially when I come up against opponents in a large battle with equal points values and find that the balance is anything but even. ROBBED, CHEATED and then INSULTED.

I am building a new force now, and that means going into GW Plymouth to make purchases. I hope the staff are ready, coz I am one disgruntled Chaos Player.
It was at least comforting to see I am not alone. Dark Angels Codex, when compared to codex space marines is apparently no different. ROBBED CHEATED and then INSULTED.

I am also permanently put off from playing apocalypse games. Too many points, unbalanced forces and not enough time. The special rules sections in the book are confusing and pointless, and unless you have divisions of troops and specialist war machines and tanks, it seems pointless playing.
I was told that the chaos armies really do well in tournaments. Perhaps that's something to do with no special characters...? It's the only way the playing field is truly level.
Positives:
I have looked at planet strike, and I liked that- mainly because time has been spent making sure forces are balanced, which makes for excellent gaming, and the battle report looked like a fun day of gaming.

So, rant over. Conclusions?
Chaos CODEX- shite
Blood Angels Codex-Special Characters are TOO GOOD (game spoiling)
Apocalypse Games- STOOPID
Guard- Great (finally)
Space Hulk- same as its always been- good fun to play for an hour, any longer and it just drags.
Planet strike?- Looks promising
Cities of Death- I'll have to wait and see on that score.

Apologies for seeming miffed folks, but at least this musing is honest, which I will always try to be.

IN THE END
Massive thanks to Nick, Dom, Liam, Kieran and Rory for coming over and joining in. I really hope you had a good time and next time will be better. I will be reluctant to partake in any apocalypse games though and need SERIOUS convincing...
EVEN MORE MASSIVE THANKS to the long suffering WAGS of the gaming fraternity, who allowed grown men to play soldiers for a weekend whilst they watched carefully over their respective broods.
EQUALLY MASSIVE THANKS to the committee who allowed us use of the venue, without all these things coming together, the weekend would never have been possible, and another thanks for Nick- Bl0ke it was great to get together again and just do our shit. Brought back fab memories of yesteryear and brought hope of good times (and beer) to come. Top job on getting the venue authorised.

Remember, Dom and Nick also have their own blog thingys running. Check em out for pics and their take on the weekend (hopefully it aint so negative as mine was on the apocalypse front)

T-minus 2 days and counting

2010-04-14T20:37:00.003+01:00

Well, no pics of armies and no pics of new models ( I hear you cry and weep for me, I really do).
I am just stoked about this weekend and what's going to happen!!!

Apparently, here is our plan of attack:
Day1: Arrive, unpack, beer, pizza, gaming, more beer, nibbles, gaming gaming gaming, beer, sleep (maybe)

Day2; Wake up, brekkie whilst gaming, gaming, more gamers arrive for more gaming, food food, pick up the chief and familiars and drop them to base hq, more gaming, beer, pizza, nibble gaming gaming gaming!

Day3; wake up, maybe gaming after brekkie, muse over weekends gaming, coffee, tea, biccies, coffee, gaming, pack up the stuff, miss all the gaming, head home, unpack, sleep.

After that, its update the blog about the gaming, plot the next stages of the new project and venture forth! (followed by work)

Can't wait to make notes on the armies, the decisive moments and I plan to have "man of the match" and "wooden spoon" awards for all!

I haven't gamed this much since the famed 24 hour sponsored events at my old school (which are now banned by stoopid law) when we played a 10000point warhammer game over 2 ping pong tables which lasted for 14 hours!!! (the old rules were savage back then, and who knew that to cast magic you needed to pass "cl, wp and int" tests whilst rolling d4's d8's d12's and d20's? They didn't even have templates!) I can't even remember who won, but I know we were drained and warhammer was never the same after that.

It's gonna be frikkin' awesome!!!

BRING IT (and the beer...)

Modelling news- The New Project begins...

2010-04-13T13:05:00.008+01:00

Well, I have been pondering the next project for some time now, especially since finishing off everything else I had that was paintable. I've been trawling through all the books and mags and websites and whatever I had to hand to give me inspiration.
Whilst having a poke about in my bits box I came across an old model, and it hit me like a bolt of lightning- a diamond bullet to the forehead as it were!

Thus was born my next project- ULTRAMARINES 3rd Company!
Of course- I don't have the codex yet, but I have played marine armies in the past, so I have at least an idea of what makes up a space marine force.
The model I found was a chaplain- a biker chaplain in fact- that I had reposed and converted into some sad ghost of its former self (a fail). This is the story of how Chaplain Paraxus of the 3rd company came into being...

Stage 1 - BITS!
This pic shows the bits I collected together. Notice the Khorne Beserker helmet, the space wolf storm bolter and the space wolf back pack banner. I also tracked down a spare shoulder pad, melta bomb and personal banner. The model itself was in for a dramatic series of changes, including a head swap, weapon swap and even the storm bolter was in for some alteration!

Stage 2- Extra bits ready for sticking on!
Here we see the additional parts are prepped and ready for application. The Beserker helmet has been cut down to just a skull helmet, the backpack now has a personal banner, and I even salvaged a purity seal for the model's old power axe (which has been removed).

Stage 3- OFF WITH HIS HEAD!
The model had his head cut clean off with clippers and the the space left was filed flat. The arm socket and left hand were also filed flat to prepare for the component parts to be glued on. This guy was gonna look cool. I had the image now planed firmly in my head. This was the point of no return now, the model was effectively ruined if the parts didn't match the feel of the miniature of if they would not fit. I crossed my fingers and strode on... FOR ULTRAMAR!

STAGE 4- Gluing together.

This is the finished article, minus obligatory awesome paint job! lol. He is now obiously a space marine chaplain with a storm bolter and crozius arcanum. He is also carrying melta bombs and has a banner pole too. A bit of a chop job all in all, but the skull helmet idea worked in construction ans the converted weapons etc really do give him the feel of a hard S.O.B.
He was then left overnight for the glue to fully set ( patients is NOT a strong point of mine).

Stage 5- Colour selection.

Here he is again, stood on the mixing tile with my brushes, transfers, water pot and paints behind him. It always pays to have a good look at the model before you start with painting and select the colours you need according to the shades and textures you want to create. Chaplains wear black, the Ultramarines colour is blue, and the third company are denoted by red banding on the shoulder pads. I also had to consider the banner pole and what I would do about that. New territory for me there, as I usually leave it if I don't have a sticker to hand.

Stage 6- Undercoating.

Black undercoats seem to work for everything (except yellow for some reason- go figure!), and as this model will be wearing black power armour, its the perfect choice. A good even coat is important, as we all know to achieving that all important shading later on. Black is also great as an undercoat for metallic colours (The silver ghosts proved that). According to my source texts (old codexes) Ultramarines achieve best results over a black undercoat too. I'll remember that when the squads star rolling in!

Stage 7- Base coating.
All the base coat colours have been applied here, including bestial brown for the base. I also threw on a bit of tank track to the base to cover the slot and add character to the model. The base coat of black was pretty much already on, so the power armour got a very fine drybrush of Elf Grey.

Stage 8- Shading and detail work.
Here the model is highlighted and fine details are picked out, such as the eyes and the text on the purity seals. The eagle motif and skull helmet have been drybrushed progressively light up to white. The Blue shoulder guard with red trim is ready now for the final stages of modelling-transfers.

I also started work on the banner for his banner pole.

A side on shot, showing how little a space there is to work on on the shoulder guard, with the back pack taking up precious moving space for the transfers.

Stage 9- Finishing touches
Here he is the finished article! The base is flocked with brown gravel, green flock and tea leaves (super cheap ones!!) all mixed together to give the effect you see there. The banner I kept simple as possible, but the blue with red bordering of the third company symbolism remains. The Ultra symbol in red with a skull in denotes a chaplain, with the romnan numeral 3 to indicate the company he serves in. I never like the way that the Ultramarines transfers stick on the shoulder guards- its a proper pain in the arse. I am figuring out a way around this now by trimming the transfer down to give it more flexibility when being applied. I love the way the eyes seem to sparkle too, it brings the model to life in an eerie way, that I like alot.

There's the shoulder guard with the transfers applied. The "3" on the Ultra symbol really looks kinda cool- I was well happy with that. The skulls on the storm bolter also stick out a little, accentuating the firepower the Chaplain carries.

This last "fuzzy shot" shows the Army marking. The skull in the yellow cricle is, as far as I can remember, a typical army badge used by space marines on campaign. By using this army badge, I can include elements of the first and tenth companies in the force and tie them all in together with the campaign badge.

THE NEXT STEP

Well, I have an HQ choice now, so I guess I need to think about his subordinates. Chances are that the battle force boxed set will do for starters, along with the codex.

I really want to make this army look special, so will take ages on the troops and vehicles. I'll try out some new techniques and convert and personalise as much as possible.

The third company are known as "the scourge of the xenos" afer their honours won in the first Tyrannic war.

That opens possibilities for Tyrannic Veterans, as well as trophies of genestealers and other xenos races for the characters and vehicles.

Watch this space! More is sure to follow as the army grows.

Also coming up...

Battle will be joined in the next few days, so expect battle reports and tales of glory and heroism galore!

40K Showcase- BLack Legion Marines

2010-04-12T13:33:00.006+01:00

Why do I love the bad guys?- This guy is why! A classic and awesome miniature who was a challenge to paint (hopefully) well and a great leader model for the army. Background tells of rumours that he may be the clone son of Horus himself. The Prodigal son that brings destruction and vengeance, Abaddon is everything it says "on the tin" and more besides.

In game terms he is a very powerful model with awesom wargear and deadly in close assaults.

He is the ultimate bad guy, the geezer you love to hate- fearfully powerful and evil incarnate.

In games where I am allowed to pick him, he is first choice for HQ and would definately be my general in an apocalypse game.

This fella is my Chaos Space Marine Sorceror. He comes with a familiar and bears the mark of Tzeentch, allowing him 3 (yes 3) psychic powers and he also has a good invulnerable save too. In games where his master Abaddon is used, I use him as Zaraphiston who is Abaddon's chief sorceror and one of his few trusted servants.

This fella used to be a space wolf standard bearer. Well, he aint now! One of the few conversions in the army, I can use him as either an aspiring champion for my chosen squad or as a "bargain basement" chaos lord. His icon is taken from a warhammer skaven model- think it was warlord SKWEEK or something like that. It serves as both his trophy rack and also as his Icon to Khorne. The power axe I can also use as a daemon weapon if need be, but that only applies if he is a lord!

Several models in the army make extensive use of space wolf parts. I did this because the Black Legion were once the sons of Horus, and before that the LUNA WOLVES. I figured it may stand to reason that though they changed to the black legion at Abaddon's command, they still retained their heritage of being Luna Wolves. It has added some grat character to the army and has really set them apart from other black legion marines. Look out fo the models in the pics!

CHOSEN- these guys are my infiltrators and pack a range of different weapons. The model in front is quite heavily converted from a space marine captain. He has had a head swap and even the plastic bolter has been converted into a combi weapon. The power fist I can shoose to include or leave out. In the case of this squad- it's left out. The squad's main purpoes is to being the vanguard of any attack, popping up and either giving supporting fire to the rest of the troops, or getting stuck in as soon as possible and carving a bloody swathe into the enemy. The Icon of Khorne is a great help with that!

Chaos Terminators- Deep striking death on a stick! The Khorne Icon adds to their killing ability in battle, along with the 2 combi weapons, the reaper autocannon and the range of power fists and chainfists. They are scary troops, especially seeing as how I can even make them ALL chamions of the dread powers! The only drawback with them is that they tower over Abaddon, which kinda ruins the effect of putting him on the battlefield...

Dreadnought. This one is made from a plastic space marine kit, with spiky bits and chains added, along with the head from a warhammer hydra model. The base also has had a rhino door added. I really like this model, and it does make for a hell of a centre piece model in the army. However, it's not the feature model!

This one packs a dread close combat weapon along with either twin linked lascannon or twin linked autocannon- it all depends on what I want it to make slush out of...

Just need to be careful- chaos dreadnoughts are insane killing machines and a little unpredictable!

Marines- the back bone of the army. These guys feature and autocannon and plasma gun, and the aspiring champion carries a power weapon and a combi bolter. He also carries the icon of chaos glory, which helps to bolster the squad's morale and summons daemons from the warp.

This is my massive 19 strong (yes 19) black legion squad, with a khorne icon and also carrying a heavy bolter, plasma gun and a champion packing a power weapon and plasma pistol. Their purpose is simple- anti infantry. The idea is to cover gorund as quickly as possible under support fire and then hit the enemy infantry- HARD. With support from other squads such as the dreadnought and terminators they offer a truly terrifying prospect for any general. I particularly fancy their chances against Imperial Guard infantry platoons!

Another Marines squad- this time with anti armour options in the form of lascannon, plasma gun and a champion with a power fist. ( hopefully you managed to spot the space wolf bits in the last few pics). Ideal in a supporting role, they also have the capacity to act as an assualting unit.

BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD! SKULLS FOR THE THRONE OF KHORNE!

These are my 12 black legion khorne beserkers, with mutations and crazed looking warriors. The squad has a total of 3 plasma pistols, including the champion with his power fist and horns! A fearless unit and terribly good in a scrap, they are my main assault troops from the army. A certain someone's wolf scouts felt the fury of only 5 a few months back! The full squad is truly a wonder to behold in combat!

These are some of the oldest models I have in my entire collection, and I consider them to be the "archetype of daemons" The bloodletter exists only to kill and take skulls for its patron god, and these 8 could really help to make the difference in battle.

The dedicated transport option comes in the form of this rhino- kitted out with armour upgrades and a dozer blad it can go most places without hassle. The Havoc launcher provides extra firepower for the infantry. Not the shootiest of kit, but useful for getting the marines to where they're needed quickly.

The only fast attack option I have is this biker squad. Fast, nasty and hard hitting.

The champion is the feature model (coz he looks so cool) and the squad itself carries a melta gun and has a khorne icon for extra nastiness!

FEATURE MODEL- BIKER CHAMPION

I think it looks really cool. I wanted to make the biker look dynamic and the champion needed to be special, as I didn't have much in the army when I got it. I put the bike on its back wheel and put it on a bigger base for support, giving the impression of the rider popping a wheelie.

The torso comes from a white metal model and he carries a massive power axe. The idea is he is using the weight of the bike coming down coupled with his powerful downstroke to dliver a swift killing blow to his enemies. The base also has some wreckage modelled onto it to give more character to the individual.

The colour scheme stays with that of the army and the model itself looks truly menacing and - well- mental!

Onto heavy support choices now, and this is a great cheap option for the points- an obliterator. Heavily armed and armoured with deep striking options and an impressive model, this one guy can bring down tanks and bunkers all on his todd. He also comes with the slow and purposeful rule, which allows him to lay down a withering hail of fire with heavy weapons whilst on the move. NICE!

Chaos Predator- the first of the army's main tanks. An old school model with added combi bolter armour and dozer blade, this tanks provides the anti tank and anti infantry firepower the army may need to break the lines of the unfortunate foes. There's an old style space marine model worked into the turret firing the combi bolter, and the sponson lascannon really add that degree of punch that enemy armour fears!

Finally the land raider. This tanks couples together awesome and terrible firepower with being and assault vehicle capable of troop carrying right up to the front line and down the enemy's throat. Loaded up with 5 terminators or 10 marines this bad boy of the battlefield can really kick ass! The most heavily armoured hunk of metal in any army! I modelled on a rune from a necromunda psyker model and the golden skulls are the dirge casters (great for tank shock). The marine on the top gives covering fire with the combi bolter too.

OVERVIEW

Ths army is enormous! And I like to couple it with elements form the Death Guard forces to create a truly massive apocalypse force. I even considered adding troops from the traitor guard army.

The force packs a little piece of everything- fast paced attack troops, support troops, assault troops and deep striking armoured warriors, all led by the ultimate bad guy!

I have enjoyed playing many furious battles with my Black legion over the years, and they are by far the army I feel most comfortable playing with.

Final Musings...

This concludes all the army showcases I have for 40K at present. I hope you found them interesting and maybe a little inspiring for your own collections.

I am considering my options now for the next army. It will be something special, I promise, bristling with weird and wonderful models and weapons.

I need to consult with my advisors first though, as I have several ideas in the pipeline.

Watch this blog for more news!

40K SHOWCASE- DEATH GAURD

2010-04-12T11:04:00.008+01:00

Death guard- what better way to start the showcase than with the daemons of nurgle in the force?
The death guard are dedicated to the god of decay, Nurgle, and the army has a feel of rot and decay about it, using drab colours and rusty weapons. I made a lot of conversions in the army, from minor weapon swaps to complete tank conversions. They're all here for you to see now. Hope you like it!
The great Unclean one is a great model and it serves as a nasty surprise in battle, popping out of a champion and munching up troops and vehicles. The plague bearers make for a useful assault option from the warp, summoned through an icon.
The really great thing about these two options is that they don't use up any force organisation slots, which means I could add more and more units of plague bearers and Great unclean ones to the army if I wanted....

Death Guard Terminators- Awesome Elites choice with deep strike capabilities and packing nasty weaponry to cause problems everywhere. You can see the champion is tolled up with a pair of lightning claws and he also carries the Nurgle Icon for the squad. Models with the mark of nuirgle are bloated with disease and can soak up damage better than ordinary marines. Couple that up with the terminator armour saves and you have a very resilient squad that is tough to shift and scary opn the offensive. The two terminators in the background have had their power weapons converted so that they appear to be carrying rusted power swords. The champion's icon of nurgle is actually from the chaos vehicle sprue, and he is the only model in the squad with a trophy rack. The others had putty put in to fill out where the trophy racks would go. I figured they would just look better without them and fit in better with the character of the army.

Plague marines with a rhino. Again tough, fearless and carrying blight grenades, plague marines can take the hits and keep on coming. The sqaud also has an icon for summoning and two assault weapons in the form of a flamer and a plasma gun. The standard choice of troops for the discerning death guard player!

A Close up of the champion shows that I used a mutated head for him and gave him a power fist and plasma pistol. I was really happy with how he turned out, though he isn't strictly a conversion, he again gives the impression of a diseased warrior, chosen of Nurgle. He can punch his way through bunkers and vehicles, and also provides character to the squad itself. SOLID!

This is the Squad's Rhino transport, complete with extra armour, dozer blade and havoc launcher. Hopefully this bad ass machine can ship the squad across the battle field quickly and provide them with a little fire support as well. I slipped the squad icon into the background, just to show off the mark of nurgle, the putty banner painted to resemble diseased pock marked flesh and the Khorne beserker trophy head on top.

A squad of plague marines with their rhino. These guys are made up from the original plague marine models that cam out. No conversions here, except for the rhino (also old style). This squad was used as the basis for all the other squads in the army, so they are in a way it's heart and soul. They pack some real aggressive punch with both the melta gun and plasma gun in the squad. The champion carries a power weapon to give him an edge against infantry opponents and the option of melta bombs would be handy against armoured targets.

Every Plague marine should travel in style! LOL. This old style rhino has had wooden panels added from the warhammer snotling pump wagon model, and nurglings have been stuck on along with other chaos spiky bits and even diseased lichen onto the armour! This rhino isn't driven by a crew, but by a daemon (daemonic possession) and also has extra armour and a dozer blade.

Does this guy look familiar? He is a plague marine champion, true, but was made from KHARN the betrayer. Major clipping to his head and weapon swaps with some minor reposing to produce this awesome looking final product. In the old rules he was hard as nails, and still is, just without all the daemonic gifts that I used to love chucking in. Power weapon and bolter as his armaments with the all important melta bombs option, he kind of fits in with the idea of a "standard armament" for plague chamions in the army. His squad is the biggest in the army, and doesn't have a transport.

15 Plague marines walk into a bar...

All made from the basic plastic plague marine models, these guys have had weapon swaps, the spikes taken off their helmets, all sorts really. With a squad this size, the points rocket up for them. They are great for steady advances and holding objectives. Fearless and the mark of nurgle really gives them staying power and frustrates opponents who wonder why their weapons aren't as good as they hoped (when you need a 5 to wound with a bolter, you tend to get concerned- think of the poor guard player whose lasguns need 6's).

Predator! No honest it is! This model was made from an old damaged toy tank I had.Obviously I added the obligatory chaos spiky bits, but I also slapped on sponsons, grave stones and even a daemonic head. The body work I covered with putty and added pock marks using a tooth pick (that took ages). I wanted to give the impression that the vehicle was alive and that it had grown its own diseased flesh. I even added tentacles and arms and stuff.

This second shot shows off the armaments a bit better. The turret weapon is currently used as an autocannon, and the sponson weapons are used as either heavy bolters or lascannon. The top of the turret also packs a combi bolter for extra shootyness. In the last revision of 40K I was able to use this tank as a special vehicle with custom weapons and nasty upgrades. Expensive, but a great centre piece model.

SHOWCASE FEATURE MODEL- TYPHUS HERALD OF NURGLE

Great model to finish up with. One of my fave conversions ever and a pleasure to take the time on. A dynamic posed model in terminator armour carrying deadly weaponry and nasty special rules. Typhus is my general and he carries a daemon weapon and uses psychic powers, as well as being the carrier of the destoyer hive. He is the epitomy of disease and contagion and he is tough too!

The model was made from the space wolf LOGAN GRIMNAR model and I spent ages removing wolf iconography and adding putty to make him appear bloated and diseased. I also added the scythe in place of GRIMNAR's power weapon to create the manreaper daemon weapon. Head swap was also in order, something with a spike on top.

I tried my best to create the model in the image of the illustration in the codex for chaos space marines. Just after I finished the model, Games Workshop released the miniature of him. Dang nammit!

Still, he's MY Typhus model, and he really does add to the character of the army as well as providing that all important leadership and aggressive punch.

That's it for this showcase folks! Hope you enjoyed mone of my pride and joy armies. Next up is my last current army and my biggest force- The Chaos Space Marines of the Black legion, and their fearsome leader ABADDON THE DESPOILER!!!!!

40K Showcase- Silver Ghosts Space Marines

2010-04-08T08:48:00.013+01:00

NOT the feature Model!!
This is my captain. I went for a crimson tabard, and this is the first model in the ary that I painted. He inspired the colour scheme for the whole force.
I have mused that this is what i would look like in power armour (bald). LMAO
Packing some nifty gear and nasty weapons, he is a force to be reckoned with on his own, but with his command squad...

Speaking of which- HERE THEY ARE!! A classic model at the centre there, from the days of yore when the Horus Heresy was just being dreamt up by the Lords of Games Workshop. This squad also features a flamer, a veteran sergeant with a powerfist, and a chamion carrying a power sword and shield. The theme of bright red power weapons really grabs your eye, don't it? I will apoligise for not including banners witht he models, but I am crap at them and they dont do transfers or stickers for tailor made projects. Maybe one day...

Tactical squad. These marines were lovingly dubbed "wombles" when they came out, coz of the pointy noses, lol. This squad features what I call the "classic tactical options" - flamer marine, missile launcher operator and veteran sergeant with power sword and plasma pistol. This squad is pretty much ready for anything and would be difficult to shift if they dug in. ( see that guy in the robe in the back ground? More on him in a bit)

ANOTHER tactical squad. Same configuration, but this sergeant packs a power fist and bolter. This squad would be a good option for assaulting some armour with that sergeant, or maybe a bunker, given the flamer. Even better, splitting the squad into 2 sections of five marines would allow for dual roles of support and assault. Sweet!

A lot going on here! Its the scouts I wanted to show off though. Note the crimson uniform, in theme witht he captain's tabard. I also went a bit "american footie" with the scouts' faces, putting black lines under their eyes to reduce glare from bright lights of flares and air burst shells. This squad uses only bolters and bolt pistols with close combat weapons. Typical uses include holding objectives and launching assaults on light infantry to slow enemy advances. They don't have armours as thick as their brother marines, so using cover to advance is probably sensible.

More scouts, but with a very different role on the battlefield. These guys pack sniper rifles and a heavy bolter, so gues what their role is? With a decent BS and specialist weaponry, these scouts can pretty much hammer away at enemy infantry squads from a distance and cause your opponent considerable discomfort. I was really chuffed with the kneeling scouts' camo cloaks which seemed to hit the right shade of green almost straight off the bat!

Terminators Squad, led by a sergeant converted from a chaplain model (I wasn't thinking straight at the time- I mean a chaplain in terminator armour? D'OH!!) Pretty standard armaments too, but still a force to be reckoned with, due to their tough armour and deep strike abilities in battle. I did wonder if the silver and gold was too much, but it seems to work well and I reckon it complements the theme of the army.

Devastators. These guys provide my heavy support choice, and pack plenty of serious firepower, whilst trying to stay versatile. They carry the lascannon, multimelta and 2 missile launchers. Their main targets are naturally armoured ones, but the frag missiles should not be underestimated...

Scout bikers. they utilise the scouts forward force abilities with speed and provide any assault with much needed supprt and punch. I can use them to rapidly redeploy to where the fighting isn't favorable for me, or to launch that devastating surprise assault on the weakened spot in the enemy line. Very Revvy!

Typhoon! No the weather aint turning nasty, its the configuration of this land speeder. The typhoon launchers really do help to provide an explosive punch, and the multi melta is my nasty surprise for tanks that venture too close or bunkers that think they have nothing to fear from my speeder. Heheheheh!

Assault marines. The main focus of any attack I may launch, and the vanguard of a devastating counter attack. The squad features 2 plasma pistols, just for fun, and with its capability to deep strike and carry melta bombs the guys can really deliver the killing blow in good time and get home for a pint. I do like the guy on the far right, sprinting at the enemy.

More tactical marines, but these guys are only nine in number and don't carry special or heavy weapons. Still, useful for attacking or defending against infantry and they could still hold an objective.

FEATURE MODEL: COMPANY STANDARD BEARER
This guys was made from the dark angels standard bearer model and I spent ages carefully filing down and removing the iconography on his robes. Then I added a midified Warhammer Orc banner, giving the impression of a battle worn banner.
Again I used the crimson robes and silver armour, with gold trim to denote him as a veteran marine.

Shot of the banner. I was trying to reflect in the banner something about the chapter, as well as keeping it very simple. To this end, I stuck to the skull on silver wings set on a black background with the roman numeral 4. The idea is that the black represents the evil that besets the imperium from all around, with the chapter symbol representing the stoic marines standing against the night to keep safe the imperium of man. Each of the silver stars on the banner represents a great hero of the chapter, who sacrificed himself in battle against terrible odds to win the day and bring honour to his chapter.
Sounds cool, don't it? LMAO

This is him from the front. The crimson robes really to complement the shining silver power armour and gold helmet and trim. The model really does have that- "BRING IT" sort of feel to it. The kinda bleak background also helps to accentuate the silver, making him seem all the more prominent and potent.

Side view showing his weapon arm and back pack. The simple chainsword, reassuring and deadly in the proper hands- HIS!!! Again, a truly impressive model, painstakingly converted and agonised over by yours truly!!!

ARMY OVERVIEW
This force is not really well suited to open warfare against opponents with rolling armour. They have no armour of their own. That said, the character of the army was originally intended for city fighting in dense terrain, where vehicles would carry little sway. That said, they could probably hold their own against most enemies, as the squads do carry some kit to punch holes on bunkers and armour- not to menbtion them being space marines which means they are quite tough anyway.

I have only fielded them a couple of times, with limited success. To be fair, Chaos is my first choice, and I am always drawn back to the dread powers... is it really by choice? lmao.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed looking at the "wombles", and also the terrain. The items I used were again modular boards, but I shook things up a little by using the tower and the impassable hill. My Modules also include a stone circle and a temple, but they are works in progress at present... could it be another showcase later? You'll have to wait and see!!!

I hope to showcase the chaos models in the next week or so before my massive weekend of beer and carnage with Bl0ke, after which I hope to have some sort of battle report type stuff to bung on here. If not, then check out rane projects and Domonet -the gentleman's blogs of choice!!!

The Lost and the Damned- Traitors and heretics ALL

2010-04-07T16:26:00.000+01:00

This shot doesn't show any troops (eh? I hear you cry- where's the traitors?) Well, first I thought I'd show off some of my bits- scenery bits that is! i got a barricade and a small ruin, along with a few objective pieces I made out of bits from the battlefield accesories set. The pieces I am most proud of though are my crucifiction victims (slightly topical, given we just got past "zombie jesus day"- aka Easter). Massive boards with the nature of their crimes daubed on in white paint- they really stick out on the table top and provide that little extra character to games. There's also a resin generator I found lurking in a bits box. I simply slapped on the colour and didn't worry too much about shading, highlinting etc. The results, I hop you agree, are pretty frikkin nutty!

The army in all its chaos glory!! There's around 100 models in the army in total, making use of force selections from both Codex imperial guard and codex chaos space marines. Models not shown here include a greater daemon and summoned lesser daemons. I also use them with my chaos space marine armies, so they spend their time with the others in storage. Watch this space though, they'll be shown soon enough!!

Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuh! BRAINS!!!
These likely lads are all conversions, made using a comination of necromunda, 40K and warhammer zombie model parts. In game terms, they are guardsmen, with lasguns and an obvious odour problem. There's 20 of them here, and I would tend to wnat to use them as a "mob" of 20 troopers. A great big lump of fodder really, but full of character. For the previous edition rules, they would serve as plague zombies or nurglesque mutants with firearms.

Leman Russ- Rollin on down the line! This chaos leman russ hass all the tyrimmings added from the chaos accesories sprue, along with a couple of chaos beastman shields. I added spears to the back end and to them I stuck on pennants. The bright red fits the colour scheme of the army itself, and looks sweet! Note also the gargoyle heads on the heavy bolters! Spiky and unfriendly, this tank adds a much needed punch to the army.

RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!!!! And other choice language!...
These beastmen have also all been converted, adding shooty weapons. I even converted the lasguns into single handed "carbine" type weapons. The banner serves as a guards company banner, as well as a summoning point for daemons. :)
In the old revision these would be fielded as a single unit of goat headed mutants.

Guard Platoon. Pretty standard stuff. Chaos Icon as Platoon banner, along with a heavy weapon squad packing mortars. The platoon commander carries a bolter and the missile launcher also adds an extra oomph to the firepower of the whole army. The old revision would not have allowed me to use the mortars as a single unit if I fie;ded this army as "Lost and the Damned".

Good old armoured fist squads. No, wait a minute, they did away with those. These guys are a veteran squad in carapace armour riding in a chimera. Note the use of beastmen shields, ork and space marine armour plates and the lovely spiky tank!! I kept the pennant thing going too on the rear of the tank, adding to the theme of the army. All the guardsmen had transfers added too, with iconography and chaos symbols all over the place.

More Necromunda models! This time a house Cawdor gang, used as Chaops cultist veterans wearing camelioline clothing. Unusual basing with the mesh, but that's because I can still use them for Necromunda if I want. They are the army scouts, packing a little aggressive punch with the heavy stubber.

Priests! Well, heretic ones anyway! 3 with shotguns and one with an eviscerator. They are the same in game terms as their imperial counterparts, but the rosarius is now a cursed emblem of chaos, but confers the same effect on the individual.

Old revision- BIG MUTANTS. New edition....erm......Chaos Ogryns. Big, mean and nasty, these are individuals who are blessed by the fickle gods with immense size and a brutal mentality. These were converted from minotuar models, Ork Warbosses, Orks, cold ones and even a daemon pirnce! They were good fun to make and the colour scheme kept in with the rest of the army. Handy assault troops these are. Tough to kill and good for drawing fire!

Chaos Space Marine Veterans- Alpha Legionnaires no less! These guys are geared up to make fleshy goo piles out of most enemies, using power weapons, a flamer and a plasma pistol. Kitted out with everything nasty, these troops can infiltrate to luanch the early assault and wreak havoc amongs the enemy formations. Alpha legion tactics are exaclty that- according to previous codexes and sources I have in books and stuff. I wanted to reflect that the marines were the enforcers of the army's leadership, through fear of reprisals for failure, but also the army's specialists. They actually clash with the colour scheme, but for chaos troops thats nothing new really!

Regimental command squad- spot the necromunda model! In this army, he is a rogue psyker. The command squad also features 2 body guard models and the banner bearer carries the standard of the cursed regiment!

The guard element of the army contains no commisars- all executed when they turned away from the emperor's light.

The army also contains no vox casters or other items or troops I would consider to be "Imperial" in nature. This also means no advisors. Its very basic in its nature, but with the addition of a few chaos troops, like daemons and marines, the character and power of the army dramatically alters to suit the chaos themes!

Karaxus- Daemon Prince and leader of the army. MAJOR conversion here and the army's centre piece model!

He's actually made from 2 seperate models- a daemon prince and a dragon ogre. The axe is also the dragon ogre weapon, but according to the codex, the daemon prince cannot carry a daemon weapon or anything other than a close combat weapon.

That said, he can also use psycic powers, and that coupled with his "eternal warrior" ability and wings make for an assault nightmare for all but the toughest troops. A true monster in every sense of the word, this character can certainly dish out the hurt!

He is also useful for Apocalypse games as an HQ choice. All will be explained.

The Apocalypse force I am planning contains a massive infantry contingent made up from elements of the traitor guards, death guard and black legion, with all three providing tanks and elite options.

Maybe I can do a feature on that too later.....

MUAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAHA!!!!!

Guard Showcase- The Necromundan "Ash Rats"

2010-04-07T13:32:00.000+01:00

It's the turn of the guard now- and what better pic to start off with than the iconic Leman Russ battle tank!
This one has camo netting, hunter killer missile, extra armour and a dozer blade. I also thought that adding a storm botler would truly give the feeling of a tank bristling with weaponry!! More about that in a bit...

The Guard army started way back in the miod 90's, when I got a boxed set of Mordians, Catachans and Tallarns for xmas one year. The Tallarns really caught my attention, and I originally painted them all up in colours indicated on the box. It was years before I began coordinating the troops together.

The introduction of plastic Catachans and Cadians revolutionised guard armies for collectors, but I suffered in silence, as plastic Tallarns are hardly featuring...
I had fevered dreams of a guard army with Tallarns riding desert beasties and tanks, but it was not to be.

I also dabbled in Necromunda as a pass time, and the Ratskin models were really great. My thought juices reached optimum levels, and thus was born the necromundan Ash Rats- and army made of regular guardsmen, but with Ratsking scouts!
The original plans was just to include a squad as an afterthought, but I had other plans and got all carried away (how unusual...)

Thus was the final product born!
The army itself uses a few models from Necromunda (a whole platoon of Ratskins!) as well as some mental conversions (check out the commisars etc) alonside the regular units. Everything seems to complement itself so well, and the look and feel of the army is of a rag tag band of hard asses!
I'm not a guard player as a rule. I tend to favour my loverly Chaos marines, but this army gave me occasion to think about something a bit different, and TANKS!!

HAVE A NICE DAY!!! LOL
Thoug I'd try an "oh crap" perspective shot of the tank. Hopefully you get the feel of a massive mass of metal clanking towards you, with a hint of "I need new pants" about it.
The new codex allows up to 3 tanks to be fielded as a single force selection, which is nice...
Hard hitting and full of firepower, the leman russ can take hits as well as dishing them out. Great for drawing fire, pouring on the pounding and looking sweet, every guard army must have one!

The fast attack options I have are a hellhound flame tank and an armoured sentinel walker. The Hellhound also has a hunter killer missile and sarcastic slogans on the dozer blade for added "personality" They don't pack as much punch as the leman russ, but they certainly provide that vital element of infantry support when the army has to go forward. Who says Guard armies are defensive?

Preachers! Praise the Emperor and pass the ammo! lol

The priests are converted from Necromunda Redemptionist models, with the central model representing my "Deacon". The Codex states that an eviscerator is treated like a powerfist with a bonus for armour penetration ( like a chainfist really)- so I thought to myself- what the hell and thats exactly what the deacon got- a power fist with a chainsword attachment. They give the infantry an edge in assaults, and add colour to the force!

Commissar Lord- In that damned ruin again! Another conversion- with bolter and power axe- he provides that steadying influence to the rank and file, as well as being quite a hard nut himself! STAND AND FIGHT YOU APES!!!

Same model, out of the ruin this time! I reckon he looks best in the ruin though. Lol!

The command squad. Regimental standard bearer, colonel and master vox are all conversions- simple weapon swaps and added "bits". The medic is an old Mordian I had knocking about. I wanted to have the "orderly" look to the medics, and the Mordians really gave me the feel I was looking for.

Ratling Snipers. 'Nuff said! That long range firepower can really pin down targets for me, but they need the protection of decent cover and high ground to be truly effective. You only need 3 in a squad now, which kinda narked me a bit, coz I am 1 short of 2 squads !!!!

Thought the Praetorians were wiped out? Whatever!! Great models never die! I got these back when "BIG TOOF RIVER" was all over White Dwarf and Games Day. I use them as veterans now, but they are good models always worth having a good look at, if nothing else!

"BACK IN THE RANKS AND STAND FAST, YER MELINGERERS!!!"

What the hell are they? I hear you cry! These guys are the original storm trooper models from games workshop. Nowadays, they are merely veterans in carapace armour. the sergeant is a conversion though, wiuth the worthy addition of a plasma pistol. They provide stoic resistance and steady firepower from the heavy bolter and melta gun.

The Commissars- Well, the middle one is a proper commissar at least. The other two are made from a mordian lieutenant and a valhallan officer (Yes he is converted- did the power halberd give it away?)

First Platoon- Fire! Lol.

An "aerial shot" of the regualr platoon. Note the two dedicated transports both Chimeras (though one is converted from a leman russ chassis). Again a bit of camo netting chucked in, along with dozers and extra armour, not to mention the obligatory hunter killer missile. For fire support, I have a heavy weapon squad of 3 (yes 3) lascannon! Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzap!

Showcase Models: RATSKIN SCOUT PLATOON

I had to do a fair bit of conversion work for these guys to make it in, adding flamers, melta weapons , back packs, water bottles, grenades, comm links and even a power fist to the guys to make them "guardy."

The paint scheme was kept in line with the regulars, with the addition of bones and claws on the "rat skins"

Spot the medic...

These three models are, from left to right- a heavy weapon trooper carrying what I class as an autocannon/ heavy stubber, Platoon commander in the center with a power fist and bolter and of course the platoon medical officer. In the background you can see the lone tallarn model. He is the advisor/ translator on attachment from the "regular" troops. The heavy weapon trooper is "Brakar- the avenger- he that brings death" from the Necromunda "Outlanders" Rule book. Great miniature, big gun!!

This shot focusses on the platoon commmand squad, with the rest of the platoon following behind. The ratskins with musket I would use as sniper rifle guardsmen. In the back ground you can male out the ratskin sergeant with a spear and a plasma pistol.

Overview of the Army:

The whole army has this great look and feel to it, complemented by the contasting colours of the specialist individuals, like the priests and the commissars. They may be fodder, but they always go down fighting!!!

I havent played with these guys in eons, and the new rules for guard promises a lot in terms of new rules and organisation. I'm eager to see how they perform!

I do have more guard, but they chose a different path. All will be revealed soon enough.... (hehehehheheh)

40K ELDAR Showcase

2010-04-07T10:56:00.000+01:00

This is my first stab at a blog feature. I had the eldar close to hand, and my camera phone in my pocket. So I though "GO FOR IT!!"

I don't use my Eldar much, and they aint my army of choice as a rule. They do provide me with a different angle to play tactically, and they have some great and unique weaponry that really helps them to stand out from the crowd!!

The following pictures pretty much detail all my Eldar troops, with a feature model at the end.
Keep an eye out for the terrain bits and bobs too. Ther aint much in this one, except the boards from my modular terrain and a ruin.
I know what you're thinkin (that boy had too much time on his hands growin' up..) and you're probably right!

Please feel free to dump yer comments on here!

Hope you enjoy my "tat"...

Guardians advancing through a ruin. They carry shuriken guns and are fast moving infantry. They can cover ground quickly from cover to cover and assault light infantry. Not as hard hitting as some of my aspect warrior squads, but a handful none the less, and capable of slowing advances enough for the other units to join the offensive. In a defensive rol, they can dig in with the best of 'em, and their rate of fire is great for deterring advances across open ground to their position.

Guardian storm squad, with warlock. There are a few minor conversions floating about in this unit, which is made up mainly of the classic "pirates" models. The warlock can pick powers to really boost the pucnh of this unit in assaults or to strengthen them up as they advance. I threw in a couple of special weapons as well, to give them an edge and help them dig enemies out of cover or to assault armour.

This pic captures 3 troops choices together. In the foreground is a guardian defender squad, with a starcannon platform and a warlock with a singing spear. Good for supporting a steady advance, with the warlock handy for steadying the line or providing troops with the extra toughness in an assault. Not as mobile as some of my other guardian squads, but they act in a supporting role of the other units I use to advance and assault. Very effective.

In the rear are the jetbikes. (yes a troops choice!!) I added a shuriken cannon to the sqaud for extra shootyness and one model I sometimes use as a warlock. Warlocks on jetbikes can be really annoying...

The other choice is just a simple squad of defenders. As with all my guardians, they use the classic black of ulthwe with yellow head gear. I know that they wear bone coloured kit now with the black, but repainting the hole army just seemed like a chore I didn't need, and the look of everything really does appeal to me.

Dire Avengers!! Yes they are blue, but they are an awesome troops choice. Better shuriken weaponry, and the exarchcomes with some nice options too. Mine carries a diresword, made from attaching a high elf (warhammer) weapon in place of the power weapon. This pic even captures the runes on it- nice!!!

Eldar rangers. I used kinda dark brown camo for their camelioline cloaks, but the yellow helmest of ulthwe and the black mesh armour still feature. Awesom for pinning down infantry units and using them as pathfinders makes them extra "killy." I was really proud of the finished look with them.

The howling banshees. Fast, furious, and packing power weapons!I used metallic green to provide a good contrast to their white armour. Only a small squad, they are great for small games and can fit in the back of a falcon...

Striking Scorpions (with a hint of banshees on the right). I really like the models and their weaponry is sweet too. The exarch carries an enhanced weapon and has a choice of skills I can pick and choose depending on the battle and opponent. They are among the toughest eldar infantry units, and I reckon they are my fave aspect warriors.

Fast attack options for my Eldar are limited to just the viper jetbike and my swooping hawks aspect warriors. I fitted some gubbins from dark eldar vehicles I had in my bits box just to give it a bit of character. It provides me with fast moving, firepower support, ideal to cause a few problems for infantry.

Aspect warriors!! These are my dark reapers- marine killers and devastating in terms of rate of fire and accuracy. The centre models bears the mark of exarch and carries a shuriken cannon. Giving him the exarch abilities too can also cause the enemy problems. I like fast shot, as that gives him 4 shots instead of 3 from his weapon, and crack shot is just as nasty!!The Aspect warriors really add a splash of colour to the black ulthwe colours.

My first Warithlord, ever! lol. He's packing a starcannon, which give penetrative power against vehicles and is a handy weapon for squishing marines... (heheh)

They aren't as 'nails as they used to be, but can be a real thorn in the side of the enemy.

He's flanked by the falcon grav tank on the left and the fire prism on the right. The falcon gives firepower and transport for 6 models, while the fire prism gives me another impressive model but also provides unique weaponry that is justly feared!! The new codex states that several fire prisms can combine their weapons together to provide an even scarier and more powerful prism shot!! Nice. (pity I only have the one...)

The other one of my Wraithlords.

Converted as well (obviously). I wanted to have something that looked dunamic, so I opted for what you see here. I reposed the legs to show the construct runing aorund a large boulder, using his hand to steady himself. The other hand is outstretched, reaching for the next target. Weapon options for him are pretty cool now, and this particualr model carries a scatter laser, which provides a high rate of fire, though not very penetrative against decent armour. Good job he's packing the "no armour saves" hands!

You've pobably noticed that the wraithlords are painted as "opposites" of each other. I did this on purpose, but I have no real reason for it- I just reckoned- that might look good on the tabletop!!!

This pic shows my HQ Choices for the Ulthwe force. I have the farseer with 3 warlocks as my seer council, and KARANDRAS the phoenix lord as a unique option (I do really like the scorpion aspect) and of course my centre piece model, the Avatar (heheheheh)

FEATURE MODEL:

This is the Avatar I have. I was really chuffed with the miniature itself, and I really wanted to do it justice.

I used dark metallics to base the armour, and built up the drybrushing and highlights to make the rune of KHAINE really stand out. Armour was still quite dull, so I felt I needed to contrast out the dullness with some bright fiery colours to really bring the model to life.

The mane was just red, with inks and highlights with red and orange.

The wailing doom (sword thingy) was the thing I'm really proud of. I wanted to reflect the "molten rage" and fiery origins of the creature itself, and so I went for heat on the blade itself.

I blended up from red at the hilt to white at the tip, with black runes.

Great centre piece model, and it really sets off the regualr troops with its bright colours!

In terms of gameplay, the Avatar is still arguably one of the most scary things you can throw at your enemy. He is an assault BEAST and his stats show that! Along with the effect he has on the eldar around him and his immunity to melta and flame weapons- what a great HQ option. Cheap too at only 155points!!!

Chuck him into an assault, and watch the limbs fly!!

Well, I hope you liked the showcase. Hopefully I can get another one done soon!!!

Inaugural Musings

2010-04-06T20:43:00.000+01:00

Who'd ave thunk it?
Me- the Mentalist- on line- posting on my own blog?
Well, yer tis!

This blog will be mainly posts showing off my "toy soldiers" and projects I am up to my ears in.
I may chuck in the odd random thing from time to time (as us mentalists seem wont to do), but it's mainly hobby based.

I will have a go at chucking on a few piccies as well, featuring my various armies and kinda showing off my modelling and painting skills (or lack thereof).

Just for s**ts and giggles I may feature "fails" as well- just to prove it aint always perfick.
I do dabble in the murky world of terrain and scenery from time to time as well (you want fails- you should see some of the tat I've done for that over the eons!) so I may plop in a few of the more successful items, but mainly as back drops to make the troops look more "purdy."

I'll have a go at a few battle reports too, but my creative writing may well kick in with beer fuelled meories of glories that never were (you have been warned).

So, sign up, follow the blog and brace yerselves for whatever I can muster to bore yer socks off!!