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I've been lurking here for a while, but never bothered to post anything. Until now.

I've owned and played guard since 3rd edition, back in the early 2000's, but never really took it too seriously. I've got over 2500pts of plastic and metal Catachans in storage at the moment, but they won't be coming out again in a hurry, as most are unpainted.

With the release of the 5th ed. codex this year, I thought I would have a good go of making a decent Cadian army. The only catch is that I am moving overseas at the end of the year, so I am limited in terms of what I can take with me. So I decided I would try to get the infantry part of a 750 point list done, and transport them in a figure case. Also, I don't have a huge amount of spare time with my job, so progress is generally pretty slow. So here goes.

The list (I mainly play against MEQs).

HQ – Company Command Squad
Mortar
Master of ordnance
85

Elites – Storm Troopers
Airbourne Assault
85

Elites – Storm Troopers
Airbourne Assault
85

Troops - Veteran Squad
3 plasma guns
Autocannon
Chimera with hull heavy flamer
170

Troops - Veteran Squad
3 plasma guns
Autocannon
Chimera with hull heavy flamer
170

Fast Attack – Hellhound Squadron
Bane Wolf with hull multi-melta
145


More pictures and background to follow, hopefully today if I get a chance. In the meantime, here are the figures I have already:

A lascannon heavy weapon squad (the test figures)

A 10-man cadian box (unassembled)

6 metal cadians (for the veterans - in the post atm)

3 metal cadian junior officers (veteran sergeants/bodyguards later? - painted)


1 senior officer (Mordian captain - primed)

6 old plastic stormtroopers (painted)




2 metal cadian special weapons (PiP)


Plastic Master of Ordnance conversion (painted)


1 metal medic (not in list - painted)


1 techpriest (not in list - unassembled)

1 metal titan princeps (for officer of fleet later - unassembled)

1 metal psyker (for later primaris/battle squad - part painted)

5 metal snipers (ratling substitutes for larger list - unpainted)

Plastic mortar team (unassembled)

2 plastic heavy bolter/autocannon teams (unassembled)

Your MoO is almost identical to mine. Awesome.

I really want some of those OOP plastic stormtroopers man, but old plastics are hard to come by these days.
Good find.

There are generally heaps on eBay, but normally you have to pay through the nose for them. Sometimes get lucky, I guess. These had already been painted (horribly) in part so they were a fair bit cheaper.

hay you stole my colour scheme (mostly)

great looking models thou, well done.

good work

Ah those Stormtroopers bring back memories!

GHOST BUSTERS STORM TROOPERS FTW

A brief update, pics to follow.

Finished off three lascannon teams and two special weapons operators today.

Next models on the production line are the 5 snipers and the mortar team, while I await the next lot of figures.

Hopefully some plasma guns and 2nd edition Cadians will turn up on Monday for the Veterans, then I can crack on with the rest of the essential troops.

Still trying to find some more plastic 2nd edition storm troopers for the second unit of 5 in the list.

Meanwhile, some background.

The planet of Aven is situated in a quiet area of the Mordant zone, on the far Western edge of the huge Segmentum Ultima. Like its close neighbour Attila, the land is predominantly covered in grassland (interspersed by several extensive, shallow seas), leading to the planet's forces developing very flowing battlefield tactics. The endless, gently rolling hills and the vast yellow expanses of the relatively featureless 'grass sea' lend themselves well to mechanised, mounted and airbourne warfare, and it is in these disciplines that Aven's Imperial Guard specialise.

With the only major city on-world, Palatium, dwarfed by comparison to even minor hive cities on other, more urbanised worlds, and with Aven possessing little strategic significance in itself, the garrison, supplied on-world, has always been a small, well-drilled and -equipped force. Traditionally, 5 regiments garrison Palatium, with 5 others situated at strategic bases around the rest of the planet. These forces are bolstered by the almost-permanent presence of Schola Progenium storm troopers, who find Aven's topography a useful training ground, and by a healthy fleet of Imperial Navy V-birds, who provide transport and rapid fire support over the vast distances of grassland and shallow seas.

A further 10 regiments of guardsmen make up the planet's tithe, and are generally seconded to the Imperial Navy (an informal arrangement between Battlefleet Ultima commanders and Aven's governors has always furnished the former with ample troops and the latter with generous close-air-support). These units see most of their active service fighting 'breakout' actions from bridgeheads established immediately after planetstrike, a theatre in which their maneuverability is most prized. After a moderately lengthy term of service that usually sees the regiment whittled down to a fraction of its original size, it is disbanded: its troops are returned to Aven, to one of the 10 'home' regiments, the Aventine Guard, while another regiment is raised to complete the tithe. Thus, while the Aventine Guard, regiments I-X, is a permanent institution, subsequent regiments are not.

The banners of all regiments raised from Regiment XI, the "Forlorn 11th", onwards, hang in the Grand Sanctum Imperialis in Palatium, a tribute to the actions that have crippled them in turn. It is in Palatium also that the most notable regiments are commemorated: from the Chapel of the Fighting Sixteenth to the Arch of Fortress Valcourt, so nobly defended to the last man by the 45th, dozens of monuments to heroic stands and victories by Aven's forces display and venerate a proud martial tradition.

The lascannon teams. These were the test figures, especially the first team here.

The fatigues and armour look really good, but I thik you need to do something with the flesh areas. A brown wash of some kind and then a quick drybrush highlight would do wonders. If you do it carefully then you may not even need to redo the eyes.

really liking it great job on the metalics.. Only complaint and very minor is when you finish doing the eyes I recomend going back with a dark flesh tone or whatever and cleaning around them a little just to fix what little mistakes they had here and their.

I was just going to say the same,. the eyes look to cartoonish. they nead a black outline

@Flinty: I will put some Gryphonne Sepia on the skin, then drybrush with Elf Flesh, and see how it looks.

@Empchild: Cleaning up is probably my weakness, being quite lazy. Touching up in one colour seems to always leave mistakes itself, haha, but we will see how we go.

@beef: I've never actually bothered to paint eyes onto a model before, so it's a learning process for me. I'll see if I can keep my hand steady enough to put a black outline around them.

I spent a bit of time on my Psyker this afternoon, and primed the snipers and the mortar team. Unfortunately, this next week is looking super-busy, so not sure how much I will get done before Friday, when I am off for a quick holiday. We shall see.

My psyker. Bought him half-painted off eBay, and only just got around to basing him and finishing the paint job.





I'm not sure how to paint the staff and the psychic hood. I think maybe Mordian Blue staff with Boltgun Metal on the spirals, but still clueless on the hood. I don't know if any of you are familiar with how it looks at the back, because I forgot to take a picture of that. All suggestions welcome.

I've heard good advice about painting eyes for miniatures: Do a good job, or don't do it at all. Sorry to be so blunt about it - Hey, at least you're making the effort to try. Hell, I'm no expert myself, but maybe this video by "AGProductionsInc" may help you out...




Keep on painting dude - Cheers!

I like the stormtroopers

Nice, clean, crisp painting...AWESOME!!

I've done a grand total of nothing since the last week of October, which is a bit of a fail on my part. I get back home on Monday (weekend away) and will definitely get my desk clean enough to start painting again. As it stands, I want to get all that I have painted within a month, which is a big ask (almost 1 person a day, without fail). I'll see how I go.

So, painting on Monday and an update Monday night, hopefully. Thanks for the praise in the last two posts!

Good apart from the eyes

The pupil needs to touch both the top and bottom of the eye otherwise it looks like it's staring (like scared or spooked or something). I don't paint eyes cause I'm terrible at it, but with that minor change your models will look much better.

I think im gonna collect some mordians and i want those storm troopers

What do you think about painting?
Have you had any trouble trying to get models on the table?
Painting is an issue with some people but if you work hard and reward yourself it works and ur army is painted in no time.

i agree
try getting more detail in those faces, you will see , it will improve your models !

Hi there, nice start to your project log, and I hope you finish it up!

People have commented a lot on the faces, so I figured I'd jump in with some free advice (just remember, you get what you paid for!)

I think the faces could use an additional wash, then the eyes. The easiest method I've found for painting eyes is:
1. Paint the eye black.
2. Paint a white line (or oval if you feel sassy) in the black, leaving some showing.
3. Get a .005 artist pen and use it to dot the pupil.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001CRI6O2

The pen makes it really easy to get a perfectly round pupil, and the ink is permanent, so it's a great method.

Good luck!

Well I had hoped to update about 10 days ago with some progress, but of course it was never going to be that simple. I should never have named a date, as I was always doomed to fail.

That last advice on the eyes is great, as they seem to be the only major thing that is bugging people about my guys at the moment. I will see what I can do in the next few days.

I haven't been totally idle, however. Here are some PiP photos of a few snipers. I really like the models. These have since been cleaned up and had their bases done, so they are almost good to go.













My main query here is whether they have some darker brown stripes painted on their cloaks, similar these boys here?
http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=cat1300046&prodId=prod1070138&rootCatGameStyle=

Let me know what you think, and I will try hard to keep painting.

Its really hard to make camo stand out in a good way. I vote you just leave them as is.

Here we have that ill-fated mortar team. Hopefully I will find a use for them one day.







As always, all feedback welcome.

Currently working on 'scope', then will try and get a batch of 5 veterans done. Just picked up 5 CSMs and a CSM sorcerer on the cheap off eBay, so we'll see what happens on that front as well...

The next batch is on its way. Here we have the 2nd Ed. Mordian Lieutenant, 'Grease Monkey' and a Rogue Trader standard bearer.


Then, for the veterans, 2 metal cadians, a plastic plasma gunner and a metal tank crewman.


As you can probably see, I am varying the figures to convey the idea of veterans.

Any suggestions on how to paint the Mordian Lieutenant, particularly his cloak?

I also just grabbed off eBay 10 Valhallans (1 lieutenant, 1 sergeant and 8 basic troopers). Should I paint them in the current colour scheme, or in their own (a platoon that has been attached to the main force)?

Also got 8 Khorne Bezerkers, we'll see what happens there...

Not really a proper update as such, but just something to give an idea of the stages my minis go through with this colour scheme. Obviously they are a bit messy at the moment, but will be cleaned up towards the end. I guess this also gives an indication of how busy I have been lately, so slow is my progress.

Looks like the 4th ed. plastics dwarf the 2nd ed. metal models...






Next up is bleached bone (which will make a big difference), Kommando Khaki and Elf Flesh. Maybe update after those.

I'm still looking for suggestions for my Mordian Lieutenant.

Nice, the Metal cadians look cool. Where did you get them?