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The eyepiece is a good suggestion as it is so noticeable. Mk 8 is important. "Modern" equipment and high-tech tanks, like Storm Ravens and Land Raider Prometheus is good. Land Speeder Tempests, etc...

The Mentor Legion army in the apocalypse book had trikes and quads insteads of bikes and sidecars. That worked well.

Commanders, apart from Nisk Ran-Thawll should keep their helmets on. Nisk needs to have his white cross over of his face. He should be a counts-as-Kantor in order to make your Vets scoring.

Personally I think of a Conversion Beamer as archaic, from the Dark Age of Technology, rather than modern. I don't think the Mentor Legion recover old Tech - they use new stuff. For the same reason, I think Dreadnoughts feel like "old" tech rather than new. I know new Dreadnoughts can still be made, it just doesn't feel very progressive.

I think Las-cannons seem more high-tech than the other Heavy options, so go for that generally.


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Oh! Mini-servo arms for many models...

@Fifty- Well, the high tech of the future is the old stuff. Remember this is a very backwards tomorrow, where yesterday is much more tech-savvy and revered for such. So, in my unprofessional opinion, I'd say that conversion beamers, plasma, and all the other stuff is plenty progressive for the Mentos.

Jet bikes... you need to resurrect the old jet bikes...

Gitsplitta wrote:Jet bikes... you need to resurrect the old jet bikes...

I second the motion

Mk8 involves lots of thin plasticard and gs-ing over cables. It won't be universal - some have worked well, some will get decapitated - but many will be thus.

Jet bikes - lordy, that's a blast from the past. Not sure; I was certainly thinking of kitbashing LS to make Tempest (although where would I find the rules for them - IA?)

As for commanders, despite hating painting faces, I was planning on using the white cross generally (as per original art).

Nisk I've got something special planned... I'll try to get a pic up this week.

Curse you fifty with the mini-servo arms though: this is all spawning the madness that is my Techmarine count-as-Ironclad dreadnought. Again, pics asap (2 word teaser though: "The CLAW!"

I'm very pro the old-is-new, the major tech throw-outs are flamers and power fists, very few of them at all. Lots of plasma pistols, all the commanders in fact. I'm also limiting myself to power axes (which is hellish, actually) over swords, just cos.

I really like the eyepiece suggestion a lot, and will work some more in. Also fits with the whole owls have asymetrical sensory organs. Many of the helms (hopefully, got to get to post office today to abuse Blackhand's casting skills) will be owl-ised...

Here's a final question: Storm Bolters - to scope or not to scope? Seems silly in a sense, it's an assault weapon, why do you need a scope (yes, I appreciate it's just a man-doll, but still), but Cullin's isn't bad looking. Thoughts?

Cheers guys, I'll reward your patience with me with more photos soon. Also, work on house is nearly done so I'll get my garage back!

I plan on using RT-era jet bikes in my army. For me, they'll be scout bikes, and I'll run them as normal bikes... the models are for visual effect and feel, not gaming advantage.

Yeah, but it's getting them that's the problem...

Yeah, I was lucky enough to have 5 of them that I bought way back then... then traded for another 5 ten years ago or so when they were more affordable... If you could get ahold of one, you might be able to take it apart (or cut it up yourself) and mold your own from it... they were pretty simple models really.

Right well, onwards; if you can't paint stuff (garage still out of commission), build stuff instead.
I really like the FW chaplain dreadnought, and then I read the fluff in IA; the fact that he's called Titus made something click in my brain, and fluff has started to coalescence like lint in my navel. Owls are of the orders Strigidae and Tytonidae; so, my scouts will have a small T shape insignia that's like a stylised barn owl face shape, and upon becoming full marines they gain the Insignia Strigidae, or full owl shoulder badge, though some proudly bear the Insignia Tytonidae upon helms and crests.

So, on to some pics:
As I say, like the FW chaplain dread, but I always like to try my own twist on things. Wife got me Ven Dread for xmas and hadn't really decided what do with it, but this has helped my mind come together:



Only thing I'm not sure about is the vehicle icons on the sides of the greaves; I wonder about using the backpack icon sconce/skull instead. Thoughts?

Anyway, I also really like the idea of Librarian dreads - not that us mere mortals get to use them, mutter, mutter - and hey, then I thought: what about the other one of the big 3? I'm already planning on Techmarines a-go-go - very Mentor Legion with all the tech - so logically why not have a Techmarine Dreadnought? Of course I want it to be usable, and the mighty whalemusic is kindly provding me with some Ironclad parts, while the honourable bashthebosh had some SW dread parts lying about, leading to the following:



It's slightly silly, but, I love it. Really happy with the tiny grabbers (bit T-Rex like, but still), and might make a conversion beamer arm as well, just for the sake of it. Going to do underslung flamers and plasma too, I think.

On to characters. First, the big yin himself, Nisk Ran-Thawll:

Really happy with how the helm's turned out, and I'm also fairly chuffed with the combi-plasma at a jaunty, you really are beneath contempt angle. I might add a bit of chain, too, to complete the BT connection. Naturally, he'll be getting a banner, and a cyber owl, hopefully.

And last up, a counts-as Chronus. Love MkIV, and I think the whole "Maximus armour is the apotheosis of tech" fits Mentors, though I really can't justify massive FW expenditure. Sorry for rubbish photo; there was another showing his pack which has a servitor arm attached. I've also done a version of him in a cupola, with wall-e scanner attached to the pintle mount.


On the subject of up-teching, I think I'm going to add more scanners and do-dahs to my tanks. I'm going to be filled with retro jetbike joy, though I'm going to mk8 the riders. I might be weak-willed and get a Master of The Ravenwing to adapt as a counts-as KHAN! (ahem, sorry about that). eBuy here I come...

inmygravenimage wrote:he'll be getting a cyber owl, hopefully.

like in clash of the titans?

Love those dreads... which one is the first one? He's different from my FW venerable..

Gitsplitta wrote:Love those dreads... which one is the first one? He's different from my FW venerable..

I think it might be the chappie dread with a different head...maybe...

inmygravenimage wrote:

This guy? Its the plastic GW kit with some kitbashing. I really like the RW bits on the shoulders, consider that stolen

Colour mr whalemusic correct indeed. Yeah, I wondered how to do incorporate wings, then came up with that. Glad folk like him!


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A follow-up question: which of these feels more conversion beamer-y, in the mind of dakkaites?




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Obviously these are very rough mock-ups...

They're all too skinny... need more Beef!

I agree with gits, they need to be more chunky with pipes. Maybe go with something more like what Hits-The-Spot made for his TS tech marine set.

Out of those three, number 2. But yeah, needs some more gubbins on there

I agree, #2's my favourite. However, to get the look I want, I think I'm just going to have to scratch build one. Oh, sweary words...


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Ok, WIP:

The muzzle, currently, is a bit of a metal head off an old titan; not convinced, and makes it over balance. Looking at pics on t'internet, I think I need an exhaust out the back, possibly using barrel from some sort of plasma weapon.

Better my friend, much better...

Well, I'd personally advise an old school needle point for the tip of that conversion beamer, but you could prolly have it coming out of the titan's head, but that's just what I did for my conversion beamer for a certain MotF (which Hits the Spot then telepathically stole, I may add, even though he had no notion of this project of mine)

Ooh, any pics of your motf? Don't see any in your gallery is all.

Well... my camera hasn't exactly been producing usable pictures lately... and the MotF may have taken a seat on the backburner as with 90% of my projects... But I do have a sketch of it!... Minus the needle, which in the real model I have simply put in where the original firing hole was, though it is, of course, a thin needle as in the RT era conversion beamer. Here we are with this:

That's really helpful, actually, and I went on a hunt for hits the spot's too.

So, duly modified:

the pointy bit is recessed inside the cuff (and I now have one very sad looking scalped ork...)

Yeah, looking good now.

That looks much more like a conversion beamer now, though it does look a bit long and unwieldy.

I know it's probably too late, but how about shunting the beamer's barrel backwards a bit so that part of it is showing underneath the shoulder housing and doesn't stick quite so far forwards?

Well as you say, tricky, though cool. I'm going to add some more detailing to it though, so hopefully that'll balance it out.

I know updates are lacking just now btw - frantic week at work + parents a-visiting - will try to get stuff up tomorrow though.

on the blueprint (get it? ultramarine MOTF? I'll go kill myself now.), it reminds me of a psycannon.

you are a silly man shrike! Impending seppuku...

Yikes, nearly a month without an update. Poor show.

Okay, onto the good stuff - well, ish; for some reason, my camera just wasn't behaving itself, still worse for wear from a wedding Saturday:

Current incarnation of the C-Beamer. It's getting there, needs more bits around the muzzle. I'm toying with adding an underslung plasma, as it is for a techmarine dreadnought.

Speaking of which, here's the bad boy himself:

Thanks to bashthebosh (SW dread) and WhaleMusic360 (Ironclad components) for inordinate amount of bits that went into this project.

And a view of... The Claw! (Oo-oo-ooH!)



While we're talking Techmarines and me being a desperate scrounger, thanks to Gitsplitta for this pre-heresy c-beamer:


And with the impending addition of 5 classic jetbikes, I finally had an excuse to buy and convert one of my favourite models, the Master of the Ravenwing:

This guy will be my counts-as Khan/MotF on a bike depending on circumstances. Going to put a c-beamer in place of the plasma underneath, I think. Still need to mount an owl on the front (thanks Lego Harry Potter!)

I'm enjoying making Mentor-ised versions of the codex characters just now; here's Calgar counts-as in regular and spicy flavours:


the aim was to use as many of the same/similar parts as possible; rather pleased with the result. That's a Kantor backpack just visible on #2 - cheers gits! (was a shame to strip it, mind you). #1 has a cut-down heavy bolter backpack for his ammo feed (apols for lack of rear view).

One of my major jobs for this army is to build Vanguard out of Sanguinary Guard. Got a spare jump pack out of a bits buy, and came up with this:


The sg pack in the pack was missing its thruster, so chopped one of a spare marine jump pack and tidied with skull and grey stuff. Natch.

Last up, a couple of devs, just some fun wee conversions:


Pinching Blackhand's awesome helmet idea (cheers also Lennysmash for helm itself!)

And this guy, which a couple of folks had asked to see!



Later peeps,
graven

They look great Graven! Excellent work.