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ArbitorIan's FORCES OF THE IMPERIUM

So, this started out as my Adeptus Arbites blog, and is still largely Arbites-based. It tracks the first repaint of my army, and the one I'm currently doing. However, I've expanded it to include all sorts of Imperial forces, mostly because I have so many ready to go - most of which have been languishing in storage for ages. None of these are neccesarily a 'big' army - though some could be an army on their own. I'm gonna put them all in this P&M blog, as a counterpart to my (already massive) FORCES OF CHAOS blog (https://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/426461.page).

This should, at some point, include Adeptus Arbites, Inquisition, Assassins, Adeptus Custodes, some Ultramarines, a squadron of Attilan Rough Riders, some random IG, maybe the odd Squat, and loads more.





Table of Contents

Pg1 - First patrol squads - InstaMold cases - InstaMold heads & shoulderpads - First biker conversion
Pg2 - More patrol squads - Shock team conversions - First (small) group shot
Pg3 - Complete biker squad - Repressor frontplate build & mold - Battle report pics - First repressor painted
Pg4 - Repaint and conversion of repressors, sentinels and exorcists
Pg5 - SoB list reboot - Boltgun proctor conversions - Dominion squads - Confessor Kyrinov counts-as
Pg6 - Uriah Jacobus counts-as - Immolators/Castigators
Pg7 - Interdiction Team 'Seraphim' counts-as - Cyberhounds
Pg8 - Vehicle repainting - Vehicle Riot Shield conversions - Throne of Judgement started
Pg9 - Vehicle repainting/new decals
Pg10 - Battle Report links - v1 Arbites Codex - Riot/Suppression Shield conversions, Psy-Marshal

There's indeed a gap in between the two!! I'm curious to see how this will turn out...

On another aspect, what are the main points of the BOLS Codex?

Yggdrasil wrote:There's indeed a gap in between the two!! I'm curious to see how this will turn out... On another aspect, what are the main points of the BOLS Codex?

Thanks!

The BOLS Codex is at http://www.belloflostsouls.net/2008/11/play-aid-adeptus-arbites-mini-dex-from.html

Basically, it has all the basic Arbites choices (shock teams, bikes, sentinels, basic guys) but no huge, overpowered choices. They make the army competitive by some interesting special rules and weapons - Gas grenades, Executioner rounds, Power/Shock Mauls are poisoned weapons rather than power weapons. The army then works on a 'reinforcements' theme. Only half the army may set up on turn one, and only Troops and HQ. Every other unit arrives from Reserve. However, many of these units can choose which board edge they enter on.

I've also got a couple of photos of the first five...

Looking good, definitely an improvement over the old guys.

Great liking the leather coats. What are you planning to take in the army if you don't mind me asking?

Llamahead wrote:Great liking the leather coats. What are you planning to take in the army if you don't mind me asking?

For now, I'm going to concentrate on some of the WH units, because I'll be using this as a WH army in the tournament. The list isn't set, but should looks something like this - it's 1500pts and I still have 20 or so to spend on upgrades. The Repressors will be used for the two Shock Teams.

* High Judge on Throne of Judgement (Karamazov)

* Arbitor Shock Team (Inquisitor with PW/Rosarius, 3 Crusaders, 2 Acolytes with Shotguns, 1 Familiar (Cybermastiff))
* Arbitor Shock Team (Inquisitor with PW/Rosarius, 3 Crusaders, 2 Acolytes with Shotguns, 1 Familiar (Cybermastiff))
* Arbites Sniper Operative (Vindicare Assassin)

* Arbites Combat Team [x10] with Bolters and 2 Meltaguns (Battle Sisters) in a Repressor
* Arbites Patrol Team [x10] with Shotguns and 2 Grenade Launchers (Inq. Stormtroopers)
* Arbites Patrol Team [x10] with Shotguns and 2 Grenade Launchers (Inq. Stormtroopers)

* Arbites Support Team [x5] with Bolters and 2 MultiMeltas (Retributors) in a Repressor
* Exorcist
* Exorcist

Like the bases alot Arbitorian. I like brown trenchcoat on the Judge makes him look like Deckard...

Oooh, Arbites. Colour me interested Ian, I'll be keeping an eye on this one.

And months later..... I finally do some more!

I've been painting bases. I've amassed quite the horde of different paved bases.



And I've been doing some conversions with some of the Chaos Marauder heads, seeing if I can come up with some suitable arbites-y ones. I picked up some Judge Dredd models from Salute, and I want to do some head swaps to make them fit. They'll also be useful for my Arbites Bikes.

I've chopped the horns off, added some greenstuff to make the facemask more accurate, and then used an old aquila as a headdress. I've got various Aquila bits on order from Bits&Kits for the next batch...

The first squad complete!

These guys include one of the Necromunda Enforcer heavy stubbers. The rest are the 2ed Arbites. Sentinels up next!

Very nice work as always sir.

Did you make those bases?

Look forward to the next update.

Pretty awesome to see devotees to arbites, Keep it up!

Medium of Death wrote:Very nice work as always sir.

Did you make those bases?

Look forward to the next update.

Thanks!

The 25mm bases shown above are the Forgecraft Games waterworks range - the bits that I've painted grey are actually intended to be water. I got them for the tiles, really.

The 60mm ones with the bigger tiles are from a different supplier - I bought a load cheap at Salute this year. I'll dig out one of the packets when I'm back at home and post the manufacturer.

Great to see you back in the game sir!
The stubber thing in final pic - I have a spare if you want another (always wondered what it was). Anyway, roll-on more updates!

inmygravenimage wrote:Great to see you back in the game sir!
The stubber thing in final pic - I have a spare if you want another (always wondered what it was). Anyway, roll-on more updates!

Sorry for the delay! An extra stubber would be lovely - I could attempt to convert one of the regular arbites into a flashlight-headed stubber guy.

I AM make progress, I'm just doing it in bits. The other week I managed to get twenty bases done on one work trip, and now I'm away in Chichester getting the guys done to go on them. Here's a load of retouched arbites awaiting rebasing and finishing when I get back home.

So - progress had been made again - and this time I've been experimenting with casting!

First of all, I had a bit of a painting spree in Chichester the past week, and managed to paint up another two squads. A third squad is almost complete, and then I have to paint their three proctors. Once that is done I'll get some proper squad pics, but for now...



These guys were based with the Wargames Tournaments paved bases that I picked up at Salute, but now I've gone to their website and looked to order more I can't see any bases on there! http://wargamestournaments.com/

Anyway, my next project was going to be some Arbites bikes! I bought six scout bikes and started to build, but couldn't find any similarly paved resin bike bases. So, I picked up some of the new Instant Mold stuff from Darksphere on my way back to London and had a go at making a mold from one of my 60mm bases.





This was my first experience of casting and it was incredibly simple - the Instant Mold really is amazing. You just soak it in hot water for a few minutes until it goes soft, then squish it onto the part you want to copy. It cools in about ten minutes, and then you put some green stuff inside it and make your first castings - no release agent, no mixing, easy!

I was so impressed I decided to try it on some more complex parts, and had a go at casting up some Arbites shoulder pads and helmets.




These were a little more difficult - especially the heads. The casting is easy, it's just difficult to get the green stuff into the mold without trapping air in there too. However, the results are pretty good, and will be fine with a little smoothing and GS love. Here's the first biker - made from a SM Scout Biker kit, cadian torso, and GS cast head and shoulder pad.




So there we go - I'm now casting up enough for the whole squad!

yeah,
woooh that instamolded base looks really good!
I can't tell how good the shoulder pad is but the helmet looks ace.
and those bikes look like the right scale to have popped out of a production line in mega city one!
maybe you should get one of these bikes to copy the front plate!?

How many points are you up to of redone arbites?
Maybe we should set a dead line to get to 1000pts for arbites vs dark eldar?

Panic..

Yay! Arbites!

I sold off most of my Arbites army and re-painted the rest for my Imperial Guard quite a while ago, but am always delighted to see others doing the Emperor's Enforcers.

I don't know where you live in the London, but the Overlords have a project going at http://thecodexproject.com to develop an Arbites codex.

I helped with playtesting the BOLS codex and, although it was balanced and workable, I never felt that it really captured the distinctive play style that the Arbites needed. the guys at the Overlords are working pretty slowly on theirs, and there's a lot of streamlining that needs to be done, but the essence of the rules and the play-style of the army is much more distinctive.

R.

Panic wrote:yeah,
woooh that instamolded base looks really good!
I can't tell how good the shoulder pad is but the helmet looks ace.

The shoulder pad is actually better than the helmet - the faceplate has a bit of distortion on the other side, but nothing that can't be fixed with greenstuff. With the base, it's a bit difficult to press mold that size of GS without getting air bubbles, but thankfully they actually look like completely believable cracks and chips in the paving!

Panic wrote:maybe you should get one of these bikes to copy the front plate!?

I have a spare one of those anyway! Once the squad is done, maybe it's time for a Judge On Bike conversion.

Panic wrote:How many points are you up to of redone arbites? Maybe we should set a dead line to get to 1000pts for arbites vs dark eldar?

If I can get finished the stuff I've already started on, 1000 should be fine. And that's without any vehicles (which I haven't started repainting yet!) Maybe end of next week?


Automatically Appended Next Post:

precinctomega wrote:I don't know where you live in the London, but the Overlords have a project going at http://thecodexproject.com to develop an Arbites codex.

I helped with playtesting the BOLS codex and, although it was balanced and workable, I never felt that it really captured the distinctive play style that the Arbites needed. the guys at the Overlords are working pretty slowly on theirs, and there's a lot of streamlining that needs to be done, but the essence of the rules and the play-style of the army is much more distinctive.

Thanks - I'm in East London, and have actually visited the Overlord a couple of times. I took a look at their in=progress codex, but I wasn't that impressed. A lot of the options seemed very wishlist-y - I like the sparseness of the BOLS codex, and the face that the army it creates is very specialised. With the overlords one, i find that you end up with an army that doesn't really have any big disadvantages - they've added a unit that does every job. On the other hand, I like the idea of a lead judge being called Rumpole....

Either way, I'm going to have to re-think it slightly in a few months when this WD Witchhunters one is released!

Wow: that is some outstanding work amigo. I shall have to get casting myself now - curse you and your wretched inspiration! Incidentally, if you still want that stubber and/or aquillae, pm me.

inmygravenimage wrote:Wow: that is some outstanding work amigo. I shall have to get casting myself now - curse you and your wretched inspiration! Incidentally, if you still want that stubber and/or aquillae, pm me.

Thanks very much - yes, this casting stuff has worked out quite nicely...

PM Sent

Here's some more progress on the bike bases - four done so far...!

Awesome arbites dude, very unique army.

That Instant mould looks like great stuff. I have a vague plan to do an Arbites squad using Wargames Factory Great Coats and West Wind pickelhaube heads as a squad in my Coteaz list....

I love the Arbitrator bikes, so "Judge Dredd"!!!

And the casts look really nice too! Not only the bases, but also the head & shoulder pads! Impressing!

Llamahead wrote:That Instant mould looks like great stuff. I have a vague plan to do an Arbites squad using Wargames Factory Great Coats and West Wind pickelhaube heads as a squad in my Coteaz list....

It's really useful - I'd thoroughly recommend it to anyone who wants to do simple casting.

Yggdrasil wrote:I love the Arbitrator bikes, so "Judge Dredd"!!!

Thanks - and, as I posted before, I have some Judge Dredd miniatures that I'm planning to convert up as Proctors and Marshalls. Some of these ones...

So, more enforcers arrived this morning. Interesting changes to the set which GW don't show you on their website (which now only has one picture on it).

The set contains 1 x Leader, 1 x Heavy with Stubber, 1 x Cyber-Mastiff and 6 x Enforcers, plus weapon options for 1 x Power Maul & Supression Shield, 1 x Special Weapon Sprue (Plasma, Flamer, Grenade Launcher), 1 x Hand Weapon Sprue (Laspistol, Boltpistol, Plasma Pistol, Grenade, Power Maul) and 2 x Basic Weapon Sprues (Boltgun, Shotgun).

Strangely, you don't get a Cyber-Mastiff Handler in the set any more, but this isn't listed on the website either. Both packs contain one more regular Enforcer than listed on the site, though. It's all fine by me (I need regular Enforcers more than i need character models), but just a bit different from how the set used to be.

Anyway, with all the price rises, the £20.50 price tag (for 9 models and a ton of weapons) is actually quite good value, when compared to the current plastic sets!



In addition, I've taken Panic's suggestion, and I'm going to make up a Judge on a bike as a potential leader, with the front fairing from this model...



However, I'm having trouble thinking of an overcoat-wearing mounted model to use as a base for the conversion. My only thought is a Ravenwing Sergeant, but then he's have power armour legs poking out (and a robe isn't really the same thing as a greatcoat). Can anyone think of anything? Even a warhammer mounted model would do....?

What about the DKoK rough rider models from Forgeworld, though that is a rather expensive option.

I really have to buy a set of those Enforcers... Wish they weren't metal...

As for the biker Judge, I don't think you'll find a best solution than a Ravenwing body... And a judge could have some heavier shin guards than his men? As for the "greatcoat" thing, it'll probably be easier from that mini too...

Sorry for not being of a great help, uh...

nice! I hesitated buying that insta-mold stuff, definitely picking some up now! you do quality work, man

How about using Junker legs from Void? The plastic ones, with gs'd coat tails? They're very wide spread (I use them on rough riders, for instance) - you just need to reposition the feet slightly.